Twelfth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Catechism Links [1]

 
CCC 852: The Spirit of Christ sustains the Christian mission
CCC 905: Evangelizing by the example of life
CCC 1808, 1816: Courageous witness of faith overcomes fear and death
CCC 2471-2474: Bear witness to the truth
CCC 359, 402-411, 615: Adam, Original Sin, Christ the New Adam

“Landscape with Christ and His Disciples”
by Francisque Millet, c. 1660

Readings for the Twelfth Sunday in Ordinary Time [2]
 
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible [3]
 
Readings and Commentary: [4]
 
Reading 1: Jeremiah 20:10-13
 
I hear the whisperings of many:
"Terror on every side!
Denounce! let us denounce him!"
All those who were my friends
are on the watch for any misstep of mine.
"Perhaps he will be trapped; then we can prevail,
and take our vengeance on him."
But the LORD is with me, like a mighty champion:
my persecutors will stumble, they will not triumph.
In their failure they will be put to utter shame,
to lasting, unforgettable confusion.
O LORD of hosts, you who test the just,
who probe mind and heart,
Let me witness the vengeance you take on them,
for to you I have entrusted my cause.
Sing to the LORD,
praise the LORD,
For he has rescued the life of the poor
from the power of the wicked!
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Commentary on Jer 20:10-13
 
Jeremiah is near despair as the plots of his family and friends are fomented against him. We can clearly hear the fear in his voice (“All those who were my friends are on the watch for any misstep of mine”). Yet, in spite of his dire situation, he trusts that God will support him. Indeed, he is hoping that God will not only save him but will punish those who plot against him.
 
This is a typical Old Testament understanding of the God of Justice, who visits his wrath on the enemies of the faithful. We see also an interesting observation about the path of the faithful: “O Lord of hosts, you who test the just, who probe mind and heart,” implying that the path of faithfulness is always difficult.
 
CCC: Jer 20:7-18 2584
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 69:8-10, 14, 17, 33-35
 
R. (14c) Lord, in your great love, answer me.
 
For your sake I bear insult,
and shame covers my face.
I have become an outcast to my brothers,
a stranger to my children,
Because zeal for your house consumes me,
and the insults of those who blaspheme you fall upon me.
R. Lord, in your great love, answer me.
 
I pray to you, O Lord,
for the time of your favor, O God!
In your great kindness answer me
with your constant help.
Answer me, O Lord, for bounteous is your kindness;
in your great mercy turn toward me.
R. Lord, in your great love, answer me.
 
“See, you lowly ones, and be glad;
you who seek God, may your hearts revive!
For the Lord hears the poor,
and his own who are in bonds he spurns not.
Let the heavens and the earth praise him,
the seas and whatever moves in them!"
R. Lord, in your great love, answer me.
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Commentary on Ps 69:8-10, 14, 17, 33-35
 
Psalm 69 is an individual lament. The psalmist sings of great trials and perils, describing the singer’s dire situation. Faith and hope in the Lord, says the song, sustains those in need. It draws heavily on the image of the faithful servant who suffers but remains dedicated to God’s law and works. Even in the face of this intense social embarrassment, the psalmist must be faithful because “zeal for your house consumes me, and the insults of those who blaspheme you fall upon me.” The imagery in this song forces us to look forward to the passion, as Christ’s punishment is prophetically envisioned.
 
CCC: Ps 69:10 584
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Reading 2: Romans 5:12-15
 
Brothers and sisters:
Through one man sin entered the world,
and through sin, death,
and thus death came to all men, inasmuch as all sinned—
for up to the time of the law, sin was in the world,
though sin is not accounted when there is no law.
But death reigned from Adam to Moses,
even over those who did not sin
after the pattern of the trespass of Adam,
who is the type of the one who was to come.
 
But the gift is not like the transgression.
For if by the transgression of the one the many died,
how much more did the grace of God
and the gracious gift of the one man Jesus Christ
overflow for the many.
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Commentary on Rom 5:12-15
 
St. Paul has just concluded a description of the sin of Adam, the “original sin.” Though this action, says St. Paul, sin entered the world; although before the Law of Moses, sin was not defined and therefore “sin is not accounted when there is no law.” Nevertheless, even though sin was not defined before Moses, “death reigned from Adam to Moses” (sin is sin even when unnamed).
 
St. Paul continues describing how through one man, Adam, sin entered the world. But the mercy of God was even greater in providing Jesus, his Son, the “New Adam,” through whom all sins were forgiven in his one heroic sacrifice of atonement.
 
"We believe that in Adam all have sinned. From this it follows that, on account of the original offense committed by him, human nature, which is common to all men, is reduced to that condition in which it must suffer the consequences of that Fall [...]. Consequently, fallen human nature is deprived of the economy of grace which it formerly enjoyed. It is wounded in its natural powers and subjected to the dominion of death which is transmitted to all men. It is in this sense that every man is born in sin. We hold, therefore, in accordance with the Council of Trent, that Original Sin is transmitted along with human nature, ‘not by imitation but by propagation,’ and is, therefore, incurred by each person individually." [5]
 
CCC: Rom 5:12-21 388; Rom 5:12 400, 402, 602, 612, 1008
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Gospel: Matthew 10:26-33
 
Jesus said to the Twelve:
“Fear no one.
Nothing is concealed that will not be revealed,
nor secret that will not be known.
What I say to you in the darkness, speak in the light;
what you hear whispered, proclaim on the housetops.
And do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul;
rather, be afraid of the one who can destroy
both soul and body in Gehenna.
Are not two sparrows sold for a small coin?
Yet not one of them falls to the ground without your Father’s knowledge.
Even all the hairs of your head are counted.
So do not be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.
Everyone who acknowledges me before others
I will acknowledge before my heavenly Father.
But whoever denies me before others,
I will deny before my heavenly Father.”
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Commentary on Mt 10:26-33
 
Jesus concludes his instructions to the apostles as he sends them out. Here he tells them that they go with his authority and his purpose which may be hidden from others but which they will proclaim from “the housetops.” He tells them not to fear the persecution he has told them they will face, because while the body may be killed, their souls are safe with him. He concludes this passage telling them that the Father is watching over them and they have nothing to fear.
 
“Jesus’ command to his disciples 'not to fear men' is not only a personal encouragement privately given by a teacher to his helping followers.  It is important to see this whole passage or election, instruction, and sending forth in the context of God’s choosing of prophets for himself, to do his work in the world. What might be called the 'subtext' of this passage is the divinity of Christ Jesus, the incarnate Word of the Father, active in history and performing sovereign actions that only God himself performed in the Old Testament.” [6]
 
CCC: Mt 10:28 363, 1034; Mt 10:29-31 305; Mt 10:32-33 1816; Mt 10:32 14, 2145
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Reflection:
 
How many times in movies have we heard the phrase: “Don’t look down!”  We picture the scene: A person is on a rickety ladder or an unstable scaffold spanning a deadly drop.  The novice is petrified and cannot move, staring down to almost certain death.  And behind them, the calm hero or heroine says: “Don’t look down.”  “Look up,” or “look ahead.” The Lord is telling his disciples that they will face resistance and persecution when they go out on the mission to which they are being sent.
 
The Gospel tells of the Lord’s calm assurance as he sends his friends out upon the mission upon which he was also sent.  We suspect that, while his disciples were not fully trained rabbis, they had a good background in Mosaic Law and the prophets.  They would have been familiar with the stories of how the great prophetic figures (like Jeremiah in the first reading) had been attacked and persecuted.  They would have known that in many cases this persecution led even to death. 
 
In the Gospel the Lord tells them that they are correct.  The mission upon which he is sending them will be difficult.  There will be persecution and attacks, even from the people he is sending them to help. Then Jesus tells them: “Don’t look down.”  In a very real sense, he tells them to look up.  Look up in faith to God the Father.  Your spirit is safe in his loving hands.
 
Paul defines the difference between the soul before Christ’s sacrifice and after.  He reminds us that these disciples, who are being sent into harm’s way, may be in physical danger, but because Jesus opens the gates of heaven, slammed shut in Adam’s “Original Sin,” they are safe from death in the eternal life promised by God and guaranteed by the sacrifice of his Only Begotten Son.
 
Because the Lord has not yet fulfilled that part of his mission, the disciples must accept on faith that what the Lord is promising, he will fulfill.
 
The message for us in Scripture is very clear.  First, through our baptism in which we had the sin of the first Adam washed away, we received the blessing of the New Adam, Jesus, who provides us with what we could call “eternal life insurance.”  It is our safety net.  Like those first friends of his, we are sent into a world that does not want to hear the message of the Kingdom of Heaven.  Like those first disciples we will face persecution for our beliefs and likely even attacks as the secular world becomes ever more unaccepting of the truth Christianity offers.
 
If we hear this message to boldly go out and proclaim the Good News with our words and actions and become afraid, the Lord whispers in our ear: “Don’t be afraid.  Don’t look down.  Look up.”  That is how we are encouraged today.  We are sent, and we are given food for the journey that allows us to go out knowing the Lord is with us.
 
Pax
 
In other years on this date: Memorial of Saint Aloysius Gonzaga, Religious

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[1] Catechism links are taken from the Homiletic Directory, published by the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, 29 June 2014.
[2] The picture used is “Landscape with Christ and His Disciples” by Francisque Millet, c. 1660.
[3] S.S. Commemoratio
[4] The readings are taken from the New American Bible, with the exception of the psalm and its response which were developed by the International Committee for English in Liturgy (ICEL). This republication is not authorized by USCCB and is for private use only.
[5] "Creed of the People of God,” 16, St. Paul VI, Pope.
[6] Erasmo Leiva-Merikakis, Fire of Mercy Heart of the Word Volume I (Ignatius Press, San Francisco, CA, © 1996), 577.

Saturday of the Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time

Optional Memorial of the Blessed Virgin Mary

 
On Saturdays in Ordinary Time when there is no obligatory memorial, an optional memorial of the Blessed Virgin Mary is allowed.[1] Mass texts may be taken from the Common of the Blessed Virgin Mary, from a Votive Mass, or from the special collection of Masses for the Blessed Virgin Mary. Suggested for this date: # 35 The Blessed Virgin Mary, Pillar of Faith

“The Worship of Mammon”
by Evelyn De Morgan, 1909

Readings for Saturday of the Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time [2]
 
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible [3]
 
Readings and Commentary: [4]
 
Reading 1: 2 Chronicles 24:17-25
 
After the death of Jehoiada,
the princes of Judah came and paid homage to King Joash,
and the king then listened to them.
They forsook the temple of the Lord, the God of their fathers,
and began to serve the sacred poles and the idols;
and because of this crime of theirs,
wrath came upon Judah and Jerusalem.
Although prophets were sent to them to convert them to the Lord,
the people would not listen to their warnings.
Then the Spirit of God possessed Zechariah,
son of Jehoiada the priest.
He took his stand above the people and said to them:
“God says, ‘Why are you transgressing the Lord’s commands,
so that you cannot prosper?
Because you have abandoned the Lord, he has abandoned you.’”
But they conspired against him,
and at the king’s order they stoned him to death
in the court of the Lord’s temple.
Thus King Joash was unmindful of the devotion shown him
by Jehoiada, Zechariah’s father, and slew his son.
And as Zechariah was dying, he said, “May the Lord see and avenge.”
 
At the turn of the year a force of Arameans came up against Joash.
They invaded Judah and Jerusalem,
did away with all the princes of the people,
and sent all their spoil to the king of Damascus.
Though the Aramean force came with few men,
the Lord surrendered a very large force into their power,
because Judah had abandoned the Lord, the God of their fathers.
So punishment was meted out to Joash.
After the Arameans had departed from him,
leaving him in grievous suffering,
his servants conspired against him
because of the murder of the son of Jehoiada the priest.
He was buried in the City of David,
but not in the tombs of the kings.
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Commentary on 2 Chr 24:17-25
 
King Joash does not direct the people to worship God, but embraces idol worship, and disregards the prophets sent to him.  Then Zechariah, emboldened by God’s spirit, rises and challenges King Joash and the people, telling them that unless they turn back to God, they will be punished.  The king, even though he owed his own life to Zechariah’s father, Jehoiada (see 2 Kings 11:4-17), had Zechariah murdered. (This event is referenced by Jesus, speaking about the Jews ignoring and killing prophets in Luke 11:51, although there is some confusion over this because of Matthew 23:35, where Zechariah is identified as “son of Barachiah” the minor prophet. See Zechariah 1:1.)
 
The actions of the king and the people are seen to be avenged by God through the Arameans.  The chronicler records that a small force later attacks Judah, and inexplicably defeats the much larger army of Judah. They then proceed to kill the king and his court, not according him the honor of his kingship.
 
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 89:4-5, 29-30, 31-32, 33-34
 
R. (29a) For ever I will maintain my love for my servant.
 
“I have made a covenant with my chosen one,
I have sworn to David my servant:
Forever will I confirm your posterity
and establish your throne for all generations.”
R. For ever I will maintain my love for my servant.
 
“Forever I will maintain my kindness toward him,
and my covenant with him stands firm.
I will make his posterity endure forever
and his throne as the days of heaven.”
R. For ever I will maintain my love for my servant.
 
“If his sons forsake my law
and walk not according to my ordinances,
If they violate my statutes
and keep not my commands.”
R. For ever I will maintain my love for my servant.
 
“I will punish their crime with a rod
and their guilt with stripes.
Yet my mercy I will not take from him,
nor will I belie my faithfulness.”
R. For ever I will maintain my love for my servant.
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Commentary on Ps 89:4-5, 29-30, 31-32, 33-34
 
Psalm 89 is a communal lament sung after the defeat of the Davidic king. Because defeat calls into question God’s promise, made in the strophes cited here wherein God promised David’s throne to stand forever, the community asks God to remember his promise.
 
CCC: Ps 89 709
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Gospel: Matthew 6:24-34
 
Jesus said to his disciples:
“No one can serve two masters.
He will either hate one and love the other,
or be devoted to one and despise the other.
You cannot serve God and mammon.
 
“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life,
what you will eat or drink,
or about your body, what you will wear.
Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing?
Look at the birds in the sky;
they do not sow or reap, they gather nothing into barns,
yet your heavenly Father feeds them.
 
Are not you more important than they?
Can any of you by worrying add a single moment to your life-span?
Why are you anxious about clothes?
Learn from the way the wild flowers grow.
They do not work or spin.
But I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor
was clothed like one of them.
If God so clothes the grass of the field,
which grows today and is thrown into the oven tomorrow,
will he not much more provide for you, O you of little faith?
So do not worry and say, ‘What are we to eat?’
or ‘What are we to drink?’ or ‘What are we to wear?’
All these things the pagans seek.
Your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.
But seek first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given you besides.
Do not worry about tomorrow; tomorrow will take care of itself.
Sufficient for a day is its own evil.”
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Commentary on Mt 6:24-34
 
Jesus continues his Sermon on the Mount being very clear about what must be placed first in the life of his disciples. Here the word mammon is used, an Aramaic word meaning wealth. The Lord does not deny that people need the physical things of the world (i.e., food, clothing, and water), but tells them that, if they have faith in God and pursue the things of God’s kingdom, the heavenly Father will provide for them. He goes further to say that, if they are constantly focused on material goods, they will not extend their lives even a little.
 
“This passage, like the preceding one, stresses the importance of undistracted, absolute discipleship. The key to avoiding anxiety [achieving peace] is to make the kingdom one’s priority (v 33). The disciples have a ‘heavenly Father’ who knows of their ongoing needs and who will supply them.” [5]
 
CCC: Mt 6:24 2113, 2424, 2729, 2821, 2848; Mt 6:25-34 2547, 2830; Mt 6:25 2608; Mt 6:26-34 322; Mt 6:26 2416; Mt 6:31-33 305; Mt 6:32 270; Mt 6:33 1942, 2604, 2608, 2632; Mt 6:34 2659, 2836
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Reflection:
 
The sacred history of God’s involvement with mankind repeatedly demonstrates the lesson Jesus tries to teach in the selection proclaimed from the Sermon on the Mount. People who place physical wealth and power first in their lives perish with it. Those who worship the idols of avarice and greed, ignoring God, who created all things, find only dust at the end of their earthly lives.
 
We see the historical evidence of this warning played out in the reading from Second Book of Chronicles. King Joash, who himself was rescued from the tyranny of a predecessor (ironically kept hidden and safe in the temple for six years by a priest, the father of Zechariah, whom he had killed for calling the people to return to authentic worship) is punished for his idol worship. Like so many stories related in the historical books of the Bible (1 & 2 Kings and 1 & 2 Chronicles), leaders who allow or encourage the people to turn away and forget that the one true God created them, offers them peace, and asks only for obedience and love, find that destruction follows their disobedience.
 
Jesus, who is trying desperately to show the people the depth of God’s love, tells the disciples and those with them that loving wealth, power, and material goods leaves the soul empty. What comfort and consolation does a bar of gold give when one is frightened or ill? What strength does a mansion of bricks and mortar give when our mortal shell begins to fail? What genuine love is received from hirelings paid to serve?
 
It is only in the Lord, whose love for us is unimaginable, that comfort, consolation, and strength may be found and anxiety avoided. It is only strength of spirit, bolstered by the indwelling Holy Spirit, that allows us to look into the eye of defeated death, and walk forward unafraid.
 
As disciples of the Lord, we are reminded once more that our energy and focus in life must be to embrace the spiritual treasure that the Lord offers us. It is by prizing him above all else that this treasure is accumulated. We pray today that our minds constantly flow to Jesus who, with the Father, and the Holy Spirit, is the author of our creation.
 
Pax

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[1] Obligatory Memorial or higher, a Mass in honor of the Blessed Virgin Mary may be celebrated. This is indicated in the calendar by “BVM.” The readings and prayers may be selected from the Collection of Masses of the Blessed Virgin Mary.”
[2] The picture is “The Worship of Mammon” by Evelyn De Morgan, 1909.
[3] S.S. Commemoratio
[4] The readings are taken from the New American Bible with the exception of the Psalm and its response which were developed by the International Committee for English in Liturgy (ICEL). This republication is not authorized by USCCB and is for private use only.
[5] Donald A. Hagner, Matthew 1–13, Word Biblical Commentary, vol. 33A, (Dallas: Word, Incorporated, 1993), 166.

Friday of the Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time

“Proclaiming Joash King”
by Edward Bird, c. 1815

Readings for Friday of the Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time [1]
 
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible [2]
 
Readings and Commentary: [3]
 
Reading 1: 2 Kings 11:1-4, 9-18, 20
 
When Athaliah, the mother of Ahaziah,
saw that her son was dead,
she began to kill off the whole royal family.
But Jehosheba, daughter of King Jehoram and sister of Ahaziah,
took Joash, his son, and spirited him away, along with his nurse,
from the bedroom where the princes were about to be slain.
She concealed him from Athaliah, and so he did not die.
For six years he remained hidden in the temple of the Lord,
while Athaliah ruled the land.
 
But in the seventh year,
Jehoiada summoned the captains of the Carians
and of the guards.
He had them come to him in the temple of the Lord,
exacted from them a sworn commitment,
and then showed them the king’s son.
 
The captains did just as Jehoiada the priest commanded.
Each one with his men, both those going on duty for the sabbath
and those going off duty that week,
came to Jehoiada the priest.
He gave the captains King David’s spears and shields,
which were in the temple of the Lord.
And the guards, with drawn weapons,
lined up from the southern to the northern limit of the enclosure,
surrounding the altar and the temple on the king’s behalf.
Then Jehoiada led out the king’s son
and put the crown and the insignia upon him.
They proclaimed him king and anointed him,
clapping their hands and shouting, “Long live the king!”
 
Athaliah heard the noise made by the people,
and appeared before them in the temple of the Lord.
When she saw the king standing by the pillar, as was the custom,
and the captains and trumpeters near him,
with all the people of the land rejoicing and blowing trumpets,
she tore her garments and cried out,
“Treason, treason!”
Then Jehoiada the priest instructed the captains
in command of the force:
“Bring her outside through the ranks.
If anyone follows her,” he added, “let him die by the sword.”
He had given orders that she
should not be slain in the temple of the Lord.
She was led out forcibly to the horse gate of the royal palace,
where she was put to death.
 
Then Jehoiada made a covenant between the Lord as one party
and the king and the people as the other,
by which they would be the Lord’s people;
and another covenant, between the king and the people.
Thereupon all the people of the land went to the temple of Baal
and demolished it.
They shattered its altars and images completely,
and slew Mattan, the priest of Baal, before the altars.
Jehoiada appointed a detachment for the temple of the Lord.
All the people of the land rejoiced and the city was quiet,
now that Athaliah had been slain with the sword
at the royal palace.
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Commentary on 2 Kgs 11:1-4, 9-18, 20
 
This story of the succession of the kingship of Israel to King Joash begins with the fulfillment of the prophecy that the house of the sons of King Ahaziah would suffer God’s wrath. We see in the beginning of this story Athaliah, the mother of Ahaziah learning of her son’s death. He was in fact a prince of Judah (see 2 Chronicles 22:9ff) killed by Jehu. This action sets off the sequence of events that ends with the rightful king, Joash, installed, and the return of Israel to faithful worship, and another suppression of Baal worship. (Note: Baal was not a single god but had many guises depending upon the region. In Holy Writ the various forms are not usually distinguished.)
 
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 132:11, 12, 13-14, 17-18
R. (13) The Lord has chosen Zion for his dwelling.
 
The Lord swore to David
a firm promise from which he will not withdraw:
“Your own offspring
I will set upon your throne.”
R. The Lord has chosen Zion for his dwelling.
 
“If your sons keep my covenant
and the decrees which I shall teach them,
Their sons, too, forever
shall sit upon your throne.”
R. The Lord has chosen Zion for his dwelling.
 
For the Lord has chosen Zion;
he prefers her for his dwelling.
“Zion is my resting place forever;
in her will I dwell, for I prefer her.”
R. The Lord has chosen Zion for his dwelling.
 
“In her will I make a horn to sprout forth for David;
I will place a lamp for my anointed.
His enemies I will clothe with shame,
but upon him my crown shall shine.”
R. The Lord has chosen Zion for his dwelling.
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Commentary on Ps 132:11, 12, 13-14, 17-18
 
Psalm 132 is a song of thanksgiving sung by the community as they remember the establishment of God’s salvation expressed in the Davidic Dynasty. The promise of God is fulfilled in Jesus, the fruit of Mary's womb, the Messiah, who comes from the house of David to rule forever.
 
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Gospel: Matthew 6:19-23
 
Jesus said to his disciples:
“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth,
where moth and decay destroy, and thieves break in and steal.
But store up treasures in heaven,
where neither moth nor decay destroys, nor thieves break in and steal.
For where your treasure is, there also will your heart be.
 
“The lamp of the body is the eye.
If your eye is sound, your whole body will be filled with light;
but if your eye is bad, your whole body will be in darkness.
And if the light in you is darkness, how great will the darkness be.”
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Commentary on Mt 6:19-23
 
Jesus concludes his sermon with a caution about placing importance on “treasures on earth.” In this context, St. Matthew’s Gospel also recalls the Lord’s analogy of faith being light, using it as a symbol of seeking one’s desires. Here we see that if what we seek is of darkness (material wealth), as contrasted with seeking the light (spiritual wealth), how dark will that spirit inside us be?
 
The passage weaves in imagery used in the preceding text of the Gospel.  The moth and the rust “disfigure and make unrecognizable” their subjects, an image used earlier (Matthew 6:1-2) to describe the fasting hypocrites who disfigure their faces.  The thieves on earth are said to dig through walls to steal your treasure (using the Greek verb) reminding us of the storeroom in the middle of the house where no thief can come; and finally he constantly reminds us to store up “treasures in heaven,” God’s storeroom which by inference is also that “secret inner chamber of the heart.”
 
“All of this powerfully reminds us that the Gospel, far from being a blueprint for any particular kind of action in the world, is above all the furnace where Christ transforms the heart and mind of man.” [4]
 
CCC: Mt 6:21 368, 2533, 2551, 2604, 2608, 2729, 2848
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Reflection:
 
As we grow older, our view of time changes. We have heard many times how a brush with death causes a person to come to grips with his or her own mortality. Yet, for the most part, we go through our lives thinking in terms of tomorrow, next week, next month, or on rare occasions, next year. It seems the furthest out we seem to go is when we are looking at retirement, and what kind of stability we can provide for ourselves. With the current crop of “baby boomers” coming to retirement age, we hear more and more about 401(k)s, retirement planning, and how we need to plan so we can enjoy the rewards of the “Golden Years.”
 
One would think, with all this attention paid to retirement planning, a person might think in even longer terms. If we think about it, in the United States today a typical retirement expectation is that a person will retire at around 68 or 70 (some wealthier might even retire at 55). With current life expectations, that means that the “Golden Years” may last for 20-40 years at the longest. At the end of that time, another phase in our lives begins – eternity. Once the body dies, we do not have to worry about things like health insurance and a fixed income. The planning we did for our financial health is now meaningless. What is important at that time is what we planned for by what we did with our lives.
 
That is what Jesus spoke about in the Gospel of St. Matthew. That is what the story from the Second Book of Kings should have reminded us. Only the greatest figures in history are even remembered (who even remembers what was accomplished by some of the kings of Israel?), so out of the six billion people on earth, who are we trying to impress with our wealth, our treasure, our power, our prosperity? Before someone says it, yes, we need to provide for ourselves and our families. Yes, we should use the gifts God gave us to the fullest extent of our abilities. But where is the true treasure? What are we storing up and how do we see the “Golden Years?”
 
Jesus reminds us today that what we need to store up is “treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor decay destroys, nor thieves break in and steal.” We need to come as close to the Lord as we possibly can in terms of our character. That means love of God, love of others, service to all. Our prayer today is that we see our response to the Lord, not just as our duty as Christians, but that it becomes our passion so that like the Lord says: “For where your treasure is, there also will your heart be.”
 
Pax

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[1] The picture used today is “Proclaiming Joash King” by Edward Bird, c. 1815.
[2] S.S. Commemoratio
[3] The readings are taken from the New American Bible with the exception of the Psalm and its response which were developed by the International Committee for English in Liturgy (ICEL). This republication is not authorized by USCCB and is for private use only.
[4] Erasmo Leiva-Merikakis, Fire of Mercy Heart of the Word Volume I (Ignatius Press, San Francisco, CA, © 1996), 272.

Thursday of the Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time

“The Prophet Elisha”
by Giorgio Vasari, c. 1566

 
Readings for Thursday of the Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time [1]
 
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible [2]
 
Readings and Commentary: [3]
 
Reading 1: Sirach 48:1-14
 
Like a fire there appeared the prophet Elijah
whose words were as a flaming furnace.
Their staff of bread he shattered,
in his zeal he reduced them to straits;
By the Lord’s word he shut up the heavens
and three times brought down fire.
How awesome are you, Elijah, in your wondrous deeds!
Whose glory is equal to yours?
You brought a dead man back to life
from the nether world, by the will of the Lord.
You sent kings down to destruction,
and easily broke their power into pieces.
You brought down nobles, from their beds of sickness.
You heard threats at Sinai,
at Horeb avenging judgments.
You anointed kings who should inflict vengeance,
and a prophet as your successor.
You were taken aloft in a whirlwind of fire,
in a chariot with fiery horses.
You were destined, it is written, in time to come
to put an end to wrath before the day of the Lord,
To turn back the hearts of fathers toward their sons,
and to re-establish the tribes of Jacob.
Blessed is he who shall have seen you
And who falls asleep in your friendship.
For we live only in our life,
but after death our name will not be such.
O Elijah, enveloped in the whirlwind!
 
Then Elisha, filled with the twofold portion of his spirit,
wrought many marvels by his mere word.
During his lifetime he feared no one,
nor was any man able to intimidate his will.
Nothing was beyond his power;
beneath him flesh was brought back into life.
In life he performed wonders,
and after death, marvelous deeds.
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Commentary on Sir 48:1-14
 
The final nine chapters of Sirach are devoted to praise of the glory of God. The first of these chapters is devoted to God in nature, and the final chapters to great prophets and leaders of Israel. In this selection we hear of the prophet Elijah, who came with a fiery message. Reference is made to Elijah’s passing (2 Kings 2:1ff) and the continuation of his work in the prophet Elisha, his student and successor. The image of Elijah is the precursor to St. John the Baptist, who echoes his prophetic work.
 
CCC: Sir 48:1 696
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 97:1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 7
 
R. (12a) Rejoice in the Lord, you just!
 
The Lord is king; let the earth rejoice;
let the many isles be glad.
Clouds and darkness are round about him,
justice and judgment are the foundation of his throne.
R. Rejoice in the Lord, you just!
 
Fire goes before him
and consumes his foes round about.
His lightnings illumine the world;
the earth sees and trembles.
R. Rejoice in the Lord, you just!
 
The mountains melt like wax before the Lord,
before the Lord of all the earth.
The heavens proclaim his justice,
and all peoples see his glory.
R. Rejoice in the Lord, you just!
 
All who worship graven things are put to shame,
who glory in the things of nought;
all gods are prostrate before him.
R. Rejoice in the Lord, you just!
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Commentary on Ps 97:1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 7
 
Psalm 97 is hymn praising God in his majesty. The first strophes provide us with an image of God appearing in a storm and fire, a picture reminiscent of Elijah’s ascension recounted in Sirach and proclaimed in 2 Kings 2:1.
 
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Gospel: Matthew 6:7-15
 
Jesus said to his disciples:
“In praying, do not babble like the pagans,
who think that they will be heard because of their many words.
Do not be like them.
Your Father knows what you need before you ask him.
 
“This is how you are to pray:
 
‘Our Father who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name,
thy Kingdom come,
thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread;
and forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us;
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.’
 
“If you forgive others their transgressions,
your heavenly Father will forgive you.
But if you do not forgive others,
neither will your Father forgive your transgressions.”
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Commentary on Mt 6:7-15
 
This Gospel passage from St. Matthew actually interrupts the pattern in the Sermon on the Mount, in which Jesus is clarifying the spirit of the law regarding almsgiving, prayer, and fasting. In the presentation of the Lord’s Prayer, St. Matthew differs from the presentation by St. Luke (Luke 11; 1-4) in which the Lord was asked by the disciples how to pray. This passage begins by telling the disciples, “do not babble like the pagans.” This may also be critical of the Jewish tradition of presenting long lists of petitions to God for help. The idea is the same: “Your Father knows what you need before you ask him.”
 
“Here, talk ought to be as sparse as water dripping slowly into a deep well: the echo lasts longer than the sound because the drops fall at wide intervals. Words that really count, words that are 'stored up' eternally, are always the product of slow distillation.” [4]
 
The prayer in St. Matthew has seven petitions (compared to six in St. Luke). The first three are synonymous, asking that God’s ultimate reign at the eschaton be brought to fulfillment. The request for “daily bread” has a couple of possible meanings beyond the obvious. It may be related to the petition in Matthew 6: 31-33 (“So do not worry and say, 'What are we to eat?'”) and it may also be referring to the Messianic banquet of the Eucharist. Using this interpretation, the fourth petition continues the intent of the first three.
 
The fifth petition, “forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us” is, in spite of the denominational tradition, best translated as “debts.” In St. Luke’s version, the word used is “sins,” an easier word for non-Jewish readers. Regardless of the translation, the precondition for forgiveness given is that we forgive others.
 
“Lead us not into temptation” is likely not intended to mean our daily encounter with “evil” or the “evil one.” St. Matthew would agree with St. Paul, that God could easily avoid the evil of the world (1 Corinthians 10: 13). Rather the likely meaning would be that we not be led to a great test, that is, despair at the tribulations of the eschaton (the end times). Similarly, the final petition, “deliver us from evil,” also would focus on the Christian hope of salvation rather than damnation.
 
CCC: Mt 6:7 2608, 2668, 2776; Mt 6:8 443, 2736; Mt 6:9-13 1969, 2759, 2759; Mt 6:9 268, 443; Mt 6:10 2632; Mt 6:11 1165, 2659; Mt 6:12 2845; Mt 6:14-16 2792; Mt 6:14-15 2608, 2841
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Reflection:
When we hear the likes of the son of Sirach praise the great prophets Elijah and Elisha, it seems like the weight of God’s message is bearing down on us from a great height. The passage from Sirach, coupled with the passage from St. Matthew’s Gospel, in which Jesus gives his disciples one of the oldest prayers in all of Christian history, gives us a perspective of the persistence of God in trying to teach us what his children must know in order to find peace in this life, and joy in his company in the next.
 
Consider for a moment the many attempts God has made trying to get us to understand that it is his love for us and our love for each other that will show us the way to him, even if we forget, for the moment, the body of Mosaic Law through which God defines right and wrong behavior. (As St. Paul put it, by the law defining sin, sin entered the world. Romans 5:12-14) Also forgetting all of the prophets who came before Elijah, we look at the message he brought to our Jewish forebears. Elijah tried to turn the people away from worshiping “things,” and back to genuine love of God, the one and only Father. For his efforts, this servant of God was chased, persecuted and hated by those in power. (Does this reception sound familiar?)
 
All of those who followed God likewise met resistance. Why? Because in God resides all power and in him alone is the path to salvation we must follow. For a person or group who depend upon secular power to enhance or maintain their own egos or lifestyles, this path diminishes them and inspires from them constant attempts (even today) to suppress or eradicate proponents of the Father.
 
This truth is nowhere more evident than the reception given to God’s Only Begotten Son. Through his sacred authors, he teaches us to relate to God, the loving Father, in prayer. Prayer is transformative. When we use the words of prayer, spoken from the heart (not simply rote or from memory), our relationship with the Father is strengthened, and we can see more clearly what he intends for us.
 
Today, as we pray the Lord’s Prayer, the prayer Jesus taught his disciples, consider carefully what you say and ask for. See in those words a means by which we can deepen our understanding of God’s will for us. His will, as the loving Father, is for our happiness and peace.  In his prayer, we find the love and forgiveness that can bring us that gift.
 
Pax

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[1] The picture is “The Prophet Elisha” by Giorgio Vasari, c. 1566.
[2] S.S. Commemoratio
[3] The readings are taken from the New American Bible except for the Psalm and its response which were developed by the International Committee for English in Liturgy (ICEL). This republication is not authorized by USCCB and is for private use only.
[4] Erasmo Leiva-Merikakis, Fire of Mercy Heart of the Word Volume I. (Ignatius Press, San Francisco, CA, © 1996), 251.