Biographical Information about St. Justin[1]
Readings for the Memorial of Saint Justin, martyr[2]
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
Commentary:
Reading 1 Sir 44:1, 9-13
In this passage we hear the author extol the virtue of the great people of faith who have gone before – Prophets and patriarchs. He also speaks of those “forgotten” faithful who because they kept their covenant with God, have passed on that heritage and faith to endless generations.
Responsorial Psalm Ps 149:1b-2, 3-4, 5-6a and 9b
R. The Lord takes delight in his people.
Psalm 149 is a song of thanksgiving to God. In it we rejoice in being chosen by him as his adopted children.
Gospel Mk 11:11-26
The Gospel today has three intertwined elements. First we hear Jesus uncharacteristically “curse” the fig tree for its lack of fruit. The common thought about this incident is that it is a metaphor for the Jewish lack of faith and acceptance of scriptures fulfilled in Christ.
The second element is the story of Jesus and the money changers. The Lord drives out the merchants who had set up their tables in the outer most courtyard of the Temple called the Court of Gentiles. The sacrifices for sale could only be purchased with money from Tyre – all other currency had to be exchanged at these tables.
Finally we come to the last part of the Gospel as Jesus instructs the disciples about prayer. Our reading concludes much like the Lord’s Prayer, with the request for forgiveness. v. 26 (which is omitted because it is not found in the best source documents) actually reads: "But if you do not forgive, neither will your heavenly Father forgive your transgressions,"
Reflection:
Today we celebrate the Memorial of St. Justin, martyr. His story is effective in that it describes his search for God and the various twists and turns that finally brought him to the Lord. We find the logic that ended up getting him beheaded compelling. In the time of the persecution of Marcus Aurelius (the Emperor depicted in the film “Gladiator”), Christians in Rome were keeping a low profile. St. Justin, because of his difficult path in the search for truth found this unacceptable because the Word was too valuable.
He boldly proclaimed the Lord to all classes of people around Rome and ended up being martyred for his faith. To the end he rightly believed that the light of Christ could not be kept under a basket, even when to make that proclamation meant death.
We see that same attitude in Christ as he goes after the Temple establishment in the Gospel story. It is believed that, although the money changers were gentile, they paid a portion of their profits to the temple for the right to run their currency exchange business. By attacking them, Jesus attacked an important source of income for the wealthy priests and members of the Sanhedrin. His zeal for his Father’s house was very apparent in this episode.
For us, these two examples of outspoken support of the Spirit of Truth remind us that we are part of that heritage. We are called to act upon our faith even when that is not a popular of safe thing to do. We pray today that when faced with injustice in the world, we too have the courage to be outspoken for the Lord.
Pax
Readings for the Memorial of Saint Justin, martyr[2]
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
Commentary:
Reading 1 Sir 44:1, 9-13
In this passage we hear the author extol the virtue of the great people of faith who have gone before – Prophets and patriarchs. He also speaks of those “forgotten” faithful who because they kept their covenant with God, have passed on that heritage and faith to endless generations.
Responsorial Psalm Ps 149:1b-2, 3-4, 5-6a and 9b
R. The Lord takes delight in his people.
Psalm 149 is a song of thanksgiving to God. In it we rejoice in being chosen by him as his adopted children.
Gospel Mk 11:11-26
The Gospel today has three intertwined elements. First we hear Jesus uncharacteristically “curse” the fig tree for its lack of fruit. The common thought about this incident is that it is a metaphor for the Jewish lack of faith and acceptance of scriptures fulfilled in Christ.
The second element is the story of Jesus and the money changers. The Lord drives out the merchants who had set up their tables in the outer most courtyard of the Temple called the Court of Gentiles. The sacrifices for sale could only be purchased with money from Tyre – all other currency had to be exchanged at these tables.
Finally we come to the last part of the Gospel as Jesus instructs the disciples about prayer. Our reading concludes much like the Lord’s Prayer, with the request for forgiveness. v. 26 (which is omitted because it is not found in the best source documents) actually reads: "But if you do not forgive, neither will your heavenly Father forgive your transgressions,"
Reflection:
Today we celebrate the Memorial of St. Justin, martyr. His story is effective in that it describes his search for God and the various twists and turns that finally brought him to the Lord. We find the logic that ended up getting him beheaded compelling. In the time of the persecution of Marcus Aurelius (the Emperor depicted in the film “Gladiator”), Christians in Rome were keeping a low profile. St. Justin, because of his difficult path in the search for truth found this unacceptable because the Word was too valuable.
He boldly proclaimed the Lord to all classes of people around Rome and ended up being martyred for his faith. To the end he rightly believed that the light of Christ could not be kept under a basket, even when to make that proclamation meant death.
We see that same attitude in Christ as he goes after the Temple establishment in the Gospel story. It is believed that, although the money changers were gentile, they paid a portion of their profits to the temple for the right to run their currency exchange business. By attacking them, Jesus attacked an important source of income for the wealthy priests and members of the Sanhedrin. His zeal for his Father’s house was very apparent in this episode.
For us, these two examples of outspoken support of the Spirit of Truth remind us that we are part of that heritage. We are called to act upon our faith even when that is not a popular of safe thing to do. We pray today that when faced with injustice in the world, we too have the courage to be outspoken for the Lord.
Pax
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