Priest and Martyr
Biographical information about St. Maximilian Kolbe
Readings for Thursday of the Nineteenth Week in Ordinary Time[1][2]
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
Commentary:
Reading 1 Ezekiel 12:1-12
As a consequence of their rebellion against the Law of Moses, the Prophet Ezekiel predicts the nature of the defeat and exile of the Israelites from Jerusalem. Ezekiel is told to reenact the exile as “a sign” of what is to come. He is told to “dig a hole” in the wall, a symbol of the broken walls of Jerusalem, and to hide his face, a symbol of shame or grief (see Jeremiah 14:4).
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 78:56-57, 58-59, 61-62
R. Do not forget the works of the Lord!
Psalm 78 is a recital of historical events in the experience of Israel. In these verses the psalmist once more recounts the idea that the people had turned away from God and, in consequence received His punishment, defeat and exile.
Gospel Matthew 18:21–19:1
The Gospel from St. Matthew today deals with forgiveness among the disciples. Peter asks Jesus how many times his fellow disciples must be forgiven. Jesus responds that forgiveness must be without limits. Jesus uses Hebrew numerology in this illustration. Seven in Hebrew terms is the perfect or complete number. So when Peter asks “…how often must I forgive him? As many as seven times?” he is asking if he must forgive him completely. The metaphor the Lord uses in reply “seventy times seven” would imply and absolute forgiveness. He illustrates this point with the parable of the unmerciful servant.
Homily:
How easy it would be to love everyone if everyone loved us. Imagine if, when we walked down the street each person we passed greeted us with the love of a brother or sister. How simple it would be to love them in return. But that is not the way of the world is it? That is not even the way of families; in fact there are times that families can be even worse since we are so vulnerable to one another.
The point we make here is that we harm each other and when that happens there are two possible outcomes. Either that hurt can be allowed to go in – creating a riff between the person who is hurt and the one who cause the injury or there can be forgiveness. Depending upon the nature of the injury, forgiveness is sometimes easy but often very difficult.
Jesus came to us as an example of just how far God goes in forgiving us. What he wants for us and from us is that we live in harmony with his creation and with one another. He wants us, as any parent does, to be happy in our existence and to recognize that we must give respect and love to him and each other.
Obviously we are not as good at living that way as He would like us to be. We fail, sometimes disastrously and when that happens, he forgives us. He forgives not as we do. We can forgive someone with words but still harden our hearts against them. In other words, especially when our trust is violated, we give lip service to forgiveness. That is not what we are called to do or to be.
It is only with absolute forgiveness that we can accomplish what Jesus told us so many times through his words and his actions – to love one another. When we are able to get to that point, the Kingdom of God is truly at hand.
Pax
[1] After Links to Readings Expire
[2] The picture used today is “The Unmerciful Servant” by Johann Christoph Weigle, 1695
Biographical information about St. Maximilian Kolbe
Readings for Thursday of the Nineteenth Week in Ordinary Time[1][2]
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
Commentary:
Reading 1 Ezekiel 12:1-12
As a consequence of their rebellion against the Law of Moses, the Prophet Ezekiel predicts the nature of the defeat and exile of the Israelites from Jerusalem. Ezekiel is told to reenact the exile as “a sign” of what is to come. He is told to “dig a hole” in the wall, a symbol of the broken walls of Jerusalem, and to hide his face, a symbol of shame or grief (see Jeremiah 14:4).
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 78:56-57, 58-59, 61-62
R. Do not forget the works of the Lord!
Psalm 78 is a recital of historical events in the experience of Israel. In these verses the psalmist once more recounts the idea that the people had turned away from God and, in consequence received His punishment, defeat and exile.
Gospel Matthew 18:21–19:1
The Gospel from St. Matthew today deals with forgiveness among the disciples. Peter asks Jesus how many times his fellow disciples must be forgiven. Jesus responds that forgiveness must be without limits. Jesus uses Hebrew numerology in this illustration. Seven in Hebrew terms is the perfect or complete number. So when Peter asks “…how often must I forgive him? As many as seven times?” he is asking if he must forgive him completely. The metaphor the Lord uses in reply “seventy times seven” would imply and absolute forgiveness. He illustrates this point with the parable of the unmerciful servant.
Homily:
How easy it would be to love everyone if everyone loved us. Imagine if, when we walked down the street each person we passed greeted us with the love of a brother or sister. How simple it would be to love them in return. But that is not the way of the world is it? That is not even the way of families; in fact there are times that families can be even worse since we are so vulnerable to one another.
The point we make here is that we harm each other and when that happens there are two possible outcomes. Either that hurt can be allowed to go in – creating a riff between the person who is hurt and the one who cause the injury or there can be forgiveness. Depending upon the nature of the injury, forgiveness is sometimes easy but often very difficult.
Jesus came to us as an example of just how far God goes in forgiving us. What he wants for us and from us is that we live in harmony with his creation and with one another. He wants us, as any parent does, to be happy in our existence and to recognize that we must give respect and love to him and each other.
Obviously we are not as good at living that way as He would like us to be. We fail, sometimes disastrously and when that happens, he forgives us. He forgives not as we do. We can forgive someone with words but still harden our hearts against them. In other words, especially when our trust is violated, we give lip service to forgiveness. That is not what we are called to do or to be.
It is only with absolute forgiveness that we can accomplish what Jesus told us so many times through his words and his actions – to love one another. When we are able to get to that point, the Kingdom of God is truly at hand.
Pax
[1] After Links to Readings Expire
[2] The picture used today is “The Unmerciful Servant” by Johann Christoph Weigle, 1695
No comments:
Post a Comment