Saint Louis IX
Saint Joseph of Calasanz, Priest
Biographical Information about Saint Louis
Biographical Information about Saint Joseph of Calasanz
Readings for Monday of the Twenty-first Week in Ordinary Time[1][2]
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
Commentary:
Reading 1 2 Thessalonians 1:1-5, 11-12
St. Paul opens his second letter to the Church at Thessalonika, along with his two co-workers Silvanus and Timothy, with the warmth and affection he feels for this community of Christians in northern Greece which he founded. We see in his opening remarks that the pagans and Jews which make up a majority of this city-state continue to persecute the Christians, and the evangelist exhorts them to remain firm in their faith in spite of these trials – God will find glory through their perseverance and in turn will glorify them.
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 96:1-2a, 2b-3, 4-5
R. Proclaim God’s marvelous deeds to all the nations.
Psalm 96 is a hymn of praise to the one true God. The psalmist invites all people to come to faith and believe in God who created all things and is above all things.
Gospel Matthew 23:13-22
This selection from St. Matthew’s Gospel lays down the first three of the “Seven Woes” in which Jesus condemns Pharisaic practices. The first of these directly attacks their authority and relates to Christ’s own assignment of that authority St. Peter in Matthew 16:19. The inference is that they lack the authority principally because their own actions do not merit entry into God’s Kingdom.
The second “Woe” is probably a reflection about the vehemence with which new converts to Judaism persecuted the early Christian Church. The inference is that in the conversion process the Pharisees closed the minds of those converts to the truth and thereby took them off the path to salvation.
The third “Woe” attacks the whole concept of the language used in making a binding oath. The essence of the Lord’s attack is that if one makes a promise the underlying honesty of the person should be the bond not some legal construct based upon the exact language used. If one swears an oath based upon a object that points to God – they have sworn on God Himself.
Reflection:
St. Paul is generally known as the pragmatist when it comes to instructions on how to live one’s faith in God and Christ. Yet today, we see the Lord himself in his criticism of the Pharisees provide us with valuable images of what it means to follow him authentically.
In the first three or the “Seven Woes” found in St. Matthew’s Gospels speak to conduct that makes us worthy of the name Christian. (Oh, if you read the biblical text and not just the readings from the lectionary you may have noticed that v. 14 is actually not there. It is missing because in the very first manuscripts of Matthew that verse was actually inserted later and was taken almost verbatim from St. Mark’s Gospel (Mark 12:40). The syntax and content were clearly of a different style than the rest of St. Matthew’s work so it has been left out of modern texts.). In the first of these, Jesus takes issue with the conduct of the Pharisees as the exercise the authority of their office. To paraphrase this “Woe” we might say; “Because you tell everyone that does not do exactly as you say that they are going to hell, you have closed the gates of heaven for yourselves.” In other words, if we assume we have somehow been given the authority to judge others in God’s name, we have judged ourselves and woe to us.
In the second “Woe”, we are warned, again through the Lord’s condemnation of the Pharisees, that to lead others into that elitist attitude described in the first “Woe” leads the converted to condemnation. That’s kind of convoluted but let’s say it this way – if we bring a person to share our faith (this is especially important for parents to understand) and tell that converted person that anyone who disagrees with them (and us) about the faith is going to hell, we have placed them on a path that leads to the very place to which we have condemned those who may disagree with us. Logically this means we cling to truth but do not presume to condemn or judge. Judgment is reserved to Jesus alone.
The third “Woe” is aimed at being honest with ourselves and with God. When we make a promise we should not behave like children who might quibble over the exact language used when assigning a task. A child might say “You told me to pick up my room and I did. You didn’t say I had to clean under my bed.” I would hate to be a lawyer and have to live up to this “Woe”. The point is when we make a promise, most especially a sacred promise, we must mean what we say and act on that promise in good faith. “Woe” to us if we do not.
Today we have been given three very practical instructions that will lead us closer to the peace of Christ. They may not always be appreciated by the world, but for us the world is not where we place our hope – it is in Christ’s salvation we hope.
Pax
[1] After Links to Readings Expire
[2] The picture used today is “The Blind Leading the Blind” by Pieter van der Heyden, 1561
Saint Joseph of Calasanz, Priest
Biographical Information about Saint Louis
Biographical Information about Saint Joseph of Calasanz
Readings for Monday of the Twenty-first Week in Ordinary Time[1][2]
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
Commentary:
Reading 1 2 Thessalonians 1:1-5, 11-12
St. Paul opens his second letter to the Church at Thessalonika, along with his two co-workers Silvanus and Timothy, with the warmth and affection he feels for this community of Christians in northern Greece which he founded. We see in his opening remarks that the pagans and Jews which make up a majority of this city-state continue to persecute the Christians, and the evangelist exhorts them to remain firm in their faith in spite of these trials – God will find glory through their perseverance and in turn will glorify them.
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 96:1-2a, 2b-3, 4-5
R. Proclaim God’s marvelous deeds to all the nations.
Psalm 96 is a hymn of praise to the one true God. The psalmist invites all people to come to faith and believe in God who created all things and is above all things.
Gospel Matthew 23:13-22
This selection from St. Matthew’s Gospel lays down the first three of the “Seven Woes” in which Jesus condemns Pharisaic practices. The first of these directly attacks their authority and relates to Christ’s own assignment of that authority St. Peter in Matthew 16:19. The inference is that they lack the authority principally because their own actions do not merit entry into God’s Kingdom.
The second “Woe” is probably a reflection about the vehemence with which new converts to Judaism persecuted the early Christian Church. The inference is that in the conversion process the Pharisees closed the minds of those converts to the truth and thereby took them off the path to salvation.
The third “Woe” attacks the whole concept of the language used in making a binding oath. The essence of the Lord’s attack is that if one makes a promise the underlying honesty of the person should be the bond not some legal construct based upon the exact language used. If one swears an oath based upon a object that points to God – they have sworn on God Himself.
Reflection:
St. Paul is generally known as the pragmatist when it comes to instructions on how to live one’s faith in God and Christ. Yet today, we see the Lord himself in his criticism of the Pharisees provide us with valuable images of what it means to follow him authentically.
In the first three or the “Seven Woes” found in St. Matthew’s Gospels speak to conduct that makes us worthy of the name Christian. (Oh, if you read the biblical text and not just the readings from the lectionary you may have noticed that v. 14 is actually not there. It is missing because in the very first manuscripts of Matthew that verse was actually inserted later and was taken almost verbatim from St. Mark’s Gospel (Mark 12:40). The syntax and content were clearly of a different style than the rest of St. Matthew’s work so it has been left out of modern texts.). In the first of these, Jesus takes issue with the conduct of the Pharisees as the exercise the authority of their office. To paraphrase this “Woe” we might say; “Because you tell everyone that does not do exactly as you say that they are going to hell, you have closed the gates of heaven for yourselves.” In other words, if we assume we have somehow been given the authority to judge others in God’s name, we have judged ourselves and woe to us.
In the second “Woe”, we are warned, again through the Lord’s condemnation of the Pharisees, that to lead others into that elitist attitude described in the first “Woe” leads the converted to condemnation. That’s kind of convoluted but let’s say it this way – if we bring a person to share our faith (this is especially important for parents to understand) and tell that converted person that anyone who disagrees with them (and us) about the faith is going to hell, we have placed them on a path that leads to the very place to which we have condemned those who may disagree with us. Logically this means we cling to truth but do not presume to condemn or judge. Judgment is reserved to Jesus alone.
The third “Woe” is aimed at being honest with ourselves and with God. When we make a promise we should not behave like children who might quibble over the exact language used when assigning a task. A child might say “You told me to pick up my room and I did. You didn’t say I had to clean under my bed.” I would hate to be a lawyer and have to live up to this “Woe”. The point is when we make a promise, most especially a sacred promise, we must mean what we say and act on that promise in good faith. “Woe” to us if we do not.
Today we have been given three very practical instructions that will lead us closer to the peace of Christ. They may not always be appreciated by the world, but for us the world is not where we place our hope – it is in Christ’s salvation we hope.
Pax
[1] After Links to Readings Expire
[2] The picture used today is “The Blind Leading the Blind” by Pieter van der Heyden, 1561
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