Saint John Eudes, Priest
Biographical Information about St. John Eudes[1]
Readings for Tuesday of the Twentieth Week in Ordinary Time[2]
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
Commentary:
Reading 1 Ezekiel 28:1-10
This selection from Ezekiel is the first of two back to back oracles against Tyre. In this first section the prophet uses satire and irony to describe the city’s king as thinking, because he has been able to amass great wealth, he is a god. He (the king) believes himself to possess wisdom greater than Daniel but all of this will come crashing down. As a consequence of being so presumptuous, Ezekiel predicts that God will allow outside forces to destroy the king and the state will fall to obscurity.
Responsorial Psalm Deuteronomy 32:26-27ab, 27cd-28, 30, 35cd-36ab
R. It is I who deal death and give life.
This passage from Deuteronomy is part of the Song of Moses. In the strophes immediately preceding this section it appeared as if Israel would be destroyed. Here we see that God relented in this action for fear that the utter defeat of Israel would be perceived as a victory for their enemies rather than a punishment from God. The selection concludes in faith, Moses sings that God will surly show mercy to the people.
Gospel Matthew 19:23-30
St. Matthew’s Gospel continues the focus on valuing the spiritual life above the material pursuits of earthly existence. The disciples were dismayed at the aestheticism required and asked the Lord who could be saved, since all people have fallen prey to that sin.
The Lord then provides the answer that for God all things are possible and that through their faith in Him they will find their reward. He continues his discourse with an eschatological description of who shall receive the gift of eternal life regardless of when they come to faith ("the last shall be first…").
Reflection:
Two interrelated themes are presented today; the need to place our trust in God and give Him thanks for our success, and the need to seek spiritual gifts above earthly wealth. In the first reading from Ezekiel we hear the prophet using heavy satire to scorn the king of Tyre whom he says “…you say, ‘A god am I! I occupy a godly throne in the heart of the sea!’” His oracle has an immediate prediction that Tyre and its king will fall to the sword of her enemies, as well as a practical point to take to heart, that what we accomplish, we accomplish only with God’s help and grace. The reason Tyre is destroyed is not that the king was successful in his business pursuits, but rather that he was arrogant and believed he had succeeded out of his own strength and wisdom. In fact, it was the view of the prophet that the jealous God of the Old Testament took affront to the king’s haughty attitude and destroyed both king and city.
From our perspective, now knowing that the Messiah came to show us a different image of God – a loving Father who wishes only happiness and life for his people, this incident can give us a more complete understanding of what God wants for us. It is clear that Tyre and its king became wealthy. It is also clear that in its wealth city-state and king became so sure of themselves they believed their prosperity would go on forever. As Ezekiel put it, they thought themselves better than the surrounding peoples.
From what we know of human nature, we can see the situation. Here is a very rich and proud city-state sitting there with its back against the sea. A greedy neighbor sees the riches of the world piled up in one place and decides this wealth should be theirs. From time immemorial, the “have-nots” have taken violent actions against the “haves”.
Had the city-state been more generous with its neighbors, dealt more fairly, not been so ostentatious with its wealth, it may have avoided its fate for a time. As Jesus says the wealth of the world is fleeting. What is truly important is what no enemy can steal, to outsider covets; that is spiritual riches. There can be no arrogance if we believe that what we are able to accomplish we do only with God’s help and will. There can be no greed if our attitude is one that seeks the peace of Christ.
I leave today with a joke. I told it over a year ago in this space but it’s worth repeating:
There was once a very good and very wealthy man who died and went to heaven. When he arrived at the pearly gates, St. Peter looked in his book and saw all the good things the man had done and invited him in. As the man walked by, St. Peter noticed a look of great sorrow on his face. He said to the man “Mr. Jones, I don’t understand your depression. You had a wonderful life on earth, filled with good deeds and great wealth and today you are ushered into heaven. Why are you sad?”
The man said in reply “St. Peter, I know I should be happy and I always knew I could not take my wealth with me but I fear I will miss it. I wish I could have brought up just one souvenir of my earthly success.”
St. Peter again consulted his book and thought for a moment. He turned to the man and said “You know, I think you can be allowed to go back and bring just a small memento of your earthly life, nothing big like a yacht, but just a reminder.”
Poof! The man disappeared and poof he was back. He was holding a small shoe box that was clearly quite heavy. St. Peter could not resist and asked the man what he had chosen to bring back. With his face reddening somewhat the man opened the box lid to show St. Peter four bars of gold bullion. Whereupon St. Peter looked up in surprise and exclaimed “You brought pavement?”
Pax
[1] The picture today is “St. Jean Eudes” Artist and Date are UNKNOWN
[2] After Links to Readings Expire
Biographical Information about St. John Eudes[1]
Readings for Tuesday of the Twentieth Week in Ordinary Time[2]
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
Commentary:
Reading 1 Ezekiel 28:1-10
This selection from Ezekiel is the first of two back to back oracles against Tyre. In this first section the prophet uses satire and irony to describe the city’s king as thinking, because he has been able to amass great wealth, he is a god. He (the king) believes himself to possess wisdom greater than Daniel but all of this will come crashing down. As a consequence of being so presumptuous, Ezekiel predicts that God will allow outside forces to destroy the king and the state will fall to obscurity.
Responsorial Psalm Deuteronomy 32:26-27ab, 27cd-28, 30, 35cd-36ab
R. It is I who deal death and give life.
This passage from Deuteronomy is part of the Song of Moses. In the strophes immediately preceding this section it appeared as if Israel would be destroyed. Here we see that God relented in this action for fear that the utter defeat of Israel would be perceived as a victory for their enemies rather than a punishment from God. The selection concludes in faith, Moses sings that God will surly show mercy to the people.
Gospel Matthew 19:23-30
St. Matthew’s Gospel continues the focus on valuing the spiritual life above the material pursuits of earthly existence. The disciples were dismayed at the aestheticism required and asked the Lord who could be saved, since all people have fallen prey to that sin.
The Lord then provides the answer that for God all things are possible and that through their faith in Him they will find their reward. He continues his discourse with an eschatological description of who shall receive the gift of eternal life regardless of when they come to faith ("the last shall be first…").
Reflection:
Two interrelated themes are presented today; the need to place our trust in God and give Him thanks for our success, and the need to seek spiritual gifts above earthly wealth. In the first reading from Ezekiel we hear the prophet using heavy satire to scorn the king of Tyre whom he says “…you say, ‘A god am I! I occupy a godly throne in the heart of the sea!’” His oracle has an immediate prediction that Tyre and its king will fall to the sword of her enemies, as well as a practical point to take to heart, that what we accomplish, we accomplish only with God’s help and grace. The reason Tyre is destroyed is not that the king was successful in his business pursuits, but rather that he was arrogant and believed he had succeeded out of his own strength and wisdom. In fact, it was the view of the prophet that the jealous God of the Old Testament took affront to the king’s haughty attitude and destroyed both king and city.
From our perspective, now knowing that the Messiah came to show us a different image of God – a loving Father who wishes only happiness and life for his people, this incident can give us a more complete understanding of what God wants for us. It is clear that Tyre and its king became wealthy. It is also clear that in its wealth city-state and king became so sure of themselves they believed their prosperity would go on forever. As Ezekiel put it, they thought themselves better than the surrounding peoples.
From what we know of human nature, we can see the situation. Here is a very rich and proud city-state sitting there with its back against the sea. A greedy neighbor sees the riches of the world piled up in one place and decides this wealth should be theirs. From time immemorial, the “have-nots” have taken violent actions against the “haves”.
Had the city-state been more generous with its neighbors, dealt more fairly, not been so ostentatious with its wealth, it may have avoided its fate for a time. As Jesus says the wealth of the world is fleeting. What is truly important is what no enemy can steal, to outsider covets; that is spiritual riches. There can be no arrogance if we believe that what we are able to accomplish we do only with God’s help and will. There can be no greed if our attitude is one that seeks the peace of Christ.
I leave today with a joke. I told it over a year ago in this space but it’s worth repeating:
There was once a very good and very wealthy man who died and went to heaven. When he arrived at the pearly gates, St. Peter looked in his book and saw all the good things the man had done and invited him in. As the man walked by, St. Peter noticed a look of great sorrow on his face. He said to the man “Mr. Jones, I don’t understand your depression. You had a wonderful life on earth, filled with good deeds and great wealth and today you are ushered into heaven. Why are you sad?”
The man said in reply “St. Peter, I know I should be happy and I always knew I could not take my wealth with me but I fear I will miss it. I wish I could have brought up just one souvenir of my earthly success.”
St. Peter again consulted his book and thought for a moment. He turned to the man and said “You know, I think you can be allowed to go back and bring just a small memento of your earthly life, nothing big like a yacht, but just a reminder.”
Poof! The man disappeared and poof he was back. He was holding a small shoe box that was clearly quite heavy. St. Peter could not resist and asked the man what he had chosen to bring back. With his face reddening somewhat the man opened the box lid to show St. Peter four bars of gold bullion. Whereupon St. Peter looked up in surprise and exclaimed “You brought pavement?”
Pax
[1] The picture today is “St. Jean Eudes” Artist and Date are UNKNOWN
[2] After Links to Readings Expire
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