Memorial of Saint Ignatius of Antioch,
Bishop and Martyr
Alternate Proper for the Memorial of St. Ignatius of Antioch
Readings for Saturday of the Twenty-eighth Week in Ordinary Time[1][2]
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
Readings and Commentary:[3]
Reading 1: Romans 4:13, 16-18
Brothers and sisters:
It was not through the law
that the promise was made to Abraham and his descendants
that he would inherit the world,
but through the righteousness that comes from faith.
For this reason, it depends on faith,
so that it may be a gift,
and the promise may be guaranteed to all his descendants,
not to those who only adhere to the law
but to those who follow the faith of Abraham,
who is the father of all of us, as it is written,
I have made you father of many nations.
He is our father in the sight of God,
in whom he believed, who gives life to the dead
and calls into being what does not exist.
He believed, hoping against hope,
that he would become the father of many nations,
according to what was said, Thus shall your descendants be.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Rom 4:13, 16-18
St. Paul continues his discourse on justification through faith. In this passage he reasserts that Abraham was given the promise, not because of adherence to the Law, but because of God’s love. In an intense theological statement, St. Paul states that the Law has the negative function of bringing the deep-seated rebellion against God to the surface in specific sins.
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 105:6-7, 8-9, 42-43
R. (8a) The Lord remembers his covenant for ever.
You descendants of Abraham, his servants,
sons of Jacob, his chosen ones!
He, the LORD, is our God;
throughout the earth his judgments prevail.
R. The Lord remembers his covenant for ever.
He remembers forever his covenant
which he made binding for a thousand generations –
Which he entered into with Abraham
and by his oath to Isaac.
R. The Lord remembers his covenant for ever.
For he remembered his holy word
to his servant Abraham.
And he led forth his people with joy;
with shouts of joy, his chosen ones.
R. The Lord remembers his covenant for ever.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Ps 105:6-7, 8-9, 42-43
In support of St. Paul’s discourse about the children of Abraham, this song of praise recounts the covenant and faithfulness of the descendents of his line.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gospel: Luke 12:8-12
Jesus said to his disciples:
“I tell you,
everyone who acknowledges me before others
the Son of Man will acknowledge before the angels of God.
But whoever denies me before others
will be denied before the angels of God.
“Everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven,
but the one who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit
will not be forgiven.
When they take you before synagogues and before rulers and authorities,
do not worry about how or what your defense will be
or about what you are to say.
For the Holy Spirit will teach you at that moment what you should say.”
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Lk 12:8-12
Jesus, still addressing the disciples about their mission, brings in the person of the Holy Spirit. “The sayings about the Holy Spirit are set in the context of fearlessness in the face of persecution (Luke 12:2-9; cf Matthew 12:31-32). The Holy Spirit will be presented in Luke's second volume, the Acts of the Apostles, as the power responsible for the guidance of the Christian mission and the source of courage in the face of persecution.”[4]
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Reflection:
We are compelled to recall the life and legacy of St. Ignatius of Antioch as the words of the Gospel mingle with St. Paul’s witness to the Romans introducing the Holy Spirit to us. The great Bishop’s life was dedicated to the Son of God and as one of the early faithful (martyred in 107 AD) he was given the full measure of the Holy Spirit to sustain him as he followed in the footsteps of Jesus to his death.
How steadfast a faith he possessed! Strengthened by the Paraclete left for us by the Lord he embraced his own passion. The indwelling faith walked with him into the arena with the wild beasts which, as he had written, were his gate to follow the Lord to the Heavenly Kingdom.
Truly these words of St. Luke must have been in the heart of St. Ignatius as he was transported to Rome. He made no move to avoid the fate planed for him. He wrote only to those who stayed behind encouraging them to participate in the same Holy Spirit that sustained him in the face of his persecutors.
Today we recall his story and see the heroic faith that is born of offering one’s self to the Holy Spirit and letting God himself take the burden from our shoulders. We ask that the Heavenly Father bless us with faith and bring us the peace of Jesus who left us that priceless gift.
Pax
[1] ALTRE
[2] The Picture used today is “The Holy Family with God the Father and the Holy Spirit” by Carlo Dolci, 1630
[3] Text of Readings is taken from the New American Bible, Copyright © Libreria Editrice Vaticana, Excerpts from the English translation of The Roman Missal © 1973, International Committee on English in the Liturgy, Inc. All rights reserved.
[4] See NAB footnotes on Luke 12:8ff
Bishop and Martyr
Alternate Proper for the Memorial of St. Ignatius of Antioch
Readings for Saturday of the Twenty-eighth Week in Ordinary Time[1][2]
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
Readings and Commentary:[3]
Reading 1: Romans 4:13, 16-18
Brothers and sisters:
It was not through the law
that the promise was made to Abraham and his descendants
that he would inherit the world,
but through the righteousness that comes from faith.
For this reason, it depends on faith,
so that it may be a gift,
and the promise may be guaranteed to all his descendants,
not to those who only adhere to the law
but to those who follow the faith of Abraham,
who is the father of all of us, as it is written,
I have made you father of many nations.
He is our father in the sight of God,
in whom he believed, who gives life to the dead
and calls into being what does not exist.
He believed, hoping against hope,
that he would become the father of many nations,
according to what was said, Thus shall your descendants be.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Rom 4:13, 16-18
St. Paul continues his discourse on justification through faith. In this passage he reasserts that Abraham was given the promise, not because of adherence to the Law, but because of God’s love. In an intense theological statement, St. Paul states that the Law has the negative function of bringing the deep-seated rebellion against God to the surface in specific sins.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 105:6-7, 8-9, 42-43
R. (8a) The Lord remembers his covenant for ever.
You descendants of Abraham, his servants,
sons of Jacob, his chosen ones!
He, the LORD, is our God;
throughout the earth his judgments prevail.
R. The Lord remembers his covenant for ever.
He remembers forever his covenant
which he made binding for a thousand generations –
Which he entered into with Abraham
and by his oath to Isaac.
R. The Lord remembers his covenant for ever.
For he remembered his holy word
to his servant Abraham.
And he led forth his people with joy;
with shouts of joy, his chosen ones.
R. The Lord remembers his covenant for ever.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Ps 105:6-7, 8-9, 42-43
In support of St. Paul’s discourse about the children of Abraham, this song of praise recounts the covenant and faithfulness of the descendents of his line.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gospel: Luke 12:8-12
Jesus said to his disciples:
“I tell you,
everyone who acknowledges me before others
the Son of Man will acknowledge before the angels of God.
But whoever denies me before others
will be denied before the angels of God.
“Everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven,
but the one who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit
will not be forgiven.
When they take you before synagogues and before rulers and authorities,
do not worry about how or what your defense will be
or about what you are to say.
For the Holy Spirit will teach you at that moment what you should say.”
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Lk 12:8-12
Jesus, still addressing the disciples about their mission, brings in the person of the Holy Spirit. “The sayings about the Holy Spirit are set in the context of fearlessness in the face of persecution (Luke 12:2-9; cf Matthew 12:31-32). The Holy Spirit will be presented in Luke's second volume, the Acts of the Apostles, as the power responsible for the guidance of the Christian mission and the source of courage in the face of persecution.”[4]
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Reflection:
We are compelled to recall the life and legacy of St. Ignatius of Antioch as the words of the Gospel mingle with St. Paul’s witness to the Romans introducing the Holy Spirit to us. The great Bishop’s life was dedicated to the Son of God and as one of the early faithful (martyred in 107 AD) he was given the full measure of the Holy Spirit to sustain him as he followed in the footsteps of Jesus to his death.
How steadfast a faith he possessed! Strengthened by the Paraclete left for us by the Lord he embraced his own passion. The indwelling faith walked with him into the arena with the wild beasts which, as he had written, were his gate to follow the Lord to the Heavenly Kingdom.
Truly these words of St. Luke must have been in the heart of St. Ignatius as he was transported to Rome. He made no move to avoid the fate planed for him. He wrote only to those who stayed behind encouraging them to participate in the same Holy Spirit that sustained him in the face of his persecutors.
Today we recall his story and see the heroic faith that is born of offering one’s self to the Holy Spirit and letting God himself take the burden from our shoulders. We ask that the Heavenly Father bless us with faith and bring us the peace of Jesus who left us that priceless gift.
Pax
[1] ALTRE
[2] The Picture used today is “The Holy Family with God the Father and the Holy Spirit” by Carlo Dolci, 1630
[3] Text of Readings is taken from the New American Bible, Copyright © Libreria Editrice Vaticana, Excerpts from the English translation of The Roman Missal © 1973, International Committee on English in the Liturgy, Inc. All rights reserved.
[4] See NAB footnotes on Luke 12:8ff
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