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| “St. Alphonsus Maria de Liguori” Artist and Date are UNKNOWN |
Commentary:
Reading 1: Jeremiah 28:1-17
Commentary on Jer 28:1-17
The reading from the book of the Prophet Jeremiah is a stern warning against false prophets. This reading (the complete chapter 28) tells the story of Hananiah, a false prophet, and Jeremiah. The story is biographical, and attributed once again to Baruch. Hananiah gives the people a very sugar coated vision, that within two years the rule of King Nebuchadnezzar (the Babylonian King who conquered Jerusalem, destroyed the Temple, and exiled the people) would come to an end, and the temple wealth, the exiled leader, and the people would be restored. This prediction contradicts Jeremiah’s own oracle (see Jeremiah 27).
Jeremiah laments to the people that he too would hope for such an outcome (“May he fulfill the things you have prophesied…”). He goes on to warn them that, prophets who predict pleasing futures can only be validated as “truly sent by the Lord” when their oracles are seen to come true (see Deuteronomy 18:21-22).
Contradicting Hananiah's pleasing prediction, Jeremiah is given a true vision from God. The reign of Nebuchadnezzar will not be broken. It will be strengthened (“By breaking a wooden yoke, you forge an iron yoke!”). Because Hananiah told the people he was hearing God’s voice when he was simply predicting things the leaders of the time wanted to hear, he was told (in an oracle that was fulfilled – proving that Jeremiah was a true prophet) that he would die within a year.
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 119:29, 43, 79, 80, 95, 102
R. (68b) Lord, teach me your statutes.
Commentary on Ps 119:29, 43, 79, 80, 95, 102
Psalm 119 is an individual lament asking for God’s support in times of difficulty. From this, the longest of the psalms, the strophes ask for the psalmist to be strengthened in the truth, and given wisdom that comes from the law.
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Gospel: Matthew 14:13-21
Commentary on Mt 14:13-21
St. Matthew’s account of the feeding of the multitudes is framed with Jesus’ grief over hearing of the death of his cousin, St. John the Baptist. He hopes to grieve in solitude, and so takes a boat to “a deserted place by himself.” While it is not said explicitly, we assume at least some of the disciples accompanied him in the boat. When the crowds catch up with him (Jesus is well established as an important teacher now.), he does not turn them away but continues his work among them.
Possibly continuing his formation process with the disciples, Jesus tells them to feed the hungry people rather than dismiss them. The miracle occurs with significant symbolic numbers associated with it. (Five loaves and two fish would add up to seven, in Hebrew numerology the perfect or most complete number. The fragments filled twelve baskets, enough for the twelve tribes of Israel. Five thousand men was a representation for a huge number and probably not meant as a census of the participants.)
For the early Christian there would have been even more subtle symbolism, as the loaves would represent the “Bread of Life,” the Eucharist, and the fish, the Christian symbol that identified themselves to each other as a consequence of the Greek letters used. Taken in its larger context the story is preparatory to Jesus’ final trip to Jerusalem.
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Reflection:
Once upon a time a large ship set out for a land that promised to be a paradise. People from all over came to the ship and all were given tickets. The captain of the ship knew the course they must follow, and set sail on the long and difficult voyage. It was a journey that took such a long time that when the captain died, a new captain was elected and given the charts to navigate the ship.
They had traveled some distance when arguments began to erupt about what the land would really be like. One group said that the first mate had a clearer understanding of the destination and the course they must follow, so when the ship came close to an island, they got off and built their own ship. The course they sailed was almost identical, and they kept in sight of each other.
On board that larger ship, as captain after captain took the helm, discipline began to get lax and a large group of passengers decided that the captain no longer knew the way to the land of paradise. They took life boats and struck off on their own, some smaller and some larger, some staying close to the mother ship, others striking out on radically different directions. They each got a copy of the charts from the captain of the larger ship, but the charts were difficult and tricky to follow.
When last seen the various different flotillas were headed generally in the same direction. Some had decided that, even in the smaller boats, they had their own ideas of the directions to follow, but there was no captain to consult and no course correction was possible. Many of these become lost.
We use this simple story to describe the history of the Church (the mother ship). After an intense early struggle to get everyone on board the mothership of Christianity, the first groups to leave were the Eastern Rite Churches who disagreed with some fundamental issues over the creed. Later (around the time of the Crusades) political issues caused a huge rift that has not been healed to this day. The second group to break off was at the Reformation. (It is noteworthy that printing technology facilitated the Reformation. Without inexpensive copies of the Bible, this challenge to Church authority may not have occurred.) These protestant groups took the Bible and ran with it, disdaining the hierarchical Church, feeling that they could figure out how to find the Lord without any help from anyone. The independent faith communities that evolved out of this group had no cohesive discipline of belief, and could essentially pick and choose what parts of scripture to accept or interpret and which ones they didn’t like. The charts, as the story says, are tricky and difficult to read. Not having any recourse to authority, many of these little boats found radically different paths, many of them seemingly headed in the wrong direction.
The Holy See has been our constant source of direction, prayerfully considering each change of course, constantly consulting the charts left for us by the authors of Sacred Scripture. But they have also been able to consult the notes left by great saints and brilliant doctors, like Saint Alphonsus Liguori, whose memorial we celebrate today. Throwing away the traditions and thoughts of the great saints is like throwing away the legend to the charts. A map without a legend is not much more than a picture.
Today we give thanks for the Church which leads us faithfully, unlike those who have gone off trusting only themselves to find the destination. We pray for the ship’s company to be reunited and rejoice at the thought of one Church, One Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
Pax
[1] The picture is “St. Alphonsus Maria de Liguori” Artist and Date are UNKNOWN
