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| “St. Francis de Sales” Artist and Date UNKNOWN |
Commentary:
Reading 1: Hebrews 10:1-10
Commentary on Heb 10:1-10
The author (likely St. Paul) continues his apologia by comparing the Law of Moses to the fulfillment of the Law in Christ. In vv. 5-7, a passage from Psalm 40:7-9 is placed in the mouth of the Son of God at his incarnation. This statement refutes the need of Christians to follow the Hebrew Law of sin offerings (or guilt offerings, see Leviticus 5:14-19), since the Lord offered his own body “once for all” as the sacrifice that atones for sin and justifies (makes just as if no sin had been committed) the faithful.
CCC: Heb 10:1-4 1540; Heb 10:1 128; Heb 10:5-10 606; Heb 10:5-7 462, 516, 2568; Heb 10:5 488; Heb 10:7 2824; Heb 10:10 614, 2824
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 40:2 and 4ab, 7-8a, 10, 11
R. (8a and 9a) Here am I Lord; I come to do your will.
Commentary on Ps 40:2 and 4ab, 7-8a, 10, 11
While Psalm 40 is a song of thanksgiving, it is also combined with a lament. This Psalm is quoted in Hebrews 10:5-7 (although the translation quoted in Hebrews is from the Septuagint translation). The intent and action God wants from us is not burnt offerings but our own faithfulness.
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Gospel: Mark 3:31-35
Commentary on Mk 3:31-35
This passage, while affirming our own adoption as brothers and sisters in Christ, does cause some confusion among those who take scripture at face value without understanding the culture of the time. The first part of this reading from St. Mark’s Gospel is somewhat controversial in that many of the Protestant and Evangelical apologists take the term “and his brothers” to mean his familial or biological brothers. The Church teaches that Mary bore only one child – Jesus. Responding to this scripture, Catholic scripture scholars teach that “…in Semitic usage, the terms 'brother,' 'sister' are applied not only to children of the same parents, but to nephews, nieces, cousins, half-brothers, and half-sisters; cf Genesis 14:16; Genesis 29:15; Leviticus 10:4.”[4]
Another possible explanation, although it comes from an apocryphal source from the 2nd or 3rd centuries A.D., is that the Lord’s foster father, St. Joseph, had been previously married (and widowed). According to “The History of Joseph the Carpenter” from this first marriage, “[2.]… he begot for himself sons and daughters, four sons, namely, and two daughters. Now these are their names— Judas, Justus, James, and Simon. The names of the two daughters were Assia and Lydia.” These would have been the half-brothers and sisters of the Lord.
Because of this, when Mary comes looking for Jesus in this selection, she is, as would be expected, joined by members of the extended family. Jesus extends the family even further though his adoption of those “seated in the circle” who listen to his word and believe, telling those gathered that “…whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother.”
CCC: Mk 3:31-35 500
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Reflection:
Today we can pause and thank God for his great gift that brought us into a new relationship with him. If Christ had not come as the perfect offering for our sins, we would still be obliged to offer sacrifices as our Hebrew predecessors did. We would be one step removed from the relationship we have in Christ who at once saved us and adopted us as children of God: “For whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother.”
The sense of adoption contrasted with the former relationship of the Hebrew people can be analogized by examining the relationship between ourselves and our family, and ourselves and a guest. While we treat a guest with courtesy and respect, we do not have the same love for the guest as we would for our close family member.
A guest would be welcomed to our home. A family member lives with us, sharing not just our food, but all that we have. A guest comes and stays a while and leaves, but a family member is with us and shares our lives with us, the good and the bad. A guest does not share our pain or our joy to the extent a member of our own family does. The guest is held at arm’s length, never quite achieving that place of familial intimacy that is part of the family’s members.
Jesus changed that relationship for us. He came making his Father, God, our Father. He did not bring a guest to the table, but a bride. He himself, out of his great love for us, provided the sacrificial meal. He did this so we would have intimate access to him, and through that access find life eternal with the Father.
Because of this, we should take as our prayer today the family prayer of the Church, the Lord’s Prayer. As we say “Our Father,” let us embrace the Father who has adopted us, and through his great mercy has given us life with him.
Pax.
[1] The picture used is “St. Francis de Sales” Artist and Date UNKNOWN
[4] From the reference note on Mark 6; 3 in the NAB
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