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| “St. Anthony of Padua” from an antique Holy Card, artist and date UNKNOWN |
Readings and Commentary: [3]
Reading 1: 2 Corinthians 1:18-22
Commentary on 2 Cor 1:18-22
St. Paul has been criticized by the people at Corinth. He is making it clear that there is no ambiguity in what they have been told regarding the Lord and the Kingdom of God. There is only truth and it is not variable. His critics have accused him of failing to deliver on promises he made. In this part of his response to that charge he recounts his singleness of purpose in confessing the absolute truth in Christ Jesus. God, says the Apostle, is always faithful (“For however many are the promises of God, their Yes is in him;”). The point he intends is that as God is faithful so is his servant who proclaims his fidelity to Christ Jesus who is God’s Amen (using the Hebrew word for yes). This assent they give to Christ is an assent to God since God and Christ are one.
The last reference to being sealed with the Holy Spirit is a reference to the unity shared by the faithful in Baptism and Confirmation.
CCC: 2 Cor 1:20 1065; 2 Cor 1:21-22 1274; 2 Cor 1:21 695, 735; 2 Cor 1:22 698, 1107, 1296
The last reference to being sealed with the Holy Spirit is a reference to the unity shared by the faithful in Baptism and Confirmation.
CCC: 2 Cor 1:20 1065; 2 Cor 1:21-22 1274; 2 Cor 1:21 695, 735; 2 Cor 1:22 698, 1107, 1296
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 119:129, 130, 131, 132, 133, 135
R. (135a) Lord, let your face shine on me.
Commentary on Ps 119:129, 130, 131, 132, 133, 135
The reference to “light” in this section of Psalm 119 is the light of revelation. It supports the Gospel below. Those who travel in light find the right paths and rejoice in the light.
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Gospel: Matthew 5:13-16
Commentary on Mt 5:13-16
In this selection from the Gospel of Matthew Jesus uses allegory to push the Word of God into the world. He tells his disciples they are an integral part of the faith of the people in God. Like seasoning is to food, so is the Word of God to the faith. They must remain steadfast so they do not lose that zeal for God that is the taste of that seasoning. It is that which sets it apart.
He uses a second allegory, light, to provide still more direction. The light of faith will be seen by all because it is reflected in the actions of those who believe. That light serves to guide others to God where they may otherwise become lost in darkness and wander into paths of desolation. That light that pours from the disciples will be seen as a gift not from them but from the Father and the Father will be glorified because of the light.
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Reflection
Those who do not believe in God, atheists, must believe that the universes and all creation is but some sort of cosmic chain of events with no purpose other than to follow the next logical step, dictated by physics or chemistry. They believe that life is mere chance and that, as preposterous as it seems, as improbable as has been statistically demonstrated, mankind evolved from this accidental chemical event that occurred in the earth’s primordial ooze.
Based upon their understanding of science and their rejection of the possibility of the existence of divinity, they see human life as meaningless, without purpose other than to satisfy some primitive instincts, a hedonistic satisfaction. How hopeless is their outlook; how bleak is their future; how futile their existence; how arrogant their mindset. We feel a profound sense of sorrow for their sense of self-worth which lacks any spiritual value and supposes that just as the biological process that formed them started a chain of events that led to new life, when that inevitable chain leads back to biological death, they come to a complete and total end of their existence.
How dismal their outlook must be. We who believe and are convinced that there is a God, a Trinity of Persons who created all that is and remains with us as we walk this earth, have hope. It is a hope born out of the certain knowledge that this life wrapped in flesh is only a part of our journey. We believe that we have been restored to a state of grace made possible by God’s only Son and that through his will and mercy we will exist forever, out of time and space, in his heavenly kingdom.
Because of this vibrant and lively faith, we see our lives as having purpose. A mission has been passed on to us. It is a mission of hope and love; love of those who cannot understand God’s love, and with that love we give hope to the hopeless. It is this mission the Lord proposes in the Gospel of St. Matthew. He invites us to be salt for a tasteless world, light in the darkness of despair. Even if our invitations fall upon deaf ears, the act of inviting allows us to be drawn more deeply into God’s love, and in being salt we taste his love more deeply, and in being light we are ourselves illuminated.
Pax
[1]The picture used is “St. Anthony of Padua” is from an antique Holy Card, artist and date UNKNOWN
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