Servant of the Word: Wednesday of the Twenty-ninth Week in Ordinary Time

“The Idle Servant” by Nicolaes Maes, 1655

Readings for Wednesday of the Twenty-ninth Week in Ordinary Time[1]

Commentary:

Commentary on Rom 6:12-18

In the first part of this selection, St. Paul exhorts the Romans to remain faithful to the teachings of Christ and to avoid sin. He uses the unique existential argument that the Law of Moses defines sin, and, therefore, Christians are not under the Law but under the grace of Christ.

In the second part he defends the argument that obedience to Christ sets his audience on the road to salvation, since obeying Christ’s commandments leads to righteousness and frees them from sin, which was introduced by Adam and defined by the Law.

CCC: Rom 6:12 2819; Rom 6:17 197, 1237, 1733

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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 124:1b-3, 4-6, 7-8

R. (8a) Our help is in the name of the Lord.

Commentary on Ps 124:1b-3, 4-6, 7-8

Psalm 124 is a song of thanksgiving. In these verses God is praised for rescuing his chosen from their enemies and natural disasters so they could live in the freedom he had promised in his covenant.

CCC: Ps 124:8 287

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Gospel: Luke 12:39-48

Commentary on Lk 12:39-48

Following the Lord’s initial exhortation to his audience about the need to remain faithful, even if it seemed the hour was getting late, St. Peter asks the Lord if that message is for everyone or just for the disciples. The Lord responds with a parable similar to that which was used in the previous verses (Luke 12:35-38), and then punctuates it with a special injunction for the disciples. He uses the analogy of a servant entrusted with the master’s property, concluding with: “Much will be required of the person entrusted with much, and still more will be demanded of the person entrusted with more.” The final verse in this passage answers St. Peter’s question clearly.

CCC: Lk 12:35-40 2849

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Reflection:

There is an interesting parallel between the passage from St. Paul’s Letter to the Romans from the first reading and the Gospel of St. Luke’s parable of the servants. In St. Paul’s letter, he makes a complex argument that, rather than being wholly good as the Pharisees may have supposed, the Law of Moses actually introduced sin to mankind by defining acts as sinful (ironic summary of existentialism). Before the Law, mankind was ignorant of good and evil as defined by God. How could there be sin if sin was not ever defined. It would be like going to visit a person at their home and being told upon entering that no one was allowed to wear shoes inside. The children growing up in such a home would assume that wearing shoes in the house was a bad thing since it was forbidden to them.

The Law of Moses defined God’s rules to the Hebrews, and in their interpretation of those laws whole classes of regulations sprang up. The problem arose when the children of

Israel

ignored the authority of God the Father. He sent his only Son, the foretold Messiah, to fulfill the Law and to teach God’s children what the Law was intended to communicate about God’s will. When the Hebrews rejected the Lord, they rejected the freedom from sin Jesus offered, and they became slaves to an unfulfilled law which bound them in sin.

The parallel we find between St. Paul’s apologia and the teachings of Christ in the Gospel is found in the existential nature of the arguments. In the Gospel, St. Peter is questions Jesus, “Lord, is this parable meant for us or for everyone?” – do the attitudes and instructions being given to the disciples regarding fidelity and service to the Gospel apply to all of the faithful? Jesus answers with a story the moral of which is the degree to which the people of God will be held accountable for their faithfulness. It is in direct proportion to the authority they assume in God’s service.

In other words, we define our responsibility by our ability to act upon the faith we have been given. Therefore, the more faith we are given, the greater insights into God’s will for us, the more responsible we will be held for acting on those impulses and applying the gifts we are given. Again using analogy, the person who walks into a city street on a clear night and looks up might see as many as a thousand stars. That person could not be faulted for seeing so few. They could only see what their eyesight and the conditions of darkness allowed. That same person who walks to the summit of a mountain on a clear night would see thousands upon thousands of stars and might be amazed at what they could not see before. Going even further, if that person had access to images from the Hubble Space telescope and could see the billions upon billions of stars and galaxies that exist unseen from earth, they would be overwhelmed by the sheer enormity of what can be seen of the universe God created.

To those of us with great access to the indwelling Holy Spirit and the faith that God walks with us always, great things are expected. The person with great strength of spirit is intended to be vigilant always for the means by which it can be used for God’s greater glory. Our prayer today is that we always seek the face of God in all we do and thereby remain vigilant so the Lord may never find us inattentive.

Pax

[1] The picture is “The Idle Servant” by Nicolaes Maes, 1655

[2] S.S. Commemoratio