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| “Miracle of the Bread and Fish” by Giovanni Lanfranco, 1620-23 |
Readings and Commentary:[3]
Reading I: James 1:12-18
Commentary on Jas 1:12-18
This section of St. James' letter continues his discourse started following the introduction about the value of trials and temptations. The focus in this selection is on temptation. James’ letter helps the Christian community understand that temptation comes from the Evil One in response to human desire. God does not place temptation in human lives. The one who follows the path of sin finds death, while the one who overcomes temptation and remains faithful to the “Father of lights” will find life – the “kind of first fruits of his creatures.”
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 94:12-13a, 14-15, 18-19
R. (12a) Blessed the man you instruct, O Lord.
Commentary on Ps 94:12-13a, 14-15, 18-19
Psalm 94 is an individual lament. The strophes used today reflect faith and confidence in God who will continue to support the faithful in the face of their enemies. There is a clear implication that faith in the Lord will prevent the steadfast from falling prey to temptation.
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Gospel: Mark 8:14-21
Commentary on Mk 8:14-21
Following his departure from Dalmanutha (which he left because the Pharisees were demanding signs like those he performed by feeding the multitudes), while still in the boat in which they had left, the disciples begin to worry about not having brought provisions. Jesus uses this time to warn them about being affected by the rebellious attitude of the Pharisees and Herod toward him. The leaven of the Pharisees and Herod probably refers to their inability to accept Jesus as who he is, the Messiah. The Pharisees and Herodians take the message of hatred and spread it though all the people like yeast in bread dough.
As is expected of the disciples in St. Mark’s Gospel, they do not understand, and the Lord must go further. His explanation makes subtle use of Hebrew numerology, with 12 being symbolic of the 12 tribes of Israel, and 7 being the perfect number or symbolic of completeness. These numbers become the representation of the Lord’s mission to fulfill the Law and Prophets, the complete revelation of God and His Kingdom.
CCC: Mk 8:19 1329
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Reflection
How many times have we heard it? “Why did God allow that to happen?” or “What kind of a God would visit that kind of punishment on a good person?” These kinds of questions, left unanswered, strengthen the ranks of the fallen. When we accept that there is a God, the ultimate source of good and the author of life, we must also accept the existence of his antithesis – the Evil One, the Devil. From the very beginning of man’s encounter with his creator there has been that force/persona which seeks to turn us away from him. We will go further and say that the reason many fall away from the faith is because they have been seduced into believing that the Evil One does not exist (even though they may say they believe in God).
It is so much easier to believe only in the loving and merciful God who sent his only Son into the world that we might live and forget that there is a dark and evil side. There is evil constantly beckoning us, inviting us to take an easier road, a more pleasant seeming alternative to the difficult path offered by our Lord. This confrontation between good and evil has been held up in great fiction as well as scripture. It is not as if it were hidden (we need only look at fairy tales like Hansel and Gretel or even Star Wars). Yet when bad things happen, how often do those affected blame God.
We are reminded of the small child who is told by its parents not to go near the stove because it’s hot. The curious child does not pay attention and goes to the stove and is burned. They then turn to their parents and blame them for turning the stove on.
We must never get complacent about the Evil One. We must never get overconfident and think: “I am so strong in my faith that no evil may touch me.” The more faith-filled an individual is the more effort the Evil One will expend to cause that person to fall, and the fall will be much farther, and much more painful.
The leaven of the evil one is active in the world. The Lord cautioned his disciples against it; St. James pointed it out to the early Christians. We are warned: let us not fall to the beautiful traps so cunningly laid for us.
Pax
[1] The picture is “Miracle of the Bread and Fish” by Giovanni Lanfranco, 1620-23
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