Catechism Links [1]
CCC 2083: Commandments as a call for a response of love
CCC 2052, 2093-2094: The first commandment
CCC 1539-1547: Holy Orders in the economy of salvation
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| “Moses with the Ten Commandments” by Philippe de Champaigne,1648 |
Commentary:
Reading 1: Deuteronomy 6:2-6
Commentary on Dt 6:2-6
This passage is taken from Moses’ second address, introducing the “Law” to the people of God. Here he speaks of the covenantal responsibility the faithful have to keep the Law of God. The people are entering the land of Canaan, a fertile area (“a land flowing with milk and honey”), much different from the desert they have wandered. Moses points to this gift as God’s offering in return for their faithful adherence to the Law.
The selection continues with an iteration of the “Shema” (hear). It is prayer offered each day by religious Jews. It is basically an expansion of the First Commandment, exhorting the people to reject all other gods (in the historical context of the reading, this would apply especially to the Baal of Canaan). The clear intent is to place the love of God first in all things, making the need to offer all things to God foremost in all circumstances and endeavors.
"When someone asks him, 'Which commandment in the Law is the greatest?' (Matthew 22:36) Jesus replies: 'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments hang all the Law and the prophets.' (Matthew 22:37-40; cf. Deuteronomy 6:5; Leviticus 19:18) The Decalogue must be interpreted in light of this twofold yet single commandment of love, the fullness of the Law." (CCC 2055)
CCC: Dt 6:4-5 201, 459, 2093; Dt 6:4 228, 2083; Dt 6:5 368, 2055, 2133
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 18:2-3, 3-4, 47, 51
R. (2) I love you, Lord, my strength.
Commentary on Ps 18:2-3, 3-4, 47, 51
The first strophes of this selection announce that Psalm 18 is a song of thanksgiving and praise. God is seen as a protector in battle, and a sure fortress against all foes. David gives personal thanks in the final strophes for the victory God has given, and the kindness he shows to his faithful.
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Reading 2: Hebrews 7:23-28
Commentary on Heb 7:23-28
In this selection, the author continues to compare the priesthood of Christ to the Levitical priesthood. He launches into the third reason Christ’s priesthood supersedes the priesthood of the Levites. The Levitical priests, because they were mortal, died, and it was necessary to replace them so the people would continue to have intercessors, while Jesus, who is eternal, is eternally present. As we see in Romans 6:9-10: “We know that Christ, raised from the dead, dies no more; death no longer has power over him. As to his death, he died to sin once and for all; as to his life, he lives for God.” Jesus is the eternal intercessor.
The second part of this reading (v. 26-28) constitutes a hymn of praise to Christ the High Priest, summing up all that has gone before. When Jesus ascended his throne and assumed his High Priesthood, he made the one final sacrifice that frees all people from their sins, the sacrifice of atonement that never needs to be repeated. He sacrificed himself once and for all. In doing so God appointed his Only Begotten Son as Eternal High Priest, “perfect forever.”
CCC: Heb 7:24 1366, 1564; Heb 7:25-27 1364; Heb 7:25 519, 662, 2634, 2741; Heb 7:26 1544; Heb 7:27 1085, 1366, 1540
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Gospel: Mark 12:28b-34
Commentary on Mk 12:28b-34
In the continuing dialogue with the Sadducees from the Gospel of St. Mark, we find the scribe is impressed with the way Jesus handled the challenge by the Sadducees (found in the previous verses). The Lord answers his question about the law with the Great Commandment, the opening of the Shema, the great Jewish prayer, and then he follows that statement with the commandment to love your neighbor as yourself (see also Leviticus 19:18). When the scholar clearly understands what Jesus is saying, the Lord tells him he is "not far from the Kingdom of God" (see also the commentary on Matthew 22:34ff).
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Homily:
When I was just a child I have to admit I was a real stinker. If I wanted to do something fun, like having a practice fire drill and have my sisters jump out of a window into the snow as part of it, I’d first go to one parent (they had to be alone – never try this when they are together) and see if they would agree. If the first parent did not, I’d figure out what the objection was and then go and ask the other one, making sure to avoid the area where I’d gotten objections from the first. It was pretty effective, even though it did cause some rather heated discussions between my parents when one said yes and the other no.
I must say I think my parents caught on to my little ploy pretty quickly. Whenever the family gets together one of the favorite stories my sisters like to tell is how I had them jump out of a window 8 feet into a snow drift, in their pajamas, with my practice fire drill. Oh, and my parents never said “Go ask your father.” Or “Go ask your Mother.” That’s how I got the idea in the first place.
As we look at the scripture passages that were proclaimed today we can see a similar kind of rivalry over authority. In Deuteronomy, Moses is speaking to the Hebrew people expounding the First Commandment, saying:
“The LORD is our God, the LORD alone!
Therefore, you shall love the LORD, your God,
with all your heart,
and with all your soul,
and with all your strength.”
That important pronouncement later became the heart of a prayer said by religious Jews to this day known as the Shema (meaning hear). It calls the faithful to put God absolutely first – all that is done in thought, word, and actions must derive from the love of God.
In the Gospel from St. Mark, we hear Jesus responding to a Jewish scholar, a scribe, using the same reference. However the Lord takes it further; he then goes on to quote another section of the Law from Leviticus 19:18 creating the Great Commandment.
We can see the tension between the Jewish tradition and its dedication to the rule of the Law and Prophets and the Christian realization that Jesus came as Messiah fulfilling God’s promise, clearly articulated in the Hebrews reading as the author contrasts the Levitical priesthood with our High Priest, Jesus Christ. The priests that offered sacrifices at the temple for the Jewish people were mortal. They died and successors needed to be appointed so there would be someone to intercede on behalf of the people, offering sacrifices of atonement to God.
Jesus, on the other hand is eternal, our Eternal High Priest. He offered only one sacrifice, and that sacrifice of himself upon the cross was for all mankind and for all ages. That tension exists to this day.
We are faced with an analogous situation today as we are considering what we will need to do in the up-coming national elections. We must decide whose authority we recognize. Do we submit to the authority of our faith or to those who would tell us what we should believe? The Catholic Church does not endorse any party or candidate. However, the Church has and has always had an outspoken voice in the areas of faith and morals.
As you consider which candidate or proposition will receive your vote we ask you to inform yourselves about the candidate’s position on these important issues:
First – our faith teaches that we must respect human life, from conception to natural death. An informed conscience would know the position on this issue.
That’s actually quite complex since candidates on both sides of some debates claim they support this moral view. The Church’s stance is that artificial contraception, abortion (including abortion-inducing drugs), and sterilization are fundamentally wrong. Some candidates attempt to modify their stance to accommodate all positions. The informed voter sees the person’s history and understands when a candidate is claiming one position but supporting another. There will be times when the choices seem like trying to pick the lesser of two evils but we then look holistically to support positions beyond those that are strictly moral.
Second – the Church believes in the dignity of work and the human person. Candidates who support a just system that allows a person to work for a living should be a consideration. There is always going to be tension between free enterprise and labor unions – each pushing against the other for advantage. The Church supports the individual – not capitalism or socialism; not business interests nor labor union interests. Once more the informed Christian conscience must decide.
Third – The Church teaches that marriage is a sacred union between a man and a woman, defined by natural law established in his creation. As we heard just a few weeks ago from Genesis “God created them male and female” and “That is why a man leaves his father and mother, clings to his wife and the two become one flesh.” The vote informed by faith would not be cast for a candidate who supported same-sex marriage.
The elephant in the room for the Church is the attacks on religious freedom recently made by the current administration. Despite what you have heard in the political rhetoric leading up to this election, the exceptions proposed to the HHS Mandate that requires all employers of more than 50 people to provide health care coverage for artificial contraceptives, abortion-inducing drugs, and sterilization are so narrowly defined that they excluse our major faith based organizations, Catholic hospitals (637), schools and universities (700,000 students), and social services organizations (like the Capuchin Soup Kitchen in Detroit).
You see the mandate says that those Catholic organizations do not meet the rules for exemption because they don’t just serve Catholics. The exemption requires that in order to qualify, an organization must serve only its constituent faith. So, when our hospitals treat non-Catholics, they don’t qualify, when our schools admit students of other denominations and faiths, they don’t qualify. When our social organizations feed, clothe or protect non-Catholics, they don’t qualify. In essence, the mandate is trying to tell us who we may call neighbor and how we define our own faith. We must ask ourselves if the candidates we are considering support this position.
Perhaps there are some who believe I am over-reacting or making a mountain out of a mole hill. If you think so, I’ll give you a now-famous quote from Cardinal Francis George from Chicago who said recently “I expect to die in bed, my successor will die in prison, and his successor will die a martyr’s death.” There was another piece that was omitted in many publications that said: “His successor will pick up the shards of a ruined society and slowly help rebuild civilization, as the church has done so often in human history.”[5] Make no mistake, we must take a stand for our faith as we participate in the political process or we will wake up in the not-too-distant future wondering where it went.
Today we recall the Great Commandment. Its message is clear as we participate in the political process this next week, we keep in mind that our first priority must be the love of God followed by the second which is like it – to love our neighbor as ourselves.
Pax
In other years on November 4th: Memorial of Saint Charles Borromeo, Bishop
Biographical information about St. Charles Borromeo
[1] Catechism links are taken from the Homiletic Directory, published by the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, 29 June 2014.
[2] The picture is “Moses with the Ten Commandments” by Philippe de Champaigne,1648
[5] Cardinal Francis George, Crisis Magazine, The Wrong Side of History, October 24, 2012
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