Catechism Links[1]
CCC 407: Cannot ignore wound of sin in discerning human situationCCC 1777-1785: Moral decision making in rapport with God’s will
CCC 1786-1789: Seeking will of God in divine law in difficult circumstances
CCC 1038-1041: Separation of good and evil at Judgment
CCC 1037: God predestines no one to hell
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| “Hell” (detail) by Hieronymus Bosch, 1500-04 |
Readings and Commentary:[4]
Reading 1: 1 Kings 3:5, 7-12
The Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream at night.
God said, “Ask something of me and I will give it to you.”
Solomon answered:
“O Lord, my God, you have made me, your servant, king
to succeed my father David;
but I am a mere youth, not knowing at all how to act.
I serve you in the midst of the people whom you have chosen,
a people so vast that it cannot be numbered or counted.
Give your servant, therefore, an understanding heart
to judge your people and to distinguish right from wrong.
For who is able to govern this vast people of yours?”
The Lord was pleased that Solomon made this request.
So God said to him:
“Because you have asked for this—
not for a long life for yourself,
nor for riches,
nor for the life of your enemies,
but for understanding so that you may know what is right—
I do as you requested.
I give you a heart so wise and understanding
that there has never been anyone like you up to now,
and after you there will come no one to equal you.”
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Commentary on 1 Kgs 3:5, 7-12
King Solomon is in the process of uniting the kingdom of Israel’s worship with the construction of the temple. It is still unfinished when this dream occurs. Solomon has just offered a huge holocaust (“a thousand holocausts”) and in response God offers to grant him a request. Because Solomon, in humility, asks for “understanding” rather than a selfish boon, God grants him wisdom, a wise and understanding heart.
"Solomon’s request is an anticipation of the proper order which, according to Christ’s teaching, should be present in prayer of petition: 'The one Master and Lord teaches us how and in what order we ought to pray to God for the things we want; since we indicate and express our desires and petitions in prayer, then we pray properly and well when the order of our petitions matches the right order of desires. True charity teaches us that we ought to dedicate ourselves and all our desires to God; God, the supreme Good, deserves the highest form of love. And God cannot be loved from the heart, exclusively, if his honor and glory are not valued above all other things and creatures; all good things, those we have and those we do not possess, all things that are called good, must be subordinated to the supreme Good from whom they derive their goodness' ('Roman Catechism', 4, 10, 1)." [5]
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 119:57, 72, 76-77, 127-128, 129-130
R. (97a) Lord, I love your commands.
I have said, O Lord, that my part
is to keep your words.
The law of your mouth is to me more precious
than thousands of gold and silver pieces.
R. Lord, I love your commands.
Let your kindness comfort me
according to your promise to your servants.
Let your compassion come to me that I may live,
for your law is my delight.
R. Lord, I love your commands.
For I love your command
more than gold, however fine.
For in all your precepts I go forward;
every false way I hate.
R. Lord, I love your commands.
Wonderful are your decrees;
therefore I observe them.
The revelation of your words sheds light,
giving understanding to the simple.
R. Lord, I love your commands.
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Commentary on Ps 119:57, 72, 76-77, 127-128, 129-130
Psalm 119, the longest of the psalms, is a hymn in praise of the Law. It is not legalism, but rather a love of doing what is right in the sight of God. In these strophes, the psalmist proclaims his faithfulness to the law in the face of his adversaries, and waits for final salvation.
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Reading II: Romans 8:28-30
Brothers and sisters:
We know that all things work for good for those who love God,
who are called according to his purpose.
For those he foreknew he also predestined
to be conformed to the image of his Son,
so that he might be the firstborn
among many brothers and sisters.
And those he predestined he also called;
and those he called he also justified;
and those he justified he also glorified.
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Commentary on Rom 8:28-30
Created with free will, many will choose an easier path. This passage is among several that are central to the Calvinist idea of predestination. (Note: This reading used on the Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary clearly points to her glorious vocation and the honored place she has in heaven and on earth.)
CCC: Rom 8:26-39 2739; Rom 8:28-30 1821, 2012; Rom 8:28 313, 395; Rom 8:29 257, 381, 501, 1161, 1272, 2790
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Gospel: Matthew 13:44-52
Jesus said to his disciples:
“The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure buried in a field,
which a person finds and hides again,
and out of joy goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.
Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant
searching for fine pearls.
When he finds a pearl of great price,
he goes and sells all that he has and buys it.
Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net thrown into the sea,
which collects fish of every kind.
When it is full they haul it ashore
and sit down to put what is good into buckets.
What is bad they throw away.
Thus it will be at the end of the age.
The angels will go out and separate the wicked from the righteous
and throw them into the fiery furnace,
where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.
“Do you understand all these things?”
They answered, “Yes.”
And he replied,
“Then every scribe who has been instructed in the kingdom of heaven
is like the head of a household
who brings from his storeroom both the new and the old.”
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Commentary on Mt 13:44-52
“The three brief parables that conclude the this series of seven are linked together with the particle ‘again’ at 13:45 and 47. All three have to do with discrimination – the ability to recognize quality when one encounters it.”[6]
The question Jesus poses to his disciples following the parables requires an understanding of the structure of the Christian community at the time of Matthew. That is well described in the following: “The church of Matthew has leaders among whom are a group designated as "scribes" (Matthew 23:34). Like the scribes of Israel, they are teachers. It is the Twelve and these their later counterparts to whom this verse applies. The scribe […] instructed in the kingdom of heaven knows both the teaching of Jesus (the new) and the law and prophets (the old) and provides in his own teaching both the new and the old as interpreted and fulfilled by the new. On the translation head of a household (for the same Greek word translated householder in Matthew 13:27), see the note on Matthew 24:45-51.”[7]
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Or
Shorter Form: Matthew 13:44-46
Jesus said to his disciples:
“The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure buried in a field,
which a person finds and hides again,
and out of joy goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.
Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant
searching for fine pearls.
When he finds a pearl of great price,
he goes and sells all that he has and buys it.”
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Commentary on Mt 13:44-46
“Anyone who understands the Kingdom which Christ proposes realizes that it is worth staking everything to obtain it […]. The Kingdom of heaven is difficult to win. No one can be sure of achieving it, but the humble cry of the repentant man can open wide its doors” (St. Josemaria Escriva, Christ Is Passing By, 180).[8]
CCC: Mt 13:44-45 546
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Reflection:
Heavenly Father, we humbly pray that those suffering from the coronavirus be returned quickly to full health by the power of your Son’s healing presence, and those in fear be calmed through the Holy Spirit.
In Christ’s name we pray. – Amen.
Oh, that we all could have been granted the boon given to Solomon. We would always be able to discern the proper action. We would always make the right choices, and we would always be in accord with God’s plan for us. But that is not the case. Even though we may pray for it constantly, God does not wish to take away the freedom he gave us to choose our own course.
The parables we are given in St. Matthew’s Gospel show us what we should do. The person who finds a buried treasure should do everything in their power to possess it. The same is true with the analogy of the pearl. If we follow the parables, that is, state their meaning in clear language, God’s desired response to them becomes clear.
Let us look at buried treasure. First, we understand that the treasure (and the pearl) are metaphors for our understanding of what it takes to reach God’s Kingdom (both on earth and in the eternal sense). God’s Kingdom on earth is achieved through a harmony with the whole of God’s creation. That harmony is possible only if we put on Christ. His love for all people gave him such peace that God’s expressed hope for his children from the beginning of time was revealed through him. The way for us to achieve God’s Kingdom on earth, therefore, is to emulate the mind and heart of Christ as best we can. Now that we know where the treasure of God’s Kingdom can be found, asthe parable says, attaining that stated goal becomes the point, the goal of all we do. The parable says “out of joy (he) goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.” We understand the object of the parable.
The same basic meaning is true for the Parable of the Pearl. The pearl, like the treasure, drives all of our actions on this earth toward our goal of attaining the Kingdom of Heaven. We do this because striving to achieve it on earth places us on a path to achieve eternal peace in heaven.
We pledge ourselves once more then to do all we can to emulate Christ who places us on the path to the insurmountable joy embodied in the love of God. Through the one who is love we find the peace and contentment possible only by sacrificing hedonistic pursuits for those which build the spirit and build treasure in heaven. We once again wish Solomon’s gift might be ours in some small measure.
In this strange year where many of us will not be able to receive the Blessed Sacrament or celebrate as a community in our houses of worship, we must be prepared to receive spiritual communion in prayer:
My Jesus,
I believe that You
are present in the Most Holy Sacrament.
I love You above all things,
and I desire to receive You into my soul.
Since I cannot at this moment
receive You sacramentally,
come at least spiritually into my heart. I embrace You as if You were already there and unite myself wholly to You. Never permit me to be separated from You.
Amen.
Pax
In other years on this date: Memorial for Saints Joachim and Anne, Parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary
[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 used today is “Hell” (detail) by Hieronymus Bosch, 1500-04.
[4] The readings are taken from the New American Bible with the exception of the psalm and its response which were developed by the International Committee for English in Liturgy (ICEL). This republication is not authorized by USCCB and is for private use only.
[5] The Navarre Bible: “Joshua-Kings,” Scepter Publishers, Princeton, NJ, © 2003, pp. 425-26.
[6] Fire of Mercy Heart of the Word Volume II, Erasmo Leiva-Merikakis, Ignatius Press, San Francisco, CA, © 2003 p. 192.
[7] NAB footnote on Matthew 13:52.
[8] The Navarre Bible, “Gospels and Acts,” Scepter Publishers, Princeton, NJ, © 2002, p. 136.
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