 |
| “Allegory of Wealth” by Simon Vouet, 1630-35 |
Readings and Commentary:[3]
Reading 1: Ezekiel 24:15-23
The word of the Lord came to me:
Son of man, by a sudden blow
I am taking away from you the delight of your eyes,
but do not mourn or weep or shed any tears.
Groan in silence, make no lament for the dead,
bind on your turban, put your sandals on your feet,
do not cover your beard, and do not eat the customary bread.
That evening my wife died,
and the next morning I did as I had been commanded.
Then the people asked me, “Will you not tell us what all these things
that you are doing mean for us?”
I therefore spoke to the people that morning, saying to them:
Thus the word of the Lord came to me:
Say to the house of Israel:
Thus says the Lord God:
I will now desecrate my sanctuary, the stronghold of your pride,
the delight of your eyes, the desire of your soul.
The sons and daughters you left behind shall fall by the sword.
Ezekiel shall be a sign for you:
all that he did you shall do when it happens.
Thus you shall know that I am the Lord.
You shall do as I have done,
not covering your beards nor eating the customary bread.
Your turbans shall remain on your heads, your sandals on your feet.
You shall not mourn or weep,
but you shall rot away because of your sins and groan one to another.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
From a theological perspective the last verse provides recourse: sins unreconciled will cause the death (rot) of the soul. It is only through reconciliation with God that life and peace are possible.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Responsorial Psalm: Deuteronomy 32:18-19, 20, 21
R. (see 18a) You have forgotten God who gave you birth.
You were unmindful of the Rock that begot you.
You forgot the God who gave you birth.
When the Lord saw this, he was filled with loathing
and anger toward his sons and daughters.
R. You have forgotten God who gave you birth.
“I will hide my face from them,” he said,
“and see what will then become of them.
What a fickle race they are,
sons with no loyalty in them!”
R. You have forgotten God who gave you birth.
“Since they have provoked me with their ‘no-god’
and angered me with their vain idols,
I will provoke them with a ‘no-people’;
with a foolish nation I will anger them.”
R. You have forgotten God who gave you birth.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Dt 32:18-19, 20, 21
This passage from Deuteronomy is taken from the last discourse of Moses, a section called the "Song of Moses." The great leader laments that the people have turned away from the God who saved them. In this selection the warning against forgetting God (the Rock on which they were founded) is issued. If they turn from God, God’s grace is no longer with them (“I will hide my face from them”) and they become “no-people” to him.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gospel: Matthew 19:16-22
A young man approached Jesus and said,
“Teacher, what good must I do to gain eternal life?”
He answered him, “Why do you ask me about the good?
There is only One who is good.
If you wish to enter into life, keep the commandments.”
He asked him, “Which ones?”
And Jesus replied, “You shall not kill;
you shall not commit adultery;
you shall not steal;
you shall not bear false witness;
honor your father and your mother;
and you shall love your neighbor as yourself.”
The young man said to him,
“All of these I have observed. What do I still lack?”
Jesus said to him, “If you wish to be perfect, go,
sell what you have and give to the poor,
and you will have treasure in heaven.
Then come, follow me.”
When the young man heard this statement, he went away sad,
for he had many possessions.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Mt19:16-22
“The first five commandments cited are from the Decalogue (see Exodus 20:12-16; Deuteronomy 5:16-20). Matthew omits Mark's "you shall not defraud" (Matthew 10:19; see Deuteronomy 24:14) and adds Leviticus 19:18. This combination of commandments of the Decalogue with Leviticus 19:18 is partially the same as Paul's enumeration of the demands of Christian morality in Romans 13:9.” [4]
CCC: Mt 19:16-19 2052; Mt 19:16-17 2075; Mt 19:18 2400; Mt 19:21 2053
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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.
Have you ever thought, when looking back at your recent past: “I have done very well in God’s eyes;” or “I am on the right path;” or “I’m pretty sure God will be happy with me”? We probably all have at some point. We certainly try to please God with our actions and even if we are very good at humility, there are probably times when we feel pride at what we have done in the Lord’s name. These are the times when we should hear the Lord’s chiding voice “There is only one who is good.” (Matthew 19:17)
This is not meant by Jesus to be discouraging. The young man in the story admitted that he came to Jesus with a pretty clean slate: “All of these I have observed.” We can almost hear the pride in his answer (pretty bold considering Jesus had just told him: “There is only One who is good”). So the Lord sees into the young man. Jesus sees deeply into the young man’s heart and understands he has done his very best to follow Mosaic Law, including the Decalogue and the “Great Commandment” from Leviticus Jesus had just quoted. But there is one flaw and it is significant.
The young man is of the privileged class with wealth and position (lest we think this is an impossible obstacle, look at all the saints who have come from the same kind of background and given it all up to follow the Lord – perhaps the most famous being St. Francis of Assisi but also St. Bernard of Clairvaux whose feast we celebrate August 20.) Jesus, probably with deep compassion, answers the question the young man should not have asked: “What do I still lack?” The Lord answers and tells the young man that he must do what his disciples have done: give up all that holds them to the secular world and follow Jesus.
What a great lesson for all of us who strive to follow the Lord. About the time we start feeling like we have made it, we should remember that question in our prayer: “What do I still lack?” Listen carefully to the Lord’s answer and we will find such a long way still to go. We take that message to heart today. Worldly values are still at war within us, striving to command all our attention. We listen to the Lord’s call above that din: “If you wish to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”
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
[1] The picture is “Allegory of Wealth” by Simon Vouet, 1630-35.
[3] 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.
[4] NAB note on Matthew 18-19.
No comments:
Post a Comment