Memorial of Saint Anthony, Abbot

Proper readings for the Memorial of St. Anthony
 
Biographical information about St. Anthony

”St Anthony Abbot”
by Agnolo di Domenico Mazziere, c.1490’s

 
Readings for Tuesday of the Second Week in Ordinary Time [1]
 
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible [2]
 
Readings and Commentary: [3]
 
Reading 1: Hebrews 6:10-20
 
Brothers and sisters:
God is not unjust so as to overlook your work
and the love you have demonstrated for his name
by having served and continuing to serve the holy ones.
We earnestly desire each of you to demonstrate the same eagerness
for the fulfillment of hope until the end,
so that you may not become sluggish, but imitators of those who,
through faith and patience, are inheriting the promises.
 
When God made the promise to Abraham,
since he had no one greater by whom to swear, he swore by himself,
and said, I will indeed bless you and multiply you.
And so, after patient waiting, Abraham obtained the promise.
Now, men swear by someone greater than themselves;
for them an oath serves as a guarantee
and puts an end to all argument.
So when God wanted to give the heirs of his promise
an even clearer demonstration of the immutability of his purpose,
he intervened with an oath,
so that by two immutable things,
in which it was impossible for God to lie,
we who have taken refuge might be strongly encouraged
to hold fast to the hope that lies before us.
This we have as an anchor of the soul,
sure and firm, which reaches into the interior behind the veil,
where Jesus has entered on our behalf as forerunner,
becoming high priest forever
according to the order of Melchizedek.
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Commentary on Heb 6:10-20
 
This selection from the Letter to the Hebrews enjoins the faithful to remain steadfast in faith even though they may grow weary. The author uses the example of the Old Testament forefathers (“those who, through faith and patience, are inheriting the promises”). The example of God’s promise to Abraham is used. “I swear by myself" (from Genesis 22:16). “’I will indeed bless you and multiply you'“ was the basis for the hope of all Abraham's descendants. Abraham, the author explains, has, through his patience, achieved the promise of salvation (“And so, after patient waiting, Abraham obtained the promise”).
 
The passage continues with reference to the Hebrew practice of the swearing of oaths as a means of concluding an unalterable promise. God, the author, continues to be faithful, having entered into a covenant (unbreakable: “so that by two immutable things” the promise and the oath, both made by God) with his heirs (those also adopted in baptism) and through it promised salvation. It is this covenant, sealed by Christ’s sacrifice, that is the foundation of faith and the hope of all Christians. [4]
 
CCC: Heb 6:13 2810; Heb 6:19-20 1820; Heb 6:20 1544
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 111:1-2, 4-5, 9 and 10c
 
R. (5) The Lord will remember his covenant for ever.
or:
R. Alleluia.
or:
R. Alleluia.
 
I will give thanks to the LORD with all my heart
in the company and assembly of the just.
Great are the works of the LORD,
exquisite in all their delights.
R. The Lord will remember his covenant for ever.
or:
R. Alleluia.
 
He has won renown for his wondrous deeds;
gracious and merciful is the LORD.
He has given food to those who fear him;
he will forever be mindful of his covenant.
R. The Lord will remember his covenant for ever.
or:
R. Alleluia.
 
He has sent deliverance to his people;
he has ratified his covenant forever;
holy and awesome is his name.
His praise endures forever.
R. The Lord will remember his covenant for ever.
or:
R. Alleluia.
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Commentary on Ps 111:1-2, 4-5, 9 and 10c
 
Psalm 111 is a hymn of praise. The psalmist sings of the wonders of God's creation, a gift to all the peoples. The hymn remembers the covenant with Abraham, a covenant that he promises will be eternal.  We are reminded that God has given us all things and we should be eternally thankful.
 
CCC: Ps 111:9 2807
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Gospel: Mark 2:23-28
 
As Jesus was passing through a field of grain on the sabbath,
his disciples began to make a path while picking the heads of grain.
At this the Pharisees said to him,
“Look, why are they doing what is unlawful on the sabbath?”
He said to them,
“Have you never read what David did
when he was in need and he and his companions were hungry?
How he went into the house of God when Abiathar was high priest
and ate the bread of offering that only the priests could lawfully eat,
and shared it with his companions?”
Then he said to them,
“The sabbath was made for man, not man for the sabbath.
That is why the Son of Man is lord even of the sabbath.”
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Commentary on Mk 2:23-28
 
In this passage from St. Mark’s Gospel, the Lord has another conflict with the Pharisees over laws they have implemented. In this case, the laws are about doing no work on the sabbath. The disciples of Jesus were hungry, and as a result gathered and ate grain on the sabbath. Strictly speaking, this was labor (Leviticus 24:9) and that is what the Pharisees were objecting to.
 
Jesus responded by reminding the Pharisees about a story from the first book of Samuel (1 Samuel 21:2-7). In that story restrictions not included in Mosaic Law, but established by men, were relaxed at need. The example can be seen as a link between Jesus’ own genealogy (coming from the line of David) and his mission as Savior, the Anointed One, the Messiah. It also teaches a more pragmatic lesson about the sabbath being created for man, and not as the rules of Pharisaic law had restricted it.
 
CCC: Mk 2:23-27 581; Mk 2:23-26 544; Mk 2:25-27 582; Mk 2:27-28 2167; Mk 2:27 2173; Mk 2:28 2173
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Reflection:
 
The Gospel draws a line in the sand for us today.  It is one of those actions of faith that is frequently being challenged from one side or the other.  Jesus is once more confronted by the Pharisees over something that he allows his disciples to do that conflicts with their rules.  We must understand that Pharisaic Law had literally hundreds of rules (613 laws, 365 negative commands and 248 positive laws).  There was great pride among them with regard to how closely they could follow all of them.  It was a contest of sorts, to see how strictly they could be observed.  The winner was the one who could still function as a person while following all of them.
 
There is an attraction to the discipline of faith.  Some groups have always found the ability to truly express their love of God through this type of asceticism.  A great example of this kind of devotion is the “Rule” for some religious orders.  The difference is that in religious orders, people voluntarily submit themselves to the rules as an expression of their devotion to God, as opposed to what is happening in the Gospel.  In the Gospel, the Pharisees, who have their set of rules governing what constitutes “labor” on the sabbath, have decided that picking grain, as Jesus’ disciples did, was a clear violation of those rules.  Since Jesus was a rabbi, a teacher, the Pharisees took him to task for his laxity.
 
The Lord’s response draws the line.  He does not tell the Pharisees their rules are foolish, that they should not have such rules.  Rather he tells them that they do not apply universally.  He uses the example of the companions of David (1 Samuel 21:2) (the use of David’s companions is loaded with symbolic meaning as well but we will just look at the surface story).  David’s companions had been consecrated to a task, and because of that, temple rules were suspended for them.  Those familiar with the details of the story, as St. Mark’s original audience would have been, would have seen the Lord’s statement as a huge statement about who he was and what his mission was.
 
The message we take from this selection of Scripture is that there is a need for discipline in our worship.  God has seen fit to provide us with commandments which direct us, and the Church through her magisterium, has provided a framework in which those commandments are reinforced and followed.  There is a point, however, when we must examine what we do and make sure that it is for God’s greater glory and not just out of habit or tradition.  Our intention must be pure and not rationalized, and we certainly should not judge others as the Pharisees did. The Lord teaches us love and compassion, and this is the standard to which we are all called.
 
Pax

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[1] The picture today is ”St Anthony Abbot” by Agnolo di Domenico Mazziere, c.1490’s.
[2] S.S. Commemoratio
[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 footnotes Hebrews 6:12, 6:13, and 6:18.