Memorial of Saint Justin, Martyr

Proper for the Memorial of St. Justin
 
Biographical information about St. Justin

“St. Justin, Martyr, Patron of the Destitute”
from an antique holy card,
artist and date are unknown

 
Readings for Thursday of the Eighth Week in Ordinary Time [1]
 
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible [2]
 
Readings and Commentary:[3]
 
Reading 1: Sirach 42:15-25
 
Now will I recall God’s works;
what I have seen, I will describe.
At God’s word were his works brought into being;
they do his will as he has ordained for them.
As the rising sun is clear to all,
so the glory of the LORD fills all his works;
Yet even God’s holy ones must fail
in recounting the wonders of the LORD,
Though God has given these, his hosts, the strength
to stand firm before his glory.
He plumbs the depths and penetrates the heart;
their innermost being he understands.
The Most High possesses all knowledge,
and sees from of old the things that are to come:
He makes known the past and the future,
and reveals the deepest secrets.
No understanding does he lack;
no single thing escapes him.
Perennial is his almighty wisdom;
he is from all eternity one and the same,
With nothing added, nothing taken away;
no need of a counselor for him!
How beautiful are all his works!
even to the spark and fleeting vision!
The universe lives and abides forever;
to meet each need, each creature is preserved.
All of them differ, one from another,
yet none of them has he made in vain,
For each in turn, as it comes, is good;
can one ever see enough of their splendor?
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Commentary on Sir 42:15-25
 
This passage begins the fifth and final section of Sirach’s treatise on wisdom.  Here the author sees the wisdom of God in his creation.  “When it says that ‘by the word of the Lord his works are done.’ (42:15) [“At God’s word were his works brought into being;” in the NAB] it must have in mind the first chapter of Genesis which narrates how God went about his work of creation and distinguished his works one from another by means of his word ("And God said…” Genesis 1:3, etc.); but the passage also prepares the way to understand the Word of God made flesh, as we discover in Jesus Christ in the new Testament." [4] The reference is pointing at the first chapter of St. John’s Gospel were in we hear “All things came to be through him, and without him nothing came to be.” (John 1:3)
 
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 33:2-3, 4-5, 6-7, 8-9
 
R. (6a) By the word of the Lord the heavens were made.
 
Give thanks to the LORD on the harp;
with the ten-stringed lyre chant his praises.
Sing to him a new song;
pluck the strings skillfully, with shouts of gladness.
R. By the word of the Lord the heavens were made.
 
For upright is the word of the LORD
and all his works are trustworthy.
He loves justice and right;
of the kindness of the LORD the earth is full.
R. By the word of the Lord the heavens were made.
 
By the word of the Lord the heavens were made;
by the breath of his mouth all their host.
He gathers the waters of the sea as in a flask;
in cellars he confines the deep.
R. By the word of the Lord the heavens were made.
 
Let all the earth fear the Lord;
let all who dwell in the world revere him.
For he spoke, and it was made;
he commanded, and it stood forth.
R. By the word of the Lord the heavens were made.
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Commentary on Ps 33:2-3, 4-5, 6-7, 8-9
 
This hymn of praise is an invitation to those who follow the Lord to rejoice in His grace. The psalmist asks that a new song be sung.  There is always a newness to praise since the song is sung in unique circumstances each time.  The response provides a sense of God’s omnipresence and creative gift.
 
CCC: Ps 33:6 292, 703
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Gospel: Mark 10:46-52
 
As Jesus was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a sizable crowd,
Bartimaeus, a blind man, the son of Timaeus,
sat by the roadside begging.
On hearing that it was Jesus of Nazareth,
he began to cry out and say,
“Jesus, son of David, have pity on me.”
And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent.
But he kept calling out all the more, “Son of David, have pity on me.”
Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.”
So they called the blind man, saying to him,
“Take courage; get up, Jesus is calling you.”
He threw aside his cloak, sprang up, and came to Jesus.
Jesus said to him in reply, “What do you want me to do for you?”
The blind man replied to him, “Master, I want to see.”
Jesus told him, ‘Go your way; your faith has saved you.”
Immediately he received his sight
and followed him on the way.
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Commentary on Mk 10:46-52
 
In St. Mark’s story of the cure of the blind man (see also Matthew 20:29-34 and Luke 18:35-43), it is the way he addresses Jesus that becomes the focus. We are told he address him as “Son of David.” This is the messianic title applied by Jewish tradition to the one who comes to “heal the blind and the lame and set the prisoners free” (Isaiah 42;6-7). In response to the blind man’s request, “Master, I want to see,” in an almost casual way, Jesus tells him his faith has saved him and the blind man sees. Not surprisingly the now sighted man follows Jesus.
 
CCC:  Mk 10:46-52 2667; Mk 10:48 2616; Mk 10:52 548
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Reflection:
 
How many times have we been challenged to “prove the existence of God”?  Haven’t we each been confronted by individuals who are either atheistic or agnostic who demand that we show proof that God exists?  If we point to miracles like the one described in St. Mark’s Gospel they would say – “There was a rational explanation to the man’s recovery.”  If we point to other biblical miracles, they dismiss them as myth or legend; at worst hearsay or superstition.  
 
In the highly recommended but rarely seen movie “Expelled,” Ben Stein confronts the famous (infamous) atheist Richard Dawkins and asks him about the origins of life on earth.  “If not God, who?”  After stammering around a bit Dawkins finally concludes that aliens from another planet put life here.
 
What is our physical proof that God exists?  As Sirach says “As the rising sun is clear to all,
so the glory of the Lord fills all his works.” This realization crashes down upon us as we wonder at the immensity and complexity of God’s creation.  How could there be any other explanation for this universal order?
 
In that grander plan of the Lord, we see his Son, by a simple act of will, restore sight to a child of the Heavenly Father.  Set against the awesome power of creation we set that act in perspective.  How much more love does the Father have for us whom he created and set in his garden?
 
Pax

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[1] The picture is “St. Justin, Martyr, Patron of the Destitute” from an antique holy card, artist and date are unknown.
[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] The Navarre Bible: “Wisdom Books,” Scepter Publishers, Princeton, NJ, © 2003, p. 523.