Thursday of the Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time

Optional Memorial for Saint Cyril of Alexandria, Bishop and Doctor of the Church
 
Proper readings for the Memorial of St. Cyril of Alexandria
 
Biographical information about St. Cyril of Alexandria

“The House Upon the Rock and
The House Upon the Sand”
by William James Webb, c. 1860

 
Readings for Thursday of the Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time [1]
 
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible [2]
 
Readings and Commentary: [3]
 
Reading 1: 2 Kings 24:8-17
 
Jehoiachin was eighteen years old when he began to reign,
and he reigned three months in Jerusalem.
His mother’s name was Nehushta,
daughter of Elnathan of Jerusalem.
He did evil in the sight of the Lord,
just as his forebears had done.
 
At that time the officials of Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon,
attacked Jerusalem, and the city came under siege.
Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon,
himself arrived at the city
while his servants were besieging it.
Then Jehoiachin, king of Judah, together with his mother,
his ministers, officers, and functionaries,
surrendered to the king of Babylon, who,
in the eighth year of his reign, took him captive.
And he carried off all the treasures
of the temple of the Lord and those of the palace,
and broke up all the gold utensils that Solomon, king of Israel,
had provided in the temple of the Lord, as the Lord had foretold.
He deported all Jerusalem:
all the officers and men of the army, ten thousand in number,
and all the craftsmen and smiths.
None were left among the people of the land except the poor.
He deported Jehoiachin to Babylon,
and also led captive from Jerusalem to Babylon
the king’s mother and wives,
his functionaries, and the chief men of the land.
The king of Babylon also led captive to Babylon all seven thousand men of the army,
and a thousand craftsmen and smiths,
all of them trained soldiers.
In place of Jehoiachin,
the king of Babylon appointed his uncle Mattaniah king,
and changed his name to Zedekiah.
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Commentary on 2 Kgs 24:8-17
 
Following his father’s death, the young king, Jehoiachin, reigns for a very short period in Jerusalem. King Nebuchadnezzar of Neo-Babylon has already been attacking Judah for some time, and reaches Jerusalem just three months after the new king ascends the throne (history records that the wall around Jerusalem was breached on March 16, 587 B.C.). Following its capture, we hear of the great Diaspora, and sack of the temple, as all of the leadership and soldiery are sent into exile.
 
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 79:1b-2, 3-5, 8, 9
 
R. (9) For the glory of your name, O Lord, deliver us.
 
O God, the nations have come into your inheritance;
they have defiled your holy temple,
they have laid Jerusalem in ruins.
They have given the corpses of your servants
as food to the birds of heaven,
the flesh of your faithful ones to the beasts of the earth.
R. For the glory of your name, O Lord, deliver us.
 
They have poured out their blood like water
round about Jerusalem,
and there is no one to bury them.
We have become the reproach of our neighbors,
the scorn and derision of those around us.
O Lord, how long? Will you be angry forever?
Will your jealousy burn like fire?
R. For the glory of your name, O Lord, deliver us.
 
Remember not against us the iniquities of the past;
may your compassion quickly come to us,
for we are brought very low.
R. For the glory of your name, O Lord, deliver us.
 
Help us, O God our savior,
because of the glory of your name;
Deliver us and pardon our sins
for your name’s sake.
R. For the glory of your name, O Lord, deliver us.
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Commentary on Ps 79:1b-2, 3-5, 8, 9
 
Psalm 79 provides a penitential note similar to what is found in Baruch 1:15. It is a communal lament in which the assembly reflects upon the punishment endured because they have sinned against God, and disregarded his law. This lament is thought to reflect upon the destruction of Jerusalem by the Babylonian army in 587 BC. The singer asks God how long his anger at them will last, and pleads for pardon and deliverance. Following this admission, there is a plea for mercy and a promise of atonement.
 
CCC: Ps 79:9  431
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Gospel: Matthew 7:21-29
 
Jesus said to his disciples:
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’
will enter the Kingdom of heaven,
but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven.
Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name?
Did we not drive out demons in your name?
Did we not do mighty deeds in your name?’
Then I will declare to them solemnly,
‘I never knew you. Depart from me, you evildoers.’
 
“Everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them
will be like a wise man who built his house on rock.
The rain fell, the floods came,
and the winds blew and buffeted the house.
But it did not collapse; it had been set solidly on rock.
And everyone who listens to these words of mine
but does not act on them
will be like a fool who built his house on sand.
The rain fell, the floods came,
and the winds blew and buffeted the house.
And it collapsed and was completely ruined.”
 
When Jesus finished these words,
the crowds were astonished at his teaching,
for he taught them as one having authority,
and not as their scribes.
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Commentary on Mt 7:21-29
 
This is the final section of the first of five great discourses of Jesus in the Gospel of Matthew. In it, he broadens his attack on false prophets to include those who perform acts in his name, but lead lives of sin. He uses the analogy of the house built upon sand and the house built upon rock to indicate that those who have a deep faith and act out of that faith have a strong foundation and can stand against adversity, while those who give the faith lip service for others to see, but do not have that deep faith, will fall. He will not even recognize them when they come before him in final judgment.
 
The Lord also makes a distinction between saying and doing. The metaphor of the “house built on rock” refers to those who hear the word of the Lord from an authentic source and act upon it. The house built on sand is a metaphor for those who either are not taught authentically (by false prophets) or who do not act upon what they have been given.
 
CCC: Mt 7:21-27 1970; Mt 7:21 443, 1821, 2611, 2826; Mt 7:28-29 581
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Reflection:
 
We are reminded of a story about the young Dutch boy who wished to hold back the sea so he could build a home by a wave-swept shore. Each day he would go to the very edge of the shore at low tide, and erect a wall as quickly as he could in hopes that it would prevent the water from washing over the place where he wanted to build when the tide came back in. Each day, no matter how fast and how sturdily he built, the water would rush back, come around the sides of his wall, knock it down, and wash over it.
 
The boy was becoming very sad and disheartened. He went to his father and told him about his struggle. His father explained to him that, while he might be the best in the world at building dikes to hold back the water, he could not do what needed to be done by himself. He must enlist the aid of his friends and family that, together, they might create a structure that could hold back the sea for a day.
 
It was a week later that the boy, this time accompanied by his friends and family, came to the shore. When the tide had gone out, they worked furiously together and made an enclosure. When the tide came back in, the weak places were able to be reinforced and the dike stood throughout high tide. As the water receded, more dikes were added and in a matter of weeks enough ground was reclaimed from the sea to build several houses.
 
The young man thanked those who had helped, and then together they thanked God, because the Lord had given them strength to build. The Lord had created the material with which they built, and had given them good weather, without which all they had done would have been impossible.
 
We thought of this story, first, because of the parable of the wise man who built his house upon a solid foundation, a rock. But, when we think about that foundation, we realized that it was not simply one rock that is the foundation for us, but many. One man, though he was also God, came into the world and established the cornerstone of faith, and upon that rock countless other people of great faith added their own effort, and in many cases their blood, so that the great monument to the Father, the Church, might be built.
 
We each must become like the rock that Jesus called in the person of St. Peter. We must strengthen ourselves with what is good through prayer and discernment so we, like the friends and family of the Dutch boy in the story, might stand together against the storm of the world, remaining firm in the faith to God’s glory. We must reject what comes from the evil one and test each notion against the measure of the love of God and his Son.
 
Pax

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[1] The picture today is “The House Upon the Rock and The House Upon the Sand” by William James Webb, c. 1860.
[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.

Wednesday of the Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time

 

“Josiah” by Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld, c. 1850's

Readings for Wednesday of the Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time [1]
 
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible [2]
 
Readings and Commentary: [3]
 
Reading 1: 2 Kings 22:8-13; 23:1-3
 
The high priest Hilkiah informed the scribe Shaphan,
“I have found the book of the law in the temple of the Lord.”
Hilkiah gave the book to Shaphan, who read it.
Then the scribe Shaphan went to the king and reported,
“Your servants have smelted down the metals available in the temple
and have consigned them to the master workmen
in the temple of the Lord.”
The scribe Shaphan also informed the king
that the priest Hilkiah had given him a book,
and then read it aloud to the king.
When the king heard the contents of the book of the law,
he tore his garments and issued this command to Hilkiah the priest,
Ahikam, son of Shaphan,
Achbor, son of Micaiah, the scribe Shaphan,
and the king’s servant Asaiah:
“Go, consult the Lord for me, for the people, for all Judah,
about the stipulations of this book that has been found,
for the anger of the Lord has been set
furiously ablaze against us,
because our fathers did not obey the stipulations of this book,
nor fulfill our written obligations.”
 
The king then had all the elders of Judah
and of Jerusalem summoned together before him.
The king went up to the temple of the Lord with all the men of Judah
and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem:
priests, prophets, and all the people, small and great.
He had the entire contents of the book of the covenant
that had been found in the temple of the Lord, read out to them.
Standing by the column, the king made a covenant before the Lord
that they would follow him
and observe his ordinances, statutes and decrees
with their whole hearts and souls,
thus reviving the terms of the covenant
which were written in this book.
And all the people stood as participants in the covenant.
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Commentary on 2 Kgs 22:8-13; 23:1-3
 
This passage chronicles the reign of King Josiah, who followed King Manasseh, who had reigned for 55 years and had done evil in the eyes of the Lord, following “abominable practices” (2 Kings 21:2ff). King Josiah had ordered the gifts of precious metals given to the temple to be melted down, and paid out to workmen who repaired the temple. During this renovation, the book of the law was rediscovered, and the people were brought back to the faith through the reaffirmation of the covenant.  The historical ebb and flow of faith in Israel continues.
 
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 119:33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 40
 
R. (33a) Teach me the way of your decrees, O Lord.
 
Instruct me, O LORD, in the way of your statutes,
that I may exactly observe them.
R. Teach me the way of your decrees, O Lord.
 
Give me discernment, that I may observe your law
and keep it with all my heart.
R. Teach me the way of your decrees, O Lord.
 
Lead me in the path of your commands,
for in it I delight.
R. Teach me the way of your decrees, O Lord.
 
Incline my heart to your decrees
and not to gain.
R. Teach me the way of your decrees, O Lord.
 
Turn away my eyes from seeing what is vain:
by your way give me life.
R. Teach me the way of your decrees, O Lord.
 
Behold, I long for your precepts;
in your justice give me life.
R. Teach me the way of your decrees, O Lord.
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Commentary on Ps 119:33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 40
 
The strophes selected from this very long psalm focus on the fidelity of the singer to the “ordinances, statutes and decrees” of the law, in direct reference to the communal lament offered in 2 Kings 22. Psalm 119 is an individual lament asking for God’s support in times of difficulty.
 
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Gospel: Matthew 7:15-20
 
Jesus said to his disciples:
“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing,
but underneath are ravenous wolves.
By their fruits you will know them.
Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles?
Just so, every good tree bears good fruit,
and a rotten tree bears bad fruit.
A good tree cannot bear bad fruit,
nor can a rotten tree bear good fruit.
Every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down
and thrown into the fire.
 
So by their fruits you will know them.”
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Commentary on Mt 7:15-20
 
In this section of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus warns against people claiming to be God’s messengers, but whose message goes against God’s commands. Jesus uses an analogy of the fruit produced by various plants as a way to test the authenticity of those who claim to come in God’s name. He tells them that the product, or result, of the words offered by a self-proclaimed messenger will identify them. In his time, this was probably another warning about the teaching of the scribes and Pharisees, who placed self-serving demands upon the people.
 
CCC: Mt 7:15 2285; Mt 7:20 2005
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Reflection:
 
Between February 28 and April 19, 1993, a great tragedy occurred in Waco Texas at the compound of a religious group called the Branch Davidians. A charismatic leader named David Koresh was able to convince a large group of people that he was from God and was leading them to God. The fruits of his teaching tell us what he truly was. On November 18, 1978, in a place commonly known as Jonestown in Guyana, a charismatic religious leader named Jimmy Jones lead 913 men women and children to mass suicide claiming that he was leading them to God. The fruits of his teaching identified him clearly.
 
If we believe that the warning from the Lord repeated in Sacred Scripture regarding false teachers can be lightly taken because we have two thousand years of history and understanding to fortify us against those who might lead us down the wrong path, all we need to do is look at recent history. If we believe that, because we have saints who fought the battles to defeat challenges to Church teaching throughout history, we are free from those who would twist the word of God to their own purposes, then look at the present day. Look at the saga of Jose Luis De Jesus Miranda who died in 2013. He was building a financial empire based in Miami predicated upon the idea that he himself was the incarnation of God, and people believed him!
 
The words of Jesus come rushing upon us today. We are reminded that we base our hope and trust on those whose fruits are clearly seen. The Church, for all her faults, is an on-going force for good in the world. Her message of the Risen Lord, justice for the poor and love for all mankind is what we look at and see the fingerprints of God. Let us take the time to inform ourselves and inform those we love about the truth, so they too may avoid the many false prophets who come, seeming good, but whose fruits proclaim them as messengers of darkness.
 
Pax

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[1] The picture used today is “Josiah” by Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld, c. 1850'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.

Tuesday of the Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time

“Narrow and Wide Gates”
by Johann Christoph Weigel, 1695

 
Readings for Tuesday of the Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time [1]

Readings from the Jerusalem Bible [2]
 
Readings and Commentary: [3]
 
Reading 1: 2 Kings 19:9b-11, 14-21, 31-35a, 36
 
Sennacherib, king of Assyria, sent envoys to Hezekiah
with this message:
“Thus shall you say to Hezekiah, king of Judah:
‘Do not let your God on whom you rely deceive you
by saying that Jerusalem will not be handed over
to the king of Assyria.
You have heard what the kings of Assyria have done
to all other countries: they doomed them!
Will you, then, be saved?’”
 
Hezekiah took the letter from the hand of the messengers and read it;
then he went up to the temple of the LORD,
and spreading it out before him,
he prayed in the LORD’s presence:
“O LORD, God of Israel, enthroned upon the cherubim!
You alone are God over all the kingdoms of the earth.
You have made the heavens and the earth.
Incline your ear, O LORD, and listen!
Open your eyes, O LORD, and see!
 
Hear the words of Sennacherib which he sent to taunt the living God.
Truly, O LORD, the kings of Assyria have laid waste the nations
and their lands, and cast their gods into the fire;
they destroyed them because they were not gods,
but the work of human hands, wood and stone.
Therefore, O LORD, our God, save us from the power of this man,
that all the kingdoms of the earth may know
that you alone, O LORD, are God.”
 
Then Isaiah, son of Amoz, sent this message to Hezekiah:
“Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel,
in answer to your prayer for help against Sennacherib, king of Assyria:
I have listened!
This is the word the LORD has spoken concerning him:
 
“‘She despises you, laughs you to scorn,
the virgin daughter Zion!
Behind you she wags her head,
daughter Jerusalem.
 
“‘For out of Jerusalem shall come a remnant,
and from Mount Zion, survivors.
The zeal of the LORD of hosts shall do this.’
 
“Therefore, thus says the LORD concerning the king of Assyria:
‘He shall not reach this city, nor shoot an arrow at it,
nor come before it with a shield,
nor cast up siege-works against it.
He shall return by the same way he came,
without entering the city, says the LORD.
I will shield and save this city for my own sake,
and for the sake of my servant David.’”
 
That night the angel of the LORD went forth and struck down
one hundred and eighty-five thousand men in the Assyrian camp.
So Sennacherib, the king of Assyria, broke camp,
and went back home to Nineveh.
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Commentary on 2 Kgs 19:9b-11, 14-21, 31-35a, 36
 
Following the annals of the kings of Israel, we come to King Hezekiah’s reign. Earlier in the account of his reign (715-687 BC), he implemented great reforms (see 2 Chronicles 29-31), throwing out many pagan influences which gained popularity during the reign of his predecessor, King Ahaz (735-715). The spiritual strength gained from the return to faith allowed Hezekiah to turn to the Lord for aid in facing the vastly superior Assyrians, who held sway over the entire region. This was accomplished with God’s aid, striking down a large number of the Assyrian army by what appears to be a plague.
 
Reference to the thwarting of the invasion by Sennacherib is dated to 701 BC. While the Assyrians did lay siege to Jerusalem, they did not capture it. This debacle led to the assassination of Sennacherib by one of his sons.
 
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 48:2-3ab, 3cd-4, 10-11
 
R. (9d) God upholds his city for ever.
 
Great is the LORD and wholly to be praised
in the city of our God.
His holy mountain, fairest of heights,
is the joy of all the earth.
R. God upholds his city for ever.
 
Mount Zion, “the recesses of the North,”
is the city of the great King.
God is with her castles;
renowned is he as a stronghold.
R. God upholds his city for ever.
 
O God, we ponder your mercy
within your temple.
As your name, O God, so also your praise
reaches to the ends of the earth.
Of justice your right hand is full.
R. God upholds his city for ever.
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Commentary on Ps 48:2-3ab, 3cd-4, 10-11
 
Psalm 48 is a song of praise to God, exhorting the community to praise the Lord for his gift of salvation. The psalm sings of the glory of the heavenly kingdom, the new Jerusalem, and the Lord’s mercy and justice.
 
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Gospel: Matthew 7:6, 12-14
 
Jesus said to his disciples:
“Do not give what is holy to dogs, or throw your pearls before swine,
lest they trample them underfoot, and turn and tear you to pieces.
 
“Do to others whatever you would have them do to you.
This is the Law and the Prophets.
 
“Enter through the narrow gate;
for the gate is wide and the road broad that leads to destruction,
and those who enter through it are many.
How narrow the gate and constricted the road that leads to life.
And those who find it are few.”
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Commentary on Mt 7:6, 12-14
 
This selection contains three popular sayings of the Lord, contained within the body of the Sermon on the Mount. The “pearls before swine” saying has been somewhat problematic for scholars. It probably refers to proclaiming the Gospel to those who reject it most strenuously, the scribes and Pharisees. This is followed by a shortened passage expounding the “Golden Rule.” The passage concludes with the analogy of the “narrow gate.” The foundation for this saying is found in Deuteronomy 30:15-20. After the Jews' long sojourn in the desert and having the law imparted to them, Moses sums up the function of God’s law, saying, “See, I have today set before you life and good, death and evil.” Jesus draws a similar comparison. The narrow gate refers here to following the precepts of the Lord and keeping the discipline of the faith. These precepts form a boundary for actions: “How narrow the gate and constricted the road that leads to life.”
 
CCC: Mt 7:12-13 2821; Mt 7:12 1789, 1970; Mt 7:13-14 1036, 1970, 2609; Mt 7:13 1696
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Reflection:
 
“How narrow the gate and constricted the road that leads to life.” Whenever this passage is proclaimed we think of road construction at rush hour. In most major cities it seems that those in authority pick the most heavily traveled stretches of highway to repair just as traffic is at its heaviest. This always causes huge backups and tempers flare.
 
When people rush to get to the same destination there are always those who think there might be an easier way, a quicker way, one not requiring the patience needed to follow the constricted route. These individuals violate laws and place themselves (and others) in danger, because of their failure to follow the laws.
 
The same thing is true of our journey toward the heavenly kingdom. The path is constricted by the commandments set down for us to follow. Those who find them too difficult, just as those confronted with a traffic backup, will try to find an easier way, a more comfortable route. Those who choose this path are the ones Jesus laments in the passage from St. Matthew’s Gospel.
 
There was an article recently published by an apologist that addressed this very point. When confronted by a young man who was a professed atheist, he began to explore the reasons this once-Catholic individual had turned so adamantly away from the Church. After hearing the young man go through all of the usual popular objections about the failings of the Church and the people of faith, the apologist asked just one question: “You’re sleeping with your girlfriend, aren’t you?”
 
So often those we meet who reject the narrow path do not reject it because they do not believe it is the right path, but rather because it is either too difficult, or not as much “fun” as the alternative. The person who fails at some endeavor in life does not embrace that failure because it is the right thing to do, but rather because succeeding generally requires more work, discipline, and effort.
 
For those who struggle along the narrow way, we pray that they continue to have the strength to persevere, ignoring the short-term struggle and seeing the eternal benefit. We pray also for those who have found the narrow way too difficult and have turned back. We pray and encourage them that they might know that it is never too late to make the attempt once more. For all of us, we pray that, in spite of the times we fail, falling off that narrow way, that we have the strength of faith to dust ourselves off and climb back on. Life is worth the effort.
 
Pax

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[1] The picture used is “Narrow and Wide Gates” by Johann Christoph Weigel, 1695.
[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.

Solemnity of the Nativity of Saint John the Baptist - Mass During the Day

Solemnity of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist - AT THE VIGIL [1]

“St John the Baptist as a Boy”
by Bartolomé Esteban Murillo, c. 1665

Readings for the Solemnity of the Nativity of Saint John the Baptist [2]
 
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible [3]
 
Readings and Commentary: [4]
 
Reading 1: Isaiah 49:1-6
 
Hear me, O coastlands,
listen, O distant peoples.
The LORD called me from birth,
from my mother's womb he gave me my name.
He made of me a sharp-edged sword
and concealed me in the shadow of his arm.
He made me a polished arrow,
in his quiver he hid me.
You are my servant, he said to me,
Israel, through whom I show my glory.
 
Though I thought I had toiled in vain,
and for nothing, uselessly, spent my strength,
yet my reward is with the LORD,
my recompense is with my God.
For now the LORD has spoken
who formed me as his servant from the womb,
that Jacob may be brought back to him
and Israel gathered to him;
and I am made glorious in the sight of the LORD,
and my God is now my strength!
It is too little, he says, for you to be my servant,
to raise up the tribes of Jacob,
and restore the survivors of Israel;
I will make you a light to the nations,
that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.
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Commentary on Is 49:1-6
 
In this passage, the beginning of the second of the four “Servant of the Lord” oracles, the prophet Isaiah speaks of his own call of service to God. It presents him as “another Jeremiah”:  He is called from his mother’s womb (see Jeremiah 1:5). The prophet has a vocation to the Gentiles (Jeremiah 1:10; Jeremiah 25:15ff) to bring a message of both doom and happiness (Jeremiah 16:19-21). [5]  We note that God sets his servants on their course from before their birth (see also Luke 1:15 (St. John the Baptist), Luke 1:31 (Jesus) and Galatians 1:15 (St. Paul the apostle)).
 
The servant learns that, even at times when his effort seems to have failed (“Though I thought I had toiled in vain”), it is God’s strength and plan that succeeds (“my recompense is with my God”)(see also 1 Corinthians 4:1-5). The prophet’s role is expanded at the end of the passage to “reach to the ends of the earth,” a revelation further elaborated in Genesis 12:3; Luke 2:31-32; and Acts 13:47.
 
CCC: Is 49:1-6 713; Is 49:5-6 64
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 139:1b-3, 13-14ab, 14c-15
 
R. (14) I praise you, for I am wonderfully made.
 
O LORD, you have probed me, you know me:
you know when I sit and when I stand;
you understand my thoughts from afar.
My journeys and my rest you scrutinize,
with all my ways you are familiar.
R. I praise you for I am wonderfully made.
 
Truly you have formed my inmost being;
you knit me in my mother's womb.
I give you thanks that I am fearfully, wonderfully made;
wonderful are your works.
R. I praise you, for I am wonderfully made.
 
My soul also you knew full well;
nor was my frame unknown to you
When I was made in secret,
when I was fashioned in the depths of the earth.
R. I praise you, for I am wonderfully made.
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Commentary on Ps 139:1b-3, 13-14ab, 14c-15
 
This song/prayer asks for guidance from the Holy Spirit. It recognizes that God’s spirit is in all his creation and its knowledge is omnipresent. The idea of being called from the womb – set aside for God – is a common theme of the prophetic tradition in both the Old Testament and New Testament.
 
CCC: Ps 139:15 2270
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Reading II: Acts 13:22-26
 
In those days, Paul said:
"God raised up David as king;
of him God testified,                                                                                      
I have found David, son of Jesse, a man after my own heart;
he will carry out my every wish.
From this man's descendants God, according to his promise,
has brought to Israel a savior, Jesus.
John heralded his coming by proclaiming a baptism of repentance
to all the people of Israel;
and as John was completing his course, he would say,
'What do you suppose that I am? I am not he.
Behold, one is coming after me;
I am not worthy to unfasten the sandals of his feet.'
 
"My brothers, sons of the family of Abraham,
and those others among you who are God-fearing,
to us this word of salvation has been sent."
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Commentary on Acts 13:22-26
 
This is the first of several instances recorded in Acts that St. Paul uses his scholarly knowledge of the Hebrew tradition to build up a logical rationale for Jesus as Savior and Messiah. In this passage, that development ends as he recounts the history of God’s covenant with the Jewish people from their exodus from Egypt under Moses to the appearance of John the Baptist (in this discourse there are quotes from several sources: Psalm 89:21; 1 Samuel 13:14; and Isaiah 44:28). St. John was a contemporary figure about whom these people would have been aware, and he quotes Luke 3:16. He concludes by appealing to the Jewish audience (“sons of the family of Abraham”) to hear the prophetic call fulfilled.
 
CCC: Acts 13:24 523
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Gospel: Luke 1:57-66, 80
 
When the time arrived for Elizabeth to have her child
she gave birth to a son.
Her neighbors and relatives heard
that the Lord had shown his great mercy toward her,
and they rejoiced with her.
When they came on the eighth day to circumcise the child,
they were going to call him Zechariah after his father,
but his mother said in reply,
"No. He will be called John."
But they answered her,
"There is no one among your relatives who has this name."
So they made signs, asking his father what he wished him to be called.
He asked for a tablet and wrote, "John is his name,"
and all were amazed.
Immediately his mouth was opened, his tongue freed,
and he spoke blessing God.
Then fear came upon all their neighbors,
and all these matters were discussed
throughout the hill country of Judea.
All who heard these things took them to heart, saying,
"What, then, will this child be?"
For surely the hand of the Lord was with him.
The child grew and became strong in spirit,
and he was in the desert until the day
of his manifestation to Israel.
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Commentary on Luke 1:57-66, 80
 
We hear the angel’s announcement to Zechariah (Luke 1:13ff) fulfilled in St. Luke’s account of the birth of St. John the Baptist. The naming of the child “John” broke tradition (according to the tradition of the day, the child should have been named after his father, Zechariah) and by acceding to the archangel Gabriel’s announcement, we see the child set on a course directed by God and dedicated to him. Based upon the closing statement (v.80), it is possible the boy, John, was entrusted to the "covenanters at Qumran." [6]
 
"The brief account of the birth echoes the OT account of (barren) Rebekah’s delivery (Gen 25:24); Lot’s experience of God’s mercy (Gen 19:19) is the pattern after which Elizabeth’s is described in v 58; the rejoicing with Elizabeth reflects (barren) Sarah’s expectation, should she miraculously give birth to a child (Gen 21:6 LXX). For Elizabeth, miraculous pregnancy is culminated by the mercy of a safe delivery." [7]
 
CCC: Lk 1:68 422, 717
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Reflection:
 
The feast we celebrate today, the Nativity of St. John the Baptist, is raised to the level of a solemnity, the highest, most important rank that is given to celebrations in the Church.  We point this out to invite the question: “Why would the birth of St. John the Baptist be placed on the same level as the feasts of the Transfiguration, Christmas, or Easter?”  These other solemnities mark major events in the life of Christ.  While he was Jesus’ cousin, and his birth, like the Lord’s, was miraculous (although not anywhere close to the virginal birth of the Lord), St. John passed from sight early in the saga of Jesus.  Why then does the Church so honor the day of his birth?
 
We ask the question rhetorically of course.  Without the birth of St. John, Jesus’ mission could not have happened.  It was St. John who came as the “Elijah figure,” returning as prophesied to herald the coming of the Messiah.  It was St. John who announced and prefigured the Lord in life and death.  St. John was the perfect key that opened the way for the Savior who in turn used that key to defeat death and open wide the gates of salvation for all mankind.
 
When we recall St. John’s beginning, Scripture presents us with a clear picture of his importance in God’s plan.  Like the great prophets of old, St. John was called to his role from his mother’s womb.  Indeed, his first meeting with Jesus was from the womb as his mother, Elizabeth, met her cousin, the Blessed Virgin Mary, when she was newly with child.  St. John, while still in Elizabeth’s womb, leapt for joy at the sound of Mary’s voice.  His path was already set, his mission already accepted. (Luke 1:40-41)
 
Like the Lord himself, little is known of St. John’s early years.  We may only speculate that, growing up, he must have spent some time with Jesus.  Clearly, he knew that it was he, the Lord, whose path he made straight.  His response to those who asked him later if he was the Messiah makes clear that he was humble in his role and awed by the call he had accepted.  The Acts of the Apostles recalled his words to us: “I am not he.” He said when asked if he was the one expected: “Behold, one is coming after me; I am not worthy to unfasten the sandals of his feet.”
 
In his witness, St. John not only announced the Lord’s coming, but provided for us an example of how we should accept the Lord’s future coming.  Like St. John, we should be filled with awe and wonder at what God has done for us.  We should be filled with expectation at what the Heavenly Father has prepared for us.  We should be joyful as we anticipate our Lord’s coming in glory.
 
As we recall St. John’s nativity on this his feast day, let us all pray that we may conform our attitudes to his being filled with the Holy Spirit, rejoicing in the Lord who came as he promised and will come again.
 
Pax
 
In other years on this date: Monday of the Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time

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[1] Note, when this solemnity falls on a Monday, the vigil may be celebrated before or after Evening Prayer on the Sunday preceding.
[2] The picture is “St John the Baptist as a Boy” by Bartolomé Esteban Murillo, c. 1665.
[3] S.S. Commemoratio
[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] Jerome Biblical Commentary, Prentice Hall, Inc., © 1968, 22:35, p.376.
[6] Id. 44:39, p. 124.
[7] John Nolland, Luke 1:1–9:20, vol. 35A, Word Biblical Commentary (Dallas: Word, Incorporated, 1989), 81.

Twelfth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Catechism Links[1]
 
CCC 423, 464-469: Jesus, true God and true Man
CCC 1814-1816: faith as gift of God, and human response
CCC 671-672: maintaining faith in adversity

Note: The Vigil of the Solemnity of the Nativity of Saint John the Baptist may be celebated before or after Evening Prayer.

“Christ in the Storm on the Sea of Galilee” (detail)
by Jan the Elder Brueghel, c. 1596

 
Readings for Twelfth Sunday in Ordinary Time [2]
 
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible [3]
 
Readings and Commentary: [4]
 
Reading 1: Job 38:1, 8-11
 
The Lord addressed Job out of the storm and said:
Who shut within doors the sea,
when it burst forth from the womb;
when I made the clouds its garment
and thick darkness its swaddling bands?
 When I set limits for it
and fastened the bar of its door,
and said: Thus far shall you come but no farther,
and here shall your proud waves be stilled!
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Commentary on Jb 38:1, 8-11
 
The exchanges between Job and the “three friends” have concluded. Now God himself speaks to Job. God reminds Job of his great power in creation. God is speaking out of the storm, frequently the background of the appearances of the Lord in the Old Testament, cf. Psalm 18; 50; Nahum 1:3; Hebrews 3. He recalls the creation of the sea and how its bounds were set. All of this backdrops the question God asks of Job – can he understand God who is omnipotent and above all creation?
 
“In this speech, Yahweh presents himself as the master architect of a world order that is astonishing in its profusion. In two sets of strophes, one of ten and one of seven, no two of them alike, he sketches features of the world—its mysterious physical structure and its strange life forms—that lie beyond human comprehension. The scope is vast, but it is not in the least comprehensive, for everything here is impressionistic and suggestive: everything Yahweh depicts carries with it hints of an untold variety in the grand design.”[5]
 
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 107:23-24, 25-26, 28-29, 30-31
 
R. (1b) Give thanks to the Lord, his love is everlasting.
or:
R. Alleluia.
 
They who sailed the sea in ships,
trading on the deep waters,
These saw the works of the LORD
and his wonders in the abyss.
R. Give thanks to the Lord, his love is everlasting.
or:
R. Alleluia.
 
His command raised up a storm wind
which tossed its waves on high.
They mounted up to heaven; they sank to the depths;
their hearts melted away in their plight.
R. Give thanks to the Lord, his love is everlasting.
or:
R. Alleluia.
 
They cried to the LORD in their distress;
from their straits he rescued them,
He hushed the storm to a gentle breeze,
and the billows of the sea were stilled.
R. Give thanks to the Lord, his love is everlasting.
or:
R. Alleluia.
 
They rejoiced that they were calmed,
and he brought them to their desired haven.
Let them give thanks to the LORD for his kindness
and his wondrous deeds to the children of men.
R. Give thanks to the Lord, his love is everlasting.
or:
R. Alleluia.
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Commentary on Ps 107:23-24, 25-26, 28-29, 30-31
 
Psalm 107 is a hymn of praise sung by those rescued from nature’s fury. In these strophes the psalmist sings of those who travel on the waters. They face the great power of the sea and the tumult of storms upon it. The Lord responded to their prayers for salvation and rescued them from destruction. The song rejoices because God has power over the forces of nature and saves his people, bringing calm waters and gentle breezes.
 
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Reading II: 2 Corinthians 5:14-17  
 
Brothers and sisters:
The love of Christ impels us,
once we have come to the conviction that one died for all;
therefore, all have died.
He indeed died for all,
so that those who live might no longer live for themselves
but for him who for their sake died and was raised.
 
Consequently, from now on we regard no one according to the flesh;
even if we once knew Christ according to the flesh,
yet now we know him so no longer.
So whoever is in Christ is a new creation:
the old things have passed away;
behold, new things have come.
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Commentary on 2 Cor 5:14-17  
 
In this passage the apostle describes the transformation that occurs when a person accepts Christ and his mission.  That Christian no longer considers Christ in terms of what was accomplished as man but rather the spiritual dimension of the human person.  This life in the spirit is forged new in baptism.  The “old things,” the old covenant, passes away and new life and a new creation are brought forth in the new creation of the baptized.
 
"The Apostle briefly describes the effects of Christ's death, a death he underwent out of love for man; elsewhere at greater length (cf. Rom 6:1-11; 14:7-9; Gal 2:19-20; 2 Tim 2:11) he goes into this doctrine which is so closely connected with the solidarity that exists between Jesus Christ and the members of his mystical body. Christ, the head of that body, died for all his members: and they have mystically died to sin with and in him. Christ's death, is moreover, the price paid for men--their ransom which sets them free from the slavery of sin, death and the devil."[6]
 
CCC: 2 Cor 5:14 616, 851; 2 Cor 5:15 605, 655, 1269; 2 Cor 5:17 1214, 1265; 2 Cor 5:17-18 1999
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Gospel: Mark 4:35-41
 
On that day, as evening drew on, Jesus said to his disciples:
"Let us cross to the other side."
Leaving the crowd, they took Jesus with them in the boat just as he was.
And other boats were with him.
A violent squall came up and waves were breaking over the boat,
so that it was already filling up.
Jesus was in the stern, asleep on a cushion.
They woke him and said to him,
"Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?"
He woke up,
rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, "Quiet!  Be still!"
The wind ceased and there was great calm.
Then he asked them, "Why are you terrified?
Do you not yet have faith?"
They were filled with great awe and said to one another,
"Who then is this whom even wind and sea obey?"
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Commentary on Mk 4:35-41
 
In this passage, Jesus embarks in what is probably a fishing boat with his disciples. A storm comes up and the disciples are afraid. Jesus, with a word (“Quiet! Be still!"), silences the storm and waters, demonstrating the authority of the Messiah over the elements of the created world. The implication of his next statement ("Do you not yet have faith?”) is that, if the disciples had a mature faith, they could have done the same. The disciples are awed by his power but do not yet have faith to understand its source. This incident gives insight into the gift of Christ's peace to those who have faith in the face of adversity.
 
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Reflection:
 
Anyone who has been out in a boat in the middle of an intense storm can appreciate the level of fear the disciples were feeling as they were caught in the storm described in St. Mark’s Gospel.  In the face of the power of sea and weather one truly gets a sense of God’s power and how small and insignificant we are in the face of that immensity.  Into the middle of this fear and awe comes the voice of Jesus "Quiet!  Be still!"  He speaks these words, and the storm and waves obey him, amazing his disciples and demonstrating his power over his creation.
 
That same statement, "Quiet!  Be still," is spoken to our hearts when we are tossed and threatened by the tumult of our lives.  When the storms of anger wash over us, that voice rebukes the waves and the wind of hate and violence.   When the persecutions of our life threaten to capsize us, the Lord can cause those forces to cease to be a threat.  We almost hear the voice: “Why are you terrified?” 
 
The answer, of course, is that in times of stress we forget that we do not control the world around us.  We forget that God is with us in the boat and do not call out to him.  Instead, we feel our own inadequate effort is what we must depend upon.
 
Job complained bitterly at the difficulty that was heaped upon him.  But even in his complaint, he never lost sight of the will and power of God to change his situation.  In the passage we are given today, he is reminded that God created the sea, set the sky above it and the shore around it.  The waves and storms are his creation. God’s power dwarfs the angry sea.
 
We pray for the faith of Job who had trials that make our own seem insignificant.  How then do we come to faith that allows us to reach out to the peace of Christ?  Faith is a free gift from God, given in the measure he chooses.  But faith is also like a muscle that can be built up with practice.  If we want to come to a place where the world’s storms can be met and overcome, we need a strong and lively faith that taps into the power of the Holy Spirit and wakes the Lord sleeping within us.  If we wake him often it becomes second nature, what we might call the “Jesus reflex.”  When anger, hatred, or envy threaten to wash over us, we call out to him without thinking and he will calm those storms with a word.  We just need to remember he is in the boat.
 
Pax
 

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[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 “Christ in the Storm on the Sea of Galilee” by Jan the Elder Brueghel, c. 1596.
[3] S.S. Commemoratio
[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] David J. A. Clines, Job 38–42, vol. 18B, Word Biblical Commentary (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2011), 1135.
[6] The Navarre Bible: “Letters of St. Paul”, Scepter Publishers, Princeton, NJ, © 2003, p. 308-09.