Friday, VIII Ordinary (St. Justin Martyr)
(Mark 11)
An “objective correlative” is a literary device to describe the workings of the mind. An example of an objective correlative is the woods on a snowy evening in Robert Frost’s famous poem. The woods filling up with snow are the cold and bleek events of life which the sleigh rider means to contemplate.
In the gospel Mark presents us an objective correlative in the fig tree that does not bear fruit. Jesus curses its sterility as a sign of his disgust with the Temple which he enters next. It is not only the money changers who bother Jesus. It is also that the Temple is not allowing adequate worship of God. As he curses the fig tree, he throws out the money changers. As he throws out the money changers, the Temple will be symbolically destroyed with his death on the cross.
We should see Jesus’ action as a sign of what will happen to us if we do not produce good fruit. God has been most generous to us with his endowment of the Holy Spirit. It cannot be for nothing. Rather, we must serve Him by caring for the weak and encouraging the righteous.
Homikly for Thursday, May 31, 2007
Thursday, May 31, The Feast of the Visitation
(Luke 1)
Titian and Tintoretto were the best Venetian Renaissance painters. Titian is said to have painted pictures of the Virgin Mary as if she were a princess. Tintoretto was much more democratic. His Virgins pictured an ordinary girl with extraordinary grace. Although people still like to put Mary on a high pedestal like Titian, Tintoretto’s image seems to be more in character.
When Mary visits Elizabeth, she not only offers service to a woman in need. More importantly, she acts on the word of God. Thus, she models discipleship. We too should be quick to offer our services and always contemplating the word of God that we hear at Mass.
But Mary’s simple greatness goes further. She proclaims the gospel as she tells how God has favored her, “a lowly servant,” and has blessed the poor in different ways. She sounds remarkably like Jesus when he tells the people of Nazareth that the Spirit has anointed him to bring good news to the poor.
(Luke 1)
Titian and Tintoretto were the best Venetian Renaissance painters. Titian is said to have painted pictures of the Virgin Mary as if she were a princess. Tintoretto was much more democratic. His Virgins pictured an ordinary girl with extraordinary grace. Although people still like to put Mary on a high pedestal like Titian, Tintoretto’s image seems to be more in character.
When Mary visits Elizabeth, she not only offers service to a woman in need. More importantly, she acts on the word of God. Thus, she models discipleship. We too should be quick to offer our services and always contemplating the word of God that we hear at Mass.
But Mary’s simple greatness goes further. She proclaims the gospel as she tells how God has favored her, “a lowly servant,” and has blessed the poor in different ways. She sounds remarkably like Jesus when he tells the people of Nazareth that the Spirit has anointed him to bring good news to the poor.
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