Monday of the Thirty-third Week in Ordinary Time
(I Maccabees 1:10-15.41-43.54-57.62-63; Luke 18:35-43)
Many see God’s scrambling the speech of the builders of the Tower of Babel as a punishment. Perhaps they are right, but it was also as an act of mercy. The men who constructed such an edifice in the vane hope of forcing a meeting with God could only have killed themselves if they continued. It was better that God garbled their speech so that they could no longer work together.
But humans can be slow learners. In the first reading today from Maccabees the Greek king Antiochus Epiphanes wants all people in his kingdom, which includes Palestine, to assimilate Greek customs. Their children are to attend Greek schools, speak the Greek language, and adopt Greek culture. Any faithful Jew is abhorred by this prospect because he or she recognizes that God has called the Jewish people to stand apart. They are to shine as a beacon of righteousness for the world to emulate. God, we might say, revels in a multiplicity of cultures.
The Church today recognizes the imperative of preserving many cultures. Although she seeks world unity in everyone recognizing Jesus as Lord, she nevertheless promotes cultural differences. She sees the various artistic expressions, racial features, and even languages as if it were a symphony of instruments coming together to praise the Creator.
Showing posts with label Antiochus IV Epiphanes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Antiochus IV Epiphanes. Show all posts
Homilette for Friday, November 24, 2007
Friday of the XXXIII Week of Ordinary Time
I Maccabees 4:36-37.52-59, Lucas 19:45-48
The first reading today describes the origins of the Jewish feast of Hanukkah. Many people, especially in the United States, see this feast as a Jewish Christmas because it is celebrated around the same time of year. However, its significance to Jews seems as slight as a pencil in comparison to the meaning of Jesus’ birth to us.
As we might have heard yesterday if it were not Thanksgiving, the Maccabee family started a rebellion against the Seleucid (Syrian) kings. For years the foreigners had occupied Israel with relative peace until Antiochus IV Epiphanes came to the throne in 175 B.C. The new king tried to impose pagan customs on the people desecrating the Temple with an altar to Zeus. By 167 B.C. Mattathias Maccabeus and his sons had enough. They rallied faithful Jews behind them to oust the occupiers. In the passage today Mattathias’ son Judas leads the rededication of the Temple and declares an annual celebration which Jews observe today as Hanukkah.
In the gospel we find Jesus performing a vaguely similar cleansing of the Temple. The situation, of course, is very different but it is the same zeal for the holy that impels Jesus to drive out the vendors. Both readings remind us of the centrality of a consecrated place to worship. We might praise God anywhere and should pray wherever we find ourselves. But the Temple and synagogue for Jews and the church for Christians have a unique importance. They are the designated places of encounter with God hallowed by the prayers of our forbearers in many cases for ages. They testify to the truth that Judaism and Christianity are not fads but vibrant avenues of communication with the living God.
I Maccabees 4:36-37.52-59, Lucas 19:45-48
The first reading today describes the origins of the Jewish feast of Hanukkah. Many people, especially in the United States, see this feast as a Jewish Christmas because it is celebrated around the same time of year. However, its significance to Jews seems as slight as a pencil in comparison to the meaning of Jesus’ birth to us.
As we might have heard yesterday if it were not Thanksgiving, the Maccabee family started a rebellion against the Seleucid (Syrian) kings. For years the foreigners had occupied Israel with relative peace until Antiochus IV Epiphanes came to the throne in 175 B.C. The new king tried to impose pagan customs on the people desecrating the Temple with an altar to Zeus. By 167 B.C. Mattathias Maccabeus and his sons had enough. They rallied faithful Jews behind them to oust the occupiers. In the passage today Mattathias’ son Judas leads the rededication of the Temple and declares an annual celebration which Jews observe today as Hanukkah.
In the gospel we find Jesus performing a vaguely similar cleansing of the Temple. The situation, of course, is very different but it is the same zeal for the holy that impels Jesus to drive out the vendors. Both readings remind us of the centrality of a consecrated place to worship. We might praise God anywhere and should pray wherever we find ourselves. But the Temple and synagogue for Jews and the church for Christians have a unique importance. They are the designated places of encounter with God hallowed by the prayers of our forbearers in many cases for ages. They testify to the truth that Judaism and Christianity are not fads but vibrant avenues of communication with the living God.
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