Wednesday of the Tenth Week in Ordinary Time
(I Kings 18:20-39; Matthew 5:17-19)
This year American Catholic theologians remember one of their greatest practitioners, Fr. John Courtney Murray, S.J. Fifty years ago, Fr. Murray published his monumental work on natural law and American governance, We Hold These Truths. His personal saga relates a reversal of fortune which we might compare to Elijah’s in the first reading. Fr. Murray had been censured by the Vatican for his claims that humans must be free to choose for themselves religious belief. In time, however, he was vindicated and eventually became responsible for one of the groundbreaking documents of Vatican II, the Dignity of the Human Person, which recognized the inviolability of conscience.
Elijah was isolated by Israel’s king and shunned by the people. In the episode that we have heard today God rescues Elijah from oblivion and raises him to the stature of Israel’s prototypical prophet. King Ahab had all but apostatized. The people of Israel were following him. Now Elijah calls everyone to accountability. “If the Lord is God, follow him; if Ball, follow him,” Elijah charges. But the people demur. Elijah then erects an altar reminiscent of Moses’ at the formation of the covenant. Then, he calls down fire from heaven to consume the sacrifice he has made. God readily grants his prophet’s request, and the people are left with undeniable evidence that the Lord is God.
Jesus will give the people a similar choice when he says in the Sermon on the Mount, “No one can serve two masters....You cannot serve God and mammon” (Matthew 6:15). Mammon, a word directly from the language Jesus used, means wealth or property. It has been the reigning Baal since the coinage of money. Jesus like Elijah presents his followers with the option of pursuing it or the righteousness of God. Despite countless demonstrations that money cannot bring happiness, people are still charmed by its promises. Yet we know at the bottom of our hearts – in our consciences Fr. Murray would say – that only God can fulfill our desires.
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
Tuesday of the Second Week in Ordinary Time
(I Kings 17:7-16; Matthew 5:13-16)
It is not just that the widow of Zarephath gives up what represents her last piece of bread that impresses us but that she would do it for a foreigner whose religion she does not share. It would be as if a Muslim living in India were to freely donate one of her kidneys to a Christian in Argentina. But, of course, the widow does have something in common with the prophet. People the world over share a hidden desire for God who reveals Himself as goodness and truth in the depths of the human soul.
Since it consists of the same bread that we offer to God at mass, the woman’s offering prefigures our Eucharist. Just as God accepts the widow’s sacrifice and transforms it into a never-ending blessing for her and her child so too the bread which the Church consecrates becomes the body of Christ providing eternal life. The episode reminds us that hunger for God lies deeper than our appetite for bread. In pursuing the former, we find not just enough bread for our nourishment but the full promise of life which bread can only vaguely symbolize.
(I Kings 17:7-16; Matthew 5:13-16)
It is not just that the widow of Zarephath gives up what represents her last piece of bread that impresses us but that she would do it for a foreigner whose religion she does not share. It would be as if a Muslim living in India were to freely donate one of her kidneys to a Christian in Argentina. But, of course, the widow does have something in common with the prophet. People the world over share a hidden desire for God who reveals Himself as goodness and truth in the depths of the human soul.
Since it consists of the same bread that we offer to God at mass, the woman’s offering prefigures our Eucharist. Just as God accepts the widow’s sacrifice and transforms it into a never-ending blessing for her and her child so too the bread which the Church consecrates becomes the body of Christ providing eternal life. The episode reminds us that hunger for God lies deeper than our appetite for bread. In pursuing the former, we find not just enough bread for our nourishment but the full promise of life which bread can only vaguely symbolize.
Monday, June 7, 2010
Monday of the Tenth Week in Ordinary Time
(I Kings 17:1-5; Matthew 5:1-12)
A recent photograph of Pope Benedict captures some of the drama in today’s gospel. The picture shows the pope looking out from a window of the Vatican over a crowd of 120,000 people. All eyes are on him just as the gathering before Jesus on the mountain give him its complete attention. He sits down not to relax but to indicate his authority as a judge today always sits in her courtroom. The words he utters are intended for his disciples standing before him, but the crowd is by no means excluded from hearing his message. Indeed, just as his words will begin to form his disciples, who have only recently been called, so they will arouse the interest of the vast assembly.
We are familiar with the content of Jesus’ address. We call the segment given today “the beatitudes,” a word meaning “blessings.” Jesus is telling the people what it is like to be his disciples. To us it does not sound like fun to be “poor in spirit,” in mourning, or “persecuted for the sake of righteousness.” But Jesus not only insists that such conditions are blessed when experienced in his company; he actually names the blessings. His followers are in possession of the kingdom and comforted by the king. In his book Jesus of Nazareth, Pope Benedict offers an example of a disciple testifying to the glory received under the duress of following Jesus. St. Paul writes the Corinthians of his hardships: “We are afflicted in every way, but not constrained; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying about in the body the dying of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our body” (II Cor 4:8-10).
(I Kings 17:1-5; Matthew 5:1-12)
A recent photograph of Pope Benedict captures some of the drama in today’s gospel. The picture shows the pope looking out from a window of the Vatican over a crowd of 120,000 people. All eyes are on him just as the gathering before Jesus on the mountain give him its complete attention. He sits down not to relax but to indicate his authority as a judge today always sits in her courtroom. The words he utters are intended for his disciples standing before him, but the crowd is by no means excluded from hearing his message. Indeed, just as his words will begin to form his disciples, who have only recently been called, so they will arouse the interest of the vast assembly.
We are familiar with the content of Jesus’ address. We call the segment given today “the beatitudes,” a word meaning “blessings.” Jesus is telling the people what it is like to be his disciples. To us it does not sound like fun to be “poor in spirit,” in mourning, or “persecuted for the sake of righteousness.” But Jesus not only insists that such conditions are blessed when experienced in his company; he actually names the blessings. His followers are in possession of the kingdom and comforted by the king. In his book Jesus of Nazareth, Pope Benedict offers an example of a disciple testifying to the glory received under the duress of following Jesus. St. Paul writes the Corinthians of his hardships: “We are afflicted in every way, but not constrained; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying about in the body the dying of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our body” (II Cor 4:8-10).
Friday, June 4, 2010
Friday of the Ninth Week in Ordinary Time
(II Timothy 3:10-17; Mark 12:35-37)
A Protestant layman once told a Catholic priest how he envied him. The layman said that he would love to have meditation on Scripture as his life’s work. Lay people can, of course, study the Scriptures, but for most, their efforts comprise an avocation. Priests and Protestant ministers, on the other hand, have the responsibility of reflecting regularly on Scripture to derive its meaning, and convey that understanding to others in an appealing way.
St. Paul in the first reading today also shows the highest regard for Scripture. He knows that it provides a solid ground to base one’s life upon. Timothy, as the leader of a community, must especially root his life in Scripture. From it he will find success as God’s minister and support as a vulnerable human being. In fact reflecting on Scripture daily, like a diet enhanced by omega-3 fatty acids, will enrich anyone’s life.
(II Timothy 3:10-17; Mark 12:35-37)
A Protestant layman once told a Catholic priest how he envied him. The layman said that he would love to have meditation on Scripture as his life’s work. Lay people can, of course, study the Scriptures, but for most, their efforts comprise an avocation. Priests and Protestant ministers, on the other hand, have the responsibility of reflecting regularly on Scripture to derive its meaning, and convey that understanding to others in an appealing way.
St. Paul in the first reading today also shows the highest regard for Scripture. He knows that it provides a solid ground to base one’s life upon. Timothy, as the leader of a community, must especially root his life in Scripture. From it he will find success as God’s minister and support as a vulnerable human being. In fact reflecting on Scripture daily, like a diet enhanced by omega-3 fatty acids, will enrich anyone’s life.
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
Wednesday of the Ninth Week in Ordinary Time
(II Timothy 1:1-3.6-12; Mark 12:18-27)
An inter-Catholic affair made national news a few weeks ago. The bishop of Phoenix dismissed a religious sister from the city Catholic hospital’s ethics board after she advised a pregnant woman suffering from pulmonary hypertension to abort her baby rather than face possible death to herself and her child. Journalists wonder how anyone might be required to give up her life for a person who is not even half-formed yet.
The Catholic answer, which will seem unrealistic to many, is that God has empowered us for heroism with the grace of the Holy Spirit. This is what St. Paul is referring to when he prescribes that Timothy “stir into flame the gift of God that you have.” Being daughters and sons of God, Christians are always to do good and never evil. Of course, depriving a completely human being of life is a serious evil morally equivalent to murder. The fact that our society accepts it as a practice to avoid difficulty casts a huge dark shadow on us as a people.
When Jesus taught us to pray “lead us not into temptation,” he probably had situations like the pregnant woman’s in mind. We do not want to be tried more than we have the capacity to withstand. However, we also conclude the prayer with “deliver us from evil” knowing that God will come to our side no matter the challenge confronting us.
(II Timothy 1:1-3.6-12; Mark 12:18-27)
An inter-Catholic affair made national news a few weeks ago. The bishop of Phoenix dismissed a religious sister from the city Catholic hospital’s ethics board after she advised a pregnant woman suffering from pulmonary hypertension to abort her baby rather than face possible death to herself and her child. Journalists wonder how anyone might be required to give up her life for a person who is not even half-formed yet.
The Catholic answer, which will seem unrealistic to many, is that God has empowered us for heroism with the grace of the Holy Spirit. This is what St. Paul is referring to when he prescribes that Timothy “stir into flame the gift of God that you have.” Being daughters and sons of God, Christians are always to do good and never evil. Of course, depriving a completely human being of life is a serious evil morally equivalent to murder. The fact that our society accepts it as a practice to avoid difficulty casts a huge dark shadow on us as a people.
When Jesus taught us to pray “lead us not into temptation,” he probably had situations like the pregnant woman’s in mind. We do not want to be tried more than we have the capacity to withstand. However, we also conclude the prayer with “deliver us from evil” knowing that God will come to our side no matter the challenge confronting us.
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