Tuesday, January 27, 2015

Tuesday of the Third Week in Ordinary Time

(Hebrews 10:1-10; Mark 3:31-35)

Catholics and Protestants have long tried to prove one another wrong on matters of doctrine.  The perpetual virginity of Mary is a particularly contentious debating point.  The Church has declared that Mary remained a virgin before, during, and after giving birth to Jesus.  Protestants often use today’s gospel passage as a proof text that Mary had other children besides Jesus.

The passage speaks of Jesus’ mother and brothers coming to see Jesus.  It shows Jesus gesturing at his disciples and calling them his “mother and (my) brothers.”  The scene leaves a sense of the remarkably close relationship Jesus has developed with those who follow him.  It may not be complimentary to Jesus’ family, but it does not show Jesus renouncing them either.

Biblical experts tell us that Mary’s virginity is not addressed in the New Testament.  They say that the names of Jesus’ brothers given later in Mark (James, Joses, Siman, and Judas) are plausibly the sons of the Mary who is pictured with Mary Magdalene and Salome at the cross with Jesus.  Thus, these “brothers” may very well have a more distant affiliation with Jesus than a sibling relationship.  In any case we are wise not to be querulous about the issue.  Rather, there is reason to rejoice in the possibility of joining with Jesus’ disciples as his “mother and (my) brothers.”

Monday, January 26, 2015

Memorial of Saint Timothy and Saint Titus, bishops

(II Timothy 1:1-8; Mark 3:22-30)

Saints Timothy and Titus assisted Saint Paul in his missionary efforts.  Timothy accompanied Paul on part of his so-called second missionary journey and stayed with him in Corinth.  Later Paul places Timothy’s name with his own as the authors of the Second Letter to the Corinthians.  This same letter speaks of Titus as Paul’s emissary who brought a lost letter to the Corinthians after they evidently reacted to Paul’s scolding in First Corinthians.  In Second Corinthians Paul calls Titus, “my partner and co-worker with you.”

A few facts about Timothy and Titus can be gleaned from the New Testament.  Timothy was the son of a Greek father and Jewish mother.  Paul permitted him to be circumcised because of his Jewish heritage.  On the other hand, Paul insisted that Titus not be circumcised because he was of completely Gentile origins.  More significant than their personal stories is what the references to the two men in the New Testament reveal about Paul.  They indicate that he was hardly a one-person show.  Indeed, it seems that in part his ability to collaborate made his evangelizing efforts successful.  He also felt great affection for his associates and was magnanimous enough to mention them as contributors to his writing.

It may seem self-evident that ultimately there are no Christians without a church community, but some do speak and act as if they have both personal and private relationships with the Lord.  Yet there is always need for other people to pray with, to support our faith, and to assist our apostolic efforts.  This was true of the archetypal missionary, Paul of Tarsus, and it remains so for us today.

Friday, January 23, 2015

Friday of the Second Week in Ordinary Time

(Hebrews 8:6-13; Mark 3:13-19)

Today’s passage from the Letter to the Hebrews presents Christians with a dilemma.  We know that the Old Testament (or Old Covenant, the words mean the same thing) has immense value.  After all, it inspired and informed Jesus.  Nonetheless Hebrews, which is part of the New Testament, indicates that it is “obsolete” and “close to disappearing.” 

We must hold up both the old and the new as critical.  The Old Testament enables us to understand Jesus, and the New Testament brings him into even clearer focus.  Yet neither of them nor both together is the perfect revelation of God.  That comes in the person of Jesus.  Scripture, howsoever indispensable it is for us, is the Word of God in human words.  This last phrase bespeaks inevitable limitation and even error.  In other words, both Old and New Testaments are defective.  We only find God revealing Himself to us perfectly in the living presence of Jesus.

How can we so meet Jesus today?  We find him in the Eucharist where he nourishes us with his body and blood.  For sure, we will not interpret him perfectly there.  Nevertheless, receiving the Eucharist we hold Jesus close to our hearts.  Then we want to implore him to purify our understanding so that we live up to his call for us.

Thursday, January 22, 2015

Day of Prayer for the Legal Protection of Unborn Children

(Hebrews 5:25-8:6; Mark 3:7-12)

The first reading today speaks of Jesus as high priest.  It says that he was unlike any other.  For one thing he did not have to offer sacrifice for his own sins because he did not have any.  For another Jesus did not have to offer many sacrifices because the one he made – himself on the cross – was of infinite worth.

Although we cannot equate him to Jesus, Fr. Matt Robinson, O.P., compares in many ways to our Lord.  Like Jesus he was a person of great virtue – temperate, wise, but most of all kind.  He always had time to welcome a stranger or to hear someone’s confession.  Also like Jesus, those who knew him have a sense of his becoming a member of heaven upon passing from this life.  He was the salt of the earth as common as the sunrise.  He was also a light of knowledge in a great array of fields.   

Today there is special reason to recognize Matt Robinson.  The People of God recall with great sadness exactly forty-two years ago when the Supreme Court of the United States de-penalized abortion in practically all cases.  Fr. Robinson spent half his remarkably long priesthood ministering especially to those who worked to protect the unborn. He did it in many graceful ways like writing poetry.  Here is a sample of his moral sensitivity, so fitting a Dominican priest, expressed in verse: “The cruelest part is not the pain,/ Or that the blood is shed,/ But that the measure of one’s gain/ Is that a man is dead.”  

Wednesday, January 21, 2015

Memorial of Saint Agnes, virgin and martyr

(Hebrews 5:7:1-3.15-17; Mark 3:1-6)

Much like Paul Bunyan of American folklore, Melchizedek is a shadowy figure in Scripture.  He visited Abraham in the Book of Genesis, is mentioned in the psalms as an eternal priest, and makes an appearance in the passage from the Letter to the Hebrews that is read in today’s mass. 

Melchizedek, both the king and priest of Salem, serves as a prototype for Christ in the eyes of the author of Hebrews.  The name is interpreted as meaning “my king is righteousness.”  He is also called the “king of Salem” which may be translated as “king of peace.”  Thus associated with the epitome of justice and peace, Melchizedek prefigures Jesus, who suffered death rather than betray righteousness or violate peace.  Being presented both priest and king, Melchizedek again is set as a model for Jesus who sacrificed himself for the people for whom he also served as the anointed Messiah.

The Letter to the Hebrews has been noted for its balanced Christology which views Jesus as equally God and man.  We may miss in it the references to everyday life found in Paul’s epistles.  Yet we find an elegance in its verses and a boldness in its allusions that bolster our faith in Jesus.