Monday of the Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time
(I Kings 21:1-16; Matthew 5:43-48)
“’Frailty, thy name is woman,’” Prince Hamlet says of his mother, the queen, in Shakespeare’s play. But it is not true. Some women, like Lady Macbeth in another Shakespearean play, are as hard as the seats in the church basement. There is nothing frail either about Queen Jezebel in the first reading. As her husband, the king, pouts over not being able to obtain a parcel of land, she cooks up a treachery that would impress the Godfather. She not only defrauds but murders to steal the land away. Then she triply defies God’s law by arranging false witnesses testify that they heard poor Naboth curse God. Not frailty but pure wickedness characterizes this dame!
Some may see Jezebel as a figure of the archetypal Eve and cast all women in a negative hue. But we must resist the temptation. In Genesis, both Adam and Eve willingly share the forbidden fruit. In contemporary life, men much more typically than women commit heinous crimes. What sin always demonstrates, however, is the human need of redemption. Somehow men as well as women must be freed from the burden of guilt attached to their crimes.
“...all have sinned and are deprived of the glory of God. They are justified freely by his grace through the redemption in Christ Jesus...,” declares St. Paul in the Letter to the Romans. Christ has freed Jews and Greeks, men and women, the dark and the light complexioned from the guilt which would hold them in sin like a car stuck in sand. We celebrate this redemption in the Eucharist. Here he frees us from our wanton desire to possess and to dominate like King Ahab and Queen Jezebel.
Friday, June 11, 2010
The Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus
Ezekiel 34:11-16; Romans 5:5b-11; Luke 15:3-7)
In the second reading St. Paul speaks to us of God’s great love for humans. In the gospel Jesus draws us a picture of it. The Lord describes how the Father’s love extends even to those who reject his ways by the story of the man who goes looking for a lost sheep. When Jesus asks who would not leave behind ninety-nine sheep to look for one stray, we might think that this was the custom of the time. However, he probably has in mind that more prudent shepherds would stay with the flock to minimize their losses. His point is to say God’s love for each person is extravagant – like that of a caring shepherd who knows each sheep by name and cannot bear to think of any becoming prey of wild beasts.
Does God love us who try to stay close to Him as much as a retrenched sinner? This, of course, is the dilemma of the elder son in the parable of the prodigal which follows that of the man who has lost a sheep and the woman who has lost a coin. (Luke shows that God loves men and women without partiality by regularly including stories of women alongside those of men.) How can we doubt it? The image of the Sacred Heart perpetually on fire demonstrates that God’s love burns beyond the almost endless energy of nuclear fission to include all creation, especially each and every human being. We are sometimes advised not to locate any human in hell. The reason for this warning is that God’s love is so magnanimous that it can penetrate the thickest firewall of human turpitude.
Ezekiel 34:11-16; Romans 5:5b-11; Luke 15:3-7)
In the second reading St. Paul speaks to us of God’s great love for humans. In the gospel Jesus draws us a picture of it. The Lord describes how the Father’s love extends even to those who reject his ways by the story of the man who goes looking for a lost sheep. When Jesus asks who would not leave behind ninety-nine sheep to look for one stray, we might think that this was the custom of the time. However, he probably has in mind that more prudent shepherds would stay with the flock to minimize their losses. His point is to say God’s love for each person is extravagant – like that of a caring shepherd who knows each sheep by name and cannot bear to think of any becoming prey of wild beasts.
Does God love us who try to stay close to Him as much as a retrenched sinner? This, of course, is the dilemma of the elder son in the parable of the prodigal which follows that of the man who has lost a sheep and the woman who has lost a coin. (Luke shows that God loves men and women without partiality by regularly including stories of women alongside those of men.) How can we doubt it? The image of the Sacred Heart perpetually on fire demonstrates that God’s love burns beyond the almost endless energy of nuclear fission to include all creation, especially each and every human being. We are sometimes advised not to locate any human in hell. The reason for this warning is that God’s love is so magnanimous that it can penetrate the thickest firewall of human turpitude.
Thursday, June 10, 2010
Thursday of the Tenth Week in Ordinary Time
(I Kings 18:41-46; Matthew 5:20-26)
In his book Blood Brothers Elias Chacour, the archbishop of Galilee of the Melkite Greek Catholic Church, tells of a reconciliation he catalyzed as the pastor of a small Palestinian town. The parish was riddled with factions. Families as well as the community were divided. The young pastor, Fr. Elias, decided to act on the crying need of peace. At the end of Mass on Palm Sunday, 1967, he hastened to the back of the small church and locked the door. Then he announced that no one would leave until they forgave one another. He said that they were not Christians simply because they came to church. He told them that they were disgracing the body of Christ by not forgiving one another of old grudges. Shocked by the demand, perhaps insulted by the charge, and not knowing what to do, the people just stood there. The pastor began to sweat. He could hear the gait of a mule outside and may have thought himself as dumb as the animal. Then a man, the police constable of the town, spoke up. He said that he was the biggest sinner of all for hating his own brothers. He apologized to everyone. Then he went to his brothers who rushed out of their pews to him in mutual forgiveness. Fr. Elias writes, “Within an instant the church was a chaos of embracing and repentance.
Jesus commands such repentance from the heart in the gospel today. Of course, when he says “brother,” he does not mean only brothers and sisters of the same parentage but everyone created in the image of God, the Father. Critical to note as well, Jesus is not seeking here forgiveness of others when they offend us. Rather, he is asking us to recognize our offenses and ask pardon of others. Too often, we become so stuck on how others have hurt us that we overlook how we have slighted our neighbors.
In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus makes great demands on his followers. We wonder if we can ever live up to them. We need to remember that Jesus provides his Holy Spirit to shore up our weaknesses. As Pope Benedict has said, “Do not be afraid of Christ! He takes away nothing and gives everything.”
(I Kings 18:41-46; Matthew 5:20-26)
In his book Blood Brothers Elias Chacour, the archbishop of Galilee of the Melkite Greek Catholic Church, tells of a reconciliation he catalyzed as the pastor of a small Palestinian town. The parish was riddled with factions. Families as well as the community were divided. The young pastor, Fr. Elias, decided to act on the crying need of peace. At the end of Mass on Palm Sunday, 1967, he hastened to the back of the small church and locked the door. Then he announced that no one would leave until they forgave one another. He said that they were not Christians simply because they came to church. He told them that they were disgracing the body of Christ by not forgiving one another of old grudges. Shocked by the demand, perhaps insulted by the charge, and not knowing what to do, the people just stood there. The pastor began to sweat. He could hear the gait of a mule outside and may have thought himself as dumb as the animal. Then a man, the police constable of the town, spoke up. He said that he was the biggest sinner of all for hating his own brothers. He apologized to everyone. Then he went to his brothers who rushed out of their pews to him in mutual forgiveness. Fr. Elias writes, “Within an instant the church was a chaos of embracing and repentance.
Jesus commands such repentance from the heart in the gospel today. Of course, when he says “brother,” he does not mean only brothers and sisters of the same parentage but everyone created in the image of God, the Father. Critical to note as well, Jesus is not seeking here forgiveness of others when they offend us. Rather, he is asking us to recognize our offenses and ask pardon of others. Too often, we become so stuck on how others have hurt us that we overlook how we have slighted our neighbors.
In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus makes great demands on his followers. We wonder if we can ever live up to them. We need to remember that Jesus provides his Holy Spirit to shore up our weaknesses. As Pope Benedict has said, “Do not be afraid of Christ! He takes away nothing and gives everything.”
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
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.
(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.
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