Tag Archives: bible

Lent Day 17: What about our tenancy?

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TODAY’S READINGS

Today’s Gospel (Mt 21:33-43, 45-46) is the Parable of the Wicked Tenants; it starts out this way:

“There was a landowner who planted a vineyard,
put a hedge around it,
dug a wine press in it, and built a tower.
Then he leased it to tenants and went on a journey.” (v. 33)

“Just before his Passion and death, Jesus tells the striking story of the landowner who planted a vineyard. The fertile vineyard stands for Israel, his chosen people. But it could be broadened out to include the world. What do we learn from this beautiful image? That God has made for his people a place where they can find rest, enjoyment, and good work.

“We — Israel, the Church, the world — are not the owners of this vineyard; we are tenants. One of the most fundamental spiritual mistakes we can make is to think that we own the world. We are tenants, entrusted with the responsibility of caring for it, but everything that we have and are is on loan. Our lives are not about us.

“Christ is God’s judgment. We are all under his judgment. In the measure that we reject him or refuse to listen to him, we place our tenancy in jeopardy. And so the great question that arises from this reading: How am I using the gifts that God gave me for God’s purposes? My money? My time? My talents? My creativity? My relationships? All is for God, and thus all is under God’s judgment.” (The Word on Fire Bible: The Gospels, 131)

Bishop Barron makes an excellent point: How good stewards are we of all that God has given us? We will be accountable for all we do (and all we neglect to do). What inheritance can we hope for if we abuse our free will time and again, ultimately killing the life of the Son within us?

Time, talent, and treasure. If we don’t have all three, we may have two, and certainly have one.

“[Y]our light must shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your heavenly Father.” (Mt 5:16)

Let us reflect the Light of the World (see John 8:12) in our own selves, thus bringing light and life to others.

A MILESTONE!

This is my 1000th post on WordPress! An auto-generated post when I signed up in 2009 is followed up by my first post in 2012, introducing myself. The third post is the first with substantial content. Links for all three allow for a dash into the past:

Thanks for reading!

God bless.

Lent Day 16: Raising Lazarus

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TODAY’S READINGS

Today’s Gospel (Lk 16:19-31) is the famous story of the Rich Man and Lazarus; Abraham’s last words are depressing:

“If they will not listen to Moses and the prophets,
neither will they be persuaded
if someone should rise from the dead.” (v. 31)

“Minds defiantly closed to God’s revelation will remain closed no matter what signs are given them or wonders performed for them…While the rich man spoke of someone from the dead going to his brothers, Abraham in his response used the phrase rise from the dead. Luke’s readers would naturally think of Jesus’ rising from the dead. the resurrection of Jesus will not convince everyone that he is God’s Son and Messiah, Lord and savior. In the Acts of the Apostles Luke will tell how the Gospel message is accepted by some and disbelieved bu others; Abraham’s words foreshadow such disbelief.” (Bringing the Gospel of Luke to Life, 449)

How sad it is that Jesus’ Resurrection was rejected by so many at the time and far more today. The Lord endures an unimaginable suffering for all humankind but emerges victorious over sin, Satan, and death. Heaven is opened up if only we are faithful enough to take advantage.

Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead and the religious leaders were angry:

So from that day on they planned to kill him. (John 11:53, but read Jn 11:45-53)

Jesus raised Himself from the dead and the religious leaders were angry.

While they were still speaking to the people, the priests, the captain of the temple guard, and the Sadducees* confronted them,

disturbed that they were teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection of the dead.a

They laid hands on them and put them in custody until the next day, since it was already evening. (Acts 4:1-3)

We declare Jesus, the God-Man raised from the dead, as we are required:

But if Christ is preached as raised from the dead, how can some among you say there is no resurrection of the dead?

If there is no resurrection of the dead, then neither has Christ been raised.f

And if Christ has not been raised, then empty [too] is our preaching; empty, too, your faith. (1 Cor 15:12-14)

This we are to do regardless of the consequences.

The Resurrection of Lazarus, Detail from Life and Passion of Christ (1303-1305)
by Giotto de Bondone

God bless.

Lent Day 15: Master and Servant

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TODAY’S READINGS

In today’s Gospel (Mt 20:17-28), as Jesus death approaches, He really lays into the scribes and Pharisees. One verse that has caused controversy since the Protestant Revolt:

“[W]hoever wishes to be great among you shall be your servant;
whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave.” (vv. 26-27)

“Jesus stresses that Christians ought to be servants and slaves to one another. This is, in practice, a more difficult proposition than being servants and slaves to God. once we have accepted the reality of God as Master of the Universe, it is easy to perform the gesture of self-subordination to him. In fact, in such a gesture there always lurks the temptation of a certain exhibitionism and even self-aggrandizement by my association with the Lord of all. Jesus’ invitation here, in fact, abolishes all verticality that could be construed as a ladder of social ascent, even with ‘God’ at the top.” (Fire of Mercy, Heart of the Word, Volume III, 289)

“Vatican II puts a marked emphasis on this service which the Church offers to the world and which Christians should show as proof of their Christian identity: ‘[T]his sacred synod, proclaiming the noble destiny of man and championing the Godlike seed which has been sown in him, offers to mankind the honest assistance of the Church in fostering that brotherhood of all men which corresponds to this destiny of theirs. Inspired by no earthly ambition, the Church seeks but a solitary goal: to carry forward the work of Christ under the lead of the befriending Spirit. And Christ entered this world to give witness to the truth, to rescue and not to sit in judgment, to serve and not to be served.’ [(Gaudium et spes, 3, taken from vatican.va)[” (The Navarre Bible: St Matthew, 177)

Jesus says this to James and John after their mother advocated for them to have a special place in the Lord’s kingdom, upsetting the other ten apostles. The takeaway for all the Twelve were the words of Jesus highlighted here. The idea of being a servant, and even more so, a slave, is repugnant to modern man, especially when the one we are asked to be subordinate to has a low standing in our eyes. And since we are to act this way toward everyone, the number of “undesirables” in our estimation will be a high number.

So, the thing for us to remember is this:

Jesus said, “Amen, amen, I say to you, no slave is greater than his master nor any messenger greater than the one who sent him.” (Jn 13:16)

God proves his love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us. (Rom 5:8)

God bless.

Lent Day 14: Call no man father?

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TODAY’S READINGS

In today’s Gospel (Mt 23:1-12), as Jesus death approaches, He really lays into the scribes and Pharisees. One verse that has caused controversy since the Protestant Revolt:

“Call no one on earth your father;
you have but one Father in heaven.” (v. 9)

“Jesus is stressing that humility is essential for the ministry, lest those who area placed in authority over others think of themselves as superiors rather than servants. No one, after all can compare to the ‘Father’ in heaven…The disciples of Jesus will share in the mission of the Father..through their commission to teach the gospel (28:19-20), but theirs is a derivative participation in something divine. Hence, the title[] in questions appl[ies] absolutely only to the Lord.” (The Gospel of Matthew [Catholic Commentary on Sacred Scripture], 292)

“Jesus uses hyperbole to post a warning that no one should pridefully desire honorific titles. His words are not meant literally. The NT writers elsewhere use father for natural fathers (Heb 12:7–11) and spiritual fathers in the Church (1 Cor 4:15; Philem 10). ● The spiritual fatherhood of New Covenant priests is an extension of its application to Old Covenant priests (Judg 17:10; 18:19).” (Ignatius Catholic Study Bible: The Gospel of Matthew, 57)

Understood properly, using the Bible itself (not to mention Tradition), there can be no question that using “Father” to address our biological fathers and our priests, All these men must acknowledge they are not God — not even close. But, to the extent they emulate the first person of the Trinity, they are true Fathers.

Check here and here on one my favorite Catholic resources, that provides an apologetic for calling certain men “Father.” St. Paul Center (another of my fave organizations) helps with this question here.

Depiction of God the Father (detail) (1654) by Pieter de Grebber

God bless.

Lent Day 13: To judge, or not to judge

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TODAY’S READINGS

Today’s Gospel (Lk 6:36-38) contains a line that has become quite controversial in the past ten years or so:

“Stop judging and you will not be judged.” (v. 37a)

“The Greek word for judging can mean…to condemn (it is translated ‘condemn’ at 19:22), and what follows indicates that’s its meaning here. God is kind to the wicked (6:35), and disciples of Jesus are to imitate God’s mercy (verse 36) by not being judgmental fault-finders. Jesus tells his disciples that if they do not judge others, ‘you will not be judged’ — judged by God. Jesus does not mean that his disciples will be exempt from the final judgment (referred to at 10:14,; 11:31-320; he means that if they refrain from condemning others, then God will be lenient with them.” (Bringing the Gospel of Luke to Life, 179-80)

We are not to judge the hearts of others — leave that up to God. So, it is wise to attribute the best possible motives, no matter how implausible, to others’ actions. But, this does not mean we cannot make rational judgments about behavior. This we have an obligation today out of love and to avoid scandalizing others.

An excellent resource to hash this out is Ted Sri’s book, Who Am I to Judge? (a video is here). God’s moral law is not to be subject to relativism, lest it continue on its way to dictatorship.

God bless.

Lent Day 11: Is perfection attainable?

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TODAY’S READINGS

Today’s Gospel (Mt 5:43-48), again from the Sermon on the Mount, ends with these challenging (to say the least) words of Jesus:

“So be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect.” (v. 48)

“Strictly speaking, it is quite impossible for a created being to be as perfect as God. What our Lord means here is that God’s own perfection should be the model which every Christian tries to follow, even though he realizes that there is an infinite distance between himself and his Creator. However, this does not reduce the force of this commandment; it sheds more light on it. It is a difficult commandment to live up to, but along with this we must take into account the enormous help grace gives us to go so far as to tend towards divine perfection. Certainly, the perfection which we should imitate does not refer to the power and wisdom of God, which are totally beyond our scope; here the context seems to refer primarily to love and mercy. Along the same lines, St Luke quotes these words of our Lord: “Be merciful. even as your Father is merciful” (Lk 6:36).

“Clearly, the ‘universal call to holiness’ is not a recommendation but a commandment of Jesus Christ.” (The Navarre Bible: St Matthew, 69-70)

“Jesus advocates moral righteousness higher than the Old Covenant—it is a standard of mercy. Just as Israel was to imitate God in being ‘holy’ (Lev 19:2), so Jesus calls the Church to imitate God’s perfect compassion (Lk 6:36). The Father is kind and merciful to the good and evil alike, so his children must extend mercy even to their enemies (5:7; Lk 10:29–37; Jas 2:13). See note on Lk 6:36 (CCC 1968, 2842).” (Ignatius Catholic Study Bible: The Gospel of Matthew, 27)

“There is an insurmountable problem in our Lord’s solemn injunction, which concludes this whole section as its summary, as long as we insist on an abstract, essentialist definition of the term ‘perfect’. The being of man, in this sense, can never be perfect in the same way God’s is, and the Lord seems to be enjoining the impossible. Persons have been known to wreck their psychic, physical, and spiritual lives trying to apply this command in an erroneous way. If we apply the literal Greek meaning of the word for ‘perfect; as noted (τέλειος from τέλος = ‘goal’, ‘end’), we will see that what the command intends is, rather. ‘Guide your actions and attitudes by the same intention, the same finality, as your heavenly Father’s.’ Far from implying a head-braking striving for the unattainable, we should rise from our immersion in the business of self-survival and focus our outlook from the divine point of view. (Fire of Mercy, Heart of the Word, Volume I, 241)

“This ‘as’ is not unique in Jesus’ teaching: ‘You, therefore, must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect’; “Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful’; ‘A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another.’ It is impossible to keep the Lord’s commandment by imitating the divine model from outside; there has to be a vital participation, coming from the depths of the heart, in the holiness and the mercy and the love of our God. Only the Spirit by whom we live can make ‘ours’ the same mind that was in Christ Jesus. Then the unity of forgiveness becomes possible and we find ourselves ‘forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave’ us.” (CCC 2842)

Feel better? I’m reminded of the famous quote attributed to Mark Twain, “Some people are troubled by the things in the Bible they can’t understand. The things that trouble me are the things I can understand.” Well, if the call to perfection does not trouble the hearer, I’m not sure what else in Scripture would. Any even mildly engaged Christian with an ounce of honest introspection, need only a moment, at most, to realize we all are far from perfect. But this declaration of Jesus should compel us to examine our conscience, pray fervently for help, and then frequent the sacraments to get that help.

Hearkening back to yesterday’s post, “You can pay me now or pay me later.” A person does not get into heaven with any imperfections. Best to clean up our act here, discipline ourselves here, detach ourselves here. It’s easy to understand but very difficult to do.

Jesus Receiving the World from God the Father (c. 1657) by Antonio Arnas Fernández

God bless.

Lent Day 10: Save your pennies

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TODAY’S READINGS

Today’s Gospel (Mt 5:20-26), from the Sermon on the Mount, ends with these words of Jesus:

“Amen, I say to you,
you will not be released until you have paid the last penny.” (v. 26)

“Keeping debtors in prison until family or friends paid off the debts was a Roman rather than Old Testament practice. Jesus uses this practice as a comparison for what happens to those who face God’s judgment without having been reconciled with others (see 18:33-35 for another us of this comparison). Being required to pay off debts down to the last penny means being held accountable by God fro all that we do or fail to do. A failure to seek reconciliation with those who have something against us will not go unnoticed when we stand before God’s judgment.” (Bringing the Gospel of Matthew to Life, 87)

I’ve always found this last line in the section about unrighteous anger consoling. It seems quite plain to me that this verse indicates the reality of Purgatory (I encourage you to read this entire post that deals with just this verse and topic). Clearly this entire pericope is speaking of judgment and the consequences of our actions on how we will be judged. Yes, Gehenna is really a possibility (and, no, it’s not empty), as Jesus says, but for those who do not make a complete break with God, but who need some cleaning up, there is the consolation of a place of purgation. Not knowing the pain of this state, and aiming for heaven, we should hearken to the fact, as the old commercial stated, that “you can pay me now, or pay me later.” Take care of penance and reparation here and now.

Let us pray that our anger does not get the best of us here, and if it does, that we make amends quickly and completely, so that our debt owed is not exorbitant, and our time away from God is short.

And let us not forget the poor debtors, exemplified in the drawing below, who have preceded us in death and are begging for our alms (Masses and other prayers) in order to be released soon.

An inmate of ‘the grate’ at Fleet Prison, a debtors’ prison in London, circa 1840. The words ‘Poor Debtor’ are inscribed on the right wall. ‘The grate’ allowed prisoners to beg for charity from passers-by. Published in the Illustrated London News – pub. 14th March 1846 (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

God bless.

Lent Day 9: Rock solid

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TODAY’S READINGS

From today’s Gospel (Mt 16:13-19), we celebrate the Feast of the Chair of St. Peter with, what else but, Matthew 16.

“And so I say to you, you are Peter,
and upon this rock I will build my Church,
and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it.” (v. 18)

“I will build: Jesus portrays the Church as a spiritual Temple (cf. 1 Cor 3:16–17; 2 Cor 6:16; Eph 2:19–22; 1 Pet 2:4–8). ● As Solomon was the son of David and the anointed Temple builder in the OT, so Jesus is the Davidic “Son” of God (16:16) and the anointed Messiah who builds the Church in the New. Jesus elsewhere sees himself as both similar and superior to King Solomon (12:42). See note on Mt 7:24. my Church: Among the Gospels, Matthew alone uses the word Church (18:17). The word is used often in the Greek OT for the “congregation” or “assembly” of Israel united to God. Jesus uses it in a similar way for the New Covenant community. the gates of Hades: In the OT, Hades—also called “Sheol” or “the Pit”—is the place of the dead where souls descend through its gates (Ps 9:13, 17; Wis 16:13; Is 38:10; Jon 2:2). It is not hell, but a temporary realm where souls are detained until the Last Judgment (Rev 20:13–15). By extension, Hades is also the habitation of evil forces that bring about death and deception (Rev 6:8; 20:1–3). According to Jewish tradition, the foundation stone (Heb.‘eben shetiyyah) of the Jerusalem Temple capped off and sealed a long shaft leading down to the netherworld (Rev 9:1–2; 20:1–3). The Temple, resting securely on a rock, was thus the center of the cosmos, the junction between heaven and Hades. Drawing from this background, Jesus guarantees that the powers of death and deception will not overcome the Church—i.e., the new Temple built on Peter. He enables Peter (and his successors) to hold error at bay and faithfully proclaim the gospel (CCC 552).” (The Ignatius Catholic Study Bible: The New Testament, 36.)

“The Lord made Simon alone, whom he named Peter, the “rock” of his Church. He gave him the keys of his Church and instituted him shepherd of the whole flock. “The office of binding and loosing which was given to Peter was also assigned to the college of apostles united to its head.” This pastoral office of Peter and the other apostles belongs to the Church’s very foundation and is continued by the bishops under the primacy of the Pope.” (CCC 881)

“In the symbolism of Israel’s theology, the gates of the netherworld were the opening leading down to Hades, also called Sheol, or the Pit, which was the dark and gloomy underworld hidden deep within the bowels of the earth. There the souls of the dead sank down into a shadowy, joyless existence. There also, in Jewish thinking, was the habitation of infernal powers that bring death and deception into the world of the living (see Rev 9:1-6; 11:7; 20:1-3). Later, rabbinic Judaism believed that the foundation stone of the temple capped off the shaft leading down to the underworld. Peter is now given a comparable role in the living temple built by the Messiah. Thanks to the blessing of Jesus on Peter, now made the rock of the new temple, neither death, nor the devil, nor his deceiving spirits shall prevail against the Church.” (The Gospel of Matthew [Catholic Commentary on Sacred Scripture], 208-09)

Thanks be to God for the Rock that our faith can stand firm on. No matter how “rocky” things seem to get in our world or even in our Church, we can be confident that the Church is indefectibly holy because of its head (Christ) and its soul (the Holy Spirit). Hell has no chance. The Church cannot err on matters of faith and morals, so regardless of whatever happens or whatever we hear that concerns us, we can be assured that the age-old teaching of the Church does not waver — so neither should we waver. Jesus promised to stay with us till the end of time and He keeps His promises (and if he wants to hurry back there’ll be no complaints from me).

God bless.

Lent Day 8: Signs, signs

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TODAY’S READINGS

From today’s Gospel (Lk 11:29-32), hitting a chord:

“This generation is an evil generation;
it seeks a sign, but no sign will be given it,
except the sign of Jonah.” (v. 29)

“Seeking a sign is an indication that ‘this generation is an evil generation.’ The phrase likens the Israelites of his day who reject him (see 17:25) to the evil generation that wandered in the wilderness and failed to enter the promised land (Num 32:13; Deut 1:35). Earlier, Jesus had criticized ‘this generation’ of his contemporaries for failing to respond to him and John (Luke 7:31; see 9:41). Here Jesus speaks six times against ‘this generation’ (11:29-32, 50-51). Because he is being rejected, Jesus frequently warns ‘this generation’ about the coming judgment (see 10:13-14; 11:19), when others will join together to condemn it for failing to hear and repent.” (The Gospel of Luke (Catholic Commentary on Sacred Scripture, 228)

“The expression ‘this generation’ can simply refer to those who are alive at the time of Jesus (see 21:32), but it often has the connotation of those who respond negatively to him (see 7:31-34; 17:25), as is the case here. This generation is ‘an evil generation’ because ‘it seeks a sign.’ After seeing Jesus free a man from a demon, some ‘to test him, asked him for a sign from heaven’ (11:160 to prove that he expelled demons by the power of God. It should be evident that Jesus is on God’s side, if he frees men and women from the grip of evil. It should also be evident that God has endowed Jesus with power, if he is overcoming the forces of Satan and healing afflictions. To demand anything more to authenticate Jesus reveals a hostile skepticism, a refusal to believe.” (Bringing the Gospel of Luke to Life, 325-26)

An evil generation may demand a sign, but maybe more evil is the current generation that is not even interested in a sign, since an exponentially growing number of persons do not believe in God, anyway. Who is the Jonah today that will convince our world to repent of its evil ways (see Jonah 3)? Unfortunately for many, repentance requires hearing, and so many of us are tuned out. Would we even notice the sign or hear the Word?

Let us pray fervently that God will send the sort of prophet who, like Jonah, in one sentence, softens hearts and has their owners cry bitter tears of repentance.

Jonah Preaches to the Ninevites (17th c.) by Andrea Vaccaro

God bless.

Lent Day 7: To forgive is divine

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TODAY’S READINGS

Jesus reiterates this sentiment immediately after teaching the Our Father (Mt 6:7-15):

“If you forgive men their transgressions,
your heavenly Father will forgive you.
But if you do not forgive men,
neither will your Father forgive your transgressions.” (vv. 14-15)

“A God who forgives is a wonderful God. But if God, who is thrice-holy, has mercy on the sinner, how much more ought we to forgive others — we sinners, who know from our own experience the wretchedness of sin. No one on earth is perfect. Just as God loves us, even though they have defects, and forgive them. If we wait to love people who have no defects, we shall never love anyone. If we wait until others mend their ways or apologize, we will scarcely ever forgive them. But then we ourselves will never be forgiven. ‘All right: that person has behaved badly towards you. But, haven’t you behaved worse towards God?’ (Bl. J. Escriva, The Way, 686)” (The Navarre Bible: St Matthew, 76)

I was a bit surprised that most of my commentaries either said very little or nothing about these two verses. What has long impressed me about this short passage is that it seems to put an exclamation mark on the Lord’s Prayer that Jesus just taught. The Our Father has seven petitions, but none more challenging than the one having to do with forgiveness. It’s as if Christ, driving home the point, is saying: You heard me right: Forgiveness is mandatory. Do not expect God’s mercy on your judgment day if you were unable to extend mercy to others during the time I gave you on earth..

Consider The Parable of the Unforgiving Servant (Mt 18:21-35). Being “handed…over to the torturers”? Jesus, the Divine Physician, gives us some tough medicine, focusing on where it hurts, to raise our awareness of this tender spot so that we can take care of it and find healing.

If Jesus, the perfectly innocent one, can, from the cross, forgive His creatures of their brutality toward the God-Man, who are we sinners to hold back even under the most difficult circumstances. It is not easy to forgive, particularly when the offense is egregious, but it is what we must do. Let us pray — and never cease praying — to forgive.

God bless.