Thursday, August 31, 2017
Wednesday, August 30, 2017
22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time (Cycle A) September 3, 2017
Jeremiah 20:7-9 It is as if fire is burning in my heart, imprisoned in my bones.
Psalm 63:2-6, 8-9 My soul is thirsting for you, O Lord my God.
Romans 12:1-2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed.
Matthew 16: 21-27 If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.
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Commentary by Dr. Scott Hahn
Today’s First Reading catches the prophet Jeremiah in a moment of weakness. His intimate lamentation contains some of the strongest language of doubt found in the Bible. Following God’s call, he feels abandoned. Preaching His Word has brought him only derision and reproach.
But God does not deceive—and Jeremiah knows this. He tests the just (see Jeremiah 20:11–12), and disciplines His children through their sufferings and trials (see Hebrews 12:5–7).
What Jeremiah learns, Jesus states explicitly in today’s Gospel. To follow Him is to take up a cross, to deny yourself—your priorities, preferences, and comforts. It is to be willing to give it all up, even life itself, for the sake of His gospel. As Paul says in today’s Epistle, we have to join ourselves to the Passion of Christ, to offer our bodies—our whole beings—as living sacrifices to God.
By His Cross, Jesus has shown us what Israel’s sacrifices of animals were meant to teach—that we owe to God all that we have.
God’s kindness is a greater good than life itself, as we sing in today’s Psalm. The only thanks we can offer is our spiritual worship—to give our lives to the service of His will (see Hebrews 10:3–11; Psalm 50:14, 23).
Peter doesn’t yet get this in today’s Gospel. As it was for Jeremiah, the cross is a stumbling block for Peter (see 1 Corinthians 1:23). This too is our natural temptation—to refuse to believe that our sufferings play a necessary part in God’s plan.
That’s how people think, Jesus tells us today. But we are called to the renewal of our minds—to think as God thinks, to will what He wills.
In the Mass, we once again offer ourselves as perfect and pleasing sacrifices of praise (see Hebrews 13:15). We bless Him as we live, confident that we will find our lives in losing them, that with the riches of His banquet, our souls will be satisfied.
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Commentary by Augustine (edited by Soutenus)
“Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me." (Mt 16:24)
Maybe the road seems rough, you draw back, you do not want to follow Christ.
Follow Him just the same. The road we make for ourselves is rough, but Christ has leveled it by passing over it himself.
“Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me."
If our Lord’s command seems hard and heavy then remember this:
NO command is hard and heavy when it comes from one who helps to carry it out. Jesus also tells us this and it is true: "My yoke is easy and my burden light." Whatever is hard in his commands is made easy by love.
What we love indicates the sort of people we are, and therefore making a decision about this should be our one concern in choosing a way of life.
Who would not wish to follow Christ to supreme happiness, perfect peace, and lasting security? We shall do well to follow him there, but we need to know the way.
Remember that the Lord Jesus had not yet risen from the dead when he gave this invitation. His passion was still before him; he had still to endure the cross, to face outrages, reproaches, scourging; to be pierced by thorns, wounded, insulted, taunted, and put to death.
What we love indicates the sort of people we are, and therefore making a decision about this should be our one concern in choosing a way of life.
Who would not wish to follow Christ to supreme happiness, perfect peace, and lasting security? We shall do well to follow him there, but we need to know the way.
Remember that the Lord Jesus had not yet risen from the dead when he gave this invitation. His passion was still before him; he had still to endure the cross, to face outrages, reproaches, scourging; to be pierced by thorns, wounded, insulted, taunted, and put to death.
“Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me."
To deny someone is to disown him (see Mt 10:33; 26:34–35) and to deny oneself is to disown oneself as the center of one’s existence
What does it mean to take up one’s cross?
It means bearing whatever is unpleasant as a result of following Jesus.. Once you begin to follow by conforming your life to His commandments, you will find many will contradict you, forbid you, or dissuade you, and some of these will be people calling themselves followers of Christ.
Therefore if you meet with threats and opposition, let this be your cross; pick it up and carry it—do not collapse under it. These words of our Lord are like an exhortation to endure martyrdom.
“Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me."
It means bearing whatever is unpleasant as a result of following Jesus.. Once you begin to follow by conforming your life to His commandments, you will find many will contradict you, forbid you, or dissuade you, and some of these will be people calling themselves followers of Christ.
Therefore if you meet with threats and opposition, let this be your cross; pick it up and carry it—do not collapse under it. These words of our Lord are like an exhortation to endure martyrdom.
“Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me."
Sermon 96, 1-4: PL 38, 584-586
Truth in advertising. Salvation is a free gift of grace . . . but it will cost you everything!
When faithfulness to Jesus brings ridicule rather than applause, don’t complain like Jeremiah. Jesus makes clear the cost of discipleship up front. But he also reminds us that the pearl of great price is worth anything we have to pay for it.
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LAGNIAPPE commentary by Dr. Marcellino D'Ambrosio
Jesus had just given Peter the Keys to the Kingdom, changed his name, declared him the Rock – and now, in this Sunday’s gospel, we hear Jesus call him . . . Satan? Here's a reminder of the backstory.
JESUS AS MESSIAH OR CHRIST
As soon as the truth came out at Caesarea Philippi that Jesus was the Messiah, the Lord made clear the unpleasant implications for his followers. When Jews thought of the Messiah (Christ in Greek) in the first century, they thought of God’s anointed, David, gloriously triumphing over the Philistines and just about everyone else. They thought about the peace and prosperity of the empire ruled by Solomon.
Jesus knew that the end of the story would be even more glorious than this–eternal life in the Kingdom of Heaven. But he also knew that the way to such triumph was the way of the cross, and that anyone who wanted to be his disciple needed to follow him on this Via Dolorosa.
PETER AS "DEVIL"
Jesus had just named Peter “prime minister” by calling him “the rock” and giving him the keys. So Peter felt it entirely his place to pull the king aside and advise him to take a different road. As he had been praised by the Master, now he is rebuked. Jesus goes so far as say to him, “Devil get behind me!” That’s a far cry from “the Rock!”
TEMPTATION OF COMFORT & HONOR
Some have pointed to this as proof that Peter, and his papal successors, are not infallible as Catholics claim. But actually, Matthew 16 illustrates well what the Catholic Church teaches about the subject.
For Catholic doctrine does not proclaim that the pope can never make a mistake in personal judgment. It is only when he fully engages his authority as successor of Peter speaking from Peter’s seat of authority (ex cathedra) that the Church guarantees him to be acting under the charism of truth given by the Father through the Spirit.
When Peter publicly proclaimed “you are the Christ,” Jesus pointed out that this was not from him, but from the Father. When Peter privately said, “God forbid that you should suffer,” Jesus notes that the source of this was Peter himself. And what’s worse, this human opinion was being used by a diabolic manipulator to tempt the Lord to choose comfort and honor over suffering and sacrifice.
PATH TO GLORY THROUGH SACRIFICE
Jesus will have none of it, of course. After all, He is the truth incarnate. And the truth is that glory comes only after sacrifice. And His own incomparable sacrifice will not make things easy for his disciples, but will blaze the trail of sacrifice that they too must walk. The sacrifice that he will offer will be Himself. The sacrifice they will be called to offer will be similar: “offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, your spiritual worship.” (Romans 12:1-2). <---2nd Reading
Peter couldn’t quite get it. None of them could. This is entirely understandable. That is why Jesus had to rebuke with such intensity as to say, “Get behind me Satan!”
During the ministry of Jesus the apostles here and there experienced a passing inspiration from the Holy Spirit, but that Creator Spirit had not yet taken up residence within them. That only came when the fire descended on them in the upper room.
SUFFERING & THE COST OF DISCIPLESHIP
Before Pentecost, they ran from suffering. After Pentecost they run towards it.
Peter, who denied Jesus, ultimately gave his life for him. A successor of Peter, John Paul II, preached his most eloquent sermon by continuing to serve in the twilight years of his life, a living witness of loving self-giving which is a fruit of Pentecost.
Truth in advertising. Salvation is a free gift of grace . . . but it will cost you everything!
When faithfulness to Jesus brings ridicule rather than applause, don’t complain like Jeremiah. Jesus makes clear the cost of discipleship up front. But he also reminds us that the pearl of great price is worth anything we have to pay for it.
This post on Jesus’ famous rebuke of Peter “get behind me Satan or devil” explores the difference between God’s understanding of the role of Messiah or Christ and Peter’s understanding of it in terms of honor, comfort, and glory. It is offered as reflection upon the readings for the twenty-second (22nd) Sunday in Ordinary Time, liturgical cycle A (Jeremiah 20:7-9), Psalm 63, Romans 12:1-2; Matthew 16:21-27) on the Via Dolorosa, the way of the cross, suffering and sacrifice, as the only road to glory.
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I have never been completely sure if I am choosing the correct pronunciation. I decided it was time to ardently seek the correct pronunciation and quit guessing.
I found this and now I feel much better! Either way, it's AOK.
So . . . . now we know!
philistine
How to pronounce philistine noun in American English (fil-i-steen)
How to pronounce philistine noun in British English (fil-i-stine)
(English pronunciations of “philistine” from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus and from the Cambridge Academic Content Dictionary, both sources © Cambridge University Press)
Wednesday, August 23, 2017
Twenty-first Sunday of Ordinary Time (Cycle A) August 27, 2017
Reading I: Isaiah 22:19-23
Responsorial Psalm: 138:1-2, 2-3, 6, 8
Reading II: Romans 11:33-36
Gospel: Matthew 16:13-20
Responsorial Psalm: 138:1-2, 2-3, 6, 8
Reading II: Romans 11:33-36
Gospel: Matthew 16:13-20
And so I say to you, you are Peter [Petros],
and upon this rock [petra] I will build my church,
and the gates of the netherworldshall not prevail against it. (Matt 16:18)
and upon this rock [petra] I will build my church,
and the gates of the netherworldshall not prevail against it. (Matt 16:18)
Rock, Chief Rabbi, Majordomo
Someone, I think it was George Bernard Shaw, said, “The church was founded with a pun.” He was right. The intent of that remark may have been dismissive, but, as is usual with biblical puns, the wordplay of Jesus is far from trivial. In fact, the play on Simon's nickname is just one of several rich biblical allusions at work in this key passage.
Peter was not a personal name in first-century Palestine. Petros, the masculine form of the Greek word petra (“rock”—reflected in our English words “petrify” and “petroleum,” oil from rock rather than olives), translates the Aramaic kepha (“rock”). Kepha, or Peter, is a special name that Jesus gives Simon bar Jonah to signify his appointed mission.
Why Rock? We might call someone Rocky today to refer to his physical toughness. In Simon’s case the name more likely has biblical roots. First, there is the precedent of Isaiah 51:1-2, where the founding ancestors of the people of Israel, Abraham and Sarah, are called, respectively, “the rock from which you were hewn” and “the pit from which you were quarried.”
Then there is the fact that the expected messiah was to be the builder of a new temple, just as in 2 Samuel 7 the son of David was to build a temple; and even though the first son of David, Solomon, built the first temple, the end-time Messiah was also expected to build the temple of the messianic age.
When Jesus speaks of “building” his Church on the rock of Simon, he is of course speaking of a community, but the image is that of a physical structure, a temple. And temple does indeed become a favorite image of the early Church to describe itself (as in 1 Cor 3:10-16, 1 Pet 2:2-8, and Eph 2:19-22).
But if the Church can be pictured as temple, it is also a household. That image comes into play when Jesus speaks of giving Peter the keys to the kingdom. Isaiah 22, the First Reading this Sunday, provides the background. King Hezekiah's steward has abused his office and the prophet mediates the divine command that the king is to dismiss him and bestow the key of the house of David upon Eliakim. With the language of “keys to the kingdom,” Jesus appoints Peter as steward of the Church, now imaged as household—indeed, the spiritual household of the ultimate Son of David.
A further image comes into play when Jesus speaks of “binding and loosing” to describe Peter's authority. Binding and loosing refers to the authority of the chief rabbi of a community. Sometimes it referred to the application of the Torah to a particular case (the apparent reference here). Sometimes it referred to the power to include or exclude a member of the community (see Matt 18:18). Thus, Jesus makes Peter, in effect, chief rabbi of the community of the Church.
This passage has been a battleground of hostile debate between Protestants and Catholics. In some quarters it may still be that, but in today’s sober dialogue between Catholic and Lutheran scholars at least, a strong consensus has emerged that the Petrine ministry of overseeing the unity of the Church (historically realized by the Bishops of Rome) is an essential part of the New Testament’s presentation of the Church of Christ. And so it is part of any Christian's discipleship to pray and work for the full realization of that ministry of unity, the reunion of a divided Church.
Dennis Hamm, SJ
21st Sunday of Ordinary Time (Cycle A) August 27, 2017
Reading I: Isaiah 22:19-23 I will place the key of the House of David on Eliakim's shoulder;
when he opens, no one shall shut, when he shuts, no one shall open.
Responsorial Psalm: 138:1-2, 2-3, 6, 8 R. Lord, your love is eternal; do not forsake the work of your hands.
I will build my church, and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail
against it.
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What Jesus calls “my Church” is the kingdom promised to David’s son (see Isaiah 9:1–7). As we hear in today’s First Reading, Isaiah foretold that the keys to David’s kingdom would be given to a new master, who would rule as father to God’s people.
Jesus, who is the root and offspring of David, alone holds the keys to the kingdom. (see Revelation 1:18; 3:7; 22:16). In giving those keys to Peter, Jesus fulfills that prophecy, by establishing Peter—and all who succeed him—as holy father of His Church.
His Church, too, is the new house of God—the spiritual temple founded on the “rock” of Peter, and built up out of the living stones of individual believers (see 1 Peter 2:5).
Abraham was called “the rock” from which the children of Israel were hewn (see Isaiah 51:1–2). And Peter becomes the rock from which God raises up new children of God (see Matthew 3:9).
The word Jesus uses—“church” (ekklesia in Greek)—was used in the Greek translation of the Old Testament for the “assembly” of God’s children after the exodus (see Deuteronomy 18:16; 31:30).
His Church is the “assembly of the firstborn” (see Hebrews 12:23; Exodus 4:23–24), established by Jesus’ exodus (see Luke 9:31). Like the Israelites, we are baptized in water, led by the Rock, and fed with spiritual food (see 1 Corinthians 10:1–5).
Gathered at His altar, in the presence of angels, we sing His praise and give thanks to His holy name.
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