 |
| “St Peter Walking on the Water” by Alessandro Allori, 1590s |
(Dedication of the Basilica of Saint Mary Major)
Reading 1: Numbers
11:4b-15
The children of Israel
“Would that we had meat for
food!
We remember the fish we used
to eat without cost in Egypt
and the cucumbers, the
melons, the leeks,
the onions, and the garlic.
But now we are famished;
we see nothing before us but
this manna.”
Manna was like coriander seed
and had the color of resin.
When they had gone about and
gathered it up,
the people would grind it
between millstones or pound it in a mortar,
then cook it in a pot and
make it into loaves,
which tasted like cakes made
with oil.
At night, when the dew fell
upon the camp, the manna also fell.
When Moses heard the people,
family after family,
crying at the entrance of
their tents,
so that the LORD became very
angry, he was grieved.
“Why do you treat your
servant so badly?” Moses asked the Lord.
“Why are you so displeased
with me
that you burden me with all
this people?
Was it I who conceived all
this people?
Or was it I who gave them
birth,
that you tell me to carry
them at my bosom,
like a foster father carrying
an infant,
to the land you have promised
under oath to their fathers?
Where can I get meat to give
to all this people?
For they are crying to me,
'Give us meat for our food.’
I cannot carry all this
people by myself,
for they are too heavy for
me.
If this is the way you will
deal with me,
then please do me the favor
of killing me at once,
so that I need no longer face
this distress.”
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Nm 11:4b-15
We see in this excerpt
following the departure of the people from their sojourn in Sinai that the
“foreign elements” (Numbers 11:4a) were dissatisfied with just Manna and wanted
meat to eat as well. At this lament, the
passage describes Moses complaint to God that the people would not be
satisfied. This lament emphasizes that
it was not Moses who brought the people out of Egypt
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 81:12-13, 14-15, 16-17
R. (2a) Sing with joy to God our help.
“My people heard not my
voice,
and Israel
So I gave them up to the
hardness of their hearts;
they walked according to
their own counsels.”
R. Sing with joy to God
our help.
“If only my people would hear
me,
and Israel
Quickly would I humble their
enemies;
against their foes I would
turn my hand.”
R. Sing with joy to God
our help.
“Those who hated the LORD
would seek to flatter me,
but their fate would endure
forever,
While Israel
and with honey from the rock
I would fill them.”
R. Sing with joy to God
our help.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Ps 81:12-13, 14-15,
16-17
Psalm 81 is a song of
thanksgiving. The psalm generally gives thanks for the gift of the Law and its
prescriptions, recalling also the salvation brought about by God. These strophes contain a lament for the times
when Israel
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Jesus made the disciples get
into a boat
and precede him to the other
side of the sea,
while he dismissed the
crowds.
After doing so, he went up on
the mountain by himself to pray.
When it was evening he was
there alone.
Meanwhile the boat, already a
few miles offshore,
was being tossed about by the
waves, for the wind was against it.
During the fourth watch of
the night,
he came toward them, walking
on the sea.
When the disciples saw him
walking on the sea they were terrified.
“It is a ghost,” they said,
and they cried out in fear.
At once Jesus spoke to them,
“Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid.”
Peter said to him in reply,
“Lord, if it is you, command
me to come to you on the water.”
He said, “Come.”
Peter got out of the boat and
began to walk on the water toward Jesus.
But when he saw how strong
the wind was he became frightened;
and, beginning to sink, he
cried out, “Lord, save me!”
Immediately Jesus stretched
out his hand and caught him,
and said to him, “O you of
little faith, why did you doubt?”
After they got into the boat,
the wind died down.
Those who were in the boat
did him homage, saying,
“Truly, you are the Son of
God.”
After making the crossing,
they came to land at Gennesaret.
When the men of that place
recognized him,
they sent word to all the
surrounding country.
People brought to him all
those who were sick
and begged him that they
might touch only the tassel on his cloak,
and as many as touched it
were healed.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Mt
14:22-36
This passage from St.
Matthew’s Gospel follows the feeding of the five thousand. The disciples return to the boat that brought
them to this remote site while Jesus stays alone to pray (recall he had just
gotten word of the murder of St. John the Baptist by Herod and had come to this
place to mourn him).
The events that follow; Jesus
approach to the boat, walking on the water supports the Lord’s earlier
demonstration that he has power over the sea and elements (see Matthew 8:26). St. Peter’s
response to the Lord is to try to do as the Lord wishes but his fear prevents
him from accomplishing what the Lord has called him to do. This entire episode has one purpose – to
allow the readings to share in the awe of the disciples as they make their
profession of faith “Truly, you are the
Son of God." This is account stands in stark contrast to St. Mark’s
account of their response (see Mark
6:51)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Reflection:
Normally we would not argue
with those learned folks who selected the readings for the Lectionary for Mass;
but today, had we been in charge, a different Psalm would have been
picked. We would have selected Psalm 127 “Unless the LORD guard the city, in vain does the guard keep
watch. It is vain for you to rise early and put off your rest at night, To eat
bread earned by hard toil-- all this God gives to his beloved in sleep.”
Moses and St. Peter hit the
same wall in sacred scripture. Moses is
fighting through all of the grumbling and opposition in Sinai and finally,
exasperated and at the point of giving up calls upon the Lord (again) to help
him. He realizes that, while he leads
the people of Israel
Similarly, St.
Peter finds himself in a more dramatic situation. The Lord calls him to walk to him on the
water. Earnestly trying to obey the
Lord, he sets out; only to realize that what he is doing is impossible, he becomes
fearful, and starts to sink.
If these two servants of God,
arguably the most significant in the Old and New Testaments, find their faith
weakening when they are confronted with seemingly impossible tasks, do we think
our knowledge of and faith in God will sustain us as we go about attempting to
do his will in our own lives? Perhaps
one of the greatest gifts sacred scripture gives us is the image of ordinary people
accomplishing extraordinary feats, but only with God’s help and support.
Moses and St.
Peter call out to God in their need, Moses in prayer, St. Peter in alarm and
the God comes to their aid. This is the
lesson they teach us and the lesson we need to share though our own words and
attitudes. The next time we are
complemented for some accomplishment at work, school or home, let our response
be “It was only with God’s help.” Give
him the Glory, for without God; in vain do we labor in the world.
Pax
[2]
The picture is “St Peter Walking on the Water” by Alessandro Allori, 1590s
[3]
The readings are taken from the New American Bible with the exception of the
Psalm and its response which were developed by the International Committee for
English in Liturgy (ICEL). This re-publication is not authorized by USCCB and
is for private use only.
No comments:
Post a Comment