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| “An Angle and a Devil Fighting for the Soul of a Child” by Giacinto Gimignani 1660’s |
Readings and Commentary:[3]
In those days, the princes said to the king:
"Jeremiah ought to be put to death;
he is demoralizing the soldiers who are left in
this city,
and all the people, by speaking such things to
them;
he is not interested in the welfare of our people,
but in their ruin."
King Zedekiah answered: "He is in your
power";
for the king could do nothing with them.
And so they took Jeremiah
and threw him into the cistern of Prince Malchiah,
which was in the quarters of the guard,
letting him down with ropes.
There was no water in the cistern, only mud,
and Jeremiah sank into the mud.
Ebed-melech, a court official,
went there from the palace and said to him:
"My lord king,
these men have been at fault
in all they have done to the prophet Jeremiah,
casting him into the cistern.
He will die of famine on the spot,
for there is no more food in the city."
Then the king ordered Ebed-melech the Cushite
to take three men along with him,
and draw the prophet Jeremiah out of the cistern
before
he should die.
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Commentary on Jer 38:4-6, 8-10
Placing this incident in perspective, Jeremiah is already being held by the guards of the princes who complain to the King. What Jeremiah has been saying is that, because the people have turned from God, the city is going to fall to the King of Babylon and any who wish to be saved should flee the city and go to the Chaldeans.
When they are allowed to deal with the Prophet in their own way, the Guards put Jeremiah into a water cistern that has been drained where he sinks into the mud at the bottom. Clearly he is in imminent danger of death. Not wishing to bring more of God’s wrath upon him, the King authorizes Ebed-melech, an Ethiopian, to rescue him.
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R. (14b) Lord,
come to my aid!
I have
waited, waited for the Lord,
and he
stooped toward me.
R. Lord, come to my aid!
The Lord
heard my cry.
He drew me
out of the pit of destruction,
out of the
mud of the swamp;
he set my
feet upon a crag;
he made
firm my steps.
R. Lord, come to my aid!
And he put
a new song into my mouth,
a hymn to
our God.
Many shall
look on in awe
and trust
in the Lord.
R. Lord, come to my aid!
Though I
am afflicted and poor,
yet the
Lord thinks of me.
You are my
help and my deliverer;
O my God,
hold not back!
R. Lord, come to my aid!
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Commentary on Ps 40:2, 3, 4, 18
Psalm 40 is a lament. This selection
gives reference to calling for God’s help in times of distress and the
reference to being drawn out of "the pit of destruction, out of the muddy
swamp" is a contextual reference to Jeremiah’s situation described in the
first reading.
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Brothers and sisters:
Since we are surrounded by so great a
cloud of witnesses,
let us rid ourselves of every burden
and sin that clings to us
and persevere in running the race
that lies before us
while keeping our eyes fixed on
Jesus,
the leader and perfecter of faith.
For the sake of the joy that lay
before him
he endured the cross, despising its
shame,
and has taken his seat at the right
of the throne of God.
Consider how he endured such
opposition from sinners,
in order that you may not grow weary
and lose heart.
In your struggle against sin
you have not yet resisted to the
point of shedding blood.
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Commentary on Heb 12:1-4
Speaking to the Hebrews, St. Paul exhorts them to follow the example of witnesses both ancient (from the Old Testament) and contemporary. He uses Christ as the banner of steadfast faith, who, seeing the joys of the
The author returns to its principle
theme in this selection. The author encourages the faithful to redouble their
zeal for the faith. It is interesting that the author mentions specifically how
the community (cloud of witnesses) strengthens the faith. The reading goes on
to place Christ’s passion as a model of steadfastness, encouraging the faithful
to resist against all opposition. This resistance, says the author, should
include shedding one’s own blood for the faith.
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Jesus said to his disciples:
"I have come to set the earth on
fire,
and how I wish it were already
blazing!
There is a baptism with which I must
be baptized,
and how great is my anguish until it
is accomplished!
Do you think that I have come to
establish peace on the earth?
No, I tell you, but rather division.
From now on a household of five will
be divided,
three against two and two against
three;
a father will be divided against his
son
and a son against his father,
a mother against her daughter
and a daughter against her mother,
a mother-in-law against her
daughter-in-law
and a daughter-in-law against her
mother-in-law."
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Commentary on Lk 12:49-53
This discourse from St. Luke’s
Gospel emphasizes the divisive nature of Christ’s message. He has already
encountered resistance and sees that his message of peace will have an even
more profound effect on the world. It is clear the Lord knows that many will
not be able to accept his words and this will cause enmity between people, even
families.
In this passage there is a
glimpse of the passion (this baptism foresees Psalm 124:4-5) and anguish
the Lord feels for the message he is bringing. He sees the flame of faith
igniting the whole world. He knows there will be those who accept the
proclamation of the Kingdom of God and those who will reject both it and him.
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Reflection:
Reflection:
Today we are reminded that, while the rewards of the faith are tremendous, they do not come without a secular price. Jesus has already seen the resistance to his message and knows that it will grow and intensify as more people come to understand who the Son of Man is and what His message means to those in power.
From the beginning, since God cast out Satan, the message of love has contended for the hearts of people with the message of hate, good fights against evil, and sacrifice with greed. It was implicit in the first reading from the book of the Prophet Jeremiah. The conflict is epitomized in the message of Jesus. His call to absolute virtue will always be seen as a treat to those who would rather cling to the darkness. St. Paul addresses this very issue in his Letter to the Hebrews ("let us rid ourselves of every burden and sin that clings to us and persevere in running the race that lies before us").
The message comes to us at a time when the secular world with its hedonistic values is gaining strength. Those in power seek to eliminate the challenge of the Gospel message; to eliminate the voice of the Church. We must be prepared to face stiff resistance, even from within our own families as we strive to stay the course Christ has called us to. Let us pray today then that we have the strength in the Holy Spirit to fight the good fight, to run the good race, and in the end come to the victory Christ promises.
Pax
[2]
The picture is “An Angle and a Devil Fighting for the Soul of a Child” by
Giacinto Gimignani 1660’s
[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.
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