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| “The Prophet Isaiah” by Raffaello Sanzio, 1511-12 |
On Saturdays in Ordinary Time
when there is no obligatory memorial, an optional memorial of the Blessed
Virgin Mary is allowed[1].
Mass texts may be taken from the Common
of the Blessed Virgin Mary, from a Votive
Mass, or from the special collection of Masses for the Blessed Virgin Mary.
Reading 1: Isaiah 6:1-8
In the year King Uzziah died,
I saw the Lord seated on a high and lofty throne,
with the train of his garment filling the temple.
Seraphim were stationed above; each of them had six wings:
with two they veiled their faces,
with two they veiled their feet,
and with two they hovered aloft.
They cried one to the other,
“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts!
All the earth is filled with his glory!”
At the sound of that cry, the frame of the door shook
and the house was filled with smoke.
Then I said, “Woe is me, I am doomed!
For I am a man of unclean lips,
living among a people of unclean lips;
yet my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!”
Then one of the seraphim flew to me,
holding an ember that he had taken with tongs from the altar.
He touched my mouth with it and said,
“See, now that this has touched your lips,
your wickedness is removed, your sin purged.”
Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying,
“Whom shall I send? Who will go for us?”
“Here I am,” I said; “send me!”
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Commentary on Is 6:1-8
The Prophet Isaiah tells us the story of his call “In the year
King Uzziah died” (742 B.C.) The prophet first relates his belief that he will
die, since it is the common belief that no one who had not been purified could
see the face of God and live. This selection from Isaiah (an introduction to
the “Book of Emmanuel”) describes the prophet’s first vision of his encounter
with God. It is set in the Temple in Jerusalem
With that coal, the seraphim touched Isaiah’s lips in symbolic
cleansing, making the prophet worthy to proclaim God’s word. The Church
remembers this event with the Priest’s blessing of himself or the Deacon with
the words – “May the Lord open my (your) lips that I (you) may worthily
proclaim the Holy Gospel; In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy
Spirit.”
The reference to God in the prefix “Holy, holy, holy”, describes the
Father as perfect and omnipotent. (Note: in ancient Hebrew, there were no words
“Holier or Holiest”, in order to express that thought it was necessary to
repeat the phrase three times to express the ultimate state of perfection. This literary form is carried into the Roman
Rite liturgy today.) We hear the prophet lament that he is “doomed” since it was believed that such
an encounter with God would be fatal (Genesis
32:31; Exodus
33:20; Judges
13:22.)
The image of the prophet’s mouth being purified so that God’s word
might be proclaimed is also present in the modern liturgy uttered in prayer by
the clergy before the Gospel is proclaimed. “Almighty God Cleanse my heart and
my lips that I might worthily proclaim your Holy Gospel.” This encounter with God is important in
understanding Isaiah’s entire mission and purpose. (“Then I heard the
voice of the Lord saying, ‘Whom shall I send? Who will go for us?’ ’Here I am,’
I said; ‘send me!’”)
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Responsorial
Psalm: Psalm 93:1ab, 1cd-2, 5
R. (1a) The Lord is king; he is
robed in majesty.
The Lord is king, in splendor robed;
robed is the Lord and girt about with
strength.
R. The Lord is king; he is robed in majesty.
And he has made the world firm,
not to be moved.
Your throne stands firm from of old;
from everlasting you are, O Lord.
R. The Lord is king; he is robed in majesty.
Your decrees are worthy of trust indeed:
holiness befits your house,
O Lord, for length of days.
R. The Lord is king; he is robed in majesty.
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Commentary on Ps 93:1ab, 1cd-2, 5
This important psalm is well described by the following statement
from the notes: “The Lord is king”: literally, "the Lord
reigns." This psalm, and Psalms 47; 96-99, are sometimes called
enthronement psalms. They may have been used in a special liturgy during which
God's ascent to the throne was ritually reenacted. They have also been
interpreted eschatologically, pointing to the coming of God as king at the
end-time.”[6]
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Gospel: Matthew 10:24-33
Jesus said to his Apostles:
“No disciple is above his teacher,
no slave above his master.
It is enough for the disciple that he become like his teacher,
for the slave that he become like his master.
If they have called the master of the house Beelzebul,
how much more those of his household!
“Therefore do not be afraid of them.
Nothing is concealed that will not be revealed,
nor secret that will not be known.
What I say to you in the darkness, speak in the light;
what you hear whispered, proclaim on the housetops.
And do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill
the soul;
rather, be afraid of the one who can destroy
both soul and body in Gehenna.
Are not two sparrows sold for a small coin?
Yet not one of them falls to the ground without your Father’s
knowledge.
Even all the hairs of your head are counted.
So do not be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.
Everyone who acknowledges me before others
I will acknowledge before my heavenly Father.
But whoever denies me before others,
I will deny before my heavenly Father.”
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Commentary on Mt 10:24-33
Jesus concludes
his instructions to the Apostles as he sends them out. Here he tells them that
they go with his authority and his purpose which may be hidden from others but
which they will proclaim from “the housetops.” He tells them not to fear the
persecution he has told them they will face. This lack of fear should be absent
because, while the body may be killed, their souls are safe with him. He
concludes this passage telling them that the Father is watching over them and
they have nothing to fear.
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Reflection:
“Here I am,” I said; “send me!”
This response issued by the Prophet Isaiah and popularized in
Christian song is the reply each Christian hopes to make when discerning a call
from God. We all hope that we can answer
in the affirmative and do what God asks of us. But there are a couple of issues
that confront us.
First, we have to have a clear idea of what, in our specific
lives, God is calling us to. Is it His
voice we hear or is it our own, urging us to do something to glorify ourselves
rather than God? Discovering if the call
is genuine or self-serving is frequently not an easy task but it is a question
that we all must ask before undertaking any significant task in the name of the
Lord.
The second issue facing us is preparation. Have we clearly thought out what we need to
do in answer to God’s call and what tools we will need to accomplish that work
in His name? It sounds so basic. When we set out to do other chores we think
ahead to what we will need. If we are
going to clean out the garage, for instance, we would gather cleaning supplies
(and in my case, rent a dumpster). Yet
when we embark on a mission for God, we frequently behave impulsively, like the
children who went on the “Children’s Crusade”; many of whom simply stopped what
they were doing and left on the quest. Ill
Scripturally, Jesus reminds us of this need in his parable about
the two houses; one built on rock, the other on sand. When we undertake a task for the Lord (and
we’re sure it’s for Him), we must first and foremost shore up our faith
foundation with prayer. We must then ask
God for His assistance and assemble the physical and spiritual tools we will
need. In Isaiah’s instance we hear how his
lips were purified and his sins purged before embarking upon his prophetic journey. We too must make sure we have been prepared
for our tasks.
Today, even as we hope to be able to respond to the Lord with a
resounding “Here I am,” I said; “send me!” Let us remember to prepare ourselves,
physically and spiritually to undertake whatever the Lord may require.
Pax
[2]
ALTRE
[3]
The picture used today is “The Prophet Isaiah” by Raffaello Sanzio, 1511-12
[4]
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.
[5]
See NAB footnote on Isaiah 6: 1-3
[6]
See NAB footnote on Psalm 93
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