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| “Saint Bonaventure” Artist and Date are UNKNOWN |
Reading 1: Exodus
3:1-6, 9-12
Moses was tending the flock
of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian.
Leading the flock across the
desert, he came to Horeb,
the mountain of God
There an angel of the LORD
appeared to him in fire
flaming out of a bush.
As he looked on, he was
surprised to see that the bush,
though on fire, was not
consumed.
So Moses decided,
"I must go over to look
at this remarkable sight,
and see why the bush is not
burned."
When the LORD saw him coming
over to look at it more closely,
God called out to him from
the bush, "Moses! Moses!"
He answered, "Here I
am."
God said, "Come no
nearer!
Remove the sandals from your
feet,
for the place where you stand
is holy ground.
I am the God of your
father," he continued,
"the God of Abraham, the
God of Isaac, the God of Jacob.
The cry of the children of Israel
and I have truly noted that
the Egyptians are oppressing them.
Come, now! I will send you to
Pharaoh to lead my people,
the children of Israel , out of Egypt
But Moses said to God,
"Who am I that I should
go to Pharaoh
and lead the children of Israel out of Egypt
He answered, "I will be
with you;
and this shall be your proof
that it is I who have sent you:
when you bring my people out
of Egypt
you will worship God on this
very mountain."
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Commentary on Ex 3:1-6, 9-12
Moses learns of
God’s will for him. This passage
describes his call from God on Mount
Horeb Egypt
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm
103:1b-2, 3-4, 6-7
R. (8a) The Lord is kind and merciful.
Bless the LORD, O my soul;
and all my being, bless his
holy name.
Bless the LORD, O my soul,
and forget not all his
benefits.
R. The Lord is kind and
merciful.
He pardons all your
iniquities,
he heals all your ills.
He redeems your life from
destruction,
he crowns you with kindness
and compassion.
R. The Lord is kind and
merciful.
The LORD secures justice
and the rights of all the
oppressed.
He has made known his ways to
Moses,
and his deeds to the children
of Israel
R. The Lord is kind and
merciful.
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Commentary on Ps 103:1b-2, 3-4, 6-7
This psalm of thanksgiving recalls God’s saving works. Three of God’s blessings are enumerated:
forgiveness, healing, and salvation. The
third strophe links the verse to the role of Moses in salvation history.
CCC: Ps 103 304
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Gospel: Matthew
11:25-27
At that time Jesus exclaimed:
"I give praise to you,
Father, Lord of heaven and earth,
for although you have hidden
these things
from the wise and the learned
you have revealed them to the
childlike.
Yes, Father, such has been
your gracious will.
All things have been handed
over to me by my Father.
No one knows the Son except
the Father,
and no one knows the Father
except the Son
and anyone to whom the Son
wishes to reveal him."
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Commentary on Mt 11:25-27
Jesus has just
completed a fairly scathing criticism of the people in the places he has been
and performed miracles yet; many have not accepted him as the Messiah. He now concludes
this section on a more joyous note as he reflects that, while the Scribes and
Pharisees (“the wise and learned”) have not understood who he is, those with
simple faith have accepted him freely. “Jesus can speak of all mysteries
because he is the Son and there is perfect reciprocity of knowledge between him
and the Father; what has been handed over to him is revealed only to those whom
he wishes.”[4]
CCC: Mt 11:25-27 2603,
2779; Mt 11:25-26 2701;
Mt 11:25 153,
544, 2785; Mt 11:27 151,
240, 443, 473
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Reflection:
It is much more difficult to
accept that God has spoken to you and directs you when He asks you to do
something you really don’t want to do.
It has always been this way as scripture clearly shows. In the Exodus reading God calls Moses to free
the Children of Israel from their bondage in Egypt
In the Gospel, Jesus is
actually praying a lament. The learned
ones, the Scribes and Pharisees have rejected the notion that God has answered
their prayer in sending the Messiah.
Jesus does not fit their notion of what God should have sent. Jesus is calling them to do things they do
not want to do – set aside their authority, love one another. These are not the ideals that seem to serve
what these religious leaders have worked to achieve.
God does not always tell us
what we want to hear. He tells us what
is right and true, which is frequently just what we don’t want to hear. It is for this reason it is so important that
we pray for discernment. If we speak
with God in prayer and get to know him through his Holy Word which he left for
us; if we have strengthened our own grace in the sacraments, we will hear his
voice and come to understand where he sends us.
It is a difficult message we
receive today only because God calls us of our comfort zones. The path our Savior walked is filled with
bumps and is not easy. As the Lord
pointed out – the Narrow Gate is the one we are called to enter and it is hard.
Pax
[1]
ALTRE
[2]
The picture is “Saint Bonaventure” Artist and Date are UNKNOWN
[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.
[4]
See NAB footnote on Matthew 11:25ff
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