(Optional
Memorial for the Most Holy Name of Mary)
(Optional
Memorial for the Blessed Virgin Mary)
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.
 |
| “The House Upon the Rock and The House Upon the Sand” by William James Webb, c. 1860 |
Reading 1: 1 Timothy 1:15-17
Beloved:
This saying is trustworthy
and deserves full acceptance:
Christ Jesus came into the
world to save sinners.
Of these I am the foremost.
But for that reason I was
mercifully treated,
so that in me, as the
foremost,
Christ Jesus might display
all his patience as an example
for those who would come to
believe in him for everlasting life.
To the king of ages, incorruptible,
invisible, the only God,
honor and glory forever and
ever. Amen.
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Commentary on 1
Tm 1:15-17
This pastoral statement from the First Letter of Timothy states
the fundamental truth that Jesus came into the word to save humankind from the
death of sin and bring us to everlasting life.
The conclusion is another statement of faith there is only one true God
and he deserves all glory and honor. Presented on this memorial, the statement
clearly points, as does his Blessed Mother, to the primacy of Christ.
CCC: 1 Tm 1:15 545
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 113:1b-2, 3-4, 5 and 6-7
R. (2) Blessed be the name of the Lord for ever.
Praise, you servants of the
LORD,
praise the name of the LORD.
Blessed be the name of the
LORD
both now and forever.
R. Blessed be the name of the Lord for ever.
From the rising to the
setting of the sun
is the name of the LORD to be
praised.
High above all nations is the
LORD;
above the heavens is his
glory.
R. Blessed be the name of the Lord for ever.
Who is like the LORD, our
God,
and looks upon the heavens
and the earth below?
He raises up the lowly from
the dust;
from the dunghill he lifts up
the poor.
R. Blessed be the name of the Lord for ever.
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Commentary on Ps
113:1b-2, 3-4, 5 and 6-7
Psalm 113 is a song of praise.
The song is directed to the faithful of Israel
CCC: Ps 113:1-2 2143
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Gospel: Luke 6:43-49
Jesus said to his disciples:
“A good tree does not bear rotten
fruit,
nor does a rotten tree bear
good fruit.
For every tree is known by
its own fruit.
For people do not pick figs
from thornbushes,
nor do they gather grapes
from brambles.
A good person out of the
store of goodness in his heart produces good,
but an evil person out of a
store of evil produces evil;
for from the fullness of the
heart the mouth speaks.
“Why do you call me, ‘Lord,
Lord,’ but not do what I command?
I will show you what someone
is like who comes to me,
listens to my words, and acts
on them.
That one is like a man
building a house,
who dug deeply and laid the
foundation on rock;
when the flood came, the
river burst against that house
but could not shake it
because it had been well built.
But the one who listens and
does not act
is like a person who built a
house on the ground
without a foundation.
When the river burst against
it,
it collapsed at once and was
completely destroyed.”
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Commentary on Lk
6:43-49
St.
Luke’s Gospel brings us the conclusion of Jesus’ discourse on judgment of
others using the analogy of the fruits born by a tree – good and bad. The
intent of this allegory was to expose false prophets – hypocrites who say one
thing but do another. "What matters is not whether or not we wear a
religious habit; it is whether we try to practice the virtues and surrender our
will to God and order our lives as His Majesty ordains, and not want to do our
will but his" (St Teresa of Avila, "Interior Castle", II, 6).
The
second section of this reading is the conclusion of Jesus’ long discourse. He uses the analogy of the house built upon
sand and the house built upon rock to indicate that those how have a deep faith
and act out of that faith have a strong foundation and can stand against
adversity; while those who give the faith lip service and for others to see but
do not have that deep faith will fall.
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Reflection:
We explore what the Lord
means when he says the one “…who dug deeply and laid
the foundation on rock.” On the surface this seems to by saying that
those who seek to serve the Lord, to follow him closely, need to have a strong
connection between what they hear and understand from Jesus and how they act
upon those impulses. There is more to what the Lord meant than that!.
A child understands Jesus at
the level at which their maturity allows.
If they are being true to their faith, they act upon their understanding
of what Jesus commands in a given situation.
An adult with greater life experience may interpret the command of Jesus
in a different way and react differently in the same situation. Even further, one who has intensely reflected
upon the words and works of faith may see a deeper meaning and their actions
may differ from both the child and the adult.
There are different and deeper levels of faith and understanding to be had,
but digging deeply is the key to unlocking those rewards.
All of this seems fairly
logical and straight forward. There is,
however, a caveat – digging deeper is, first of all work and second the digger
must be aware that they have not reached bed rock. Using the Lord’s analogy and going a bit
further. Many of us dig down until the
ground gets pretty hard and assume we have hit rock when we either hit just a
stone (that would be like an epiphany – a flash of insight) or we may have hit
clay that fells like rock but is really not foundation material.
The work part of the caveat
is very clear. We either decide to do
the work or not. We either commit to
digging deeper (ie. taking more advantage of sacramental offerings, delving
into Sacred Scripture, reading works of faith to help us understand what others
have gleaned from their faith journeys, or intensifying our prayer lives.) or
we do not – putting it off for later when we have nothing better or more fun to
do.
The good news is this, the
Lord gives us a shovel built for our hands and while we may get calluses, it
will never dull. All we need to
recognize is that the rock is there and is ours to find. May our prayer be this, that we always have
the will and courage to seek that bed rock upon which our faith may sit and our
actions be directed.
Pax
[1]
General
Norms for the Liturgical Year and the Calendar Miscellaneous Notes no. 5
[2]
S.S
Commemoratio
[3]
The picture is “The House Upon the Rock and The House Upon the Sand” by William
James Webb, c. 1860
[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.
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