(Optional Memorial for Saint
Cyril of Alexandria, Bishop and Doctor of the Church)
 |
| “Studies of a Fox” by Pieter Boel, 1669-71 |
Readings and Commentary: [3]
Reading 1: Amos 2:6-10, 13-16
Thus says the Lord:
For three crimes of Israel, and
for four,
I will not revoke my word;
Because they sell the just man
for silver,
and the poor man for a pair of
sandals.
They trample the heads of the
weak
into the dust of the earth,
and force the lowly out of the
way.
Son and father go to the same
prostitute,
profaning my holy name.
Upon garments taken in pledge
they recline beside any altar;
And the wine of those who have
been fined
they drink in the house of their
god.
Yet it was I who destroyed the
Amorites before them,
who were as tall as the cedars,
and as strong as the oak trees.
I destroyed their fruit above,
and their roots beneath.
It was I who brought you up from
the land of Egypt,
and who led you through the
desert for forty years,
to occupy the land of the
Amorites.
Beware, I will crush you into the
ground
as a wagon crushes when laden
with sheaves.
Flight shall perish from the swift,
and the strong man shall not
retain his strength;
The warrior shall not save his
life,
nor the bowman stand his ground;
The swift of foot shall not
escape,
nor the horseman save his life.
And the most stouthearted of
warriors
shall flee naked on that day,
says the Lord.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Am 2:6-10, 13-16
Placed in context, the prophet protests
against the crimes of Moab (2 Kings 3:9ff). The
selection from Amos begins with a detailed list of the crimes the Hebrew people
of Jerusalem have committed. They disregard the poor, and treat them without
dignity; they take that which was given in tribute to God, and use it for their
own pleasure; they turn to idolatry (“…they recline beside any altar”).
They did so in the face of God’s faithfulness: God stood with their armies as
they defeated the Amorites, and was with Moses who led them out of bondage in
Egypt.
The prophet concludes with a
warning oracle. (“I will crush you into the ground.”) God will abandon
them, and they will not be able to hide from his punishment.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 50:16bc-17, 18-19, 20-21, 22-23
R. (22a) Remember
this, you who never think of God.
“Why do you recite my statutes,
and profess my covenant with your
mouth,
Though you hate discipline
and cast my words behind you?”
R. Remember this, you who never
think of God.
“When you see a thief, you keep
pace with him,
and with adulterers you throw in
your lot.
To your mouth you give free rein
for evil,
you harness your tongue to
deceit.”
R. Remember this, you who never
think of God.
“You sit speaking against your
brother;
against your mother’s son you
spread rumors.
When you do these things, shall I
be deaf to it?
Or do you think that I am like
yourself?
I will correct you by drawing
them up before your eyes.”
R. Remember this, you who never
think of God.
“Consider this, you who forget
God,
lest I rend you and there be no
one to rescue you.
He that offers praise as a
sacrifice glorifies me;
and to him that goes the right
way I will show the salvation of God.”
R. Remember this, you who never
think of God.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Ps 50:16bc-17, 18-19,
20-21, 22-23
Psalm 50 is in the form of a
“covenant lawsuit” that is a lament against those who have violated God’s law,
and the covenant made with him upon which it was based. Much like the oracle
from Amos 2:6ff (above), the strophes point to those who are unfaithful, and
contrast them with God who is always faithful.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gospel: Matthew 8:18-22
When Jesus saw a crowd around
him,
he gave orders to cross to the other
shore.
A scribe approached and said to
him,
“Teacher, I will follow you
wherever you go.”
Jesus answered him, “Foxes have
dens and birds of the sky have nests,
but the Son of Man has nowhere to
rest his head.”
Another of his disciples said to
him,
“Lord, let me go first and bury
my father.”
But Jesus answered him, “Follow
me,
and let the dead bury their
dead.”
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Mt 8:18-22
This is an interlude between the
miracle stories in St. Matthew’s Gospel. In this passage we find two sayings
dealing with discipleship, and what that means. The first of these is in the
form of a reply to a scribe who wished to travel with the Lord. The Savior’s
response indicated that he must be prepared to have no permanent home if he was
going to do so. The scribe must give up material wealth, and embrace Christ's
consistently stated love of the poor.
In the second situation, the
would-be disciple asks to be allowed to bury his father. This does not mean his
father had already died, but that he wished to wait for that to happen so he
could carry out his family responsibilities. The Lord’s response makes it clear
that ties to the family would be secondary to the disciples' call to follow him
(see also commentary on Luke 9:51-62).
CCC: Mt 8:20 2444
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Reflection:
In the Gospel of St. Matthew, the
Lord asks the scribe, in the form of a metaphor, if he is willing to give up
all the world holds as important so he can follow him. His inference with the
statement: “Foxes have dens and birds of
the sky have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to rest his head,” is
that accepting the way of Christ means placing everything of earthly value
second. Homes, jobs, and families become secondary to the work of spreading the
news of God’s salvation.
Using a more contemporary image,
we were reminded recently of the great example set for us by St Josemaria
Escriva who, though he did not know what he was being called to, repeatedly
said yes to the call of the Lord. In his life, like so many of the great
saints, worldly values beckoned to him, and he was forced to say no. The Lord
asks for our love, and understands that, when we say yes, we take up a cross
that is very familiar to him. It may mean family and friends turn away, they
will not understand single- hearted love of God. It will almost certainly mean
that secular definitions of success will not apply. Financial wealth, material
goods, and worldly pleasures will have little value in the life of Christ’s
disciples.
Why then, one might ask, would a
person willingly choose to follow Jesus? It seems almost as if the Lord is
trying to push us away. No, he is simply trying to teach us where true
happiness and peace can be found. By embracing God, we find an inner peace that
eludes those whose passion is building wealth, whose treasure is fiscal gain.
Wealth demands attention, effort, and work. Trusting Jesus to walk with us, and
the Father to watch over us, our spirit soars and a great burden is lifted.
Today we ask for the strength to
let go of our earthly desires and turn away from the urgings of the flesh (as
St. Paul would say), and to embrace Christ and follow his way to salvation.
Pax
[1]
The picture used today “Studies of a Fox” by Pieter
Boel, 1669-71
[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