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| “Marriage of the Virgin (detail)” by Luca Giordano, c. 1688 |
Reading 1: Ephesians 5:21-33
Brothers and sisters:
Be subordinate to one another
out of reverence for Christ.
Wives should be subordinate
to their husbands as to the Lord.
For the husband is head of
his wife
just as Christ is head of the
Church,
he himself the savior of the
Body.
As the Church is subordinate
to Christ,
so wives should be
subordinate to their husbands in everything.
Husbands, love your wives,
even as Christ loved the
Church
and handed himself over for
her to sanctify her,
cleansing her by the bath of
water with the word,
that he might present to
himself the Church in splendor,
without spot or wrinkle or
any such thing,
that she might be holy and
without blemish.
So also husbands should love
their wives as their own bodies.
He who loves his wife loves
himself.
For no one hates his own
flesh
but rather nourishes and
cherishes it,
even as Christ does the
Church,
because we are members of his
Body.
For this reason a man
shall leave his father and his mother
and be joined to his wife,
and the two shall become
one flesh.
This is a great mystery,
but I speak in reference to
Christ and the Church.
In any case, each one of you
should love his wife as himself,
and the wife should respect
her husband.
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Commentary on
Eph 5:21-33
“St Paul here
provides a general principle which should govern relationships among members of
the Church: they should submit to one another, knowing that Christ is their
true judge. At the same time, the Apostle uses this principle to say something
about relationships in society, specifically family relationships; in these
there is an element of natural dependence - of wife on husband (5:22- 24).”[4]
The evangelist
uses the theological analogy of the relationship between Christ as his Church
as mirrored in the love between husband and wife. “The husband loves his wife
truly, he is completely faithful to her (Hosea 1:3; Jeremiah
2:20; Ezekiel 16:1-34). God is forever faithful to the love he
has shown Israel, and he is ever ready to pardon her (cf. Isaiah 54:5-8; 62:4-5; Jeremiah
31:21-22) and to
re-establish his Covenant with the people (cf. Isaiah 16:5-63). Jesus also describes himself as the
bridegroom (cf. Matthew
9:15; John 3:29) and he uses the image of the wedding
banquet to explain the significance of his coming (cf. Matthew 22:1-14; 25:1-13).”[5]
Paul concludes
his analogy with a citation from Genesis 2:24. “Genesis recounts the institution of marriage, between the first
couple, Adam and Eve. Despite God’s intention that this covenant be a
permanent, fruitful, and exclusive bond of companionship, numerous deviations
from the divine plan have marred its beauty over the centuries (e.g., polygamy,
divorce, adultery, concubinage). Christ came to redeem marriage from these
aberrations, restore its original dignity, and enrich it with sacramental grace
(Matthew 19:3-9) (CCC1605, 1615-16).”[6]
CCC: Eph
5:21-26 2204;
Eph 5:21 1269, 1642; Eph 5:25-27 772;
Eph 5:25-26 757, 1616; Eph 5:25 616, 1659; Eph 5:26-27 757, 1617; Eph 5:26 628, 796, 1228; Eph 5:27 773, 796, 1426; Eph 5:29 757, 796; Eph 5:31-32 796, 1602, 1616; Eph 5:31 1627;
Eph 5:32 772, 1624, 1659
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 128:1-2,
3, 4-5
R. (1a) Blessed are those who fear the Lord.
Blessed are you who fear the
LORD,
who walk in his ways!
For you shall eat the fruit
of your handiwork;
blessed shall you be, and
favored.
R. Blessed are those who fear the Lord.
Your wife shall be like a
fruitful vine
in the recesses of your home;
Your children like olive
plants
around your table.
R. Blessed are those who fear the Lord.
Behold, thus is the man
blessed
who fears the LORD.
The LORD bless you from Zion
may you see the prosperity of
Jerusalem
all the days of your life.
R. Blessed are those who fear the Lord.
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Commentary on
Ps 128:1-2, 3, 4-5
Psalm 128 is a song of
thanksgiving. It begins here with the typical blessings given to those
following and having faith in the Lord. This selection uses the analogy of the
family and the blessing it brings to the faithful, using the symbolism of vines
and olives, imagery commonly used in sacred scripture.
It also supports the creation of
woman and the marriage theme in Genesis 2:18-25. It is the
logical extension of the two becoming one flesh and the children flowing from
that union.
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Gospel: Luke 13:18-21
Jesus said, “What is the Kingdom of God
To what can I compare it?
It is like a mustard seed
that a man took and planted in the garden.
When it was fully grown, it
became a large bush
and the birds of the sky
dwelt in its branches.”
Again he said, “To what shall
I compare the Kingdom
of God
It is like yeast that a woman
took
and mixed in with three
measures of wheat flour
until the whole batch of
dough was leavened.”
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Commentary on
Lk 13:18-21
These two parables describe the
humble beginnings and the ultimate growth of the Kingdom of God presented
through Jesus’ ministry. While they have parallel passages in the Gospels of
St. Matthew and St. Mark (Matthew 13:31-33 and Mark 4:30-32), they are especially powerful for
the Gentile population to which St. Luke ministers because of the inclusive
nature of the stories.
CCC: Lk 13:20-21 2660
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Reflection:
We are reminded today, as we
hear once more the two parables in the Gospel, of the old rhyme (The
earliest version of the rhyme is in John Gower's "Confesio Amantis"
dated approximately 1390.):
For want of a shoe the horse was lost.
For want of a horse the message was lost.
For want of the message the battle was lost.
For want of the battle the country was lost.
For want of a shoe the country was lost.
And all for the want of a horseshoe nail.
From the very small
beginnings in Israel
From that humble beginning,
in that backwater part of the world, sprang all the Christians everywhere. When
that is considered, we wonder how anyone can doubt God’s gift of the Holy
Spirit. We are awed by what has happened in the world because God’s Son chose
to reveal His Father in the way he did.
We also feel insignificant at
times in this grand plan our Heavenly Father has put into motion. We feel at
times like our role is so insignificant that it would be alright if we sort of
took time out from pushing forward with our zeal to bring that message to
others. That feeling of insignificance is the reason we recalled that simple
Middleville Rhyme. You see that mustard plant that God’s Church has become does
not live in a gentle and loving world. Everyone is needed to keep God’s mission
flourishing and growing. On the vine that is the Church, there are always
leaves and even branches that are dying or cut back by a hostile world. We are
part of that organic growth and the life of faith depends upon each of us.
Today our prayer is that we
might help the Kingdom
of God
Pax
[1]
The picture is “Marriage of the Virgin (detail)” by Luca Giordano, c. 1688.
[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 republication is
not authorized by USCCB and is for private use only.
[4]
Letters of St. Paul, The Navarre Bible, Four Courts Press, 2003, p. 407.
[5]
Ibid.
[6]
Ignatius Catholic Study Bible, © 2010, Ignatius Press, San Francisco, CA. p.
353.
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