Friday of the Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time

"Abraham, Sarah, and the Angel”
by Jan Provost, 1520s

Readings for Friday of the Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time [1]
 
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible [2]
 
Readings and Commentary: [3]
 
Reading 1: Genesis 17:1, 9-10, 15-22
 
When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to him
and said: "I am God the Almighty.
Walk in my presence and be blameless."
 
God also said to Abraham:
"On your part, you and your descendants after you
must keep my covenant throughout the ages.
This is my covenant with you and your descendants after you
that you must keep:
every male among you shall be circumcised."
 
God further said to Abraham:
"As for your wife Sarai, do not call her Sarai;
her name shall be Sarah.
I will bless her, and I will give you a son by her.
Him also will I bless; he shall give rise to nations,
and rulers of peoples shall issue from him."
Abraham prostrated himself and laughed as he said to himself,
"Can a child be born to a man who is a hundred years old?
Or can Sarah give birth at ninety?"
Then Abraham said to God,
"Let but Ishmael live on by your favor!"
God replied:  "Nevertheless, your wife Sarah is to bear you a son,
and you shall call him Isaac.
I will maintain my covenant with him as an everlasting pact,
to be his God and the God of his descendants after him.
As for Ishmael, I am heeding you:  I hereby bless him.
I will make him fertile and will multiply him exceedingly.
He shall become the father of twelve chieftains,
and I will make of him a great nation.
But my covenant I will maintain with Isaac,
whom Sarah shall bear to you by this time next year."
When he had finished speaking with him, God departed from Abraham.
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Commentary on Gn 17:1, 9-10, 15-22
 
This selection follows the birth of Ishmael in Chapter 16. In the first 9 verses omitted (see readings and commentary Genesis 17:3-9) Abram’s name is changed to Abraham and God’s promise is made. In this passage, the second half to the Covenant with Abraham is laid out, explaining what Abraham and his descendants are expected to do to honor God. It is here that circumcision becomes a mark of faith.
 
The selection continues with God renaming Abraham’s wife from Sarai to Sarah, a unique mark of favor and dedication, used to identify individuals who have a special mission from the Father. In Sarah’s case this mission is to bear a son, Isaac, an heir to Abraham. Isaac is to be the living sign of God’s covenant, blessed by him.
 
CCC: Gn 17:1-2 2571
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 128:1-2, 3, 4-5
 
R. (4) See how the Lord blesses those who fear him.
 
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. See how the Lord blesses those who fear him.
 
Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine
in the recesses of your home;
Your children like olive plants
around your table.
R. See how the Lord blesses those who fear him.
 
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. See how the Lord blesses those who fear him.
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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: Matthew 8:1-4
 
When Jesus came down from the mountain, great crowds followed him.
And then a leper approached, did him homage, and said,
"Lord, if you wish, you can make me clean."
He stretched out his hand, touched him, and said,
"I will do it.  Be made clean."
His leprosy was cleansed immediately.
Then Jesus said to him, "See that you tell no one,
but go show yourself to the priest,
and offer the gift that Moses prescribed;
that will be proof for them."
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Commentary on Mt 8:1-4
 
Following the first great discourse from St. Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus has attracted a large crowd. In the following chapters, we see ten miracles. The cure of the leper is the first of these. This action on the part of Jesus is proof of his identity as the Messiah; hence the usual formula “Your faith has cured you” is missing (Mark 10:52; Luke 7:50). The language and demeanor of the leper demonstrates his absolute certainty of Jesus' identity and authority over his condition.
 
The final instruction by Jesus to the cured leper is in accordance with Mosaic Law (see Leviticus 14:2-9) His instruction to tell no one about this was probably to insure that the priest who had to examine him would not reject the cure and the man.
 
CCC: Mt 8:2 448; Mt 8:4 586
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Reflection:
 
We contemplate our relationship with God in the establishment of his covenant with Abraham.  Before the Savior came to give us the living example of the Father’s love, God selected individuals to demonstrate the Father’s hope and concern for his people.  In Genesis he selects Abram, renaming him to Abraham, and his wife Sarai, renamed to Sarah, as his special instruments.  He offers a perpetual relationship to them and, in this case, he seals this covenant with a son to be born of Sarah.  This was to happen even though she had been barren for her entire life, and had been forced to use her servant, Hagar, as a surrogate. 
 
God promises this special relationship with Abraham and his descendants, and uses the gift of Isaac as a seal set upon the covenant.  What he asks of Abraham in this covenant is circumcision, an outward sign of faith and loyalty to God.  This sign will later be hotly debated by St. Paul as unnecessary because Christ came and established a new covenant, and this Jewish mark of faith was no longer necessary in light of the Cross.
 
We note with curiosity a second request made in this exchange between God and Abraham.  Even as he blesses Abraham and Sarah with Isaac, he sets aside Abram's son Ishmael whom God also protects.  Ishmael of course prospers and is the root of Islam.  It appears from the previous chapter that this split between half-brothers, Isaac and Ishmael, is doomed to be one of enmity, and indeed we see this truth in the world today.  Without Jesus Christ to bring peace, we see how this constant struggle continues between Muslims and Jews, Christians, and all other faiths.  Hebrew Scriptures are apparently insufficient to bring reconciliation. It is the coming of the Messiah that may bring peace to that rift.  We pray for that peace daily.
 
And what of us?  How do we see our covenant with the Lord?  We too were the children of Abraham.  Our roots reach back to that union, blessed by God.  But we were also given the great gift of Jesus, the Messiah and healer of wounds.  It is his promise that all who come to him might be healed and have peace.  Our prayer today is that all who feel the fear of strife between races and religions might understand that we are all called, through Christ, to be God’s adopted children.  We pray for peace in the world and peace in our own hearts.
 
Pax

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[1] The picture used is “Abraham, Sarah, and the Angel” by Jan Provost, 1520s.
[2] S.S. Commemoratio
[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.