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St John of the Cross
Francisco de Zurbarán, c. 1633 |
Readings for Wednesday of the
Third Week of Advent [1]
Readings from the Jerusalem
Bible [2]
Readings and Commentary: [3]
Reading 1: Isaiah 45:6b-8, 18, 21b-25
I am the LORD,
there is no other;
I form the light, and create the darkness,
I make well-being and create woe;
I, the LORD, do all these things.
Let justice descend, O heavens, like dew from above,
like gentle rain let the skies drop it down.
Let the earth open and salvation bud forth;
let justice also spring up!
I, the LORD, have created this.
For thus says the
LORD,
The creator of the heavens,
who is God,
The designer and maker of the earth
who established it,
Not creating it to be a waste,
but designing it be lived in:
I am the LORD, and there is no other.
Who announced
this from the beginning
and foretold it from of old?
Was it not I, the LORD,
besides whom there is no other God?
There is no just and saving God but me.
Turn to me and be
safe,
all you ends of the earth,
for I am God; there is no other!
By myself I swear,
uttering my just decree
and my unalterable word:
To me every knee shall bend;
by me every tongue shall swear,
Saying, “Only in the LORD
are just deeds and power.
Before him in shame shall come
all who vent their anger against him.
In the LORD shall be the vindication and the glory
of all the descendants of Israel.”
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Commentary on Is 45:6b-8, 18, 21b-25
This song from
Deutero-Isaiah, that part of the prophetic work written after the Jews returned
from the Babylonian exile, praises God for his omnipotence. The selection
begins with a prayer. “The Vulgate rendering gives a more precise messianic
sense to this verse, using 'just one' and 'savior' in place of justice and
salvation. The Advent liturgy uses the Vulgate form, Rorate coeli desuper . . ., to express the world's longing for the
coming of Christ.” [4]
Isaiah
sees the conquering armies of King Cyrus as a forerunner to the messianic
kingdom that is to come, and using the invective style of the prophet Amos, he
describes the universal sweep of God’s kingdom on earth. The driving theology
behind this passage is the certain knowledge that there is only one true God
and hence only one true religion.
CCC: Is
45:8 2795; Is
45:22-24 201
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 85:9ab and 10, 11-12, 13-14
R. (Isaiah 45:8)
Let the clouds rain down
the Just One, and the earth bring forth a Savior.
I will hear what God proclaims;
the LORD –for he proclaims peace to his people.
Near indeed is his salvation to those who fear him,
glory dwelling in our land.
R. Let the clouds rain
down the Just One, and the earth bring forth a Savior.
Kindness and truth shall meet;
justice and peace shall kiss.
Truth shall spring out of the earth,
and justice shall look down from heaven.
R. Let the clouds rain
down the Just One, and the earth bring forth a Savior.
The LORD himself will give his benefits;
our land shall yield its increase.
Justice shall walk before him,
and salvation, along the way of his steps.
R. Let the clouds rain
down the Just One, and the earth bring forth a Savior.
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Commentary on Ps 85:9ab and 10, 11-12, 13-14
Psalm
85 is a lament, begging for forgiveness and grace. This passage expresses the
hope that God will be active in his support of the faithful.
CCC:
Ps 85:11 214; Ps
85:12 2795
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Gospel: Luke 7:18b-23
At that time,
John summoned two of his disciples and sent them to the Lord to ask,
“Are you the one who is to come, or should we look for another?”
When the men came to the Lord, they said,
“John the Baptist has sent us to you to ask,
‘Are you the one who is to come, or should we look for another?’”
At that time Jesus cured many of their diseases, sufferings, and evil spirits;
he also granted sight to many who were blind.
And Jesus said to them in reply,
“Go and tell John what you have seen and heard:
the blind regain their sight,
the lame walk,
lepers are cleansed,
the deaf hear, the dead are raised,
the poor have the good news proclaimed to them.
And blessed is the one who takes no offense at me.”
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Commentary on Lk 7:18b-23
St. John the Baptist's sending of his disciples to find Jesus
is also found in Matthew 11:2-19. St. Luke’s
Gospel does not mention that John the Baptist is in prison at the time he sends
his disciples to Jesus. Scholars have been puzzled by St. John’s question, “Are
you the one?” Did he doubt what he knew to be true? Was he surprised by
Jesus’ failure to identify himself clearly? Or was he simply becoming
discouraged like Jeremiah 15:10ff? The Lord sends
him reassurance of his identity as the Messiah, quoting Isaiah
61:1 and Isaiah
35:5-6. These quotes provide a summary of how Jesus
is fulfilling the prophecy of the Messiah.
CCC: Lk
7:18-23 547; Lk 7:19 453; Lk 7:22 544
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Reflection:
“Are you the
one who is to come?” We hear the voice of St. John reaching out to
Jesus from prison. The question comes as
a surprise. St. John was predestined to
follow in the footsteps of Elijah. He was
the voice crying out in the wilderness.
Could he have doubted what he knew from before his birth to be true?
It is quite possible, and
scholars have speculated, that John’s reaction in this case was one reflecting
his own depression. He saw the end of
his own mission as he sat in Herod’s dungeon.
Was this a call of desperation, a call for the Messiah to come to his
rescue? We think not. We think his message, passed on through his
own followers, was a passing of authority.
The Lord’s response makes it clear that St. John’s question was not to
provide an answer for him but to provide one for us.
Have we not all called out when things are
darkest, “Are you the one? Help
me!” When all hope seemed to be fading
in our own situations, did we not call out, perhaps doubting the Lord’s love for
us fleetingly? Like little children who
tell their parents when they are punished that their parents don’t love them
anymore, we accuse the Lord of failing us.
Now, as we look expectantly to his nativity
and to the life that is to come, we are reassured. If St. John could ask such a question, could
we not have our own doubts forgiven? If
St. Thomas could ask to see the nail prints in his hands, can we not be excused
for our little doubts? Today our prayer
is that our faith will remain strong, that we will be reassured by the proofs
the Lord left in Scripture and the everyday revelation of God’s glory in his
creation.
Pax
[1]
The picture is "St John of the Cross" by Francisco de Zurbarán, c. 1633.
[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.
[4]
NAB footnote on Isaiah 45:8.
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