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“Mary Magdalene at the Foot of the Cross”
by Giovanni Battista Langetti, c. 1670 |
Readings for Tuesday of the
Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time [1]
Readings from the Jerusalem
Bible [2]
Readings and Commentary:[3]
Reading 1: 2 Corinthians 8:1-9
We want you to know, brothers
and sisters, of the grace of Godthat has been given to the
churches of Macedonia,for in a severe test of
affliction,the abundance of their joy
and their profound povertyoverflowed in a wealth of
generosity on their part.For according to their means,
I can testify,and beyond their means,
spontaneously,they begged us insistently
for the favor of taking partin the service to the holy
ones,and this, not as we expected,but they gave themselves
first to the Lordand to us through the will of
God,so that we urged Titus that,
as he had already begun,he should also complete for
you this gracious act also.Now as you excel in every
respect,in faith, discourse,
knowledge, all earnestness,and in the love we have for
you,may you excel in this
gracious act also.
I say this not by way of
command,but to test the genuineness
of your loveby your concern for others.For you know the gracious act
of our Lord Jesus Christ,that for your sake he became
poor although he was rich,so that by his poverty you
might become rich.-------------------------------------------Commentary on 2 Cor 8:1-9
St. Paul writes
to the Corinthians about the generosity of the churches of Macedonia. He has started a collection to relieve the
mother church in Jerusalem that was in the middle of a famine (Acts 11:27-30). He clearly felt this act
of charity strengthened the unity of the whole Church and was encouraging the
community in Corinth to follow that example.
He sends Titus to them with two companions to begin the charitable act
there.
-------------------------------------------Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 146:2, 5-6ab, 6c- 7, 8-9a
R. (1b) Praise the Lord, my soul!
or:
R. Alleluia.
Praise the LORD, my soul!I will praise the LORD all my
life;I will sing praise to my God
while I live.R. Praise the Lord, my
soul!
or:
R. Alleluia.
Blessed he whose help is the
God of Jacob,whose hope is in the LORD,
his God,Who made heaven and earth,the sea and all that is in
them.R. Praise the Lord, my
soul!
or:
R. Alleluia.
Who keeps faith forever,secures justice for the
oppressed,gives food to the hungry.The LORD sets captives free. R. Praise the Lord, my
soul!
or:
R. Alleluia.
The LORD gives sight to the
blind.The LORD raises up those who
were bowed down;the LORD loves the just.The LORD protects strangers. R. Praise the Lord, my
soul!
or:
R. Alleluia.
-------------------------------------------Commentary on Ps 146:2, 5-6ab, 6c- 7, 8-9a
Psalm 146 is a
hymn of praise and thanksgiving. Beyond
the actions of man, God saves those who are faithful to him. All is vanity when
a person’s trust is in human action. The
people who have faith in God will find salvation, as sung in the litany of acts
of God’s mercy presented in the final two strophes.
-------------------------------------------Gospel: Matthew 5:43-48
Jesus said to his disciples:"You have heard that it
was said,You shall love your neighbor
and hate your enemy.But I say to you, love your
enemiesand pray for those who
persecute you,that you may be children of
your heavenly Father,for he makes his sun rise on
the bad and the good,and causes rain to fall on
the just and the unjust.For if you love those who
love you, what recompense will you have?Do not the tax collectors do
the same?And if you greet your brothers
only,what is unusual about that?Do not the pagans do the
same?So be perfect, just as your
heavenly Father is perfect."-------------------------------------------Commentary on Mt 5:43-48
This
passage is the second of six examples in St. Matthew’s Gospel of conduct
demanded of the Christian disciple. The Lord extends the understanding of
Mosaic Law. He first quotes Leviticus 19:18. Jesus
tells the disciples once more that their behavior must be reflected in how they
treat others, and must go beyond what was customarily understood. He tells his
friends directly to love their enemies and pray for those who persecute them
(not curse them as was customary, also echoed in Romans 12:17-21). This
exhortation differentiates Christians, who love even their enemies based upon
requirements of their faith.
Jesus
continues to reinterpret Mosaic Law. Here, he goes after the closed
community. He tells the disciples, consistent with the instruction to
“turn the other cheek,” to love not just those who love us but those who are
our enemies as well.
He
goes on to contrast the response expected from his disciples to the response
customarily given (e.g. loving those who love you, greeting only one’s
friends), asking: “Do not the pagans do the same?” The passage concludes
with “So be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect.” He points
out that to do less than that is human nature, but the Christian calling is to
be perfect as the heavenly Father is perfect. Only in St. Matthew’s Gospel is
the word “perfect” used. In St. Luke’s Gospel the word is “merciful.”
CCC: Mt 5:43-44 1933, 2844;
Mt 5:44-45 2303, 2608;
Mt 5:44 1825, 1968, 2262; Mt 5:45 2828; Mt
5:46-47 2054; Mt
5:47 1693; Mt
5:48 443, 1693, 1968, 2013, 2842
-------------------------------------------Reflection:
The Gospel of Christ behaves
like a very good mirror today. Jesus is
continuing to instruct his disciples regarding the spirit of the law. He takes a precept: “You have heard that it was said,
You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.” And then he
redefines that precept, giving God’s intended meaning: “But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute
you.” As God’s adopted children, we
are not allowed the animal instinct to fear and hate our enemies.
Seen with the eyes of Christ,
those who persecute us, those who would take advantage of us, and those who
seek to stop us from doing what is right are our brothers and sisters. They are not to be hated or feared, but to be
viewed as fallen and in need of help. On
the surface that may seem to be condescending. and that attitude among us is
also wrong. Ours is to be the attitude
of the parent of an adult child who is seen making a wrong decision. Does that parent hate the child they have
loved and nurtured throughout their early life because they have, out of
ignorance or weakness, made decisions or acted on impulses that lead them down
dark paths?
A loving parent would
certainly not condemn their child for that kind of action, even if the action
were damaging or dangerous to the parent.
In secular society, we can see what happens when the Christian ethic is
withheld for a generation or two. When
this concept of loving one’s enemies is not passed on to children, those
children grown to adulthood cannot find it in their hearts to forgive, even
their own children, and we see the destruction of the extended family.
Ironically it is most
difficult to forgive one’s enemies when the enemy to be forgiven was once a
close friend or family member. Those who
have the deepest access to our feelings can cause the most pain, and
consequently require the most forgiveness.
It is for this reason that the lesson Christ teaches today is one that
is most difficult to accept and requires the most spiritual effort on our part.
Today we look at ourselves in
the light of this teaching. We see in the mirror that is the Gospel the light
reflected that shows us how far we must go to become like Christ who, without
condescension, loved those who hated him and forgave those who persecuted him. We pledge ourselves to forgiveness today,
remembering that the person we may have to forgive first is ourselves.
Pax
[1]
The picture is “Mary Magdalene at the Foot of the Cross” by Giovanni Battista
Langetti, c. 1670.
[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.
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