Thursday, August 1, 2024

Friday of the Seventeenth Week in Ordinary Time

“The Prophet Jeremiah”
by Antoine Coypel, c.1700’s
 
Readings for Friday of the Seventeenth Week in Ordinary Time [1]
 
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible [2]

Readings and Commentary:[3]
 
Reading 1: Jeremiah 26:1-9
 
In the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim,
son of Josiah, king of Judah,
this message came from the Lord:
Thus says the Lord:
Stand in the court of the house of the Lord
and speak to the people of all the cities of Judah
who come to worship in the house of the Lord;
whatever I command you, tell them, and omit nothing.
Perhaps they will listen and turn back,
each from his evil way,
so that I may repent of the evil I have planned to inflict upon them
for their evil deeds.
Say to them: Thus says the Lord:
If you disobey me,
not living according to the law I placed before you
and not listening to the words of my servants the prophets,
whom I send you constantly though you do not obey them,
I will treat this house like Shiloh,
and make this the city to which all the nations of the earth
shall refer when cursing another.
 
Now the priests, the prophets, and all the people
heard Jeremiah speak these words in the house of the Lord.
When Jeremiah finished speaking
all that the Lord bade him speak to all the people,
the priests and prophets laid hold of him, crying,
“You must be put to death!
Why do you prophesy in the name of the Lord:
‘This house shall be like Shiloh,’ and
‘This city shall be desolate and deserted’?”
And all the people gathered about Jeremiah in the house of the Lord.
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Commentary on Jer 26:1-9
 
The opening comment in this selection sets the date of this incident at about 609 BC. Most scholars agree the narrative is from a third party (probably Baruch). The prophet causes a scandal in the temple by calling on those who consider themselves devout to repent, and return to following the Law of Moses. According to Jeremiah, if they do not, the Lord’s anger will be unleashed against them and Judah will be decimated.
 
The specific mention of Shiloh is significant in that Shiloh was once a high place, central to the worship of Yahweh (see Joshua 18:1 and Judges 18:31), [4] but was destroyed, a reminder that God will not spare even places where he is worshiped if the people turn away from his desired path. As a result of this vitriolic discourse, Jeremiah is accused of blasphemy and seized by the leadership of the temple. 
 
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 69:5, 8-10, 14
 
R. (14c) Lord, in your great love, answer me.
 
Those outnumber the hairs of my head
who hate me without cause.
Too many for my strength
are they who wrongfully are my enemies.
Must I restore what I did not steal?
R. Lord, in your great love, answer me.
 
Since for your sake I bear insult,
and shame covers my face.
I have become an outcast to my brothers,
a stranger to my mother’s sons,
Because zeal for your house consumes me,
and the insults of those who blaspheme you fall upon me.
R. Lord, in your great love, answer me.
 
But I pray to you, O Lord,
for the time of your favor, O God!
In your great kindness answer me
with your constant help.
R. Lord, in your great love, answer me.
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Commentary on Ps 69:5, 8-10, 14
 
Psalm 69 is a lament in which the psalmist sings of being unjustly accused of crimes, and forced to make restitution. “The psalm, which depicts the suffering of the innocent just person vividly, is cited often by the New Testament especially in the passion accounts, e.g., Psalm 69:5 in John 15:25.” [5]
 
CCC: Ps 69:10 584
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Gospel: Matthew 13:54-58
 
Jesus came to his native place and taught the people in their synagogue.
They were astonished and said,
"Where did this man get such wisdom and mighty deeds?
Is he not the carpenter's son? Is not his mother named Mary
and his brothers James, Joseph, Simon, and Judas?
Are not his sisters all with us? Where did this man get all this?"
And they took offense at him. But Jesus said to them,
"A prophet is not without honor except in his native place
and in his own house."
And he did not work many mighty deeds there
because of their lack of faith.
-------------------------------------------
Commentary on Mt 13:54-58
 
This story from Matthew’s Gospel focuses on the people most familiar with Jesus, the boy growing up among them. They are seeking the “Royal Messiah,” one coming with great power and majesty, and are disappointed because of the Lord’s familiar and humble beginnings. Matthew’s story tells us that because of their lack of faith, the Lord did not perform any signs in their midst, ending the passage with the often quoted “A prophet is not without honor except in his native place and in his own house." (See also John 1:11; those who were overly familiar with Jesus could not place their faith in him.)
 
CCC: Mt 13:55 495, 500
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Reflection:
 
If we were very lucky growing up, when we came home from school or play, our mothers would be there to give us a snack, patch up our cuts and scrapes, or listen to our tales of triumph or woe.  As children, we grew to expect them to be there; expected them to lend a sympathetic ear and a loving touch.  Growing older we may have come to take that love and presence for granted.  Mom was always there; we could forget about appreciating the fact that for her, our happiness and well-being were among the most important things in her life.  As we grew older still, we may have challenged her wisdom and even become antagonistic towards her.  We may have thought “What does she know? We can take care of ourselves.”
 
This whole idea of taking something for granted – over-familiarity – is at the heart of what Jesus encounters in the Gospel.  The people who knew him growing up could not accept what was being revealed about his true identity – the Messiah.  They knew his parents and his extended family members.  It is clear they did not know of his miraculous birth or the circumstances surrounding the Blessed Mother's conception, or they would have behaved differently.  They only knew Jesus, the carpenter’s son who had grown up in their midst.  They were even upset by him.  They saw him assuming authority they would not give him, and they rejected him.  We hear the Lord’s response, “A prophet is not without honor except in his native place and in his own house."
 
We take two different lessons from this encounter (and that of the prophet Jeremiah as well).  First, God’s message is not going to be popular with everyone.  In fact, people closest to you, those who know you and know your failings, will find it difficult if not impossible to accept you if you adopt a Christ-centered lifestyle.  Asking others to follow God can be a very unpopular thing to do.
 
A second lesson, and perhaps a more subtle one, is the pitfall of over-familiarity with sacred things and places.  The challenge we often face with becoming disciplined in our faith is that the things we do, prayer, worship, acts of charity, can become routine and we can take them for granted.  When that happens, we lose the grace God gives us in return for our dedication.  It is like our mother’s love: if we have taken it for granted, we lose the wonder of it and much of the benefit we would otherwise derive from it.
 
In the face of the Gospel message we are given today our prayer is twofold.  First, we pray that we may always be fearless in proclaiming the kingdom of God, even when that message is unwelcome and unpopular.  And second, we pray that we will never become complacent in the love our Lord has for us nor will we take for granted the wondrous gifts he gives us with his infinite grace.
 
Pax
[1] The picture is “The Prophet Jeremiah” by Antoine Coypel, c.1700’s.
[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] McKenzie, John L., Dictionary of the Bible, Macmillan Publishing, 1965, p. 807.
[5] NAB footnote on Psalm 69.

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