 |
“Saint Elizabeth of Hungary
Bringing Food for the Inmates of a Hospital”(detail)
by Adam Elsheimer c. 1600 |
Reading for Friday of
the Thirty-second Week in Ordinary Time [1]
Readings from the Jerusalem
Bible [2]
Readings and Commentary: [3]
Reading 1: Wisdom 13:1-9
All men were by nature
foolish who were in ignorance of God,
and who from the good things
seen did not succeed in knowing him who is,
and from studying the works
did not discern the artisan;
But either fire, or wind, or
the swift air,
or the circuit of the stars,
or the mighty water,
or the luminaries of heaven,
the governors of the world, they considered gods.
Now if out of joy in their
beauty they thought them gods,
let them know how far more
excellent is the Lord than these;
for the original source of
beauty fashioned them.
Or if they were struck by
their might and energy,
let them from these things
realize how much more powerful is he who made them.
For from the greatness and
the beauty of created things
their original author, by
analogy, is seen.
But yet, for these the blame
is less;
For they indeed have gone
astray perhaps,
though they seek God and wish
to find him.
For they search busily among
his works,
but are distracted by what
they see, because the things seen are fair.
But again, not even these are
pardonable.
For if they so far succeeded
in knowledge
that they could speculate
about the world,
how did they not more quickly
find its Lord?
-------------------------------------------
Commentary on Wis 13:1-9
In
this selection, the author of the Book of Wisdom builds logic for an apologia
for the one true God. He starts by saying the foolish (pagans) did not know
there was an artist, even though they studied the art left behind. He then goes
into detail saying that those who worship inanimate objects (fire, wind, stars,
water) and call them beautiful, have missed the true wonder of the creator
himself. Those who worship these things, in essence, cannot see the forest but
instead see a single tree.
CCC: Wis 13:1-15, 19 2112; Wis 13:1-9 32,
216; Wis 13:1 1147; Wis 13:3 2129,
2500; Wis 13:5 41,
2500
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 19:2-3, 4-5ab
R. (2a) The heavens proclaim the glory of God.
The heavens declare the glory
of God,
and the firmament proclaims
his handiwork.
Day pours out the word to
day,
and night to night imparts
knowledge.
R. The heavens proclaim
the glory of God.
Not a word nor a discourse
whose voice is not heard;
Through all the earth their
voice resounds,
and to the ends of the world,
their message.
R. The heavens proclaim
the glory of God.
-------------------------------------------
Commentary on Ps 19:2-3, 4-5ab
Psalm
19 is a hymn of praise. In these opening strophes, the psalmist rejoices in
God’s visible hand, revealed in all creation. It is the first of two themes
expressed in the psalm (the other is in praise of the Law of Moses). While no
word of God announces his presence, his glory is revealed in the creation of
all things.
CCC:
Ps 19:2-5 299; Ps 19:2 326
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Gospel: Luke 17:26-37
Jesus said to his disciples:
“As it was in the days of
Noah,
so it will be in the days of
the Son of Man;
they were eating and
drinking,
marrying and giving in
marriage up to the day
that Noah entered the ark,
and the flood came and
destroyed them all.
Similarly, as it was in the
days of Lot:
they were eating, drinking,
buying,
selling, planting, building;
on the day when Lot left
Sodom,
fire and brimstone rained
from the sky to destroy them all.
So it will be on the day the
Son of Man is revealed.
On that day, someone who is
on the housetop
and whose belongings are in
the house
must not go down to get them,
and likewise one in the field
must not return to what was
left behind.
Remember the wife of Lot.
Whoever seeks to preserve his
life will lose it,
but whoever loses it will
save it.
I tell you, on that night
there will be two people in one bed;
one will be taken, the other
left.
And there will be two women
grinding meal together;
one will be taken, the other
left.”
They said to him in reply,
“Where, Lord?”
He said to them, “Where the
body is,
there also the vultures will
gather.”
-------------------------------------------
Commentary on Lk 17:26-37
In this section of his discourse, Jesus speaks of the
Eschaton (the end times). Relating the coming of the Son of Man (the Parousia)
to the purges of evil and disbelief of the Great Flood (Genesis
6:5-8, 7:6-24) and the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis
18:16-19:28), he tells his disciples that, in that time,
the things of this world (including the physical body) do not matter. Using the
example of Lot’s wife (cf. Genesis
19:26), he explains that any attempt to preserve
physical reality will be disastrous. It is only important that one believes and
has faith in Christ, for the soul is eternal, and the body must die. (“Where
the body is, there also the vultures will gather.”)
CCC: Lk
17:19-31 2463; Lk
17:33 1889
-------------------------------------------
Reflection:
“All men were by nature foolish who were in ignorance of God, and who
from the good things seen did not succeed in knowing him who is, and from
studying the works did not discern the artisan.”
There has been a great deal
of debate going on that relates to three different views of the creation of the
universe and all contained in it. The
three views include: 1.) The biblical Creationist view that proposes that God
created everything in six twenty-four hour days; 2.) The Organic Evolutionist
view based upon the Neo-Darwinian premise that all life evolved naturally with
no evidence of a deity; 3.) Intelligent Design which attempted to synthesize
the two, saying that there is evidence in creation that there was outside
influence of a creative hand – a designer.
Some Catholics might be surprised to learn that the Church’s view is
most closely aligned to the Intelligent Design theory of creation. (See What We Believe – Intelligent
Design vs. Evolution.)
Pope John Paul II spoke to
this issue in a series of audiences in 1986 saying in part “the theory of
natural evolution, understood in a sense that does not exclude divine
causality, is not in principle opposed to the truth about creation . . . as
presented in the Book of Genesis . . . It must, however, be added that this
hypothesis proposes only a probability, not a scientific certainty . . . [But]
it is possible that the human body, following the order impressed by the
Creator on the energies of life, could have been gradually prepared in the
forms of antecedent living beings.”
The teaching of the Church
has continued with Pope Benedict XVI reaffirming this view in his address to
the clergy in 2007.
“[H]e expressed impatience
with the false polarities of 'creationism' and 'evolutionism.' The doctrine of
creation and the theory of evolution, he said, are not 'mutually exclusive
alternatives.' The world need not be divided between fideists who cram
scientific data into a Biblical template never meant to receive them and
materialists who think that soothing phrases like 'random fluctuation in the
quantum void' dispense with the need for a Creator.”[4]
There are two reasons for
considering these various positions.
First, to find awe in a Creator who presented us with such a wondrous
creation as the Book of Wisdom clearly states.
Who indeed can look at the wonder of creation and think that what
transpired in creation “statistically eliminated the possibility of the
existence of God,” as stated by notable atheists who present their beliefs as
science? We also recognize, ironically
through Sacred Scripture, that we must not reduce our awe in God’s creation by
attempting to place God in a box with human language and concepts. Yes. Genesis records (twice) that God created
all that is in six days: but whose days?
We need only look at Psalm 90 which says “Before the
mountains were born, the earth and the world brought forth, from eternity to
eternity you are God. A thousand years in your eyes are merely a yesterday,” (Psalm 90:2).
It is therefore rather
surprising in the face of both scientific and biblical evidence that there are
Catholics (and many other Christians) who cling stubbornly to the creationist
views, rejecting scientific evidence completely. We must open our hearts to the Holy Spirit,
recognizing that we may never know the will of God completely, nor the means
with which it is implemented. We must
also accept God’s gift of curiosity and intellect that allows us to, in a small
way, understand the marvels he has created more deeply.
Today our prayer is for
ourselves that we may focus most intensely on the important elements of our
being – our life in the Spirit. Through
our inward meditation may we find the peace of Christ and be prepared to meet
him when he comes again.
Pax
[1]
S.S. Commemoratio[2]
The picture is “Saint Elizabeth of Hungary Bringing Food for the Inmates of a
Hospital” by Adam Elsheimer c. 1600.
[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]
The Catholic Thing “Are Catholics Creationists” by George Sim Johnston,
November 9, 2009.
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