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“St. Augustine in His Cell”
by Sandro Botticelli, 1490-94 |
Readings for Thursday of the
Twenty-first Week in Ordinary Time [1]
Readings from the Jerusalem
Bible [2]
Readings and Commentary: [3]
Reading 1: 1 Thessalonians 3:7-13
We have been reassured about
you, brothers and sisters,
in our every distress and
affliction, through your faith.
For we now live, if you stand
firm in the Lord.
What thanksgiving, then, can
we render to God for you,
for all the joy we feel on
your account before our God?
Night and day we pray beyond
measure to see you in person
and to remedy the
deficiencies of your faith.
Now may God himself, our
Father, and our Lord Jesus
direct our way to you, and
may the Lord make you increase
and abound in love for one
another and for all,
just as we have for you,
so as to strengthen your
hearts,
to be blameless in holiness
before our God and Father
at the coming of our Lord
Jesus with all his holy ones. Amen.
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Commentary on 1 Thes 3:7-13
St. Paul speaks
to the Thessalonians in a conversational tone. He first thanks God for their
faithfulness in the face of difficulties. He then offers a prayer, asking God
to increase their love for each other and others using one of the Lord’s
sayings (Love one another as I have loved you). It is clear from
his prayerful lament that he greatly desires to continue his instruction with
them, instruction that was interrupted when he was forced to leave hurriedly (Acts 17:5-10). By way of example, he reminds them that even he must
depend upon God to allow him to return, and that it is only through God’s grace
that his teaching and preaching will be efficacious.
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 90:3-5a, 12-13, 14 and 17
R. (14) Fill us with your love, O Lord, and we will
sing for joy!
You turn man back to dust,
saying, “Return, O children
of men.”
For a thousand years in your
sight
are as yesterday, now that it
is past,
or as a watch of the night.
R. Fill us with your love,
O Lord, and we will sing for joy!
Teach us to number our days
aright,
that we may gain wisdom of
heart.
Return, O LORD! How long?
Have pity on your servants!
R. Fill us with your love,
O Lord, and we will sing for joy!
Fill us at daybreak with your
kindness,
that we may shout for joy and
gladness all our days.
And may the gracious care of
the LORD our God be ours;
prosper the work of our hands
for us!
Prosper the work of our
hands!
R. Fill us with your love,
O Lord, and we will sing for joy!
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Commentary on Ps 90:3-5a, 12-13, 14 and 17
Psalm 90 is an
individual song of thanksgiving. In this section, the psalmist reflects on
God’s immensity and asks for God’s continued presence in support of all the
singer's activities. It is made implicit that only with God’s help is any good
thing accomplished, “prosper the work of our hands!”
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Gospel: Matthew 24:42-51
Jesus said to his disciples:
“Stay awake!
For you do not know on which
day your Lord will come.
Be sure of this:
if the master of the house
had known the hour of night
when the thief was coming,
he would have stayed awake
and not let his house be
broken into.
So too, you also must be
prepared,
for at an hour you do not
expect, the Son of Man will come.
“Who, then, is the faithful
and prudent servant,
whom the master has put in
charge of his household
to distribute to them their
food at the proper time?
Blessed is that servant whom
his master on his arrival finds doing so.
Amen, I say to you, he will
put him in charge of all his property.
But if that wicked servant
says to himself, ‘My master is long delayed,’
and begins to beat his fellow
servants,
and eat and drink with
drunkards,
the servant’s master will
come on an unexpected day
and at an unknown hour and
will punish him severely
and assign him a place with
the hypocrites,
where there will be wailing
and grinding of teeth.”
-------------------------------------------
Commentary on Mt 24:42-51
This
discourse from St. Matthew’s Gospel follows his reflections about the end
times, and the need for vigilance. The Lord speaks to those who follow
him, especially the leaders of the community of faithful he leaves behind,
telling them they will not know the time when they will be called to the kingdom
of Heaven.
In
three consecutive verses Jesus tells his disciples he is coming: “Lord will come,” “the thief was
coming,” and “the Son of Man will come.” He uses the analogy of a
thief (see also 1 Thessalonians 5: 2,4; 2 Peter 3:10; Revelation 3:3; Revelation 16:15) emphasizing the
uncertainty of the time (a thief does not announce himself). [4]
In
the second section he tells his followers that those who are found to be
vigilant will be rewarded at the end of all things, while those who have fallen
away will be punished. “This verse [v.44] is the beginning of the second part
of Jesus’ eschatological sermon. Now,
while the first part dealt with the certainty of the Second Coming and some of
its attendant phenomena as well as with the treatment that Christ’s disciples
can expect from the world, the second part that begins here exclusively
addresses how the disciples themselves ought to live as they await the Parousia
and on the basis of what principles they will be judged.” [5]
CCC: Mt 24:44 673
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Reflection:
Following
the teachings of Jesus Christ and his Church is the most difficult thing we do.
Some might argue that it should not be so, that our faith should be a “feel
good” thing and should be made easy. I do not doubt their sincerity, but the
discipline embodied in Sacred Scripture and its doctrinal expression by the
Church makes following the path difficult (the “Way” as it was called in the
very early Church at the time of Acts of the Apostles). In the Gospel today,
the Lord tells us that constancy is not optional.
To
emphasize the point of how difficult the path is to follow we give you a
quote. Actually, it is a quote of a
quote from Spe Salvi by Pope Benedict XVI who cited St. Augustine as he
reflected upon his mission as Bishop of Hippo. This is what Pope Benedict
quoted:
“The
turbulent have to be corrected, the faint-hearted cheered up, the weak
supported; the Gospel's opponents need to be refuted, its insidious enemies
guarded against; the unlearned need to be taught, the indolent stirred up, the
argumentative checked; the proud must be put in their place, the desperate set
on their feet, those engaged in quarrels reconciled; the needy have to be
helped, the oppressed to be liberated, the good to be encouraged, the bad to be
tolerated; all must be loved. The Gospel terrifies me.” [6]
When
we accept the role of Christian witness or if we simply agree to follow the
precepts of the Church in our daily lives (all the issues St. Augustine
identifies occur within us as well), we are faced with a daunting task that is
only made possible because of God’s gift of the Holy Spirit, and the
sacramental grace provided along the way.
Today
let us pray that we be given the strength to overcome our unruly hearts, to
embrace the Father with confident love, and to remain constantly vigilant: “for
at an hour you do not expect, the Son of Man will come.”
Pax
[1]
The picture used is “St. Augustine in His Cell” by
Sandro Botticelli, 1490-94.[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]
Erasmo Leiva-Merikakis, Fire of Mercy Heart of the
Word Volume III (Ignatius Press, San Francisco, CA, © 2012), 742.[5]
Ibid. p. 751.[6]
St. Augustine, Sermo 339, 4: PL 38, 148.
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