Voice ever ancient, ever new. Friday-Week18-2013.

In commenting on Matthew 16:26 from today’s Mass Readings, Origen of Alexandria writes:

“But what shall a person give in exchange for his life, would seem, if spoken in answer to a query, to indicate a person who trades his life; a person who, after sin, has given up his substance in order that his property might feed the poor. He would in that way receive salvation. Yet, in a positive light, I think this indicates that there is nothing in a person that he can give in trade for his life that will buy off death. God, however, has ransomed us all with the priceless blood of Jesus so that “we are bought with a price,” “having been purchased not with perishable things like silver and gold but with the priceless blood of the spotless, flawless Lamb,” Christ (Commentary on Matthew, 12).”

Voices ever ancient, ever new. Thursday-Week18-2013.

In commenting upon Matthew 16:23 from today’s Mass Readings, Saint John Chrysostom writes:

“Therefore, the rest being troubled and in perplexity, Peter again in his ardor alone ventures to discuss these things. And he does not discuss them openly but only when he had taken him aside. Having separated himself from the rest of the disciples, he says, “God forbid, Lord! This shall never happen to you.” What is happening here? The very one who had obtained a revelation, who had been blessed, has now so soon fallen away, so as now to fear the Passion of the Lord, and thereby his faith has been overthrown. It is remarkable that Peter, who had not yet been fully instructed in the course of revelation, should come up with these responses. The larger picture had not yet been revealed to Peter, and he was confused and overwhelmed. Peter had learned that Christ is the Son of God. But he had not learned of the mystery of the cross and the resurrection. It was as yet not manifested to him. It remained hidden. Do you see how correct Jesus was in forbidding them not to declare his identity publicly? For if it so confounded the disciples, who were being made aware of it, who knows what the response of others might have been. This is why he rebuked Peter and called him Satan: to signify that he is coming to his future suffering voluntarily (The Gospel of Matthew, Homily 54).”

Today is the Memorial of Saint Dominic. An excerpt ‘From various writings on the history of the Order of Preachers’ is found here. The Encyclical of Pope Benedict XV (yes, the 15th!) on Saint Dominic is found here.

May Saint Dominic
come to the help of Your Church
by his merits and teaching, O Lord,
and may he, who was an outstanding preacher
of your truth,
be a devoted intercessor on our behalf.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with You
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.

Voices ever ancient, ever new. Wednesday-Week18-2013.

In commenting on Matthew 15:28 from today’s Mass Readings, Theodore of Mopsuesteia writes:

“Having seen her advocates unsuccessful, the woman then appeals for herself and does not stop but in effect says to the Lord, “Help me, I haven’t been asking this for my own sake.” Then the Savior in turn says, “It is not good to take the children’s bread and to cast it to dogs.” He uses the term dog on account of the Gentiles’ unclean lifestyle and proneness to idolatry, while he calls the Jews children on account of the fact that they appeared to be devoted to God. But he uses the word bread not only to speak of his teaching, which was through words, but also of that which nourished the faithful by means of signs. But in this case the word preceded the condemnation of the Jews, since when life in the Lord had been given to them as bread, they did not accept it. The woman does not complain, even when insulted. What does the Savior do? By his answer, he showed what he had premeditated from the outset. For it was for this reason that he postponed giving a reply: that the woman might cry aloud with this word. Thereby he would show her to be worthy of a thousand crowns. For it was not because he did not want to give her the gift that he delayed but because he sought and took care beforehand to reveal her faith. With his accolades he honors her as presenting a type of the church that is from the Gentiles. Note that he did not say, “Let your child be healed,” but “Be it done for you as you desire,” in order to show that it was the power of her faith that elicited the healing. Even if she were worthy of even greater things, nevertheless that which she wanted was what was given to her (Fragment, 83).”

Voices ever ancient, ever new. Transfiguration 2013 (evening).

In commenting on Daniel 7:9 from today’s Mass Readings, Origen of Alexandria writes:

“Next they come to Libnah, which means “whitewashing.” I know that in some respects whitewashing has a pejorative connotation, as when we speak of a “whitewashed wall” and “whitewashed tombs.” But this whitewashing is that concerning which the prophet says, “You will wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.” And again Isaiah says, “Though your sins are like scarlet, I will whiten them like snow and will make them white like wool.” Again in the psalm, “They were whitened with snow in Zalmon.” And the hair of the Ancient of Days is said to be dazzling, white, that is, white like wool. So then, this whitewashing must be understood to come from the radiance of the true light and to descend from the brightness of heavenly visions. (Homilies on Numbers, 27.12).”

Voices ever ancient, ever new. Transfiguration 2013

In commenting on Luke 9:32 on this Feast of the Transfiguration of Our Lord, Saint Ambrose of Milan writes:

”Peter saw this grace, and so did those who were with him, although they were heavy with sleep. The incomprehensible magnificence of the Godhead overwhelms the perceptions of our body. If the sharpness of bodily vision cannot bear the ray of the sun directly into watching eyes, how may the corruption of human members endure the glory of God? The garment of the body, purer and finer after the removal of the materiality of vices, is made for the resurrection. Perhaps they were so heavy with sleep that they saw the radiance of the resurrection after their rest. Keeping vigil, they saw his majesty, because no one sees the glory of Christ unless he is vigilant (Exposition of the Gospel of Luke, 7).”

Voices ever ancient, ever new. Monday-Week18-2013

In commenting on Matthew 14:17 from today’s Readings, Saint Hilary of Poitiers writes:

“But was Jesus unaware there was nothing to give? Did he not know the disciples possessed a limited amount of food? He could read their minds, so he knew. We are invited to explain things by reasoning according to types. It was not yet granted to the apostles to make and administer heavenly bread for the food of eternal life. Yet their response reflected an ordered reasoning about types: they had only five loaves and two fish. This means that up to then they depended on five loaves — that is, the five books of the law. And two fish nourished them — that is, the preaching of the prophets and of John. For in the works of the law there was life just as there is life from bread, but the preaching of John and the prophets restored hope to human life by virtue of water. Therefore the apostles offered these things first, because that was the level of their understanding at the time. From these modest beginnings the preaching of the gospel has proceeded from them, from these same apostles, until it has grown into an immense power. (On Matthew, 14).”

Sunday-Week18-2013. Words of THE WORD

ANTIPHON (click for full Psalm)

O God, come to my assistance;
O Lord, make haste to help me!
You are my rescuer, my help;
O Lord, do not delay. (Psalm 70: 2, 6).

COLLECT

Draw near to Your servants, O Lord,
and answer their prayers with unceasing kindness,
that, for those who glory in
You as their Creator and guide,
You may restore what You have created
and keep safe what You have restored.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son,
Who lives and reigns with You
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God for ever and ever. Amen.

RESPONSORIAL PSALM (click for full Psalm)

If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts. (Psalm 90: 1).

SCRIPTURE EXCERPT (click for all Readings for this Sunday)

Someone in the crowd said to Jesus,
“Teacher, tell my brother to share the inheritance with me.”
He replied to him,
“Friend, who appointed me as your judge and arbitrator?”
Then he said to the crowd,
“Take care to guard against all greed,
for though one may be rich,
one’s life does not consist of possessions.” (Luke 11:13-15).”

REFLECTION

Two imperatives – or if you prefer, commands – frame Jesus’ response to the plea seeking His resolution of a nasty family dispute over inheritance (sound familiar?): ὁράω (horao) and φυλάσσω (phulasso). ὁράω (horao, ‘see so as to discern’) and φυλάσσω (phulasso, ‘guarding in such a way that one is saved’) are verbs that denote necessary actions for anyone responding to Jesus’ call to be His disciple. Even before considering ‘what needs to be seen’ and ‘what needs to be guarded against’ it is imperative for a disciple of Jesus to know what is involved in ‘seeing’ and ‘guarding’ as a disciple.

There are a number of Greek verbs that are translated into English “to see” and the Sacred Scriptures employ a variety of these verbs throughout both Testaments. When it comes to “seeing” as expressed by the verb ὁράω (horao, translated here from the NABRE as “take care”), this is a deliberate action, often involving related actions of gazing, staring, and beholding. ὁράω (horao) is not an involuntary, momentary or mindless sight of a given reality. ὁράω (horao) involves a choice whereby one rivets attention on another person, place or object. While not excluding per se the eye itself and the various processes that occur when light falls upon cones and rods in the retina, ὁράω (horao) is more about intellectual and spiritual insight. Such intellectual or spiritual ‘seeing’ thus moves the beholder to knowing – and since the ‘seeing’ or ‘beholding’ is intense, one comes to knowledge that gets to the core of the person, place or object that is beheld. ὁράω (horao) is “to see” the essence of another person, place or object and consequently “know” (or “experience”) the other with more than just a superficial, passing glance. It is in this context that ὁράω (horao) can describe the act of discerning the true nature of another person, place or object in the created order. Recall Genesis 3 and the allure of the fruit: in terms of a passing glance, ‘the fruit looks good.’ To see beyond the surface, more than human biology and the physics of light are required. “Seeing” in the sense of ὁράω (horao) requires (especially in the case of discipleship) “listening and receiving the revelation of the Other.” This act informs ὁράω (horao) and properly directs the discerning process.

φυλάσσω (phulasso) - the other important verb in this Sunday’s reflection - translated here from the NABRE as “to guard,” also expresses a person’s attitude or disposition ‘to keep and to observe all that has been asked’ such as a Covenant or Divine Law. When used in situations to express ‘protecting life or possession,’ φυλάσσω (phulasso) also embodies elements of ‘being alert,’ ‘being vigilant’ and ‘being attentive.’ These important ‘mental’ aspects of “to guard / to protect” can be defensive (‘guarding against an enemy’) or offensive (‘protecting/treasuring the good I/others possess’). Yet in both cases, φυλάσσω (phulasso) is devoid of passivity. Whether the action is protecting or observing, one consciously chooses the action and keeps alert while observing all that has been asked or while protecting the goods in one’s possession.

Both verbs, ὁράω (horao) and φυλάσσω (phulasso), describe vital dimensions of activity pertinent to being Jesus’ disciple. Gazing that is informed by Divine Revelation to know a course of action and to then observe and protect the good entrusted to one are applicable across the spectrum of living Jesus’ life. In this Sunday’s Word, Jesus specifically applies these imperative actions to greed. As one of the capital sins (see Catechism of the Catholic Church, sin and capital sins), greed (see Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2535-2540) is the disordered attachment to anyone or anything. It is a block to authentic relational living with God, others, the true self and all creation. Greed is a desire that, while originally grounded in the natural instinct for what is necessary to survive, becomes disordered by an appetite to either attach oneself exclusively to an item(s) of the created order or to allow – consciously or unconsciously – the hunger for ‘more’ to grow insatiably. Greed ‘says’ to the human condition that this item or that item will bring complete happiness. Greed ‘says’ you NEED and MUST HAVE this item or that item to be fully alive and complete as a person. When that voice is heard as opposed to the Word of Revelation informing our vision, distorted sight is not the only problem a person faces. Fixation and an insatiable desire for ‘more’ drive life to the point that one locks on a particular item or the path to acquire ‘more beyond what is needed for living.’ Life is skewed dangerously and one is unable to be like Mary who chooses the better part to sit at the feet of Jesus. Greed further distorts life by making elements of the created order ends in themselves, ‘mini-gods’ that become an ‘all-or-nothing’ – ‘make it or break it’ in living life.

Seeing the created order properly and not permitting it to control our lives is the caution Jesus sounds. He does so because, in the words of Saint Augustine, “O Lord our God, You have made us for Yourself and our hearts are restless until they rest in You,” true joy and peace in life lies in attachment to the God and Father of us all, not what He has created.