The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary ask us to renew acceptance, allowance, and assistance in our faith life in the midst of society that practices a reduced rationalism.
 |
| Fulfill the Promise |
The reading from Genesis links the Covenant of Circumcision of Abraham to the Promise of land for his descendants.
* [17:1–27] The Priestly source gathers the major motifs of the story so far and sets them firmly within a covenant context; the word “covenant” occurs thirteen times. There are links to the covenant with Noah (v. 1 = 6:9; v. 7 = 9:9; v. 11 = 9:12–17). In this chapter, vv. 1–8 promise progeny and land; vv. 9–14 are instructions about circumcision; vv. 15–21 repeat the promise of a son to Sarah and distinguish this promise from that to Hagar; vv. 22–27 describe Abraham’s carrying out the commands. The Almighty: traditional rendering of Hebrew El Shaddai, which is P’s favorite designation of God in the period of the ancestors. Its etymology is uncertain, but its root meaning is probably “God, the One of the Mountains.”1
In Psalm 105 praise is offered to God who is faithful to the promise of land to the ancestors.
* [Psalm 105] A hymn to God who promised the land of Canaan to the holy people, cf. Ps 78; 106; 136. Israel is invited to praise and seek the presence of God (Ps 105:1–6), who is faithful to the promise of land to the ancestors (Ps 105:7–11). In every phase of the national story—the ancestors in the land of Canaan (Ps 105:12–15), Joseph in Egypt (Ps 105:16–22), Israel in Egypt (Ps 105:23–38), Israel in the desert on the way to Canaan (Ps 105:39–45)—God remained faithful, reiterating the promise of the land to successive servants.2
The Gospel of John connects Jesus as Son to Abraham and the Promise.
* [8:58] Came to be, I AM: the Greek word used for “came to be” is the one used of all creation in the prologue, while the word used for “am” is the one reserved for the Logos.3
Ann Mausbach vividly remembers when they told her there was no Santa Claus. Upon hearing this she immediately reverted to the three D’s - denial, dismissal, and deflection.
We need to allow rather than dismiss. Allowing has us opening up our hearts and minds to Jesus presence in our life. Rather than writing off what we don’t understand we need to concede to the mysteries of our faith and find God’s hand in our daily life.
And finally, rather than deflect when we encounter things that don’t make sense we have to assist. Rather than averting our attention from God’s message assisting asks us to stay. Assisting may look like prayer or listening or simply showing up to help a friend in need. Assisting is finding God in all things even when it isn’t always clear.
Today, let us pray for acceptance, allowance, and assistance in our faith life. Help us to be open to God’s love so that we may enjoy the many gifts we have been given.4
Don Schwager quotes “Christ died that you might live,” by Saint Augustine of Hippo, 354-430 A.D.
"For you Christ allowed Himself to be crucified, to teach you humility. He was alive, and you were dead. He died that you might live. God vanquished death so that death might not overcome human beings." (excerpt from Sermon on John 2,4;14,13) 5
The Word Among Us Meditation on John 8:51-59 comments that we could say that in today’s Gospel, Jesus is conducting an immersion class in the language of heaven.
Nearly two millennia of Old Testament history had brought Jesus and the Jewish authorities to this point of impasse. These were faithful Jews intent on honoring God’s covenant with Abraham. But Jesus insists that he himself is the fulfillment of God’s covenant promises. Their focus on their long-held expectations blocks their understanding. But Jesus doesn’t give up. He continues to show them an unimaginable future in which Abraham is waiting for them.6
Friar Jude Winkler observes that the 2nd version of the Covenant in Genesis is less amphomorphic. We do not get everything we want from God but we get everything we need. Friar Jude compares the vision of Jesus in the Gospel of Mark and the Gospel of John that both underline His glory in the Love of the Cross.
Cynthia Bourgeault introduces historian Bruce Chilton who considers that Jesus may actually have learned the art of ritual anointing from Mary Magdalene!
For we know that that’s what real love does: it changes outcomes and creates whole new people. Whether or not Mary Magdalene and Jesus shared an outward ministry of anointing (and there is a good likelihood that they did), inwardly their life together was a continuous, mutual anointing. The specific incident at Bethany when she ritually bathed his head and feet in perfume was merely the outer sign of the inner fragrance of their love. . . . In this mutual sealing of love, the two become a new reality, and old habits and self-definitions are sprung loose. For Magdalene, the anointing of Jesus’s love freed her from “seven demons” and launched her on the path toward inner integration. For Jesus, the anointing of Mary Magdalene’s love freed him from his self-identification with the Nazirite role and allowed him to trust his heart.7
The tendency for us to deny, dismiss and deflect may have consequence that we delay our opportunity for more open minds to appreciate God in our midst.
Addendum
Nicholas King SJ warns us, ‘Old Testament faith is no easy matter.’ The first of these frequent errors is the notion that ‘faith’ is a matter of believing lots of impossible propositions, a series of sentences that the Church has drawn up to separate the wheat from the chaff, or the men from the boys, so that if you can tick all the boxes then you fit the mould of ‘Catholic’. That is not what the Bible understands by ‘faith’, however. A better model is that of a relationship, joyfully proclaimed, though sometimes uncomfortable to live, with the Loving Mystery, the Creator of the universe, to whom we give the deceptively simple name of ‘God’.
For Abram (or Abraham, as he later becomes) now undergoes a series of rather alarming tests, which he more or less passes. However, he still, three chapters later, has no offspring, and in chapter 15 he raises the matter with God. God’s response is ‘“look, please, at the heavens, and count the stars, if you can count them.” And he said to him, “So shall your offspring be”.’ Then we hear Abram’s response, of which St Paul will later make a good deal: ‘And he put his trust in YHWH, and he reckoned it to him as an act of righteousness’. The point here is that, against all the odds, Abraham, as he will be finally named in Genesis 17:5, has a sufficiently profound relationship with God to trust what he has been told. We are invited to read and reflect, and then imitate.8
References
1
|
(n.d.). Genesis, chapter 17 - usccb. Retrieved April 11, 2019, from http://www.usccb.org/bible/genesis/17
|
2
|
(n.d.). Psalms, chapter 105 - usccb. Retrieved April 11, 2019, from http://www.usccb.org/bible/psalms/105
|
3
| |
4
|
(n.d.). Creighton U Daily Reflections - OnlineMinistries - Creighton University. Retrieved April 11, 2019, from http://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/daily.html
|
5
|
(n.d.). Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved April 11, 2019, from https://dailyscripture.servantsoftheword.org/
|
6
|
(n.d.). Saint Stanislaus, Bishop and Martyr (Memorial) - Mass Readings and .... Retrieved April 11, 2019, from https://wau.org/meditations/2019/04/11
|
7
|
(n.d.). Richard Rohr - Daily Meditations Archive - Center for Action and .... Retrieved April 11, 2019, from https://cac.org/richard-rohr/daily-meditations/daily-meditations-archive/
|
No comments:
Post a Comment