The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today invite contemplation of how events in our journey illuminate paths to goodness, beauty, and truth.
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| Journey encounters goodness |
The reading from the Book of Ezra is the declaration of Cyrus of the end of the Babylonian Captivity.
* [1:1] In the first year of Cyrus: the first regnal year of Cyrus was 539 B.C., but his first year as ruler of Babylon, after the conquest of that city, was 538 B.C., the year in which he issued an edict, replicated on the famous Cyrus cylinder, permitting the repatriation of peoples deported by the Babylonians.1
A harvest of Joy is proclaimed in Psalm 126 as a lament probably sung shortly after Israel’s return from exile.
* [Psalm 126] A lament probably sung shortly after Israel’s return from exile. The people rejoice that they are in Zion (Ps 126:1–3) but mere presence in the holy city is not enough; they must pray for the prosperity and the fertility of the land (Ps 126:4). The last verses are probably an oracle of promise: the painful work of sowing will be crowned with life (Ps 126:5–6).2
The Gospel of Luke describes a parable of a lamp under a jar challenging our hiding of faith.
* [8:16–18] These sayings continue the theme of responding to the word of God. Those who hear the word must become a light to others (Lk 8:16); even the mysteries of the kingdom that have been made known to the disciples (Lk 8:9–10) must come to light (Lk 8:17); a generous and persevering response to the word of God leads to a still more perfect response to the word.3
Maureen McCann Waldron asks how do we live our lives as Christians? Pope Francis says about this gospel that the light we find in Jesus’ teachings comes from our love for the poor and for our neighbor.
This commitment, Francis says, takes place in our daily lives and in the here and now. “Never put off the good,” Francis reminds us. “The good is today, and if you do not do it today, tomorrow it will not be there. Do not conceal the good for tomorrow.”
He adds, “Do not say to your neighbor: ‘Yes, go, go, go... then pass again and I will give it to you tomorrow.’ If you have with you now what the person is asking for … do not make the needy person wait.”4
Don Schwager quotes “The Word of God is like a lamp to guide us,” by Origen of Alexandria (185-254 AD).
"Scripture does not say this about a tangible lamp but about a comprehensible one. One does not 'light' the lamp and conceal it 'with a vessel' or put it 'under a bed, but on the lamp stand' within himself. The vessels of the house are the powers of the soul. The bed is the body. 'Those who go in' are those who hear the teacher... He calls the holy church a 'lamp stand.' By its proclamation, the Word of God gives light to all who are in this world and illuminates those in the house with the rays of the truth, filling the minds of all with divine knowledge. (excerpt from FRAGMENTS ON LUKE 120, 122)5
The Word Among Us Meditation on Luke 8:16-18 comments that when we read about Padre Pio we might think, “I could never be like him!” But that’s okay; we’re not supposed to be exactly like him. Padre Pio—and the wide assortment of the Church’s saints—teaches us that God will use anyone who responds generously to him.
Padre Pio’s life is a perfect example of what Jesus is talking about in today’s Gospel. He was someone who “had” and was clearly given “more.” What he had to begin with was trust in God’s love, and he was given more because of his willingness to share that love with everyone he could. For Padre Pio, that meant spending long hours each day praying and hearing confessions. In his fifty-one years of ministry, he never took a vacation; he just kept pouring himself out for people. As for the “more,” God rewarded Pio’s generosity by pouring out even more gifts on the humble friar.6
Friar Jude Winkler compares the response of the Babylonian exiles to that of Jews to the establishment of the State of Israel. Wisdom sayings in Luke warn that hiding our faults is impossible and faith grows for those who exercise it. Friar Jude points to our ability to sense wrongs.
A post by Franciscan Media about Saint Pio of Pietrelcina, Saint of the Day for September 23, reflects on the many trials that the humble Capuchin of San Giovanni Rotondo endured.Today we contemplate in him how sweet is the ‘yoke’ of Christ and indeed how light the burdens are whenever someone carries these with faithful love. The life and mission of Padre Pio testify that difficulties and sorrows, if accepted with love, transform themselves into a privileged journey of holiness, which opens the person toward a greater good, known only to the Lord.”7
Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, comments that only surrendering humbly to the radical path of love will result in the discovery that God is not the object of our longing and love, but is the loving itself. As the author of The Cloud teaches, God is the force that is binding, moving, sustaining, and transforming all of humanity and all of creation with every breath and every evolutionary shift on our planet.
In the fourteenth century, the inspired, anonymous author of The Cloud of Unknowing taught that God in Christ dealt with sin, death, forgiveness, and salvation “all in one lump.” It is a most unusual, even homely, phrase, but for me, this corporate and mystical reading of history contributes to the unitive vision we are seeking, as we try to understand the Universal Christ. Jesus by himself looks like an individual, albeit a divine individual, but the Christ is a compelling image for this “one-lump” view of reality. In the fourteenth century, The Cloud’s author would’ve enjoyed the last remnants of mystical holism before the Reformation and Enlightenment elevated dualistic thinking. The writer reflected the more Eastern church understanding of the resurrection as a universal phenomenon, and not just the lone Jesus rising from the dead and raising his hands as if he just scored a touchdown, as is depicted in most Western art—and even in a giant mosaic that looms over the University of Notre Dame’s football stadium.8
Events are opportunities for our lamp of faith to shine and offer loving action for the poor and the planet.
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