The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today invite us to pray for those we may have treated as other.
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| Acting for the bridegroom |
The reading from the First Letter of John invokes our obligation to pray for sinners.
* [5:13–21] As children of God we have confidence in prayer because of our intimate relationship with him (1 Jn 5:14–15). In love, we pray (1 Jn 5:16–17) for those who are in sin, but not in deadly sin (literally, “sin unto death”), probably referring to apostasy or activities brought on under the antichrist; cf. Mk 3:29; Heb 6:4–6; 10:26–31. Even in the latter case, however, prayer, while not enjoined, is not forbidden. The letter concludes with a summary of the themes of the letter (1 Jn 5:18–20). There is a sharp antithesis between the children of God and those belonging to the world and to the evil one. The Son reveals the God of truth; Christians dwell in the true God, in his Son, and have eternal life. The final verse (1 Jn 5:21) voices a perennial warning about idols, any type of rival to God.1
Psalm 149 offers praise for God’s Goodness to Israel.
* [Psalm 149] A hymn inviting the people of Israel to celebrate their God in song and festive dance (Ps 149:1–3, 5) because God has chosen them and given them victory (Ps 149:4). The exodus and conquest are the defining acts of Israel; the people must be ready to do again those acts in the future at the divine command (Ps 149:6–9).2
In the Gospel of John, disciples of John the Baptist hear the witness of the Baptist concerning Jesus.
* [3:29] The best man: literally, “the friend of the groom,” the shoshben of Jewish tradition, who arranged the wedding. Competition between him and the groom would be unthinkable.3
Dennis Hamm, S.J. comments that John’s disciples are challenged, and apparently drawn to the temptation of “othering,” that is, allowing themselves to be divided from other members of the human family by suspicion of bad will. If their mentor John is truly the one to follow, then this other Jew (Jesus?) and his followers must be resisted. To that, John replies: I’m the “best man” – the friend of the bridegroom. My role is to be alert to the signs of his coming to prepare the way for his homecoming with the bride. I’m preparing, not competing. That coming is happening now. Join me in taking part in his project of saving the world by becoming the community the human family was meant to be.’
Gracious God, we dare to claim to identify of the mission of the people of God, privileged with ‘chosenness,’ to allow ourselves to be sent to participate in your mission that moved to a fresh re-creation when you sent Jesus to be a light to the world starting with his becoming human flesh in the womb of Mary. At this current moment, Father of mercies, when we are beset by division, not only between nations but within nations and even within the worldwide church, but also nationally and locally, awaken us and re-create us. Enable us to sing to you a new song of praise in the assembly of your faithful. You delight to have chosen us, like John and Jesus, to turn privilege to practice, to sow the seeds of peace and justice in humble service of all your beloved family. Come Lord Jesus.4
Don Schwager quotes “Christ is the husband of the church his bride,” by Ambrose of Milan, 339-397 A.D.
"This means he alone is the husband of the church (John 3:29), he is the expectation of the nations, and the prophets removed their sandals while offering to him a union of nuptial grace. He is the bridegroom; I am the friend of the bridegroom. I rejoice because he is coming, because I hear the nuptial chant, because now we do not hear the harsh penalties for sinners, the harsh torments of the law, but the forgiveness of offenses, the cry of joy, the sound of cheerfulness, the rejoicing of the nuptial feast." (excerpt from ON THE PATRIARCHS 4.22)5
The Word Among Us Meditation on 1 John 5:14-21 notes that John was addressing a community that was going through a difficult time. Some people were getting sidetracked by philosophies that didn’t line up with the gospel, and as a result, they began separating themselves from the larger fellowship. One of these philosophies was an early form of Docetism, the denial that Jesus is fully human. Another was Gnosticism, which placed more importance on so-called interior, spiritual knowledge and not enough on loving one another and following the commandments.
John isn’t the only one in history who has helped guard the Church from heresies and false beliefs. Take, for example, the fourth-century bishop Athanasius. He defended the doctrine of the Trinity against the Arians, who believed that Jesus was subordinate, not equal to, the Father. In the fifth century, St. Augustine of Hippo refuted the teachings of Pelagius, who denied the doctrine of original sin and believed that people could become holy and achieve salvation on their own. Through their writings about the love and mercy of God, saints such as St. Francis de Sales and St. Thérèse of Lisieux refuted a heresy known as Jansenism. Prevalent in the seventeenth century and beyond, this heresy often kept people from receiving Communion because they thought they could never be worthy of it.6
Friar Jude Winkler addresses the idea of God as a vending machine for our wishes. The reference to the bridegroom by Jeremiah is connected to the texts today. Friar Jude celebrates the toast of the Baptist to the bridegroom, Jesus.
Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, shares that Jesus never told us to separate ourselves from the world. That’s why St. Francis of Assisi and his brothers would not be monks. The Franciscan friars were a totally new religious movement, living in the middle of cities, right with the people, refusing to separate themselves. Francis didn’t hate or avoid the world. He said we had to find a way interiorly to love and have compassion for the world. “The whole world is our cloister,” he taught us. [1]
a beautiful prayer adapted from Walter Brueggemann’s Prayers for a Privileged People that we would like to share as inspiration for the beginning of this year’s meditations on Action and Contemplation.7
As friends of the bridegroom we are charged with introducing other to the Presence of Christ.
References
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