The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today invite us to contemplate the Wisdom we have been fed that has helped us live transparent lives as followers of Jesus.
Bread for Life
The reading from the First Book of Kings tells of Elijah's flight to Horeb strengthened by food from an angel.
* [19:1–21] The story of Elijah’s journey to Mount Horeb begins as a flight from danger, but takes a surprising turn. The prophet makes his solitary way to the mountain where the Lord had appeared to Moses and the Israelites (“Horeb” is an alternate name for “Sinai”). Like Moses on the holy mountain, Elijah experiences a theophany and receives a commission.1
Psalm 34 is praise for Deliverance from Trouble.
* [Psalm 34] A thanksgiving in acrostic form, each line beginning with a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet. In this Psalm one letter is missing and two are in reverse order. The psalmist, fresh from the experience of being rescued (Ps 34:5, 7), can teach the “poor,” those who are defenseless, to trust in God alone (Ps 34:4, 12). God will make them powerful (Ps 34:5–11) and give them protection (Ps 34:12–22).2
The reading from the Letter to the Ephesians outlines rules for the New Life in Christ.
* [5:1] Imitators of God: in forgiving (Eph 4:32) and in loving (as exhibited in how Christ loved us).3
The Gospel of John continues Jesus' Bread of Life Discourse.
* [6:35–59] Up to Jn 6:50 “bread of life” is a figure for God’s revelation in Jesus; in Jn 6:51–58, the eucharistic theme comes to the fore. There may thus be a break between Jn 6:50–51.4
Mike Cherney comments that both Elijah and Jesus are at transformative moments. Elijah is depressed and afraid for his life until a messenger from God reorients him onto a pilgrimage to the holy mountain. Jesus draws strength from the Father and reenforces His message.
Elijah’s mission is addressing Israel’s drifting away from Yahweh as the people adopt the ways of the surrounding culture. Jesus reminds those present of the unwarranted lack of faith that was apparent during His people’s historical journey. I see Paul’s warning against bitterness in the passage from the letter to the Ephesians paralleling Jesus’ response to the murmurings in today’s Gospel by those individuals tied to a particular structure. I find myself drawn to see Jesus’ self-identification as the Way to the Father serving as something enabling rather than (as some may find it) exclusionary.5
Don Schwager quotes “Studying the Scriptures with humility,” by Saint Augustine of Hippo, 354-430 A.D.
"My ambition as a youth was to apply to the study of the Holy Scriptures all the refinement of dialectics. I did so, but without the humility of the true searcher. I was supposed to knock at the door so that it would open for me. Instead I was pushing it closed, trying to understand in pride what is only learned in humility. However, the all-merciful Lord lifted me up and kept me safe." (excerpt from Sermon 51,6)6
The Word Among Us Meditation on Ephesians 4:30–5:2 comments that Jesus' love is unconditional; there is never a moment that he doesn’t love us. Even when we are mired in a sin that we can’t seem to overcome, he is still completely committed to us.
This isn’t always easy. Sometimes it feels downright impossible. Some sins seem just too hard to forgive. But if anyone knows that, it’s Jesus. That’s why he is so patient. He promises to love you even if you are struggling to forgive someone. He knows that his love can soften your heart and give you the grace to show mercy. Paul told the Ephesians to live in the same kind of love that Jesus had when he “handed himself over for us” (5:2). Jesus never gave up on us, even when it meant going to the cross. So never give up on yourself—or anyone else! “Lord, teach me how to love with your love—the love that forgives.”7
Peter Edmonds SJ, a member of the Corpus Christi Jesuit Community in Boscombe, takes us through chapter 6 of John's Gospel and explains how it functions as a homily referring to and weaving together a rich assortment of Scriptural texts. Jesus is the prophet of God in John 6:41‑50.
The third scriptural quotation is from the Prophets. During the exile in Babylon, Isaiah looked forward to the time when God himself would teach his people: ‘All your children shall be taught by the Lord.’ (Isaiah 54:13) This time, Jesus says, has now come, through the revelation that he gives as the bread from heaven. The references to ‘being taught’, to ‘hearing’ and ‘learning’, stress the revelatory nature of the bread from heaven. Another ‘Very truly…’ (6:47) saying sums up: the way to life is to come to Jesus (to ‘eat’ of Jesus) and find the true wisdom to hear and believe the revelation that Jesus embodies. Jesus is the one who makes God known. We learnt this at the end of the prologue (1:18) and will be reminded of it during the Passion story by Jesus’s words to Annas: ‘I have spoken openly to the world; I have always taught in synagogues and in the temple, where all the Jews come together. I have said nothing in secret.’ (18:20-21)8
Friar Jude Winkler tells us that Elijah is burdened by the oath of Jezebel to kill him and nourished out of depression by the Angel of God. We are called in Ephesians to live a life that is transparent and shows our love, gratitude, and kindness. Friar Jude differentiates the “flesh” in Paul’s writing from the flesh in the Gospel of Matthew where Jesus is Wisdom Incarnate.
Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, comments that power, in and of itself, is not bad. It simply needs to be redefined as something larger than domination or force. If the Holy Spirit is power, then power has to be good, loving, and empowering, not something that is the result of ambition or greed. In fact, a truly spiritual woman, a truly whole man, is a very powerful person. If we do not name the good meaning of power, we will be content with the bad, or we will avoid claiming our own powerful vocations.
Martin Luther King, Jr. further wrote, “If we want to turn over a new leaf and really set a new humanity afoot, we must begin to turn humankind away from the long and desolate night of violence [caused by domination and power over others]. May it not be that the new humanity the world needs is the nonviolent human? . . . This not only will make us new people, but will give us a new kind of power. . . . It will be power infused with love and justice, that will change dark yesterdays into bright tomorrows, and lift us from the fatigue of despair to the buoyancy of hope.” [3]9
Our faith in the Providence of God empowers us to accept and act on our mission as we journey with Christ.
References
No comments:
Post a Comment