The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today invite us to contemplate the gift of the Word of God and our response to share that gift with others.
Sharing Peace
The reading from the Book of Nehemiah exhorts ‘Be quiet, for this day is holy; do not be grieved.’
* [8:1–18] Chronologically this belongs after Ezr 8:36. The gloss mentioning Nehemiah in Neh 8:9 was inserted in this Ezra section after the dislocation of several parts of Ezra-Nehemiah had occurred. There is no clear evidence of a simultaneous presence of Nehemiah and Ezra in Jerusalem; Neh 12:26, 36 are also scribal glosses.1
Psalm 19 praises God’s Glory in Creation and the Law.
* [Psalm 19] The heavenly elements of the world, now beautifully arranged, bespeak the power and wisdom of their creator (Ps 19:2–7). The creator’s wisdom is available to human beings in the law (Ps 19:8–11), toward which the psalmist prays to be open (Ps 19:12–14). The themes of light and speech unify the poem.2
The Gospel of Luke offers Jesus instructions for the Mission of the Seventy.
* [10:4] Carry no money bag…greet no one along the way: because of the urgency of the mission and the singlemindedness required of missionaries, attachment to material possessions should be avoided and even customary greetings should not distract from the fulfillment of the task.3
Tamora Whitney concludes that the people in the first reading found joy in the word of God, and the ones in the Gospel who would reject the word will have it worse than the city of Sodom, for the Kingdom of God is at hand.
In the Gospel Jesus is sending out disciples ahead of him to prepare the people, in essence, for the word of God. He sends them out to scope out the place, see who will be receptive to the word, and who will reject it. And unlike the first reading, the whole of the people are not listening attentively and weeping with joy at the information. This is dangerous work and takes serious devotion. Those who undertake this journey could be walking into their deaths. Jesus says, “behold, I am sending you like lambs among wolves.” This is not an easy task Jesus is asking, but he is asking his friends to lay down their lives for him. This takes the utmost devotion. It would be easier to walk away. It would be easier to deny Christ. What devotion it takes for these friends to risk life and limb. Not many people have the devotion it takes. "The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few.” There is much work to be done, and enough work for many people, but few will make that commitment, few have that devotion.4
Don Schwager quotes “Jesus the Good Shepherd changes wolves into sheep,” by Cyril of Alexandria (376-444 AD).
"How then does [Jesus] command the holy apostles, who are innocent men and 'sheep,' to seek the company of wolves, and go to them of their own will? Is not the danger apparent? Are they not set up as ready prey for their attacks? How can a sheep prevail over a wolf? How can one so peaceful conquer the savageness of beasts of prey? 'Yes,' he says, 'for they all have me as their Shepherd: small and great, people and princes, teachers and students. I will be with you, help you, and deliver you from all evil. I will tame the savage beasts. I will change wolves into sheep, and I will make the persecutors become the helpers of the persecuted. I will make those who wrong my ministers to be sharers in their pious designs. I make and unmake all things, and nothing can resist my will.'" (excerpt from COMMENTARY ON LUKE, HOMILY 61)5
The Word Among Us Meditation on Luke 10:1-12 comments that we know that Jesus wants to give us his peace as we draw close to him in prayer. We know that he promises us a peace that the world cannot give to us. But we often forget that Jesus doesn’t want us to keep this peace all to ourselves. He wants us to share it with everyone we meet so that it will spread. And we share it, not by telling everyone how peaceful we feel, but by simply remaining close to Jesus and letting his peace flow out of us.
People notice when someone seems centered and calm in difficult situations. It’s true for you as well. Your peace can flow to the people you encounter in the supermarket, at work, in the parking lot, or in your home. You can make a difference! So yes, continue to ask Jesus to give you his peace and to make you into a more peaceful person. But remember also to give that peace to people wherever you go. “Lord, make me a channel of your peace to everyone I will meet today.”6
Friar Jude Winkler notes the events in the Book of Nehemiah occur about fifty years after the Babylonian exile as the people are recommitted to the rebuilding of Jerusalem. Sending the disciples is unique to the Gospel of Luke. Friar Jude reminds us to do our best and rejoice even when our efforts appear to be rejected.
Franciscan media comments that Jerome is frequently remembered for his bad temper! It is true that he had a very bad temper and could use a vitriolic pen, but his love for God and his son Jesus Christ was extraordinarily intense; anyone who taught error was an enemy of God and truth, and Saint Jerome went after him or her with his mighty and sometimes sarcastic pen. He was above all a Scripture scholar, translating most of the Old Testament from the Hebrew. Jerome also wrote commentaries which are a great source of scriptural inspiration for us today. He was an avid student, a thorough scholar, a prodigious letter-writer and a consultant to monk, bishop, and pope. Saint Augustine said of him, “What Jerome is ignorant of, no mortal has ever known.”
Jerome was a strong, outspoken man. He had the virtues and the unpleasant fruits of being a fearless critic and all the usual moral problems of a man. He was, as someone has said, no admirer of moderation whether in virtue or against evil. He was swift to anger, but also swift to feel remorse, even more severe on his own shortcomings than on those of others. A pope is said to have remarked, on seeing a picture of Jerome striking his breast with a stone, “You do well to carry that stone, for without it the Church would never have canonized you” (Butler's Lives of the Saints).7
Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, reflects on the well-known story of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:30–35), a parable Jesus used to teach us what common-sense compassion looks like in our everyday lives.
What Jesus is doing in this beautiful story is defining what love of neighbor is: it is the concrete practice of love and caring. We already know this law of compassion, because it is written in our hearts. Our common sense knows what we are supposed to do, and we still don’t do it. We contradict our own good common sense when we seek ritual purity or any kind of moral superiority instead of loving who and what is right in front of us.8
Our piety, study, and action form a foundation to act in accord with Providence as labourers in the field.
References
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