The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today urge us to contemplate the terms of the Covenant into which we are invited by our relationship with Jesus.
Blessing and Woes
The reading from the Book of the Prophet Jeremiah presents a life of true wisdom.
Blessed are those who trust in the LORD; the LORD will be their trust.1
Psalm 1 declares the Two Ways.
* [Psalm 1] A preface to the whole Book of Psalms, contrasting with striking similes the destiny of the good and the wicked. The Psalm views life as activity, as choosing either the good or the bad. Each “way” brings its inevitable consequences. The wise through their good actions will experience rootedness and life, and the wicked, rootlessness and death.2
The reading from the First Letter of Paul to the Corinthians shares the results of denial of the Resurrection of the Dead.
* [15:12–19] Denial of the resurrection (1 Cor 15:12) involves logical inconsistencies. The basic one, stated twice (1 Cor 15:13, 16), is that if there is no such thing as (bodily) resurrection, then it has not taken place even in Christ’s case.3
In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus' sayings about Blessings and Woes are shared in the Sermon on the Plain.
* [6:20–26] The introductory portion of the sermon consists of blessings and woes that address the real economic and social conditions of humanity (the poor—the rich; the hungry—the satisfied; those grieving—those laughing; the outcast—the socially acceptable). By contrast, Matthew emphasizes the religious and spiritual values of disciples in the kingdom inaugurated by Jesus (“poor in spirit,” Mt 5:3; “hunger and thirst for righteousness,” Mt 5:6). In the sermon, blessed extols the fortunate condition of persons who are favored with the blessings of God; the woes, addressed as they are to the disciples of Jesus, threaten God’s profound displeasure on those so blinded by their present fortunate situation that they do not recognize and appreciate the real values of God’s kingdom. In all the blessings and woes, the present condition of the persons addressed will be reversed in the future.4
Mike Cherney comments that even today people mistake wealth, success, and social standing as signs of being among the elect in God’s eyes. Jesus goes on to invoke woes to those who trust in the trappings of their good fortune.
My first thoughts, when I looked at today’s readings, were that there was a common simple message: Trust in God, do good, avoid the temptations of this world and you can have faith in eternal life. I am moved toward a more subtle message in these scripture passages. Rather them as signs of “earning” heaven, I see how easily the distractions of good fortune can work as an impediment to my spiritual growth. In the First Principal and Foundation, St. Ignatius points out undue attachments to the gifts that we have received can displace what is truly important.5
Don Schwager quotes “Jesus, though rich, became poor for us,” by Ambrose of Milan, 339-397 A.D.
"'Blessed,' it says, 'are the poor.' Not all the poor are blessed, for poverty is neutral. The poor can be either good or evil, unless, perhaps, the blessed pauper is to be understood as he whom the prophet described, saying, 'A righteous poor man is better than a rich liar' (Proverbs 19:22). Blessed is the poor man who cried and whom the Lord heard (Psalm 34:6). Blessed is the man poor in offense. Blessed is the man poor in vices. Blessed is the poor man in whom the prince of this world (John 14:30) finds nothing. Blessed is the poor man who is like that poor Man who, although he was rich, became poor for our sake (2 Corinthians 8:9). Matthew fully revealed this when he said, 'Blessed are the poor in spirit' (Matthew 5:3). One poor in spirit is not puffed up, is not exalted in the mind of his own flesh. This beatitude is first, when I have laid aside every sin, and I have taken off all malice, and I am content with simplicity, destitute of evils. All that remains is that I regulate my conduct. For what good does it do me to lack worldly goods, unless I am meek and gentle?" (excerpt from EXPOSITION OF THE GOSPEL OF LUKE 5.53-54)6
The Word Among Us Meditation on Luke 6:17, 20-26 comments that Jesus wasn’t condemning out of hand anyone who fell into the “rich” category. He was offering them a chance to change. He was asking them to make room in their hearts for him and his teaching.
You can ask yourself similar questions at Mass today: Why have I come here? Am I here to be fed and filled up? Are there areas of my life where I feel comfortable keeping Jesus at arm’s length? Jesus is waiting for you today. He wants to give you the riches of his mercy, the joy of his love, and the Bread of eternal life. So come to him hungry and empty. Come and let him fill you. “Lord, help me to be humble before you. Let me hear you say to me, ‘Blessed are you.’”7
Friar Jude Winkler comments on the image of a tree used by Jeremiah and in Psalm 1. A Hebrew Covenant is often expressed as blessings for those included and curses for those outside. Friar Jude reminds us of the blessing of being invited into Jesus' Passion contained in Covenant expressed by Luke.
Jack Mahoney SJ, Emeritus Professor of Moral and Social Theology in the University of London, concludes the Sermon on the Mount is intended to identify the ways in which the followers of Jesus should behave in living a life of acceptance of God’s gracious invitation to enter the kingdom of heaven.
For one thing, the fact that one version of a particular group of sayings of Jesus is known as the Sermon on the Mount and the other as the Sermon on the Plain is not to be seen as referring to two distinct historical sermons delivered by Jesus, but to be making different theological points. In Luke the coming down of Jesus from the hill where he had been praying to a level place to address his disciples conveys the condescension of God in coming down to humanity and addressing it with the approachableness of Jesus which is typical of Luke’s gospel. By contrast, in Matthew the ascent of Jesus to a hillside to address his early followers is taken to ring a bell in the minds of many of the gospel’s early readers, and to recall how on an earlier famous occasion in the history of Israel a mountain was the setting for the people of God to assemble and receive from their leader the revealed law of God.8
Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, shares that when we surrender to love in the present moment, we encounter the flow of Divine Presence. Prayer is not primarily saying words or thinking thoughts. It is, rather, a life stance. It’s a way of living in the Presence, living in awareness of the Presence, and even of enjoying the Presence. Fully contemplative people are more than aware of Divine Presence; they trust, allow, and delight in it. They “stand” on it!
The present moment has no competition; it is not judged in comparison to any other. It has never happened before and will not happen again. But when I’m in competition, I’m not in love. I can’t get to love because I’m looking for a new way to dominate. The way we know this mind is not the truth is that God does not deal with us like this. The mystics, those who really pray, know this. Those who enter deeply into the great mystery do not experience a God who compares, differentiates, and judges. They experience an all-embracing receptor, a receiver who recognizes the divine image in each and every individual. For Jesus, prayer seems to be a matter of waiting in love. Returning to love. Trusting that love is the deepest stream of reality. That’s why prayer isn’t primarily words; it’s primarily an attitude, a stance, a modus operandi. That’s why Paul could say, “Pray always.” “Pray unceasingly.” If we read that as requiring words, it is surely impossible. We’ve got a lot of other things to do. We can pray unceasingly, however, if we find the stream and know how to wade in its waters. The stream will flow through us, and all we have to do is keep choosing to stay there.9
We pray to live life in the fullness of our relationship with Christ.
References
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