The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today challenge us to contemplate the distractions that tempt our tuning away from the treasure we find in Jesus Way.
The Reading from the Second Letter of Paul to the Corinthians describes the Paradox of the Ministry.
* [4:7–5:10] Paul now confronts the difficulty that his present existence does not appear glorious at all; it is marked instead by suffering and death. He deals with this by developing the topic already announced in 2 Cor 3:3, 6, asserting his faith in the presence and ultimate triumph of life, in his own and every Christian existence, despite the experience of death.
* [4:7] This treasure: the glory that he preaches and into which they are being transformed. In earthen vessels: the instruments God uses are human and fragile; some imagine small terracotta lamps in which light is carried.
* [4:8–9] A catalogue of his apostolic trials and afflictions. Yet in these the negative never completely prevails; there is always some experience of rescue, of salvation.
* [4:10–11] Both the negative and the positive sides of the experience are grounded christologically. The logic is similar to that of 2 Cor 1:3–11. His sufferings are connected with Christ’s, and his deliverance is a sign that he is to share in Jesus’ resurrection.
* [4:12–15] His experience does not terminate in himself, but in others (12, 15; cf. 2 Cor 1:4–5). Ultimately, everything is ordered even beyond the community, toward God (2 Cor 4:15; cf. 2 Cor 1:11).
* [4:13–14] Like the Psalmist, Paul clearly proclaims his faith, affirming life within himself despite death (2 Cor 4:10–11) and the life-giving effect of his experience upon the church (2 Cor 4:12, 14–15). And place us with you in his presence: Paul imagines God presenting him and them to Jesus at the parousia and the judgment; cf. 2 Cor 11:2; Rom 14:10. (2 Corinthians, CHAPTER 4, n.d.)
Psalm 116 is a thanksgiving for divine rescue.
* [Psalm 116] A thanksgiving in which the psalmist responds to divine rescue from mortal danger (Ps 116:3–4) and from near despair (Ps 116:10–11) with vows and Temple sacrifices (Ps 116:13–14, 17–19). The Greek and Latin versions divide the Psalm into two parts: Ps 116:1–9 and Ps 116:10–19, corresponding to its two major divisions. (Psalms, PSALM 116, n.d.)
The Gospel of Matthew presents Jesus Teaching About Adultery in the Sermon on the Mount.
* [5:27] See Ex 20:14; Dt 5:18.
* [5:29–30] No sacrifice is too great to avoid total destruction in Gehenna. (Matthew, CHAPTER 5 | USCCB, n.d.)
Carol Zuegner comments today is also the feast day of St. Anthony of Padua, whom many of us have called upon when we have lost our keys or an important document or something. St. Anthony also can help those who lose their way in the faith.
According to the Catholic Encyclopedia, one miracle ascribed to St. Anthony links today’s Gospel and St. Anthony. A young man - in a fit of anger - kicked his mother. The young man confessed to St. Anthony, who said to him: “The foot of him who kicks his mother deserves to be cut off.” The young man ran home and cut off his foot. St. Anthony learned of this and restored the young man’s foot. Even if we lose ourselves to sin, we can repent and we can find our way back to God.
Jesus’s words are stark, a reminder of the danger of sin. We will lose our way, but we can find our way back to God with repentant hearts.
Our table at the 12th Men’s Cursillo was named “St Anthony’s Lost Now Found” and this weekend exploration of our faith marked the increase in my active involvement in piety, study, and action. (Zuegher, n.d.)
Don Schwager quotes “The fuel of adultery,” by Chromatius (died 406 AD)
"Because adultery is a serious sin and in order to uproot it, lest our conscience be defiled, he [Jesus] forbade even lust, which is the fuel of adultery. According to the words of blessed James in his epistle, 'Lust when it has conceived gives birth to sin; and sin when it is full-grown brings forth death' (James 1:15). The Holy Spirit speaks concerning this to David: 'Happy shall he be who takes your little ones and dashes them against the rock' (Psalm 137:9). The symbolism here is that the blessed and truly evangelical person roots out the desires and lust of the flesh arising from human weakness. He does this immediately before they grow, at the onset, through faith in Christ who has been described as a rock" (1 Corinthians 10:4) (excerpt from TRACTATE ON MATTHEW 23.1.6-7)
[Note: Chromatius was an early Christian scholar and bishop of Aquileia, Italy. He was a close friend of John Chrysostom and Jerome. He died in 406 AD. Jerome described him as a "most learned and most holy man."] (Schwager, n.d.)
The Word Among Us Meditation on 2 Corinthians 4:7-15 comments that Paul reminds us that true discipleship is not about being impressive or garnering praise. It’s about carrying the presence of Christ to others. Jesus has chosen to dwell in earthen vessels like us, despite our weakness and fragility. Our call is to point people to Jesus, the treasure within us. This is the good news of the gospel that Paul proclaimed: Jesus takes us as we are and fills us with his presence, a treasure more valuable than gold. He turns our views of greatness upside down and helps us become like him in humility and love.
You may feel lacking as a disciple, like a cracked clay pot. That’s okay! You carry Jesus Christ himself. He delights to live in you and minister through you!
“You are my treasure, Lord!” (Meditation on 2 Corinthians 4:7-15, n.d.)
Friar Jude Winkler comments on Paul in 2 Corinthians referring to the Gospel treasure in earthen vessels that can be broken and persecuted but in which the truth is manifested. This reflects the cliche that “no good deed goes unpunished”. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus extends His consideration of sin to adultery and we consider what we do with the temptation that is leading to sin. Friar Jude reminds us that Gehenna was a place of shame, the Temple dump and cutting off one’s members is not literal but underlines our need to have custody of our senses. Unlawful marriage, in the Jewish concept, was concerned in a too close relationship as a means of land possession.
Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, introduces Spiritual teacher Christine Valters Painter who writes that visio divina is a contemplative practice of receiving God’s presence through what we see.
What is the place on the image that is calling to you—is it a symbol, color, or expression? Take a few moments to simply be present to this in a gentle way….
Slowly begin to notice if an invitation begins to emerge from these memories, feelings, and images moving in you. In the concrete circumstances of your life right now, what awareness or action is God calling you to? What is my invitation in this moment of my life? How am I being called to respond?…
As you become more comfortable with praying in this way and allowing visual elements to be a “text” for prayer, you can begin to bring this spirit of visio divina with you even as you are out walking.… As you receive your images, pay attention to moments that seem to shimmer and make space within your heart to be with whatever feelings or memories these stir, trusting that God is at work in the process. Over time, you might discover that there is an invitation being offered to you in this time of slowing down and deepening your way of seeing in the world…. (Rohr, n.d.)
We implore the Spirit to guide our decisions as we address temptation with STOP, (Stop, Take a breath, Observe, Proceed) allowing time to decide based on WWJD. (What Would Jesus Do).
References
Matthew, CHAPTER 5 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved June 13, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/matthew/5?
Meditation on 2 Corinthians 4:7-15. (n.d.). The Word Among Us: Homepage. Retrieved June 13, 2025, from https://wau.org/meditations/2025/06/13/1305393/
Psalms, PSALM 116. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved June 13, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/psalms/116?10
Rohr, R. (n.d.). Daily Meditations — Center for Action and Contemplation. Center for Action and Contemplation. Retrieved June 13, 2025, from https://cac.org/daily-meditations/visio-divina-a-practice-of-sacred-seeing/
Schwager, D. (n.d.). If Your Eye Causes You to Sin. Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations – Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved June 13, 2025, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/?ds_year=2025&date=jun13
2 Corinthians, CHAPTER 4. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved June 13, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/2corinthians/4?7
Zuegher, C. (n.d.). Daily Reflection June 13, 2025 of Creighton Online Ministries. Creighton Online Ministries. http://onlineministries.creighton.edu/daily-reflections/daily-reflection-june-13-2025
No comments:
Post a Comment