The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today challenge us to ponder how we might follow Jesus' guidance to find a Way to integrate new forms and older practices in growing the community of Fullness of Life.
The Reading from the Letter to the Colossians proclaims the Preeminence of Christ and His Person and Work.
* [1:15–20] As the poetic arrangement indicates, these lines are probably an early Christian hymn, known to the Colossians and taken up into the letter from liturgical use (cf. Phil 2:6–11; 1 Tm 3:16). They present Christ as the mediator of creation (Col 1:15–18a) and of redemption (Col 1:18b–20). There is a parallelism between firstborn of all creation (Col 1:15) and firstborn from the dead (Col 1:18). While many of the phrases were at home in Greek philosophical use and even in gnosticism, the basic ideas also reflect Old Testament themes about Wisdom found in Prv 8:22–31; Wis 7:22–8:1; and Sir 1:4. See also notes on what is possibly a hymn in Jn 1:1–18.
* [1:15] Image: cf. Gn 1:27. Whereas the man and the woman were originally created in the image and likeness of God (see also Gn 1:26), Christ as image (2 Cor 4:4) of the invisible God (Jn 1:18) now shares this new nature in baptism with those redeemed (cf. Col 3:10–11). (Colossians, CHAPTER 1 | USCCB, n.d.)
Psalm 100 invites the people to enter the Temple as the chosen people of God.
* [Psalm 100] A hymn inviting the people to enter the Temple courts with thank offerings for the God who created them.
* [100:3] Although the people call on all the nations of the world to join in their hymn, they are conscious of being the chosen people of God. (Psalms, PSALM 100 | USCCB, n.d.)
In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus responds to the Question About Fasting.
* [5:34–35] See notes on Mt 9:15 and Mk 2:19.
* [5:34] Wedding guests: literally, “sons of the bridal chamber.”
* [5:36–39] See notes on Mt 9:16–17 and Mk 2:19.
* [5:39] The old is good: this saying is meant to be ironic and offers an explanation for the rejection by some of the new wine that Jesus offers: satisfaction with old forms will prevent one from sampling the new. (Luke, CHAPTER 5 | USCCB, n.d.)
Desiree Nownes is drawn to the optional readings in memoriam of St. Teresa of Calcutta, for many, St. Teresa (Mother Teresa to some still) is a beacon of how Christ wants us to live. How can we, in this time of uncertainty, continue the work of Jesus in helping the poor, sick, and lonely? But even more so, how can we stand against the audacious anti-Christian rhetoric that is happening in our country? This is a time of pain and suffering for so many, and actions under the guise of safety and security are blatant, vicious, and oppressive.
As we begin the month of September, let us act within the Two Feet of Social Justice model in both charitable and social justice-oriented work. Both actions can help create a more just world and address the needs of others who are in dire need of assistance. Action-oriented work is what Jesus calls each one of us to do. September is Hunger Action Month, an impactful way to raise awareness about food insecurity and donate to local food pantries or start a food drive in your community. In closing, the following quote from St. Teresa of Calcutta brings the gospel and readings for this week to the forefront:
“Each one of them is Jesus in disguise.” – St. Teresa of Calcutta (Nownes, n.d.)
Don Schwager quotes “Christ will send you wise men and scribes,” by Clement of Alexandria, 150-215 A.D.
"A scribe is one who, through continual reading of the Old and New Testaments, has laid up for himself a storehouse of knowledge. Thus Christ blesses those who have gathered in themselves the education both of the law and of the gospel, so as to 'bring forth from their treasure things both new and old.' And Christ compares such people with a scribe, just as in another place he says, 'I will send you wise men and scribes' (Matthew 23:34)"(excerpt from FRAGMENT 172) (Schwager, n.d.)
The Word Among Us Meditation on Luke 5:33-39 comments that Jesus uses this image of new wine to illustrate the new life that he has come to give us. It’s a life filled with divine energy. It’s a life that is always seeking to expand outward.
So don’t settle for keeping the “new wine” in a tidy little box or a brittle old wineskin. Let it flow! Perform an act of spontaneous kindness or generosity for a person in need. Lift your voice to sing to the Lord. Invite a new neighbor to share a meal. Let the Spirit, who is infinitely creative, show you other ways that you can let the life of Christ grow in you and flow out of you.
“Thank you, Jesus, for your gift of new wine!” (Meditation on Luke 5:33-39, n.d.)
Friar Jude Winkler comments that, in Colossians, the author speaks of the icons who present and represent Jesus as Wisdom Incarnate. What we said about Wisdom in the Hebrew Testament we say about Jesus. Colossians is a letter in Greek written for a Greek audience that put spiritual beings on a high pedestal. Jesus is presented as the “first born” of many and the best of them connecting with the fullness and Greek philosophy that prefers spiritual beings. Jesus made peace by the blood of the Cross. In Luke’s Gospel the scribes ask why He and disciples don’t fast. Jesus refers to fasting as a practice of mourning in some cultures. They will fast one day. We fast to mourn loss of Jesus love and for putting food in proper perspective, to say no and create a bond with the hungry. You don’t sew old and new together. It is forbidden in Jewish culture to mix crops and threads. Mixing would imply mixing with Canaanite people. Friar Jude asks if those in the old ways are not ready to look at the new?
Fr. Richard Rohr introduces poet and author Alexis Pauline Gumbs who reflects on what we can learn about a practice of presence through the study of dolphins for whom proclaiming presence is a life-saving operation. Gumbs invites us to consider how we might offer our presence:
In the language I was raised in, “here” means “this place where we are,” and it also means “here” as in “I give this to you.” Could I learn from the Indus river dolphin a language of continuous presence and offering? A language that brings a species back from the brink, a life-giving language? Could I learn that? Could we learn that? We who click a different way, on linked computers day and night?
What I want to say to you requires a more nuanced field of receptive language than I have ever spoken. It requires me to reshape my forehead, my lungs. It requires me to redistribute my dependence on visual information. So I will close my eyes and say it: Here. Here I am. Here I am with you. Here is all of me. And here we are. Here. Inside this blinding presence. Here. A constant call in a moving world. Here. All of it. Here. Here. Humbly listening towards home. And here. And here. Right here. My poem for you. My offered presence. This turbid life. Yes. Here you go. (Rohr, n.d.)
We implore the Spirit to open our mind to the experience of understanding the faith, hope, and charity that may be expressed in prayer and practice that is unfamiliar to us.
References
Colossians, CHAPTER 1 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved September 5, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/colossians/1?15
Luke, CHAPTER 5 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved September 5, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/luke/5?33
Meditation on Luke 5:33-39. (n.d.). Word Among Us. Retrieved September 5, 2025, from https://wau.org/meditations/2025/09/05/1374050/
Nownes, D. (n.d.). Daily Reflection September 5, 2025 | Creighton Online Ministries. Creighton Online Ministries: Home. Retrieved September 5, 2025, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/daily-reflections/daily-reflection-september-5-2025
Psalms, PSALM 100 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved September 5, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/psalms/100?1
Rohr, R. (n.d.). Offering Our Presence. Center for Action and Contemplation. Retrieved September 5, 2025, from https://cac.org/daily-meditations/offering-our-presence/
Schwager, D. (n.d.). The Unity of the New and the Old. Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations – Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved September 5, 2025, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/?ds_year=2025&date=sep5
No comments:
Post a Comment