Victory and Doers

The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today resonate with the experiences in our lives where our faith and the support of our community became the rocks of refuge and restoration.

Rocks of Support

The reading from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah proclaims Judah’s Song of Victory.

* [26:1–19] This text is a mixture of praise for the salvation that will take place, a confession of Judah’s inability to achieve deliverance on its own, and earnest prayer that God may quickly bring about the longed-for salvation.

* [26:1] Strong city: Jerusalem, the antithesis of the “city of chaos” (24:10); see note on 24:1–27:13. (Isaiah, CHAPTER 26 | USCCB, n.d.)

Psalm 118 is A Song of Victory.

* [Psalm 118] A thanksgiving liturgy accompanying a procession of the king and the people into the Temple precincts. After an invocation in the form of a litany (Ps 118:1–4), the psalmist (very likely speaking in the name of the community) describes how the people confidently implored God’s help (Ps 118:5–9) when hostile peoples threatened its life (Ps 118:10–14); vividly God’s rescue is recounted (Ps 118:15–18). Then follows a possible dialogue at the Temple gates between the priests and the psalmist as the latter enters to offer the thanksgiving sacrifice (Ps 118:19–25). Finally, the priests impart their blessing (Ps 118:26–27), and the psalmist sings in gratitude (Ps 118:28–29). (Psalms, PSALM 118 | USCCB, n.d.)

In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus teaches concerning Self-Deception and  Hearers and Doers.

* [7:21–23] The attack on the false prophets is continued, but is broadened to include those disciples who perform works of healing and exorcism in the name of Jesus (Lord) but live evil lives. Entrance into the kingdom is only for those who do the will of the Father. On the day of judgment (on that day) the morally corrupt prophets and miracle workers will be rejected by Jesus.

* [7:23] I never knew you: cf. Mt 10:33. Depart from me, you evildoers: cf. Ps 6:9.

* [7:24–27] The conclusion of the discourse (cf. Lk 6:47–49). Here the relation is not between saying and doing as in Mt 7:15–23 but between hearing and doing, and the words of Jesus are applied to every Christian (everyone who listens). (Matthew, CHAPTER 7 | USCCB, n.d.)

Susan Naatz comments that To be a rock for someone may require great courage and resilience.   They are there when times are difficult, joyful, or challenging. They consistently do what they say they will do and deeply care for others. They are a safe haven.

Have you had someone in your life who you would describe as your rock?  Picture them right now. Think of their precious qualities and inherent goodness.  You might want to take a moment to thank them and tell them what they mean to you.  It is often through those relationships that we encounter God.

Matthew’s gospel invites us to have faith in God who is our eternal rock. God provides strength, love, and hope. God roots us and anchors us when the winds of life push and pull.  We can ask ourselves if we are building the dreams of our life on the rock, who is God.  Or are we settling on the sand of cultural disruptions and superficiality which can blow us away from God when the storms surge in? (Naatz, 2024)

Don Schwager quotes “Turn your vision to the Savior,” by Verecundus (died 552 AD).

"When Hezekiah, the king of Judah and son of Ahaz, was gravely ill and had learned of his coming death by the prophecy of Isaiah, he turned his face to the wall and wept bitterly (2 Kings 20:1-3). Immediately the Lord in his mercy not only averted the destruction of imminent death but also added fifteen years to the man's life. Then, at last, Hezekiah sang this song (Isaiah 38:10-20). Hezekiah, a holy man who reigned at that time over all of Israel, displayed the Lord's form: clearly he had every movement of body, soul and mind in subjection to himself, and he accepted the consequences of his infirmity and weakness. He knew without doubt through the prophetic message that the end of his life was approaching. For the longer we seem to live, the more indubitably is our future death foreknown to us. And if we turn our face to the wall when struck by the fear of death, that is, if we direct the vision of our hearts to the Savior, who is here represented by the wall because he is elsewhere called 'a wall,' we will be saved, inasmuch as he saves the faithful who dwell within him from a great many attacks. 'In the city of our strength,' says Isaiah, 'is the Savior established as a wall and a fortress' (Isaiah 26:1). Behold, the Savior is said to be a wall." (excerpt from COMMENTARY ON THE CANTICLE OF EZEKIEL 5.1-2)

[Verecundus was an African Christian writer and bishop in the 6th century AD.] (Schwager, n.d.)

The Word Among Us Meditation on Matthew 7:21, 24-2 invites us to picture a large flat rock by the ocean, covering a wide expanse of beach. Now imagine the sand nearby. The rock has been there for ages; it hasn’t moved or been damaged despite the many storms that have pounded it. The sand, however, is always shifting. Depending on the tides, it can get pushed out to sea and then end up back on the beach in the same day.

Perhaps you know someone who has been shaken by the shifting sands beneath them. If so, you might want to remind them of this parable. Tell them how Jesus and his teachings have helped you weather the storms in your life. If you once followed one of these belief systems, tell them how and why you eventually found the Lord. Your witness just might convince them to build their own life on the rock of Christ!

“Jesus, thank you for being the firm ground beneath my feet!” (Meditation on Matthew 7:21, 24-2, n.d.)

Friar Jude Winkler notes the passage today, like yesterday, from the central section of Isaiah was probably written by a different author who declares Jerusalem as a refuge and home of a nation that is just. The Gospel of Matthew declares the just who live in fidelity to God’s will are able to stand firm in a tempest. Friar Jude reminds us to review our relationship with God who teaches us and gives us strength to do His Will.

Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, describes how love and grace are present and operational in the world. Scientist and theologian Ilia Delio, having studied the work of French priest and scientist Pierre Teilhard de Chardin (1881–1955), writes:

Teilhard thought that love is the most mysterious and unknown energy in the universe. It is this center drawn to that center; this person drawn to that person. There is no logical explanation for this core energy of life; it is deeply personal and yet whimsical; … an energy field that is somehow entangled with an infinite energy of divine love—for God alone, who is absolute love, is completely personal and ineffable intimacy. Love is rooted in the fundamental nature of reality itself…. Love forms every star, atom, leaf, daffodil, bird, earthworm, cat, giraffe, tiger, and human; everything that exists is born from love. Even consciousness is born of love so that mind is not intellect alone but includes the body and senses and emotional life. Love makes the world go around because love makes the world; matter is formed by love. [3] (Rohr, n.d.)

We recall with great gratitude the tempests on our journey through which by the grace of God we found peace and the loving concern of family and friends.

References

Isaiah, CHAPTER 26 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved December 5, 2024, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/isaiah/26?1 

Matthew, CHAPTER 7 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Bible Readings. https://bible.usccb.org/bible/matthew/7?21

Meditation on Matthew 7:21, 24-2. (n.d.). The Word Among Us: Homepage. Retrieved December 5, 2024, from https://wau.org/meditations/2024/12/05/1145637/ 

Naatz, S. (2024, December 5). Creighton U. Daily Reflection. Creighton U. Daily Reflection. Retrieved December 5, 2024, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/120524.html 

Psalms, PSALM 118 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Bible Readings. https://bible.usccb.org/bible/psalms/118?1 

Rohr, R. (n.d.). Love Is the Source of All. Center for Action and Contemplation. Retrieved December 5, 2024, from https://cac.org/daily-meditations/love-is-the-source-of-all/ 

Schwager, D. (n.d.). Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations – Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved December 5, 2024, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/?ds_year=2024&date=dec5 

Law from Within

The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today challenge us to examine how we manipulate our relationships with God and others according to our needs that may bring misinterpretation of Jesus Way.

Contemplate Law of Love

In the reading from the Book of Deuteronomy, Moses Commands Obedience and cites the Advantages of Fidelity.

Psalm 15 asks Who Shall Abide in God’s Sanctuary?

* [Psalm 15] The Psalm records a liturgical scrutiny at the entrance to the Temple court (cf. Ps 24:3–6; Is 33:14b–16). The Israelite wishing to be admitted had to ask the Temple official what conduct was appropriate to God’s precincts. Note the emphasis on virtues relating to one’s neighbor. (Psalms, PSALM 15 | USCCB, n.d.)

The reading from the Letter of James exhorts us to be Doers of the Word.

* [1:19–25] To be quick to hear the gospel is to accept it readily and to act in conformity with it, removing from one’s soul whatever is opposed to it, so that it may take root and effect salvation (Jas 1:19–21). To listen to the gospel message but not practice it is failure to improve oneself (Jas 1:22–24). Only conformity of life to the perfect law of true freedom brings happiness (Jas 1:25).

* [1:25] Peers into the perfect law: the image of a person doing this is paralleled to that of hearing God’s word. The perfect law applies the Old Testament description of the Mosaic law to the gospel of Jesus Christ that brings freedom.

* [1:26–27] A practical application of Jas 1:22 is now made.

* [1:26] For control of the tongue, see note on Jas 3:1–12.

* [1:27] In the Old Testament, orphans and widows are classical examples of the defenseless and oppressed. (James, CHAPTER 1 | USCCB, n.d.)

In the Gospel of Mark, Jesus addresses the Tradition of the Elders.

* [7:1–23] See note on Mt 15:1–20. Against the Pharisees’ narrow, legalistic, and external practices of piety in matters of purification (Mk 7:2–5), external worship (Mk 7:6–7), and observance of commandments, Jesus sets in opposition the true moral intent of the divine law (Mk 7:8–13). But he goes beyond contrasting the law and Pharisaic interpretation of it. The parable of Mk 7:14–15 in effect sets aside the law itself in respect to clean and unclean food. He thereby opens the way for unity between Jew and Gentile in the kingdom of God, intimated by Jesus’ departure for pagan territory beyond Galilee. For similar contrast see Mk 2:1–3:6; 3:20–35; 6:1–6.

* [7:3] Carefully washing their hands: refers to ritual purification.

* [7:5] Tradition of the elders: the body of detailed, unwritten, human laws regarded by the scribes and Pharisees to have the same binding force as that of the Mosaic law; cf. Gal 1:14.

* [7:17] Away from the crowd…the parable: in this context of privacy the term parable refers to something hidden, about to be revealed to the disciples; cf. Mk 4:10–11, 34. Jesus sets the Mosaic food laws in the context of the kingdom of God where they are abrogated, and he declares moral defilement the only cause of uncleanness.

* [7:19] (Thus he declared all foods clean): if this bold declaration goes back to Jesus, its force was not realized among Jewish Christians in the early church; cf. Acts 10:1–11:18. (Mark, CHAPTER 7 | USCCB, n.d.)

Sara Schulte-Bukowinski comments that in the gospel Jesus challenges religious structures and their leaders who are obsessed with exterior purity, rather than the real interior holiness.

So what about me? Is there a time and place for blowing off steam about other people or circumstances? I believe it is ok to articulate frustration and disappointment, even indignation in prudent ways. But there is also a point for me when healthy venting can become uncharitable complaining, judgmentalism, or even ridicule. I have a responsibility to try to notice and tend to these things, and to tidy the interior of my spiritual cup. If I don’t these attitudes can erode and warp my inner self, so that the kindness, patience and generosity I show to others truly becomes a facade. Taking time to know the difference is a spiritual discipline I am still working on–and probably will be throughout my life. There certainly are, and will be, times when I fail. But I must not let those corrosive interior attitudes become habits, or to conflate truly uncharitable thoughts with healthy processing. (Schulte-Bukowinski, n.d.)

Don Schwager quotes “Keeping one's own heart with all watchfulness,” by Origen of Alexandria, 185-254 A.D.

"These things are what 'defiles the person' when they come out from the heart and, after they have gone out from it, go through the mouth. Thus if they did not occur outside of the heart but were held by the person somewhere around the heart, not being allowed to be spoken through the mouth, they would very quickly disappear and the person would not be defiled any longer. Therefore the source and beginning of every sin is 'evil reasonings.' For if these reasonings did not prevail, there would be neither murders nor acts of adultery nor any other of such things. Because of this each one ought to keep one's own heart with all watchfulness. (excerpt from COMMENTARY ON MATTHEW 11.14-15) (Schwager, n.d.)

The Word Among Us Meditation on Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23 comments that what we eat or how we wash our hands doesn’t make us unclean. We defile ourselves by our thoughts, words, and actions that spring from within us (Mark 7:23). Growing in purity and godliness starts in our hearts and moves into our words and actions from there.

That means that the answer to your thirst for holiness isn’t about adding more “rules” to help you become even more pure. It’s asking yourself questions like “What’s going on in my heart? What’s motivating me?” If you see sinful attitudes, repent. Let the Lord uproot them and replace them with his own thoughts and desires. Then receive God’s power to change as you set your heart on loving him and loving the people he’s put into your life. That’s how you can get more of a good thing as you seek to follow God’s laws.

“Lord, help me to follow you with all of my heart!” (Meditation on Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23, n.d.)

Friar Jude Winkler reflects on the texts of today.

Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, describes how creation-centered spirituality opens us to a deeper connection to God. Creation spirituality reveals our human arrogance, and maybe that’s why we are afraid of it. Maybe that’s why we’re afraid to believe that God has spoken to us primarily through what is. Francis of Assisi (1182–1226) was basically a hermit. He lived in the middle of nature. If we want nature to come to life for us, we have to live in the middle of it for a while. When we get away from the voices of human beings, then we really start hearing the voices of animals and trees.

When we are at peace, when we are not fighting it, when we are not fixing and controlling this world, when we are not filled with anger, all we can do is start loving and forgiving. Nothing else makes sense when we are alone with God. All we can do is let go. There’s nothing worth holding on to, because there is nothing else we need. It’s in that free space, I think, that realignment happens. Francis lived out of such realignment. And I think it is the realignment that he announced to the world in the form of worship and adoration of God through nature. (Rohr, n.d.)

We express gratitude for the prompting of the Spirit that enables our appreciation of the closeness of God as we become doers of the Word and aware of our connection to the practice of real life.

References

Deuteronomy, CHAPTER 4 | USCCB. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved September 1, 2024, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/deuteronomy/4?1 

James, CHAPTER 1 | USCCB. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved September 1, 2024, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/james/1?17 

Mark, CHAPTER 7 | USCCB. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved September 1, 2024, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/mark/7?1 

Meditation on Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23. (n.d.). The Word Among Us: Homepage. Retrieved September 1, 2024, from https://wau.org/meditations/2024/09/01/1064444/ 

Psalms, PSALM 15 | USCCB. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved September 1, 2024, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/psalms/15?2 

Rohr, R. (n.d.). Looking and Listening. Center for Action and Contemplation. Retrieved September 1, 2024, from https://cac.org/daily-meditations/looking-and-listening/ 

Schulte-Bukowinski, S. (n.d.). Daily Reflection Of Creighton University's Online Ministries. OnlineMinistries. Retrieved September 1, 2024, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/090124.html 

Schwager, D. (n.d.). Out of the Heart Come Evil Thoughts. Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations – Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved September 1, 2024, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/?ds_year=2024&date=sep1