For Glory

The phrase “Just like the clay in the potter’s hand, so are you in my hand” (Jeremiah 18.1-6 ) from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today evokes the image of Creator who keeps working with His Creature to mold and shape us. Joe Simmons SJ is inspired by the words of the psalmist who warns us not to trust in princes, the sons of men. He has studied two different directions which men can move after a time of solitude and reflection. The phrase Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam AMDG is the motto of the Society of Jesus (the Jesuits) who commemorate their founder St Ignatius of Loyola today. Fr John Hardon translates the Latin as for the greater glory of God. The Gospel from Matthew offers some parables for the support of living today as “contemplatives in action”, the phrase which Ignatius Loyola used to describe those who would follow the direction of his model of spirituality. The Evangelist writes in presenting Jesus teaching “Therefore every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like the master of a household who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old” (Matthew 13.53). This model resonates with both the experience of Jeremiah at the potter’s wheel and the call of Ignatius to awaken our lives as disciples through spiritual exercises in contemplation to work for the greater glory of God as we act as agents of the Creator/Potter.

Priorities for People of the Book

The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today resonate strongly in our experience at this time. We read the Prophet Jeremiah who mourns and pleads for mercy for his people who find only death and destruction in their land as it seems that God has abandoned them to the destruction of foreign invaders. This may be the very state of many believers today, particularly in Gaza and Israel as Jew, Muslim and Christian can all reflect on the message of Jeremiah as people who all recognize him as prophet. The decision by people to put political gain, power and privilege ahead of attention to the Word and will of God brings the same result in 2014 as it did in the time of the Assyrian conquest of Judah. The theme of placing God first and attending to those in need around us is core to the mission of the believers who read Jeremiah. The passage from the Gospel of Luke helps us to reflect on the particular relationship of Jesus with Martha, who is commemorated as saint today. The declaration made by Jesus that Mary, Martha’s sister had chosen the best action by attending to Him is reported by Nate Romano SJ as reminiscent of situations where we have seen friends and family struggle to have the perfect dinner miss the actual dinner. The need to review our priorities and attend to first things first is the message from the homily of Fr Tommy Lane which addresses this text. Security, resources to survive, hospitality, respect and common sense may vie to be considered in our reflection on the first things. Lives which are directed to the Love of God and neighbour will be striving for the peace and joy of the Kingdom today.

Examples which are simply clear

The passage in the Roman Catholic Lectionary today from the Prophet Jeremiah causes Robert P. Heaney of Creighton University to ask “How are we doing as a people?”  He notes that sexual abuse of minors, discrimination, power grabbing, privilege-seeking, exclusiveness, money laundering are problems in the Church hierarchy. We believers live rampant individualism, widespread social injustice, structural poverty, greed, and more. We not all that different from the people of Jeremiah’s time. Heaney comments that the rotted, soiled underwear of this text doesn't look like such an inappropriate metaphor for our situation after all. The closeness God desires with His people is being shunned and some of our examples to other people are not of Beatitude people who Gandhi sought to see in Christians. The Gospel from Matthew Chapter 13 is in a section of that text where the teaching of Jesus in parables is concentrated. The USCCB commentary on this chapter states that parables are stories that are illustrative comparisons between Christian truths and events of everyday life. The growth of the Kingdom of God is described in these stories as starting from very simple and small actions. Friar Jude Winkler suggests that we act to forgive, be kind and treat others with special dignity as a seed which will grow to be a great statement of the reign of God. He and Robert P. Heaney today refer to the approach of the well educated and very intellectual Pope Francis who uses simple actions to emphasize how we can begin to return our soiled world to a deep closeness with the Divine.

Word has power in experience

The exegesis of Biblical texts to seek greater explanation and interpretation is a discipline which has been applied to many of the passages in the Roman Catholic Lectionary for today. The clarification by Friar Jude Winkler of the subtle difference in the understanding of wisdom being knowledge of all things in the time of Solomon, and our orientation to consider wisdom as the ability to see things with the eyes of God helps us with the practical problem of living in an information age where descriptions of events, people and processes are literally available with a mouse click. Our plentiful information is confused with knowledge and does not give us the eyes of the Wisdom offered by God. Amy Hoover of Creighton University expresses a frustration which appears in much modern dialogue “Why didn’t he just say what he meant?” Her reference was to Jesus use of parables in the Chapter of the Gospel of Matthew which is proclaimed today. Teachers, coaches and parents often battle with those they seek to help develop as people over being vague or ambiguous. David Lose reminds preachers and teachers of the views of philosopher JL Austin that words don't just describe things but make things happen. The Word made flesh and the Word of Creation point to the centrality of the power of the Word to act in our tradition. The parables, like the ambiguous instruction, invite us to experience and live the Word. One reassurance for the seeker which spills out of Romans 8:28 today is that God always loves us as Friar Jude summarizes this passage in the understanding that God intends our salvation from Creation and all we do can be used by God to bring us home. This is cause to celebrate and live according to the great optimism Paul’s words to the Romans creates for us. John Piper takes a much deeper exegesis of the four parts of Romans 8:28-30 to explore the concepts of foreknowledge and predestination. At times the simple explanation, based on experience of Divine Love is the best. The experiences of the one who finds treasure and the fishermen who sort the valuable from the other species are real to us. We are invited in the parables to allow the action of the Word to draw us into experience which will confirm our position as beloved of God who has always desires the most glorious path for us!

Wheat weeds and good luck charms

In his reflection today on the texts of the Roman Catholic Lectionary, Jay Carney comments that “judgment is not the most popular of theological themes in the 21st century, an era that prefers a God of therapeutic affirmation.” There is tension today between those who are addressed at the Temple, in the passage from the Prophet Jeremiah, as people who treat the Temple, in the words of Friar Jude Winkler, as a good luck charm and the worship which Jeremiah exhorts which is a continuous call to conversion of our attitude toward God and others. The theme of the final judgement (Matthew 25:31-46) is strongly presented in the Gospel of Matthew. The text today presents some insight on the mercy and patience of God, which Friar Jude advises we not presume upon, that does not act in a rash manner to remove the evil from the good. In our human nature that separation of the wheat from the weeds is an internal matter which is more nuanced than knowing where will fail and pulling that out of our being. Don Schwager comments Augustine saw the conflict as one between two kinds of love, one holy and one which is selfish. Friar Jude often uses the model of vertical and horizontal aspects to our life with God. The vertical is our struggle to love God continuously and completely and the horizontal is our struggle to love others who Jeremiah identifies as the most disadvantaged, widows, orphans and the resident alien. We are wheat and weeds and we live with wheat and weeds in our daily encounters with others. Our patience and mercy is modeled on that of God who is always encouraging our growth and conversion prior to the time of judgement.

Serve someone

The texts today from the Roman Catholic Lectionary touch both the deep authenticity of the love possible in human affairs and the desire which remains within us to ensure our success and the adoption of our way of doing things, even by God. The historical record around the missionary journey of Paul through the Greek cities is reviewed by C Aherne and it presents the story of the many battles through which Paul was psychologically and physically attacked by opponents as he preached the Good News. At the time of the writing of the letters to the Corinthians, Paul is revealing that the persistent service of the Word and the frequent sacrifice of self to serve the needs of others is presenting a significant truth which holds true today that action in service opens the door for people to hear our message. The communities which grow as a result of the example of Paul are being drawn for the most part not from the philosophers and advantaged but from those who live with uncertainty and reliance on Providence.  The story told by Chris Duffy SJ today provides witness to the power of deeply giving of self. Jesus has to deal with the desire of two of the “great Apostles”, James and John, to have, as explained by Friar Jude Winkler, the inheritance as leaders of the group after Jesus dies!. Friar Jude notes the the Gospel today from Matthew puts this request in the mouth of the mother of James and John, but it is more likely that the account of Mark, in which the Apostles speak for themselve is more realistic. The more we are able to place ourselves in the service of others and not be insistent upon doing it our way, ironically the more our message in love will be conveyed.

Responsible when we hear

The question of why we miss the message comes to mind from reflection on the texts today in the Roman Catholic Lectionary. The Prophet Jeremiah compares the state of Jerusalem in his time with the people who had fallen in love with the Lord in the desert. Friar Jude Winkler comments that the desert was the place where the Israelites depended completely on God. The biblical record indicates that they were more often attentive to the Word spoken to them as they journeyed with God. The promised land brought them fertility for their crops and some independence from God for all their needs. In this state they became more attentive to self satisfaction and recognition of other gods and practices to support their progress. Friar Jude poses the question to our time about the empty cisterns from which we try to draw water for life. Many of our “self help” social practices resonate with attention to the fertility gods of Baal. The socio political structures bring poverty and despair to many and we continue to war with our brothers and sisters over the resources of the world. Charlie Wester brings up many of the day to day opportunities we have to exercise our faith muscles in our relationships with others. The responsibility of the Prophet in our Judeo Christian heritage is to be the mouthpiece of God. Jesus is taking steps in the Gospel of Matthew to ensure that the Word is heard by the people. This method is by the use of parables which are within the capability of most to hear and process. This is, Friar Jude notes, part of Jesus desire that we take responsibility for developing our knowledge and understanding of our intimate personal relationship with God beginning with stories we can hear and leading to the revelation of mysteries which all humanity has been struggling to know in communion with God. What Jesus gives in the parables is not the complete experience. It is the start to our expectation that revelation is the fruit of continuous communion with God through the Spirit.