CCC Cross Reference:
Col 1:3-6 2632; Col 1:3 2636
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Reading 1
Col 1:1-8
Paul, an Apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God,
and Timothy our brother,
to the holy ones and faithful brothers and sisters in Christ in Colossae:
grace to you and peace from God our Father.
We always give thanks to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
when we pray for you,
for we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus
and the love that you have for all the holy ones
because of the hope reserved for you in heaven.
Of this you have already heard
through the word of truth, the Gospel, that has come to you.
Just as in the whole world it is bearing fruit and growing,
so also among you,
from the day you heard it and came to know the grace of God in truth,
as you learned it from Epaphras our beloved fellow slave,
who is a trustworthy minister of Christ on your behalf
and who also told us of your love in the Spirit.
Responsorial Psalm
Ps 52:10, 11
R. (10) I trust in the mercy of God for ever.
I, like a green olive tree
in the house of God,
Trust in the mercy of God
forever and ever.
R. I trust in the mercy of God for ever.
I will thank you always for what you have done,
and proclaim the goodness of your name
before your faithful ones.
R. I trust in the mercy of God for ever.
Gospel
Lk 4:38-44
After Jesus left the synagogue, he entered the house of Simon.
Simon’s mother-in-law was afflicted with a severe fever,
and they interceded with him about her.
He stood over her, rebuked the fever, and it left her.
She got up immediately and waited on them.
At sunset, all who had people sick with various diseases brought them to him.
He laid his hands on each of them and cured them.
And demons also came out from many, shouting, “You are the Son of God.”
But he rebuked them and did not allow them to speak
because they knew that he was the Christ.
At daybreak, Jesus left and went to a deserted place.
The crowds went looking for him, and when they came to him,
they tried to prevent him from leaving them.
But he said to them, “To the other towns also
I must proclaim the good news of the Kingdom of God,
because for this purpose I have been sent.”
And he was preaching in the synagogues of Judea.
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
First reading Colossians 1:1 – 8
From Paul, appointed by God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus, and from our brother Timothy to the saints in Colossae, our faithful brothers in Christ: Grace and peace to you from God our Father.
We have never failed to remember you in our prayers and to give thanks for you to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, ever since we heard about your faith in Christ Jesus and the love that you show towards all the saints because of the hope which is stored up for you in heaven. It is only recently that you heard of this, when it was announced in the message of the truth. The Good News which has reached you is spreading all over the world and producing the same results as it has among you ever since the day when you heard about God’s grace and understood what this really is. Epaphras, who taught you, is one of our closest fellow workers and a faithful deputy for us as Christ’s servant, and it was he who told us all about your love in the Spirit.
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 51(52):10-11
I trust in the goodness of God for ever and ever.
I am like a growing olive tree
in the house of God.
I trust in the goodness of God
for ever and ever.
I trust in the goodness of God for ever and ever.
I will thank you for evermore;
for this is your doing.
I will proclaim that your name is good,
in the presence of your friends.
I trust in the goodness of God for ever and ever.
Gospel Luke 4:38 – 44
Leaving the synagogue Jesus went to Simon’s house. Now Simon’s mother-in-law was suffering from a high fever and they asked him to do something for her. Leaning over her he rebuked the fever and it left her. And she immediately got up and began to wait on them.
At sunset all those who had friends suffering from diseases of one kind or another brought them to him, and laying his hands on each he cured them. Devils too came out of many people, howling, ‘You are the Son of God’. But he rebuked them and would not allow them to speak because they knew that he was the Christ.
When daylight came he left the house and made his way to a lonely place. The crowds went to look for him, and when they had caught up with him they wanted to prevent him leaving them, but he answered, ‘I must proclaim the Good News of the kingdom of God to the other towns too, because that is what I was sent to do’. And he continued his preaching in the synagogues of Judaea.
Readings and Commentary from the Navarre Bible
Wednesday of the 22nd Week in Ordinary Time
From: Colossians 1:1-8
Greeting
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[1] Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, [2] To the saints and faithful brethren in Christ at Colossae: Grace to you and peace from God our Father.
Thanksgiving for the Colossians' Response to the Gospel
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[3] We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, because we have read of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love which you have for all the saints, [5] because of the hope laid up for you in heaven. Of this you have heard before in the word of the truth, the gospel [6] which has come to you, as indeed in the whole world it is bearing fruit and growing--so among yourselves, from the day you heard and understood the grace of God in truth, [7] as you learned it from Epaphras our beloved fellow servant. He is a faithful minister of Christ on our behalf [8] and has made known to us your love in the Spirit.
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Commentary:
1-2. The city of Colossae, as has already been mentioned in the Introduction, lay in the valley of the Lycus river, in Phrygia, a region in the west central part of Anatolia (modern Turkey).
Timothy--whose mother was Jewish and whose father was Greek--was already a Christian when St Paul met him in Lystra (cf. Acts 16: 1-2). He readily agreed to go with Paul and Tom that point onwards he was one of the Apostle's most faithful co-workers. Sometimes we see him accompanying Paul (cf. Acts 20:4), and at other times Paul is sending him off on a special mission (cf. Acts 19:22). When St Paul is writing to the Colossians from his Roman prison, Timothy is by his side and joins him in sending greetings.
Later on, the Apostle will entrust Timothy with the overseeing of the church of Ephesus, and in that capacity he will send him two letters, which form part of the canon of the New Testament.
On the greeting "grace and peace", see the note on Eph 1:2.
3-16. Epaphras, who was probably born in Colossae, must have come to know St Paul during his stay in Ephesus and been convened after receiving instruction from the Apostle. After being baptized he preached the Gospel to his fellow citizens. The combination of grace and his own effort make his preaching very effective. However, due to certain false apostles of a Judaizing tendency, errors of a pre-Gnostic and syncretist type began to gain ground among the Colossians, to the detriment of their faith (cf. p. 152 above).
St Paul writes the epistle after receiving a report from Epaphras on the Church in Colossae (v. 9). Although the news Epaphras brought was on the whole good (vv. 3-5), the Apostle feels that the false doctrines being spread among the Colossians are a danger to their faith: the faith that they hold, which they learned from Epaphras, a loyal minister of Jesus Christ, is the true one.
3-5. St Paul expresses his gratitude to God for all the graces and benefits he has given the Colossians and for the way they have responded to them. He picks out the three theological virtues--faith, charity, and hope and emphasizes the importance of hope as a support for faith and fraternal love. In this regard, St Escriva says in a homily, "I have seen many souls with such hope in God that they are aflame with love, with a fire that makes the heart beat strong and keeps it safe from discouragement and dejection, even though along the way they may suffer and at times suffer greatly" ("Friends of God", 205).
7. "On our behalf" (cf. RSV note): many important manuscripts read this as "on your behalf", but "on our behalf" parallels the "for us" of the New Vulgate, meaning that Epaphras is a minister of Christ who faithfully substitutes for Paul in his apostolic work among the Colossians.
8. "Your love in the Spirit": this may refer either to the theological virtue of charity or to the love which the faithful, under the influence of the Holy Spirit, have for the Apostle.
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From: Luke 4:38-44
The Cure of Peter's Mother-In-Law
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[38] And He (Jesus) arose and left the synagogue, and entered Simon's house. Now Simon's mother-in-law was ill with a high fever, and they besought Him for her. [39] And He stood over her and rebuked the fever, and it left her; and immediately she rose and served them.
Other Cures
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[40] Now when the sun was setting, all those who had any that were sick with various diseases brought them to Him; and He laid His hands on every one of them and healed them. [41] And demons also came out of many, crying, "You are the Son of God!" But He rebuked them, and would not allow them to speak, because they knew that He was the Christ.
Jesus Preaches in Other Cities in Judea
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[42] And when it was day He departed and went into a lonely place. And the people sought Him and came to Him, and would have kept Him from leaving them; [43] but He said to them, "I must preach the Good News of the Kingdom of God to the other cities also; for I was sent for this purpose." [44] And He was preaching in the synagogues of Judea.
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Commentary:
38-39. In the public life of Jesus we find many touching episodes (cf. for example Luke 19:1; John 2:1) which show the high regard He had for everyday family life.
Here we can clearly see the effectiveness of prayer on behalf of other people: "No sooner did they pray to the Savior", St. Jerome says, "than He immediately healed the sick; from this we learn that He also listens to the prayers of the faithful for help against sinful passions" ("Expositio In Evangelium Sec. Lucam, in loc.").
St. John Chrysostom refers to this total, instantaneous cure: "Since this was a curable type of illness He displayed His power through the way He brought healing, doing what medicine could not do. Even after being cured of fever, patients need time to recover their former strength, but here the cure was instantaneous" ("Hom. on St. Matthew", 27).
The Fathers saw in this lady's fever a symbol of concupiscence: "Peter's motherin-law's fever represents our flesh affected by various illnesses and concupiscences; our fever is passion, our fever is lust, our fever is anger -- vices which, although they affect the body, perturb the soul, the mind and the feelings" (St. Ambrose, "Expositio Evangelii Sec. Lucam, in loc.").
On the practical consequences of this St. Cyril says: "Let us receive Jesus Christ, because when He visits us and we take Him into our minds and hearts, even our worst passions are extinguished and we are kept safe to serve Him, that is, to do what pleases Him" ("Hom. 28 In Mattheum").
43. Our Lord again stresses one of the reasons why He has come into the world. St. Thomas, when discussing the purpose of the Eucharist, says that Christ "came into the world, first, to make the truth known, as He Himself says: 'for this I was born, and for this I have come into the world, to bear witness to the truth' (John 18:37). Hence it was not fitting that He should hide Himself by leading a solitary life, but rather that He should appear openly and preach in public. For this reason He tells those who wanted to detain Him, 'I must preach the Good News of the Kingdom of God to the other cities also; for I was sent for this purpose.' Secondly, He came in order to free men from sin; as the Apostle says, 'Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners' (1 Timothy 1:15). This is why Chrysostom says, 'Although Christ might, while staying in the same place, have drawn all men to Himself to hear His preaching, He did not do so--in order to give us the example to go out and seek the lost sheep, as the shepherd does, or as the doctor does, who visits the sick person.' Thirdly, He came so that 'we might obtain access to God' (Romans 5:2)" ("Summa Theologiae", III, q. 40, a. 1, c.).
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Source: "The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries". Biblical text from the Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.
Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and by Scepter Publishers in the United States. We encourage readers to purchase The Navarre Bible for personal study. See Scepter Publishers for details.
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