CCC Cross Reference:
Rom 5:12-21 388; Rom 5:12 400, 402, 602, 612, 1008; Rom 5:18-19 605; Rom 5:18 402; Rom 5:19-21 1009; Rom 5:19-20 411; Rom 5:19 397, 402, 532, 615, 623; Rom 5:20-21 1848; Rom 5:20 312, 385, 412, 420
Ps 40:7-9 LXX 462; Ps 40:7 2824
Lk 12:35-40 2849
Back to Deacon’s Bench '07
Back to Servant of the Word '09
Back to SOW II '13
Back to SOW II '15
Back to SOW II '17
Back to SOW II '19
Back to SOW II '21
Reading 1
Rom 5:12, 15b, 17-19, 20b-21
Brothers and sisters:
Through one man sin entered the world,
and through sin, death,
and thus death came to all men, inasmuch as all sinned.
If by that one person’s transgression the many died,
how much more did the grace of God
and the gracious gift of the one man Jesus Christ
overflow for the many.
For if, by the transgression of the one,
death came to reign through that one,
how much more will those who receive the abundance of grace
and the gift of justification
come to reign in life through the one Jesus Christ.
In conclusion, just as through one transgression
condemnation came upon all,
so, through one righteous act
acquittal and life came to all.
For just as through the disobedience of one man
the many were made sinners,
so, through the obedience of the one
the many will be made righteous.
Where sin increased, grace overflowed all the more,
so that, as sin reigned in death,
grace also might reign through justification
for eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Responsorial Psalm
Ps 40:7-8a, 8b-9, 10, 17
R. (8a and 9a) Here I am, Lord; I come to do your will.
Sacrifice or oblation you wished not,
but ears open to obedience you gave me.
Burnt offerings or sin.offerings you sought not;
then said I, “Behold I come.”
R. Here I am, Lord; I come to do your will.
“In the written scroll it is prescribed for me,
To do your will, O my God, is my delight,
and your law is within my heart!”
R. Here I am, Lord; I come to do your will.
I announced your justice in the vast assembly;
I did not restrain my lips, as you, O Lord, know.
R. Here I am, Lord; I come to do your will.
May all who seek you
exult and be glad in you,
And may those who love your salvation
say ever, “The Lord be glorified.”
R. Here I am, Lord; I come to do your will.
Gospel
Lk 12:35-38
Jesus said to his disciples:
“Gird your loins and light your lamps
and be like servants who await their master’s return from a wedding,
ready to open immediately when he comes and knocks.
Blessed are those servants
whom the master finds vigilant on his arrival.
Amen, I say to you, he will gird himself,
have them recline at table, and proceed to wait on them.
And should he come in the second or third watch
and find them prepared in this way,
blessed are those servants.”
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
First reading Romans 5:12 – 21
Sin entered the world through one man, and through sin death, and thus death has spread through the whole human race because everyone has sinned; but the gift itself considerably outweighed the fall. If it is certain that through one man’s fall so many died, it is even more certain that divine grace, coming through the one man, Jesus Christ, came to so many as an abundant free gift. If it is certain that death reigned over everyone as the consequence of one man’s fall, it is even more certain that one man, Jesus Christ, will cause everyone to reign in life who receives the free gift that he does not deserve, of being made righteous. Again, as one man’s fall brought condemnation on everyone, so the good act of one man brings everyone life and makes them justified. As by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by one man’s obedience many will be made righteous. When law came, it was to multiply the opportunities of failing, but however great the number of sins committed, grace was even greater; and so, just as sin reigned wherever there was death, so grace will reign to bring eternal life thanks to the righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 39(40):7-10,17
Here I am, Lord! I come to do your will.
You do not ask for sacrifice and offerings,
but an open ear.
You do not ask for holocaust and victim.
Instead, here am I.
Here I am, Lord! I come to do your will.
In the scroll of the book it stands written
that I should do your will.
My God, I delight in your law
in the depth of my heart.
Here I am, Lord! I come to do your will.
Your justice I have proclaimed
in the great assembly.
My lips I have not sealed;
you know it, O Lord.
Here I am, Lord! I come to do your will.
O let there be rejoicing and gladness
for all who seek you.
Let them ever say: ‘The Lord is great’,
who love your saving help.
Here I am, Lord! I come to do your will.
Gospel Luke 12:36 – 38
Jesus said:
‘Be like men waiting for their master to return from the wedding feast, ready to open the door as soon as he comes and knocks. Happy those servants whom the master finds awake when he comes. I tell you solemnly, he will put on an apron, sit them down at table and wait on them. It may be in the second watch he comes, or in the third, but happy those servants if he finds them ready.’
Readings and Commentary from Navarre
Tuesday of the 29th Week in Ordinary Time
From: Romans 5:12, 15b, 17-19, 20b-21
Adam's Original Sin
-----------------------------
[12] Therefore as sin came into the world through one man and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all men sinned[.]
[15b] For if many died through one man's trespass, much more have the grace of God and the free gift in the grace of that one man Jesus Christ abounded for many. [17] If, because of one man's trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ.
[18] Then as one man's trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one man's act of righteousness leads to acquittal and life for all men. [19] For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by One Man's obedience many will be made righteous.
[20b] [W]here sin increased, grace abounded all the more, [21] so that, as sin reigned in death, grace also might reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:
12-21. Four important teachings are discernible in this passage: 1) Adam's sin and its consequences, which include, particular death (verses 12-14); 2) the contrast between the effects of Original Sin and those of the Redemption wrought by Christ (verses 15-19); 3) the role of the Law of Moses in relation to sin (especially verses 13, 20), anticipating what is explained more elaborately in Chapter 7; 4) the final victory of the reign of grace (verses 20-21). These teachings are closely
connected by one single idea: only Jesus Christ can justify us and bring us to salvation. The Apostle refers to Adam as a "type of the One who was to come", that is, Jesus, the Messiah, who is the true head of the human race; and he also stresses that Christ, by His obedience and submission to the Father's will, counters the disobedience and rebellion of Adam, restoring to us--superabundantly -- the happiness and eternal life which we lost through the sin of our First Parents.
Here we can see the clash of the two kingdoms--the kingdom of sin and death and the kingdom of righteousness and grace. These two kingdoms were established, the first by Adam and the second by Christ, and spread to all mankind.
Because the superabundance of Christ's grace is the more important factor, Adam's sin is referred to in no great detail. St. Paul takes it as something everyone is familiar with. All Christians have read about or been told about the account of the Fall in Genesis (Genesis 3) and they are familiar with many passages in Sacred Scripture which confirm and explain something which is self-evident--that all men are mortal and that the human race is subject to a whole series of afflictions (cf. Sirach 25:33; Wisdom 2:23-24; Psalm 51:7; Job 14:4; Genesis 8:21; etc.).
12-14. This passage can be elaborated on as follows: just as sin entered the world through the action of a single individual man, so righteousness is attained for us by one man--Jesus Christ. Adam, the first man, is a type of the "new Adam": Adam contained within himself all mankind, his offspring; the "new Adam" is "the first-born of all creation" and "the head of the body, the Church" (Colossians 1:15, 18) because He is the redeeming Word Incarnate. To Adam we are linked by flesh and blood, to Christ by faith and the Sacraments.
When, in His infinite goodness, He raised Adam to share in the divine life, God also decreed that our First Parent would pass on to us his human nature and with it all the various gifts that perfected it and the grace that sanctified it. But Adam committed a sin by breaking God's commandment and as a result he immediately lost the holiness and righteousness in which he had been installed, and because of this disloyalty he incurred God's wrath and indignation and, as consequence, death -- as God had warned him. By becoming mortal and falling under the power of the devil, Adam "was changed for the worse", in both body and soul (cf. Council of Trent, "De Peccato Originali", Canon 1). From then on Adam and his descendants pass on a human nature deprived of supernatural gifts, and men are in a state of enmity with God, which means that they cannot attain eternal beatitude.
The fact of Original Sin is a truth of faith. This has been stated once again solemnly by Paul VI: "We believe that in Adam all have sinned. From this it follows that, on account of the original offense committed by him, human nature, which is common to all men, is reduced to that condition in which it must suffer the consequences of that Fall [...]. Consequently, fallen human nature is deprived of the economy of grace which it formerly enjoyed. It is wounded in its natural powers and subjected to the dominion of death which is transmitted to all men. It is in this sense that every man is born in sin. We hold, therefore, in accordance with the Council of Trent, that Original Sin is transmitted along with human nature, "not by imitation but by propagation", and is, therefore, incurred by each person individually" ("Creed of the People of God", 16).
Our own experience bears out what divine Revelation tells us: when we examine our conscience we realize that we have this inclination towards evil and we are conscious of being enmeshed in evils which cannot have their source in our holy Creator (cf. Vatican II, "Gaudium Et Spes", 13). The obvious presence of evil in the world and in ourselves convince us of the profound truth contained in Revelation and moves us to fight against sin.
"So much wretchedness! So many offenses! Mine, yours, those of all mankind....
"Et in peccatis concepit me mater mea!" In sin did my mother conceive me! (Psalm 51:5). I, like all men, came into the world stained with the guilt of our First Parents. And then...my own sins: rebellions, thought about, desired, committed....
"To purify us of this rottenness, Jesus chose to humble Himself and take on the form of a slave (cf. Philippians 2:7), becoming incarnate in the spotless womb of our Lady, His other, who is also your Mother and mine. He spent thirty years in obscurity, working like everyone else, at Joseph's side. He preached.He worked miracles.... And we repaid Him with a cross.
"Do you need more motives for contrition?" (St. J. Escriva, "The Way of the Cross, IV, 2).
13-14. Both the commandment imposed by God on Adam, and the Mosaic Law, threatened the transgressor with death; but the same cannot be said of the period between Adam and Moses. In that period also people did sin against the natural law written on every person's heart (cf. 2:12ff). However, their sins "were not like the transgression of Adam", because the natural law did not explicitly bind under pain of death. If, nevertheless, they in fact had to die, this proves, the Apostle concludes, that death is due not to personal sins but to original sin. It is also proved, the Fathers of the Church usually add, by the fact that some people die before reaching the use of reason, that is, before they are capable of sinning.
Death is a consequence of original sin, because that sin brought with it the loss of the "preternatural" gift of immortality (cf. Gen 2:17; 3:19). Adam incurred this loss when, through a personal act of his, he broke an explicit, specific command of God. Later, under the Mosaic Law, there were also certain precepts which involved the death penalty if broken (cf., for example, Exod 21:12ff; Lev 24:16). In the period from Adam to Moses there was no law which stated: If you sin, you shall die. However, people in that period were all subject to death, even those who committed no sin "like the transgression of Adam", that is, what is termed "actual sin".
Therefore, death is due to a sin -- original sin -- which attaches to each man, woman and child, yet which is not an "actual sin". This original sin is the cause of death, and the fact that everyone dies is the proof that everyone is affected by original sin. The Second Vatican Council sums up this teaching as follows: "The Church, taught by divine Revelation, declares that God has created man in view of a blessed destiny that lies beyond the limits of his sad state on earth. Moreover, the Christian faith teaches that bodily death, from which man would have been immune had he not sinned (cf. Wis 1:13; 2:23-24; Rom 5:21; 6:23; Jas 1:15), will be overcome when that wholeness which he lost through his own fault will be given once again to him by the almighty and merciful Savior. For God has called man, and still calls him, to cleave with all his being to him in sharing for ever a life that is divine and free from all decay" ("Gaudium Et Spes", 18).
*********************************************************************************************
From: Luke 12:35-38
The Need for Vigilance and the Parable of the Steward
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(Jesus said to His disciples,) [35] "Let your loins be girded and your lamps burning, [36] and be like men who are waiting for their master to come home from the marriage feast, so that they may open to him at once when he comes and knocks. [37] Blessed are those servants whom the master finds awake when he comes; truly, I say to you, he will gird himself and have them sit at table, and he will come and serve them.
Commentary:
35-39. In the preaching of Christ and of the Apostles we are frequently exhorted to be watchful (cf. Matthew 24:42; 25:13; Mark 14:34) -- for one thing, because he enemy is always on the prowl (cf. 1 Peter 5:8), and also because a person in ove is always awake (cf. Song of Songs 5:2). This watchfulness expresses itself n a spirit of prayer (cf. Luke 21:36; 1 Peter 4:7) and fortitude in faith (cf. 1 Corinthians 16:13). See the note on Matthew 25:1-13.
[The note on Matthew 25:1-13 states:
1-13. The main lesson of this parable has to do with the need to be on the alert: n practice, this means having the light of faith, which is kept alive with the oil of charity. Jewish weddings were held in the house of the bride's father. The virgins re young unmarried girls, bridesmaids who are in the bride's house waiting for he bridegroom to arrive. The parable centers on the attitude one should adopt p to the time when the bridegroom comes. In other words, it is not enough to now that one is "inside" the Kingdom, the Church: one has to be on the watch nd be preparing for Christ's coming by doing good works.
This vigilance should be continuous and unflagging, because the devil is forever fter us, prowling around "like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour" (1 Peter 5:8). "Watch with the heart, watch with faith, watch with love, watch with charity, watch with good works [...]; make ready the lamps, make sure they do not o out [...], renew them with the inner oil of an upright conscience; then shall the ridegroom enfold you in the embrace of His love and bring you into His banquet oom, where your lamp can never be extinguished" (St. Augustine, "Sermon", 93).]
35. To enable them to do certain kinds of work the Jews used to hitch up the flowing garments they normally wore. "Girding your loins" immediately suggests a erson getting ready for work, for effort, for a journey etc. (cf. Jeremiah 1:17; phesians 6:14; 1 Peter 1:13). Similarly, "having your lamps burning" indicates he sort of attitude a person should have who is on the watch or is waiting for omeone's arrival.
Source: "The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries". Biblical text from the evised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of he Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.
Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and y Scepter Publishers in the United States. We encourage readers to purchase he Navarre Bible for personal study. See Scepter Publishers for details.
No comments:
Post a Comment