CCC Cross Reference:
Eph 1:3-14 2627, 2641; Eph 1:3-6 381, 1077; Eph 1:3 492, 1671; Eph 1:4-5 52, 257; Eph 1:4 492, 796, 865, 1426, 2807; Eph 1:5-6 294; Eph 1:6 1083; Eph 1:7 517, 2839; Eph 1:9-11 2823; Eph 1:9 257, 1066, 2603, 2807; Eph 1:10 668, 772, 1043, 2748
Lk 11:39-54 579
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Reading 1
Eph 1:1-10
Paul, an Apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God,
to the holy ones who are in Ephesus
and faithful in Christ Jesus:
grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
who has blessed us in Christ
with every spiritual blessing in the heavens,
as he chose us in him, before the foundation of the world,
to be holy and without blemish before him.
In love he destined us for adoption to himself through Jesus Christ,
in accord with the favor of his will,
for the praise of the glory of his grace
that he granted us in the beloved.
In Christ we have redemption by his Blood,
the forgiveness of transgressions,
in accord with the riches of his grace that he lavished upon us.
In all wisdom and insight, he has made known to us
the mystery of his will in accord with his favor
that he set forth in him as a plan for the fullness of times,
to sum up all things in Christ, in heaven and on earth.
Responsorial Psalm
Ps 98:1, 2-3ab, 3cd-4, 5-6
R. (2a) The Lord has made known his salvation.
Sing to the LORD a new song,
for he has done wondrous deeds;
His right hand has won victory for him,
his holy arm.
R. The Lord has made known his salvation.
The LORD has made his salvation known:
in the sight of the nations he has revealed his justice.
He has remembered his kindness and his faithfulness
toward the house of Israel.
R. The Lord has made known his salvation.
All the ends of the earth have seen
the salvation by our God.
Sing joyfully to the LORD, all you lands;
break into song; sing praise.
R. The Lord has made known his salvation.
Sing praise to the LORD with the harp,
with the harp and melodious song.
With trumpets and the sound of the horn
sing joyfully before the King, the LORD.
R. The Lord has made known his salvation.
Gospel
Lk 11:47-54
The Lord said:
“Woe to you who build the memorials of the prophets
whom your fathers killed.
Consequently, you bear witness and give consent
to the deeds of your ancestors,
for they killed them and you do the building.
Therefore, the wisdom of God said,
‘I will send to them prophets and Apostles;
some of them they will kill and persecute’
in order that this generation might be charged
with the blood of all the prophets
shed since the foundation of the world,
from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah
who died between the altar and the temple building.
Yes, I tell you, this generation will be charged with their blood!
Woe to you, scholars of the law!
You have taken away the key of knowledge.
You yourselves did not enter and you stopped those trying to enter.”
When Jesus left, the scribes and Pharisees
began to act with hostility toward him
and to interrogate him about many things,
for they were plotting to catch him at something he might say.
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
First reading Ephesians 1:1 - 10
From Paul, appointed by God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus, to the saints who are faithful to Christ Jesus. Grace and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
Blessed be God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
who has blessed us with all the spiritual blessings of heaven in Christ.
Before the world was made, he chose us, chose us in Christ,
to be holy and spotless, and to live through love in his presence,
determining that we should become his adopted sons, through Jesus Christ
for his own kind purposes,
to make us praise the glory of his grace,
his free gift to us in the Beloved,
in whom, through his blood, we gain our freedom, the forgiveness of our sins.
Such is the richness of the grace
which he has showered on us
in all wisdom and insight.
He has let us know the mystery of his purpose,
the hidden plan he so kindly made in Christ from the beginning
to act upon when the times had run their course to the end:
that he would bring everything together under Christ, as head,
everything in the heavens and everything on earth.
Psalm: Psalm 97:1-6
The Lord has shown his salvation.
Sing a new song to the Lord
for he has worked wonders.
His right hand and his holy arm
have brought salvation.
The Lord has shown his salvation.
The Lord has made known his salvation;
has shown his justice to the nations.
He has remembered his truth and love
for the house of Israel.
The Lord has shown his salvation.
All the ends of the earth have seen
the salvation of our God.
Shout to the Lord, all the earth,
ring out your joy.
The Lord has shown his salvation.
Sing psalms to the Lord with the harp
with the sound of music.
With trumpets and the sound of the horn
acclaim the King, the Lord.
The Lord has shown his salvation.
Gospel Luke 11:47 – 54
Jesus said:
‘Alas for you who build the tombs of the prophets, the men your ancestors killed! In this way you both witness what your ancestors did and approve it; they did the killing, you do the building.
‘And that is why the Wisdom of God said, “I will send them prophets and apostles; some they will slaughter and persecute, so that this generation will have to answer for every prophet’s blood that has been shed since the foundation of the world, from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who was murdered between the altar and the sanctuary.” Yes, I tell you, this generation will have to answer for it all.
‘Alas for you lawyers who have taken away the key of knowledge! You have not gone in yourselves, and have prevented others going in who wanted to.’
When he left the house, the scribes and the Pharisees began a furious attack on him and tried to force answers from him on innumerable questions, setting traps to catch him out in something he might say.
Readings and Commentary from Navarre
28th Week In Ordinary Time
From: Ephesians 1:1-10
Greeting
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[1] Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, to the saints who are also faithful in Christ Jesus: [2] Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Hymn of Praise
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[3] Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, [4] even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. [5] He destined us in love to be his sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, [6] to the praise of his glorious grace which he freely bestowed on us in the Beloved. [7] In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace [8] which he lavished upon us. [9] For he had made known to us in all wisdom and insight the mystery of his will, according to his purpose which he set forth in Christ [10] a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.
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Commentary:
1. As usual St Paul begins with a greeting which identifies who he is, his authority to write this letter -- he is an "apostle of Jesus Christ" -- and the dignity of the people he is addressing -- "saints" and "faithful in Christ Jesus". He presents himself as an "apostle", that is, an envoy of Christ Jesus. A calling to the apostolate is something that comes from God: it is a grace, a sign of God's special love. In St Paul's case this calling was revealed to him by Christ on the road to Damascus (cf. Acts 9:3-18); the Holy Spirit then set him out to preach (cf. Acts 13:2f), and the message which he received from the Lord he passed on orally and in wri- ting (cf. 1 Cor 11:23), so that in every way is it right for him to say that he is an "apostle" (cf. note on Rom 1:1).
St Paul often refers to the Christians as "saints" (cf. Rom 1:7; 1 Cor 1:2; Phil 1: 1; etc.) and "faithful" (cf. Col 1:2); these titles describe what Baptism does for a person (cf. Eph 5:26).
All the baptized are called to live a holy life: being "saints", being "believers", commits them to do so. Holiness is, therefore, a gift of God which at the same time implies an obligation to further its development, as the Second Vatican Council explains: "It is therefore quite clear that all Christians in any state or walk of life are called to the fullness of Christian life and to the perfection of love, and by this holiness a more human manner of life is fostered also in earthly society. In order to reach this perfection the faithful should use the strength dealt out to them by Christ's gift, so that, following in his footsteps and conformed to his image, doing the will of God in everything, they may wholeheartedly devote themselves to the glory of God and to the service of their neighbor. Thus the holiness of the people of God will grow in fruitful abundance, as is clearly shown in the history of the Church through the life of so many saints" ("Lumen Gentium", 40).
By describing the Christians as "faithful" St Paul is not only saying that they are people who have received the gift of faith (cf. Eph 2:8); he is also calling on them to stay true to the faith despite all the wiles of the devil (cf. Eph 6:10-13).
In the Church it has always been customer to refer to those who have received Baptism as "faithful": "Christ's faithful are those who, since they are incorporated into Christ through baptism, are constituted the people of God. For this reason they participate in their own way in the priestly, prophetic and kingly office of Christ. They are called, each according to his or her particular condition, to exercise the mission which God entrusted to the Church to fulfill in the world" ("Code of Canon Law", can. 204, 1).
2. "Shalom!" -- "Peace!" -- is the usual way Jews greet one another. According to the prophets, peace was one of the gifts the Messiah would bring. After the incarnation of the Son of God, now that the "prince of peace" has come among men (cf. Is 9:6), when the Apostles use this greeting they are joyfully proclaiming the advent of messianic peace: all good things, heavenly and earthly, are attainable because by his death and resurrection Jesus, the Messiah, has removed, once and for all, the enmity between God and men: "since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ" (Rom 5:1).
The same expression -- "Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ" -- is frequently to be found in St Paul's letters. For its meaning, see the notes on Rom 1:7 and 1 Cor 1:3.
3-14. Verses 3-14 are a hymn of praise to God for the plan of salvation he has devised and brought to fulfillment in benefit of men and all creation. It is written in a liturgical style of rhythmic prose, similar to that in Colossians 1:15-20. In the Greek it is one long complex sentence full of relative pronouns and clauses which give it a designed unity; we can, however, distinguish two main sections.
The first (v. 3-10), divided into four stanzas, describes the blessings contained in God's salvific plan; St Paul terms this plan the "mystery" of God's will. The section begins by praising God for his eternal design, a plan, pre-dating creation, to call us to the Church, to form a community of saints (first stanza: vv. 3f) and receive the grace of being children of God through Jesus Christ (second stanza: vv. 5f). It then reflects on Christ's work of redemption which brings this eternal plan of God to fulfillment (third stanza: vv. 7f). This section reaches its climax in the fourth stanza (vv. 9f) which proclaims Christ as Lord of all creation, thereby revealing the full development of God's salvific plan.
The second section, which divides into two stanzas, deals with the application of this plan -- first to the Jews (fifth stanza: vv. 11f) and then to the Gentiles, who are also called to share what God has promised: Jews and Gentiles join to form a single people, the Church (sixth stanza: vv. 13f).
Hymns in praise of God, or "eulogies", occur in many parts of Sacred Scripture (cf. Ps 8; Ps 19; Dan 2:20-23; Lk 1:46-54, 68-78; etc.); they praise the Lord for the wonders of creation or for spectacular interventions on behalf of his people. Inspired by the Holy Spirit, St Paul here praises God the Father for all Christ's saving work, which extends from God's original plan which he made before he created the world, right up to the very end of time and the recapitulation of all things in Christ.
We too should always have this same attitude of praise of the Lord. "Our entire life on earth should take the form of praise of God, for the never-ending joy of our future life consists in praising God, and no one can become fit for that future life unless he train himself to render that praise now" (St Augustine, "Enarrationes in Psalmos", 148).
Praise is in fact the most appropriate attitude for man to have towards God: "How can you dare use that spark of divine intelligence -- your mind -- in anything but in giving glory to your Lord?" (St. J. Escriva, "The Way", 782).
3. St Paul blesses God as Father of our Lord Jesus Christ because it is through Christ that all God's blessings and gifts reach us. God's actions in favor of man are actions of all three divine Persons; the divine plan which the Apostle considers here has its origin in the Blessed Trinity; it is eternal. "These three Persons are not to be considered separable," the Eleventh Council of Toledo teaches, "since we believe that not one of them existed or at any time effected anything before the other, after the other, or without the other. For in existence and operation they are found to be inseparable" ("De Trinitate" Creed, "Dz-Sch", 531).
In the implementation of this divine plan of salvation, the work of Redemption is attributed to the Son and that of sanctification to the Holy Spirit. "To help us grasp in some measure this unfathomable mystery, we might imagine the Blessed Trinity taking counsel together in their uninterrupted intimate relationship of nfinite love. As a result of their eternal decision, the only-begotten Son of God the Father takes on our human condition and bears the burden of our wretchedness and sorrows, to end up sewn with nails to a piece of wood" (St. J. Escriva, "Christ Is Passing By", 95).
St Paul describes as "spiritual blessings" all the gifts which the implementation of God's plan implies, gifts which are distributed by the Holy Spirit. When he speaks of them as being "in the heavenly places" and "in Christ", he is saying that through Christ who has risen from the dead and ascended on high we too have been inserted into the world of God (cf. 1:20; 2:6).
When man describes God as "blessed it means he recognizes God's greatness and goodness, and rejoices over the divine gifts he has received (cf. Lk 1:46, 68). Here is what St Thomas Aquinas has to say about the meaning of this passage: "The Apostle says, 'Benedictus' [Blessed be the God ...], that is, may I, and you, and everyone bless him, with our heart, our mouth, our actions -- praising him as God and as Father, for he is God because of his essence and Father because of his power to generate" ("Commentary on Eph.", 1, 6).
Sacred Scripture very often invites us to praise God our Lord (cf. Ps 8:19; 33; 46-48; etc.); this is not a matter only of verbal praise: our actions should prove that we mean what we say: "He who does good with his hands praises the Lord, and he who confesses the Lord with his mouth praises the Lord. Praise him by your actions" (St Augustine, "Enarrationes in Psalmos", 91, 2).
4. As the hymn develops, the Apostle details each of the blessings contained in God's eternal plan. The first of these is his choice, before the foundation of the world, of those who would become part of the Church. The word he uses, translated here as "chose", is the same one as used in the Greek translation of the Old Testament to refer to God's election of Israel. The Church, the new people of God, is constituted by assembling in and around Christ those who have been chosen and called to holiness. This implies that although the Church was founded by Christ at a particular point in history, its origin goes right back to the eternal divine plan. 'The eternal Father, in accordance with the utterly gratuitous and mysterious design of his wisdom and goodness, ... 'predestined (the elect) to be conformed to the image of his Son in order that he might be the first-born among many brethren' (Rom 8:29). He determined to call together in a holy Church those who believe in Christ. Already present in figure at the beginning of the world, this Church was prepared in marvelous fashion in the history of the people of Israel and in the Old Alliance. Established in this last age of the world, and made manifest in the outpouring of the Spirit, it will be brought to glorious completion at the end of time" (Vatican II, "Lumen Gentium", 2).
God's choice seeks to have us become "holy and blameless before him". In the same way as in the Old Testament a victim offered to God had to be unblemished, blameless (cf. Gen 17:1), the blameless holiness to which God has destined us admits of no imperfection. By the very fact of being baptized we are made holy (cf. note on 1: 1), and during our lifetime we try to grow holier with the help of God; however, complete holiness is something we shall attain only in heaven.
The holiness with which we have been endowed is an undeserved gift from God: it is not a reward for any merit on our part: even before we were created God chose us to be his: "'He chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy.' I know that such thoughts don't fill you with pride or lead you to think yourself better than others. That choice, the root of your vocation, should be the basis of your humility. Do we build monuments to an artist's paintbrush? Granted the brush had a part in creating masterpieces, but we give credit only to the painter. We Christians are nothing more than instruments in the hands of the Creator of the world, the Redeemer of all men" (St. J. Escriva, "Christ Is Passing By", 1).
"He destined us in love": the loving initiative is God's. "If God has honored us with countless gifts it is thanks to his love, not to our merits. Our fervor, our strength, our faith and our unity are the fruit of God's benevolence and our response to his goodness" (St John Chrysostom, "Hom. on Eph, ad loc".).
God's election of Christians and their vocation to holiness, as also the gift of divine filiation, reveals that God is Love (cf. 1 Jn 4:8); we have become partakers of God's very nature (cf. 2 Pet 1:4), sharers, that is, in the love of God.
"He destined us in love", therefore, also includes the Christian's love of God and of others: charity is a sharing in God's own love; it is the essence of holiness, the Christian's law; nothing has any value if it is not inspired by charity (cf. 1 Cor 13: 1-3).
5. The Apostle goes on to explore the further implications of God's eternal plan: those chosen to form part of the Church have been given a second blessing, as it were, by being predestined to be adoptive children of God. 'The state of this people is that of the dignity and freedom of the sons of God, in whose hearts the Holy Spirit dwells as in a temple" (Vatican II, "Lumen Gentium, 9).
This predestination to which the Apostle refers means that God determined from all eternity that the members of the new people of God should attain holiness through his gift of adoptive sonship. It is God's desire that all be saved (cf. 1 Tim 2:4) and he gives each person the means necessary for obtaining eternal life. Therefore, no one is predestined to damnation (cf. Third Council of Valence, "De Praedestinatione", can. 3).
The source of the Christian's divine sonship is Jesus Christ. God's only Son, one in substance with the Father, took on human nature in order to make us sons and daughters of God by adoption (cf. Rom 8:15, 29; 9:4; Gal 4:5). This is why every member of the Church can say: "See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are" (1 Jn 3:1).
What is involved here is not simply formal adoption, which is something external and does not affect the very person of the child. Divine adoption affects man's entire being, it inserts him into God's own life; for Baptism makes us truly his children, partakers of the divine nature (cf. 2 Pet 1:4). Divine sonship is therefore the greatest of the gifts God bestows on man during his life on earth. It is indeed right to exclaim "Blessed be God" (v. 3) when one reflects on this great gift: it is right for children openly to acknowledge their father and show their love for him.
Divine filiation has many rich effects as far as the spiritual life is concerned. "A child of God treats the Lord as his Father. He is not obsequious and servile; he 'is not merely formal and well-mannered: he is completely sincere and trusting. God is not shocked by what we do. Our infidelities do not wear him out. Our Father in heaven pardons any offense when his child returns to him, when he repents and asks for pardon. The Lord is such a good father that he anticipates our desire to be pardoned and comes forward to us, opening his arms laden with grace" (St. J. Escriva, "Christ Is Passing By", 64). See the notes on Jn 1:12.
6. The gift of divine filiation is the greatest expression of the glory of God (ef. Note on 1:17 below), because it reveals the full extent of God's love for man. St Paul stresses what the purpose of this eternal divine plan is-to promote "the praise of his glorious grace". God's glory has been made manifest through his merciful love, which has led him to make us his children in accordance with the eternal purpose of his will. This eternal design "flows from 'fountain-like love', the love of God the Father [...]. God in his great and merciful kindness freely creates us and, moreover, graciously calls us to share in his life and glory. He generously pours out, and never ceases to pour out, his divine goodness, so that he who is Creator of all things might at last become 'everything to everyone' (1 Cor 15:28), thus simultaneously assuring his own glory and our happiness" (Vatican II, "Ad Gentes", 2).
The grace which St Paul speaks of here and which manifests the glory of God refers first to the fact that God's blessings are totally unmerited by us and include the grace-conferring gifts of holiness and divine filiation.
"In the Beloved": the Old Testament stresses again and again that God loves his people and that Israel is that cherished people (cf. Deut 33:12; is 5:1, 7; 1 Mac 6: 11; etc.). In the New Testament Christians are called "beloved by God" (1 Thess 1:4; cf. Col 3:12). However, there is only one "Beloved", strictly speaking, Jesus Christ our Lord -- as God revealed from the bright cloud at the Transfiguration: "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased" (Mt 17:5). The Son of his love has obtained man's redemption and brought forgiveness of sins (cf. Col 1:13), and it is through his grace that we become pleasing to God, lovable by him with the same love with which he loves his Son. At the Last Supper, Jesus asked his Father for this very thing -- "so that the world may know that thou hast sent me and hast loved them even as thou hast loved me" (Jn 17:23). "Notice", St John Chrysostom points out, "that Paul does not say that this grace has been given us for no purpose but that it has been given us to make us pleasing and lovable in his eyes, now that we are purified of our sins" ("Hom. on Eph, ad loc.").
7-8. St Paul now centers his attention on the redemptive work of Christ – the third blessing -- which has implemented the eternal divine plan described in the preceding verses.
Redemption means "setting free". God's redemptive action began in the Old Testament, when he set the people of Israel free from their enslavement in Egypt (cf. Ex 11:7ff): by smearing the lintels of their doors with the blood of the lamb, their first-born were protected from death. In memory of this salvation God ordained the celebration of the rite of the passover lamb (cf. Ex 12:47). However, this redemption from Egyptian slavery was but a prefigurement of the Redemption Christ would bring about. "Christ our Lord achieved this task [of redeeming mankind and giving perfect glory to God] principally by the paschal mystery of his blessed passion, resurrection from the dead, and glorious ascension" (Vatican II, "Sacrosanctum Concilium", 5). By shedding his blood on the Cross, Christ has redeemed us from the slavery of sin, from the power of the devil, and from death (cf. note on Rom 3:24-25). He is the true passover Lamb (cf. Jn 1:29). "When we reflect that we have been ransomed 'not with perishable things such as silver or gold but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot' (1 Pet 1: 18f), we are naturally led to conclude that we could have received no gift more salutary than this power [given to the Church] of forgiving sins, which proclaims the ineffable providence of God and the excess of his love towards us" ("St Pius V Catechism", I, 11, 10).
The Redemption wrought by Christ frees us from the worst of all slaveries – that of sin. As the Second Vatican Council puts it, "Man finds that he is unable of himself to overcome the assaults of evil successfully, so that everyone feels as though bound by chains. But the Lord himself came to free and strengthen man, renewing him inwardly and casting out the 'ruler of this world' (Jn 12:31), who held him in the bondage of sin. For sin brought man to a lower state, forcing him away from the completeness that is his to attain" ("Gaudium Et Spes", 13).
In carrying out this Redemption, our Lord was motivated by his infinite love for man. This love, which far exceeds anything man could hope for, or could merit, is to be seen above all in the universal generosity of God's forgiveness, for though "sin increased, grace abounded all the more" (Rom 5:20); this forgiveness, achieved by Christ's death on the cross, is the supreme sign of God's love for us, for "greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends" (Jn 15:13). If God the Father gave up his Son to death for the remission of men's sins, "it was to reveal the love that is always greater than the whole of creation, the love that is he himself, since 'God is love' (1 Jn 4:8, 16)", John Paul II reminds us. "Above all, love is greater than sin, than weakness, than 'the futility of creation' (cf. Rom 8: 20); it is stronger than death" (Redemptor Hominis", 9).
By enabling our sins to be forgiven, the Redemption brought about by Christ has restored man's dignity. "Increasingly contemplating the whole of Christ's mystery, the Church knows with all the certainty of faith that the Redemption that took place through the Cross has definitely restored his dignity to man and given back meaning to his life in the world, a meaning that was lost to a considerable extent because of sin" ("Redemptor Hominis", 10). This action on God's part reveals his wisdom and prudence.
9. Through Christ's redemptive action, God has not only pardoned sin: he has also shown that his salvific plan embraces all history and all creation. This plan, which was revealed in Jesus Christ, St Paul calls "the mystery" of God's will; its revelation is a further divine blessing. The entire mystery embraces the establishment of the Church and the gift of divine filiation (vv. 4-7), the recapitulation of all things in Christ (v. 10), and the convoking of Jews and Gentiles to form part of the Church (vv. 11-14; cf. 3:4-7). All this has been revealed in Christ, in whom, therefore, God's revelation reaches its climax. Christ "did this by the total fact of his presence and self-manifestation -- by words and works, signs and miracles, but above all by his death and glorious resurrection from the dead, and finally by sending the Spirit of truth. He revealed that God is with us, to deliver us from the darkness of sin and death, and to raise us up to eternal life" (Vatican II, "Dei Verbum", 4).
The fact that God reveals his plans of salvation is a further proof of his love and mercy, for it enables man to recognize God's infinite wisdom and goodness and to hear his invitation to take part in these plans. As the Second Vatican Council puts it, "It pleased God, in his goodness and wisdom, to reveal himself and to make known the mystery of his will (cf. Eph 1:9). His will was that man should have access to the Father through Christ, the Word made flesh, in the Holy Spirit, and thus become sharers in the divine nature (cf. Eph 2:18; 2 Pet 1:4). By this revelation, then, the invisible God (cf. Col 1:15; 1 Tim 1:17), from the fullness of his love, addresses men as his friends (cf. Ex 33: 11; Jn 15:14f), and moves among them (cf. Bar 3:38), in order to invite and receive them into his own company" ("Dei Verbum", 2).
On the meaning of the word "mystery" in St Paul, see the notes on 1:26, 28; 2:9. 10. The "mystery" revealed by God in his love takes shape in a harmonious way, in different stages or moments ("kairoi") as history progresses. The fullness of time came with the Incarnation (cf. Gal 4:4) and it will last until the End. Through the Redemption, Christ has rechannelled history towards God; he rules over all human history in a supernatural way. Not only have God's mysterious plans begun to take effect: they have been revealed to the Church, which God uses to implement these plans. "Already the final age of the world is with us (cf. 1 Cor 10:11) and the renewal of the world is irrevocably under way; it is even now anticipated in a certain real way, for the Church on earth is endowed already with a sanctity that is real though imperfect. However, until there be realized new heavens and a new earth in which justice dwells (cf. 2 Pet 3:13) the pilgrim Church, in its sacraments and institutions, which belong to this present age, carries the mark of this world which will pass, and she herself takes her place among the creatures which groan and travail yet and await the revelation of the sons of God (cf. Rom 8:19-22)" (Vatican II, "Lumen Gentium", 48).
The climax of God's pre-creation plan involves "uniting" ("recapitulating") all things in Christ: Christ is to be the cornerstone and head of all creation. This means that, through his redemptive activity, Christ unites and leads the created world back to God. Its unity had been destroyed as a result of sin, but now Christ binds it together, uniting heavenly things as well as mankind and other earthly things. St John Chrysostom teaches that "since heavenly things and earthly things were torn apart from each other, they had no head [...]. (God) made Christ according to the flesh the sole head of all things, of angels and of men; that is, he provided one single principle for angels and for men [...]; for all things will be perfectly united as they ought to be when they are gathered together under one head, linked by a bond which must come from on high" ("Hom. on Eph, ad loc.").
Christ's being head of all things -- as will be made manifest at the end of time --stems from the fact that he is true God and true man, the head and first-born of all creation. By rising from the dead, he has overcome the power of sin and death, and has become Lord of all creation (cf. Acts 2:36; Rom 1:4; Eph 1:19-23); all other things, invisible as well as invisible, come under his sway.
The motto taken by Pius X when he became Pope echoes this idea of Christ's Lordship: "If someone were to ask us for a motto which conveys our purpose we would always reply, 'Reinstating all things in Christ' [...], trying to bring all men to return to divine obedience" ("E supremi apostolatus").
"Uniting all things in Christ": this includes putting Christ at the summit of human activities, as the founder of Opus Dei points out: "St Paul gave a motto to the Christians at Ephesus: 'Instaurare omnia in Christo' (Eph 1:10), to fill everything with the spirit of Jesus, placing Christ at the center of everything. 'And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all things to myself' (Jn 12:32). Through his incarnation, through his work at Nazareth and his preaching and miracles in the land of Judea and Galilee, through his death on the cross, and through his resurrection, Christ is the center of the universe, the first-born and Lord of all creation.
"Our task as Christians is to proclaim this kingship of Christ, announcing it through what we say and do. Our Lord wants men and women of his own in all walks of life. Some he calls away from society, asking them to give up involvement in the world, so that they remind the rest of us by their example that God exists. To others he entrusts the priestly ministry. But he wants the vast majority to stay right where they are, in all earthly occupations in which they work --in the factory, the laboratory, the farm, the trades, the streets of the big cities and the trails of the mountains" ("Christ Is Passing By", 105).
9. Through Christ's redemptive action, God has not only pardoned sin: he has also shown that his salvific plan embraces all history and all creation. This plan, which was revealed in Jesus Christ, St Paul calls "the mystery" of God's will; its revelation is a further divine blessing. The entire mystery embraces the establishment of the Church and the gift of divine filiation (vv. 4-7), the recapitulation of all things in Christ (v. 10), and the convoking of Jews and Gentiles to form part of the Church (vv. 11-14; cf. 3:4-7). All this has been revealed in Christ, in whom, therefore, God's revelation reaches its climax. Christ "did this by the total fact of his presence and self-manifestation -- by words and works, signs and miracles, but above all by his death and glorious resurrection from the dead, and finally by sending the Spirit of truth. He revealed that God is with us, to deliver us from the darkness of sin and death, and to raise us up to eternal life" (Vatican II, "Dei Verbum", 4).
The fact that God reveals his plans of salvation is a further proof of his love and mercy, for it enables man to recognize God's infinite wisdom and goodness and to hear his invitation to take part in these plans. As the Second Vatican Council puts it, "It pleased God, in his goodness and wisdom, to reveal himself and to make known the mystery of his will (cf. Eph 1:9). His will was that man should have access to the Father through Christ, the Word made flesh, in the Holy Spirit, and thus become sharers in the divine nature (cf. Eph 2:18; 2 Pet 1:4). By this revelation, then, the invisible God (cf. Col 1:15; 1 Tim 1:17), from the fullness of his love, addresses men as his friends (cf. Ex 33: 11; Jn 15:14f), and moves among them (cf. Bar 3:38), in order to invite and receive them into his own company" ("Dei Verbum", 2).
From: Luke 11:47-54:
The Hypocrisy of the Scribes and Pharisees (Continuation)
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(Jesus said to the Pharisees,) [47] "Woe to you! for you build the tombs of the prophets whom your fathers killed. [48] So you are witnesses and consent to the deeds of your fathers; for they killed them, and you build their tombs. [49] Therefore also the Wisdom of God said, 'I will send them prophets and apostles, some of whom they will kill and persecute,' [50] that the blood of all the prophets, shed from the foundation of the world, may be required of this generation, [51] from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who perished between the altar and the sanctuary. Yes, I tell you, it shall be required of this generation. [52] Woe to you lawyers! for you have taken away the key of knowledge; you did not enter yourselves, and you hindered those who were entering."
[53] As He went away from there, the scribes and the Pharisees began to press Him hard, and to provoke Him to speak of many things, [54] lying in wait for Him, to catch at something He might say.
Commentary:
51. Zechariah was a prophet who died by being stoned in the temple of Jerusalem around the year 800 B.C. because he accused the people of Israel of being unfaithful to God's law (cf. 2 Chronicles 24:20-22). The murder of Abel (Genesis 4:8) and that of Zechariah were, respectively, the first and last murders reported in these books which the Jews regarded as Sacred Scripture. Jesus refers to a Jewish tradition which, in His own time and even later, pointed out the stain of the blood of Zechariah.
The altar referred to here was the altar of holocausts, located outside, in the courtyard of the priests, in front of the temple proper.
52. Jesus severely reproaches these doctors of the Law who, given their study and meditation on Scripture, were the very ones who should have recognized Jesus as the Messiah, since His coming had been foretold in the sacred books. However, as we learn from the Gospel, the exact opposite happened. Not only did they not accept Jesus: they obstinately opposed Him. As teachers of the Law they should have taught the people to follow Jesus; instead, they blocked the way.
53-54. St. Luke frequently records this attitude of our Lord's enemies (cf. 6:11; 19:47-48; 20:19-20; 22:2). The people followed Jesus and were enthusiastic about His preaching and miracles, whereas the Pharisees and scribes would not accept Him and would not allow the people to follow Him; they tried in every way to discredit Him in the eyes of the people (cf. John 11:48).
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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