Tuesday of the Seventeenth Week in Ordinary Time

402 Tuesday of the Seventeenth Week in Ordinary Time

CCC Cross Reference:
Ex 33:9-10 697; Ex 33:11 2576; Ex 34:9 210; Ex 34:28 2056
Ps 103 304
Mt 13:41-42 1034; Mt 13:41 333; Mt 13:42 1034

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Back to SOW II '23

Reading 1
Ex 33:7-11; 34:5b-9, 28

The tent, which was called the meeting tent,
Moses used to pitch at some distance away, outside the camp.
Anyone who wished to consult the Lord
would go to this meeting tent outside the camp.
Whenever Moses went out to the tent, the people would all rise
and stand at the entrance of their own tents,
watching Moses until he entered the tent.
As Moses entered the tent, the column of cloud would come down
and stand at its entrance while the Lord spoke with Moses.
On seeing the column of cloud stand at the entrance of the tent,
all the people would rise and worship
at the entrance of their own tents.
The Lord used to speak to Moses face to face,
as one man speaks to another.
Moses would then return to the camp,
but his young assistant, Joshua, son of Nun,
would not move out of the tent.

Moses stood there with the Lord and proclaimed his name, “Lord.”
Thus the Lord passed before him and cried out,
“The Lord, the Lord, a merciful and gracious God,
slow to anger and rich in kindness and fidelity,
continuing his kindness for a thousand generations,
and forgiving wickedness and crime and sin;
yet not declaring the guilty guiltless,
but punishing children and grandchildren
to the third and fourth generation for their fathers’ wickedness!”
Moses at once bowed down to the ground in worship.
Then he said, “If I find favor with you, O Lord,
do come along in our company.
This is indeed a stiff-necked people;
yet pardon our wickedness and sins,
and receive us as your own.”

So Moses stayed there with the Lord for forty days and forty nights,
without eating any food or drinking any water,
and he wrote on the tablets the words of the covenant,
the ten commandments.

Responsorial Psalm
Ps 103:6-7, 8-9, 10-11, 12-13

R. (8a) The Lord is kind and merciful.

The Lord secures justice
and the rights of all the oppressed.
He has made known his ways to Moses,
and his deeds to the children of Israel.
R. The Lord is kind and merciful.

Merciful and gracious is the Lord,
slow to anger and abounding in kindness.
He will not always chide,
nor does he keep his wrath forever.
R. The Lord is kind and merciful.

Not according to our sins does he deal with us,
nor does he requite us according to our crimes.
For as the heavens are high above the earth,
so surpassing is his kindness toward those who fear him.
R. The Lord is kind and merciful.

As far as the east is from the west,
so far has he put our transgressions from us.
As a father has compassion on his children,
so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him.
R. The Lord is kind and merciful.

Gospel
Mt 13:36-43

Jesus dismissed the crowds and went into the house.
His disciples approached him and said,
“Explain to us the parable of the weeds in the field.”
He said in reply, “He who sows good seed is the Son of Man,
the field is the world, the good seed the children of the Kingdom.
The weeds are the children of the Evil One,
and the enemy who sows them is the Devil.
The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels.
Just as weeds are collected and burned up with fire,
so will it be at the end of the age.
The Son of Man will send his angels,
and they will collect out of his Kingdom
all who cause others to sin and all evildoers.
They will throw them into the fiery furnace,
where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.
Then the righteous will shine like the sun
in the Kingdom of their Father.
Whoever has ears ought to hear.”

Readings from the Jerusalem Bible

First reading Exodus 33:7 - 34:28

Moses used to take the Tent and pitch it outside the camp, at some distance from the camp. He called it the Tent of Meeting. Anyone who had to consult the Lord would go out to the Tent of Meeting, outside the camp. Whenever Moses went out to the Tent, all the people would rise. Every man would stand at the door of his tent and watch Moses until he reached the Tent; the pillar of cloud would come down and station itself at the entrance to the Tent, and the Lord would speak with Moses. When they saw the pillar of cloud stationed at the entrance to the Tent, all the people would rise and bow low, each at the door of his tent. The Lord would speak with Moses face to face, as a man speaks with his friend. Then Moses would turn back to the camp, but the young man who was his servant, Joshua son of Nun, would not leave the Tent.

And the Lord descended in the form of a cloud, and Moses stood with him there.
He called on the name of the Lord. The Lord passed before him and proclaimed, ‘the Lord, a God of tenderness and compassion, slow to anger rich in kindness and faithfulness; for thousands he maintains his kindness, forgives faults, transgression, sin; yet he lets nothing go unchecked, punishing the father’s fault in the sons and in the grandsons to the third and fourth generation’. And Moses bowed down to the ground at once and worshipped. ‘If I have indeed won your favour, Lord,’ he said ‘let my Lord come with us, I beg. True, they are a headstrong people, but forgive us our faults and our sins, and adopt us as your heritage.’

Moses stayed there with the Lord for forty days and forty nights, eating and drinking nothing. He inscribed on the tablets the words of the Covenant – the Ten Words.

Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 102(103):6-13

The Lord is compassion and love.

The Lord does deeds of justice,
  gives judgement for all who are oppressed.
He made known his ways to Moses
  and his deeds to Israel’s sons.

The Lord is compassion and love.

The Lord is compassion and love,
  slow to anger and rich in mercy.
His wrath will come to an end;
  he will not be angry for ever.

The Lord is compassion and love.

He does not treat us according to our sins
  nor repay us according to our faults.
For as the heavens are high above the earth
  so strong is his love for those who fear him.

The Lord is compassion and love.

As far as the east is from the west
  so far does he remove our sins.
As a father has compassion on his sons,
  the Lord has pity on those who fear him.

The Lord is compassion and love.

Gospel Matthew 13:36 – 43

Leaving the crowds, Jesus went to the house; and his disciples came to him and said, ‘Explain the parable about the darnel in the field to us’. He said in reply, ‘The sower of the good seed is the Son of Man. The field is the world; the good seed is the subjects of the kingdom; the darnel, the subjects of the evil one; the enemy who sowed them, the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; the reapers are the angels. Well then, just as the darnel is gathered up and burnt in the fire, so it will be at the end of time. The Son of Man will send his angels and they will gather out of his kingdom all things that provoke offences and all who do evil, and throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and grinding of teeth. Then the virtuous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Listen, anyone who has ears!’

Readings and Commentary from the Navarre Bible

Tuesday of the 17th Week in Ordinary Time

From: Exodus 33:7-11; 34:5b-9, 28

The Tent of Meeting
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[7] Now Moses used to take the tent and pitch it outside the camp, far off from the camp; and he called it the tent of meeting. And every one who sought the Lord would go out to the tent of meeting, which was outside the camp. [8] Whenever Moses went out to the tent, all the people rose up, and every man stood at his tent door, and looked after Moses, until he had gone into the tent. [9] When Moses entered the tent, the pillar of cloud would descend and stand at the door of the tent, and the Lord would speak with Moses. [10] And when all the people saw the pillar of cloud standing at the door of the tent, all the people would rise up and worship, every man at his tent door. [11] Thus the Lord used to speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. When Moses turned again into the camp, his servant Joshua the son of Nun, a young man, did not depart from the tent.

[5] (God) stood with him (Moses) there, and (Moses) proclaimed the name of the Lord.

God Appears
-------------------
[6] The Lord passed before him, and proclaimed, "The Lord, the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, [7] keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children and the children's children, to the third and the fourth generation." [8] And Moses made haste to bow his head toward the earth, and worshiped. [9] And he said, "If now I have found favor in thy sight, 0 Lord, let the Lord, I pray thee, go in the midst of us, although it is a stiff-necked people; and pardon our iniquity and our sin, and take us for thy inheritance."

The Ritual Decalogue (Continuation)
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[28] And he was there with the Lord forty days and forty nights; he neither ate bread nor drank water. And he wrote upon the tables the words of the covenant, the ten commandments.

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Commentary:

33:7-11. The tent of meeting, sometimes called the tent of witness, and also the sanctuary, normally means the main tent in the sacred precinct (cf. chaps. 25- 27). Here, however, it seems to be different firm the sanctuary, because the sanctuary was located in the center of the encampment and was a place of worship, whereas this tent is pitched away from the camp and is used for consultation. This discrepancy may well be due to the fact that this passage belonged to an older tradition than the Priestly one. Whereas the Priestly tradition lays the stress on matters to do with worship, the earlier one would have focused more on social matters.

The sacred writer, through this account, is showing that God continues to be present but at a certain distance, and that only Moses has the privilege of speaking to him "face to face" (cf. 33:20). The people are simply the silent witnesses of the conversations which take place between God and Moses, but God still shows them special favor.

34:1-28. This chapter narrating the renewal of the Covenant follows the same pattern as the account of its original establishment (cf. Ex 19-24); but it is shorter, concentrating on the two main protagonists, God and Moses. Thus, it begins with the preparations for the theophany and for the encounter with the Lord (vv. 1-5); then follows the revelation of God, and Moses' prayer (vv. 6-9); and it ends with the renewal of the Covenant and the so-called Rite of the Covenant (vv.10- 28). The account hinges on the remaking of the tables of stone after the sin of the golden calf; the tables symbolize God's offer to keep to the pact and never to go back on it.

34:1-5. The theophany is described very soberly here, but it has exactly the same elements as given in chapter 19: very careful preparation by Moses (v 2; cf. 19:10-11.); the people forbidden to approach the mountain (v.3; cf. 19:12-13); God appearing wrapped in the cloud (v. 5; cf. 19:16-20).

Comparing the two accounts, this one says less about the transcendence of God and puts more stress on his closeness to Moses: "he stood with him there" (v. 5). God's initiative in drawing close to man is clear to see; it lies at the very basis of the Covenant.

"He proclaimed the name of the Lord" (v. 6); the context would suggest that it is Moses who proclaims the name of the Lord, but the Hebrew could indeed be as the RSV has it, "and he proclaimed his name, 'Lord' ". The same wording appears in v. 6 implying that it is the Lord who is "proclaiming", defining himself as he promised he would (cf 33:19). The sacred writer may have intentionally left these words open to either interpretation; whether spoken by Moses or said directly by God, they are equal from the revelation point of view.

34:6-7. In response to Moses' pleading, the Lord makes himself manifest The solemn repetition of the name of Yahweh (Lord) emphasizes that the Lord is introducing himself liturgically to the assembled Israelites. In the description of himself which follows (and which is repeated elsewhere, cf 20:5-6; Num 14:18; Deut 5:9-18; etc.), two key attributes of God are underlined--justice and mercy. God cannot let sin go unpunished, nor does he; the prophets, too, will teach that sin is, first and foremost, something personal (cf. Jer 31:29; Ezek I 8:2ff). But this ancient text refers only in a general way to the fact that God is just, and puts more stress on his mercy. A person who is conscious of his own sin has access to God only if he is sure that God can and will forgive him. "The concept of 'mercy' in the Old Testament," John Paul II comments, "has a long and rich history. We have to refer back to it in order that the mercy revealed by Christ may shine forth more clearly. [...] Sin too constitutes man's misery. The people of the Old Covenant experienced this misery from the time of the Exodus, when they set up the golden calf. The Lord himself triumphed over this act of breaking the covenant when he solemnly declared to Moses that he was a 'God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness' (Ex 34:6). It is in this central revelation that the chosen people, and each of its members, will find, every time that they have sinned, the strength and the motive for turning to the Lord to remind him of what he had exactly revealed about himself and to beseech his forgiveness" ("Dives In Misericordia", 4). On "God's jealousy", see the note on 20:5-6.

[The note on 20:5-6 states: "A jealous God": an antropomorphism emphasizing the uniqueness of God. Since he is the only true God, he cannot abide either the worship of other gods (cf. 34:14) or worship of idols. Idolatry is the gravest and most condemned sin in the Bible (cf. "Catechism of the Catholic Church", 2113). Those in charge of worship in the temple are described as being "jealous" for the Lord (cf. Num 25:13; 1 Kings 19:10, 14), because they have to watch to ensure that no deviations occur. When expelling the money-changers from the temple (Jn 2:17), Jesus refers to this aspect of priests' responsibility: "Zeal for thy house has consumed me" (Ps 69:9).

On the Lord's merciful retribution, cf. the note on Ex 34:6-7.]

34:8-9. Moses once more implores the Lord on behalf of his people; he makes three requests, which sum up many earlier petitions: he begs God to stay with the people and protect them in their hazardous journeying in the desert (cf. 33:15- 17), to forgive the very grave sin they have committed (cf. 32:11-14), and finally to make them his own property, thereby distinguishing them from all other peoples (cf. 33:16) and restoring them to their status as "his own possession" (cf. 19:5). These three requests are ones that were constantly on the lips of the people of Israel and in the hearts of everyone who acknowledges God (cf. Ps 86:1-15; 103: 8-10; etc.).

34:7-8. The conclusion of the Covenant is described as soberly as its introduction (v. 10). On the meaning of the forty days, see the note on 24:12-18.

[The note on 24:12-18 states: ...then Moses stayed on the mountain for forty days, in close contact with the Lord. These periods of time are not meant to be exact but rather to show how intense Moses' relationship with God was; they will be evoked when important events are narrated later: thus, Elijah walked for forty days in search of God (cf. 1 Kings 19:8) and Jesus will spend forty days in the desert before beginning his public life (cf. Mt 4:2).]

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From: Matthew 13:36-43

The Parable of the Weeds Explained
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[36] Then He (Jesus) left the crowds and went into the house. And His disciples came to Him, saying, "Explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field." [37 He answered, "He who sows the good seed is the Son of Man; [38] the field is the world, and the good seed means the sons of the Kingdom; the weeds are the sons of the evil one, [39] and the enemy who sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the close of the age, and the reapers are angels. [40] Just as the weeds are gathered and burned with fire, so will it be at the close of the age. [41] The Son of Man will send His angels, and they will gather out of His Kingdom all causes of sin and evildoers, [42] and throw them out into the furnace of fire; there men will weep and gnash their teeth. [43] Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the Kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear."

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Commentary:

36-43. While making its way on earth, the Church is composed of good and bad people, just men and sinners: they are mixed in with one another until the harvest time, the end of the world, when the Son of Man, in His capacity as Judge of the living and the dead, will divide the good from the bad at the Last Judgment—the former going to eternal glory, the inheritance of the saints; the latter, to the eternal fire of Hell. Although the just and the sinners are now side by side, the Church has the right and the duty to exclude those who cause scandal, especially those who attack its doctrine and unity; this is can do through ecclesiastical excommunication and other canonical penalties. However, excommunication has a medicinal and pastoral function--to correct those who are obstinate in error, and to protect others from them.

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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. 

Monday of the Seventeenth Week in Ordinary Time

401 Monday of the Seventeenth Week in Ordinary Time

CCC Cross Reference:
Ex 32 210; Ex 32:1-34:9 2577
Ps 106:23 2577

Back to Deacon’s Bench ' 07
Back to Deacon's Bench '09
Back to SOW II '13 (Memorial of St. Martha - The Gospel for this feast is Proper #607)
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Back to SOW II '19 (Memorial of St. Martha - The Gospel for this feast is Proper #607)
Back to SOW II '21

Back to SOW II '23

Reading 1
Ex 32:15-24, 30-34

Moses turned and came down the mountain
with the two tablets of the commandments in his hands,
tablets that were written on both sides, front and back;
tablets that were made by God,
having inscriptions on them that were engraved by God himself.
Now, when Joshua heard the noise of the people shouting,
he said to Moses, “That sounds like a battle in the camp.”
But Moses answered, “It does not sound like cries of victory,
nor does it sound like cries of defeat;
the sounds that I hear are cries of revelry.”
As he drew near the camp, he saw the calf and the dancing.
With that, Moses’ wrath flared up, so that he threw the tablets down
and broke them on the base of the mountain.
Taking the calf they had made, he fused it in the fire
and then ground it down to powder,
which he scattered on the water and made the children of Israel drink.

Moses asked Aaron, “What did this people ever do to you
that you should lead them into so grave a sin?”
Aaron replied, “Let not my lord be angry.
You know well enough how prone the people are to evil.
They said to me, ‘Make us a god to be our leader;
as for the man Moses who brought us out of the land of Egypt,
we do not know what has happened to him.’
So I told them, ‘Let anyone who has gold jewelry take it off.’
They gave it to me, and I threw it into the fire, and this calf came out.”

On the next day Moses said to the people,
“You have committed a grave sin.
I will go up to the Lord, then;
perhaps I may be able to make atonement for your sin.”
So Moses went back to the Lord and said,
“Ah, this people has indeed committed a grave sin
in making a god of gold for themselves!
If you would only forgive their sin!
If you will not, then strike me out of the book that you have written.”
The Lord answered, “Him only who has sinned against me
will I strike out of my book.
Now, go and lead the people to the place I have told you.
My angel will go before you.
When it is time for me to punish, I will punish them for their sin.”

Responsorial Psalm
Ps 106:19-20, 21-22, 23

R. (1a) Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.

Our fathers made a calf in Horeb
and adored a molten image;
They exchanged their glory
for the image of a grass-eating bullock.
R. Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.

They forgot the God who had saved them,
who had done great deeds in Egypt,
Wondrous deeds in the land of Ham,
terrible things at the Red Sea.
R. Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.

Then he spoke of exterminating them,
but Moses, his chosen one,
Withstood him in the breach
to turn back his destructive wrath.
R. Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.

Gospel
Mt 13:31-35

Jesus proposed a parable to the crowds.
“The Kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed
that a person took and sowed in a field.
It is the smallest of all the seeds,
yet when full-grown it is the largest of plants.
It becomes a large bush,
and the birds of the sky come and dwell in its branches.”

He spoke to them another parable.
“The Kingdom of heaven is like yeast
that a woman took and mixed with three measures of wheat flour
until the whole batch was leavened.”

All these things Jesus spoke to the crowds in parables.
He spoke to them only in parables,
to fulfill what had been said through the prophet:

I will open my mouth in parables,
I will announce what has lain hidden from the foundation of the world.

Readings from the Jerusalem Bible

First reading Exodus 32:15 – 34

Moses made his way back down the mountain with the two tablets of the Testimony in his hands, tablets inscribed on both sides, inscribed on the front and on the back. These tablets were the work of God, and the writing on them was God’s writing engraved on the tablets.

Joshua heard the noise of the people shouting. ‘There is the sound of battle in the camp’, he told Moses. Moses answered him:
‘No song of victory is this sound,
no wailing for defeat this sound;
it is the sound of chanting that I hear’.

As he approached the camp and saw the calf and the groups dancing, Moses’ anger blazed. He threw down the tablets he was holding and broke them at the foot of the mountain. He seized the calf they had made and burned it, grinding it into powder which he scattered on the water; and he made the sons of Israel drink it. To Aaron Moses said, ‘What has this people done to you, for you to bring such a great sin on them?’ ‘Let not my lord’s anger blaze like this’ Aaron answered. ‘You know yourself how prone this people is to evil. They said to me, “Make us a god to go at our head; this Moses, the man who brought us up from Egypt, we do not know what has become of him”. So I said to them, “Who has gold?”, and they took it off and brought it to me. I threw it into the fire and out came this calf.’

On the following day Moses said to the people, ‘You have committed a grave sin. But now I shall go up to the Lord: perhaps I can make atonement for your sin.’ And Moses returned to the Lord. ‘I am grieved,’ he cried ‘this people has committed a grave sin, making themselves a god of gold. And yet, if it pleased you to forgive this sin of theirs...! But if not, then blot me out from the book that you have written.’ The Lord answered Moses, “It is the man who has sinned against me that I shall blot out from my book. Go now, lead the people to the place of which I told you. My angel shall go before you but, on the day of my visitation, I shall punish them for their sin.’ And the Lord punished the people for molding the calf that Aaron had made.

Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 105(106):19-23

O give thanks to the Lord for he is good.
or
Alleluia!

They fashioned a calf at Horeb
  and worshiped an image of metal,
exchanging the God who was their glory
  for the image of a bull that eats grass.

O give thanks to the Lord for he is good.
or
Alleluia!

They forgot the God who was their savior,
  who had done such great things in Egypt,
such portents in the land of Ham,
  such marvels at the Red Sea.

O give thanks to the Lord for he is good.
or
Alleluia!

For this he said he would destroy them,
  but Moses, the man he had chosen,
stood in the breach before him,
  to turn back his anger from destruction.

O give thanks to the Lord for he is good.
or
Alleluia!

Gospel Matthew 13:31 – 35

Jesus put another parable before them, ‘The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed which a man took and sowed in his field. It is the smallest of all the seeds, but when it has grown it is the biggest shrub of all and becomes a tree so that the birds of the air come and shelter in its branches.’

He told them another parable, ‘The kingdom of heaven is like the yeast a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour till it was leavened all through’.
In all this Jesus spoke to the crowds in parables; indeed, he would never speak to them except in parables. This was to fulfill the prophecy:
I will speak to you in parables
and expound things hidden since the foundation of the world.

Readings and Commentary from the Navarre

Monday of the 17th Week in Ordinary Time

From: Exodus 32:15-24, 30-34

The Golden Calf is Destroyed
------------------------------------------
[15] And Moses turned, and went down from the mountain with the two tables of the testimony in his hands, tables that were written on both sides; on the one side and on the other were they written. [16] And the tables were the work of God, and the writing was the writing of God, graven upon the tables. [17] When Joshua heard the noise of the people as they shouted, he said to Moses, "There is noise of war in the camp." [18] But he said, "It is not the sound of shouting for victory, or the sound of the cry of defeat, but the sound of singing that I hear." [9] And as soon as became near the camp and saw the calf and the dancing, Moses' anger burned hot and he threw the tables out of his hands and broke them at the foot of the mountain. [20] And he took the calf which they had made, and burnt it with fire, and ground it to powder, and scattered it upon the water, and made the people of Israel drink it. [21] And Moses said to Aaron, "What did this people do to you that you have brought a great sin upon them?" [22] And Aaron said, "Let not the anger of my lord burn hot; you know the people, that they are set on evil. [23] For they said to me, 'Make us gods, who shall go before us; as for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.' [24] And I said to them, 'Let any who have gold take it off'; so they gave it to me, and I threw it into the fire, and there came out this calf."

Moses Intercedes Again
-----------------------------------
[30] On the morrow Moses said to the people, "You have sinned a great sin. And now I will go up to the Lord; perhaps I can make atonement for your sin." [31] So Moses returned to the Lord and said, "Alas, this people have sinned a great sin; they have made for themselves gods of gold. [32] But now, if thou wilt forgive their sin--and if not, blot me, I pray thee, out of thy book which thou hast written." [33] But the Lord said to Moses, "Whoever has sinned against me, him will I blot out of my book. [34] But now go, lead the people to the place of which I have spoken to you; behold, my angel shall go before you. Nevertheless, in the day when I visit, I will visit their sin upon them."

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Commentary:

32:15-24. The punishment described in these verses is full of significance. In the first place, Moses breaks the tables on which God wrote the Law (vv. 16, 9), thereby showing that sin has broken the Covenant, and that the main effect of and punishment for sin is not to have the Law (cf. Amos 8:11-12), that is, what today we would call loss of the sense of sin.

Moses destroys the calf because of itself it has no power. The tables were "the work of God" (v. 16), whereas the calf was something made by men (v. 20). And he gives the people the residue of the calf to drink (v. 20), in a gesture which is reminiscent of trials by ordeal (cf Num 5:23-24), but the main point he is making is that sin is personal: only those who have sinned are to be punished. And his reproach to Aaron, which echoes that which God made to Adam (cf. Gen 3:11), identifies the man who is truly to blame.

The mystery of sin affects even key figures chosen by God, and the Bible does not disguise this fact. Elsewhere Moses is reminded of his own sin (cf. Num 20: 12; Deut 32:51). as is David (cf. 1 Sam 12:7-9); and in the New Testament Peter's denials are also recorded in detail (Mt 26:69-75). It is God who shapes the history of salvation, and he does this despite our infidelities.

32:30-35. This new dialogue between Moses and God sums up the content of the whole chapter. Once again Moses plays intercessor, and the Lord shows himself to be merciful and forgiving. "From this intimacy with the faithful God, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, Moses drew strength and determination for his intercession (cf. Ex 34:6). He does not pray for himself but for the people whom God made his own. Moses already intercedes for them during the battle with the Amalekites (cf. Ex 17:8-13) and prays to obtain healing for Miriam (cf. Num 12:13-14). But it is chiefly after their apostasy that Moses 'stands in the breach' before God in order to save the people (Ps 106:23; cf. Ex 32:1-34:9). The arguments of his prayer--for intercession is also a mysterious battle--will inspire the boldness of the great intercessors among the Jewish people and in the Church: God is love; he is therefore righteous and faithful; he cannot contradict himself; he must remember his marvellous deeds, since his glory is at stake, and he cannot forsake this people that bears his name" ("Catechism of the Catholic Church", 2577).

But the people still has a penalty to pay for its offense (v. 34). Throughout the course of its history Israel continues to be aware that it deserves severe punishment for this and other sins that follow. The prophets say that Israel's debt is paid for by the exile in Babylon.

The reference to the book in which God writes the names of those whom he has chosen (in a kind of census, as it were: cf. Is 4:3; Rev 3:5, 12; 17:8), is a graphic way of showing that God has special love for those who have a mission to fulfill in the work of salvation.

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From: Matthew 13:31-35

The Mustard Seed; The Leaven
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[31] Another parable He (Jesus) put before them saying, "The Kingdom of Heaven is like a grain of mustard seed which a man took and sowed in his field; [32] it is the smallest of all seeds, but when it has grown it is the greatest of shrubs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches."

[33] He told them another parable. "The Kingdom of Heaven is like a leaven which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal, till it was all leavened."

[34] All this Jesus said to the crowds in parables; indeed He said nothing to them without a parable. [35] This was to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet: "I will open my mouth in parables, I will utter what has been hidden since the foundation of the world."

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Commentary:

31-32. Here, the man is Jesus Christ and the field, the world. The grain of mustard seed is the preaching of the Gospel and the Church, which from very small beginnings will spread throughout the world.

The parable clearly refers to the universal scope and spread of the Kingdom of God: the Church, which embraces all mankind of every kind and condition, in every latitude and in all ages, is forever developing in spite of obstacles, thanks to God's promise and aid.

33. This comparison is taken from everyday experience: just as leaven gradually ferments all the dough, so the Church spreads to convert all nations.

The leaven is also a symbol of the individual Christian. Living in the middle of the world and retaining his Christian quality, he wins souls for Christ by his word and example: "Our calling to be children of God, in the midst of the world, requires us not only to seek our own personal holiness, but also to go out onto all the ways of the earth, to convert them into roadways that will carry souls over all obstacles and lead them to the Lord. As we take part in all temporal activities as ordinary citizens, we are to become leaven acting on the mass" (St. J. Escriva, "Christ Is Passing By", 120).

34-35. Revelation, God's plans, are hidden (cf. Matthew 11:25) from those who are disposed to accept them. The Evangelist wishes to emphasize the need for simplicity and for docility to the Gospel. By recalling Psalm 78:2, he tells us once more, under divine inspiration, that the Old Testament prophecies find their fulfillment in our Lord's preaching.

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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. 

Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

111C Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Catechism Links
CCC 2634-2636: prayer of intercession
CCC 2566-2567: universal call to prayer
CCC 2761-2772: the Lord’s Prayer as a synthesis of Gospel
CCC 2609-2610, 2613, 2777-2785: turning to God with persistence and filial trust
CCC 2654: lectio divina
CCC 537, 628, 1002, 1227: buried and risen in baptism

CCC Cross Reference:
Gn 18:16-33 2571; Gn 18:20 1867
Ps 138 304; Ps 138:2 214
Col 2:11-13 527; Col 2:12 628, 1002, 1214, 1227, 1694
Lk 11:1 520, 2601, 2759, 2773; Lk 11:2-4 2759; Lk 11:2 2632; Lk 11:4 1425, 2845; Lk 11:5-13 2613; Lk 11:9 2761; Lk 11:13 443, 728, 2623, 2671

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Reading 1
Gn 18:20-32

In those days, the Lord said: “The outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is so great,
and their sin so grave,
that I must go down and see whether or not their actions
fully correspond to the cry against them that comes to me.
I mean to find out.”

While Abraham’s visitors walked on farther toward Sodom,
the Lord remained standing before Abraham.
Then Abraham drew nearer and said:
“Will you sweep away the innocent with the guilty?
Suppose there were fifty innocent people in the city;
would you wipe out the place, rather than spare it
for the sake of the fifty innocent people within it?
Far be it from you to do such a thing,
to make the innocent die with the guilty
so that the innocent and the guilty would be treated alike!
Should not the judge of all the world act with justice?”
The Lord replied,
“If I find fifty innocent people in the city of Sodom,
I will spare the whole place for their sake.”
Abraham spoke up again:
“See how I am presuming to speak to my Lord,
though I am but dust and ashes!
What if there are five less than fifty innocent people?
Will you destroy the whole city because of those five?”
He answered, “I will not destroy it, if I find forty-five there.”
But Abraham persisted, saying “What if only forty are found there?”
He replied, “I will forbear doing it for the sake of the forty.”
Then Abraham said, “Let not my Lord grow impatient if I go on.
What if only thirty are found there?”
He replied, “I will forbear doing it if I can find but thirty there.”
Still Abraham went on,
“Since I have thus dared to speak to my Lord,
what if there are no more than twenty?”
The Lord answered, “I will not destroy it, for the sake of the twenty.”
But he still persisted:
“Please, let not my Lord grow angry if I speak up this last time.
What if there are at least ten there?”
He replied, “For the sake of those ten, I will not destroy it.”

Responsorial Psalm
Ps 138:1-2, 2-3, 6-7, 7-8

R. (3a) Lord, on the day I called for help, you answered me.

I will give thanks to you, O Lord, with all my heart,
for you have heard the words of my mouth;
in the presence of the angels I will sing your praise;
I will worship at your holy temple
and give thanks to your name.
R. Lord, on the day I called for help, you answered me.

Because of your kindness and your truth;
for you have made great above all things
your name and your promise.
When I called you answered me;
you built up strength within me.
R. Lord, on the day I called for help, you answered me.

The Lord is exalted, yet the lowly he sees,
and the proud he knows from afar.
Though I walk amid distress, you preserve me;
against the anger of my enemies you raise your hand.
R. Lord, on the day I called for help, you answered me.

Your right hand saves me.
The Lord will complete what he has done for me;
your kindness, O Lord, endures forever;
forsake not the work of your hands.
R. Lord, on the day I called for help, you answered me.

Reading II
Col 2:12-14

Brothers and sisters:
You were buried with him in baptism,
in which you were also raised with him
through faith in the power of God,
who raised him from the dead.
And even when you were dead
in transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh,
he brought you to life along with him,
having forgiven us all our transgressions;
obliterating the bond against us, with its legal claims,
which was opposed to us,
he also removed it from our midst, nailing it to the cross.

Gospel
Lk 11:1-13

Jesus was praying in a certain place, and when he had finished,
one of his disciples said to him,
“Lord, teach us to pray just as John taught his disciples.”
He said to them, “When you pray, say:
Father, hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come.
Give us each day our daily bread
and forgive us our sins
for we ourselves forgive everyone in debt to us,
and do not subject us to the final test.”

And he said to them, “Suppose one of you has a friend
to whom he goes at midnight and says,
‘Friend, lend me three loaves of bread,
for a friend of mine has arrived at my house from a journey
and I have nothing to offer him,’
and he says in reply from within,
‘Do not bother me; the door has already been locked
and my children and I are already in bed.
I cannot get up to give you anything.’
I tell you,
if he does not get up to give the visitor the loaves
because of their friendship,
he will get up to give him whatever he needs
because of his persistence.

“And I tell you, ask and you will receive;
seek and you will find;
knock and the door will be opened to you.
For everyone who asks, receives;
and the one who seeks, finds;
and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.
What father among you would hand his son a snake
when he asks for a fish?
Or hand him a scorpion when he asks for an egg?
If you then, who are wicked,
know how to give good gifts to your children,
how much more will the Father in heaven
give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him?”

Readings from the Jerusalem Bible

First reading Genesis 18:20 – 32

The Lord said, ‘How great an outcry there is against Sodom and Gomorrah! How grievous is their sin! I propose to go down and see whether or not they have done all that is alleged in the outcry against them that has come up to me. I am determined to know.’
The men left there and went to Sodom while Abraham remained standing before the Lord. Approaching him he said, ‘Are you really going to destroy the just man with the sinner? Perhaps there are fifty just men in the town. Will you really overwhelm them, will you not spare the place for the fifty just men in it? Do not think of doing such a thing: to kill the just man with the sinner, treating just and sinner alike! Do not think of it! Will the judge of the whole earth not administer justice?’ the Lord replied, ‘If at Sodom I find fifty just men in the town, I will spare the whole place because of them’.

Abraham replied, M am bold indeed to speak like this to my Lord, I who am dust and ashes. But perhaps the fifty just men lack five: will you destroy the whole city for five?’ ‘No,’ he replied ‘I will not destroy it if I find forty-five just men there.’ Again Abraham said to him, ‘Perhaps there will only be forty there’. ‘I will not do it’ he replied ‘for the sake of the forty.’

Abraham said, ‘I trust my Lord will not be angry, but give me leave to speak: perhaps there will only be thirty there’. ‘I will not do it’ he replied ‘if I find thirty there.’ He said, ‘I am bold indeed to speak like this, but perhaps there will only be twenty there’. ‘I will not destroy it’ he replied ‘for the sake of the twenty.’ He said, ‘I trust my Lord will not be angry if I speak once more: perhaps there will only be ten’. ‘I will not destroy it’ he replied ‘for the sake of the ten.’

Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 137(138):1-3,6-8

On the day I called, you answered me, O Lord.

I thank you, Lord, with all my heart:
  you have heard the words of my mouth.
In the presence of the angels I will bless you.
  I will adore before your holy temple.

On the day I called, you answered me, O Lord.

I thank you for your faithfulness and love,
  which excel all we ever knew of you.
On the day I called, you answered;
  you increased the strength of my soul.

On the day I called, you answered me, O Lord.

The Lord is high yet he looks on the lowly
  and the haughty he knows from afar.
Though I walk in the midst of affliction
  you give me life and frustrate my foes.

On the day I called, you answered me, O Lord.

You stretch out your hand and save me,
  your hand will do all things for me.
Your love, O Lord, is eternal,
  discard not the work of your hands.

On the day I called, you answered me, O Lord.

Second reading Colossians 2:12 – 14

You have been buried with Christ, when you were baptised; and by baptism, too, you have been raised up with him through your belief in the power of God who raised him from the dead. You were dead, because you were sinners and had not been circumcised: he has brought you to life with him, he has forgiven us all our sins.

He has overridden the Law, and cancelled every record of the debt that we had to pay; he has done away with it by nailing it to the cross.

Gospel Luke 11:1 – 13

Once Jesus was in a certain place praying, and when he had finished one of his disciples said, ‘Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples’. He said to them, ‘Say this when you pray:

“Father, may your name be held holy,
your kingdom come;
give us each day our daily bread,
and forgive us our sins,
for we ourselves forgive each one who is in debt to us.
And do not put us to the test.”’

He also said to them, ‘Suppose one of you has a friend and goes to him in the middle of the night to say, “My friend, lend me three loaves, because a friend of mine on his travels has just arrived at my house and I have nothing to offer him”; and the man answers from inside the house, “Do not bother me. The door is bolted now, and my children and I are in bed; I cannot get up to give it you”. I tell you, if the man does not get up and give it him for friendship’s sake, persistence will be enough to make him get up and give his friend all he wants.

‘So I say to you: Ask, and it will be given to you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you. For the one who asks always receives; the one who searches always finds; the one who knocks will always have the door opened to him. What father among you would hand his son a stone when he asked for bread? Or hand him a snake instead of a fish? Or hand him a scorpion if he asked for an egg? If you then, who are evil, know how to give your children what is good, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!’

Readings and Commentary from the Navarre Bible

17th Sunday in Ordinary Time

From: Genesis 18:20-32

Abraham Intercedes For Sodom (Continuation)
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[20] Then the Lord said, "Because the outcry again Sodom and Gomorrah is great and their sin is very grave, [21] I will go down to see whether they have done altogether according to the outcry which has come to me; and if not, I will know."

[22] So the men turned from there, and went toward Sodom; but Abraham still stood before the Lord. [23] Then Abraham drew near and said, "Wilt thou indeed destroy the righteous with the wicked? [24] Suppose there are fifty righteous within the city; wilt thou then destroy the place and not spare it for the fifty righteous who are in it? [25] Far be it from thee to do such a thing, to slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous fare as the wicked! Far be that from thee! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?" [26] And the Lord said, "If I find at Sodom fifty righteous in the city, I will spare the whole place for their sake." [27] Abraham answered, "Behold, I have taken upon myself to speak to the Lord, I who am but dust and ashes. [28] Suppose five of the fifty righteous are lacking? Wilt thou destroy the whole city for lack of five?" And he said, "I will not destroy it if I find forty-five there." [29] Again he spoke to him, and said, "Suppose forty are found there." He answered, "For the sake of forty I will not do it." [30] Then he said, "Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak. Suppose thirty are found there." He answered, "I will not do it, if I find thirty there." [31] He said, "Behold, I have taken upon myself to speak to the Lord. Suppose twenty are found there." He answered, "For the sake of twenty I will not destroy it." [32] Then he said, "Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak again but this once. Suppose ten are found there." He answered, "For the sake of ten I will not destroy it."

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Commentary:

18:16-33. When interceding for Sodom and Gomorrah, Abraham argues in terms of collective responsibility, as understood in ancient times in Israel: the entire people shared the same fate even though not all of them sinned, for the sin some affected all. According to that way of looking at things, if there were enough just people in the city (Abraham did not dare go below ten) God would not have destroyed it. This way of thinking also shows how the salvation of many (even if they are sinners) can come through the faithfulness of a few, thereby preparing the way to see how the salvation of all mankind is brought about by the obedience of one man alone, Jesus Christ.

The final outcome of this episode shows that, even though he destroys these cities, God saves the righteous who live in them. God does not punish the just man along with the sinner (as Abraham thought); a person is allowed to perish or is saved depending on his personal behavior. This truth, which is found in the Bible from the start, will be given special emphasis in the teaching of the prophets, particularly Jeremiah and Ezekiel (cf. Jer 31:29-30; Ezek 18), who stress individual and personal responsibility before God.

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From: Colossians 2:12-14

Defense of Sound Teaching in the Face of Heresy
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[Brothers and sisters], [12] and you were buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the working of God, who raised him from the dead. [13] And you, who were dead in trespasses and the uncir- cumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, [14] having canceled the bond which stood against us with its legal demands; this he set aside, nailing it to the cross.

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Commentary:

4-8. These verses reveal the Apostle's pastoral solicitude for the faithful of Colossae. Although physically absent, he is with them in spirit. He rejoices and gives thanks to God for their steadfastness, but he leaves them in no doubt about the dangers which threaten their faith. Clearly he is referring to those who were adulterating the Colossians' faith by intruding erroneous ideas. By sophistry and deceit they were trying to convince the faithful that it was better to have recourse to angels rather than to Christ, arguing that angels were the chief mediators between God and men.

The Christian faith is not opposed to human scholarship and science, it rejects only vain philosophy, that is, philosophy which boasts that it relies on reason alone and which fails to respect revealed truths.

Over the centuries, people have often tried to adapt the truths of faith to the philosophies or ideologies which happen to be in vogue. In this connection Leo XIII said: "As the Apostle warns, 'philosophy and empty deceit' can deceive the minds of Christians and corrupt the sincerity of men's faith; the supreme pastors of the Church, therefore, always see it as part of their role to foster as much as they can sciences which merit that name, and at the same time to ensure by special watchfulness, that human sciences are taught in keeping with the criteria of Catholic faith--particularly philosophy, because proper methodology in the other sciences is largely dependent on [correctness in] philosophy" ("Aeterni Patris", 1).

"The elemental spirits of the universe": see the note on Gal 4:3.

9. This is such an important verse that it deserves close analysis. "Dwell": the Greek word means a stable way of living or residing, as distinct from a transitory presence: in other words, the union of Christ's human nature with his divine nature is not just something which lasts for a while; it is permanent. "Deity": the Greek word can also be translated as "divinity"; in either case, the sentence means that God has taken up a human nature, in such a way that, although it was only the second divine Person, the Son, who became incarnate, by virtue of the unity of the divine essence, where one divine person is present the other two persons are also present.

This verse enunciates the profound mystery of the Incarnation in a different way to John 1:14: "And the word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth; we have beheld his glory; glory as of the only Son from the Father" (cf. al- so 1 in 1:1-2). When the sacred text says that in Christ "the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily", it means, St John of Avila explains, "that it does not dwell in him merely by grace, as in the case of the saints (men and angels both), but in another way of greater substance and value, that is, by way of personal union" ("Audi, "Filia", 84).

In Jesus Christ, then, there are two natures, divine and human, united in one person, who is divine. This "hypostatic union" does not prevent each nature from having all its own proper characteristics, for, as St Leo the Great defined, "the Word has not changed into flesh, nor has flesh changed into Word; but each remains, in a unity" ("Licet Per Nostros", 2).

10. Since Christ is head of angels and men, the head of all creation (cf. Eph 1: 10) and especially head of the Church (cf. Col 1:18), all fullness is said to reside in him (cf. note on Col 1:19). Hence, not only is he pre-eminent over all things but "he fills the Church, which is his body and fullness, with his divine gifts (cf. Eph 1:22-23), so that it may increase and attain to all the fullness of God (cf. Eph 3: 19)" (Vatican II, "Lumen Gentium", 7).

Union with Christ makes Christians sharers in his "fullness", that is, in divine grace (of which he is absolutely full and we have a partial share), in a word, in his perfections.

That is why the members of the Church who "through the sacraments are united in a hidden and real way to Christ" ("Lumen Gentium", 7) can attain the fullness of the Christian life.

It was very appropriate for St Paul to be instructing the Colossians in these truths at this time, because it put them on their guard against preachers who were arguing for exaggerated worship of angels, to the detriment of Christ's unique, preeminent mediation.

11-12. This is a reference to another error which the Judaizers were trying to spread at Colossae and which was already treated in detail in the letters to the Galatians and the Romans -- the idea that it was necessary for Christians to be circumcised. Physical circumcision affects the body, whereas what the Apostle, by analogy, calls "the circumcision of Christ", that is, Baptism, puts off the "body of flesh" (an expression which seems to refer to whatever is sinful in man). "We, who by means of (Christ) have reached God, have not been given fleshly circumcision but rather spiritual circumcision [...]; we receive it by the mercy of God in Baptism" (St Justin, "Dialogue with Trypho", 43, 2). "By the sacrament of Baptism, whenever it is properly conferred in the way the Lord determined and received with the proper dispositions of soul, man becomes truly incorporated into the crucified and glorified Christ and is reborn to a sharing of the divine life, as the Apostle says: [Col 2:12 follows]" (Vatican II, "Unitatis Redintegratio", 22).

As on other occasions (cf. Rom 6:4), St Paul, evoking the rite of immersion in water, speaks of Baptism as a kind of burial (a sure sign that someone has died to sin), and of resurrection to a new life, the life of grace. By this sacrament we are associated with Christ's death and burial so as to be able to rise with him. "Christ by his resurrection signified our new life, which was reborn out of the old death which submerged us in sin. This is what is brought about in us by the great sacrament of Baptism: all those who receive this grace die to sin [...] and are reborn to the new life" (St Augustine, "Enchiridion", 41-42).
13-14. This is one of the central teachings of the epistle -- that Jesus Christ is the only mediator between God and men. The basic purpose of his mediation is to reconcile men with God, through the forgiveness of their sins and the gift of the life of grace, which is a sharing in God's own life.

Verse 14 indicates how Christ achieved this purpose -- by dying on the Cross. All who were under the yoke of sin and the Law have been set free through his death.

The Mosaic Law, to which the scribes and Pharisees added so many precepts as to make it unbearable, had become (to use St Paul's comparison) like a charge sheet against man, because it imposed heavy burdens but did not provide the grace needed for bearing them. The Apostle very graphically says that this charge sheet or "bond" was set aside and nailed on the Cross -- making it perfectly clear to all that Christ made more than ample satisfaction for our crimes. "He has obliterated them," St John Chrysostom comments, "not simply crossed them out; he has obliterated them so effectively that no trace of them remains in our soul. He has completely canceled them out, he has nailed them to the Cross [...]. We were guilty and deserved the most rigorous of punishments because we were all of us in sin! What, then, does the Son of God do? By his death on the Cross he removes all our stains and exempts us from the punishment due to them. He takes our charge-sheet, nails it to the Cross through his own person and destroys it" ("Hom. on Col, ad loc.").

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From: Luke 11:1-13

The Our Father
----------------------
[1] He (Jesus) was praying in a certain place, and when He ceased, one of His disciples said to Him, "Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught His disciples." [2] And He said to them, "When you pray, say: 'Our Father, hallowed be Thy name. Thy Kingdom come. [3] Give us each day our daily bread; [4] and forgive us our sins, for we ourselves forgive every one who is indebted to us; and lead us not into temptation.'"

Effective Prayer
-----------------------
[5] And He (Jesus) said to them (the disciples), "Which of you who has a friend will go to him at midnight and say to him, 'Friend, lend me three loaves; [6] for a friend of mine has arrived on a journey, and I have nothing to set before him'; [7] and he will answer from within, 'Do not bother me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot get up and give you anything'? [8] I tell you, though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, yet because of his importunity he will rise and give him whatever he needs. [9] And I tell you, Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. [10] For every one who asks receives, and he who seeks find, and to him who knocks it will be opened. [11] What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; [12] or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? [13] If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the Heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!"

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Commentary:

1-4. St. Luke gives us a shorter form of the Lord's Prayer, or Our Father, than St. Matthew (6:9-13). In Matthew there are seven petitions, in Luke only four. Moreover, St. Matthew's version is given in the context of the Sermon on the Mount and specifically as part of Jesus' teaching on how to pray; St. Luke's is set in one of those occasions just after our Lord has been at prayer--two different contexts. There is nothing surprising about our Lord teaching the same thing on different occasions, not always using exactly the same words, not always at the same length, but always stressing the same basic points. Naturally, the Church uses the longer form of the Lord's Prayer, that of St. Matthew.

"When the disciples asked the Lord Jesus, 'Teach us to pray', He replied by saying the words of the 'Our Father', thereby giving a concrete model which is also a universal model. In fact, everything that can and must be said to the Father is contained in those seven requests which we all know by heart. There is such simplicity in them that even a child can learn them, but at the same time such depth that a whole life can be spent meditating on their meaning. Isn't that so? Does not each of those petitions deal with something essential to our life, directing it totally towards God the Father? Doesn't this prayer speak to us about 'our daily bread', 'forgiveness of our sins, since we forgive others' and about protecting us from 'temptation' and 'delivering us from evil?'" (John Paul II, "General Audience", 14 March 1979).

The first thing our Lord teaches us to ask for is the glorification of God and the coming of His Kingdom. That is what is really important--the Kingdom of God and His justice (cf. Matthew 6:33). Our Lord also wants us to pray confident that our Father will look after our material needs, for "your Heavenly Father knows that you need them all" (Matthew 6:32). However, the Our Father makes us aspire especially to possess the goods of the Holy Spirit, and invites us to seek forgiveness (and to forgive others) and to avoid the danger of sinning. Finally the Our Father emphasizes the importance of vocal prayer. "'Domine, doce nos orare. Lord teach us to pray!' And our Lord replied: 'When you pray say: "Pater noster, qui es in coelis"... Our Father, who art in Heaven...'. What importance we must attach to vocal prayer!" (St. J. Escriva, "The Way", 84).

1. Jesus often went away to pray (cf. Luke 6:12; 22:39ff). This practice of the Master causes His disciples to want to learn how to pray. Jesus teaches them to do what He Himself does. Thus, when our Lord prays, He begins with the Word "Father!": "Father, into Thy hands I commit My spirit" (Luke 23:46); see also Matthew 11:25; 26:42, 53; Luke 23:34; John 11:41; etc.). His prayer on the Cross, "My God, My God,..." (Matthew 27:46), is not really an exception to this rule, because there He is quoting Psalm 22, the desperate prayer of the persecuted just man.

Therefore, we can say that the first characteristic prayer should have is the simplicity of a son speaking to his Father. "You write: 'To pray is to talk with God. But about what?' About what? About Him, about yourself: joys, sorrows, successes, failures, noble ambitions, daily worries, weaknesses! And acts of thanksgiving and petition: and love and reparation. In a word: to get to know Him and to get to know yourself: 'to get acquainted!'" (St. J. Escriva, "The Way", 91).

2. "Hallowed be Thy name": in this first petition of the Our Father "we pray that God may be known, loved, honored and served by everyone and by ourselves in particular." This means that we want "unbelievers to come to a knowledge of the true God, heretics to recognize their errors, schismatics to return to the unity of the Church, sinners to be converted and the righteous to persevere in doing good." By this first petition, our Lord is teaching us that 'we must desire God's glory more than our own interest and advantage." This hallowing of God's name is attained "by prayer and good example and by directing all our thoughts, affections and actions towards Him" ("St. Pius X Catechism", 290-293).

"Thy Kingdom come": "By the Kingdom of God we understand a triple spiritual kingdom--the Kingdom of God in us, which is grace; the Kingdom of God on earth, which is the Catholic Church; and the Kingdom of God in Heaven, which is eternal bliss [...]. As regards grace, we pray that God reign in us with His sanctifying grace, by which He is pleased to dwell in us as a king in his throne-room, and that He keeps us united to Him by the virtues of faith, hope and charity, by which He reigns in our intellect, in our heart and in our will [...]. As regards the Church, we pray that it extend and spread all over the world for the salvation of men [...]. As regards Heaven, we pray that one day we be admitted to that eternal bliss for which we have been created, where we will be totally happy" ("ibid.", 294-297).

3. The Tradition of the Church usually interprets the "bread" as not only material bread, since "man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God" (Matthew 4:4; Deuteronomy 8:3). Here Jesus wants us to ask God for "what we need each day for soul and body [...]. For our soul we ask God to sustain our spiritual life, that is, we beg Him to give us His grace, of which we are continually in need [...]. The life of our soul is sustained mainly by the divine word and by the Blessed Sacrament of the Altar [...]. For our bodies we pray for what is needed to maintain us" ("St. Pius X Catechism", 302-305).

Christian doctrine stresses two ideas in this petition of the Our Father: the first is trust in Divine Providence, which frees us from excessive desire to accumulate possessions to insure us against the future (cf. Luke 12:16-21); the other idea is that we should take a brotherly interest in other people's needs, thereby moderating our selfish tendencies.

4. "So rigorously does God exact from us forgetfulness of injuries and mutual affection and love, that He rejects and despises the gifts and sacrifices of those who are not reconciled to one another" ("St. Pius V Catechism", IV, 14, 16).

"This sisters, is something which we should consider carefully; it is such a serious and important matter that God should pardon us our sins, which have merited eternal fire, that we must pardon all trifling things which have been done to us. As I have so few, Lord, even of these trifling things, to offer Thee, Thy pardoning of me must be a free gift: there is abundant scope here for Thy mercy. Blessed be Thou, who endurest one that is so poor" (St. Teresa of Avila, "Way of Perfection", Chapter 36).

"And lead us not into temptation": it is not a sin to "feel" temptation but to "consent" to temptation. It is also a sin to put oneself voluntarily into a situation which can easily lead one to sin. God allows us to be tempted, in order to test our fidelity, to exercise us in virtue and to increase our merits with the help of grace. In this petition we ask the Lord to give us His grace not to be overcome when put to the test, or to free us from temptation if we cannot cope with it.

5-10. One of the essential features of prayer is trusting perseverance. By this simple example and others like it (cf. Luke 18:1-7) our Lord encourages us not to desist in asking God to hear us. "Persevere in prayer. Persevere even when your efforts seem barren. Prayer is always fruitful" (St. J. Escriva, "The Way", 101).

9-10. Do you see the effectiveness of prayer when it is done properly? Are you not convinced like me that, if we do not obtain what we ask God for, it is because we are not praying with faith, with a heart pure enough, with enough con- fidence, or that we are not persevering in prayer the way we should? God has never refused nor will ever refuse anything to those who ask for His graces in the way they should. Prayer is the great recourse available to us to get out of sin, to persevere in grace, to move God's heart and to draw upon us all kinds of blessing from Heaven, whether for the soul or to meet our temporal needs" (St. John Mary Vianney, "Selected Sermons", Fifth Sunday after Easter).

11-13. Our Lord uses the example of human parenthood as a comparison to stress again the wonderful fact that God is our Father, for God's fatherhood is the source of parenthood in Heaven and on earth (cf. Ephesians 3:15). "The God of our faith is not a distant Being who contemplates indifferently the fate of men -- their desires, their struggles, their sufferings. He is a Father who loves His children so much that He sends the Word, the Second Person of the Most Blessed Trinity, so that by taking on the nature of man He may die to redeem us. He is the loving Father who now leads us gently to Himself, through the action of the Holy Spirit who dwells in our hearts" (St. J. Escriva, "Christ Is Passing By", p. 84).

13. The Holy Spirit is God's best gift to us, the great promise Christ gives His disciples (cf. John 5:26), the divine fire which descends on the Apostles at Pentecost, filling them with fortitude and freedom to proclaim Christ's message (Acts 2). "The profound reality which we see in the texts of Holy Scripture is not a remembrance from the past, from some golden age of the Church which has since been buried in history. Despite the weaknesses and the sins of every one of us, it is the reality of today's Church and the Church in all times. 'I will pray to the Father,' our Lord told His disciples, 'and He will give you another Counsellor to be with you for ever.' Jesus has kept His promise. He has risen from the dead and, in union with the eternal Father, He sends us the Holy Spirit to sanctify us and to give us life" (St. J. Escriva, "Christ Is Passing By", 12).

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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.

Saturday of the Sixteenth Week in Ordinary Time

400 Saturday of the Sixteenth Week in Ordinary Time

CCC Cross Reference:
Ex 24 2060; Ex 24:7 2060; Ex 24:8 613
Mt 13:24-30 827

Back to Deacon’s Bench '07
Back to SOW II '11
Back to SOW II '13
Back to SOW II '17 (Memorial of St. Martha)
Back to SOW II '19
Back to SOW II '21

Back to SOW II '23 (Memorial of St. Martha, Mary, and Lazarius)

Reading 1
Ex 24:3-8

When Moses came to the people
and related all the words and ordinances of the Lord,
they all answered with one voice,
“We will do everything that the Lord has told us.”
Moses then wrote down all the words of the Lord and,
rising early the next day,
he erected at the foot of the mountain an altar
and twelve pillars for the twelve tribes of Israel.
Then, having sent certain young men of the children of Israel
to offer burnt offerings and sacrifice young bulls
as peace offerings to the Lord,
Moses took half of the blood and put it in large bowls;
the other half he splashed on the altar.
Taking the book of the covenant, he read it aloud to the people,
who answered, “All that the Lord has said, we will heed and do.”
Then he took the blood and sprinkled it on the people, saying,
“This is the blood of the covenant
that the Lord has made with you
in accordance with all these words of his.”

Responsorial Psalm
Ps 50:1b-2, 5-6, 14-15

R. (14a) Offer to God a sacrifice of praise.

God the Lord has spoken and summoned the earth,
from the rising of the sun to its setting.
From Zion, perfect in beauty,
God shines forth.
R. Offer to God a sacrifice of praise.

“Gather my faithful ones before me,
those who have made a covenant with me by sacrifice.”
And the heavens proclaim his justice;
for God himself is the judge.
R. Offer to God a sacrifice of praise.

“Offer to God praise as your sacrifice
and fulfill your vows to the Most High;
Then call upon me in time of distress;
I will rescue you, and you shall glorify me.”
R. Offer to God a sacrifice of praise.

Gospel
Mt 13:24-30

Jesus proposed a parable to the crowds.
“The Kingdom of heaven may be likened to a man
who sowed good seed in his field.
While everyone was asleep his enemy came
and sowed weeds all through the wheat, and then went off.
When the crop grew and bore fruit, the weeds appeared as well.
The slaves of the householder came to him and said,
‘Master, did you not sow good seed in your field?
Where have the weeds come from?’
He answered, ‘An enemy has done this.’
His slaves said to him, ‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’
He replied, ‘No, if you pull up the weeds
you might uproot the wheat along with them.
Let them grow together until harvest;
then at harvest time I will say to the harvesters,
“First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles for burning;
but gather the wheat into my barn.”’

Readings from the Jerusalem Bible

First reading Exodus 24:3 – 8

Moses went and told the people all the commands of the Lord and all the ordinances. In answer, all the people said with one voice, ‘We will observe all the commands that the Lord has decreed’. Moses put all the commands of the Lord into writing, and early next morning he built an altar at the foot of the mountain, with twelve standing-stones for the twelve tribes of Israel. Then he directed certain young Israelites to offer holocausts and to immolate bullocks to the Lord as communion sacrifices. Half of the blood Moses took up and put into basins, the other half he cast on the altar. And taking the Book of the Covenant he read it to the listening people, and they said, ‘We will observe all that the Lord has decreed; we will obey.’ Then Moses took the blood and cast it towards the people. This’ he said ‘is the blood of the Covenant that the Lord has made with you, containing all these rules.’

Responsorial Psalm:
Psalm 49(50):1-2,5-6,14-15

Pay your sacrifice of thanksgiving to God.

The God of gods, the Lord,
  has spoken and summoned the earth,
from the rising of the sun to its setting.
  Out of Zion’s perfect beauty he shines.

Pay your sacrifice of thanksgiving to God.

‘Summon before me my people
  who made covenant with me by sacrifice.’
The heavens proclaim his justice,
  for he, God, is the judge.

Pay your sacrifice of thanksgiving to God.

Pay your sacrifice of thanksgiving to God
  and render him your votive offerings.
Call on me in the day of distress.
  I will free you and you shall honour me.’

Pay your sacrifice of thanksgiving to God.

Gospel Matthew 13:24 – 30

Jesus put another parable before them, ‘The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field. While everybody was asleep his enemy came, sowed darnel all among the wheat, and made off. When the new wheat sprouted and ripened, the darnel appeared as well. The owner’s servants went to him and said, “Sir, was it not good seed that you sowed in your field? If so, where does the darnel come from?” “Some enemy has done this” he answered. And the servants said, “Do you want us to go and weed it out?” But he said, “No, because when you weed out the darnel you might pull up the wheat with it. Let them both grow till the harvest; and at harvest time I shall say to the reapers: First collect the darnel and tie it in bundles to be burnt, then gather the wheat into my barn.”’

Readings and Commentary from the Navarre Bible

Saturday of the 16th Week in Ordinary Time

From: Exodus 24:3-8

A sacred meal and sprinkling with blood
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[3] Moses came and told the people all the words of the LORD and all the ordinances; and all the people answered with one voice, and said, "All the words which the LORD has spoken we will do.” [4] And Moses wrote all the words of the LORD. And he rose early in the morning, and built an altar at the foot of the mountain, and twelve pillars, according to the twelve tribes of Israel. [5] And he sent young men of the people of Israel, who offered burnt offerings and sacrificed peace offerings of oxen to the LORD. [6] And Moses took half of the blood and put it in basins, and half of the blood he threw against the altar. [7] Then he took the book of the covenant, and read it in the hearing of the people; and they said, "All that the LORD has spoken we will do, and we will be obedient.” [8] And Moses took the blood and threw it upon the people, and said, "Behold the blood of the covenant which the LORD has made with you in accordance with all these words.”

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Commentary:

24:-18. It was common practice for those peoples to ratify pacts by means of a rite or a meal. This section recounts a meal or rite whereby the Covenant was sealed. This event is very important for salvation history: it prefigures the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, which brought in the New Covenant.

The usual interpretation is that there were two stages in this ratification -- first involving Moses and the elders, that is, authorities (vv. 1-2, 9-11) and then the entire people (vv. 3-8). Other commentators think that there was only one ceremony, relayed by two different traditions. In both cases the final editor has tried to make it clear that both the leaders and the people themselves took part in and formally accepted the divine Covenant and all it laid down.

24:1-11. Nabab and Abihu are priests of Aaron’s line (cf. 6:33; 28:1; Lev 10:1-2); the elders represent the people on important matters. The ceremony takes place on the top of the mountain, which all the leaders ascended – Moses; the priests, holders of religious authority; and the elders, that is, the civil and legal authorities (cf. 18:21-26).

Only Moses has direct access to God (v. 2), but all are able to see God without dying: what they see far outstrips in brilliance and luxury the great palaces and temples of the East (cf. the vision of Isaiah in Is 6:10). In fact, they all share the same table with God (v. 11): the description is reminiscent of a royal banquet, in which the guests are treated on a par with the host: thus, the king of Babylonia will show his benevolence to King Jehoiachin by having him as his dinner guest (cf. 2 Kings 25:27-30). But it is, above all, a ritual banquet in which sharing the same table shows the intimate relationship that exists between God and the leaders of the people, and shows too that both parties are mutually responsible for the covenant now being sealed.

24:3-8. The ceremony takes place on the 'slope of the mountain; Moses alone is the intermediary; but the protagonists are God and his people. The ceremony has two parts -- the reading and accepting of the clauses of the Covenant (vv. 3-4), that is, the Words (Decalogue) and the laws (the so-called Code of the Covenant); then comes the offering which seals the pact.

The acceptance of the clauses is done with all due solemnity, using the ritual formula: "all the words which the Lord has spoken we will do”. The people, who have already made this commitment (19:8), now repeat it after listening to Moses’ address (v. 3) and just before being sprinkled with the blood of the offering. The binding force of the pact is thereby assured,

The offering has some very ancient features -- the altar specially built for the occasion (v. 4; cf. 20:25); the twelve pillars, probably set around the altar; the young men, not priests, making the offerings; and particularly the sprinkling with blood which is at the very core of the rite.

The dividing of the blood in two (one half for the altar which represents God, and the other for the people) means that both commit themselves to the requirements of the Covenant. There is evidence that nomadic peoples used to seal their pacts with the blood of sacrificed animals. But there are no traces in the Bible of blood being used in that way. This rite probably has deeper significance: given that blood, which stands for life (cf. Gen 4), belongs to God alone, it must only be poured on the altar or used to anoint people who are consecrated to God, such as priests (cf. Ex 29:19-22). When Moses sprinkled the blood of the offering on to the entire people, he was consecrating it, making it divine property and "a kingdom of priests” (cf. 19:3-6). The Covenant therefore is not only a commitment to obey its precepts but, particularly, the right to belong to the holy nation, which is God’s possession. At the Last Supper, when instituting the Eucharist, Jesus uses the very same terms, "blood of the Covenant”, thereby indicating the nature of the new people of God who, having been redeemed, is fully "the holy people of God” (cf. Mt 26:27 and par.; 1 Cor 11:23-25).

The Second Vatican Council has this to say about the connexion between the New and Old Covenants, pointing out that the Church is the true people of God: "God chose the Israelite race to be his own people and established a covenant with it. He gradually instructed this people -- in its history manifesting both himself and the decree of his will -- and made it holy unto himself. All these things, however, happened as a preparation and figure of that new and perfect covenant which was to be ratified in Christ, and of the fuller revelation which was to be given through the Word of God made flesh. […] Christ instituted this new covenant, namely the new covenant in his blood (cf. 1 Cor 11:25); he called a race made up of Jews and Gentiles which would he one, not according to the flesh, but in the Spirit, and this race would he the new People of God” (Lumen gentium, 4 and 9).

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From: Matthew 13:24-30

The Parable of the Weeds
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[24] Another parable he (Jesus) put before them, saying, "The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field; [25] but while men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away. [26] So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared also. [27] And the servants of the householder came and said to him, 'Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then has it weeds?' [28] He said to them, 'An enemy has done this.' The servants said to him, 'Then do you want us to go and gather them?' [29] But he said, 'No; lest in gathering the weeds you root up the wheat along with them. [30] Let both grow together until the harvest; and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, "Gather the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.'"

The Mustard Seed; The Leaven
---------------------------------------------
[31] Another parable He put before them saying, "The Kingdom of Heaven is like a grain of mustard seed which a man took and sowed in his field; [32] it is the smallest of all seeds, but when it has grown it is the greatest of shrubs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches."

[33] He told them another parable. "The Kingdom of Heaven is like a leaven which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal, till it was all leavened."

[34] All this Jesus said to the crowds in parables; indeed He said nothing to them without a parable. [35] This was to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet: "I will open my mouth in parables, I will utter what has been hidden since the foundation of the world."

The Parable of the Weeds Explained
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[36] Then He left the crowds and went into the house. And His disciples came to Him, saying, "Explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field." [37] He answered, "He who sows the good seed is the Son of Man; [38] the field is the world, and the good seed means the sons of the Kingdom; the weeds are the sons of the evil one, [39] and the enemy who sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the close of the age, and the reapers are angels. [40] Just as the weeds are gathered and burned with fire, so will it be at the close of the age. [41] The Son of Man will send His angels, and they will gather out of His Kingdom all causes of sin and evildoers, [42] and throw them out into the furnace of fire; there men will weep and gnash their teeth. [43] Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the Kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear."

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Commentary:

24-25. "The situation is clear: the field is fertile and the seed is good; the Lord of the field has scattered the seed at the right moment and with great skill. He even has watchmen to make sure that the field is protected. If, afterwards, there are weeds among the wheat, it is because men have failed to respond, because they--and Christians in particular--have fallen asleep and allowed the enemy to approach" (St. J. Escriva, "Christ Is Passing By", 123).

25. This weed--cockle--looks very like wheat and can easily be mistaken for it until the ears appear. If it gets ground up with wheat it contaminates the flour and any bread made from that flour causes severe nausea when eaten. In the East personal vengeance sometimes took the form of sowing cockle among an enemy's wheat. Roman law prescribed penalties for this crime.

28. "When the careless servants ask the Lord why weeds have grown in his field, the explanation is obvious: 'inimicus homo hoc fecit: an enemy has done this.' We Christians should have been on guard to make sure that the good things placed in this world by the Creator were developed in the service of truth and good. But we have fallen asleep--a sad thing, that sluggishness of our heart while the enemy and all those who serve him worked incessantly. You can see how the weeds have grown abundantly everywhere" (St. J. Escriva, "Christ Is Passing By", 123).

29-30. The end of this parable gives a symbolic explanation of why God allows evil to have its way for a time--and for its ultimate extirpation. Evil is to run its course on earth until the end of time; therefore, we should not be scandalized by the presence of evil in the world. It will be obliterated not in this life, but after death; at the Judgment (the harvest) the good will go to Heaven and the bad to Hell.

31-32. Here, the man is Jesus Christ and the field, the world. The grain of mustard seed is the preaching of the Gospel and the Church, which from very small beginnings will spread throughout the world.

The parable clearly refers to the universal scope and spread of the Kingdom of God: the Church, which embraces all mankind of every kind and condition, in every latitude and in all ages, is forever developing in spite of obstacles, thanks to God's promise and aid.

33. This comparison is taken from everyday experience: just as leaven gradually ferments all the dough, so the Church spreads to convert all nations.

The leaven is also a symbol of the individual Christian. Living in the middle of the world and retaining his Christian quality, he wins souls for Christ by his word and example: "Our calling to be children of God, in the midst of the world, requires us not only to seek our own personal holiness, but also to go out onto all the ways of the earth, to convert them into roadways that will carry souls over all obstacles and lead them to the Lord. As we take part in all temporal activities as ordinary citizens, we are to become leaven acting on the mass" (St. J. Escriva, "Christ Is Passing By", 120).

34-35. Revelation, God's plans, are hidden (cf. Matthew 11:25) from those who are disposed to accept them. The Evangelist wishes to emphasize the need for simplicity and for docility to the Gospel. By recalling Psalm 78:2, he tells us once more, under divine inspiration, that the Old Testament prophecies find their fulfillment in our Lord's preaching.

36-43. While making its way on earth, the Church is composed of good and bad people, just men and sinners: they are mixed in with one another until the harvest time, the end of the world, when the Son of Man, in His capacity as Judge of the living and the dead, will divide the good from the bad at the Last Judgment--the former going to eternal glory, the inheritance of the saints; the latter, to the eternal fire of Hell. Although the just and the sinners are now side by side, the Church has the right and the duty to exclude those who cause scandal, especially those who attack its doctrine and unity; this it can do through ecclesiastical excommunication and other canonical penalties. However, excommunication has a medicinal and pastoral function—to correct those who are obstinate in error, and to protect others from them.

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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.