CCC Cross Reference:
Ps 105:3 30
Lk 18:1-8 2573, 2613; Lk 18:1 2098; Lk 18:8 675
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Reading 1
Wis 18:14-16; 19:6-9
When peaceful stillness compassed everything
and the night in its swift course was half spent,
Your all-powerful word, from heaven’s royal throne
bounded, a fierce warrior, into the doomed land,
bearing the sharp sword of your inexorable decree.
And as he alighted, he filled every place with death;
he still reached to heaven, while he stood upon the earth.
For all creation, in its several kinds, was being made over anew,
serving its natural laws,
that your children might be preserved unharmed.
The cloud overshadowed their camp;
and out of what had before been water, dry land was seen emerging:
Out of the Red Sea an unimpeded road,
and a grassy plain out of the mighty flood.
Over this crossed the whole nation sheltered by your hand,
after they beheld stupendous wonders.
For they ranged about like horses,
and bounded about like lambs,
praising you, O Lord! their deliverer.
Responsorial Psalm
Ps 105:2-3, 36-37, 42-43
R. (5a) Remember the marvels the Lord has done!
or:
R. Alleluia.
Sing to him, sing his praise,
proclaim all his wondrous deeds.
Glory in his holy name;
rejoice, O hearts that seek the Lord!
R. Remember the marvels the Lord has done!
or:
R. Alleluia.
Then he struck every first.born throughout their land,
the first fruits of all their manhood.
And he led them forth laden with silver and gold,
with not a weakling among their tribes.
R. Remember the marvels the Lord has done!
or:
R. Alleluia.
For he remembered his holy word
to his servant Abraham.
And he led forth his people with joy;
with shouts of joy, his chosen ones.
R. Remember the marvels the Lord has done!
or:
R. Alleluia.
Gospel
Lk 18:1-8
Jesus told his disciples a parable
about the necessity for them to pray always without becoming weary.
He said, “There was a judge in a certain town
who neither feared God nor respected any human being.
And a widow in that town used to come to him and say,
‘Render a just decision for me against my adversary.’
For a long time the judge was unwilling, but eventually he thought,
‘While it is true that I neither fear God nor respect any human being,
because this widow keeps bothering me
I shall deliver a just decision for her
lest she finally come and strike me.’”
The Lord said, “Pay attention to what the dishonest judge says.
Will not God then secure the rights of his chosen ones
who call out to him day and night?
Will he be slow to answer them?
I tell you, he will see to it that justice is done for them speedily.
But when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?”
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
First reading Wisdom 18:14 - 19:19
When peaceful silence lay over all,
and night had run the half of her swift course,
down from the heavens, from the royal throne, leapt your all-powerful Word;
into the heart of a doomed land the stern warrior leapt.
Carrying your unambiguous command like a sharp sword,
he stood, and filled the universe with death;
he touched the sky, yet trod the earth.
For, to keep your children from all harm,
The whole creation, obedient to your commands,
was once more, and newly, fashioned in its nature.
Overshadowing the camp there was the cloud,
where water had been, dry land was seen to rise,
the Red Sea became an unimpeded way,
the tempestuous flood a green plain;
sheltered by your hand, the whole nation passed across,
gazing at these amazing miracles.
They were like horses at pasture,
they skipped like lambs,
singing your praises, Lord, their deliverer.
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 104(105):2-3,36-37,42-43
Remember the wonders the Lord has done.
or
Alleluia!
O sing to him, sing his praise;
tell all his wonderful works!
Be proud of his holy name,
let the hearts that seek the Lord rejoice.
Remember the wonders the Lord has done.
or
Alleluia!
He struck all the first-born in their land,
the finest flower of their sons.
He led out Israel with silver and gold.
In his tribes were none who fell behind.
Remember the wonders the Lord has done.
or
Alleluia!
For he remembered his holy word,
which he gave to Abraham his servant.
So he brought out his people with joy,
his chosen ones with shouts of rejoicing.
Remember the wonders the Lord has done.
or
Alleluia!
Gospel Luke 18:1 – 8
Then Jesus told them a parable about the need to pray continually and never lose heart. ‘There was a judge in a certain town’ he said ‘who had neither fear of God nor respect for man. In the same town there was a widow who kept on coming to him and saying, “I want justice from you against my enemy!” For a long time he refused, but at last he said to himself, “Maybe I have neither fear of God nor respect for man, but since she keeps pestering me I must give this widow her just rights, or she will persist in coming and worry me to death”.’
And the Lord said ‘You notice what the unjust judge has to say? Now will not God see justice done to his chosen who cry to him day and night even when he delays to help them? I promise you, he will see justice done to them, and done speedily. But when the Son of Man comes, will he find any faith on earth?’
Readings and Commentary from the Navarre Bible
Saturday of the 32nd Week in Ordinary Time
From: Wisdom 18:14-16; 19:6-9
[14] For while gentle silence enveloped all things, and night in its swift course
was now half gone,
Passover Night
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[15] Thy all-powerful word leaped from heaven, from the royal throne, into the midst of the land that was doomed, a stern warrior [16] carrying the sharp sword of thy authentic command, and stood and filled all things with death, and touched heaven while standing on the earth.
The Crossing of the Red Sea (Continuation)
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[6] For the whole creation in its nature was fashioned anew, complying with thy commands, that thy children might be kept unharmed. [7] The cloud was seen overshadowing the camp, and dry land emerging where water had stood before, an unhindered way out of the Red, Sea, and a grassy plain out of the raging waves, [8] where those protected by thy hand passed through as one nation, after gazing on marvellous wonders. [9] For they ranged like horses, and leaped like lambs, praising thee, 0 Lord, who didst deliver them.
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Commentary:
18:14-16. In these lovely verses, the sacred writer gives a poetic rendering of God's doings on the night of the Passover. They constitute an epic poem embedded in the (also poetic) account of the escape from Egypt. It is easy to see that this passage evokes the episode of the destroying angel who wreaked havoc in Jerusalem in the time of David (1 Chron 21:15-22:1). The warrior-Word, descending from heaven, carries the sword that executes the irrevocable sentence. This impressive scene may have had some influence on the description of the defeat of the beast" in the book of Revelation (cf. Rev 19:11-21). In another sense, as the personified Word that links heaven and earth (cf. v. 16), the tradition of the Church applied these verses to the incarnation of our Lord, and the liturgy uses them as the entrance antiphon for the Mass on the fourth day of the octave of Christmas.
19:1-9. God is rich in mercy (cf. 2 Sam 24:14; Neh 9:19; Ps 119:156; Is 54:7; etc.) and quick to forgive those who repent; but his mercy has its limits for those who persist in doing evil. This happens in the case of the Egyptians who, after allowing the Israelites to go, revert to their wicked policy and pursue them, thereby ensuring their own defeat (vv. 1-4). The punishment that overtook them is not the outcome of blind fate ("anagké"); on the contrary, it is "the fate they deserved" ("axia anagké"). The miraculous nature of the events is underlined by the writer when he says that their punishment for obstinacy in sin and God's determination to deliver the Israelites cause God to change the course of nature by acting with a power similar to that which he showed when creating the world (v. 6). It is like a retelling of the first account of creation in Genesis 1 in which the dry land emerges from the waters and vegetation begins to appear (vv. 7-8). The underlying idea is that the Exodus was a kind of new creation.
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From: Luke 18:1-8
Persevering Prayer. Parable of the Unjust Judge
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[1] And He (Jesus) told them a parable, to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart. [2] He said, "In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor regarded man; [3] and there was a widow in that city who kept coming to him saying, 'Vindicate me against my adversary.' [4] For a while he refused; but afterward he said to himself, 'Though I neither fear God nor regard man, [5] yet because this widow bothers me, I will vindicate her, or she will wear me out by her continual coming.'" [6] And the Lord said, "hear what the unrighteous judge says. [7] And will not God vindicate His elect, who cry to Him day and night? Will He delay long over them? [8] I tell you, He will vindicate them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?"
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Commentary:
1-8. The parable of the unjust judge is a very eloquent lesson about the effectiveness of persevering, confident prayer. It also forms a conclusion to Jesus' teaching about watchfulness, contained in the previous verses (17:23-26). Comparing God with a person like this makes the point even clearer: if even an unjust judge ends up giving justice to the man who keeps on pleading his case, how much more will God, who is infinitely just, and who is our Father, listen to the persevering prayer of His children. God, in other words, gives justice to His elect if they persist in seeking His help.
1. "They ought always to pray and not lose heart." Why must we pray? "1. We must pray first and foremost because we are believers. "Prayer is in fact the recognition of our limitation and our dependence: we come from God, we belong to God and we return to God! We cannot, therefore, but abandon ourselves to Him, our Creator and Lord, with full and complete confidence [...]. "Prayer, therefore, is first of all an act of intelligence, a feeling of humility and gratitude, an attitude of trust and abandonment to Him who gave us life out of love. "Prayer is a mysterious but real dialogue with God, a dialogue of confidence and love.
"2. We, however, are Christians, and therefore we must pray as Christians. "For the Christian, in fact, prayer acquires a particular characteristic, which completely changes its innermost nature and innermost value. The Christian is a disciple of Jesus; he is one who really believes that Jesus is the Word Incarnate, the Son of God who came among us on this earth. "As a man, the life of Jesus was a continual prayer, a continual act of worship and love of the Father and since the maximum expression of prayer is sacrifice, the summit of Jesus' prayer is the Sacrifice of the Cross, anticipated by the Eucharist at the Last Supper and handed down by means of the Holy Mass throughout the centuries. "Therefore, the Christian knows that his prayer is that of Jesus; every prayer of his starts from Jesus; it is He who prays in us, with us, for us. All those who believe in God, pray; but the Christian prays in Jesus Christ: Christ is our prayer!
"3. Finally, we must pray because we are frail and guilty. "It must be humbly and realistically recognized that we are poor creatures, confused in ideas, tempted by evil, frail and weak, in continual need of inner strength and consolation. Prayer gives the strength for great ideas, to maintain faith, charity, purity and generosity. Prayer gives the courage to emerge from indifference and guilt, if unfortunately one has yielded to temptation and weakness. Prayer gives light to see and consider the events of one's own life and of history in the salvific perspective of God and eternity. Therefore, do not stop praying! Let not a day pass without your having prayed a little! Prayer is a duty, but it is also a great joy, because it is a dialogue with God through Jesus Christ! Every Sunday, Holy Mass: if it is possible for you, sometimes during the week. Every day, morning and evening prayers, and at the most suitable moments!" (Bl. John Paul II, Audience with Young People, 14 March 1979).
8. Jesus combines His teaching about perseverance in prayer with a serious warning about the need to remain firm in the faith: faith and prayer go hand in hand. St. Augustine comments, "In order to pray, let us believe; and for our faith not to weaken, let us pray. Faith causes prayer to grow, and when prayer grows our faith is strengthened" ("Sermon", 115).
Our Lord has promised His Church that it will remain true to its mission until the end of time (cf. Matthew 28:20); the Church, therefore, cannot go off the path of the true faith. But not everyone will remain faithful: some will turn their backs on the faith of their own accord. This is the mystery which St. Paul describes as the rebellion" (2 Thessalonians 2:3) and which Jesus Christ announces on other occasions (cf. Matthew 24:12-13). In this way our Lord warns us, to help us stay watchful and persevere in the faith and in prayer even though people around us fall away.
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Source: "The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries". Biblical text from the Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.
Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and by Scepter Publishers in the United States. We encourage readers to purchase The Navarre Bible for personal study. See Scepter Publishers for details.
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