CCC Cross Reference:
1 Cor 1:27 489; 1 Cor 1:30 2813
Mt 25:14-30 546, 1936; Mt 25:21 1029, 1720, 2683; Mt 25:23 1029, 1720
Back to Deacon’s Bench '08
Back to SOW II '10
Back to SOW II '12
Back to SOW II '14
Back to SOW II '16
Back to SOW II '18
Back to SOW II '20 Passion of St. John the Baptist 634
Back to SOW II '22
Reading 1
1 Cor 1:26-31
Consider your own calling, brothers and sisters.
Not many of you were wise by human standards,
not many were powerful,
not many were of noble birth.
Rather, God chose the foolish of the world to shame the wise,
and God chose the weak of the world to shame the strong,
and God chose the lowly and despised of the world,
those who count for nothing,
to reduce to nothing those who are something,
so that no human being might boast before God.
It is due to him that you are in Christ Jesus,
who became for us wisdom from God,
as well as righteousness, sanctification, and redemption,
so that, as it is written,
Whoever boasts, should boast in the Lord.
Responsorial Psalm
Ps 33:12-13, 18-19, 20-21
R. (12) Blessed the people the Lord has chosen to be his own.
Blessed the nation whose God is the Lord,
the people he has chosen for his own inheritance.
From heaven the Lord looks down;
he sees all mankind.
R. Blessed the people the Lord has chosen to be his own.
But see, the eyes of the Lord are upon those who fear him,
upon those who hope for his kindness,
To deliver them from death
and preserve them in spite of famine.
R. Blessed the people the Lord has chosen to be his own.
Our soul waits for the Lord,
who is our help and our shield,
For in him our hearts rejoice;
in his holy name we trust.
R. Blessed the people the Lord has chosen to be his own.
Gospel
Mt 25:14-30
Jesus told his disciples this parable:
“A man going on a journey
called in his servants and entrusted his possessions to them.
To one he gave five talents; to another, two; to a third, one–
to each according to his ability.
Then he went away.
Immediately the one who received five talents went and traded with them,
and made another five.
Likewise, the one who received two made another two.
But the man who received one went off and dug a hole in the ground
and buried his master’s money.
After a long time
the master of those servants came back and settled accounts with them.
The one who had received five talents
came forward bringing the additional five.
He said, ‘Master, you gave me five talents.
See, I have made five more.’
His master said to him, ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant.
Since you were faithful in small matters,
I will give you great responsibilities.
Come, share your master’s joy.’
Then the one who had received two talents also came forward and said,
‘Master, you gave me two talents.
See, I have made two more.’
His master said to him, ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant.
Since you were faithful in small matters,
I will give you great responsibilities.
Come, share your master’s joy.’
Then the one who had received the one talent came forward and said,
‘Master, I knew you were a demanding person,
harvesting where you did not plant
and gathering where you did not scatter;
so out of fear I went off and buried your talent in the ground.
Here it is back.’
His master said to him in reply, ‘You wicked, lazy servant!
So you knew that I harvest where I did not plant
and gather where I did not scatter?
Should you not then have put my money in the bank
so that I could have got it back with interest on my return?
Now then! Take the talent from him and give it to the one with ten.
For to everyone who has,
more will be given and he will grow rich;
but from the one who has not,
even what he has will be taken away.
And throw this useless servant into the darkness outside,
where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.’”
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
First reading 1 Corinthians 1:26 – 31
Take yourselves for instance, brothers, at the time when you were called: how many of you were wise in the ordinary sense of the word, how many were influential people, or came from noble families? No, it was to shame the wise that God chose what is foolish by human reckoning, and to shame what is strong that he chose what is weak by human reckoning; those whom the world thinks common and contemptible are the ones that God has chosen – those who are nothing at all to show up those who are everything. The human race has nothing to boast about to God, but you, God has made members of Christ Jesus and by God’s doing he has become our wisdom, and our virtue, and our holiness, and our freedom. As scripture says: if anyone wants to boast, let him boast about the Lord.
Responsorial Psalm:
Psalm 32(33):12-13,18-21
Happy the people the Lord has chosen as his own.
They are happy, whose God is the Lord,
the people he has chosen as his own.
From the heavens the Lord looks forth,
he sees all the children of men.
Happy the people the Lord has chosen as his own.
The Lord looks on those who revere him,
on those who hope in his love,
to rescue their souls from death,
to keep them alive in famine.
Happy the people the Lord has chosen as his own.
Our soul is waiting for the Lord.
The Lord is our help and our shield.
In him do our hearts find joy.
We trust in his holy name.
Happy the people the Lord has chosen as his own.
Gospel Matthew 25:14 – 30
Jesus said, ‘The kingdom of Heaven is like a man on his way abroad who summoned his servants and entrusted his property to them. To one he gave five talents, to another two, to a third is one; each in proportion to his ability. Then he set out. The man who had received the five talents promptly went and traded with them and made five more. The man who had received two made two more in the same way. But the man who had received one went off and dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money. Now a long time after, the master of those servants came back and went through his accounts with them. The man who had received the five talents came forward bringing five more. “Sir,” he said “you entrusted me with five talents; here are five more that I have made.” His master said to him, “Well done, good and faithful servant; you have shown you can be faithful in small things, I will trust you with greater; come and join in your master’s happiness.” Next the man with the two talents came forward. “Sir,” he said “you entrusted me with two talents; here are two more that I have made.” His master said to him, “Well done, good and faithful servant; you have shown you can be faithful in small things, I will trust you with greater; come and join in your master’s happiness.” Last came forward the man who had the one talent. “Sir,” said he “I had heard you were a hard man, reaping where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered; so I was afraid, and I went off and hid your talent in the ground. Here it is; it was yours, you have it back.” But his master answered him, “You wicked and lazy servant! So you knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered? Well then, you should have deposited my money with the bankers, and on my return I would have recovered my capital with interest. So now, take the talent from him and give it to the man who has the five talents. For to everyone who has will be given more, and he will have more than enough; but from the man who has not, even what he has will be taken away. As for this good-for-nothing servant, throw him out into the dark, where there will be weeping and grinding of teeth.”’
Readings and Commentary from the Navarre Bible
Saturday of the 21st Week in Ordinary Time
From: 1 Corinthians 1:26-31
The Wisdom of the Cross (Continuation)
----------------------------------------------------------
[26] For consider your call, brethren; not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth; [27] but God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise, God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong. [28] God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, [29] so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. [30] He is the source of your life in Christ Jesus, whom God made our wisdom, our righteousness and sanctification and redemption; [31] therefore, as it is written, "Let him who boasts, boast of the Lord."
*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:
26-29. As in the case of the Apostles--"You did not choose me, but I chose you'. (Jn 15:16)--it is the Lord who chooses, who gives each Christian his vocation. St Paul emphasizes that the initiative lies with God by saying three times that it was God who chose those Corinthians to be Christians, and he did not base his choice on human criteria. Human wisdom, power, nobility, these were not what brought them to the faith--nor the inspirations which God later gives. "God is no respecter of persons (cf. 2 Chron 19:7; Rom 2:1; Eph 6:9; Col 3:25; etc.)", St. J. Escriva reminds us. "When he invites a soul to live a life fully in accordance with the faith, he does not set store by merits of fortune, nobility, blood or learning. God's call precedes all merits [...]. Vocation comes first. God loves us before we even know how to go toward him, and he places in us the love with which we can respond to his call" ("Christ Is Passing By", 33).
Thus, God chooses whomever he wants to, and these first Christians -- uneducated, unimportant, even despised people, in the world's eyes--will be what he uses to spread his Church and convert the wise, the strong and the "important": this disproportion between resources and results will make it quite clear that God is responsible for the increase.
However, this does not mean that none of the first Christians was educated or influential, humanly speaking. The Acts of the Apostles, for example, tell us about early converts who were out of the ordinary--a minister of the court of the Kandake of Ethiopia; a centurion, Cornelius; Apollos; Dionysius the Areopagite; etc. "It would appear that worldly excellence is not godly unless God uses it for his honor. And therefore, although at the beginning they were indeed few, later God chose many humanly outstanding people for the ministry of preaching. Hence the gloss which says, 'If the fisherman had not faithfully led the way, the orator would not have humbly followed'" (St Thomas Aquinas, "Commentary on 1 Cor, ad loc.").
27. St Paul's words remind us that supernatural resources are the thing an apostle must rely on. It is true that human resources are necessary, and God counts on them (cf. 1 Cor 3:5-10); but the task God has commended to Christians exceeds their abilities and can be carried out only with his help. The Second Vatican Council reminded priests of this verse when stressing the need for humility; and what it says can be useful to all Christians: "The divine task for the fulfillment of which they have been set apart by the Holy Spirit (cf. Acts 13:2) transcends all human strength and human wisdom; for 'God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong' (1 Cor 1:27). Therefore the true minister of Christ is conscious of his own weakness and labors in humility. He tries to discover what is wellpleasing to God (cf. Eph 5:10) and, bound as it were in the Spirit (cf. Acts 20:22), he is guided in all things by the will of him who wishes all men to be saved. He is able to discover and carry out that will in the course of his daily routine by humbly placing himself at the service of all those who are entrusted to his care by God in the office that has been committed to him and the variety of events that make up his life" ("Presbyterorum Ordinis", 15).
30-31. God's call makes a person a member of Christ Jesus, through Baptism; and if a Christian is docile to grace he or she will gradually become so like Christ as to be able to say with St Paul, "It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me" (Gal 2:20). This "being in Christ Jesus" enables a person to share in the wisdom, righteousness, sanctification and redemption which Jesus is for the Christian.
Jesus Christ indeed is the "wisdom" of God (cf. Col 1:15f; Heb 1:2f), and knowing him is true wisdom, the highest form of wisdom. He is for us our "righteousness", because through the merits obtained by his incarnation, death and resurrection he has made us truly righteous (= just, holy) in God's sight He is also the source of all holiness, which consists in fact in identification with Christ. Through him, who has become "redemption" for us, we have been redeemed from the slavery of sin. "How well the Apostle orders his ideas: Good has made us wise by rescuing us from error; and then he has made us just and holy by giving us his spirit" (Chrysostom, "Hom. on 1 Cor, 5, ad loc.").
In view of the complete gratuitousness of God's choice (vv. 25-28) and the immense benefits it brings with it, the conclusion is obvious: "'Deo omni, gloria. All glory to God.' It is an emphatic conclusion of our nothingness. He, Jesus, is everything. We, without him, are worth nothing: nothing. Our vainglory would be just that: vain glory; it would be sacrilegious robbery. There should be no room for that 'I' anywhere" (St. J. Escriva, "The Way", 780).
*********************************************************************************************
From: Matthew 25:14-30
The Parable of the Talents
--------------------------------------
(Jesus said to His disciples,) [14] "For it will be as when a man going on a journey called his servants and entrusted to them his property; [15] to one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. [16] He who had received the five talents went at once and traded with them; and he made five talents more. [17] So also, he who had the two talents made two talents more. [18] But he who had received the one talent went and dug in the ground and hid his master's money.
[19] Now after a long time the master of those servants came and settled accounts with them. [20] And he who received the five talents came forward, bringing five talents more, saying, 'Master, you delivered to me five talents; here I have made five talents more.' [21] His master said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a little, I will set you over much; enter into the joy of your master.' [22] And he also who had the two talents came forward, saying, 'Master, you delivered to me two talents; here I have made two talents more.' [23] His master said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a little, I will set you over much; enter into the joy of your master.' [24] He also who had received the one talent came forward, saying, 'Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not winnow; [25] so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.' [26] But his master answered him, 'You wicked and slothful servant! You knew that I reap where I have not sowed, and gather where I have not winnowed? [27] Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and at my coming I should have received what was my own with interest. [28] So take the talent from him, and give it to him who has the ten talents. [29] For to every one who has will more be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who has not, even what he has will be taken away. [30] And cast the worthless servant into the outer darkness; there men will weep and gnash their teeth.'"
*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:
14-30. A talent was not any kind of coin but a measure of value worth about fifty kilos (one hundred pounds) of silver.
In this parable the main message is the need to respond to grace by making a genuine effort right through one's life. All the gifts of nature and grace which God has given us should yield a profit. It does not matter how many gifts we have received; what matters is our generosity in putting them to good use.
A person's Christian calling should not lie hidden and barren: it should be outgoing, apostolic and self-sacrificial. "Don't lose your effectiveness; instead, trample on your selfishness. You think your life is for yourself? Your life is for God, for the good of all men, though your love for our Lord. Your buried talent, dig it up again! Make it yield" (St. J. Escriva, "Friends of God", 47).
An ordinary Christian cannot fail to notice that Jesus chose to outline his teaching on response to grace by using the simile of men at work. Here we have a reminder that the Christian normally lives out his vocation in the context of ordinary, everyday affairs. "There is just one life, made of flesh and spirit. And it is this life which has to become, in both soul and body, holy and filled with God. We discover the invisible God in the most visible and material things. There is no other way. Either we learn to find our Lord in ordinary, everyday life, or else we shall never find Him" (St. J. Escriva, "Conversations", 114).
*********************************************************************************************
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.
No comments:
Post a Comment