CCC Cross Reference:
1 Cor 3:9 307, 755, 756
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Reading 1
1 Cor 3:1-9
Brothers and sisters,
I could not talk to you as spiritual people,
but as fleshly people, as infants in Christ.
I fed you milk, not solid food,
because you were unable to take it.
Indeed, you are still not able, even now,
for you are still of the flesh.
While there is jealousy and rivalry among you,
are you not of the flesh, and walking
according to the manner of man?
Whenever someone says, “I belong to Paul,” and another,
“I belong to Apollos,” are you not merely men?
What is Apollos, after all, and what is Paul?
Ministers through whom you became believers,
just as the Lord assigned each one.
I planted, Apollos watered, but God caused the growth.
Therefore, neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything,
but only God, who causes the growth.
He who plants and he who waters are one,
and each will receive wages in proportion to his labor.
For we are God’s co-workers;
you are God’s field, God’s building.
Responsorial Psalm
Ps 33:12-13, 14-15, 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.
From his fixed throne he beholds
all who dwell on the earth,
He who fashioned the heart of each,
he who knows all their works.
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
Lk 4:38-44
After Jesus left the synagogue, he entered the house of Simon.
Simon’s mother-in-law was afflicted with a severe fever,
and they interceded with him about her.
He stood over her, rebuked the fever, and it left her.
She got up immediately and waited on them.
At sunset, all who had people sick with various diseases
brought them to him.
He laid his hands on each of them and cured them.
And demons also came out from many, shouting, “You are the Son of God.”
But he rebuked them and did not allow them to speak
because they knew that he was the Christ.
At daybreak, Jesus left and went to a deserted place.
The crowds went looking for him, and when they came to him,
they tried to prevent him from leaving them.
But he said to them, “To the other towns also
I must proclaim the good news of the Kingdom of God,
because for this purpose I have been sent.”
And he was preaching in the synagogues of Judea.
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
First reading 1 Corinthians 3:1 – 9
Brothers, I myself was unable to speak to you as people of the Spirit: I treated you as sensual men, still infants in Christ. What I fed you with was milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it; and indeed, you are still not ready for it since you are still unspiritual. Isn’t that obvious from all the jealousy and wrangling that there is among you, from the way that you go on behaving like ordinary people? What could be more unspiritual than your slogans, ‘I am for Paul’ and ‘I am for Apollos’?
After all, what is Apollos and what is Paul? They are servants who brought the faith to you. Even the different ways in which they brought it were assigned to them by the Lord. I did the planting, Apollos did the watering, but God made things grow. Neither the planter nor the waterer matters: only God, who makes things grow. It is all one who does the planting and who does the watering, and each will duly be paid according to his share in the work. We are fellow workers with God; you are God’s farm, God’s building.
Responsorial Psalm:
Psalm 32(33):12-15,20-21
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.
From the place where he dwells he gazes
on all the dwellers on the earth;
he who shapes the hearts of them all;
and considers all their deeds.
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 Luke 4:38 – 44
Leaving the synagogue Jesus went to Simon’s house. Now Simon’s mother-in-law was suffering from a high fever and they asked him to do something for her. Leaning over her he rebuked the fever and it left her. And she immediately got up and began to wait on them.
At sunset all those who had friends suffering from diseases of one kind or another brought them to him, and laying his hands on each he cured them. Devils too came out of many people, howling, ‘You are the Son of God.’ But he rebuked them and would not allow them to speak because they knew that he was the Christ.
When daylight came he left the house and made his way to a lonely place. The crowds went to look for him, and when they had caught up with him they wanted to prevent him leaving them, but he answered, ‘I must proclaim the Good News of the kingdom of God to the other towns too, because that is what I was sent to do.’ And he continued his preaching in the synagogues of Judaea.
Readings and Commentary from the Navarre Bible
Wednesday of the 22nd Week in Ordinary Time
From: 1 Corinthians 3:1-9
The Corinthians Are Still Unspiritual
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[1] But I, brethren, could not address you as spiritual men, but as men of the flesh, as babes in Christ. [2] I fed you with milk, not solid food; for you were not ready for it; and even yet you are not ready, [3] for you are still of the flesh. For while there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not of the flesh, and behaving like ordinary men?
Apostolic Ministry
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[4] For when one says, "I belong to Paul," and another, "I belong to Apollos," are you not merely men?
[5] What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, as the Lord assigned to each. [6] I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. [7] So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. [8] He who plants and he who waters are equal, and each shall receive his wages according to his labor. [9] For we are God's fellow workers; you are God's field, God's building.
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Commentary:
1-3. The Christians of Corinth have themselves to blame for their inability to grasp everything they have been taught. The counterposing of spirit and flesh does not mean that there are two kinds of people in the Church; it is, rather, a fatherly reproach on the Apostle's part: through Baptism they are called to a full (intellectual and practical) grasp of spiritual truths; but because they are letting themselves be led by human principles they are still in a state of lethargy. As St John Chrysostom comments, the reason is that "unclean living makes it difficult for a person to know the truth. Just as a man who is blinded by error cannot for long keep to the right road, so too is it very difficult for someone who is leading a bad life to accept the demands our sublime mysteries make on us. To embrace truth one needs to be detached from all one's passions [...]. This freedom of soul must be total, if one is to attain truth" ("Hom. on 1 Cor", 8, "ad loc.").
"As babes in Christ": St Paul is not referring to the spiritual childhood taught by Jesus Christ (cf. Mt 18:1-6; 1 Pet 2:2). The Apostle uses this comparison to show that one needs to make progress in the Christian life: a Christian has a duty to develop the infused virtues he received in Baptism. To be more specific, the Apostle mentions "jealousy and strife" (v. 3) as two great sins which are paralyzing the Corinthians: they leave a Christian in a lamentable, unspiritual state and prevent him from attaining the spiritual things to which he has been called (cf. Heb 5:12-17).
4-17. Using the dissension at Corinth (cf. 1:11-13), which clearly shows that the Corinthians are still acting in a very unspiritual way (v. 4), St Paul describes the true nature of apostolic office. He especially emphasizes that God is the source of all apostolic work: it is he "who gives the growth" (v. 7); man is God's instrument -- a servant or minister (v. 5), a fellow worker (v. 9)--in this task, which can only be carried out if Jesus Christ is its foundation (v. 11). St Paul develops these ideas using two effective similes--a field (vv. 6-9) and a building (vv. 9-17).
5-7. Using a comparison with farm work, St Paul shows the instrumental role men and women play in the apostolate. Only God, through his grace, can make the seed of faith take root and bear fruit in souls: "It may be that going and weeping they [God's workers] cast their seeds; it may be with anxious care they nourished it; but to make it sprout and bring forth the cherished fruit, this is the work of God alone and his powerful assistance. This, also, is to be considered that men are more than instruments which God uses for the saving of souls and that these instruments must be fit, therefore, to be handled by God" (St Pius X, "Haerent Animo", 9).
In this sense, every effort man makes is to no avail (cf. v. 7); yet God chooses to use man's input to produce supernatural fruit which is totally disproportionate: "We must remember that we are only instruments," St. J. Escriva points out, "'What is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you have believed, as the Lord assigned to each. I planted, Apollos watered, but only God gives the growth' (1 Cor 3:4-6). The teaching, the message which we have to communicate, has in its own right an infinite effectiveness which comes not from us but from Christ. It is God himself who is bent on bringing about salvation, on redeeming the world" ("Christ Is Passing By", 159).
8. The recompense God gives someone who works in the building up of the Church has not so much to do with his particular mission (the various jobs are "equal"), or with the kind of harvest, as with the work itself, the effort one puts into the God-given job. "Since Christians have different gifts (cf. Rom 12:6) they should collaborate in the work of the Gospel, each according to his opportunity, ability, charism and ministry (cf. 1 Cor 3:10); all who sow and reap (cf. Jn 4:37), plant and water, should be one (cf. 1 Cor 3:8) so that 'working together for the same end in a free and orderly manner' ("Lumen Gentium", 18) they might together devote their powers to the building up of the Church" (Vatican II, "Ad Gentes", 28). Therefore, what really matters is that one does whatever job one has been given with the maximum love possible, without losing heart: "[my chosen ones] shall not labor in vain", the Lord assures them, through the prophet Isaiah (65:23).
9. "God's field, God's building". The Second Vatican Council uses these images to describe the inner nature of the Church: "The Church is a cultivated field, the tillage of God (cf. 1 Cor 3:9). On that land the ancient olive tree grows whose holy roots were the prophets and in which the reconciliation of Jews and Gentiles has been brought about and will be brought about again (Rom 11:13-26). That land, like a choice vineyard, has been planted by the heavenly cultivator (Mt 21:33-43; cf. Is 5:1f). Yet the true vine is Christ who gives life and fruitfulness to the branches, that is, to us, who through the Church remain in Christ without whom we can do nothing (Jn 15:1-5).
"Often, too, the Church is called the building of God (1 Cor 3:9). The Lord compared himself to the stone which the builders rejected, but which was made into the cornerstone (Mt 21:42; cf. Acts 4:11; 1 Pet 2:7; Ps 117:22). On this foundation the Church is built by the Apostles (cf. 1 Cor 3:11) and from it the Church receives solidity and unity. This edifice has many names to describe it—the house of God in which his family dwells; the household of God in the Spirit (Eph 2:19:22); the dwelling-place of God among men (Rev 21:3); and, especially, the holy temple. This temple, symbolized in places of worship built out of stone, is praised by the Fathers and, not without reason, is compared in the liturgy to the Holy City, the New Jerusalem. As living stones we here on earth are built into it (1 Pet 2:5). It is this holy city that is seen by John as it comes down out of heaven from God when the world is made anew, prepared like a bride adorned for her husband (Rev 21:1f)" ("Lumen Gentium", 6).
The Lord wants Christians to be living stones in this building and has associated them in the redemptive task of saving all mankind, so that in the course of their own redemption they might also be co-redeemers with him, completing "what is lacking in Christ's afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church" (Col 1:24): "Jesus has wanted every person to cooperate freely in the work of redemption [...]. The work of salvation is still going on, and each one of us has a part in it [...]. It is worth while putting our lives on the line, giving ourselves completely, so as to answer to the love and the confidence that God has placed in us. It is worth while, above all, to decide to take our Christian faith seriously" (St. J. Escriva, "Christ Is Passing By", 129).
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From: Luke 4:38-44
The Cure of Peter's Mother-In-Law
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[38] And He (Jesus) arose and left the synagogue, and entered Simon's house. Now Simon's mother-in-law was ill with a high fever, and they besought Him for her. [39] And He stood over her and rebuked the fever, and it left her; and immediately she rose and served them.
Other Cures
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[40] Now when the sun was setting, all those who had any that were sick with various diseases brought them to Him; and He laid His hands on every one of them and healed them. [41] And demons also came out of many, crying, "You are the Son of God!" But He rebuked them, and would not allow them to speak, because they knew that He was the Christ.
Jesus Preaches in Other Cities in Judea
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[42] And when it was day He departed and went into a lonely place. And the people sought Him and came to Him, and would have kept Him from leaving them; [43] but He said to them, "I must preach the Good News of the Kingdom of God to the other cities also; for I was sent for this purpose." [44] And He was preaching in the synagogues of Judea.
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Commentary:
38-39. In the public life of Jesus we find many touching episodes (cf. for example Luke 19:1; John 2:1) which show the high regard He had for everyday family life.
Here we can clearly see the effectiveness of prayer on behalf of other people: "No sooner did they pray to the Savior", St. Jerome says, "than He immediately healed the sick; from this we learn that He also listens to the prayers of the faithful for help against sinful passions" ("Expositio In Evangelium Sec. Lucam, in loc.").
St. John Chrysostom refers to this total, instantaneous cure: "Since this was a curable type of illness He displayed His power through the way He brought healing, doing what medicine could not do. Even after being cured of fever, patients need time to recover their former strength, but here the cure was instantaneous" ("Hom. on St. Matthew", 27).
The Fathers saw in this lady's fever a symbol of concupiscence: "Peter's motherin-law's fever represents our flesh affected by various illnesses and concupiscences; our fever is passion, our fever is lust, our fever is anger -- vices which, although they affect the body, perturb the soul, the mind and the feelings" (St. Ambrose, "Expositio Evangelii Sec. Lucam, in loc.").
On the practical consequences of this St. Cyril says: "Let us receive Jesus Christ, because when He visits us and we take Him into our minds and hearts, even our worst passions are extinguished and we are kept safe to serve Him, that is, to do what pleases Him" ("Hom. 28 In Mattheum").
43. Our Lord again stresses one of the reasons why He has come into the world. St. Thomas, when discussing the purpose of the Eucharist, says that Christ "came into the world, first, to make the truth known, as He Himself says: 'for this I was born, and for this I have come into the world, to bear witness to the truth' (John 18:37). Hence it was not fitting that He should hide Himself by leading a solitary life, but rather that He should appear openly and preach in public. For this reason He tells those who wanted to detain Him, 'I must preach the Good News of the Kingdom of God to the other cities also; for I was sent for this purpose.' Secondly, He came in order to free men from sin; as the Apostle says, 'Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners' (1 Timothy 1:15). This is why Chrysostom says, 'Although Christ might, while staying in the same place, have drawn all men to Himself to hear His preaching, He did not do so--in order to give us the example to go out and seek the lost sheep, as the shepherd does, or as the doctor does, who visits the sick person.' Thirdly, He came so that 'we might obtain access to God' (Romans 5:2)" ("Summa Theologiae", III, q. 40, a. 1, c.).
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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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