80B Seventh Sunday of Ordinary Time
Catechism Links
CCC 1421, 1441-1442: Christ the healer of soul and body
CCC 987, 1441, 1741: Christ forgives sins
CCC 1425-1426: reconciliation after baptism
CCC 1065: Christ our “Amen”
Back to Deacon’s Bench '09
Back to SOW II '12
Reading 1
Is 43:18-19, 21-22, 24b-25
Thus says the LORD:
Remember not the events of the past,
the things of long ago consider not;
see, I am doing something new!
Now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?
In the desert I make a way,
in the wasteland, rivers.
The people I formed for myself,
that they might announce my praise.
Yet you did not call upon me, O Jacob,
for you grew weary of me, O Israel.
You burdened me with your sins,
and wearied me with your crimes.
It is I, I, who wipe out,
for my own sake, your offenses;
your sins I remember no more.
Responsorial Psalm
Ps 41:2-3, 4-5, 13-14
R. (5b) Lord, heal my soul, for I have sinned against you.
Blessed is the one who has regard for the lowly and the poor;
in the day of misfortune the LORD will deliver him.
The LORD will keep and preserve him;
and make him blessed on earth,
and not give him over to the will of his enemies.
R. Lord, heal my soul, for I have sinned against you.
The LORD will help him on his sickbed,
he will take away all his ailment when he is ill.
Once I said, "O LORD, have pity on me;
heal me, though I have sinned against you."
R. Lord, heal my soul, for I have sinned against you.
But because of my integrity you sustain me
and let me stand before you forever.
Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel,
from all eternity. Amen. Amen.
R. Lord, heal my soul, for I have sinned against you.
Reading II
2 Cor 1:18-22
Brothers and sisters:
As God is faithful,
our word to you is not "yes" and "no."
For the Son of God, Jesus Christ,
who was proclaimed to you by us, Silvanus and Timothy and me,
was not "yes" and "no," but "yes" has been in him.
For however many are the promises of God, their Yes is in him;
therefore, the Amen from us also goes through him to God for glory.
But the one who gives us security with you in Christ
and who anointed us is God;
he has also put his seal upon us
and given the Spirit in our hearts as a first installment.
Gospel
Mk 2:1-12
When Jesus returned to Capernaum after some days,
it became known that he was at home.
Many gathered together so that there was no longer room for them,
not even around the door,
and he preached the word to them.
They came bringing to him a paralytic carried by four men.
Unable to get near Jesus because of the crowd,
they opened up the roof above him.
After they had broken through,
they let down the mat on which the paralytic was lying.
When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic,
"Child, your sins are forgiven."
Now some of the scribes were sitting there asking themselves,
"Why does this man speak that way? He is blaspheming.
Who but God alone can forgive sins?"
Jesus immediately knew in his mind
what they were thinking to themselves,
so he said, "Why are you thinking such things in your hearts?
Which is easier, to say to the paralytic,
'Your sins are forgiven,'
or to say, 'Rise, pick up your mat and walk?'
But that you may know
that the Son of Man has authority to forgive sins on earth"
—he said to the paralytic,
"I say to you, rise, pick up your mat, and go home."
He rose, picked up his mat at once,
and went away in the sight of everyone.
They were all astounded
and glorified God, saying, "We have never seen anything like this."
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
First reading Isaiah 43:18-19,21-22,24-25
Thus says the Lord:
No need to recall the past,
no need to think about what was done before.
See, I am doing a new deed,
even now it comes to light; can you not see it?
Yes, I am making a road in the wilderness,
paths in the wilds.
The people I have formed for myself
will sing my praises.
Jacob, you have not invoked me,
you have not troubled yourself, Israel, on my behalf.
You have spent no money on fragrant cane for me,
you have not filled me with the fat of your sacrifices.
Instead you have burdened me with your sins,
troubled me with your iniquities.
I it is, I it is, who must blot out everything
and not remember your sins.
Psalm or canticle: Psalm 40:2-5,13-14
Heal my soul, for I have sinned against you.
Happy the man who considers the poor and the weak.
The Lord will save him in the day of evil,
will guard him, give him life, make him happy in the land
and will not give him up to the will of his foes.
Heal my soul, for I have sinned against you.
The Lord will help him on his bed of pain,
he will bring him back from sickness to health.
As for me, I said: ‘Lord, have mercy on me,
heal my soul for I have sinned against you.’
Heal my soul, for I have sinned against you.
If you uphold me I shall be unharmed
and set in your presence for ever more.
Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel
from age to age. Amen. Amen.
Heal my soul, for I have sinned against you.
Second reading 2 Corinthians 1:18-22
I swear by God’s truth, there is no Yes and No about what we say to you. The Son of God, the Christ Jesus that we proclaimed among you – I mean Silvanus and Timothy and I – was never Yes and No: with him it was always Yes, and however many the promises God made, the Yes to them all is in him. That is why it is ‘through him’ that we answer Amen to the praise of God. Remember it is God himself who assures us all, and you, of our standing in Christ, and has anointed us, marking us with his seal and giving us the pledge, the Spirit, that we carry in our hearts.
Gospel Mark 2:1-12
When Jesus returned to Capernaum, word went round that he was back; and so many people collected that there was no room left, even in front of the door. He was preaching the word to them when some people came bringing him a paralytic carried by four men, but as the crowd made it impossible to get the man to him, they stripped the roof over the place where Jesus was; and when they had made an opening, they lowered the stretcher on which the paralytic lay. Seeing their faith, Jesus said to the paralytic, ‘My child, your sins are forgiven.’ Now some scribes were sitting there, and they thought to themselves, ‘How can this man talk like that? He is blaspheming. Who can forgive sins but God?’ Jesus, inwardly aware that this was what they were thinking, said to them, ‘Why do you have these thoughts in your hearts? Which of these is easier: to say to the paralytic, “Your sins are forgiven” or to say, “Get up, pick up your stretcher and walk”? But to prove to you that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins,’ – he turned to the paralytic – ‘I order you: get up, pick up your stretcher, and go off home.’ And the man got up, picked up his stretcher at once and walked out in front of everyone, so that they were all astounded and praised God saying, ‘We have never seen anything like this.’
Readings and Commentary from the Navarre Bible
7th Sunday in Ordinary Time
From: Isaiah 43:18-19, 21-22, 24b-25
Announcement of a New Exodus (Continuation)
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(Thus says the Lord), [18] "Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old. [19] Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert. [21] The people whom I formed for myself that they might declare my praise.
[22] "Yet you did not call upon me, 0 Jacob; but you have been weary of me, O Israel! [24b] But you have burdened me with your sins, you have wearied me with your iniquities.
[25] "I, I am He who blots out your transgressions for my own sake, and I will not remember your sins."
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Commentary:
43:14-21. This oracle is part of the doctrinal core of the “Book of Consolation" (40:1-48:22), where we can see the exodus from Egypt as the prototype of every instance of liberation brought about by the Lord. Its most direct reference would be to the return of those exiled in Babylon. The original exodus from Egypt was quite remarkable and well worth pondering; but this exodus is truly “new", surpassing what happened in former times (cf. vv. 18-19). This prophecy is very carefully constructed. It first acknowledges God by giving an impressive list of divine titles, repeated several times: Lord, Redeemer, Holy One of Israel, Creator, King (vv. 14-15); then comes the announcement of the new exodus based on traditions to do with the first exodus, without mentioning it specifically (vv. 16-21); it recalls, with sadness, yet serenity, the people's infidelities (vv. 22-24); and it ends with God asserting his forgiveness in the context Of a "rib", that is, a “legal hearing" (vv. 25-28).
The prophet's words are designed to fill the people with hope that they will soon be able to return home, and also with the energy to undertake the religious restoration of Israel. But they are also a reminder to people at all times that God never abandons his chosen ones, and a constant encouragement to renew their fervor. The only proviso is that they must have recourse to the mercy of God and sincerely admit their sins. Thus, we find St Gregory the Great interpreting the “suit" in v. 26 as describing the examination of conscience that leads to the confession of sins: “The conscience accuses, reason judges, fear binds, and suffering tortures" ("Moralia in Job", 25,7, 12-13).
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From: 2 Corinthians 1:18-22
Why He Has Not Visited Corinth (Continuation)
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[18] As surely as God is faithful, our word to you has not been Yes and No. [19] For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, whom we preached among you, Silvanus and Timothy and I, was not Yes and No; but in him it is always: Yes. [20] For all the promises of God find their Yes in him. That is why we utter the Amen through him, to the glory of God. [21] But it is God who establishes us with you in Christ, and has commissioned us; [22] he has put his seal upon us and given us his Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee.
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Commentary:
17-20. He calls on God to witness to the sincerity of his actions and to his being a man of his word. He cannot act otherwise, he explains, because he preaches Jesus Christ and follows him: and Christ is absolutely faithful and truthful (cf. Jn 14:6) and demanded sincerity in word and in deed (cf. Mt 5:37; Jas 5:12). The faithfulness of Christ -- in whom it is always "Yes" (vv. 19-20) -- is the model for all Christians, both those who dedicate their lives totally and exclusively to God in celibacy and those who do so through marriage. Referring to this passage, Bl. John Paul II teaches that "just as the Lord Jesus is 'the faithful witness' (Rev 3: 14), the 'yes' of the promises of God (cf. 2 Cor 1:20), so Christian couples are called to participate truly in the irrevocable indissolubility that binds Christ to the Church, his bride, loved by him to the end (cf. Jn 13:1)" ("Familiaris Consortio", 20).
Relying on Christ's faithfulness the faithful are able to say that "Amen" ("So be it"), by which they adhere fully to the Apostle's teachings. From the very beginning of Christianity, the "Amen" was said at the end of the Church's public prayers (cf. 1 Cor 14:16).
Silvanus, called Silas in the Acts of the Apostles (Acts 15:40), had helped St Paul to found the Church in Corinth (cf. Acts 18:5).
18. "As surely as God is faithful': so translated to evoke a form of words used in taking a oath; literally, "Faithful is God."
21-22. As in other passages of this letter (cf. 3:3; 13:13), St Paul is here referring explicitly to the promises made of the Blessed Trinity: it is God (the Father) who has given us our "commission" (anointed us with grace) establishing us in the Son, through the gift of the Holy Spirit in our hearts.
Using three different expressions--"commissioned" (anointed), "put his seal upon us", given us his Spirit "as a guarantee"--the Apostle describes the way God acts in the soul: in Baptism the Christian is spiritually anointed with grace and incorporated into Christ; he is thereby "sealed", for he no longer belongs to himself but has become the property of Christ; and together with grace, he receives the Holy Spirit as a "guarantee", a pledge of the gifts he will receive in eternal life. All those effects of Baptism are reinforced by the sacrament of Confirmation (St Paul may well have had this sacrament in mind also, when writing these words).
Commenting on this passage St John Chrysostom explains that by this action the Holy Spirit establishes the Christian as prophet, priest and king: "In olden times these three types of people received the unction which confirmed them in their dignity. We Christians have not one of these three dignities but all three preeminently. For, are we not kings, who shall infallibly inherit a kingdom? Are we not priests, if we offer our bodies as a sacrifice, instead of mere animal victims, as the Apostle says: 'I appeal to you...to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God' (Rom 12:1)? And are we not constituted prophets if, thanks to God, secrets have been revealed to us which eye has not seen nor ear heard?" ("Hom. on 2 Cor.", 3).
"He has put his seal on us": the St Pius V Catechism uses these words to explain the "character" which the sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation and Order impress on the soul; Paul "not obscurely describes by the word 'sealed' a character, the property of which is to impress a seal or mark. This character is, as it were, a distinctive impression stamped on the soul which perpetually inheres and cannot be blotted out" (II, 1, 30).
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From: Mark 2:1-12
The Curing of a Paralytic
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[1] And when [Jesus] returned to Capernaum after some days, it was reported that He was at home. [2] And many were gathered together, so that there was no longer room for them, not even about the door; and He was preaching the word to them. [3] And they came, bringing to Him a paralytic carried by four men. [4] And when they could not get near Him because of the crowd, they removed the roof above Him; and when they had made an opening, they let down the pallet on which the paralytic lay. [5] And when Jesus saw their faith, He said to the paralytic, "My son, your sins are forgiven."
[6] Now some of the scribes were sitting there, questioning in their hearts, [7] "Why does this man speak thus? It is blasphemy! Who can forgive sins but God alone?" [8] And immediately Jesus, perceiving in His spirit that they thus questioned within themselves, said to them, "Why do you question thus in your hearts? [9] Which is easier to say to the paralytic, 'Your sins are forgiven,' or to say, 'Rise, take up your pallet and walk?' [10] But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins"--He said to the paralytic--[11] "I say to you, rise, take up your pallet and go home." [12] And he rose, and immediately took up the pallet and went out before them all; so that they were all amazed and glorified God, saying, "We never saw anything like this!"
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Commentary:
4. Many Jewish houses had a terraced roof accessible by steps at the back. The same structure can be found even today.
5. Here Jesus emphasizes the connection between faith and the forgiveness of sins. The boldness of the people who brought in the paralytic shows their faith in Christ, and this faith moves Jesus to forgive the man's sins. We should question how God views our faith: the faith of these people leads to the instantaneous physical and spiritual curing of this man. We should notice also that one person's need can be helped by the merits of another.
In this man's physical paralysis, St. Jerome sees a type or figure of spiritual paralysis: the cripple was unable to return to God by his own efforts. Jesus, God and man, cured him of both kinds of paralysis (cf. "Comm. in Marcum, in loc."). Cf. notes on Matthew 9:2-7.
Jesus' words to the paralytic--"Your sins are forgiven"--reflect the fact that his pardon involves a personal encounter with Christ; the same happens in the Sacrament of Penance: "In faithfully observing the centuries-old practice of the Sacrament of Penance--the practice of individual confession with a personal act of sorrow and an intention to amend and make satisfaction--the Church is defending the human soul's individual right, man's right to a more personal encounter with the crucified forgiving Christ, with Christ saying, through the minister of the Sacrament of Reconciliation: 'Your sins are forgiven'; 'Go, and do not sin again' (John 8:11). As is evident, this is also a right on Christ's part with regard to every human being in the soul's life constituted by the moment of conversion and forgiveness" (Bl. John Paul II, "Redemptor Hominis", 20).
7-12. Here we find a number of indicators of Jesus' divinity: He forgives sins, He can read the human heart and has the power to instantly cure physical illnesses. The scribes know that only God can forgive sins. This is why they take issue with our Lord's statement and call it blasphemous. They require a sign to prove the truth of what He says. And Jesus offers them a sign. Thus just as no one can deny that the paralytic has been cured, so no one can reasonably deny that he has been forgiven his sins. Christ, God and man, exercised power to forgive sins and, in His infinite mercy, He chose to extend this power to His Church. Cf. note on Matthew 9:3-7.
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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.
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Friday, February 20, 2009
Friday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time
339 Friday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time
CCC Cross Reference:
Gen 11:4-6 57
Mk 8:34 459, 1615; Mk 8:35 2544
Back to Deacon's Bench '07
Back to Deacon’s Bench ‘09
Back to SOW II '11
Back to SOW II '17
Back to SOW II '23
Reading 1
Gn 11:1-9
The whole world spoke the same language, using the same words.
While the people were migrating in the east,
they came upon a valley in the land of Shinar and settled there.
They said to one another,
"Come, let us mold bricks and harden them with fire."
They used bricks for stone, and bitumen for mortar.
Then they said, "Come, let us build ourselves a city
and a tower with its top in the sky,
and so make a name for ourselves;
otherwise we shall be scattered all over the earth."
The LORD came down to see the city and the tower
that they had built.
Then the LORD said: "If now, while they are one people,
all speaking the same language,
they have started to do this,
nothing will later stop them from doing whatever they presume to do.
Let us then go down and there confuse their language,
so that one will not understand what another says."
Thus the LORD scattered them from there all over the earth,
and they stopped building the city.
That is why it was called Babel,
because there the LORD confused the speech of all the world.
It was from that place that he scattered them all over the earth.
Responsorial Psalm
Ps 33:10-11, 12-13, 14-15
R. (12) Blessed the people the Lord has chosen to be his own.
The LORD brings to nought the plans of nations;
he foils the designs of peoples.
But the plan of the LORD stands forever;
the design of his heart, through all generations.
R. 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.
Gospel
Mk 8:34-9:1
Jesus summoned the crowd with his disciples and said to them,
"Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself,
take up his cross, and follow me.
For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it,
but whoever loses his life for my sake
and that of the Gospel will save it.
What profit is there for one to gain the whole world
and forfeit his life?
What could one give in exchange for his life?
Whoever is ashamed of me and of my words
in this faithless and sinful generation,
the Son of Man will be ashamed of
when he comes in his Father's glory with the holy angels."
He also said to them,
"Amen, I say to you,
there are some standing here who will not taste death
until they see that the Kingdom of God has come in power.
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
First reading Genesis 11:1-9
Throughout the earth men spoke the same language, with the same vocabulary. Now as they moved eastwards they found a plain in the land of Shinar where they settled. They said to one another, ‘Come, let us make bricks and bake them in the fire.’ (For stone they used bricks, and for mortar they used bitumen). ‘Come,’ they said ‘let us build ourselves a town and a tower with its top reaching heaven. Let us make a name for ourselves, so that we may not be scattered about the whole earth.’
Now the Lord came down to see the town and the tower that the sons of man had built. ‘So they are all a single people with a single language!’ said the Lord. ‘This is but the start of their undertakings! There will be nothing too hard for them to do. Come, let us go down and confuse their language on the spot so that they can no longer understand one another.’ The Lord scattered them thence over the whole face of the earth, and they stopped building the town. It was named Babel therefore, because there the Lord confused the language of the whole earth. It was from there that the Lord scattered them over the whole face of the earth.
Responsorial Psalm:
Psalm 32 (33):10-15
Happy the people the Lord has chosen as his own.
He frustrates the designs of the nations,
he defeats the plans of the peoples.
His own designs shall stand for ever,
the plans of his heart from age to age.
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.
Gospel Mark 8:34-9:1
Jesus called the people and his disciples to him and said, ‘If anyone wants to be a follower of mine, let him renounce himself and take up his cross and follow me. For anyone who wants to save his life will lose it; but anyone who loses his life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it. What gain, then, is it for a man to win the whole world and ruin his life? And indeed what can a man offer in exchange for his life? For if anyone in this adulterous and sinful generation is ashamed of me and of my words, the Son of Man will also be ashamed of him when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.’ And he said to them, ‘I tell you solemnly, there are some standing here who will not taste death before they see the kingdom of God come with power.’
Readings and Commentary from the Navarre Bible
Friday of the 6th Week in Ordinary Time
From: Genesis 11:1-9
Babel: the confusion of language
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[1] Now the whole earth had one language and few words. [2] And as men migrated from the east, they found a plain in the land of Shinar and settled there. [3] And they said to one another, "Come, let us make bricks, and burn them thoroughly." And they had brick for stone, and bitumen for mortar. [4] Then they said, "Come, let us build ourselves a city, and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth." [5] And the Lord came down to see the city and the tower, which the sons of men had built. [6] And the Lord said, "Behold, they are one people, and they have all one language; and this is only the beginning of what they will do; and nothing that they propose to do will now be impossible for them. [7] Come, let us go down, and there confuse their language, that they may not understand one another's speech." [8] So the Lord scattered them abroad from there over the face of all the earth, and they left off building the city. [9] Therefore its name was called Babel, because there the Lord confused the language of all the earth; and from there the Lord scattered them abroad over the face of all the earth.
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Commentary:
11:1-9. The text goes on to describe the growth of evil (cf. 8:21; 9:20-27), and, as one of its results, the fact that mankind is scattered and its God-given unity is fragmented. Thus, the text begins by talking about mankind when it was still together; it came from the east, where it originated and settled in the plains of Mesopotamia (in Shinar; cf. 10:10). But the people are filled with pride, and want to make a name for themselves, and to guarantee their own security by reaching heaven by their own efforts. This attitude is epitomized by the project of building a massive tower (we can get some idea of it from the tower-temples of Mesopotamia, the ziggurats, on whose high terraces the Babylonians thought they could gain access to the godhead and thus dominate God).
The text also offers an explanation for why there are so many languages; it sees language as a sign of division and misunderstanding between individuals and nations. It is based on the popular meaning of the word "babel", connecting it with the Hebrew balbalah, confusion; but in fact Babel means "gate of God". We have here an instance of literary devices being used to expound deep convictions – in this case the view that disunion in mankind is the outcome of men's pride and sinfulness.
Babel thus becomes the opposite of Jerusalem, the city to which, the prophets say, all the nations will flock (cf. Is 2:2-3). And it will be in the Church, the new Jerusalem, that men of all nations, races and tongues will join in faith and love, as will be seen in the Pentecost event (cf. Acts 2:1-13). There the phenomenon of Babel will be reversed: all will understand the same language. In the history of mankind, in effect, the Church is a kind of sign or sacrament of the union of God and men, and of the unity of the whole human race (cf. Vatican II, Lumen Gentium, 1).
11:4. St Augustine explains the frustration of man's designs against God in this way: "Where would man's vain presumption have ended if it succeeded in rearing a building of such size and height, even to the sky in the face of God –since they would have been higher than any mountain and would have reached beyond the limits of our atmosphere? In any case, no harm could have come to God from any straining after spiritual or physical elevation" (De civitate Dei, 16, 4).
This new sin of mankind is basically the same sort of sin as was committed in paradise; it is a kind of continuation of it. It is the sin of pride to which man is always prone and it has been well described in the following words of Blessed Josemaria Escriva when he comments on 1 John 2:16: "They eyes of our soul grow dull. Reason proclaims itself sufficient to understand everything, without the aid of God. This is a subtle temptation, which hides behind the power of our intellect, given by our Father God to man so that he might know and love him freely. Seduced by this temptation, the human mind appoints itself the centre of the universe, being thrilled with the prospect that 'you shall be like gods' (cf. Gen 3:5). So, filled with love for itself, it turns its back on the love of God. In this way does our existence fall prey unconditionally to the third enemy: pride of life. It's not merely a question of passing thoughts of vanity or self-love, it's a state of general conceit. Let's not deceive ourselves, for this is the worst of all evils, the root of every false step. The fight against pride has to be a constant battle, to such an extent that someone once said that pride only disappears twenty-four hours after a person dies. It is the arrogance of the Pharisee whom God cannot transform because he finds in him the obstacle of self-sufficiency. It is the haughtiness which leads to despising other people, to lording it over them, and so mistreating them. For 'when pride comes, then comes disgrace' (Prov 11:2)" (Christ Is Passing By, 6).
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From: Mark 8:34-9:1
Christian Renunciation (Continuation)
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[34] And He (Jesus) called to Him the multitude with His disciples, and said to them, "If any man would come after Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me. [35] For whoever would save his life will lose it; and whoever loses his life for My sake and the Gospel's will save it. [36] For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his life? [37] For what can a man give in return for his life? [38] For whoever is ashamed of Me and of My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of Man also be ashamed, when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels".
[1] And He said to them, "Truly, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death before they see the Kingdom of God come with power."
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Commentary:
35. "Life": in the original text and the New Vulgate the word literally means "soul." But here, as in many other cases, "soul" and "life" are equivalent. The word "life" is used, clearly, in a double sense: earthly life and eternal life, the life of man here-on earth and man's eternal happiness in Heaven. Death can put an end to earthly life, but it cannot destroy eternal life (cf. Matthew 10:28), the life which can only be given by Him who brings the dead back to life.
Understood in this way, we can grasp the paradoxical meaning of our Lord's phrase: whoever wishes to save his (earthly) life will lose his (eternal) life. But whoever loses his (earthly) life for Me and the Gospel, will save his (eternal) life. What, then, does saving one's (earthly) life mean? It means living this life as if there were no other -- letting oneself be controlled by the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the pride of life (cf. 1 John 2:16). And losing one's (earthly) life means mortifying, by continuous ascetical effort, this triple concupiscence --that is, taking up one's cross (verse 34)--and consequently seeking and savoring the things that are God's and not the things of the earth (cf. Colossians 3:1-2).
36-37. Jesus promises eternal life to those who are willing to lose earthly life for His sake. He has given us example: He is the Good Shepherd who lays down His life for His sheep (John 10:15); and He fulfilled in His own case what He said to the Apostles on the night before He died: "Greater love has no man than this that a man lay down his life for his friends" (John 15:13).
38. Each person's eternal destiny will be decided by Christ. He is the Judge who will come to judge the living and the dead (Matthew 16:27). The sentence will depend on how faithful each has been in keeping the Lord's commandments – to love God and to love one's neighbor, for God's sake. On that day Christ will not recognize as His disciple anyone who is ashamed to imitate Jesus' humility and example and follow the precepts of the Gospel for fear of displeasing the world or worldly people: he has failed to confess by his life the faith which he claims to hold. A Christian, then, should never be ashamed of the Gospel (Romans 1:16); he should never let himself be drawn away by the worldliness around him; rather he should exercise a decisive influence on his environment, counting on the help of God's grace. The first Christians changed the ancient pagan world. God's arm has not grown shorter since their time (cf. Isaiah 59:1). Cf. Matthew 10:32-33 and note on same.
9:1. The coming o the Kingdom of God with power does not seem to refer to the second, glorious coming of Jesus at the end of time (the Parousia); it may, rather, indicate the amazing spread of the Church in the lifetime of the Apostles. Many of those present here will witness this. The growth and spread of the Church in the world can be explained only by the divine power God gives to the mystical body of Christ. The Transfiguration of our Lord, which is recounted in the next passage, is a sign, given to the Apostles, of Jesus' divinity and of the divine powers which He will give His Church.
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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.
CCC Cross Reference:
Gen 11:4-6 57
Mk 8:34 459, 1615; Mk 8:35 2544
Back to Deacon's Bench '07
Back to Deacon’s Bench ‘09
Back to SOW II '11
Back to SOW II '17
Back to SOW II '23
Reading 1
Gn 11:1-9
The whole world spoke the same language, using the same words.
While the people were migrating in the east,
they came upon a valley in the land of Shinar and settled there.
They said to one another,
"Come, let us mold bricks and harden them with fire."
They used bricks for stone, and bitumen for mortar.
Then they said, "Come, let us build ourselves a city
and a tower with its top in the sky,
and so make a name for ourselves;
otherwise we shall be scattered all over the earth."
The LORD came down to see the city and the tower
that they had built.
Then the LORD said: "If now, while they are one people,
all speaking the same language,
they have started to do this,
nothing will later stop them from doing whatever they presume to do.
Let us then go down and there confuse their language,
so that one will not understand what another says."
Thus the LORD scattered them from there all over the earth,
and they stopped building the city.
That is why it was called Babel,
because there the LORD confused the speech of all the world.
It was from that place that he scattered them all over the earth.
Responsorial Psalm
Ps 33:10-11, 12-13, 14-15
R. (12) Blessed the people the Lord has chosen to be his own.
The LORD brings to nought the plans of nations;
he foils the designs of peoples.
But the plan of the LORD stands forever;
the design of his heart, through all generations.
R. 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.
Gospel
Mk 8:34-9:1
Jesus summoned the crowd with his disciples and said to them,
"Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself,
take up his cross, and follow me.
For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it,
but whoever loses his life for my sake
and that of the Gospel will save it.
What profit is there for one to gain the whole world
and forfeit his life?
What could one give in exchange for his life?
Whoever is ashamed of me and of my words
in this faithless and sinful generation,
the Son of Man will be ashamed of
when he comes in his Father's glory with the holy angels."
He also said to them,
"Amen, I say to you,
there are some standing here who will not taste death
until they see that the Kingdom of God has come in power.
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
First reading Genesis 11:1-9
Throughout the earth men spoke the same language, with the same vocabulary. Now as they moved eastwards they found a plain in the land of Shinar where they settled. They said to one another, ‘Come, let us make bricks and bake them in the fire.’ (For stone they used bricks, and for mortar they used bitumen). ‘Come,’ they said ‘let us build ourselves a town and a tower with its top reaching heaven. Let us make a name for ourselves, so that we may not be scattered about the whole earth.’
Now the Lord came down to see the town and the tower that the sons of man had built. ‘So they are all a single people with a single language!’ said the Lord. ‘This is but the start of their undertakings! There will be nothing too hard for them to do. Come, let us go down and confuse their language on the spot so that they can no longer understand one another.’ The Lord scattered them thence over the whole face of the earth, and they stopped building the town. It was named Babel therefore, because there the Lord confused the language of the whole earth. It was from there that the Lord scattered them over the whole face of the earth.
Responsorial Psalm:
Psalm 32 (33):10-15
Happy the people the Lord has chosen as his own.
He frustrates the designs of the nations,
he defeats the plans of the peoples.
His own designs shall stand for ever,
the plans of his heart from age to age.
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.
Gospel Mark 8:34-9:1
Jesus called the people and his disciples to him and said, ‘If anyone wants to be a follower of mine, let him renounce himself and take up his cross and follow me. For anyone who wants to save his life will lose it; but anyone who loses his life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it. What gain, then, is it for a man to win the whole world and ruin his life? And indeed what can a man offer in exchange for his life? For if anyone in this adulterous and sinful generation is ashamed of me and of my words, the Son of Man will also be ashamed of him when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.’ And he said to them, ‘I tell you solemnly, there are some standing here who will not taste death before they see the kingdom of God come with power.’
Readings and Commentary from the Navarre Bible
Friday of the 6th Week in Ordinary Time
From: Genesis 11:1-9
Babel: the confusion of language
------------------------------------------------
[1] Now the whole earth had one language and few words. [2] And as men migrated from the east, they found a plain in the land of Shinar and settled there. [3] And they said to one another, "Come, let us make bricks, and burn them thoroughly." And they had brick for stone, and bitumen for mortar. [4] Then they said, "Come, let us build ourselves a city, and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth." [5] And the Lord came down to see the city and the tower, which the sons of men had built. [6] And the Lord said, "Behold, they are one people, and they have all one language; and this is only the beginning of what they will do; and nothing that they propose to do will now be impossible for them. [7] Come, let us go down, and there confuse their language, that they may not understand one another's speech." [8] So the Lord scattered them abroad from there over the face of all the earth, and they left off building the city. [9] Therefore its name was called Babel, because there the Lord confused the language of all the earth; and from there the Lord scattered them abroad over the face of all the earth.
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Commentary:
11:1-9. The text goes on to describe the growth of evil (cf. 8:21; 9:20-27), and, as one of its results, the fact that mankind is scattered and its God-given unity is fragmented. Thus, the text begins by talking about mankind when it was still together; it came from the east, where it originated and settled in the plains of Mesopotamia (in Shinar; cf. 10:10). But the people are filled with pride, and want to make a name for themselves, and to guarantee their own security by reaching heaven by their own efforts. This attitude is epitomized by the project of building a massive tower (we can get some idea of it from the tower-temples of Mesopotamia, the ziggurats, on whose high terraces the Babylonians thought they could gain access to the godhead and thus dominate God).
The text also offers an explanation for why there are so many languages; it sees language as a sign of division and misunderstanding between individuals and nations. It is based on the popular meaning of the word "babel", connecting it with the Hebrew balbalah, confusion; but in fact Babel means "gate of God". We have here an instance of literary devices being used to expound deep convictions – in this case the view that disunion in mankind is the outcome of men's pride and sinfulness.
Babel thus becomes the opposite of Jerusalem, the city to which, the prophets say, all the nations will flock (cf. Is 2:2-3). And it will be in the Church, the new Jerusalem, that men of all nations, races and tongues will join in faith and love, as will be seen in the Pentecost event (cf. Acts 2:1-13). There the phenomenon of Babel will be reversed: all will understand the same language. In the history of mankind, in effect, the Church is a kind of sign or sacrament of the union of God and men, and of the unity of the whole human race (cf. Vatican II, Lumen Gentium, 1).
11:4. St Augustine explains the frustration of man's designs against God in this way: "Where would man's vain presumption have ended if it succeeded in rearing a building of such size and height, even to the sky in the face of God –since they would have been higher than any mountain and would have reached beyond the limits of our atmosphere? In any case, no harm could have come to God from any straining after spiritual or physical elevation" (De civitate Dei, 16, 4).
This new sin of mankind is basically the same sort of sin as was committed in paradise; it is a kind of continuation of it. It is the sin of pride to which man is always prone and it has been well described in the following words of Blessed Josemaria Escriva when he comments on 1 John 2:16: "They eyes of our soul grow dull. Reason proclaims itself sufficient to understand everything, without the aid of God. This is a subtle temptation, which hides behind the power of our intellect, given by our Father God to man so that he might know and love him freely. Seduced by this temptation, the human mind appoints itself the centre of the universe, being thrilled with the prospect that 'you shall be like gods' (cf. Gen 3:5). So, filled with love for itself, it turns its back on the love of God. In this way does our existence fall prey unconditionally to the third enemy: pride of life. It's not merely a question of passing thoughts of vanity or self-love, it's a state of general conceit. Let's not deceive ourselves, for this is the worst of all evils, the root of every false step. The fight against pride has to be a constant battle, to such an extent that someone once said that pride only disappears twenty-four hours after a person dies. It is the arrogance of the Pharisee whom God cannot transform because he finds in him the obstacle of self-sufficiency. It is the haughtiness which leads to despising other people, to lording it over them, and so mistreating them. For 'when pride comes, then comes disgrace' (Prov 11:2)" (Christ Is Passing By, 6).
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From: Mark 8:34-9:1
Christian Renunciation (Continuation)
------------------------------------------------------
[34] And He (Jesus) called to Him the multitude with His disciples, and said to them, "If any man would come after Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me. [35] For whoever would save his life will lose it; and whoever loses his life for My sake and the Gospel's will save it. [36] For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his life? [37] For what can a man give in return for his life? [38] For whoever is ashamed of Me and of My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of Man also be ashamed, when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels".
[1] And He said to them, "Truly, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death before they see the Kingdom of God come with power."
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Commentary:
35. "Life": in the original text and the New Vulgate the word literally means "soul." But here, as in many other cases, "soul" and "life" are equivalent. The word "life" is used, clearly, in a double sense: earthly life and eternal life, the life of man here-on earth and man's eternal happiness in Heaven. Death can put an end to earthly life, but it cannot destroy eternal life (cf. Matthew 10:28), the life which can only be given by Him who brings the dead back to life.
Understood in this way, we can grasp the paradoxical meaning of our Lord's phrase: whoever wishes to save his (earthly) life will lose his (eternal) life. But whoever loses his (earthly) life for Me and the Gospel, will save his (eternal) life. What, then, does saving one's (earthly) life mean? It means living this life as if there were no other -- letting oneself be controlled by the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the pride of life (cf. 1 John 2:16). And losing one's (earthly) life means mortifying, by continuous ascetical effort, this triple concupiscence --that is, taking up one's cross (verse 34)--and consequently seeking and savoring the things that are God's and not the things of the earth (cf. Colossians 3:1-2).
36-37. Jesus promises eternal life to those who are willing to lose earthly life for His sake. He has given us example: He is the Good Shepherd who lays down His life for His sheep (John 10:15); and He fulfilled in His own case what He said to the Apostles on the night before He died: "Greater love has no man than this that a man lay down his life for his friends" (John 15:13).
38. Each person's eternal destiny will be decided by Christ. He is the Judge who will come to judge the living and the dead (Matthew 16:27). The sentence will depend on how faithful each has been in keeping the Lord's commandments – to love God and to love one's neighbor, for God's sake. On that day Christ will not recognize as His disciple anyone who is ashamed to imitate Jesus' humility and example and follow the precepts of the Gospel for fear of displeasing the world or worldly people: he has failed to confess by his life the faith which he claims to hold. A Christian, then, should never be ashamed of the Gospel (Romans 1:16); he should never let himself be drawn away by the worldliness around him; rather he should exercise a decisive influence on his environment, counting on the help of God's grace. The first Christians changed the ancient pagan world. God's arm has not grown shorter since their time (cf. Isaiah 59:1). Cf. Matthew 10:32-33 and note on same.
9:1. The coming o the Kingdom of God with power does not seem to refer to the second, glorious coming of Jesus at the end of time (the Parousia); it may, rather, indicate the amazing spread of the Church in the lifetime of the Apostles. Many of those present here will witness this. The growth and spread of the Church in the world can be explained only by the divine power God gives to the mystical body of Christ. The Transfiguration of our Lord, which is recounted in the next passage, is a sign, given to the Apostles, of Jesus' divinity and of the divine powers which He will give His Church.
*********************************************************************************************
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, February 16, 2009
Monday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time
335 Monday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time
CCC Cross Reference:
Gen 4:1-2 2335; Gen 4:3-15 401; Gen 4:3-7 2538; Gen 4:4 2569; Gen 4:8-12 2259; Gen 4:10-11 2259; Gen 4:10 1736, 1867, 2268; Gen 4:25-26 2335
Back to Deacon’s Bench ‘07
Back to Deacon’s Bench ‘09
Back to SOW II '11
Back to SOW II '15
Back to SOW II '17
Back to SOW II '19
Back to SOW II '21
Reading 1
Gn 4:1-15, 25
The man had relations with his wife Eve,
and she conceived and bore Cain, saying,
"I have produced a man with the help of the LORD."
Next she bore his brother Abel.
Abel became a keeper of flocks, and Cain a tiller of the soil.
In the course of time Cain brought an offering to the LORD
from the fruit of the soil,
while Abel, for his part,
brought one of the best firstlings of his flock.
The LORD looked with favor on Abel and his offering,
but on Cain and his offering he did not.
Cain greatly resented this and was crestfallen.
So the LORD said to Cain:
"Why are you so resentful and crestfallen.
If you do well, you can hold up your head;
but if not, sin is a demon lurking at the door:
his urge is toward you, yet you can be his master."
Cain said to his brother Abel, "Let us go out in the field."
When they were in the field,
Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him.
Then the LORD asked Cain, "Where is your brother Abel?"
He answered, "I do not know.
Am I my brother's keeper?"
The LORD then said: "What have you done!
Listen: your brother's blood cries out to me from the soil!
Therefore you shall be banned from the soil
that opened its mouth to receive
your brother's blood from your hand.
If you till the soil, it shall no longer give you its produce.
You shall become a restless wanderer on the earth."
Cain said to the LORD: "My punishment is too great to bear.
Since you have now banished me from the soil,
and I must avoid your presence
and become a restless wanderer on the earth,
anyone may kill me at sight."
"Not so!" the LORD said to him.
"If anyone kills Cain, Cain shall be avenged sevenfold."
So the LORD put a mark on Cain, lest anyone should kill him at sight.
Adam again had relations with his wife,
and she gave birth to a son whom she called Seth.
"God has granted me more offspring in place of Abel," she said,
"because Cain slew him."
Responsorial Psalm
Ps 50:1 and 8, 16bc-17, 20-21
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.
"Not for your sacrifices do I rebuke you,
for your burnt offerings are before me always."
R. Offer to God a sacrifice of praise.
"Why do you recite my statutes,
and profess my covenant with your mouth
Though you hate discipline
and cast my words behind you?"
R. Offer to God a sacrifice of praise.
"You sit speaking against your brother;
against your mother's son you spread rumors.
When you do these things, shall I be deaf to it?
Or do you think that I am like yourself?
I will correct you by drawing them up before your eyes."
R. Offer to God a sacrifice of praise.
Gospel
Mk 8:11-13
The Pharisees came forward and began to argue with Jesus,
seeking from him a sign from heaven to test him.
He sighed from the depth of his spirit and said,
"Why does this generation seek a sign?
Amen, I say to you, no sign will be given to this generation."
Then he left them, got into the boat again,
and went off to the other shore.
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
First reading Genesis 4:1-15,25
The man had intercourse with his wife Eve, and she conceived and gave birth to Cain. ‘I have acquired a man with the help of the Lord’ she said. She gave birth to a second child, Abel, the brother of Cain. Now Abel became a shepherd and kept flocks, while Cain tilled the soil. Time passed and Cain brought some of the produce of the soil as an offering for the Lord, while Abel for his part brought the first-born of his flock and some of their fat as well. The Lord looked with favour on Abel and his offering. But he did not look with favour on Cain and his offering, and Cain was very angry and downcast. The Lord asked Cain, ‘Why are you angry and downcast? If you are well disposed, ought you not to lift up your head? But if you are ill disposed, is not sin at the door like a crouching beast hungering for you, which you must master?’ Cain said to his brother Abel, ‘Let us go out’; and while they were in the open country, Cain set on his brother Abel and killed him.
The Lord asked Cain, ‘Where is your brother Abel?’ ‘I do not know’ he replied. ‘Am I my brother’s guardian?’ ‘What have you done?’ the Lord asked. ‘Listen to the sound of your brother’s blood, crying out to me from the ground. Now be accursed and driven from the ground that has opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood at your hands. When you till the ground it shall no longer yield you any of its produce. You shall be a fugitive and a wanderer over the earth.’ Then Cain said to the Lord, ‘My punishment is greater than I can bear. See! Today you drive me from this ground. I must hide from you, and be a fugitive and a wanderer over the earth. Why, whoever comes across me will kill me!’ ‘Very well, then,’ the Lord replied ‘if anyone kills Cain, sevenfold vengeance shall be taken for him.’ So the Lord put a mark on Cain, to prevent whoever might come across him from striking him down.
Adam had intercourse with his wife, and she gave birth to a son whom she named Seth, ‘because God has granted me other offspring’ she said ‘in place of Abel, since Cain has killed him.’
Responsorial Psalm:
Psalm 49(50):1,8,16-17,20-21
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.
‘I find no fault with your sacrifices,
your offerings are always before me.’
Pay your sacrifice of thanksgiving to God.
‘But how can you recite my commandments
and take my covenant on your lips,
you who despise my law
and throw my words to the winds?
Pay your sacrifice of thanksgiving to God.
‘You who sit and malign your brother
and slander your own mother’s son.
You do this, and should I keep silence?
Do you think that I am like you?’
Pay your sacrifice of thanksgiving to God.
Gospel Mark 8:11-13
The Pharisees came up and started a discussion with Jesus; they demanded of him a sign from heaven, to test him. And with a sigh that came straight from the heart he said, ‘Why does this generation demand a sign? I tell you solemnly, no sign shall be given to this generation.’ And leaving them again and re-embarking, he went away to the opposite shore.
Readings and Commentary from the Navarre Bible
Monday of the 6th Week in Ordinary Time
From: Genesis 4:1-15, 25
The First Children of Adam and Eve
---------------------------------------------------
[1] Now Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bore Cain, saying, "I have gotten a man with the help of the Lord." [2] And again, she bore his brother Abel. Now Abel was a keeper of sheep, and Cain a tiller of the ground.
Cain and Abel
----------------------
In the course of time Cain brought to the Lord an offering of the fruit of the ground, [4] and Abel brought of the firstlings of his flock and of their fat portions. And the Lord had regard for Abel and his offering, [5] but for Cain and his offering he had no regard. So Cain was very angry, and his countenance fell. [6] The Lord said to Cain, "Why are you angry, and why has your countenance fallen? [7] If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin is couching at the door; its desire is for you, but you must master it."
[8] Cain said to Abel his brother, "Let us go out to the field." And when they were in the field, Cain rose up against his brother Abel, and killed him. [9] Then the Lord said to Cain, "Where is Abel your brother?" He said, "I do not know; am I my brother's keeper?" [10] And the Lord said, "What have you done? The voice of your brother's blood is crying to me from the ground. [11] And now you are cursed from the ground, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother's blood from your hand. [12] When you till the ground, it shall no longer yield to you its strength; you shall be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth." [13] Cain said to the Lord, "My punishment is greater than I can bear. [14] Behold, thou hast driven me this day away from the ground; and from thy face I shall be hidden; and I shall be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth, and whoever finds me will slay me." [15] Then the Lord said to him, "Not so! If any one slays Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold." And the Lord put a mark on Cain, lest any who came upon him should kill him.
The birth of Seth
------------------------
[25] And Adam knew his wife again, and she bore a son and called his name Seth, for she said, "God has appointed for me another child instead of Abel, for Cain slew him."
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Commentary:
4:1. To refer to sexual intercourse between man and woman, the Bible uses the term "to know", thereby signalling the human depth of that relationship: although it takes place via the body, it does so in a context of mind and will.
The name of Cain has an explanation in the biblical text: it echoes Eve's exclamation, "I have gotten (in Hebrew, "qaniti"). This shows God's part in the generation of her child. The Bible will keep on teaching that children are a gift from God, and that it is God who gives or withholds fertility. Consequently the Church reminds married couples of their duty "to transmit human life and to educate their children; they should realize that they are thereby cooperating with the love of God the Creator and are, in a certain sense, its interpreters'" (Vatican II, "Gaudium et spes", 50).
4:3-8. We can see here how from the start God picks out particular people (without any merit on their part), sometimes giving preference to the youngest or the weakest: Isaac is preferred to Esau, for example; David to his brothers. The origin of Cain's sin lies in the fact that he does not accept God's preference for his younger brother, and he gives way to anger, envy (cf. Wis 10:3) and gloominess. Despite that, God loves Cain too and he invites him to master temptation (v. 7) by acting rightly; but Cain killed his brother Abel.
Cain is the prototype of the perverse and murderous man; Abel, of the just man who blamelessly suffers violent death. For this reason Abel is seen as a figure of Jesus Christ, whose blood spilt on the cross speaks even more eloquently than the blood of Abel: "But you have come [. . .] to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the spiritual blood that speaks more graciously than the blood of Abel" (Heb 12:24). Cain, on the other hand, symbolizes every man who hates his neighbour, for hatred implies desiring that the other person should not exist. St John interprets the story of Cain in this sense when he writes: "This is the message which you have heard from the beginning, that we should love one another, and not be like Cain who was of the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his own deeds were evil and his brother's righteous. [. . .] Any one who hates his brother is a murderer, and we know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him'' (Jn 3:11-12, 15).
Assuming that Cain was ill-intentioned in his offerings, St Bede the Venerable comments that "men often are placated by gifts from those who have offended them; but God, who 'discerns the thoughts and intentions of the heart' (Heb 4: 12), lets himself be placated by no gift as much as by the pious devotion of the offerer. Once he has seen the purity of our heart, he will then also accept our prayers and our works" ("Hexaemeron 2: in Gen, 4:4-5).
4:9-16. The question God puts to Cain is one that is constantly being asked of all human beings as regards their fellows. And the death by violence of any innocent person cries for justice, a cry to which God is never indifferent. He burdens Cain's conscience with the weight of his crime, even though he protects his life by putting a mark on him to prevent anyone taking revenge. In the context of this account, the mark is meant as a protection, not a sign of infamy. The fact that Cain, on account of what he has done, is sent out of God's presence and has to wander on the earth symbolizes the break with God that sin causes.
"Human life is sacred," the Church teaches, "because from its beginning it involves the creative action of God and it remains for ever in a special relationship with the Creator, who is its sole end. God alone is the Lord of life from its beginning until its end: no one can under any circumstance claim for himself the right directly to destroy an innocent human being'' (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2258).
4:25-26. This is the part of mankind which retained its knowledge of the true God, who in due course will reveal himself to Abraham (cf. chap. 12) and Moses (cf. Ex 3:14). Seth's name is given an etymological explanation, but now one connected not with cities and skills (cf. the note on 4:17-24) but with God: Seth gets his name because God gave him to Eve to take the place of Abel. This will be the line of descendants of Adam and Eve from which will come the chosen people, through the calling of Abraham. The fact that there is no mention of Seth's descendants devoting themselves to trades may he designed to show that their specific contribution to mankind was their keeping the knowledge of the true God -- a greater contribution than that made by others.
"In a figurative manner," St Bede explains, "Enoch, the son of Seth, stands for the Christian people who, through faith and the sacrament of the passion and resurrection of the Lord, is born every day, the world over, of water and the Holy Spirit. This people [. . .] in all that it does is always invoking the name of the Lord, saying, Our Father, who are in heaven, hallowed by thy name" (Hexaemeron 2in Gen, 4:25-26).
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From: Mark 8:11-13
The Leaven of the Pharisees
-----------------------------------------
[11] The Pharisees came and began to argue with Him (Jesus), seeking from Him a sign from Heaven, to test Him. [12] And He sighed deeply in His spirit, and said, "Why does this generation seek a sign? Truly, I say to you, no sign shall be given to this generation." [13] And He left them, and getting into the boat again He departed to the other side.
*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:
11-12. Jesus expresses the deep sadness He feels at the hardheartedness of the Pharisees: they remain blind and unbelieving despite the light shining around them and the wonderful things Christ is doing. If someone rejects the miracles God has offered him, it is useless for him to demand new signs, because he asks for them not because he is sincerely seeking the truth but out of ill will: he is trying to tempt God (cf. Luke 16:27-31). Requiring new miracles before one will believe, not accepting those already performed in the history of salvation, amounts to asking God to account for Himself before a human tribunal (cf. Romans 2:1-11). Unfortunately, many people do act like this. But God can only be found if we have an open and humble attitude to Him. "I have no need of miracles: there are more than enough for me in the Gospel. But I do need to see you fulfilling your duty and responding to grace" (St J. Escriva, "The Way", 362).
12. The generation to which Jesus refers does not include all the people of His time, but only the Pharisees and their followers (cf. Mark 8:38; 9:19; Matthew 11:16), who do not want to see in Jesus' miracles the sign and guarantee of His messianic mission and dignity: they even attribute His miracles to Satan (Matthew 12:28).
If they do not accept the signs offered to them, they will be given no other sign of the spectacular kind they seek, for the Kingdom of God does not come noisily (Luke 17:20-21) and even if it did they in their twisted way would manage to misinterpret the event (Luke 16:31). According to Matthew 12:38-42 and Luke 11:29-32, they are offered yet another sign--the miracle of Jonah, the sign of the death and resurrection of Christ; but not even this remarkable proof will lead the Pharisees to shed their pride.
*********************************************************************************************
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.
CCC Cross Reference:
Gen 4:1-2 2335; Gen 4:3-15 401; Gen 4:3-7 2538; Gen 4:4 2569; Gen 4:8-12 2259; Gen 4:10-11 2259; Gen 4:10 1736, 1867, 2268; Gen 4:25-26 2335
Back to Deacon’s Bench ‘07
Back to Deacon’s Bench ‘09
Back to SOW II '11
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Back to SOW II '21
Reading 1
Gn 4:1-15, 25
The man had relations with his wife Eve,
and she conceived and bore Cain, saying,
"I have produced a man with the help of the LORD."
Next she bore his brother Abel.
Abel became a keeper of flocks, and Cain a tiller of the soil.
In the course of time Cain brought an offering to the LORD
from the fruit of the soil,
while Abel, for his part,
brought one of the best firstlings of his flock.
The LORD looked with favor on Abel and his offering,
but on Cain and his offering he did not.
Cain greatly resented this and was crestfallen.
So the LORD said to Cain:
"Why are you so resentful and crestfallen.
If you do well, you can hold up your head;
but if not, sin is a demon lurking at the door:
his urge is toward you, yet you can be his master."
Cain said to his brother Abel, "Let us go out in the field."
When they were in the field,
Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him.
Then the LORD asked Cain, "Where is your brother Abel?"
He answered, "I do not know.
Am I my brother's keeper?"
The LORD then said: "What have you done!
Listen: your brother's blood cries out to me from the soil!
Therefore you shall be banned from the soil
that opened its mouth to receive
your brother's blood from your hand.
If you till the soil, it shall no longer give you its produce.
You shall become a restless wanderer on the earth."
Cain said to the LORD: "My punishment is too great to bear.
Since you have now banished me from the soil,
and I must avoid your presence
and become a restless wanderer on the earth,
anyone may kill me at sight."
"Not so!" the LORD said to him.
"If anyone kills Cain, Cain shall be avenged sevenfold."
So the LORD put a mark on Cain, lest anyone should kill him at sight.
Adam again had relations with his wife,
and she gave birth to a son whom she called Seth.
"God has granted me more offspring in place of Abel," she said,
"because Cain slew him."
Responsorial Psalm
Ps 50:1 and 8, 16bc-17, 20-21
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.
"Not for your sacrifices do I rebuke you,
for your burnt offerings are before me always."
R. Offer to God a sacrifice of praise.
"Why do you recite my statutes,
and profess my covenant with your mouth
Though you hate discipline
and cast my words behind you?"
R. Offer to God a sacrifice of praise.
"You sit speaking against your brother;
against your mother's son you spread rumors.
When you do these things, shall I be deaf to it?
Or do you think that I am like yourself?
I will correct you by drawing them up before your eyes."
R. Offer to God a sacrifice of praise.
Gospel
Mk 8:11-13
The Pharisees came forward and began to argue with Jesus,
seeking from him a sign from heaven to test him.
He sighed from the depth of his spirit and said,
"Why does this generation seek a sign?
Amen, I say to you, no sign will be given to this generation."
Then he left them, got into the boat again,
and went off to the other shore.
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
First reading Genesis 4:1-15,25
The man had intercourse with his wife Eve, and she conceived and gave birth to Cain. ‘I have acquired a man with the help of the Lord’ she said. She gave birth to a second child, Abel, the brother of Cain. Now Abel became a shepherd and kept flocks, while Cain tilled the soil. Time passed and Cain brought some of the produce of the soil as an offering for the Lord, while Abel for his part brought the first-born of his flock and some of their fat as well. The Lord looked with favour on Abel and his offering. But he did not look with favour on Cain and his offering, and Cain was very angry and downcast. The Lord asked Cain, ‘Why are you angry and downcast? If you are well disposed, ought you not to lift up your head? But if you are ill disposed, is not sin at the door like a crouching beast hungering for you, which you must master?’ Cain said to his brother Abel, ‘Let us go out’; and while they were in the open country, Cain set on his brother Abel and killed him.
The Lord asked Cain, ‘Where is your brother Abel?’ ‘I do not know’ he replied. ‘Am I my brother’s guardian?’ ‘What have you done?’ the Lord asked. ‘Listen to the sound of your brother’s blood, crying out to me from the ground. Now be accursed and driven from the ground that has opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood at your hands. When you till the ground it shall no longer yield you any of its produce. You shall be a fugitive and a wanderer over the earth.’ Then Cain said to the Lord, ‘My punishment is greater than I can bear. See! Today you drive me from this ground. I must hide from you, and be a fugitive and a wanderer over the earth. Why, whoever comes across me will kill me!’ ‘Very well, then,’ the Lord replied ‘if anyone kills Cain, sevenfold vengeance shall be taken for him.’ So the Lord put a mark on Cain, to prevent whoever might come across him from striking him down.
Adam had intercourse with his wife, and she gave birth to a son whom she named Seth, ‘because God has granted me other offspring’ she said ‘in place of Abel, since Cain has killed him.’
Responsorial Psalm:
Psalm 49(50):1,8,16-17,20-21
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.
‘I find no fault with your sacrifices,
your offerings are always before me.’
Pay your sacrifice of thanksgiving to God.
‘But how can you recite my commandments
and take my covenant on your lips,
you who despise my law
and throw my words to the winds?
Pay your sacrifice of thanksgiving to God.
‘You who sit and malign your brother
and slander your own mother’s son.
You do this, and should I keep silence?
Do you think that I am like you?’
Pay your sacrifice of thanksgiving to God.
Gospel Mark 8:11-13
The Pharisees came up and started a discussion with Jesus; they demanded of him a sign from heaven, to test him. And with a sigh that came straight from the heart he said, ‘Why does this generation demand a sign? I tell you solemnly, no sign shall be given to this generation.’ And leaving them again and re-embarking, he went away to the opposite shore.
Readings and Commentary from the Navarre Bible
Monday of the 6th Week in Ordinary Time
From: Genesis 4:1-15, 25
The First Children of Adam and Eve
---------------------------------------------------
[1] Now Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bore Cain, saying, "I have gotten a man with the help of the Lord." [2] And again, she bore his brother Abel. Now Abel was a keeper of sheep, and Cain a tiller of the ground.
Cain and Abel
----------------------
In the course of time Cain brought to the Lord an offering of the fruit of the ground, [4] and Abel brought of the firstlings of his flock and of their fat portions. And the Lord had regard for Abel and his offering, [5] but for Cain and his offering he had no regard. So Cain was very angry, and his countenance fell. [6] The Lord said to Cain, "Why are you angry, and why has your countenance fallen? [7] If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin is couching at the door; its desire is for you, but you must master it."
[8] Cain said to Abel his brother, "Let us go out to the field." And when they were in the field, Cain rose up against his brother Abel, and killed him. [9] Then the Lord said to Cain, "Where is Abel your brother?" He said, "I do not know; am I my brother's keeper?" [10] And the Lord said, "What have you done? The voice of your brother's blood is crying to me from the ground. [11] And now you are cursed from the ground, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother's blood from your hand. [12] When you till the ground, it shall no longer yield to you its strength; you shall be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth." [13] Cain said to the Lord, "My punishment is greater than I can bear. [14] Behold, thou hast driven me this day away from the ground; and from thy face I shall be hidden; and I shall be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth, and whoever finds me will slay me." [15] Then the Lord said to him, "Not so! If any one slays Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold." And the Lord put a mark on Cain, lest any who came upon him should kill him.
The birth of Seth
------------------------
[25] And Adam knew his wife again, and she bore a son and called his name Seth, for she said, "God has appointed for me another child instead of Abel, for Cain slew him."
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Commentary:
4:1. To refer to sexual intercourse between man and woman, the Bible uses the term "to know", thereby signalling the human depth of that relationship: although it takes place via the body, it does so in a context of mind and will.
The name of Cain has an explanation in the biblical text: it echoes Eve's exclamation, "I have gotten (in Hebrew, "qaniti"). This shows God's part in the generation of her child. The Bible will keep on teaching that children are a gift from God, and that it is God who gives or withholds fertility. Consequently the Church reminds married couples of their duty "to transmit human life and to educate their children; they should realize that they are thereby cooperating with the love of God the Creator and are, in a certain sense, its interpreters'" (Vatican II, "Gaudium et spes", 50).
4:3-8. We can see here how from the start God picks out particular people (without any merit on their part), sometimes giving preference to the youngest or the weakest: Isaac is preferred to Esau, for example; David to his brothers. The origin of Cain's sin lies in the fact that he does not accept God's preference for his younger brother, and he gives way to anger, envy (cf. Wis 10:3) and gloominess. Despite that, God loves Cain too and he invites him to master temptation (v. 7) by acting rightly; but Cain killed his brother Abel.
Cain is the prototype of the perverse and murderous man; Abel, of the just man who blamelessly suffers violent death. For this reason Abel is seen as a figure of Jesus Christ, whose blood spilt on the cross speaks even more eloquently than the blood of Abel: "But you have come [. . .] to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the spiritual blood that speaks more graciously than the blood of Abel" (Heb 12:24). Cain, on the other hand, symbolizes every man who hates his neighbour, for hatred implies desiring that the other person should not exist. St John interprets the story of Cain in this sense when he writes: "This is the message which you have heard from the beginning, that we should love one another, and not be like Cain who was of the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his own deeds were evil and his brother's righteous. [. . .] Any one who hates his brother is a murderer, and we know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him'' (Jn 3:11-12, 15).
Assuming that Cain was ill-intentioned in his offerings, St Bede the Venerable comments that "men often are placated by gifts from those who have offended them; but God, who 'discerns the thoughts and intentions of the heart' (Heb 4: 12), lets himself be placated by no gift as much as by the pious devotion of the offerer. Once he has seen the purity of our heart, he will then also accept our prayers and our works" ("Hexaemeron 2: in Gen, 4:4-5).
4:9-16. The question God puts to Cain is one that is constantly being asked of all human beings as regards their fellows. And the death by violence of any innocent person cries for justice, a cry to which God is never indifferent. He burdens Cain's conscience with the weight of his crime, even though he protects his life by putting a mark on him to prevent anyone taking revenge. In the context of this account, the mark is meant as a protection, not a sign of infamy. The fact that Cain, on account of what he has done, is sent out of God's presence and has to wander on the earth symbolizes the break with God that sin causes.
"Human life is sacred," the Church teaches, "because from its beginning it involves the creative action of God and it remains for ever in a special relationship with the Creator, who is its sole end. God alone is the Lord of life from its beginning until its end: no one can under any circumstance claim for himself the right directly to destroy an innocent human being'' (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2258).
4:25-26. This is the part of mankind which retained its knowledge of the true God, who in due course will reveal himself to Abraham (cf. chap. 12) and Moses (cf. Ex 3:14). Seth's name is given an etymological explanation, but now one connected not with cities and skills (cf. the note on 4:17-24) but with God: Seth gets his name because God gave him to Eve to take the place of Abel. This will be the line of descendants of Adam and Eve from which will come the chosen people, through the calling of Abraham. The fact that there is no mention of Seth's descendants devoting themselves to trades may he designed to show that their specific contribution to mankind was their keeping the knowledge of the true God -- a greater contribution than that made by others.
"In a figurative manner," St Bede explains, "Enoch, the son of Seth, stands for the Christian people who, through faith and the sacrament of the passion and resurrection of the Lord, is born every day, the world over, of water and the Holy Spirit. This people [. . .] in all that it does is always invoking the name of the Lord, saying, Our Father, who are in heaven, hallowed by thy name" (Hexaemeron 2in Gen, 4:25-26).
*********************************************************************************************
From: Mark 8:11-13
The Leaven of the Pharisees
-----------------------------------------
[11] The Pharisees came and began to argue with Him (Jesus), seeking from Him a sign from Heaven, to test Him. [12] And He sighed deeply in His spirit, and said, "Why does this generation seek a sign? Truly, I say to you, no sign shall be given to this generation." [13] And He left them, and getting into the boat again He departed to the other side.
*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:
11-12. Jesus expresses the deep sadness He feels at the hardheartedness of the Pharisees: they remain blind and unbelieving despite the light shining around them and the wonderful things Christ is doing. If someone rejects the miracles God has offered him, it is useless for him to demand new signs, because he asks for them not because he is sincerely seeking the truth but out of ill will: he is trying to tempt God (cf. Luke 16:27-31). Requiring new miracles before one will believe, not accepting those already performed in the history of salvation, amounts to asking God to account for Himself before a human tribunal (cf. Romans 2:1-11). Unfortunately, many people do act like this. But God can only be found if we have an open and humble attitude to Him. "I have no need of miracles: there are more than enough for me in the Gospel. But I do need to see you fulfilling your duty and responding to grace" (St J. Escriva, "The Way", 362).
12. The generation to which Jesus refers does not include all the people of His time, but only the Pharisees and their followers (cf. Mark 8:38; 9:19; Matthew 11:16), who do not want to see in Jesus' miracles the sign and guarantee of His messianic mission and dignity: they even attribute His miracles to Satan (Matthew 12:28).
If they do not accept the signs offered to them, they will be given no other sign of the spectacular kind they seek, for the Kingdom of God does not come noisily (Luke 17:20-21) and even if it did they in their twisted way would manage to misinterpret the event (Luke 16:31). According to Matthew 12:38-42 and Luke 11:29-32, they are offered yet another sign--the miracle of Jonah, the sign of the death and resurrection of Christ; but not even this remarkable proof will lead the Pharisees to shed their pride.
*********************************************************************************************
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.
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Sixth Sunday of Ordinary Time
77B Sixth Sunday of Ordinary Time
Catechism Links
CCC 1474: Living in Christ unites all believers in him
CCC 1939-1942: Human solidarity
CCC 2288-2291: Respect for health
CCC Cross Reference:
Ps 32 304; Ps 32:5 1502
Mk 1:40-41 2616; Mk 1:41 1504
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Reading 1
Lv 13:1-2, 44-46
The Lord said to Moses and Aaron,
"If someone has on his skin a scab or pustule or blotch
which appears to be the sore of leprosy,
he shall be brought to Aaron, the priest,
or to one of the priests among his descendants.
If the man is leprous and unclean,
the priest shall declare him unclean
by reason of the sore on his head.
"The one who bears the sore of leprosy
shall keep his garments rent and his head bare,
and shall muffle his beard;
he shall cry out, 'Unclean, unclean!'
As long as the sore is on him he shall declare himself unclean,
since he is in fact unclean.
He shall dwell apart, making his abode outside the camp."
Responsorial Psalm
Ps 32:1-2, 5, 11
R. (7) I turn to you, Lord, in time of trouble, and you fill me with the joy of salvation.
Blessed is he whose fault is taken away,
whose sin is covered.
Blessed the man to whom the LORD imputes not guilt,
in whose spirit there is no guile.
R. I turn to you, Lord, in time of trouble, and you fill me with the joy of salvation.
Then I acknowledged my sin to you,
my guilt I covered not.
I said, "I confess my faults to the LORD,"
and you took away the guilt of my sin.
R. I turn to you, Lord, in time of trouble, and you fill me with the joy of salvation.
Be glad in the LORD and rejoice, you just;
exult, all you upright of heart.
R. I turn to you, Lord, in time of trouble, and you fill me with the joy of salvation.
Reading II
1 Cor 10:31-11:1
Brothers and sisters,
Whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do,
do everything for the glory of God.
Avoid giving offense, whether to the Jews or Greeks or
the church of God,
just as I try to please everyone in every way,
not seeking my own benefit but that of the many,
that they may be saved.
Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ.
Gospel
Mk 1:40-45
A leper came to Jesus and kneeling down begged him and said,
"If you wish, you can make me clean."
Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand,
touched him, and said to him,
"I do will it. Be made clean."
The leprosy left him immediately, and he was made clean.
Then, warning him sternly, he dismissed him at once.
He said to him, "See that you tell no one anything,
but go, show yourself to the priest
and offer for your cleansing what Moses prescribed;
that will be proof for them."
The man went away and began to publicize the whole matter.
He spread the report abroad
so that it was impossible for Jesus to enter a town openly.
He remained outside in deserted places,
and people kept coming to him from everywhere.
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
First reading Leviticus 13:1-2,45-46
The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, ‘If a swelling or scab or shiny spot appears on a man’s skin, a case of leprosy of the skin is to be suspected. The man must be taken to Aaron, the priest, or to one of the priests who are his sons.
‘A man infected with leprosy must wear his clothing torn and his hair disordered; he must shield his upper lip and cry, “Unclean, unclean.” As long as the disease lasts he must be unclean; and therefore he must live apart: he must live outside the camp.’
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 31(32):1-2,5,11
You are my refuge, O Lord; you fill me with the joy of salvation.
Happy the man whose offence is forgiven,
whose sin is remitted.
O happy the man to whom the Lord
imputes no guilt,
in whose spirit is no guile.
You are my refuge, O Lord; you fill me with the joy of salvation.
But now I have acknowledged my sins;
my guilt I did not hide.
I said: ‘I will confess
my offence to the Lord.’
And you, Lord, have forgiven
the guilt of my sin.
You are my refuge, O Lord; you fill me with the joy of salvation.
Rejoice, rejoice in the Lord,
exult, you just!
O come, ring out your joy,
all you upright of heart.
You are my refuge, O Lord; you fill me with the joy of salvation.
Second reading 1 Corinthians 10:31-11:1
Whatever you eat, whatever you drink, whatever you do at all, do it for the glory of God. Never do anything offensive to anyone – to Jews or Greeks or to the Church of God; just as I try to be helpful to everyone at all times, not anxious for my own advantage but for the advantage of everybody else, so that they may be saved. Take me for your model, as I take Christ.
Gospel Mark 1:40-45
A leper came to Jesus and pleaded on his knees: ‘If you want to’ he said ‘you can cure me.’ Feeling sorry for him, Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him. ‘Of course I want to!’ he said. ‘Be cured!’ And the leprosy left him at once and he was cured. Jesus immediately sent him away and sternly ordered him, ‘Mind you say nothing to anyone, but go and show yourself to the priest, and make the offering for your healing prescribed by Moses as evidence of your recovery.’ The man went away, but then started talking about it freely and telling the story everywhere, so that Jesus could no longer go openly into any town, but had to stay outside in places where nobody lived. Even so, people from all around would come to him.
Readings and Commentary from the Navarre Bible
6th Sunday in Ordinary Time
From: Leviticus 13:1-2, 44-46
Tests for Leprosy
-------------------------
[1] The LORD said to Moses and Aaron, [2] ”When a man has on the skin of his body a swelling or an eruption or a spot, and it turns into a leprous disease on the skin of his body, then he shall be brought to Aaron the priest or to one of his sons the priests. [44] He is leprous man, he is unclean; the priest must pronounce him unclean; his disease is on his head.
[45] ”The leper who has the disease shall wear torn clothes and let the hair of his head hang loose, and he shall cover his upper lip and cry, ‘Unclean, unclean.’ [46] He shall remain unclean as long as he has the disease; he is unclean; he shall dwell alone in a habitation outside the camp."
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Commentary:
13:1-14:57. These chapters contain the regulations to do with leprosy, its treatment, and purification after contact with the disease. They cover leprosy in persons (13:1-46; 14:1-32), in clothing and in accommodation (13:47-59; 14:33-53); the cleansing of the poor is specially facilitated (14:21-32). The section ends by looking at the different kinds of leprosy (14:54-57). 13:1-59. According to the state of knowledge at the time, there were various indications for this terrible disease. Although some of the data given here may be of interest to historians of medicine, there was generally confusion between leprosy and other skin diseases. However, the fact that people suffering from these diseases are unsightly was sufficient reason to declare them unclean.
Because leprosy .was an infectious disease, every effort had to be made to keep it from spreading. It was widely held as being a punishment for some sin. Indeed, in the case of Miriam, who was leprous for a while, we are told that she got the disease because she had been murmuring against her brother Moses (cf. Num 12:1-10). Also, the suffering servant of Yahweh is portrayed as having leprosy, an affliction God sent him on account of our sins (cf. Is 53:4). And Job, who had something like leprosy, was accused by his Mends of having committed some terrible, hidden sin: it was the only explanation they could think of for his sorry state.
Life was very different for a person with leprosy. He had to live in settlements or camps away from towns. When travelling about, he had to warn people he was coming by shouting to show he was unclean; he wore his clothes torn and hair uncombed: all this was meant to make him stand out, so that people could avoid him easily. We often come across wretched lepers in the Gospels, on whom Jesus has compassion and whom he makes clean (cf. Mt 8:2-3; Lk 17:l2-14): the curing of lepers was one of the signs of the messianic times prophesied in the Old Testament (Mt 11:5). And our Lord gives the apostles power to cure lepers (cf. Mt 10:8).
The New Vulgate abbreviates the original Hebrew text, especially 13:52-53.
*********************************************************************************************
From: 1 Corinthians 10:31-11:1
Practical Solutions
----------------------------
[31] So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. [32] Give no offense to Jews or to Greeks or to the church of God, [33] just as I try to please all men in everything I do, not seeking my own advantage, but that of many, that they may be saved.
[1] Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ.
*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:
31. In everything he does--even in apparently unimportant things, like eating and drinking--a Christian should seek the glory of God, by always acting with the best of intentions. In the case of meals, the practice of saying grace before and after helps us to be mindful of God in that situation.
"When you sit down to eat," St Basil says, commenting on this verse, "pray. When you eat bread, do so thanking him for being so generous to you. If you drink wine, be mindful of him who has given it to you for your pleasure and as a relief in sickness. When you dress, thank him for his kindness in providing you with clothes. When you look at the sky and the beauty of the stars, throw yourself at God's feet and adore him who in his wisdom has arranged things in this way. Similarly, when the sun goes down and when it rises, when you are asleep or awake, give thanks to God, who created and arranged all things for your benefit, to have you know, love and praise their Creator" ("Hom. in Julittarn Martyrem").
*********************************************************************************************
From: Mark 1:40-45
The Curing of a Leper
-------------------------------
[40] And a leper came to Him (Jesus), beseeching Him, and kneeling said to Him, "If You will, You can make me clean." [41] Moved with pity, He stretched out His hand and touched him, and said to him, "I will; be clean." [42] And immediately the leprosy left him, and he was made clean. [43] And He sternly charged him, and sent him away at once, [44] and said to him, "See that you say nothing to anyone; but go, show yourself to the priest, and offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, for a proof to the people." [45] But he went out and began to talk freely about it, and spread the news, so that Jesus could no longer openly enter a town, but was out in the country; and people came to Him from every quarter.
*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:
40-44. Leprosy was seen as a punishment from God (cf. Numbers 12:10-15). The disappearance of the disease was regarded as one of the blessings of the messianic times (Isaiah 35:8; cf. Matthew 11:5; Luke 7:22). Because leprosy was contagious, the Law declared that lepers were impure and that they transmitted impurity to those who touched them and to places they entered. Therefore, they had to live apart (Numbers 5:2; 12:14ff) and to show that they were lepers by certain external signs. On the rite of purification, see the note on Matthew 8:4.
[The note on Matthew 8:4 states:
4. According to the Law of Moses (Leviticus 14), if a leper is cured of his disease, he should present himself to a priest, who will register the cure and give him a certificate which he needs to be reintegrated into the civil and religious life of Israel. Leviticus also prescribes the purifications and sacrifice he should offer. Jesus' instruction to the leper is, then, in keeping with the normal way of fulfilling what the laws laid down.]
The passage shows us the faithful and confident prayer of a man needing Jesus' help and begging Him for it, confident that, if Our Lord wishes, He can free him from the disease (cf. Matthew 8:2). "This man prostrated himself on the ground, as a sign of humility and shame, to teach each of us to be ashamed of the stains of his life. But shame should not prevent us from confessing: the leper showed his wound and begged for healing. If You will, he says, You can make me clean; that is, he recognized that the Lord had the power to cure him" (St. Bede, "In Marci Evangelium Expositio, in loc.").
On the discretion and prudence Jesus required regarding His person, see the note on Mark 1:34 and Matthew 9:30.
[The note on Mark 1:34 states:
34. Demons possess a supernatural type of knowledge and therefore they recognize Jesus as the Messiah (Mark 1:24). Through the people they possess they are able to publish this fact. But Our Lord, using His divine powers, orders them to be silent. On other occasions He also silences His disciples (Mark 8: 30; 9:9), and He instructs people whom He has cured not to talk about their cure (Mark 1:4; 5:43; 7:36; 8:26). He may have acted in this way to educate the people away from a too human and political idea of the Messiah (Matthew 9:30). Therefore, He first awakens their interest by performing miracles and gradually, through His preaching, gives them a clearer understanding of the kind of Messiah He is.
Some Fathers of the Church point out that Jesus does not want to accept, in support of the truth, the testimony of him who is the father of lies.]
[The note on Matthew 9:30 states:
30. Why did our Lord not want them to publicize the miracle? Because His plan was to gradually manifest Himself as the Messiah, the Son of God. He did not want to anticipate events which would occur in their own good time; nor did He want the crowd to start hailing Him as Messiah King, because their notion of messiah was nationalistic, not a spiritual one. However, the crowd did in fact proclaim Him when he worked the miracles of the loaves and the fish (John 6:14-15): "When the people saw the sign which He had done, they said, 'This is indeed the prophet who is to come into the world!' Perceiving then that they were about to come and take Him by force to make Him king, Jesus withdrew again to the hills by Himself."]
*********************************************************************************************
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.
Catechism Links
CCC 1474: Living in Christ unites all believers in him
CCC 1939-1942: Human solidarity
CCC 2288-2291: Respect for health
CCC Cross Reference:
Ps 32 304; Ps 32:5 1502
Mk 1:40-41 2616; Mk 1:41 1504
Back to Deacon’s Bench ‘09
Back to SOW II '12
Back to SOW II '15
Back to SOW II '18
Back to SOW II '21
Reading 1
Lv 13:1-2, 44-46
The Lord said to Moses and Aaron,
"If someone has on his skin a scab or pustule or blotch
which appears to be the sore of leprosy,
he shall be brought to Aaron, the priest,
or to one of the priests among his descendants.
If the man is leprous and unclean,
the priest shall declare him unclean
by reason of the sore on his head.
"The one who bears the sore of leprosy
shall keep his garments rent and his head bare,
and shall muffle his beard;
he shall cry out, 'Unclean, unclean!'
As long as the sore is on him he shall declare himself unclean,
since he is in fact unclean.
He shall dwell apart, making his abode outside the camp."
Responsorial Psalm
Ps 32:1-2, 5, 11
R. (7) I turn to you, Lord, in time of trouble, and you fill me with the joy of salvation.
Blessed is he whose fault is taken away,
whose sin is covered.
Blessed the man to whom the LORD imputes not guilt,
in whose spirit there is no guile.
R. I turn to you, Lord, in time of trouble, and you fill me with the joy of salvation.
Then I acknowledged my sin to you,
my guilt I covered not.
I said, "I confess my faults to the LORD,"
and you took away the guilt of my sin.
R. I turn to you, Lord, in time of trouble, and you fill me with the joy of salvation.
Be glad in the LORD and rejoice, you just;
exult, all you upright of heart.
R. I turn to you, Lord, in time of trouble, and you fill me with the joy of salvation.
Reading II
1 Cor 10:31-11:1
Brothers and sisters,
Whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do,
do everything for the glory of God.
Avoid giving offense, whether to the Jews or Greeks or
the church of God,
just as I try to please everyone in every way,
not seeking my own benefit but that of the many,
that they may be saved.
Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ.
Gospel
Mk 1:40-45
A leper came to Jesus and kneeling down begged him and said,
"If you wish, you can make me clean."
Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand,
touched him, and said to him,
"I do will it. Be made clean."
The leprosy left him immediately, and he was made clean.
Then, warning him sternly, he dismissed him at once.
He said to him, "See that you tell no one anything,
but go, show yourself to the priest
and offer for your cleansing what Moses prescribed;
that will be proof for them."
The man went away and began to publicize the whole matter.
He spread the report abroad
so that it was impossible for Jesus to enter a town openly.
He remained outside in deserted places,
and people kept coming to him from everywhere.
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
First reading Leviticus 13:1-2,45-46
The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, ‘If a swelling or scab or shiny spot appears on a man’s skin, a case of leprosy of the skin is to be suspected. The man must be taken to Aaron, the priest, or to one of the priests who are his sons.
‘A man infected with leprosy must wear his clothing torn and his hair disordered; he must shield his upper lip and cry, “Unclean, unclean.” As long as the disease lasts he must be unclean; and therefore he must live apart: he must live outside the camp.’
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 31(32):1-2,5,11
You are my refuge, O Lord; you fill me with the joy of salvation.
Happy the man whose offence is forgiven,
whose sin is remitted.
O happy the man to whom the Lord
imputes no guilt,
in whose spirit is no guile.
You are my refuge, O Lord; you fill me with the joy of salvation.
But now I have acknowledged my sins;
my guilt I did not hide.
I said: ‘I will confess
my offence to the Lord.’
And you, Lord, have forgiven
the guilt of my sin.
You are my refuge, O Lord; you fill me with the joy of salvation.
Rejoice, rejoice in the Lord,
exult, you just!
O come, ring out your joy,
all you upright of heart.
You are my refuge, O Lord; you fill me with the joy of salvation.
Second reading 1 Corinthians 10:31-11:1
Whatever you eat, whatever you drink, whatever you do at all, do it for the glory of God. Never do anything offensive to anyone – to Jews or Greeks or to the Church of God; just as I try to be helpful to everyone at all times, not anxious for my own advantage but for the advantage of everybody else, so that they may be saved. Take me for your model, as I take Christ.
Gospel Mark 1:40-45
A leper came to Jesus and pleaded on his knees: ‘If you want to’ he said ‘you can cure me.’ Feeling sorry for him, Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him. ‘Of course I want to!’ he said. ‘Be cured!’ And the leprosy left him at once and he was cured. Jesus immediately sent him away and sternly ordered him, ‘Mind you say nothing to anyone, but go and show yourself to the priest, and make the offering for your healing prescribed by Moses as evidence of your recovery.’ The man went away, but then started talking about it freely and telling the story everywhere, so that Jesus could no longer go openly into any town, but had to stay outside in places where nobody lived. Even so, people from all around would come to him.
Readings and Commentary from the Navarre Bible
6th Sunday in Ordinary Time
From: Leviticus 13:1-2, 44-46
Tests for Leprosy
-------------------------
[1] The LORD said to Moses and Aaron, [2] ”When a man has on the skin of his body a swelling or an eruption or a spot, and it turns into a leprous disease on the skin of his body, then he shall be brought to Aaron the priest or to one of his sons the priests. [44] He is leprous man, he is unclean; the priest must pronounce him unclean; his disease is on his head.
[45] ”The leper who has the disease shall wear torn clothes and let the hair of his head hang loose, and he shall cover his upper lip and cry, ‘Unclean, unclean.’ [46] He shall remain unclean as long as he has the disease; he is unclean; he shall dwell alone in a habitation outside the camp."
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Commentary:
13:1-14:57. These chapters contain the regulations to do with leprosy, its treatment, and purification after contact with the disease. They cover leprosy in persons (13:1-46; 14:1-32), in clothing and in accommodation (13:47-59; 14:33-53); the cleansing of the poor is specially facilitated (14:21-32). The section ends by looking at the different kinds of leprosy (14:54-57). 13:1-59. According to the state of knowledge at the time, there were various indications for this terrible disease. Although some of the data given here may be of interest to historians of medicine, there was generally confusion between leprosy and other skin diseases. However, the fact that people suffering from these diseases are unsightly was sufficient reason to declare them unclean.
Because leprosy .was an infectious disease, every effort had to be made to keep it from spreading. It was widely held as being a punishment for some sin. Indeed, in the case of Miriam, who was leprous for a while, we are told that she got the disease because she had been murmuring against her brother Moses (cf. Num 12:1-10). Also, the suffering servant of Yahweh is portrayed as having leprosy, an affliction God sent him on account of our sins (cf. Is 53:4). And Job, who had something like leprosy, was accused by his Mends of having committed some terrible, hidden sin: it was the only explanation they could think of for his sorry state.
Life was very different for a person with leprosy. He had to live in settlements or camps away from towns. When travelling about, he had to warn people he was coming by shouting to show he was unclean; he wore his clothes torn and hair uncombed: all this was meant to make him stand out, so that people could avoid him easily. We often come across wretched lepers in the Gospels, on whom Jesus has compassion and whom he makes clean (cf. Mt 8:2-3; Lk 17:l2-14): the curing of lepers was one of the signs of the messianic times prophesied in the Old Testament (Mt 11:5). And our Lord gives the apostles power to cure lepers (cf. Mt 10:8).
The New Vulgate abbreviates the original Hebrew text, especially 13:52-53.
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From: 1 Corinthians 10:31-11:1
Practical Solutions
----------------------------
[31] So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. [32] Give no offense to Jews or to Greeks or to the church of God, [33] just as I try to please all men in everything I do, not seeking my own advantage, but that of many, that they may be saved.
[1] Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ.
*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:
31. In everything he does--even in apparently unimportant things, like eating and drinking--a Christian should seek the glory of God, by always acting with the best of intentions. In the case of meals, the practice of saying grace before and after helps us to be mindful of God in that situation.
"When you sit down to eat," St Basil says, commenting on this verse, "pray. When you eat bread, do so thanking him for being so generous to you. If you drink wine, be mindful of him who has given it to you for your pleasure and as a relief in sickness. When you dress, thank him for his kindness in providing you with clothes. When you look at the sky and the beauty of the stars, throw yourself at God's feet and adore him who in his wisdom has arranged things in this way. Similarly, when the sun goes down and when it rises, when you are asleep or awake, give thanks to God, who created and arranged all things for your benefit, to have you know, love and praise their Creator" ("Hom. in Julittarn Martyrem").
*********************************************************************************************
From: Mark 1:40-45
The Curing of a Leper
-------------------------------
[40] And a leper came to Him (Jesus), beseeching Him, and kneeling said to Him, "If You will, You can make me clean." [41] Moved with pity, He stretched out His hand and touched him, and said to him, "I will; be clean." [42] And immediately the leprosy left him, and he was made clean. [43] And He sternly charged him, and sent him away at once, [44] and said to him, "See that you say nothing to anyone; but go, show yourself to the priest, and offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, for a proof to the people." [45] But he went out and began to talk freely about it, and spread the news, so that Jesus could no longer openly enter a town, but was out in the country; and people came to Him from every quarter.
*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:
40-44. Leprosy was seen as a punishment from God (cf. Numbers 12:10-15). The disappearance of the disease was regarded as one of the blessings of the messianic times (Isaiah 35:8; cf. Matthew 11:5; Luke 7:22). Because leprosy was contagious, the Law declared that lepers were impure and that they transmitted impurity to those who touched them and to places they entered. Therefore, they had to live apart (Numbers 5:2; 12:14ff) and to show that they were lepers by certain external signs. On the rite of purification, see the note on Matthew 8:4.
[The note on Matthew 8:4 states:
4. According to the Law of Moses (Leviticus 14), if a leper is cured of his disease, he should present himself to a priest, who will register the cure and give him a certificate which he needs to be reintegrated into the civil and religious life of Israel. Leviticus also prescribes the purifications and sacrifice he should offer. Jesus' instruction to the leper is, then, in keeping with the normal way of fulfilling what the laws laid down.]
The passage shows us the faithful and confident prayer of a man needing Jesus' help and begging Him for it, confident that, if Our Lord wishes, He can free him from the disease (cf. Matthew 8:2). "This man prostrated himself on the ground, as a sign of humility and shame, to teach each of us to be ashamed of the stains of his life. But shame should not prevent us from confessing: the leper showed his wound and begged for healing. If You will, he says, You can make me clean; that is, he recognized that the Lord had the power to cure him" (St. Bede, "In Marci Evangelium Expositio, in loc.").
On the discretion and prudence Jesus required regarding His person, see the note on Mark 1:34 and Matthew 9:30.
[The note on Mark 1:34 states:
34. Demons possess a supernatural type of knowledge and therefore they recognize Jesus as the Messiah (Mark 1:24). Through the people they possess they are able to publish this fact. But Our Lord, using His divine powers, orders them to be silent. On other occasions He also silences His disciples (Mark 8: 30; 9:9), and He instructs people whom He has cured not to talk about their cure (Mark 1:4; 5:43; 7:36; 8:26). He may have acted in this way to educate the people away from a too human and political idea of the Messiah (Matthew 9:30). Therefore, He first awakens their interest by performing miracles and gradually, through His preaching, gives them a clearer understanding of the kind of Messiah He is.
Some Fathers of the Church point out that Jesus does not want to accept, in support of the truth, the testimony of him who is the father of lies.]
[The note on Matthew 9:30 states:
30. Why did our Lord not want them to publicize the miracle? Because His plan was to gradually manifest Himself as the Messiah, the Son of God. He did not want to anticipate events which would occur in their own good time; nor did He want the crowd to start hailing Him as Messiah King, because their notion of messiah was nationalistic, not a spiritual one. However, the crowd did in fact proclaim Him when he worked the miracles of the loaves and the fish (John 6:14-15): "When the people saw the sign which He had done, they said, 'This is indeed the prophet who is to come into the world!' Perceiving then that they were about to come and take Him by force to make Him king, Jesus withdrew again to the hills by Himself."]
*********************************************************************************************
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, February 14, 2009
SAINTS CYRIL AND METHODIUS
FEBRUARY 14
532 SAINTS CYRIL AND METHODIUS, BISHOPS MEMORIAL
CCC Cross Reference:
Acts 13:48 2640
Lk 10:1-2 765; Lk 10:2 2611; Lk 10:7 2122
From the Common of Pastors: For Missionaries, p. 1817, or the Common of Holy Men and Women, p. 1880, OR
FIRST READING
Acts 13:46-49
Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly and said,
"It was necessary that the word of God be spoken to you first,
but since you reject it
and condemn yourselves as unworthy of eternal life,
we now turn to the Gentiles.
For so the Lord has commanded us,
I have made you a light to the Gentiles,
that you may be an instrument of salvation
to the ends of the earth. "
The Gentiles were delighted when they heard this
and glorified the word of the Lord.
All who were destined for eternal life came to believe,
and the word of the Lord continued to spread
through the whole region.
RESPONSORIAL PSALM
Psalm 117:1bc, 2
R. (Mark 16:15) Go out to all the world and tell the Good News.
or: Alleluia.
Praise the LORD, all you nations;glorify him, all you peoples!
R. Go out to all the world and tell the Good News.
or: Alleluia.
For steadfast is his kindness toward us,
and the fidelity of the LORD endures forever.
R. Go out to all the world and tell the Good News.
or: Alleluia.
GOSPEL
Luke 10:1-9
The Lord Jesus appointed seventy-two other disciples
whom he sent ahead of him in pairs
to every town and place he intended to visit.
He said to them,
"The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few;
so ask the master of the harvest
to send out laborers for his harvest.
Go on your way;
behold, I am sending you like lambs among wolves.
Carry no money bag, no sack, no sandals;
and greet no one along the way.
Into whatever house you enter, first say,
`Peace to this household.'
If a peaceful person lives there,
your peace will rest on him;
but if not, it will return to you.
Stay in the same house and eat and drink what is offered to you,
for the laborer deserves his payment.
Do not move about from one house to another.
Whatever town you enter and they welcome you,
eat what is set before you,
cure the sick in it and say to them,
`The Kingdom of God is at hand for you."'
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
First reading: Acts 13:46-49
Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly. ‘We had to proclaim the word of God to you first, but since you have rejected it, since you do not think yourselves worthy of eternal life, we must turn to the pagans. For this is what the Lord commanded us to do when he said:
I have made you a light for the nations,
so that my salvation may reach the ends of the earth.’
It made the pagans very happy to hear this and they thanked the Lord for his message; all who were destined for eternal life became believers. Thus the word of the Lord spread through the whole countryside.
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 116(117)
Go out to the whole world and proclaim the Good News.
O praise the Lord, all you nations,
acclaim him all you peoples!
Go out to the whole world and proclaim the Good News.
Strong is his love for us;
he is faithful for ever.
Go out to the whole world and proclaim the Good News.
Gospel: Luke 10:1-9
The Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them out ahead of him, in pairs, to all the towns and places he himself was to visit. He said to them, ‘The harvest is rich but the labourers are few, so ask the Lord of the harvest to send labourers to his harvest. Start off now, but remember, I am sending you out like lambs among wolves. Carry no purse, no haversack, no sandals. Salute no one on the road. Whatever house you go into, let your first words be, “Peace to this house!” And if a man of peace lives there, your peace will go and rest on him; if not, it will come back to you. Stay in the same house, taking what food and drink they have to offer, for the labourer deserves his wages; do not move from house to house. Whenever you go into a town where they make you welcome, eat what is set before you. Cure those in it who are sick, and say, “The kingdom of God is very near to you.”’
Back to Memorial Bench
532 SAINTS CYRIL AND METHODIUS, BISHOPS MEMORIAL
CCC Cross Reference:
Acts 13:48 2640
Lk 10:1-2 765; Lk 10:2 2611; Lk 10:7 2122
From the Common of Pastors: For Missionaries, p. 1817, or the Common of Holy Men and Women, p. 1880, OR
FIRST READING
Acts 13:46-49
Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly and said,
"It was necessary that the word of God be spoken to you first,
but since you reject it
and condemn yourselves as unworthy of eternal life,
we now turn to the Gentiles.
For so the Lord has commanded us,
I have made you a light to the Gentiles,
that you may be an instrument of salvation
to the ends of the earth. "
The Gentiles were delighted when they heard this
and glorified the word of the Lord.
All who were destined for eternal life came to believe,
and the word of the Lord continued to spread
through the whole region.
RESPONSORIAL PSALM
Psalm 117:1bc, 2
R. (Mark 16:15) Go out to all the world and tell the Good News.
or: Alleluia.
Praise the LORD, all you nations;glorify him, all you peoples!
R. Go out to all the world and tell the Good News.
or: Alleluia.
For steadfast is his kindness toward us,
and the fidelity of the LORD endures forever.
R. Go out to all the world and tell the Good News.
or: Alleluia.
GOSPEL
Luke 10:1-9
The Lord Jesus appointed seventy-two other disciples
whom he sent ahead of him in pairs
to every town and place he intended to visit.
He said to them,
"The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few;
so ask the master of the harvest
to send out laborers for his harvest.
Go on your way;
behold, I am sending you like lambs among wolves.
Carry no money bag, no sack, no sandals;
and greet no one along the way.
Into whatever house you enter, first say,
`Peace to this household.'
If a peaceful person lives there,
your peace will rest on him;
but if not, it will return to you.
Stay in the same house and eat and drink what is offered to you,
for the laborer deserves his payment.
Do not move about from one house to another.
Whatever town you enter and they welcome you,
eat what is set before you,
cure the sick in it and say to them,
`The Kingdom of God is at hand for you."'
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
First reading: Acts 13:46-49
Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly. ‘We had to proclaim the word of God to you first, but since you have rejected it, since you do not think yourselves worthy of eternal life, we must turn to the pagans. For this is what the Lord commanded us to do when he said:
I have made you a light for the nations,
so that my salvation may reach the ends of the earth.’
It made the pagans very happy to hear this and they thanked the Lord for his message; all who were destined for eternal life became believers. Thus the word of the Lord spread through the whole countryside.
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 116(117)
Go out to the whole world and proclaim the Good News.
O praise the Lord, all you nations,
acclaim him all you peoples!
Go out to the whole world and proclaim the Good News.
Strong is his love for us;
he is faithful for ever.
Go out to the whole world and proclaim the Good News.
Gospel: Luke 10:1-9
The Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them out ahead of him, in pairs, to all the towns and places he himself was to visit. He said to them, ‘The harvest is rich but the labourers are few, so ask the Lord of the harvest to send labourers to his harvest. Start off now, but remember, I am sending you out like lambs among wolves. Carry no purse, no haversack, no sandals. Salute no one on the road. Whatever house you go into, let your first words be, “Peace to this house!” And if a man of peace lives there, your peace will go and rest on him; if not, it will come back to you. Stay in the same house, taking what food and drink they have to offer, for the labourer deserves his wages; do not move from house to house. Whenever you go into a town where they make you welcome, eat what is set before you. Cure those in it who are sick, and say, “The kingdom of God is very near to you.”’
Back to Memorial Bench
Saturday of the Fifth Week in Ordinary Time
334 Saturday of the Fifth Week in Ordinary Time
CCC Cross Reference:
Gn 3:9-10 399; Gn 3:9 410, 2568; Gn 3:11-13 400; Gn 3:11 2515; Gn 3:12 1607; Gn 3:13 1736, 2568; Gn 3:14-19 2427; Gn 3:15 70, 410, 489; Gn 3:16-19 1607; Gn 3:16 376, 400, 1609; Gn 3:16b 1607; Gn 3:17-19 378; Gn 3:17 400; Gn 3:19 376, 400, 1008, 1609; Gn 3:20 489; Gn 3:21 1608; Gn 3:24 332
Mk 8:6 1329
Back to Deacon’s Bench ‘07
Back to Deacon’s Bench ‘09
Back to SOW II '11
Back to SOW II '15
Back to SOW II '17
Back to SOW II '19
Back to SOW II '21
Reading 1
Gn 3:9-24
The LORD God called to Adam and asked him, "Where are you?"
He answered, "I heard you in the garden;
but I was afraid, because I was naked,
so I hid myself."
Then he asked, "Who told you that you were naked?
You have eaten, then,
from the tree of which I had forbidden you to eat!"
The man replied, "The woman whom you put here with me
she gave me fruit from the tree, and so I ate it."
The LORD God then asked the woman,
"Why did you do such a thing?"
The woman answered, "The serpent tricked me into it, so I ate it."
Then the LORD God said to the serpent:
"Because you have done this, you shall be banned
from all the animals
and from all the wild creatures;
On your belly shall you crawl,
and dirt shall you eat
all the days of your life.
I will put enmity between you and the woman,
and between your offspring and hers;
He will strike at your head,
while you strike at his heel."
To the woman he said:
"I will intensify the pangs of your childbearing;
in pain shall you bring forth children.
Yet your urge shall be for your husband,
and he shall be your master."
To the man he said: "Because you listened to your wife
and ate from the tree of which I had forbidden you to eat,
"Cursed be the ground because of you!
In toil shall you eat its yield
all the days of your life.
Thorns and thistles shall it bring forth to you,
as you eat of the plants of the field.
By the sweat of your face
shall you get bread to eat,
Until you return to the ground,
from which you were taken;
For you are dirt,
and to dirt you shall return."
The man called his wife Eve,
because she became the mother of all the living.
For the man and his wife the LORD God made leather garments,
with which he clothed them.
Then the LORD God said: "See! The man has become like one of us,
knowing what is good and what is evil!
Therefore, he must not be allowed to put out his hand
to take fruit from the tree of life also,
and thus eat of it and live forever."
The LORD God therefore banished him from the garden of Eden,
to till the ground from which he had been taken.
When he expelled the man,
he settled him east of the garden of Eden;
and he stationed the cherubim and the fiery revolving sword,
to guard the way to the tree of life.
Responsorial Psalm
Ps 90:2, 3-4abc, 5-6, 12-13
R. (1) In every age, O Lord, you have been our refuge.
Before the mountains were begotten
and the earth and the world were brought forth,
from everlasting to everlasting you are God.
R. In every age, O Lord, you have been our refuge.
You turn man back to dust,
saying, "Return, O children of men."
For a thousand years in your sight
are as yesterday, now that it is past,
or as a watch of the night.
R. In every age, O Lord, you have been our refuge.
You make an end of them in their sleep;
the next morning they are like the changing grass,
Which at dawn springs up anew,
but by evening wilts and fades.
R. In every age, O Lord, you have been our refuge.
Teach us to number our days aright,
that we may gain wisdom of heart.
Return, O LORD! How long?
Have pity on your servants!
R. In every age, O Lord, you have been our refuge.
Gospel
Mk 8:1-10
In those days when there again was a great crowd without anything to eat,
Jesus summoned the disciples and said,
"My heart is moved with pity for the crowd,
because they have been with me now for three days
and have nothing to eat.
If I send them away hungry to their homes,
they will collapse on the way,
and some of them have come a great distance."
His disciples answered him, "Where can anyone get enough bread
to satisfy them here in this deserted place?"
Still he asked them, "How many loaves do you have?"
They replied, "Seven."
He ordered the crowd to sit down on the ground.
Then, taking the seven loaves he gave thanks, broke them,
and gave them to his disciples to distribute,
and they distributed them to the crowd.
They also had a few fish.
He said the blessing over them
and ordered them distributed also.
They ate and were satisfied.
They picked up the fragments left over—seven baskets.
There were about four thousand people.
He dismissed the crowd and got into the boat with his disciples
and came to the region of Dalmanutha.
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
First reading Genesis 3:9-24
The Lord God called to the man. ‘Where are you?’ he asked. ‘I heard the sound of you in the garden;’ he replied ‘I was afraid because I was naked, so I hid.’ ‘Who told you that you were naked?’ he asked ‘Have you been eating of the tree I forbade you to eat?’ The man replied, ‘It was the woman you put with me; she gave me the fruit, and I ate it.’ Then the Lord God asked the woman, ‘What is this you have done?’ The woman replied, ‘The serpent tempted me and I ate.’
Then the Lord God said to the serpent, ‘Because you have done this,
‘Be accursed beyond all cattle,
all wild beasts.
You shall crawl on your belly and eat dust
every day of your life.
I will make you enemies of each other:
you and the woman,
your offspring and her offspring.
It will crush your head
and you will strike its heel.’
To the woman he said:
‘I will multiply your pains in childbearing,
you shall give birth to your children in pain.
Your yearning shall be for your husband,
yet he will lord it over you.’
To the man he said, ‘Because you listened to the voice of your wife and ate from the tree of which I had forbidden you to eat,
‘Accursed be the soil because of you.
With suffering shall you get your food from it
every day of your life.
It shall yield you brambles and thistles,
and you shall eat wild plants.
With sweat on your brow
shall you eat your bread,
until you return to the soil,
as you were taken from it.
For dust you are
and to dust you shall return.’
The man named his wife ‘Eve’ because she was the mother of all those who live. The Lord God made clothes out of skins for the man and his wife, and they put them on. Then the Lord God said, ‘See, the man has become like one of us, with his knowledge of good and evil. He must not be allowed to stretch his hand out next and pick from the tree of life also, and eat some and live for ever.’ So the Lord God expelled him from the garden of Eden, to till the soil from which he had been taken. He banished the man, and in front of the garden of Eden he posted the cherubs, and the flame of a flashing sword, to guard the way to the tree of life.
O Lord, you have been our refuge from one generation to the next.
Before the mountains were born
or the earth or the world brought forth,
you are God, without beginning or end.
O Lord, you have been our refuge from one generation to the next.
You turn men back to dust
and say: ‘Go back, sons of men.’
To your eyes a thousand years
are like yesterday, come and gone,
no more than a watch in the night.
O Lord, you have been our refuge from one generation to the next.
You sweep men away like a dream,
like the grass which springs up in the morning.
In the morning it springs up and flowers:
by evening it withers and fades.
O Lord, you have been our refuge from one generation to the next.
Make us know the shortness of our life
that we may gain wisdom of heart.
Lord, relent! Is your anger for ever?
Show pity to your servants.
O Lord, you have been our refuge from one generation to the next.
Gospel Mark 8:1-10
A great crowd had gathered, and they had nothing to eat. So Jesus called his disciples to him and said to them, ‘I feel sorry for all these people; they have been with me for three days now and have nothing to eat. If I send them off home hungry they will collapse on the way; some have come a great distance.’ His disciples replied, ‘Where could anyone get bread to feed these people in a deserted place like this?’ He asked them, ‘How many loaves have you?’ ‘Seven’ they said. Then he instructed the crowd to sit down on the ground, and he took the seven loaves, and after giving thanks he broke them and handed them to his disciples to distribute; and they distributed them among the crowd. They had a few small fish as well, and over these he said a blessing and ordered them to be distributed also. They ate as much as they wanted, and they collected seven basketfuls of the scraps left over. Now there had been about four thousand people. He sent them away and immediately, getting into the boat with his disciples, went to the region of Dalmanutha.
Readings and Commentary from the Navarre Bible
Saturday of the 5th Week in Ordinary Time
From: Genesis 3:9-24
Temptation and the First Sin (Continuation)
--------------------------------------------------------------
[9] But the Lord God called to the man, and said to him, "Where are you?" [10] And he said, "I heard the sound of thee in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself." [11] He said, "Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?" [12] The man said, "The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me fruit of the tree, and I ate." [13] Then the Lord God said to the woman, "What is this that you have done?" The woman said, "The serpent beguiled me, and I ate." [14] The Lord God said to the serpent, "Because you have done this, cursed are you above all cattle, and above all wild animals; upon your belly you shall go, and dust you shall eat all the days of your life. [15] I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel."
[16] To the woman he said, "I will greatly multiply your pain in childbearing; in pain you shall bring forth children, yet your desire shall be for your husband, and he shall rule over you. [17] And to Adam he said, "Because you have listened to the voice of your wife, and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you, 'You shall not eat of it,' cursed is the ground because of you; in toil you shall eat of it all the days of your life; [18] thorns and thistles it shall bring forth to you; and you shall eat the plants of the field. [19] "In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; you are dust, and to dust you shall return."
[20] The man called his wife's name Eve, because she was the mother of all living.
Adam and Eve are Expelled from Paradise
-------------------------------------------------------------
[21] And the Lord God made for Adam and for his wife garments of skins, and clothed them.
[22] Then the Lord God said, "Behold, the man has become like one of us, knowing good and evil; and now, lest he put forth his hand and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever"--[23] therefore the Lord God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from which he was taken. [24] He drove out the man; and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to guard the way to the tree of life.
*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:
3:7-13. This passage begins the description of the effects of the original sin. Man and woman have come to know evil, and it shows, initially, in a most direct way-- in their own bodies. The inner harmony described in Genesis 2:25 is broken, and concupiscence rears its head. Their friendship with God is also broken, and they flee from his presence, to avoid their nakedness being seen. As if his Creator could not see them! The harmony between man and woman is also fractured: he puts the blame on her, and she puts it on the serpent. But all three share in the responsibility, and therefore all three are going to pay the penalty.
"The harmony in which they found themselves, thanks to original justice, is now destroyed: the control of the soul's spiritual faculties over the body is shattered; the union of man and woman becomes subject to tensions (cf. Gen 3:7-16), their relations henceforth marked by lust and domination. Harmony with creation is broken: visible creation has become alien and hostile to man (cf. Gen 3:17, 19). Because of man, creation is now subject 'to its bondage to decay' (Rom 8:21). Finally, the consequence explicitly foretold for this disobedience will come true: man will 'return to the ground' (Gen 3:19), for out of it he was taken. "Death makes its entrance into human history" (cf. Rom 5:12)" ("Catechism of the Catholic Church", 400).
3:14-15. The punishment God imposes on the serpent includes confrontation between woman and the serpent, between mankind and evil, with the promise that man will come out on top. That is why this passage is called the "Proto-gospel": it is the first announcement to mankind of the good news of the Redeemer-Messiah. Clearly, a bruise to the head is deadly, whereas a bruise to the heel is curable.
As the Second Vatican Council teaches, "God, who creates and conserves all things by his Word, (cf. Jn 1:3), provides men with constant evidence of himself in created realities (cf. Rom 1:19-20). And furthermore, wishing to open up the way to heavenly salvation, by promising redemption (cf. Gen 3:15); and he has never ceased to take care of the human race. For he wishes to give eternal life to all those who seek salvation by patience in well-doing (cf. Rom 2:6-7)" ("Dei Verbum", 3).
Victory over the devil will be brought about by a descendant of the woman, the Messiah. The Church has always read these verses as being messianic, referring to Jesus Christ; and it was seen in the woman the mother of the promised Savior; the Virgin Mary is the new Eve. "The earliest documents, as they are read in the Church and are understood in the light of a further and full revelation, bring the figure of a woman, Mother of the Redeemer, into a gradually clearer light. Considered in this light, she is already prophetically foreshadowed in the promise of victory over the serpent which was given to our first parents after their fall into sin (cf. Gen 3:15) [...]. Hence not a few of the early Fathers gladly assert with Irenaeus in their preaching: 'the knot of Eve's disobedience was untied by Mary's obedience: what the virgin Eve bound through her disbelief, Mary loosened by her faith' (St Irenaeus, "Adv. Haer." 3, 22, 4). Comparing Mary with Eve, they call her 'Mother of the living' (St Epiphanius, "Adv. Haer. Panarium" 78, 18) and frequently claim: 'death through Eve, life through Mary' (St Jerome, "Epistula" 22, 21; etc.)" (Vatican II, "Lumen Gentium", 55-56).
So, woman is going to have a key role in that victory over the devil. In his Latin translation of the Bible, the "Vulgate", St Jerome in fact reads the relevant passage as "she [the woman] shall bruise your head". That woman is the Blessed Virgin, the new Eve and the mother of the Redeemer, who shares (by anticipation and pre-eminently) in the victory of her Son. Sin never left its mark on her, and the Church proclaims her as the Immaculate Conception.
St Thomas explains that the reason why God did not prevent the first man from sinning was because "God allows evils to be done in order to draw forth some greater good. Thus St Paul says, 'Where sin increased, grace abounded all the more' (Rom 5:20); and the "Exultet" sings, '0 happy fault,...which gained for us so great a Redeemer'" ("Summa Theologiae", 3, 1, 3 and 3; cf. "Catechism of the Catholic Church", 412).
3:16. Turning to the woman, God tells her what effects sin is going to have on her, as a mother and a wife. The pain of childbirth also points to the presence of physical pain in mankind, as a consequence of sin. Sin is also the cause of disorder in family life, especially between husband and wife: the text expressly instances a husband's despotic behavior towards his wife. Discrimination against women is here seen as the outcome of sin; it is something, therefore, that the
Bible regards as evil. Sin is also the reason why people fail to appreciate the dignity of marriage and the family--a widespread failing denounced by the Second Vatican Council: "the dignity of these partnerships is not reflected everywhere, but is overshadowed by polygamy, the plague of divorce, so-called free love, and similar blemishes: furthermore, married love is too often dishonored by selfishness, hedonism, and unlawful contraceptive practices. Besides, the economic, social, psychological, and civil climate of today has a severely disturbing effect on family life" ("Gaudium Et Spes", 47).
3:17-19 The effects of sin that man is warned about are closely connected with his God-given mission--to till and keep the garden, or, to put it another way, to master the earth by means of his activity, work. The harmony between man and nature has been shattered through sin: from now on man is going to find work burdensome and it will cause him much distress. Thus, the effects of sin are all the various kinds of injustice which are to he found in the world of work and in man's control over the goods of the earth. God meant the earth and all that it contains benefit all mankind, but what in fact happens is that "in the midst of huge numbers deprived of the absolute necessities of life there are some who live in riches and squander their wealth; and this happens in less developed areas as well. Luxury and misery exist side by side. While a few individuals enjoy an almost unlimited opportunity to choose for themselves, the vast majority have no chance whatever of exercising personal initiative and responsibility, and quite often have to live and work in conditions unworthy of human beings" (Vatican II, "Gaudium Et Spes", 63)
The consequences of sin will stay with man until he returns to the earth, that is, until he dies. However, God does not immediately put into effect what he threatened in Genesis 2:17; man continues to live on earth, but he is destined to die. It is in this sense that St Paul explains human existence, in the light of the work of Christ whom he sees as being the second Adam: 'Therefore as sin came into the world through one man and death through sin, [...] so death spread to all men because all men sinned. [..] If, because of one man's trespass death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ" (Rom 5:12, 17).
3:21-24. Even after the fall, God still takes care of man. Man will continue to populate the earth, in spite of death, thanks to woman's role as mother. God comes to the rescue of man's nakedness, which made him feel so afraid and ashamed. Man's place in history emerges with his expulsion from paradise. He now knows good and evil; he is deprived of the happiness for which he was created and, with death as his fate, he yearns for the immortality which in fact belongs to God alone. This is the human condition; it affects everyone and its cause lies in sin. Thus, "we do know by Revelation that Adam had received original holiness and justice not for himself alone, but for all human nature. By yielding to the tempter, Adam and Eve committed a personal sin, but this sin affected "the human nature" that they would then transmit "in a fallen state" (cf. Council of Trent, "De Peccato Originali"). It is a sin which will be transmitted by propagation to all mankind, that is, the transmission of a human nature deprived of original holiness and justice. And that is why original sin is called 'sin' only in an analogical sense: it is a sin 'contracted' and not 'committed'--a state and not an act" ("Catechism of the Catholic Church", 404).
*********************************************************************************************
From: Mark 8:1-10
Second Miracle of the Loaves
-------------------------------------------
[1] In those days, when again a great crowd had gathered, and they had nothing to eat, He (Jesus) called His disciples to Him, and said to them, [2] "I have compassion on the crowd, because they have been with Me now three days, and have nothing to eat; [3] and if I send them away hungry to their homes, they will faint on the way; and some of them have come a long way." [4] And His disciples answered Him, "How can one feed these men with bread here in the desert?" [5] And He asked them, "How many loaves have you?" They said, "Seven." [6] And He commanded the crowd to sit down on the ground; and He took the seven loaves, and having given thanks He broke them and gave them to His disciples to set before the people; and they set them before the crowd. [7] And they had a few small fish; and having blessed them, He commanded that these also should be set before them. [8] And they ate, and were satisfied; and took up the broken pieces left over, seven baskets full. [9] And there were about four thousand people. [10] And He sent them away; and immediately He got into the boat with His disciples, and went to the district of Dalmanutha.
*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:
1-9. Jesus repeats the miracle of the multiplication of the loaves and the fish: the first time (Mark 6:33-44) He acted because He saw a huge crowd like "sheep without a shepherd"; now He takes pity on them because they have been with Him for three days and have nothing to eat.
This miracle shows how Christ rewards people who persevere in following Him: the crowd had been hanging on His words, forgetful of everything else. We should be like them, attentive and ready to do what He commands, without any vain concern about the future, for that would amount to distrusting Divine Providence.
10. "Dalmanutha": this must have been somewhere near the Lake of Gennesaret, but it is difficult to localize it more exactly. This is the only time it is mentioned in Sacred Scripture. In the parallel passage in St. Matthew (15:39) Magadan (sometime Magdala) is mentioned.
*********************************************************************************************
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.
CCC Cross Reference:
Gn 3:9-10 399; Gn 3:9 410, 2568; Gn 3:11-13 400; Gn 3:11 2515; Gn 3:12 1607; Gn 3:13 1736, 2568; Gn 3:14-19 2427; Gn 3:15 70, 410, 489; Gn 3:16-19 1607; Gn 3:16 376, 400, 1609; Gn 3:16b 1607; Gn 3:17-19 378; Gn 3:17 400; Gn 3:19 376, 400, 1008, 1609; Gn 3:20 489; Gn 3:21 1608; Gn 3:24 332
Mk 8:6 1329
Back to Deacon’s Bench ‘07
Back to Deacon’s Bench ‘09
Back to SOW II '11
Back to SOW II '15
Back to SOW II '17
Back to SOW II '19
Back to SOW II '21
Reading 1
Gn 3:9-24
The LORD God called to Adam and asked him, "Where are you?"
He answered, "I heard you in the garden;
but I was afraid, because I was naked,
so I hid myself."
Then he asked, "Who told you that you were naked?
You have eaten, then,
from the tree of which I had forbidden you to eat!"
The man replied, "The woman whom you put here with me
she gave me fruit from the tree, and so I ate it."
The LORD God then asked the woman,
"Why did you do such a thing?"
The woman answered, "The serpent tricked me into it, so I ate it."
Then the LORD God said to the serpent:
"Because you have done this, you shall be banned
from all the animals
and from all the wild creatures;
On your belly shall you crawl,
and dirt shall you eat
all the days of your life.
I will put enmity between you and the woman,
and between your offspring and hers;
He will strike at your head,
while you strike at his heel."
To the woman he said:
"I will intensify the pangs of your childbearing;
in pain shall you bring forth children.
Yet your urge shall be for your husband,
and he shall be your master."
To the man he said: "Because you listened to your wife
and ate from the tree of which I had forbidden you to eat,
"Cursed be the ground because of you!
In toil shall you eat its yield
all the days of your life.
Thorns and thistles shall it bring forth to you,
as you eat of the plants of the field.
By the sweat of your face
shall you get bread to eat,
Until you return to the ground,
from which you were taken;
For you are dirt,
and to dirt you shall return."
The man called his wife Eve,
because she became the mother of all the living.
For the man and his wife the LORD God made leather garments,
with which he clothed them.
Then the LORD God said: "See! The man has become like one of us,
knowing what is good and what is evil!
Therefore, he must not be allowed to put out his hand
to take fruit from the tree of life also,
and thus eat of it and live forever."
The LORD God therefore banished him from the garden of Eden,
to till the ground from which he had been taken.
When he expelled the man,
he settled him east of the garden of Eden;
and he stationed the cherubim and the fiery revolving sword,
to guard the way to the tree of life.
Responsorial Psalm
Ps 90:2, 3-4abc, 5-6, 12-13
R. (1) In every age, O Lord, you have been our refuge.
Before the mountains were begotten
and the earth and the world were brought forth,
from everlasting to everlasting you are God.
R. In every age, O Lord, you have been our refuge.
You turn man back to dust,
saying, "Return, O children of men."
For a thousand years in your sight
are as yesterday, now that it is past,
or as a watch of the night.
R. In every age, O Lord, you have been our refuge.
You make an end of them in their sleep;
the next morning they are like the changing grass,
Which at dawn springs up anew,
but by evening wilts and fades.
R. In every age, O Lord, you have been our refuge.
Teach us to number our days aright,
that we may gain wisdom of heart.
Return, O LORD! How long?
Have pity on your servants!
R. In every age, O Lord, you have been our refuge.
Gospel
Mk 8:1-10
In those days when there again was a great crowd without anything to eat,
Jesus summoned the disciples and said,
"My heart is moved with pity for the crowd,
because they have been with me now for three days
and have nothing to eat.
If I send them away hungry to their homes,
they will collapse on the way,
and some of them have come a great distance."
His disciples answered him, "Where can anyone get enough bread
to satisfy them here in this deserted place?"
Still he asked them, "How many loaves do you have?"
They replied, "Seven."
He ordered the crowd to sit down on the ground.
Then, taking the seven loaves he gave thanks, broke them,
and gave them to his disciples to distribute,
and they distributed them to the crowd.
They also had a few fish.
He said the blessing over them
and ordered them distributed also.
They ate and were satisfied.
They picked up the fragments left over—seven baskets.
There were about four thousand people.
He dismissed the crowd and got into the boat with his disciples
and came to the region of Dalmanutha.
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
First reading Genesis 3:9-24
The Lord God called to the man. ‘Where are you?’ he asked. ‘I heard the sound of you in the garden;’ he replied ‘I was afraid because I was naked, so I hid.’ ‘Who told you that you were naked?’ he asked ‘Have you been eating of the tree I forbade you to eat?’ The man replied, ‘It was the woman you put with me; she gave me the fruit, and I ate it.’ Then the Lord God asked the woman, ‘What is this you have done?’ The woman replied, ‘The serpent tempted me and I ate.’
Then the Lord God said to the serpent, ‘Because you have done this,
‘Be accursed beyond all cattle,
all wild beasts.
You shall crawl on your belly and eat dust
every day of your life.
I will make you enemies of each other:
you and the woman,
your offspring and her offspring.
It will crush your head
and you will strike its heel.’
To the woman he said:
‘I will multiply your pains in childbearing,
you shall give birth to your children in pain.
Your yearning shall be for your husband,
yet he will lord it over you.’
To the man he said, ‘Because you listened to the voice of your wife and ate from the tree of which I had forbidden you to eat,
‘Accursed be the soil because of you.
With suffering shall you get your food from it
every day of your life.
It shall yield you brambles and thistles,
and you shall eat wild plants.
With sweat on your brow
shall you eat your bread,
until you return to the soil,
as you were taken from it.
For dust you are
and to dust you shall return.’
The man named his wife ‘Eve’ because she was the mother of all those who live. The Lord God made clothes out of skins for the man and his wife, and they put them on. Then the Lord God said, ‘See, the man has become like one of us, with his knowledge of good and evil. He must not be allowed to stretch his hand out next and pick from the tree of life also, and eat some and live for ever.’ So the Lord God expelled him from the garden of Eden, to till the soil from which he had been taken. He banished the man, and in front of the garden of Eden he posted the cherubs, and the flame of a flashing sword, to guard the way to the tree of life.
Responsorial Psalm:
Psalm 89(90):2-6,12-13
O Lord, you have been our refuge from one generation to the next.
Before the mountains were born
or the earth or the world brought forth,
you are God, without beginning or end.
O Lord, you have been our refuge from one generation to the next.
You turn men back to dust
and say: ‘Go back, sons of men.’
To your eyes a thousand years
are like yesterday, come and gone,
no more than a watch in the night.
O Lord, you have been our refuge from one generation to the next.
You sweep men away like a dream,
like the grass which springs up in the morning.
In the morning it springs up and flowers:
by evening it withers and fades.
O Lord, you have been our refuge from one generation to the next.
Make us know the shortness of our life
that we may gain wisdom of heart.
Lord, relent! Is your anger for ever?
Show pity to your servants.
O Lord, you have been our refuge from one generation to the next.
Gospel Mark 8:1-10
A great crowd had gathered, and they had nothing to eat. So Jesus called his disciples to him and said to them, ‘I feel sorry for all these people; they have been with me for three days now and have nothing to eat. If I send them off home hungry they will collapse on the way; some have come a great distance.’ His disciples replied, ‘Where could anyone get bread to feed these people in a deserted place like this?’ He asked them, ‘How many loaves have you?’ ‘Seven’ they said. Then he instructed the crowd to sit down on the ground, and he took the seven loaves, and after giving thanks he broke them and handed them to his disciples to distribute; and they distributed them among the crowd. They had a few small fish as well, and over these he said a blessing and ordered them to be distributed also. They ate as much as they wanted, and they collected seven basketfuls of the scraps left over. Now there had been about four thousand people. He sent them away and immediately, getting into the boat with his disciples, went to the region of Dalmanutha.
Readings and Commentary from the Navarre Bible
Saturday of the 5th Week in Ordinary Time
From: Genesis 3:9-24
Temptation and the First Sin (Continuation)
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[9] But the Lord God called to the man, and said to him, "Where are you?" [10] And he said, "I heard the sound of thee in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself." [11] He said, "Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?" [12] The man said, "The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me fruit of the tree, and I ate." [13] Then the Lord God said to the woman, "What is this that you have done?" The woman said, "The serpent beguiled me, and I ate." [14] The Lord God said to the serpent, "Because you have done this, cursed are you above all cattle, and above all wild animals; upon your belly you shall go, and dust you shall eat all the days of your life. [15] I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel."
[16] To the woman he said, "I will greatly multiply your pain in childbearing; in pain you shall bring forth children, yet your desire shall be for your husband, and he shall rule over you. [17] And to Adam he said, "Because you have listened to the voice of your wife, and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you, 'You shall not eat of it,' cursed is the ground because of you; in toil you shall eat of it all the days of your life; [18] thorns and thistles it shall bring forth to you; and you shall eat the plants of the field. [19] "In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; you are dust, and to dust you shall return."
[20] The man called his wife's name Eve, because she was the mother of all living.
Adam and Eve are Expelled from Paradise
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[21] And the Lord God made for Adam and for his wife garments of skins, and clothed them.
[22] Then the Lord God said, "Behold, the man has become like one of us, knowing good and evil; and now, lest he put forth his hand and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever"--[23] therefore the Lord God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from which he was taken. [24] He drove out the man; and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to guard the way to the tree of life.
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Commentary:
3:7-13. This passage begins the description of the effects of the original sin. Man and woman have come to know evil, and it shows, initially, in a most direct way-- in their own bodies. The inner harmony described in Genesis 2:25 is broken, and concupiscence rears its head. Their friendship with God is also broken, and they flee from his presence, to avoid their nakedness being seen. As if his Creator could not see them! The harmony between man and woman is also fractured: he puts the blame on her, and she puts it on the serpent. But all three share in the responsibility, and therefore all three are going to pay the penalty.
"The harmony in which they found themselves, thanks to original justice, is now destroyed: the control of the soul's spiritual faculties over the body is shattered; the union of man and woman becomes subject to tensions (cf. Gen 3:7-16), their relations henceforth marked by lust and domination. Harmony with creation is broken: visible creation has become alien and hostile to man (cf. Gen 3:17, 19). Because of man, creation is now subject 'to its bondage to decay' (Rom 8:21). Finally, the consequence explicitly foretold for this disobedience will come true: man will 'return to the ground' (Gen 3:19), for out of it he was taken. "Death makes its entrance into human history" (cf. Rom 5:12)" ("Catechism of the Catholic Church", 400).
3:14-15. The punishment God imposes on the serpent includes confrontation between woman and the serpent, between mankind and evil, with the promise that man will come out on top. That is why this passage is called the "Proto-gospel": it is the first announcement to mankind of the good news of the Redeemer-Messiah. Clearly, a bruise to the head is deadly, whereas a bruise to the heel is curable.
As the Second Vatican Council teaches, "God, who creates and conserves all things by his Word, (cf. Jn 1:3), provides men with constant evidence of himself in created realities (cf. Rom 1:19-20). And furthermore, wishing to open up the way to heavenly salvation, by promising redemption (cf. Gen 3:15); and he has never ceased to take care of the human race. For he wishes to give eternal life to all those who seek salvation by patience in well-doing (cf. Rom 2:6-7)" ("Dei Verbum", 3).
Victory over the devil will be brought about by a descendant of the woman, the Messiah. The Church has always read these verses as being messianic, referring to Jesus Christ; and it was seen in the woman the mother of the promised Savior; the Virgin Mary is the new Eve. "The earliest documents, as they are read in the Church and are understood in the light of a further and full revelation, bring the figure of a woman, Mother of the Redeemer, into a gradually clearer light. Considered in this light, she is already prophetically foreshadowed in the promise of victory over the serpent which was given to our first parents after their fall into sin (cf. Gen 3:15) [...]. Hence not a few of the early Fathers gladly assert with Irenaeus in their preaching: 'the knot of Eve's disobedience was untied by Mary's obedience: what the virgin Eve bound through her disbelief, Mary loosened by her faith' (St Irenaeus, "Adv. Haer." 3, 22, 4). Comparing Mary with Eve, they call her 'Mother of the living' (St Epiphanius, "Adv. Haer. Panarium" 78, 18) and frequently claim: 'death through Eve, life through Mary' (St Jerome, "Epistula" 22, 21; etc.)" (Vatican II, "Lumen Gentium", 55-56).
So, woman is going to have a key role in that victory over the devil. In his Latin translation of the Bible, the "Vulgate", St Jerome in fact reads the relevant passage as "she [the woman] shall bruise your head". That woman is the Blessed Virgin, the new Eve and the mother of the Redeemer, who shares (by anticipation and pre-eminently) in the victory of her Son. Sin never left its mark on her, and the Church proclaims her as the Immaculate Conception.
St Thomas explains that the reason why God did not prevent the first man from sinning was because "God allows evils to be done in order to draw forth some greater good. Thus St Paul says, 'Where sin increased, grace abounded all the more' (Rom 5:20); and the "Exultet" sings, '0 happy fault,...which gained for us so great a Redeemer'" ("Summa Theologiae", 3, 1, 3 and 3; cf. "Catechism of the Catholic Church", 412).
3:16. Turning to the woman, God tells her what effects sin is going to have on her, as a mother and a wife. The pain of childbirth also points to the presence of physical pain in mankind, as a consequence of sin. Sin is also the cause of disorder in family life, especially between husband and wife: the text expressly instances a husband's despotic behavior towards his wife. Discrimination against women is here seen as the outcome of sin; it is something, therefore, that the
Bible regards as evil. Sin is also the reason why people fail to appreciate the dignity of marriage and the family--a widespread failing denounced by the Second Vatican Council: "the dignity of these partnerships is not reflected everywhere, but is overshadowed by polygamy, the plague of divorce, so-called free love, and similar blemishes: furthermore, married love is too often dishonored by selfishness, hedonism, and unlawful contraceptive practices. Besides, the economic, social, psychological, and civil climate of today has a severely disturbing effect on family life" ("Gaudium Et Spes", 47).
3:17-19 The effects of sin that man is warned about are closely connected with his God-given mission--to till and keep the garden, or, to put it another way, to master the earth by means of his activity, work. The harmony between man and nature has been shattered through sin: from now on man is going to find work burdensome and it will cause him much distress. Thus, the effects of sin are all the various kinds of injustice which are to he found in the world of work and in man's control over the goods of the earth. God meant the earth and all that it contains benefit all mankind, but what in fact happens is that "in the midst of huge numbers deprived of the absolute necessities of life there are some who live in riches and squander their wealth; and this happens in less developed areas as well. Luxury and misery exist side by side. While a few individuals enjoy an almost unlimited opportunity to choose for themselves, the vast majority have no chance whatever of exercising personal initiative and responsibility, and quite often have to live and work in conditions unworthy of human beings" (Vatican II, "Gaudium Et Spes", 63)
The consequences of sin will stay with man until he returns to the earth, that is, until he dies. However, God does not immediately put into effect what he threatened in Genesis 2:17; man continues to live on earth, but he is destined to die. It is in this sense that St Paul explains human existence, in the light of the work of Christ whom he sees as being the second Adam: 'Therefore as sin came into the world through one man and death through sin, [...] so death spread to all men because all men sinned. [..] If, because of one man's trespass death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ" (Rom 5:12, 17).
3:21-24. Even after the fall, God still takes care of man. Man will continue to populate the earth, in spite of death, thanks to woman's role as mother. God comes to the rescue of man's nakedness, which made him feel so afraid and ashamed. Man's place in history emerges with his expulsion from paradise. He now knows good and evil; he is deprived of the happiness for which he was created and, with death as his fate, he yearns for the immortality which in fact belongs to God alone. This is the human condition; it affects everyone and its cause lies in sin. Thus, "we do know by Revelation that Adam had received original holiness and justice not for himself alone, but for all human nature. By yielding to the tempter, Adam and Eve committed a personal sin, but this sin affected "the human nature" that they would then transmit "in a fallen state" (cf. Council of Trent, "De Peccato Originali"). It is a sin which will be transmitted by propagation to all mankind, that is, the transmission of a human nature deprived of original holiness and justice. And that is why original sin is called 'sin' only in an analogical sense: it is a sin 'contracted' and not 'committed'--a state and not an act" ("Catechism of the Catholic Church", 404).
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From: Mark 8:1-10
Second Miracle of the Loaves
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[1] In those days, when again a great crowd had gathered, and they had nothing to eat, He (Jesus) called His disciples to Him, and said to them, [2] "I have compassion on the crowd, because they have been with Me now three days, and have nothing to eat; [3] and if I send them away hungry to their homes, they will faint on the way; and some of them have come a long way." [4] And His disciples answered Him, "How can one feed these men with bread here in the desert?" [5] And He asked them, "How many loaves have you?" They said, "Seven." [6] And He commanded the crowd to sit down on the ground; and He took the seven loaves, and having given thanks He broke them and gave them to His disciples to set before the people; and they set them before the crowd. [7] And they had a few small fish; and having blessed them, He commanded that these also should be set before them. [8] And they ate, and were satisfied; and took up the broken pieces left over, seven baskets full. [9] And there were about four thousand people. [10] And He sent them away; and immediately He got into the boat with His disciples, and went to the district of Dalmanutha.
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Commentary:
1-9. Jesus repeats the miracle of the multiplication of the loaves and the fish: the first time (Mark 6:33-44) He acted because He saw a huge crowd like "sheep without a shepherd"; now He takes pity on them because they have been with Him for three days and have nothing to eat.
This miracle shows how Christ rewards people who persevere in following Him: the crowd had been hanging on His words, forgetful of everything else. We should be like them, attentive and ready to do what He commands, without any vain concern about the future, for that would amount to distrusting Divine Providence.
10. "Dalmanutha": this must have been somewhere near the Lake of Gennesaret, but it is difficult to localize it more exactly. This is the only time it is mentioned in Sacred Scripture. In the parallel passage in St. Matthew (15:39) Magadan (sometime Magdala) is mentioned.
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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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