SUNDAY READINGS - 29h Sunday in Ordinary Time FIRST READING: Exodus 17:8-13. Amalek came and fought with Israel at Rephidim. And Moses said to Joshua, Choose for us men, and go out, fight with Amalek; tomorrow I will stand on the top of the hill with the rod of God in my hand. So Joshua did as Moses told him, and fought with Amalek; and Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill. Whenever Moses held up his hand, Israel prevailed; and whenever he lowered his hand, Amalek prevailed. But Moses hands grew weary; so they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat upon it, and Aaron and Hur held up his hands, one on one side, and the other on the other side; so his hands were steady until the going down of the sun. And Joshua mowed down Amalek and his people with the edge of the sword. EXPLANATION: The Israelites on their long journey from Egypt to Canaan had to pass through territories occupied by aboriginal tribes. Naturally, some or most of such tribes objected to letting them pass through their territories as they feared that they might take over their lands or cause serious damage during their transit. The first group of tribes to attempt to prevent the transit of Israel through their territory was Amalek who inhabited the Negeb south as far as Sinai. They rose up in arms against Israel and would have annihilated them were it not for Moses intercession with God. Moses said to Joshua: When Moses heard that Amalek was approaching, prepared for battle, he ordered Joshua to go out with some picked armed troops to engage this enemy. I win . . . top of the hill: He himself would go up to the top of a nearby hill and intercede with God. With the rod of God: The staff with which Moses, through the, power of God, brought the various plagues on the Egyptians (see Ex. 4: 2, 7: 9, etc.). Moses . . . hand: The position adopted for prayer among the Israelites was standing upright with both arms extended and palms of the hands turned up. While Moses prayed Joshua won, but when Moses got tired and had to lower his hands Amalek won. a stone . . . him: The battle was a long one. Moses grew tired so they arranged a stone seat for him and Aaron and Hur, who were with him, held his arms aloft. By sunset Joshua had conquered their Amalek enemies. The intercession of Moses with God had won the day. APPLICATION: The lesson from this incident in the history of Israel is evident. Although it happened about thirty-two centuries ago it is as true today as it was then, for neither God nor human nature has changed in the meantime. The lesson is that God wants us to pray for the very gifts which he wants to give us. He is ready to give them to us. He certainly didnt want Amalek to prevent his Chosen People from getting to Canaan, the land he had promised them. Amalek was resisting by force of arms. Israel must overcome him by force of arms. But as their fighting force was much smaller, he willed to give them extra strength on condition that they ask him for it. Moses represented the Israelites. He was their intermediary with God. When he prayed, Israel prayed. While he prayed all went well with Israels fighting men. Some wiseacre may object: if God willed they would reach Canaan, which he definitely did, why should they have to ask him for help whenever there were obstacles to overcome? The reason was that he was still training them. They had to learn that all that they were and all that they had, they owed to him. He was not only their Creator and Lord, but he was their Benefactor as well. They must learn to appreciate this and they must therefore turn to him in all their needs. Whenever they did this, all through their history, God befriended them; he answered their prayers. Whenever they forgot this lesson, or refused to see its meaning, and trusted in their own strength and wisdom instead, they fared badly. As we said above, God has not changed and we humans have not changed. We too need to learn this lesson and its full meaning. God wants all of us in heaven, the eternal home he has promised us, and he is willing and glad to help us on the way. He wants us to ask him for this help, not for any personal gain for him, but for our own personal advantage. He wants us to remember always, that he is our Creator, Lord and Benefactor. We show our recognition and our appreciation of all he is and has done for us every time we pray to him. For every prayer, even of petition, is a recognition of our relationship with God. He was a Benefactor and a Savior of the Israelites all through their history, but what he did for them was but a pale shadow of all he has done and is doing for us Christians. He gave them Moses to lead them into the promised land of Canaan. He has given us Christ, his only begotten Son, to lead us to heaven. He gave them Moses as their mediator to intercede for them. He gave us Christ, who is seated at his right hand in heaven, continually presenting our adorations and petitions to him. Moses outstretched arms won the battle against Amalek and other enemies of the Israelites. The outstretched arms of Christ on the cross won for us, once and for all, the battle against death and evil. Some of the Israelites whom he led out of Egypt and helped on the way, forgot him and offended him. They did not reach the Promised Land, notwithstanding Moses intercession for them. So too, will there be Christians who will fail to reach the promised heaven he has prepared for them, notwithstanding the sufferings and death of Christ on the cross on their behalf. But any Christian who prays frequently will not be among that number. For even if we offend him through human weakness, if we have the humility to turn to him and ask his pardon, he will forgive. The sinner who prays cannot remain long a sinner, the saint who gives up prayer will not remain a saint for very long. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- SECOND READING: 2 Timothy 3:14-4:2. Continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings which are able to instruct you for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work. I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom: preach the word, be urgent in season and out of season, convince, rebuke, and exhort, be unfailing in patience and in teaching. EXPLANATION: St. Paul continues to exhort and encourage his disciple Timothy to be loyal to the Christian faith which he had received from the most trustworthy of sources, St. Paul himself, and the sacred Scripture of the Old Testament. Timothy must continue to preach this word, this faith, no matter what the obstacles may be. from childhood . . . writings: Timothys mother and grandmother were loyal to their Jewish religion. They had studied their sacred books and had instructed Timothy in them. able to instruct: These sacred books were the word, the wisdom of God. They prepared the people for the coming of Christ who was to bring salvation---a new supernatural life---to all men. faith in. . . Jesus: This new life is available to all men, Jew and Gentile, if they accept Christ, for what he is, the Incarnate Son of God, and follow his teaching. All scripture is inspired by God: The Jews were firmly convinced that their bible, the books they regarded as sacred, were of divine origin, God was their author. At the same time they admitted the part played by the human authors to whom they attributed these books. So their bible was the product of divine and human cooperation. All scripture here can mean each and every part of it, or all the books they recognized as sacred. profitable for teaching: Because it is the word of God, sacred scripture is the authoritative source of our knowledge of God, of our relationship with him, and of our duty toward him. From it and through it we learn to become men of God. In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus: With God and Christ Jesus as his witnesses, Paul adjures Timothy to persevere at all times and in spite of all difficulties to continue his work of evangelization. by his appearing and his kingdom: The parousia or second coming of Christ as Judge of all men, and the final definitive establishment of his kingdom (of which the Church on earth is the preparatory stage) are recalled to Timothys mind to urge him to persevere in his sacred calling. It is on that day that he will see the full fruits of his apostolic labors. APPLICATION: The heavens declare the glory of God, the vault of heaven reveals his handiwork say the psalmist (Ps. 19: 1). A true saying surely. Any thinking man who observes this universe with its unity in diversity, with its multiplicity of being, their constitutional laws written in their very nature, and none having an internal explanation for its own existence must rationally conclude that some supremely intelligent and supremely powerful Being brought this universe into existence. St. Paul, following the author of the book of Wisdom (13: 1-9). says that the pagans are inexcusable when they claim ignorance of the true God, for ever since God created the world, his everlasting power and deity---however invisible---have been there for the mind to see in the things he has made (Rom. 1: 18-32). God has made himself known to man therefore through his creatures---the work of his hands. He knew the weakness and the narrow outlook of man who frequently fails to raise himself above the things of earth. Furthermore, he had planned for mans elevation to a supernatural status. And so he chose Abraham to be the ancestor of the One who would elevate man. A much more detailed knowledge of himself was given to Abraham and his descendants in Gods dealings with them and in his special revelations to them. He saw to it that this detailed knowledge would be preserved and guaranteed for all time by making himself the co-author of the sacred books of scripture. It is of this act of generosity and love toward us on the part of God, that St. Paul reminds Timothy in the verses we have read today. We could and should recognize God---a supreme, omnipotent, omniscient Being---as our Creator to whom we should give honor and thanks. And by so doing, we could reach the destiny which God has planned for us from all eternity, as many pagans have done and will do. But this kind of relationship with a Creator, to whom we owed everything, would be a rather cold and legalistic one, that of slave to Master, when compared with the warm relationship of children to their loving father, which his special revelation has brought to our knowledge. The Old Testament sacred books, to which St. Paul is referring today, show us God as a Father of infinite love, of infinite generosity, of infinite patience with stubborn, ungrateful children. He made the descendants of Abraham his special Chosen People. He gave them innumerable temporal blessings. He was a true Father to them all through their history, even though they were often unruly and ungrateful children. He did all of this in order to prepare the way for the advent of his divine Son in human nature. He became one of us by his Incarnation and thus raised us up to the status of brothers of his and therefore, sons of God. This was the divine plan before creation began. God saw to it that the record of its period of preparation would be preserved forever in the books of the Old Testament. The story of the fulfillment would be preserved in the New. He moved the will of the human authors of these books to write them. He enlightened and assisted their intellects in the collection and arrangement of the material. He saw to it, by his special assistance, that what they wrote was the truth and nothing but the truth. This was the teaching of the Jewish authorities. It has been the teaching of the Christian Church down through the centuries. We have sacred books whose co-Author is none other than God himself. In these sacred books we can get a knowledge of God which surpasses any and all the conclusions which our human intellects could deduce from the work of his hands, which we see about us in creation. While the knowledge of God, which our human intellects could and should discover, was true and valuable for salvation, the knowledge of him which we get from his inspired books is much more intimate and more detailed. We, know that he is a Father who loves us. He sent his Son to become one of us. That Son represented us and by his perfect obedience even unto the death on the cross, he obtained for us pardon for all our acts of disobedience. By sharing in our humanity he earned for us a share in the divinity. By dying he saved us from eternal death. By his resurrection he became the first-fruits of the return of all men from their graves, to live forever in the future world. This is what our Bible contains---the history of Gods intimate relations with man and the facts concerning his eternal plans for our everlasting happiness. No wonder it has been called the greatest story ever told. No wonder it has and will always be a best-seller. Other books are useful, they help us in one way or another to earn a livelihood, and make our way through this life. This Bible is essential. It helps us to get to know God and his loving plans for us. It enables us (coupled with the other aids which Christ has left to his Church) to fulfill our real purpose in life, and to reach the reward prepared so lovingly for us after our death. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- GOSPEL: Luke 18:1-8. Jesus told his disciples a parable, to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart. He said, In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor regarded man; and there was a widow in that city who kept coming to him and saying, Vindicate me against my adversary. For a while he refused, but afterwards he said to himself, Though I neither fear God nor regard man, yet because this widow bothers me, I will vindicate her, or she will wear me out by her continual coming. And the Lord said, Hear what the unrighteous judge says. And will not God vindicate his elect, who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long over them? I tell you, he will vindicate them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth? EXPLANATION: To teach his followers the need for perseverance in prayer and the effectiveness of such perseverance, our Lord told his disciples the following parable or story. a judge: Every town and large village of Palestine had a man appointed by the central authority in Jerusalem, whose duty it was to settle all local disputes brought to him. neither . . . God nor . . . man: A pagan Roman would not be expected to respect the God of the Jews. But this Jew had no respect for God or his ten commandments. Public opinion likewise had no effect on him. He was a law unto himself. Such characters were not uncommon: the Talmud gives many examples of injustices committed by venal judges. Centuries before, Isaiah spoke of similar misdemeanors: They (judges) justify the wicked for gifts and take away the justice of the just from them (5: 23). and in 1: 23 he says: They judge not for the fatherless and the widows cause comes not in to them. a widow: The very name widow, one who had lost her bread-winner and had to be father and mother to her family, implies one who has a special claim on charity not to mention justice. kept coming to him: He refused to hear her claim against some unjust neighbor or relative, but she kept coming. I . . . God nor . . . man: It was not fear of Gods punishment or fear of public opinion that made him hear her case at last. bothers me: It is unlikely that a poor widow would hit him on the head or beat him up as the Greek word means, but her continuous knocking at his door was as unbearable and as injurious as a physical beating. This was because he was a selfish, self-centered man. I . . . her: He decided then to give judgment in her favor---mainly due to her perseverance. Will not God . . . elect: If a corrupt, egoistic judge can be eventually moved by the perseverance of a helpless widow, how much more so will the all-just, all-merciful God be moved to help his chosen, his friends, who prove by their perseverance that their approach to him is filial and sincere? he will . . . speedily: If they have to persevere in asking, how is Gods answer swift? There is question here of our human idea of immediacy and Gods idea. If God did our will he would remove all trials and difficulties as soon as they began. God knows better what is for our good. The delay in answering, and our need for perseverance in prayer, is a necessary part of our spiritual formation. Gods answer is swift when it comes at the opportune moment. when the Son of Man comes: The coming of the Son of Man almost always refers to the parousia or the second coming of Christ as judge. If it is part of the parable here (many authors hold it is not) its meaning is that at the judgment, which each one must face at the moment of death, ones sentence will depend on the trust (the faith) he had placed in Gods mercy during his life. If he has persevered in prayer, while bearing his cross patiently, and begging God for relief only if that is for his eternal good, and is therefore according to the true mercy and justice of God, he will have proved that he had this faith, this trust, all through his life. He who perseveres (in fidelity to Christ, which includes continual prayer) to the end shall be saved, our Lord himself said (Mk. 13:13; see 1 Cor. 15:58; Rom. 12:12, etc.). APPLICATION: There are many devout Christians who are deeply puzzled by what they think is Gods indifference to their fervent pleas for spiritual favors, which to them appear essential in their journey heavenwards. These people would readily admit that God has good reasons for not granting temporal favors---they might not be for their eternal good. Why refuse or delay granting their spiritual needs? The man or woman who has dedicated his or her life exclusively to the service of God still suffers from human weaknesses. He or she is attracted to worldly things, is finding humility and obedience very difficult, suffers from dryness in prayer or worse still is scrupulous to a degree that makes the religious life almost unbearable. Such people could work so much better for God and for their neighbor if only God would remove these weaknesses which, in fact, he could so easily do. . Or again, why should whole nations of devout Christians suffer persecution from atheistic tyrants? See their children brought up deprived of the right to practice their faith, or, worse still, taught to despise it? Surely God should answer the prayers of these good people and the fervent prayers of millions of their fellow-Christians on their behalf . . . These and many similar questionings arise in our minds because our limited, human intellects can see but one small section of the immense tapestry which God is weaving for the human race. We would all like immediate results in our own tiny comer of that tapestry while the all-wise God is occupied with the whole picture. He is not forgetting us either. If he delays in answering our urgent appeals, we can be certain that the reason is not that he wants to punish us, but rather to help us. There are many saints in heaven who would perhaps never have become saints if God had not allowed them to struggle on longer than they would have wished, against trials and difficulties---spiritual as well as physical. Our divine Lord teaches us, in this parable, the need for perseverance in prayer. This perseverance develops our trust and confidence in God. It helps us to become humble and to realize how weak we are when left to ourselves. It keeps us close to God, as we learn how dependent we are on his generosity. If we only would realize that God is perhaps never closer to us than when we think he is forgetting us! The trials of life, spiritual or temporal, which he allows us to suffer are not obstacles to our spiritual progress but rather step-ping-stones without which we could not cross the rivers of life at all. God wants every one of us in heaven but just as no two men on earth have the same identical features, so also no two men on earth have the same road to lead them to heaven. God is supervising the journey of each one of us. He is ever there to help if the obstacle on ones road is insurmountable. We may and we must, keep asking God for the spiritual and temporal favors which we feel we need. We must never grow despondent or feel that God has lost interest in us, if he delays in granting these favors. When we shall look back on our earthly journey from the happy vantage point of heaven, we shall see how effectively and how lovingly God regulated our journey. When he did not grant a certain favor it was because he had a much more important one to give us, one we did not ask for or even realize we needed. Ask and you shall receive, not perhaps what you wanted, but what God knew you needed. Seek and you shall find, not the easy way which you thought you deserved, but the harder way which would make you more deserving of heaven. Knock and it shall be opened unto you, not the door you were standing at, which would have delayed or endangered your progress, but the door further down the street where refreshment and new courage to continue on your upward climb were awaiting you.-c370
Posted on: Sun, 20 Oct 2013 06:16:33 +0000
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