3 July 2022: Fourteenth Sunday in Ordinary time C

Reading 1	Response	Reading 2	Gospel
Is 66:10-14c	Ps 66:1-3, 4-5, 6-7, 16, 20	Gal 6:14-18	Lk 10:1-12, 17-20 or Lk 10:1-9
RCL: Is 66:10-14		RCL: Gal 6:(1-6,) 7-16	RCL: Lk 10:1-11, 16-20

Disciples: visible signs and messengers of God’s kingdom

During Ordinary time the Lectionary presents stories and teachings from Jesus’ everyday ministry. This week’s readings focus on how we receive God’s kingdom and reflect it to the world.

First reading (Is 66:10-14c)

The first reading is from the prophet Isaiah, specifically Third Isaiah, who prophesied after the exiles’ return and during the rebuilding of Jerusalem (~515-480 BC). In today’s pericope, the author celebrates Jerusalem’s restoration (“Rejoice with Jerusalem and be glad”) and the abundance that God will give to the people (“I will spread prosperity over Jerusalem like a river”). Isaiah imagines God as a mother, one who “comforts her charges.” Isaiah’s promise of “the Lord is making known his power” is fulfilled in the disciples’ success in subduing demonic spirits. The Lectionary editors chose this reading to show the promise of Jerusalem’s restoration fulfilled with the arrival of God’s kingdom in today’s gospel.

Second reading (Gal 6:14-18)

The second reading is the conclusion of the semi-continuous reading from Paul’s letter to the Galatia ekklesiais (multiple believing communities in Galatia). Jewish Christian agitators came to Galatia and told gentile Christians that, to be part of the Christian community, the Galatians must follow all Jewish cultural and religious customs. Paul’s letter addresses the “entrance requirements” for gentile Christians. In today’s pericope, the letter’s closing, Paul summarize his key points. First, unlike the agitators who boast in their circumcision, Paul “boasts in the cross” as a sign of God’s power and salvation. Through the cross, Paul is crucified “to the world,” and the “world to Paul.” In choosing the cross, Paul rejects the world, just as the world rejects Paul and his teaching about the cross. Next, Paul reminds his hearers that Christ’s transformative death and resurrection brings about a new creation. Those who are “in Christ” (incorporated into Christ through baptism) are part of this new creation. In the new creation, believers express their faith in Christ by living the law of love; other expressions of faith (circumcision or uncircumcision) no longer mean anything. Those who follow this rule (the new creation and its law of love) are the “Israel of God” (Abraham’s descendants, gentiles and Jews who are “in Christ”). Finally, Paul’s sufferings (see 2 Cor 11:23-29) are signs that he participates in Christ’s cross. Paul has suffered for the gospel, unlike the agitators. Paul closes his letter with a familiar blessing and on a hopeful note that he and the Galatia believing communities will get past the agitators’ disruptions. The Lectionary editors chose this reading to close Ordinary time’s semi-continuous reading from Galatians.

Gospel (Lk 10:1-12, 17-20)

Luke’s gospel continues Jesus’ instructions “on the road” to Jerusalem. In today’s pericope, Jesus commissions and sends disciples ahead of him, and prays for them on their return. When sending out the disciples, Jesus gives specific instructions about their actions and words:

• Travel simply. Jesus sends the disciples on an urgent mission announcing the kingdom. His message is all they need to carry with them.
• Accept hospitality. Jesus reminds his disciples that they depend on hospitality from people they don’t know and who don’t know them. The disciples should accept what strangers offer with grace and thanks.
• Proclaim the kingdom is near. Jesus’ message is “The kingdom of God is at hand.” The disciples proclaim and reveal the kingdom’s presence by bringing peace, by preaching metanoia (change of mind/heart), and by healing.
• Expect rejection. As Jesus has been rejected, the disciples should also expect rejection. Jesus tells the disciples to warn those who reject God’s kingdom and to continue their mission elsewhere. God alone judges those who reject the kingdom.

Summary and reflection

This week’s readings ask us to think about how our words and actions conform to Jesus’ instructions. Isaiah celebrates the signs of God’s restoration: abundance, prosperity, comfort. Paul urges the Galatians to live as the new creation that Christ’s death and resurrection has brought about: the law of love. Jesus instructs his disciples in the words and actions that announce and reveal the kingdom.

At baptism we became visible signs and messengers of God’s kingdom. How do our daily words and actions measure up? Do we share abundance and give comfort? Do we live the law of love? Do we live and speak the gospel? Are we gracious and grateful? Do we bring peace wherever we go? Are we a gift and a blessing to all we encounter?

—Terence Sherlock

27 March 2022: Fourth Sunday of Lent/Lætare Sunday C

Reading 1	Response	Reading 2	Gospel
Jos 5:9a, 10-12	Ps 34:2-3, 4-5, 6-7	2 Cor 5:17-21	Lk 15:1-3, 11-32
		RCL: 2 Cor 5:16-21

Liturgical note: Lætare Sunday

The fourth Sunday of Lent is called Lætare Sunday. The Latin verb lætare (lay-TAH-ray), which means “rejoice!” or “be joyful!”, comes from the entrance antiphon for the day:    Lætare Ierusalem: et conventum facite omnes qui diligitis eam.    Rejoice, Jerusalem, and come together all who love her. The liturgical color for Lent is purple, a color that reminds us of our need for metanoia: conversion and change. Lætare Sunday’s liturgical color is rose, a color that represents joy. This Sunday marks Lent’s approximate mid-point, a day to rejoice because Easter is now within sight. Traditionally this Sunday relaxed usual Lenten practices.

Lent: meals, metanoia, and reconciliation

In the season of Lent, the believing community follows Jesus as he is tested, transfigured, tells parables, forgives, and arrives in Jerusalem. This week’s readings focus on eating together and reconciliation.

First reading (Jos 5:9a, 10-12)

The first reading is from the book of Joshua, Moses’ assistant and successor, who leads the Israelites into the promised land. In today’s pericope, the Israelites are about to enter Canaan (“encamped at Gilgal on the plains of Jericho”). God tells Joshua that God has “removed the reproach of Egypt from you.” The “reproach” or shame of Egypt is slavery: the Israelites enter the land God promised to them as a free people. God also forgives the people for their rebellious acts in the wilderness: the golden calf, their grumblings against God and Moses, their rejection of the Law. Before entering the promised land, the Israelites “celebrate Passover,” the covenant meal. This second Passover marks the moment they leave the wilderness for the promised land. Once they are able to feed themselves in Canaan, they no longer need manna; God stops providing it. The Lectionary editors chose this reading for its ritual Passover meal as a sign of transition, echoing the father’s feast in today’s gospel.

Second reading (2 Cor 5:17-21)

The second reading is from Paul’s second letter to the Corinth ekklesia. Paul writes this letter (or a series of letters) to continue the Corinthians’ instruction, sharing his own apostolic work as an example. In today’s pericope, Paul reminds the Corinthians that “all who are in Christ are a new creation.” The new things do not happen automatically; the “new creation” comes into existence only when a person hears, believes, and responds. God initiated the reconciliation between God and humans (“all this”) with Christ acting as mediator of God’s reconciliation (“in” or “through Christ”), in Christ’s transforming death and resurrection. God’s reconciliation gives the believing community an example and a “ministry of reconciliation.” God, through Christ, reconciled everyone (“the world”) to God, without regard for the quantity or seriousness of everyone’s sins (“not counting their trespasses”). Through Christ’s example, disciples receive God’s message (“word”) of reconciliation (Christ died to reconcile all with God and to save all). Paul closes with reconciliation’s paradox: the sinless Christ (“did not know sin”) represents all sinners (“for our sake”); through his transformative death (“was made sin”) he took away our sins so that we can be reconciled ( made “righteous”) with God. The Lectionary editors chose this reading for its message of God’s reconciliation, echoed in today’s gospel parable.

Gospel (Lk 15:1-3, 11-32)

Luke’s gospel continues Jesus’ discipleship teachings on his journey to Jerusalem. In today’s pericope, Jesus answers those who oppose his ministry to sinners with a parable about lost sons.

A story of two sons. The parable describes not only the younger son’s conversion and return to his father, but also the older son’s opportunity to reconcile with his father over his alienation and anger.

• The younger son is immature and impetuous (“give me my share of your livelihood”), but his experiences in a “distant country” change the way he sees things (“coming to his senses”). Although the younger son’s conversion is incomplete and selfish (“my father’s hired workers have more than enough food“), his father rejoices at his return and restores his place in the family (the robe confers honor, the signet ring confers authority, the sandals indicate the son is a free person, not a slave).

• Although the older son never leaves home, he is equally lost to his father. He refuses to attend his brother’s party. His father, the party’s host, leaves the house to console (the Greek text uses παρακαλέω/parakaléō, meaning “to comfort” or “to console”) his son. The older son complains that his father doesn’t appreciate him: he has “slaved” for years and followed all the rules, but doesn’t even get a goat (nowhere near a fatted calf!) to feast with his friends. His father addresses him tenderly (“my son”) and speaks to him as a friend (“with me always”) who shares his life (“everything I have is yours”). The story ends with the older son and father still outside the feast, as the father explains the need for them to rejoice together.

A story about a father’s love and reconciliation. Jesus’ parable seems, at first, to be about the younger son, but it is equally about the older son. With all the drama, we can easily miss the father’s love for both sons, and his wish to reconcile with them. The father is the parable’s central figure. He neither punishes the younger son for his carelessness and selfishness, nor denounces the older son for his resentment and misdirected anger at his father for forgiving his younger brother. Jesus address the parable to the righteous ones who, like the older son, are offended because Jesus “welcomes sinners.” The parable asks the Pharisees and scribes: if a human father loves his children this much, how much more does God love the lost and self-righteous and seek to reconcile with them?

Summary and reflection

Lent’s readings call us to walk with Jesus as he prepares for his transformative death. Today’s readings ask us to think about our share in God’s ministry of reconciliation. Joshua hears that God freed the Israelites from slavery; they are a free people who celebrate entry into the promised land with a ritual meal. Paul invites the Corinthians to be reconciled to God and to share in the ministry and message of reconciliation. Jesus describes God’s superabundant love in welcoming the lost and inviting the righteous to joy and reconciliation.

We can get so wrapped up in following rules that we forget that reconciliation is about love, not about equality or legal observance. Do we recognize and celebrate transitions from slavery to freedom: not just another’s, but our own as well? Do we expect change and new things to happen automatically without the hard work of listening, believing, and acting? Do we set a higher value on virtue than God does, forgetting that we are all beneficiaries of God’s mercy, all the time?

—Terence Sherlock

20 June 2021: Twelfth Sunday in Ordinary time B

Reading 1	Response	Reading 2	Gospel
Jb 38:1, 8-11	Ps 107:23-24, 25-26, 28-29, 30-31	2 Cor 5:14-17	Mk 4:35-41
RCL: Jb 38:1-11		RCL: 2 Cor 6:1-13

Theophany: exposing and evaluating human limitations

During Ordinary time the Lectionary presents stories and teachings from Jesus’ everyday ministry. This week’s readings focus on personal encounters with God.

First reading (Jb 38:1, 8-11)

The first reading is from the story of Job, part of the Hebrew scripture “Writings” that follow Wisdom traditions. Scholars believe Job was written between the sixth and fourth century BC, after the exile. In today’s pericope, God begins to address Job’s question about undeserved suffering. God appears to Job (a theophany) in the form of a powerful windstorm (“out of the storm”) and asks several rhetorical questions. God asserts God’s utter transcendence (“I shut the sea,” “I made the clouds,” “I set the sea’s limits“) and power over nature (“here shall your proud waves be stilled”). Ancient peoples viewed “wind” and “sea” as uncreated chaos that only the gods could control; in Genesis, God spends two days separating and gathering the primeval waters. The Lectionary editors chose this passages because of God’s power over the wind and sea. In the gospel, Jesus also shows divine control over the same elements.

Second reading (2 Cor 5:14-17)

The second reading is a continuation of Ordinary time’s semi-continuous reading from Paul’s second letter to the Corinth ekklesia. In today’s pericope, Paul contrasts his ministry’s motivation with that of the false teachers besieging the Corinthians. Christ’s love “impels” Paul to begin and to continue his service as an apostle. He offers his insight (“conviction”) that Christ’s love is the reason “one died for all.” That is, Jesus’ physical death reconciled humans to God so that humans could be saved from spiritual death (sin). “Those who live” are alive because of Christ’s gift (his death and resurrection); the gift obligates those who live to live for others (“no longer for themselves”). Before his conversion, Paul “knew” Christ incorrectly (“according to the flesh”), and persecuted Christ and his disciples. As part of his conversion, he now experiences (“knows”) Christ in a different way. To see differently and to be a new creature (“new creation”), disciples must be in Christ; that is, only Christians are “new creations.” Although Christ’s gift enables a new creation, humans must choose to be new people created in Christ (“new things”); the “new” does not automatically replace the “old. The Lectionary editors chose this reading as part Ordinary time’s semi-continuous reading from 2 Corinthians.

Gospel (Mk 4:35-41)

Mark’s gospel begins a collection of stories about Jesus’ “mighty deeds.” Jesus moves beyond Galilee to gentile territory; this is the first of several trips Jesus makes across the Sea of Galilee, a symbolic barrier between Jews and gentiles. This story signals a change in Mark’s gospel, from Jesus’ teachings to Jesus’ works of power.

• “Bad” weather. The Sea of Galilee is noted for its violent squalls that can arise without warning, as wind is funneled through the steep valleys among the hills surrounding the lake. As today’s first reading suggests, the wind and sea also represent the primeval chaos that only God can contain. (For God’s power over the sea, see Ps 42:7-8, Ps 65:7-8, Ps 89:8-9, Ps 107:23-32). The disciples fear the primal spirits are stronger than Jesus.
• An exorcism. In quieting the storm, Jesus exercises the same power or authority that he uses to cast out demons and to perform mighty works of healing. Nature miracles and healing miracles point to the inbreaking of God’s kingdom, restoring the order present at creation, and subjugating all things to the rule of God (“God’s reign” or “the kingdom of God”).
• Awe before the divine. The disciples move from fear (“we are perishing”) to the numinous sense of awe that is part of a theophany or a human experience of divine power. Mark recounts fear and awe as part of the disciples’ learning process, which leads them to question more deeply Jesus’ nature and mission (“who is this?”). This story reminds Mark’s community that Jesus’ saving presence continues amid persecutions that threaten their existence.

Summary and reflection

This week’s readings ask us to think about our encounters with the divine. God reveals God’s total otherness to Job, challenging Job’s human view of God. Paul shares his conversion experience, urging them to think beyond their fleshy worldview. Jesus’ authority over wind and wave spirits change the disciples’ understanding of their teacher. A personal encounter with the divine reframes our perspective; it is an opportunity to experience a reality greater than ourselves. Like Job, do we seek to understand and to accept our place in an ambiguous universe? Like Paul, do we allow a divine encounter to make us anew completely and permanently? Like Jesus’ disciples, can we move beyond our fear of the radically Other to awe, appreciation, and worship?

—Terence Sherlock