Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Today the Church celebrates : Sts. Crispin & Crispinian, Martyrs (+ c. 287)

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Saint Gregory of Nyssa : “Immediately he received his sight and followed him on the way”

Book of Jeremiah 31:7-9.

For thus says the LORD: Shout with joy for Jacob, exult at the head of the nations; proclaim your praise and say: The LORD has delivered his people, the remnant of Israel. Behold, I will bring them back from the land of the north; I will gather them from the ends of the world, with the blind and the lame in their midst, The mothers and those with child; they shall return as an immense throng. They departed in tears, but I will console them and guide them; I will lead them to brooks of water, on a level road, so that none shall stumble. For I am a father to Israel, Ephraim is my first-born.

Psalms 126(125):1-3.4-5.6.

A song of ascents. When the LORD restored the fortunes of Zion, then we thought we were dreaming.
Our mouths were filled with laughter; our tongues sang for joy. Then it was said among the nations, “The LORD had done great things for them.”
The LORD has done great things for us; Oh, how happy we were!
Restore again our fortunes, LORD, like the dry stream beds of the Negeb.
Those who sow in tears will reap with cries of joy.
Those who go forth weeping, carrying sacks of seed, Will return with cries of joy, carrying their bundled sheaves.

Letter to the Hebrews 5:1-6.

Every high priest is taken from among men and made their representative before God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins. He is able to deal patiently with the ignorant and erring, for he himself is beset by weakness and so, for this reason, must make sin offerings for himself as well as for the people. No one takes this honor upon himself but only when called by God, just as Aaron was. In the same way, it was not Christ who glorified himself in becoming high priest, but rather the one who said to him: “You are my son; this day I have begotten you”; just as he says in another place: “You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.”

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Mark 10:46-52.

They came to Jericho. And as he was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a sizable crowd, Bartimaeus, a blind man, the son of Timaeus, sat by the roadside begging. On hearing that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, “Jesus, son of David, have pity on me.” And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he kept calling out all the more, “Son of David, have pity on me.” Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.” So they called the blind man, saying to him, “Take courage; get up, he is calling you.” He threw aside his cloak, sprang up, and came to Jesus. Jesus said to him in reply, “What do you want me to do for you?” The blind man replied to him, “Master, I want to see.” Jesus told him, “Go your way; your faith has saved you.” Immediately he received his sight and followed him on the way.

Copyright © Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, USCCB

Commentary of the day :

Saint Gregory of Nyssa (c.335-395), monk and Bishop
The Life of Moses, II, 231-233, 251-253 (copyright Classics of Western Spirituality)

“Immediately he received his sight and followed him on the way”

[The Lord said to Moses on Mount Sinai: «Let me see your glory!» He answered: «I will make all my beauty pass before you… But my face you cannot see» (Ex 33,18f).] Such an experience seems to me to belong to the soul which loves what is beautiful. Hope always draws the soul from the beauty which is seen to what is beyond… And the bold request which goes up the mountains of desire asks this: to enjoy the Beauty not in mirrors and reflections, but face to face. The divine voice granted what was requested in what was denied…: the munificence of God assented to the fulfilment of the desire but did not promise any cessation or satiety of the desire… The true sight of God consists in this, that the one who looks up to God never ceases in that desire. For he says: «You cannot see my face and live»…

But when the Lord who spoke to Moses came to fulfill his own law, he likewise gave a clear explanation to his disciples, laying bare the meaning of what had previously been said in a figure when he said: «If anyone wants to be a follower of mine « (Lk 9,23) and not “If any man will go before me.” And to the one asking about eternal life he proposes the same thing, for he says: «Come, follow me» (Lk 18,22). Now, he who follows sees the back. So Moses, who eagerly seeks to behold God, is now taught how he can behold Him: to follow God wherever he might lead is to behold God…

Someone who does not know the way cannot complete his journey safely in any other way than by following behind his guide. He who leads, then, by his guidance shows the way to the one following. He who follows will not turn aside from the right way if he always keeps the back of his leader in view. For he who moves to one side or brings himself to face his guide assumes another direction for himself than the one his guide shows him. Therefore God says to the one who is led: «My face is not to be seen», that is, «Do not face your guide». If he does so, his course will certainly be in the opposite direction… You see how it is so great a thing to learn how to follow God… No longer does any offense which comes about through evil withstand the one who thus follows him.

Saturday of the Twenty-ninth week in Ordinary Time

Today the Church celebrates : St. Anthony Mary Claret, Archbishop (1807-1870),  St. Magloire, Bishop (+ c. 575)

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Didache : «Choose life» (Dt 30,19)

Letter to the Romans 8:1-11.

Hence, now there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus has freed you from the law of sin and death. For what the law, weakened by the flesh, was powerless to do, this God has done: by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for the sake of sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, so that the righteous decree of the law might be fulfilled in us, who live not according to the flesh but according to the spirit. For those who live according to the flesh are concerned with the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the spirit with the things of the spirit. The concern of the flesh is death, but the concern of the spirit is life and peace. For the concern of the flesh is hostility toward God; it does not submit to the law of God, nor can it; and those who are in the flesh cannot please God. But you are not in the flesh; on the contrary, you are in the spirit, if only the Spirit of God dwells in you. Whoever does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the spirit is alive because of righteousness. If the Spirit of the one who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, the one who raised Christ from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also, through his Spirit that dwells in you.

Psalms 24(23):1-2.3-4.5-6.

A psalm of David. The earth is the LORD’S and all it holds, the world and those who live there.
For God founded it on the seas, established it over the rivers.
Who may go up the mountain of the LORD? Who can stand in his holy place?
“The clean of hand and pure of heart, who are not devoted to idols, who have not sworn falsely.
They will receive blessings from the LORD, and justice from their saving God.
Such are the people that love the LORD, that seek the face of the God of Jacob.” Selah

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke 13:1-9.

At that time some people who were present there told him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with the blood of their sacrifices. He said to them in reply, “Do you think that because these Galileans suffered in this way they were greater sinners than all other Galileans? By no means! But I tell you, if you do not repent, you will all perish as they did! Or those eighteen people who were killed when the tower at Siloam fell on them –do you think they were more guilty than everyone else who lived in Jerusalem? By no means! But I tell you, if you do not repent, you will all perish as they did!” And he told them this parable: “There once was a person who had a fig tree planted in his orchard, and when he came in search of fruit on it but found none, he said to the gardener, ‘For three years now I have come in search of fruit on this fig tree but have found none. (So) cut it down. Why should it exhaust the soil?’ He said to him in reply, ‘Sir, leave it for this year also, and I shall cultivate the ground around it and fertilize it; it may bear fruit in the future. If not you can cut it down.'”

Copyright © Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, USCCB

Commentary of the day :

Didache (between 60-120), judeo-christian catechesis
§ 1-6 (trans. Maxwell Staniforth)

«Choose life» (Dt 30,19)

There are two ways: a way of life and a way of death, and the difference between these two ways is great. The way of life is this: you shall love first the Lord your Creator, and secondly your neighbour as yourself; and you shall do nothing to anyone that you would not wish to be done to yourself. What you may learn from those words is to bless those who curse you, to pray for your enemies, and to fast for your persecutors. For where is the merit in loving only those who return your love? Even the heathen do as much as that. But if you love those who hate you, you will have nobody to be your enemy. Beware of the carnal appetites of the body…

The second commandment in the teaching means: Commit no murder, adultery, sodomy, fornication, or theft. Practise no magic, sorcery, abortion, or infanticide. See that you do not covet anything your neighbour possesses, and never be guilty of perjury, false witness, slander, or malice. Do not equivocate in thought or speech, for a double tongue is a deadly snare; the words you speak should not be false or empty phrases, but fraught with purposeful action. You are not to be avaricious or extortionate, and you must resist any temptation to hypocrisy, spitefulness, or superiority. You are to have no malicious designs on a neighbour. You are to cherish no feelings of hatred for anybody; some you are to reprove, some to pray for, and some again to love more than your own life.

Keep away from every bad man, my son, and from all his kind… Take care that nobody tempts you away from the path of this teaching, for such a man’s tuition can have nothing to do with God. If you can shoulder the lord’s yoke in its entirety, then you will be perfect; but if that is too much for you, do as much as you can.

(Biblical references: Mt 22,37f; 7,12; Tb 4,15; Mt 5,44f; 1Pt 2,11; Ex 20; Mt 24,4)

Friday of the Twenty-ninth week in Ordinary Time

Today the Church celebrates : St. John of Capistrano, Priest (1386-1456)

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Pope Benedict XVI: Recognizing here and now the goods of eternity

Letter to the Romans 7:18-25.

For I know that good does not dwell in me, that is, in my flesh. The willing is ready at hand, but doing the good is not. For I do not do the good I want, but I do the evil I do not want. Now if (I) do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me. So, then, I discover the principle that when I want to do right, evil is at hand. For I take delight in the law of God, in my inner self, but I see in my members another principle at war with the law of my mind, taking me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. Miserable one that I am! Who will deliver me from this mortal body? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord. Therefore, I myself, with my mind, serve the law of God but, with my flesh, the law of sin.

Psalms 119:66.68.76.77.93.94.

Teach me wisdom and knowledge, for in your commands I trust.
You are good and do what is good; teach me your laws.
May your love comfort me in accord with your promise to your servant.
Show me compassion that I may live, for your teaching is my delight.
I will never forget your precepts; through them you give me life.
I am yours; save me, for I cherish your precepts.

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke 12:54-59.

He also said to the crowds, “When you see (a) cloud rising in the west you say immediately that it is going to rain–and so it does; and when you notice that the wind is blowing from the south you say that it is going to be hot–and so it is. You hypocrites! You know how to interpret the appearance of the earth and the sky; why do you not know how to interpret the present time? Why do you not judge for yourselves what is right? If you are to go with your opponent before a magistrate, make an effort to settle the matter on the way; otherwise your opponent will turn you over to the judge, and the judge hand you over to the constable, and the constable throw you into prison. I say to you, you will not be released until you have paid the last penny.”

Copyright © Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, USCCB

Commentary of the day :

Pope Benedict XVI
Encyclical « Caritas in veritate », 7 (©Libreria Editrice Vaticana)

Recognizing here and now the goods of eternity

The good of the individual is a good that is linked to living in society: the common good. It is the good of «all of us», made up of individuals, families and intermediate groups who together constitute society. It is a good that is sought not for its own sake, but for the people who belong to the social community… To desire the common good and strive towards it is a requirement of justice and charity…

Every Christian is called to practise this charity, in a manner corresponding to his vocation and according to the degree of influence he wields in the pólis. This is the institutional path — we might also call it the political path — of charity, no less excellent and effective than the kind of charity which encounters the neighbour directly, outside the institutional mediation of the pólis. When animated by charity, commitment to the common good has greater worth than a merely secular and political stand would have. Like all commitment to justice, it has a place within the testimony of divine charity that paves the way for eternity through temporal action.

Man’s earthly activity, when inspired and sustained by charity, contributes to the building of the universal city of God, which is the goal of the history of the human family. In an increasingly globalized society, the common good and the effort to obtain it cannot fail to assume the dimensions of the whole human family, that is to say, the community of peoples and nations, in such a way as to shape the earthly city in unity and peace, rendering it to some degree an anticipation and a prefiguration of the undivided city of God.