Faith

A blessed life – Monday, 10th Week in ordinary time -2 Corinthians 1:1-7/ Matthew 5:1-12

Matthew’s gospel, which is taken up in the liturgy of the daily Eucharist from today onwards, is often referred to as the teaching Gospel for it contains five great discourses into which Matthew has gathered so much of his teaching material.

Writing to a Judeo- Christian audience sometime between 75- 90 AD the Gospel has strong overtones of a ‘family feud’. In 80 AD, the Rabbis of Jamnia had placed the Christians outside the community of Judaism. The ‘birkat hamminim,’ a curse pronounced on heretics and which included the Christians, set the Christians community firmly outside the boundaries of Judaism, something that the community of St Matthew will contest.

If Michelangelo had the ‘last judgment’ as his ‘pièce de résistance’ then this was Matthew’s masterpiece. St Matthew brilliantly weaves the teachings of Jesus in this opening discourse setting down the mind of the master. At its heart is the theme of justice and the kingdom of God. He grips the reader with the unadulterated teaching on the kingdom leaving the reader wondering; how can values such as meekness and poverty, mourning and hunger bring one happiness?

Jesus begins the discourse with the wonderful words of the Beatitudes. There are eight of them, each one beginning with the words, “Happy are those…” ‘Happy’ is a translation of the Greek adjective makarios which includes not only the idea of happiness, but also of good fortune, of being specially blessed. So, we can translate it as “Blessed indeed are those…” or “Fortunate indeed are those…” It is important to realise that being a follower of Christ is intended to be a source of deep happiness and a realisation that one is truly fortunate to have discovered this vision of life.

The beatitudes are not some pious hopes, a ‘pie in the sky when you die’ but a ‘congratulations. It is recognition of an existing state of happiness that the disciple chooses to freely live. While the virtues they purport may seem to be ‘out of style’ and ‘out of step’ they are indeed the way a disciple is to walk as sign to the world.

The beatitudes are not a list of ‘thou shalt not’s’. The list we find here is in the indicative mood, not the imperative. It is description, not prescription. However, in following them we find the ‘blessings’ of being a citizen of the kingdom of God. Though the description of the kingdom sounds bleak; the take away for those who have lived it. is an experience of ‘authentic happiness’.

What the world sees as tragic or empty, Jesus sees as blessed: humility, mourning, gentleness, peacefulness and other virtues. Jesus lived by these qualities himself and we can notice them in his words and actions during his life with us on earth. He could encourage us to live in the spirit of the Beatitudes because he himself lived them and knew that a life of integrity and honesty is indeed a blessed life.

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Faith

Learning to give from the heart – Saturday, 9th Week in ordinary time – Mark 12: 38-44

Read also https://www.pottypadre.com/condemnation-or-commendation/

We are at the end of the Gospel of Mark. The following texts focus on Our Lord’s passion death and resurrection. From Monday we will begin with the ministry of Jesus in the Gospel of Matthew; chapter five onwards. For now, we bring our teaching on the Gospel of Mark to a close even though the chapter itself will continue to see Jesus teaching in the temple.

They say that there is a threshold for everything and the patience of Our Lord seems to have been breached. Not only has he had to deal with the shenanigans of the Jewish religious establishment but he also had to deal with their political allies, the Herodians. Scripture tells us that having dealt with them all, “no one dare to ask him any question.” (12:34) While that may be true, it did not imply that they did not have questions about him as we see in verse 35-37.

So much of Jesus’ ministry was under a constant scanner because he posed a threat to the Jewish religious leadership who saw him as enemy number one. When truth stands in the path of false hood and deceit, every effort is made to eradicate the truth, lest those who see the truth begin to question the world they have been made to accept and live in. We know that truth has a name; it is Jesus. He declared, “I am the way, the life and the truth.” Yet THE truth had to be eradicated even if it meant that a brother Jew was sold out to the Romans and nailed to a cross.

Yet, Our Lord had no malice towards his detractors. From the cross he asked his father to forgive them, yet on earth he does what he ought to do, warn his disciples less they fall prey to the false hood of the Jewish religious leaders. We hear that warning in today’s text; “beware of the scribes who like to walk around in long robes and be greeted in the marketplaces and have the best seats in the synagogues and places of honour at banquets. “

Ironically, the Jews thought that they were watching Jesus; waiting for him to make a mistake. In reality, he was watching them and that too very intently. He observes their behaviour and their clamour for importance and power. But even more, he observes the immorality of their actions when they spare none; not even the widows who were protected by the law of Moses. The keepers of the law had become its violators for they swallow up the homes of widows.

It is in this context that Our Lord notices a widow who was poor and she puts in two small copper coins worth a penny. The ancient Greek word lepton literally means “a tiny thing,” and so in the Old English was translated as mite, which comes from the word for a “crumb” or “very small morsel.”

Interestingly, Jesus did not say that she put in more than any one of them; He said that she put in more than all of them; all of them put together. ‘They’ put out of their abundance but she put all she had to live on. What the widow gave might seem insignificant to many from the viewpoint of quantity. However, she is praised for her total generosity in giving all she had, not just what was over and above.

Jesus looks at us too when we give and He notices how we give. As Jesus looks, He is more interested in how we give than in how much we give. In seeing how the people gave, Jesus wasn’t studying technique. He looks more at motive and heart.

The story of the poor widow is very suitable for contemplation. We can approach this narrative as a viewer, like the disciples did as they watched the scene unfold. Or we can picture ourselves in the place of the widow.

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Faith

Along came a scribe – Thursday, 9th week in ordinary time – Mark 12:28b –34

The narrative of today’s text takes place on the Tuesday of Holy Week. Thrice, the might of the Jewish political and religious establishment attempt to trap him. He deftly answers their political and religious question and at times even choses not to answer them (11:33). Wave upon wave of deviousness is thwarted by our Lord. His ‘agony’ began long before he set foot into Gethsemane.

The narrative of today tells us that a scribe has been watching this entire episode unfold. He sees how Jesus answers the might of the Jewish establishment and he does this well. Now, the scribe has a question for Jesus. While the Gospels of Matthew and Luke have their own approach to the scribe there is no evidence in this text that he was hostile to Jesus. The passage ends with Jesus’ admiration for his wisdom and compliments him; “you are not far from the kingdom of God.”

The question that the scribe poses, clearly positions him to be a true seeker. “Which is the first commandment?” This is not so much a ‘what have I to fulfil list?’ but rather it is a ‘have I got the priority of my faith in its correct order,’ sort of question. Incidentally, this was not a question that was asked uniquely to Jesus. The great Jewish rabbi, Hillel was asked the same question and his response seems to have been the response of the Jewish leaders of that time; “what you hate for yourself, do not do for others.”

In answering the question, Jesus combined two Old Testament instructions. He put the traditional ‘Shemma‘ (Hebrew for hear), found in Deuteronomy 6:4-5, words that are still recited twice daily by persons of the Jewish faith and the law of Leviticus 19:8, together. Jesus brought together the balance or the vertical and horizontal dimension, which our lives must have.

For Jesus, faith is not merely the salvation of the individual. God so loved the world that he gave his son that whoever believes will have eternal life. Clearly God’s love is not just for me; He wants the world to be saved. For many of us, faith is a uni-directional relationship; me and my God. While Jesus acknowledges the importance and the centrality of a God centered relationship, reiterated by the words of the ‘shemma’ in Deuteronomy 6:4-5 he also introduces a social dimension to the faith. If God is to be loved with all our heart and soul and mind the neighbour must be loved as we love ourselves.

The scribe is in agreement with Jesus. Clearly, he is not swayed by the Sadducees or the Pharisees or the scribes or the Herodians who were circling around Jesus like vultures around a carcass. This lawyer was not swayed by popular opinion and he complimented the Lord when every power that be around him, stood and attacked Our Lord.

While the text is exegetically rich it also points to simple values of integrity; the ability to stand up for the truth in the face of the chorus of voices singing the same disharmonious tune. That’s not all; he had an opinion too. While sacrifice in the temple was mandated and was the most visible expression of public worship, this sacrifice for the scribe, meant nothing if the love of God and neighbour was not practiced. Such expressions of cult are empty and meaningless for they become a public demonstration of empty faith gestures which men revel in but God abhors.

There are several take aways from today’s Gospel

1. We can ask ourselves today; do we value God’s commandments? Clearly this scribe desired to do more than just be right in God’s eyes. God’s commandments are not suggestions, nor can they be cherry picked. We wilfully teach our children to break the commandment when we place as important secular studies over Sunday mass and catechism and then we wonder why our children have fallen off the road in their teens?

2. God wants us to love him and his commandments with “all our heart, and soul and mind.” Today, ask the Lord to enlarge your heart to make you more and more sensitive to the quality of His love and help you to love others with the same love with which He loves you.

3. Notice what Jesus says are the two most important commandments. They are about love, not about rules. Do I sometimes think that rules are the most important thing? Do I sometimes judge those who break rules? Sit with Jesus and think honestly about these things, asking him to lead you to the truth

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Faith

Round two goes to Jesus – Tuesday, 9th week in ordinary time – Mark 12:13-17

For many who profess the Christian faith, the Holy Week is telescoped into the latter half of the week. Yet it is the first half of the week, which is often ignored, that saw some intense verbal skirmishes between Jesus and the religious leaders of that time.

A few verses earlier, Our Lord, has sent them packing with their tails between their legs. They “realised that he had told the parable about them” (12:12). This was no ordinary parable for the parable of wicked tenants has a rather tidy and neatly encapsulated heading when in reality it was not only wickedness that the religious authorities were culpable of but murder.

The parable which Jesus narrated would not only prophecy the fall of Jerusalem and the destruction of the temple but would also bring about the plan of God for the salivation of the world; his son, his “beloved son” (12:6) would be put to death by the end of this very week.

Yet, the religious leaders were shameless! Having failed at trapping him themselves, “they sent to him some Pharisees and some Herodians.” Scripture tells us that their intentions were clear, “they wanted to trap him.” (12:13)

Politics makes strange bed fellows. The Herodians could barely stand the Pharisees. The former were politicians aligned to King Herod and by extension to the hated Romans; the latter were religious lawmakers. Independently, they had knives drawn at each other’s throats. Together they struck a deal to lock Jesus in the horns of a dilemma. Should Jesus consent to paying the hated Poll tax?

Three taxes were imposed by the Romans on Judea. The first was the ground tax, which was 10% of all grain and 20% of all wine and fruit. The second was the income tax, which amounted to 1% of a man’s income. The third was the poll tax, paid by men aged 12 to 65 and women 14 to 65. This was one denarius a year, about a day’s wage for a labourer.

To deny the paying of the tax would make Jesus an enemy of the state. To approve of it would make him a traitor in the eyes of the Jewish people. If I may use some artistic license, Jesus’ response could have well been, ‘show me the money!’ and show Him they did, with the image of the emperor Tiberius and here in was the solution.

The coin had the image of the emperor with the idolatrous inscription ‘Tiberius Caesar divi Augusti filius Augustus’. Tiberius had simply taken on the title of divinity which made him even more hated in the eyes of the Jews. Why then would a Jew not want to ‘render’ or give back what belonged to Caesar? Why keep that which was a symbol of oppression?

Jesus was not opposed to paying taxes and neither should we. In Matthew 17:24- 27 He instructs Simon to pay tax so as to not ‘give offense’ even though ‘sons should be exempt’. ‘Yet in allowing them to pay the tax He challenges His audience to be as exact in serving God as they are in serving Caesar.’ (JBC).

The second round too, belongs to our Lord. Tomorrow, we hear of round three… the knockout!

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Have you not read this scripture? – Monday, 9th Week in ordinary time – Mark 12: 1-12

Read also https://www.pottypadre.com/readers-discretion-advised/ to get a detailed explanation of this text.

The text is situated on the Tuesday of Holy week and while the time lines of parts of chapter 12 and 13 are blurred what is crystal clear is the hate in the heart and in the actions of the Jewish religious leadership towards Jesus.

In the previous text 11:27-33 it is they who come like wolves but this time not in sheep’s clothing. Their intentions were made clear when scripture tells us in 11:18 that “they kept looking for a way to kill him.” The very tense of the sentence structure tells us that this was not some stroke of luck they hoped to run into; for them, any excuse would do and as we know from Our Lord’s trial, lies were up for grabs too!

The Jewish authorities wanted to know by what or under whose authority was Jesus doing ‘these things’. ( Mark 11:18) Clearly everything he did, every miracle and healing was also seen suspiciously. After all, did they not say that he performed these miracles by the power of the prince of devils? (Matthew 12:24)

While Jesus refuses to answer an unjust and unrighteous religious leadership he does not lose the opportunity to expose them by telling them a parable which forms the text of today. We know from 12:12 that too late, “they realized that he told this parable against them,” and thought they wanted to arrest him they feared the crowd.

Four times in this parable one finds the word ‘sent.’ When season came the owner of the vineyard sent a slave to collect a share of the produce. Yet this slave was ‘sent’ away with without the share but given a beating. Again he ‘sent’ another slave who was assaulted on the head and insulted. Then he ‘sent’ the third slave who was killed. Finally, he sent his son who was the heir and seizing what was perceived as an opportunity to eradicate the blood line they stain their hands with innocent blood and disrespecting even his corpse they threw it outside the vineyard.

Israel was the vineyard of the Lord. The vineyard did not belong to them for they were tenants who were given the land to care for and to produce fruit. The parable does not tell us if the land produced fruit, it just says that “when season came, he sent his slave to the tenants to collect from them his share of the produce.” We know from the parable of the fig tree (11:12) that the nation of Israel, represented by a fig tree produced only leaves and no fruit. It is for this reason that Jesus cursed it. Now, not only do they not produce any fruit, it is the land too that they desire to usurp by immoral means and take for themselves what is not, was not and never will be theirs.

To sum up the consequence of this parable, Jesus asked the Jewish religious authorities a question. “What then will the owner of the vineyard do?” Their answer, was in reality, a pronouncement of their own death sentence for their infidelity and immorality; they will be destroyed! This prophecy came true when the Romans laid siege to Jerusalem and destroyed the city and the temple.

Lest we think that this is a stinging indictment of a people long gone then we need to think again. The words of Our Lord spoken to the Jewish religious establishment speak to us today. “Have you not read this scripture?” Psalm 118 is the called the Hosanna Psalm. It is a Psalm in which the Messiah is presented to Israel. Yet Jesus is rejected even though they initially greeted him in Jerusalem with hosannas (chapter 11:1).

Ironically, even though they were convicted by the words and the truth of Jesus, (12:12) knowing fully well that this parable was about them, they still chose to reject and not receive him. They plotted to murder Jesus instead of repenting before Him.

Today, let the Holy Spirit convict you with his truth. This IS the spirit of truth (John 15:26). God speaks to our hearts even when we have turned away from him. He does that so that listening to the promptings of the Holy Spirit we may repent. So today is not too late to be convicted by the Spirit of truth for God says to us, “have you not read this scripture?”

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