27th Sunday C

27^th Sunday in Ordinary Time C

Readings: Habakkuk 1:2‑3; 2:2‑4  2 Timothy 1:6‑8,13‑14  Luke  17:5‑10

Faith is more than an intellectual assent to an abstract creedal formula having nothing to do with daily struggles in life.  Today's readings plunge us into life's suffering and mystery where faith involves perseverance in struggling for God's justice.  As we actively wait in hope for the completion of God's kingdom, let us hearken to the call of the responsorial psalm:  "If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts" (Ps 95).

Habakkuk's prophecy comes from the period when idolatry and political corruption engulfed Judah, immediately prior to the destruction of Jerusalem by Babylon.  In the midst of this moral chaos, the prophet repeatedly cries out to God about the "violence," "ruin," "misery," "destruction," "strife," and "clamorous discord" that surround him.  He accuses God of being indifferent to the corruption of the nation and the apparent triumph of injustice.  "How long, O Lord?  I cry for help/ but you do not listen!"

God then challenges Habbakuk to do two things.  First of all, he must "write down the vision" about the triumph of God's justice.  Habakkuk must do this ahead of time "so that one can read it readily."  Then, God assures him that the vision is trustworthy.  "For the vision still has its time,/ presses on to  fulfillment, and will not disappoint."  Secondly, the prophet himself, along with the community, will have to wait for the fulfillment of the vision.  This time of waiting will sort out the foolish from the wise, the "rash" from the faithful. “If it delays, wait for it,/ It will surely come, it will not be late./ The rash man has no integrity;/ but the just man, because of his faith, shall live” (Hab 2:3‑4).

If one is tempted to think of faith as a passive virtue, the reading from 2 Timothy completely dispels this notion.  Timothy is a second or third generation Christian.  His faith came from his grandmother, Lois, and his mother, Eunice (see 2 Tim 1:5).  Now the Pauline author exhorts him "to stir into flame the gift God bestowed when my hands were laid on you."   Timothy's faith will have to be courageous and steadfast.  He is reminded, "The Spirit God has given us is no cowardly spirit, but rather one that makes us strong, loving and wise."  Timothy, like Jesus and Paul, may suffer persecution for the faith.  But he is warned: "never be ashamed of your testimony to our Lord, nor of me, a prisoner for his sake; but with the strength which comes from God bear your share of the hardship which the gospel entails."

The gospel also presents faith as a virtue for the active living of the Christian life.  In the previous section of Luke Jesus warns the disciples about the dangers of temptations to sin and the need to forgive a repentant brother who has sinned against them as many as seven times (Lk 17:1‑4).  Faced with these demands, the apostles beseech the Lord, “Increase our faith.”   Jesus replies by saying, “If you had faith the size of a mustard seed, you could say to this sycamore, ‘Be uprooted and transplanted into the sea,’ and it would obey you.”

In the following parable of the master and the slave, Jesus then warns the disciples against understanding faith as a kind of meritorious claim on God for a reward.  Drawing upon the well‑known duties of the slave, Jesus reminds his followers, who may have done their duty by living lives of faith, that they should not expect an earthly reward, any more than a slave would expect his master to serve him supper after he has done his work in the field.  Rather, after they have done all they have been commanded to do, Jesus' disciples should say, "We are useless servants.  We have done no more than our duty."  True faith leads to continuous service, not shrewd calculation of rewards due for past actions.

26th Sunday C

26^th Sunday in Ordinary Time C

Readings: Amos 6:1,4‑7  1 Timothy 6:11‑16  Luke 16:19‑31

This Sunday's readings continue last week's warnings about the impossibility of serving God and money by exposing how those who accumulate wealth and luxury become indifferent to God.  As we reject decadent materialism, let us embrace the path of true happiness offered by our responsorial psalm.  "Happy the one who keeps faith forever,/ secures justice for the oppressed,/ gives  food to the hungry" (Ps 146:7).

Amos' warning to the idle rich details the excesses of their lives.  They recline on "beds of ivory," eat rich diets of lamb and stall‑fed calves in a country traditionally poor in meat, enjoy lavish musical entertainment, drink "wine from bowls," and "anoint themselves with the best oils."  All of this luxury only dulls their consciences so that "they are not made ill by the collapse of Joseph!".  Fittingly, the pampered wealthy "shall be the first to go into exile,/ and their wanton revelry shall be done away with."

The reading from 1Timothy is preceded and followed by warnings against false teachers "who value religion only as a means of personal gain" (see 1 Tim 6:6‑10, 17‑19).  Instead of pursuing transient wealth, the Pauline author exhorts Timothy to "seek after integrity, piety, faith, love, steadfastness, and a gentle spirit": virtues of "everlasting life" to which Christians are called by their baptism.  The model for fulfilling one's baptismal commitment is Jesus himself "who in bearing witness made his noble profession before Pontius Pilate."  As Timothy strives "to keep God's command without blame or reproach until our Lord Jesus Christ shall appear," he should remember that God will bring this appearance to pass and that he alone is the immortal ruler of the universe.

Jesus' parable contrasts the status of “a rich man” and “a beggar named Lazarus” in this life and the next.  In this world the rich man “dressed in purple and linen and feasted splendidly every day,” while Lazarus who lay at the rich man’s gate “was covered  with sores” that were “licked by dogs” and “longed to eat the  scraps that fell from the rich man's table.”  But at death their fates are reversed.  Lazarus is “carried by angels to the bosom of Abraham,” and the rich man is sent to “the abode of the dead where he was in torment.”

The point of the parable comes in the concluding dialogue between the rich man and Abraham.  The rich man learns the reason for his punishment.  At first, he thinks that he, as a son of Abraham and an acquaintance of Lazarus (see Lk 3:8‑9), can remedy his situation.  He asks: “Father Abraham, have pity on me.  Send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water to refresh my tongue, for I am tortured in these flames.”  Abraham's answer not only points out the reversal of fate between the two men, but also the irreversible ‘great abyss’ which separates those who were once near to each other in this life.  “My child . . . remember that you were well off in your lifetime, while Lazarus was in misery.  Now he has found consolation here, but you have found torment.  And that is not all.  Between you and us there is fixed a great abyss, so that those who might wish to cross from here to you cannot do so, nor can anyone cross from your side to us.”  

If there was to be any interaction between the rich man and Lazarus, it had to take place in their earthly lives when the rich man could have cared for the needy beggar who "lay at his gate."

The rich man then asks Abraham to send Lazarus to warn his five brothers, but Abraham insists that they have the warnings of Moses and the prophets, as found, for example, in our first reading from Amos.  If his brothers will not listen to the teachings of Moses and the prophets, even Jesus' resurrection from the dead will not convince them.

25th Sunday C

25^th Sunday in Ordinary Time C

Readings: Amos 8:4‑7  1 Tim 2:1‑8 Luke 16:1‑13

In today's readings Amos and Jesus remind us that we cannot serve both God and money.  Rather than vindicating worldly affluence and power, the God of Amos and Jesus rejects greed and the oppression of the poor.  Let us pray in the words of this Sunday's responsorial psalm: “Praise the Lord who lifts up the poor./  He raises up the lowly from the dust;/ from the dunghill he lifts up the poor/ to seat them with princes,/ with the princes of his own people” (Ps 113:7‑8).

In God’s name, Amos threatens the greedy merchants who "trample upon the needy and destroy the poor of the land."  During their new moons and Sabbaths, mandated days of rest, these hypocrites calculate how long they must wait to resume their exploitation of the lowly.  Their plans to “diminish the ephah,” “add to the shekel,” and “fix . . . scales for cheating” are in direct violation of Israel's ancient laws in Deuteronomy. “You shall not keep two differing weights in your bag, one large and the other small; nor shall you keep two different measures in your house, one large and the other small. But use a true and just weight, and a true and just measure, that you may have a long life on the land which the Lord, your God is giving you.  Everyone who is dishonest in these matters is an abomination to the Lord”  (Deut 25:13‑16).  Amos simply has the courage to announce the Lord's inevitable judgment against such violations of the covenant.  “The Lord has sworn by the pride of Jacob: ‘Never will I forget a thing they have done!’” (Amos 8:7).

1 Timothy warns us not to extend Amos' strident judgment to all persons in power.  Christians, although a religious minority in the Roman Empire, are instructed to offer intercession for all "especially for kings and those in authority."  Their maintenance of public order will enable Christians "to lead undisturbed and tranquil lives in perfect piety and dignity."  The necessity of such prayer is rooted God's desire for universal salvation and knowledge of the truth: “God is one.  One also is the mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all.”

In Gospel Jesus uses the shocking story of a dishonest steward to warn his disciples that they cannot serve both God and money.  Although we may find the steward's financial dealings devious, the parable forces us to identify with him when he is accused of “dissipating” (maybe simply mismanaging) the rich man's property.  When asked to render an account of his service, the steward realistically assesses his bleak situation in a soliloquy, a favorite technique in the Lukan parables (see Lk  12:17‑19; 15:17‑19; 18:4‑5). “What shall I do next?  My employer is sure to dismiss me. I cannot dig ditches.  I am ashamed to go begging.  I have it!  Here is a way to make sure that people will take me into their homes when I am let go.”  Scholars debate the exact nature of steward's arrangement with his master's debtors.  Is his reduction of their debts simply cheating his master?  Or, is he getting even with the master by canceling the usurious interest charged on his loans?  Finally, some have suggested that the steward waives the commission that would have been his for negotiating the master's business.  In any case, the steward, when faced with a desperate situation, acts "prudently," and even his master has to commend him for being enterprising.

Jesus draws several lessons from this parable by contrasting and comparing the steward's worldly behavior in connection with the ephemeral goods of this age to the disciples' other‑worldly concerns with lasting goods.  First of all, he praises the steward's shrewdness and suggests that the disciples should pursue the kingdom with such decisiveness and initiative.  “The people of this world are more prudent in dealing with their own kind than are the people of the light.”  Three general morals follow; all are concerned with the disciples' use of and attitude toward money.  First, worldly wealth will fail; therefore it should be used to win heavenly allies who will receive you into eternal habitations.  Second, one who has not been trustworthy in handling paltry material wealth will not receive heavenly treasure.  Finally, humans are servants who must choose their master: God or mammon.  Enslavement to money precludes God from one's life.

24th SundayC

24^th Sunday in Ordinary Time C

Readings: Exodus 32:7‑11,13‑14  1 Timothy 1:12‑17  Luke 15:1‑32

     In the trial scene of Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice Portia describes mercy in the following way:

The quality of mercy is not strained.

It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven

Upon the place beneath.  It is twice blest:

It blesseth him that gives and him that takes. . . .

It is an attribute of God himself;

And earthly power doth then show likest God's

When mercy seasons justice. . . .

Today's readings proclaim the rich blessings and the joyful demands of God's abundant mercy.  Let us avail ourselves of this most God‑like gift as we sing the refrain for this Sunday's responsorial psalm (Ps 51): "I will rise and go to my Father."    

In the Exodus reading the Israelites have provoked the Lord's wrath by making the golden calf, and so he angrily announces to Moses that he will destroy this “depraved” and “stiff‑necked” people and then make of Moses himself “a great  nation.”  In his threat the Lord refers to Israel as “your (Moses') people, whom you brought out of the land of Egypt.”  But Moses dares to remind the Lord that Israel is his “own people.” "Why, O Lord, should your wrath blaze up against your own people, whom you brought out of the land

of Egypt with such great power and with so strong a hand?"    Moses then recalls the Lord's solemn covenant promises made to the patriarchs. “Remember your servants Abraham, Isaac and Israel, and how you swore to them by your own self, saying, ‘I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky; and all this land that I promised, I will give your descendants as their perpetual heritage.'"

When confronted with his own saving actions and promises, the Lord's fidelity and mercy triumph over his wrath.  We are told:  "So the Lord relented in the punishment he had threatened to inflict on his people."

For the next seven weeks, the second reading will be from the Pastoral Epistles, I and II Timothy.  Most scholars agree  that they are written in Paul's name in an attempt to maintain  correct doctrine against threats from false teachers who "concern themselves with myths and endless genealogies, which promote  speculations rather than the plan of God that is to be received  by faith" (1 Tim 1:4).  In contrast to this "gnostic" emphasis on speculation, 1Timothy insists that Christianity involves an ethical life of practical love and service.  The foremost example of Christian service should be the minister of the gospel.

In today's reading the author uses Paul's own experience of God's mercy as an example "to those who would later have faith in (God)."  The opening thanksgiving humbly acknowledges Paul’s past failings as "a blasphemer, a persecutor, a man filled with arrogance."  If God through Christ Jesus could treat Paul, "the worst" of sinners, with mercy, then, the author reasons, "You can depend on this as worthy of full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners."   The reading ends with a praise of God for his mercy. 

Luke's three parables‑‑ the Lost Sheep, the Lost Coin, and the Prodigal Son‑‑ celebrate the twin blessings of God's mercy.   Those who are lost‑‑ like the stray sheep, the misplaced coin, or the prodigal son‑‑ are assured of God's forgiving mercy.  Those who have dutifully served God, like the elder son, are invited to share in God's nature by showing mercy.  Jesus uses these parables both to defend his joyful table fellowship with "tax collectors and sinners" and also to challenge the self-righteous Pharisees and scribes, who are murmuring, “this man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”

The conclusion of each parable is an invitation to joyfully celebrate finding that which was lost, that is, the return of repentant sinners.  When the shepherd arrives home, "he invites friends and neighbors in and says to them, ‘Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep.'"  When the woman finds her lost coin, "she calls in her friends and neighbors to say, ‘Rejoice with me!  I have found the silver piece I lost.'"   When the father comes out to his jealous elder son, he insists, "we had to celebrate and rejoice!  This brother of yours was dead, and has come back to life.  He was lost, and is found."

Jesus leaves these parables open ended.  We are not told if the elder son chose to join the festivities.  We have to hear the parable's call and complete it for ourselves.  Perhaps the greatest challenge Jesus offers us is the invitation to rejoice in God's forgiving love for others.