JESUS Unwelcome In A Samaritan Village

"As the time drew near when JESUS would be taken up to heaven, HE made up HIS mind to go to Jerusalem.  HE sent ahead of HIM some messengers, who entered a Samaritan village to prepare a lodging for HIM.  But the people would not receive HIM, because HE was on HIS way to Jerusalem.  Seeing this, James and John, HIS disciples, said, 'LORD, do YOU want us to call down fire from heaven to reduce them to ashes?'  JESUS turned and rebuked them, and they went on to another village." - Luke 9:51-56  

(After having recalled the actions of JESUS in Galilee, Luke begins the second part of his Gospel, where he brings together words of JESUS spoken on different occasions.  In order to preserve continuity in his account, he imagines that JESUS is giving these responses while on the way from Galilee to Jerusalem where the part of his Gospel will take place.

The first paragraph reminds us that between the two provinces of Galilee and Judea, there was Samaria.  Its people were Samaritans, non-Jews, and the two people really hated each other.  When Jews from Galilee were going on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, every door was closed to them throughout Samaria.

It would seem that each time JESUS meets Samaritans, it is to teach us a new way of seeing those who do not share our faith.  Religions have often been aggressive, at times very violent, especially those religions that see themselves as a revelation of the only GOD.  This was already the case in the Old Testament.  JESUS is not part of such fanaticism, teaching us not to confuse GOD's cause with ours nor with the interests of our religious community.  There is absolute respect for those GOD leads by another road.  What a contrast with the legends of the past that this account awakens in verse 54 [see 2 Kings 1:9].

Here JESUS tells HIS apostles to be less impulsive: the Samaritans who refuse to welcome JESUS on this occasion are not guiltier than those who close their doors to a stranger.  Why destroy this little village, if by doing his they still had to look for a place in another village?  It was better to move on without delay.)

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Who Is The Greatest?

"One day, the disciples were arguing about which of them was the most important.  But JESUS knew their thoughts, so HE took a little child and stood him by HIS side.  Then HE said to them, 'Whoever welcomes this little child in MY name, welcomes ME; and whoever welcomes ME, welcomes the one who sent ME.  And listen: the one who is found to be the least among you all, is the one who is the greatest.'

Then John spoke up, 'Master, we saw someone who drives out demons by calling upon YOUR name, and we tried to forbid him, because he doesn't follow YOU with us.'  But JESUS said, 'Don't forbid him.  He who is not against you is for you.'" - Luke 9:46-50  

(Mark remarks that JESUS took a child in HIS arms: something unusual for people of that time since children did not count, and religious teachers only urged that they be well disciplined.  The model of religion seemed to be a serious man who did not laugh, did not run, did not look at people in lower positions, especially women and children.  Oftentimes, such a mentality is seen in those who criticize child baptism and first communion.

JESUS does not answer the apostles' question: Who is the greatest?  Because what matters is not to become great, but to be close to CHRIST.  In order to receive CHRIST, we must welcome HIM in the person of the little ones.)

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The Misfortunes Of The Rich

"So, now for what concerns the rich!  Cry and weep for the misfortunes that are coming upon you.  Your riches are rotting, and your clothes eaten up by the moths.  Your silver and gold have rusted, and their rust grows into a witness against you.   It will consume your flesh like fire, for having piled up riches in these the last days.

You deceived the workers who harvested your fields but now their wages cry out to the heavens.  The reapers' complaints have reached the ears of the LORD of hosts.  You live in luxury and pleasure in this world thus fattening yourselves for the day of slaughter.  You have easily condemned and killed the innocent since they offered no resistance." - James 5:1-6  

(The rich will lose all they have stockpiled through injustice.  Just as serious as having stolen from the salaries of workers and having condemned those who spoke of justice in the sin against hope.  "The last days already came, and you were looking for riches!"  The last days are those that began with the coming of CHRIST, with the kingdom already there.  James sees the second coming of the LORD as if it was imminent and it is the only way to rightly judge riches.

What was taking place in the poor civilization of James' time is happening again today.  The prosperity of a quarter of the world depends on the system that leaves two billion people in misery.

In our countries money destroys hope in the Christian meaning of the word; life is considered as a fortune to be enjoyed by oneself, without accepting responsibilities, beginning with the transmission of life.  Far removed from us, the safeguarding of our privileges involves, like a series of cascades, the unjust death of millions of people because of famine, oppression and wars.)

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Be Mindful Of Your Creator When You Are Young

"Rejoice, young man, in your youth and direct well your heart when you are young; follow your desires and achieve your ambitions but recall that GOD will take account of all you do.

Drive sorrow from your heart and pain from your flesh, for youth and dark hair will not last.

Be mindful of your Creator when you are young, before the time of sorrow comes when you have to say, 'This gives me no pleasure,'

and before the sun, moon and stars withdraw their light, before the clouds gather again after the rain.

On the day when the guardians of the house tremble, when sturdy men are bowed and those at the mill stop working because they are too few, when it grows dim for those looking through the windows, and the doors are shut and the noise of the mill grows faint, the sparrow stops chirping and the bird-song is silenced, when one fears the slopes and to walk is frightening; yet the almond tree blossoms, the grasshopper is fat and the caperberry bears fruit that serves no purpose,

because man goes forward to his eternal home and mourners gather in the street,

even before the silver chain is snapped or the golden globe is shattered,

before the pitcher is broken at the fountain or the wheel at the mill,

before the dust returns to the earth from which it came, and the spirit returns to GOD who gave it.

Meaningless!  meaningless!  the Teacher says all is meaningless!" - Ecclesiastes 11:9-12:8 

(Be mindful of your Creator when you are young.  It will not be the time to turn to GOD when our strength and pleasures are over: "the beautiful woman has no more lovers, she has entered a convent."  Why remember our Creator?  Because this remembering, which little by little will become a presence for us, is one of the conditions of our joy.  The bitterness of old age does not affect those who have chosen GOD in their youth; at the end of their life, they can repeat the words of the psalm: I shall go towards GOD, the joy of my youth [cf. Psalm 43:4].)

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A Time For Everything

"There is a given time for everything and a time for every happening under heaven:

A time for giving birth, a time for dying; a time for planting, a time for uprooting.

A time for killing, a time for healing; a time for knocking down, a time for building.

 A time for tears, a time for laughter; a time for mourning, a time for dancing.

A time for throwing stones, a time for gathering stones; a time for embracing, a time to refrain from embracing.

A time for searching, a time for losing; a time for keeping, a time for throwing away.

A time for tearing, a time for sewing; a time to be silent, and a time to speak.

A time for loving, a time for hating; a time for war, a time for peace.

What profit is there for a man from all his toils?

Finally, I considered the task GOD gave to the humans.  HE made everything fitting in its time, but HE also set eternity in their hearts, although they are not able to embrace the work of GOD from the beginning to the end." - Ecclesiastes 3:1-11  

(In this chapter, Ecclesiastes looks at all aspects of the human condition, one after the other, beginning with surest: death. 

So, if all that humans build must be destroyed, what is left to them?  That each of us must die, this we can accept, and it is not absurd if the world continues to be.  Instead, it is impossible to think that one day all must stop and forever die.

Yet this is the only perspective left to us from a materialist view of the universe.  There will not even be someone to remember that humans did exist, suffer and love: no one can face such an eventuality.)

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Vanity Of Vanities

"All is meaningless--says the Teacher--meaningless, meaningless!

What profit is there for a man in all his work for which he toils under the sun?

A generation goes, a generation comes, and the earth remains forever.  The sun rises, the sun sets, hastening towards the place where it again rises.  Blowing to the south, turning to the north, the wind goes round and round and after all its rounds it has to blow again.

All rivers go to the sea, but the sea is not full; to the place where the rivers come from, there they return again.

All words become weary, and speech comes to an end, but the eye has never seen enough, nor the ear heard too much.

What has happened before will happen again; what has been done before will be done again:  there is nothing new under the sun.

If they say to you, 'See, it's new!' know that it has already been centuries earlier.

There is no remembrance of ancient people, and those to come will not be remembered by those who follow them." - Ecclesiastes 1:2-11  

(All is meaningless!  Meaningless!  We are used to the ancient translation of this verse: "Vanity of vanities.  All is vanity!"  Actually, the first word of the book designates in Hebrew a wisp of straw.  It is without weight and flies away at the slightest breeze, like vanity, a nothing.  It is also what escapes our grasp: it is a future that is uncertain and illusory, or something which does not satisfy our spirit, on which we can build nothing; it is "disconcerting," it "has no sense."

This expression is repeated in the like a refrain, but with different meanings according to the context: that is why we have recourse to different translations.

There is nothing new under the sun.  The prophets had seen the world led by GOD toward a happy future.  Other cultures, however, had the notion that the world only keeps on repeating the same events, with kingdoms, wars, success and failure.  For them, nothing was happening which could give people the fulfillment of their desires.

With such convictions, a person might try to forget what is taking place in a world where all is illusion, but that is not the case of Ecclesiastes.  Like every good Jew, he is firmly rooted in reality; he lives at a time that is without conflict and also without prophets or great hope.  In such conditions, it is wisdom to ignore the illusions of activism.

Under the sun: these words will come back as a refrain: humans toil and pass as a shadow while the sun remains.  The sun is like an image of GOD who endures and who alone does things "with a view to eternity.") 

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JESUS Sends The Twelve On A Mission

"Then JESUS called HIS Twelve disciples and gave them power and authority to drive out all evil spirits and to heal diseases.  And HE sent them to proclaim the kingdom of GOD and to heal the sick.  HE instructed them, 'Don't take anything for the journey, neither staff, nor bag, nor bread, nor money; and don't even take a spare tunic.  Whatever house you enter, remain there until you leave that place.  And wherever they don't welcome you, leave the town and shake the dust from your feet: it will be as a testimony against them.'

So they set out, and went through the villages, proclaiming the good news and healing people everywhere." - Luke 9:1-6 

(JESUS has begun HIS mission, HE forms and sends out missionaries.

Apostles mean "sent" and "mission" also means "being sent."  The FATHER has sent HIS Son to earth, and the Son, in turn, sends HIS apostles.  The FATHER sends messengers of HIS word, but HE also sends HIS Spirit to touch the hearts and minds of those who listen.  Through the Spirit they recognize the word of GOD in the poor preaching of these messengers who have received no great instruction.  The Spirit will give signs: healings and astounding graces supporting the witness of the missionaries.)

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JESUS' Mother And Brothers

"Then HIS mother and HIS relatives came to HIM, but they could not get to HIM because of the crowd.  Someone told HIM, 'YOUR mother and YOUR brothers are standing outside and wish to meet YOU.'  Then JESUS answered, 'MY mother and MY brothers are those who hear the word of GOD and do it'." - Luke 8:19-21  

(JESUS lost HIS relatives but found HIS true brothers and sisters.  When we commit ourselves to GOD's work, we discover new brothers and sisters and a mother, Mary, of whom the Gospel says, "Happy are you for having believed that GOD's promises would be fulfilled."  JESUS does not say, "HE is MY FATHER," for the FATHER is one and HE is in heaven.)

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Put Wisdom Into Practice

"Do not hold back from those who ask your help, when it is in your power to do it.  Do not say to your neighbor, 'Go away!  Come another time; tomorrow I will give it to you!' when you can help him now.

Do not plot evil against your neighbor who lives trustingly beside you, nor fight a man without cause when he has done you no wrong.  Do not envy the man of violence or follow his example.

For YAHWEH hates the wicked but guides the honest.  HE curses the house of the evildoer but blesses the home of the upright.  If there are mockers, HE mocks them in turn, but HE shows HIS favor to the humble." - Proverbs 3:27-34  

(The proverbs insist on the value of advice, discipline, correction: to live as one pleases, according to one's fantasies causes all sorts of misfortune.)

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If The Righteous Is A Son Of GOD, GOD Will Defend Him

"Let us set a trap for the righteous, for he annoys us and opposes our way of life; he reproaches us for our breaches of the law and accuses us of being false to our upbringing.

Let us see the truth of what he says and find out what his end will be.  If the righteous is a son of GOD, GOD will defend him and deliver him from his adversaries.

Let us humble and torture him to prove his self-control and test his patience.  When we have condemned him to a shameful death, we may test his words.'" - Wisdom 2:12. 17-20

(Let us set a trap for the righteous for he opposes our way of life.  Secretly we all admire an upright person, but in any institution, her presence disturbs us--in the trade unions just as in the factories--because we cannot buy her conscience.

Let us see the truth of what he says.  Because the godless are the friends of death, they necessarily come to persecute and even kill the good.  For them it is like a game to prove to what extent the righteous can remain firm, since they themselves believe in nothing.  They need to destroy others to convince themselves that they alone benefit from life.

If the righteous is a son of GOD, GOD will defend him.  The words in verses 16-20 reveal the situation of JESUS on the cross.  Matthew, in particular, will recall them in 27:43.

This is also verified in the lives of real believers, a scandal to a materialist who enjoys inflicting suffering on those who make sacrifices for others.  We have seen comfortable "Christians" rejoicing over the death of those who speak of justice and who, by their involvement, disturb the conscience of the satisfied.)

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"What I Want Is Mercy, Not Sacrifice. I Did Not Come To Call The Righteous, But Sinners."

"As JESUS moved on from there, HE saw a man named Matthew, at his seat in the custom-house; and HE said to him, 'Follow ME!'  And Matthew got up and followed HIM.  Now it happened, while JESUS was at table in Matthew's house, many tax collectors and sinners joined JESUS and HIS disciples.  When the Pharisees saw this, they said to HIS disciples, 'Why is it, that YOUR master eats with sinners and tax collectors?'

When JESUS heard this, HE said, 'Healthy people do not need a doctor, but sick people do.  Go, and find out what this means: What I want is mercy, not sacrifice.  I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners.' - Matthew 9:9-13  

(To enter the family of GOD, we must change some of our values.  This conversion is not as conspicuous as participation in devotional practices but is much more valuable.  First, we must liberate ourselves from prejudices by which we classify people.  Let us stop dividing people into good or bad; those we can greet and those we cannot; those we can love and help and those we cannot.  Let us learn that GOD does not hate the rich or the uneducated, those on the left or those on the right, for GOD's merciful plan sees to the salvation of all.)

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The Women Who Followed JESUS

"JESUS walked through towns and countryside, preaching and giving the good news of the kingdom of GOD.  The Twelve followed HIM, and also some women who had been healed of evil spirits and diseases:  Mary called Magdalene, who had been freed of seven demons; Joanna, wife of Chuza, Herod's steward; Suzanna and others who provided for them out of their own funds." - Luke 8:1-3 

(No spiritual master would have spoken to a woman in public:  women were not even admitted to the synagogues.  Nevertheless, JESUS did not pay the least attention to such universally accepted prejudices.  Various women took JESUS words and attitude as a call to freedom.  They even joined the circle of HIS intimate friends while ignoring the gossip.  Here we have a fundamental testimony about the freedom of the Gospel.

 

JESUS was truly human, and as such HE belonged to a race and a culture:  HE was a Jew of HIS time and HIS Gospel was attuned to the culture that HE shared.  Yet JESUS did not adopt the inhuman traits of HIS culture; nor did HE accept the prejudices of the Jews of HIS time with regard to women, to public sinners, to pagans and so on, nor did HE share their views in regard to the Sabbath.  HIS Gospel is a leaven that changes cultures for the better; in many respects HIS way of life goes against the mainstream of cultures.)

 

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Resurrection Is A Fact

"Let me remind you, brothers and sisters, of the Good News that I preached to you, and which you received, and on which, you stand firm.  By that gospel, you are saved, provided that you hold to it, as I preached it.  Otherwise, you will have believed in vain.

In the first place, I have passed on to you what, I, myself, received: that CHRIST died for our sins, as Scripture says; that HE was buried; that HE was raised on the third day, according to the Scriptures; that HE appeared to Cephas and then to the Twelve.  Afterward, HE appeared to more than five hundred brothers and sisters together; most of them are still alive, although some have already gone to rest.  Then HE appeared to James, and after that, to all the apostles.  And last of all, HE appeared to the most despicable of them, this is, to me.  For I am the last of the apostles, and I do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the Church of GOD.  Nevertheless, by the grace of GOD, I am what I am, and HIS grace toward me has not been without fruit.  Far from it, I have toiled more than all of them, although, not I, rather the grace of GOD, in me.

Now, whether it was I or they, this, we preach, and this, you have believed." - 1 Corinthians 15:1-11 

(Have we here the response to a last question of the Corinthians?  Many Greeks thought that at death the immortal soul leaves the body and remains alone.  Was it admitted to the paradise of souls?  Did it come to the great reservoir of souls already gone or who were to return, forgetting all the past lived on earth?  Others held [as do a good number of Christians today], that all ends with death: see 1 Thessalonians 5:13.  Paul will therefore remind the Corinthians that faith in the Resurrection is at the heart of the Christian message.

I remind you of the Gospel.  Here certainly we may speak of Good News, for death as something unknown is and always has been the great burden of human life [Sirach 40:1].

I have passed on to you.  Paul will not recall a tale, or a "myth," these stories full of wisdom that abounded with the Greeks.  They bared an order in the world, a meaning of life, but were only stories.  Today certain people speak of the Resurrection in the same way.  They say: "It matters little what took place, the Gospels are not directly interested in what happened to JESUS, for them it was important that strange events would give courage to the disciples and the hope of another life."  Paul says precisely the contrary: the Resurrection of JESUS is a fact.)

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No Gift Higher Than Love

"Be that as it may, set your hearts on the most precious gifts, and I will show you a much better way.

If I could speak all the human and angelic tongue, but had no love, I would only be sounding brass or a clanging cymbal.  If I had the gift of prophecy, knowing secret things, with all kinds of knowledge, and had faith great enough to remove mountains, but had no love, I would be nothing.  If I gave everything I had to the poor, and even give up my body to be burned, if I am without love, it would be of no value to me.

Love is patient, kind, without envy.  It is not boastful or arrogant.  It is not ill-mannered, nor does it seek its own interest.  Love overcomes anger and forgets offenses.  It does not take delight in wrong but rejoices in truth.  Love excuses everything, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

Love will never end.  Prophecies may cease, tongues be silent, and knowledge disappear.  For knowledge grasps something of the truth and prophecy as well.  And when what is perfect comes, everything imperfect will pass away.  When I was a child, I thought and reasoned like a child, but when I grew up, I gave up childish ways.  Likewise, at present, we see dimly, as in a mirror, but then, it shall be face to face.  Now, we know, in part, but then I will know as I am known.  Now, we have faith, hope and love, these three, but the greatest of these is love." - 1 Corinthians 12:31-13:13  

(I will show you a much better way.  As the Corinthians marveled at the spectacular and wonderful things worked by the Spirit, Paul tells them that the only important thing is the ability to love.

Love or charity?  At the beginning both words meant the same thing.  Later on, the word "charity" came to mean the help given in the form of alms, although the giving of alms alone is not real love.  On the other hand, for many people, true love is only that of man and a woman.  So, it is irrelevant whether we say charity or love, but we have rather to clarify what love really is.  Paul does just that in the present text.

If I could speak... if I had...  To love is more important than performing miracles, more important than doing great things for others and dying for a cause, all of which can be done without love.

When I was a child.  Already Paul outlines what he will explain in Chapter 15 when he speaks of our life after the Resurrection.  Just as the caterpillar must completely change itself to become a butterfly [not merely by sprouting wings], and just as a child's game has no sense for an adult, so will it be for our present life: work, study, love, our understanding of GOD and the world, the life of the Church--all will be no more than a forgotten past.  Paul experienced a love of GOD that invaded him and divinized his least desires, and he knew it was already GOD's possession of him, which would be eternal: love would never end.

Faith, hope, and love.  Paul quite often joins these three "virtues," that is the three movements in the Christian soul.  In no other place does he state this more clearly than here.  There is no authentic love without faith and hope.

The greatest of these is love.  Sometimes this sentence is used to misrepresent what is essential to Christian life.  For many say, "I do good to my neighbor, what else does GOD ask of me?'  It would not be difficult to prove that such love is very limited, selfish and impure.  It is a "love" in which divine love lives in very cramped conditions and so is unable to transform our life.  We would need, first of all, great hope in a Christian sense that is a passion for eternal things and then the yielding of ourselves to the Spirit who would complete his work of love in us.  Love reaches its perfection when we are in GOD.  I will know him as he knows me.  As long as we do not see GOD, love is immature; this is the time when love must grow through faith and the knowledge of GOD's word;' also through hope and perseverance as we follow JESUS poor, free and in the midst of trials.)

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Comparison With The Body

"As the body is one, having many members, and all the members, while being many, from one body, so it is with CHRIST.  All of us, whether Jews or Greeks, slaves or free, have been baptized in one Spirit, to form one body, and all of us have been given, to drink from the one Spirit.

The body has not just one member, but many.

Now, you are the body of CHRIST, and each of you, individually, is a member of it.  So, GOD has appointed us in the Church.  First apostles, second prophets, third teachers.  Then come miracles, then the gift of healing, material help, administration in the Church and the gift of tongues.

Are all apostles?  Are all prophets?  Are all teachers?  Can all perform miracles, or cure the sick, or speak in tongues, or explain what was said in tongues?  Be that as it may, set your hearts on the most precious gifts, and I will show you a much better way. " - 1 Corinthians 12:12-14. 27-31 

(A detailed comparison with the body helps us to understand what the Church is, showing at the same time how we must complement and respect each other.

We cannot have a true community unless each of us shares in its life, placing our talents at the service of others.  Even the least gifted may have riches that will be revealed at the right time.  Even the misfortunes of someone may become the riches of the group that welcomes him/her.  As soon as one is really committed to a Christian life, the Spirit awakens in him new and sometimes unsuspected capabilities.  If we pay attention to the riches of our brothers and sisters and awaken in them the consciousness of their dignity and responsibility, we shall see a new resurgence in the Church, fruit of the Spirit.  It would take too long to recall the harm done to the Church in some places because of the passivity of Christians in a clericalized church.)

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The Power Of GOD

"When JESUS had finished teaching the people, HE went to Capernaum.

A Roman military officer lived there, whose servant was very sick and near to death, a man very dear to him.  So when he heard about JESUS, he sent some elders of the Jews to persuade HIM to come and save his servant's life.  The elders came to JESUS and begged HIM earnestly, saying, 'He deserves this of YOU, for he loves our people and even built a synagogue for us.'

JESUS went with them.  HE was not far from the house, when the Roman officer sent friends to give this message, 'SIR, do not trouble YOURSELF, for I am not worthy to welcome YOU under my roof.  YOU see, I didn't approach YOU myself.  Just give the order, and my servant will be healed.  For I myself, a junior officer, give orders to my soldiers, and I say to this one, 'Go!' and he goes; and to the other, 'Come!' and he comes; and to my servant, 'Do this!' and he does it.'

On hearing these words, JESUS was filled with admiration.  HE turned and said to the people with HIM, 'I say to you, not even in Israel have I found such great faith.'  The people, sent by the captain, went back to his house; there they found that the servant was well." - Luke 7:1-10 

(This captain of a foreign army earned the esteem of the Jews.  The amazing thing was not that he should have contributed to the building of the synagogue, but rather that the Jews should have accepted it from him.  He must have been a good man.  He knew the Jews' prejudices too well to have dared to personally approach this JESUS of whom they spoke.  Indeed, up to what point did JESUS share HIS compatriots' pride?  Would HE respond to the petition of a Roman official?  That was why he sent his Jewish friends to JESUS.

The man is really troubled: will JESUS consent to go to a pagan's house and "become impure'?  [John 18:28].  The captain goes one step further: JESUS does not have to come to his house.  While other sick people seek to be touched by the Master thinking that JESUS possesses some healing power, this man, has instead grasped that JESUS has the very power of GOD and does not need to go to the sick servant: it would not be any more difficult to give a command from a distance to a life that was slipping away.)

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Faith Is Shown In Action

"What good is it, my brothers and sisters, to profess faith, without showing works?  Such faith has no power to save you.  If a brother or sister is in need of clothes or food, and one of you says, 'May things go well for you; be warm and satisfied,' without attending to their material needs, what good is that?  So, it is, for faith without deeds: it is totally dead.

Say to whoever challenges you, 'You have faith, and I have good deeds; show me your faith apart from actions and I, for my part, will show you my faith in the way I act.'" - James 2:14-18

(It is necessary to have faith to be saved, but following CHRIST cannot be theoretical; it must be shown in action, in deeds.  CHRIST HIMSELF says the same thing in Matthew 7:21: "Not everyone who says, 'LORD, LORD,' will enter the kingdom of heaven."

Let us look at the two examples that James takes from the Old Testament and let us compare them with Hebrews 11:31, and above all with Romans 4 [Galatians 3].  It seems that James and Paul draw opposite teachings from the same examples.  Paul says: Abraham was justified by faith and not by following the law.  James on the other hand, says that they were saved by putting their faith into practice.  Actually, in speaking of practices, Paul is thinking about the religious rites and observances of the Jews that are useless for salvation, and he says that faith is at the root of all Christian life.  James, in speaking of practices, is thinking about deeds inspired by love.  Paul said the same when he wrote: "Faith works through love" [Galatians 5:6].

These apparently contrary affirmations of James and Paul were widely discussed at the beginning of the Reformation, when certain commentators bluntly affirmed that a person is saved by faith alone.  Yet it would not be sufficient to show how we can achieve reconciliation between the words of Paul and James.  There is clearly with them quite different ways of seeing and feeling and that is due as much to the diversity of human temperaments as to the richness of the Christian experience, which is not always the same for everyone.  These real differences that we find even among the apostles encourage us to accept that others may think and express their faith in ways different from our own.)

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The Bronze Serpent

"From Mount Hor they set out by the Red Sea Road to go around the land of Edom.  The people were discouraged by the journey and began to complain against GOD and Moses.  'Why have you brought us out of Egypt to die in the wilderness?  There is neither bread nor water here and we are disgusted with this tasteless manna.'

YAHWEH then sent fiery serpents against them.  They bit the people and many of the Israelites died.  Then the people came to Moses and said, 'We have sinned, speaking against YAHWEH and against you.  Plead with YAHWEH to take the serpents away.'

Moses pleaded for the people and YAHWEH said to him, 'Make a fiery serpent and set it on a standard; whoever has been bitten and then looks at it shall live.'

So, Moses made a bronze serpent and set it on a standard.  Whenever a man was bitten, he looked towards the bronze serpent, and he lived." - Numbers 21:4-9  

(With regard to the bronze serpent, two quite different questions may be asked.  The first: what is the historical origin of this account?  An easy answer: near the Sinai mines a healing god was honored, and little bronze serpents were offered in thanksgiving.  The stories of travelers must have inspired the narrative.  But the important question is the second: what does this page of the holy book intend to say?

The people complained.  The Israelites complain again: this is the inner rebellion of those who do not accept sacrifices and will not exert themselves in order to become better and who would rather blame others.

Make a bronze serpent.  A strange command to the Israelites, but the bronze serpent will be a prophetic sign: GOD intends to cure the sin with the very instrument of the sin.

Whoever looks at it shall live: another prophetic statement.  Sinners will not have to follow strict prescriptions: let them merely look with faith at the sign GOD sends for their healing.  JESUS will say: "Just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up [on the cross] so that he who believes in HIM will have eternal life" [John 3:14].

The story of the serpent is one of those biblical images with a hidden meaning, and people had to wait for the day when CHRIST would give them meaning.  The same is true of the story of Melchizedek [Genesis 14] and the story of Joseph.

The same is true in our own lives; in our past there have been some incidents which we did not understand at that time.  Why did this happen to me?   Someday, the light of CHRIST will reveal the meaning.)

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Love And Longing For GOD's Temple

 "My soul yearns, pines,

for the courts of YAHWEH.

My heart and my flesh

cry out for the living GOD.

Even the sparrow finds a home,

and the swallow a nest

where she may lay her young,

at YOUR altars, O YAHWEH of hosts,

my King and my GOD!

Happy are those who live in YOUR house,

continually singing YOUR praise!

Happy, the pilgrims whom YOU strengthen,

to make the ascent to YOU.

For YAHWEH GOD is a sun and a shield;

HE bestows favor and glory.

YAHWEH withholds no good thing

from those who walk in uprightness."

- Psalm 84:3. 4. 5-6. 12

(The home of GOD on earth!  What can this mean?  There can be no change in GOD.  HE cannot move into a new house.  No, the change is in human things!  GOD is everywhere already but consecrates certain places, where people can meet HIM and feel HIS presence more intimately.

There are people who visit the Temple; but do not enjoy the love of GOD, who dwells therein.  They do not experience a transformation of conduct because they placed their trust in the Temple of GOD, not in the GOD of the Temple.  This psalm can come with us, when we go on pilgrimages and religious festivals.)

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The Hound Of Heaven

 "O YAHWEH, YOU know me:

YOU have scrutinized me.

YOU know when I sit and when I rise;

beforehand, YOU discern my thoughts.

YOU observe my activities and times of rest;

YOU are familiar with all my ways.

It was YOU who formed my inmost part

and knit me together in my mother's womb.

I thank YOU for these wonders YOU have done,

and my heart praises YOU, for YOUR marvelous deeds.

Search me, O GOD, and know my heart;

try me and know my thoughts.

See if my steps are going astray,

and lead me in YOUR eternal way." 

- Psalm 139:1-3. 13-14. 23-24

(This wisdom meditation about the knowledge and the presence of GOD, perhaps, had its beginning in the face of the pressure of evildoers; someone has been unjustly accused, perhaps as idolatrous, and he appeals to GOD.  In this environment, he composes his poem.

The ways of GOD are unsearchable, HIS wisdom is an abyss [cf. Romans 11:33].  GOD gets close to us and embraces us, not to condemn us, but to guide our feet toward HIS love.  If we want to taste divine love and appreciate the dignity of man, it will do us good, to pray with this magnificent psalm.

In the closing verse 24, the psalmist wants to be led to eternal life.  Fortunately for us, JESUS tells us, 'Whoever believes has eternal life' [John 6:47] and again, 'I AM the way, the truth and the life; no one comes to the FATHER but through ME' [John 14:6].)

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The Beatitudes

"Coming down the hill with them, JESUS stood in an open plain.  Many of HIS disciples were there and a large crowd of people who had come from all parts of Judea and Jerusalem, and from the coastal cities of Tyre and Sidon.

Then, looking at HIS disciples, JESUS said,

'Fortunate are you who are poor, for the kingdom of GOD is yours.

Fortunate are you who are hungry now, for you will be filled.

Fortunate are you who weep now, for you will laugh.

Fortunate are you when people hate you, when they reject you and insult you and number you among criminals, because of the Son of Man.  Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, for a great reward is kept for you in heaven.  Remember, that is how the ancestors of the people treated the prophets.

But alas for you who have wealth, for you have been comforted now.

Alas for you who are full, for you will go hungry.

Alas for you, who laugh now, for you will mourn and weep.

Alas for you when people speak well of you, for that is how the ancestors of the people treated the false prophets.'" - Luke 6:17. 20-26  

(Matthew adapts them for the members of the church of his time.  Luke, on the other hand, puts the beatitudes here just as JESUS proclaimed them to the people of Galilee.  In the words of JESUS, the beatitudes were a call, and a hope addressed to the forgotten of the world, beginning with the poor among HIS people, heirs of GOD's promise to the prophets.

In contrast with these beatitudes, Luke presents lamentations recalling those of Isaiah [65:13-14].  They are lamentations as used for the dead, not maledictions.  For the rich forget GOD and become impermeable to grace.  These lamentations are a sign of the love of GOD for the rich, as are the beatitudes for the poor, for HE loves them all, but in a different way.  To the first HE affirms that HE will destroy the structures of injustice, and to the others HE gives a warning: richness brings death.)

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Do Not Bring Another Christian To Court

"When you have a complaint against a brother, how dare you bring it before pagan judges instead of bringing it before GOD's people?  Do you not know that you shall one day judge the world?  And if you are to judge the world, are you incapable of judging such simple problems?

Do you not know that we will even judge the angels?  And could you not decide every day affairs?  But when you have ordinary cases to be judged, you bring them before those who are of no account in the Church!  Shame on you!  Is there not even one among you wise enough to be the arbiter among believers?

But no.  One of you brings a suit against another one, and files that suit before unbelievers.  It is already a failure that you have suits against each other.  Why do you not rather suffer wrong and receive some damage?  But no.  You wrong and injure others, and those are your brothers and sisters.  Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the Kingdom of GOD?

Make no mistake about it: those who lead sexually immoral lives, or worship idols, or who are adulterers, perverts, sodomites, or thieves, exploiters, drunkards, gossips or embezzlers will not inherit the kingdom of heaven.  Some of you were like that, but you have been cleansed and consecrated to GOD and have been set right with GOD by the Name of the LORD JESUS and the Spirit of our GOD." - 1 Corinthians 6:1-11 

 

("We carry treasures from GOD in vessels of clay" [2 Corinthians 4:7].  How far is our daily life from what we pretend it is: children of GOD reborn in the Spirit!  What do the members of our own family think about this!  What do our near neighbors think of us!

Paul points out the contradiction between the contempt of believers for the false "justice" of the world, and the fact of lawsuits among them.  What should they do?  Settle their differences in the way indicated by the Gospel [Matthew 18:15], in so far as there is a real community.  How beautiful it would be to follow the letter of the Gospel [Matthew 5:40]!)

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You Should Be Unleavened Bread

"You have become news with a case of immorality, and such a case that is not even found among pagans.  Yes, one of you has taken as wife his own stepmother.  And you feel proud!  Should you not be in mourning instead and expel the one who did such a thing.  For my part, although I am physically absent, my spirit is with you and, as if present, I have already passed sentence on the man who committed such a sin.  Let us meet together, you and my spirit, and in the name of our LORD JESUS and with HIS power, you shall deliver him to Satan, for the destruction of the flesh, so that his spirit be saved in the day of Judgment.

This is not the time to praise yourselves.  Do you not know that a little yeast makes the whole mass of dough rise?  Throw out, then, the old yeast and be new dough.  If CHRIST became our Passover, you should be unleavened bread.  Let us celebrate, therefore, the Passover, no longer with old yeast, which is sin and perversity; let us have unleavened bread, that is purity and sincerity." - 1 Corinthians 5:1-8  

(Paul knows that such a sinner cannot be brought to repentance unless he experiences the bitterness of his treachery.  So, the community must ask that he suffer in health and belongings [Paul says "delivered to Satan for the ruin of the flesh:" see in Job 1:12 and 2:6 the meaning of delivered to Satan].  This excommunication is not merely a human gesture.  What the Church binds on earth is bound in heaven [Matthew 18:18].  GOD is committed to send trials that may be at the same time a warning to the Church and a way of repentance for the sinner.

You should be unleavened bread.  The believers have been spiritually raised with CHRIST.  As the Jews used unleavened bread to celebrate the Passover, in the same way the Christians have to be, in a figurative sense unleavened bread, that is, they must lead a sinless life before GOD, and so worthily celebrate their Passover, which is the Resurrection of CHRIST.  JESUS compared the kingdom of heaven to yeast that leavens the whole mass.  Here Paul uses the same comparison to show how evil spreads everywhere.)

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Healing A Deaf And Dumb Man

"Again, JESUS set out: from the country of Tyre HE passed through Sidon and, skirting the sea of Galilee, HE came to the territory of Decapolis.  There, a deaf man, who also had difficulty in speaking, was brought to HIM.  They asked JESUS to lay HIS hand upon him. 

JESUS took him apart from the crowd, put HIS fingers into the man's ears, and touched his tongue with spittle.  Then, looking up to heaven, HE said with a deep sigh, 'Ephphata!' that is, 'Be opened!'

And immediately, his ears were opened, his tongue was loosened, and he began to speak clearly.  JESUS ordered them not to tell anyone about it; but the more HE insisted, the more they proclaimed it.  The people were completely astonished and said, 'HE has done all things well; HE makes the deaf hear and the dumb speak.'" - Mark 7:31-37 

(They asked JESUS to lay HIS hand upon him.  This was a way of invoking divine power, but JESUS did not have to ask.  By HIS gesture HE showed that HE had within HIMSELF, within HIS human person, all the health and welfare that we need, and HE communicated this to the sick one.

JESUS groaned.  Why?  Because the man before HIM is an impressive symbol of those who have eyes and ears but neither see nor hear.  The people bring HIM the deaf-mute, and ask HIM to heal him, but they themselves remain deaf.

JESUS ordered them not to tell anyone.  How far JESUS is from the organizers of a "Miracle Crusade"!  An unexpected miracle may help us discover the loving presence of GOD, but as soon as we begin to wait for them, we turn away from the Gospel.  The Devil knows this and so tempted JESUS in the desert [Matthew 4:6]: See the warnings of Deuteronomy to people anxious to see miracles [Deuteronomy 13].  Faith leans on the word of GOD, not on miracles [John 4:48].)

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JESUS, LORD Of The Sabbath

"It happened that JESUS walked through the wheat fields on a Sabbath.  HIS disciples were hungry and began to pick some heads of wheat and crush them to eat the grain.  When the Pharisees noticed this, they said to JESUS, 'Look at YOUR disciples; they are doing what is prohibited on the Sabbath!'

JESUS answered, 'Have you not read what David did when he and his men were hungry?  He went into the house of GOD, and they ate the bread offered to GOD, although neither he nor his men had the right to eat it, but only the priests.  And have you not read in the Law that on the Sabbath the priests in the Temple break the Sabbath rest, yet they are not guilty?

I tell you, there is greater than the Temple here.  If you really knew the meaning of the words: It is mercy I want, not sacrifice, you would not have condemned the innocent.

Besides the Son of Man is LORD of the Sabbath'." - Matthew 12:1-8  

(This chapter records the conflicts of JESUS with the Pharisees regarding the Sabbath.  Why does the Gospel make so much of these conflicts?  Perhaps because at the time of JESUS the heavy load of religious obligations was a formidable obstacle for those searching for GOD.  It may have been also because the Christians lost no time making new laws to which they gave an exaggerated importance.  If JESUS deliberately violated the most sacred of the laws given by GOD to Moses, what about our ecclesiastical laws not guaranteed by the Word of GOD?  In the name of man-made laws, adapted to a context that is not ours, Christian communities have at times been paralyzed and we let millions of people look for churches where they have the communities and pastors they have been deprived of.)

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Reflections On Good And Evil

 "Trust in YAHWEH and do good; dwell in the land and live on it.

Make YAHWEH your delight; and HE will grant your heart's desire.

Commit your way to YAHWEH; put your trust in HIM and let HIM act.

Then will your revenge come, beautiful as the dawn, and the justification of your cause, bright as the noonday sun.

Do good and shun evil, so that you will live secure forever.

For YAHWEH loves justice and right, and never forsakes HIS faithful ones.  The wicked, instead, will perish, and their breed will be cut off.

YAHWEH is the salvation of the righteous; in time of distress, HE is their refuge.

YAHWEH helps them and rescues them from the oppressor; HE saves them, for they sought shelter in HIM."

- Psalm 37:3-4. 5-6. 27-28. 39-40

(This psalm offers a very simple solution to the problem of evil which will satisfy few today.  Neither power nor riches give access to the inheritance that GOD promised to HIS children.  The psalmist offers a very strong warning against all evildoers.  At the same time, encourages the righteous with the promise of help from the LORD.  And our LORD JESUS CHRIST HIMSELF, in the Beatitudes in Chapter 5 of the Gospel of Matthew, has taught us the way to true life and eternal happiness.)

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Do Not Divide The Church

"Do not deceive yourselves. If anyone of you considers himself wise in the ways of the world, let him become a fool, so that he may become wise.  For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in GOD's eyes.  To this, Scripture says: GOD catches the wise in their own wisdom.  It also says: The LORD knows the reasoning of the wise, that it is useless.

Because of this, let no one become an admirer of humans, for everything belongs to you, Paul, Apollos, Cephas - life, death, the present and the future.  Everything is yours, and you, you belong to CHRIST, and CHRIST is of GOD." - 1 Corinthians 3:18-23  

(Everything is yours and you belong to CHRIST.  We have here a decisive word on Christian freedom.

On the other hand, remember what non-believing philosophers have said: People created GOD out of their own misery.  Whatever was lacking in order for them to feel great and happy, they attributed to a superior being, who had everything.  In worshipping him, they felt identified with him and forgot their own misery.  This theory is not completely false: in fact, people make idols for themselves, be they singers, athletes or politicians; and they feel happy when their idols have and do everything, they themselves cannot do or have.  They die for causes not their own and they feel proud of people and institutions that exploit them.  A Christian is wary of authority becoming idols: he exists and thinks for himself.   Even in the Church he is face to face with GOD with no other intermediary but CHRIST, and he does not indulge in the cult of personalities.) 

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JESUS Is A Model Missionary

"Leaving the synagogue, JESUS went to the house of Simon.  His mother-in-law was suffering from high fever, and they asked HIM to do something for her.  Bending over her, HE rebuked the fever, and it left her.  Immediately, she got up and waited on them.

At sunset, people suffering from many kinds of sickness were brought to JESUS.  Laying HIS hands on each one, HE healed them.  Demons were driven out, howling as they departed from their victims, 'YOU are the Son of GOD!'  HE rebuked them and would not allow them to speak, for they knew HE was the Messiah.

JESUS left at daybreak and looked for a solitary place.  People went out in search of HIM, and finding HIM, they tried to dissuade HIM from leaving.  But HE said, 'I have to go to other towns, to announce the good news of the kingdom of GOD.  That is what I was sent to do.'  And JESUS continued to preach in the synagogues of Galilee." - Luke 4:38-44  

(JESUS is a model missionary.  HE no sooner gathers a few believers together than they want to keep HIM for themselves, either because they see in HIM a true prophet, or want to form a true community under HIS guidance.

JESUS, however, leaves the task of shepherding [in the sense of guiding a specific community] to others, because HE has many more people in mind still awaiting the Gospel.)

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"In Truth, I Tell You."

"JESUS went down to Capernaum, a town of Galilee, and began teaching the people at the Sabbath meetings.  They were astonished at the way HE taught them, for HIS word was spoken with authority.

In the synagogue, there was a man possessed by an evil spirit, who shouted in a loud voice, 'What do YOU want with us, JESUS of Nazareth?  Have YOU come to destroy us?  I recognize YOU: YOU are the Holy One of GOD.'  Then JESUS said to him sharply, 'Be silent and leave this man!'  The evil spirit then threw the man down in front of them and came out of him without doing him harm.

Amazement seized all these people, and they said to one another, 'What does this mean?  HE commands the evil spirits with authority and power.  HE orders, and you see how they come out!'  And news about JESUS spread throughout the surrounding area." - Luke 4:31-37   

(Mark has shown us how JESUS began HIS public life: HE became part of a movement of conversion that had shaken everyone at the call of John the Baptist.  It was then that JESUS began preaching and met HIS first disciples.

Mark will now give us a "day" in the life of JESUS.  Through HIS words and actions, a power that impresses every witness becomes manifest.  At the beginning of HIS ministry, JESUS preaches in the synagogues.  The synagogue is the Jewish house of prayer.  People gather each Saturday for the chanting of the Psalms and the reading of the Scriptures.  The one in charge preaches and invites others to join.  This is where JESUS reveals HIMSELF.  HE is not like the teachers of the law who repeat, interpret, and give others' opinions.  JESUS speaks on HIS own and HE speaks with authority, "In truth, I tell you."

With the same authority JESUS drives out demons.  This act also contains a message: JESUS delivers us from the influence of the Devil, who strives to destroy those created in the likeness of GOD.

This "Master of the world" [John 14:30] is present in all human business and culture to deceive human purposes and converts any progress into new slavery.)

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A Demonstration Of Spirit And Power

"When I came to reveal to you the mystery of GOD's plan. I did not count on eloquence or on a show of learning.  I was determined, not to know anything among you, but JESUS, the Messiah, and a crucified Messiah.  I, myself, came; weak, fearful and trembling; my words, and preaching, were not brilliant, or clever to win listeners.  It was, rather, a demonstration of spirit and power, so, that, your faith might be a matter, not of human wisdom, but of GOD's power." - 1 Corinthians 2:1-5  

(I myself came weak, fearful and trembling.  Paul indeed must have felt weak when for the first time he was bringing the Gospel to a brilliant Greek city well used to slavery and immorality.  We experience the same feelings towards the evangelization of the modern world; preparation is important but what is it to prepare ourselves?  Paul invites us to accept the mystery of the cross and to find there the strength of the Spirit.

It was a demonstration of spirit and power.  The power of spirit, the power of prayer, the power of suffering.  The Spirit is poured out after JESUS has suffered and died.  With HIM, we can expect everything.  Healings and miracles are worthless [and the devil takes advantage of them] unless they affirm faith in JESUS crucified, acting through the humble, and present in the poor.)

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True Cleanness

"One day, the Pharisees gathered around JESUS, and with them were some teachers of the law who had just come from Jerusalem.

They noticed that some of HIS disciples were eating their meal with unclean hands, that is, without washing them.  Now the Pharisees, and in fact all the Jews, never eat without washing their hands, for they follow the tradition received from their ancestors.  Nor do they eat anything, when they come from the market, without first washing themselves.  And there are many other traditions they observe; for example, the ritual washing of cups, pots and plates.

So the Pharisees and the teachers of the law asked HIM, 'Why do your disciples not follow the tradition of the elders, but eat with unclean hands?'

JESUS answered, 'You shallow people!  How well Isaiah prophesied of you when he wrote: This people honor me with their lips, but their heart is far from me.  The worship they offer me is worthless, for what they teach are only human rules.  You even put aside the commandment of GOD to hold fast to human tradition.'

And JESUS commented, 'You have a fine way of disregarding the commandments of GOD in order to enforce your own traditions!  For example, Moses said: Do your duty to your father and your mother, and: Whoever curses his father, or his mother is to be put to death.  But according to you, someone could say to his father or mother, 'I already declared Corban (which means "offered to GOD") what you could have expected from me.'  In this case, you no longer require him to do anything for his father or mother; and so you nullify the word of GOD through the tradition you have handed on.  And you do many other things like that.'" - Mark 7:1-13  

(No group, not even the Church, can sustain itself without traditions and customs.  Yet even when they are good traditions, they are still made by humans.  For example, the way the mass is celebrated, celebrations, novenas, etc.  All that past popes, bishops, and Christian communities have done can be changed; we understand that they are not essential.

What does not change is GOD's teaching.  Where can it be found?  In the Scriptures and in JESUS' teachings.  Yet there is a way of understanding JESUS as the apostles did.  This is called the Tradition of the Apostles, and the Church, founded by the apostles, guards this Tradition, that is, their spirit.  Let us not confuse the traditions of Catholics with the Tradition of the Church.

We often make little effort to enter into the spirit and Tradition of the Church, however, clinging instead to antiquated and mediocre traditions.  Why are so many Christians today scandalized when the Church frees itself from these antiquated rites?  JESUS gives us the reason: they cling to these rites because they are incapable of believing.  External religion replaces the authentic faith they do not possess.  They hang onto these things because these are all they have, and if they lost that, GOD no longer has any meaning for them.)

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