Month: July 2016

15th Week in Ordinary Time, Saturday, Year II

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In today’s First Reading Micah paints the portrait of those who scheme to get what they want. They are so obsessed with gaining something that they lay awake at night (the “couches” of the reading) and are ready to put their schemes into action first thing in the morning. It doesn’t matter who they cheat; they want what they want. In the context of today’s First Reading their greed for land is even worse, because it means taking people’s birthright simply to increase their wealth. The allusion to marking out boundaries by lot in the assembly of the Lord refers to the fact that it was the Lord himself who parceled out the Promised Land when the Israelites first arrived; losing your land meant you had no share in the Promised Land.

The Lord warns schemers through Micah that scheming narrows your vision so much that you become blind to greater threats. In this case, all the conspiring is swept away when the land for which they were willing to sell out their brothers is taken by invaders and they go into servitude. When we are driven by greed the Lord is almost obliged, for our own good, to strip away from us that which we covet.

Compare the schemers of the First Reading to Our Lord in today’s Gospel. He is at the mercy of schemers too, and is prudent in doing his work, but his work is focused on healing others and striving quietly and gently for justice to reign in the world. It is no coincidence that we call him the Prince of Peace. Let’s always side with the real winner and not be schemers.

Readings: Micah 2:1–5; Psalm 10:1–4, 7–8, 14; Matthew 12:14–21. See also 15th Week in Ordinary Time, Saturday.

15th Week in Ordinary Time, Friday, Year II

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In today’s First Reading King Hezekiah seems to have an unspoken question and an unspoken request, and the Lord addresses both. The unspoken question is whether his illness is terminal, and the Lord responds through Isaiah that it is time for Hezekiah to put his affairs in order. Hezekiah doesn’t get angry with God; he doesn’t ask why, even though he has done many good works in his lifetime. He accepts what the Lord has told him with sadness, but without bitterness or recriminations.

He offers those good works to the Lord, as well as his life. His unspoken request is that he might be healed, but he knows that he is in the Lord’s hands. It may seem that the Lord changes his mind, but the Lord often sends a messenger to elicit a response on our part, just as he told Abraham to sacrifice Isaac, but in the end didn’t let him go through with it. Similarly, Hezekiah is invited to trust in the Lord no matter what the outcome may be; he shows acceptance and trust in the Lord, after having led a good life, and is blessed with fifteen more years of life and protection against the Assyrians.

When we are afflicted and we see Our Lord’s hand in it somehow, how do we respond? If we haven’t lived as good a life as Hezekiah then the first step is conversion, to start doing good works, expecting nothing in return, as Hezekiah did. We know Our Lord reads our hearts and gives us what we need, even when sometimes it is not what we want. Let’s trust in him and he will act.

Readings: Isaiah 38:1–8, 21–22; Isaiah 38:10–12d, 16; Matthew 12:1–8. See also 22nd Week in Ordinary Time, Saturday and 15th Week in Ordinary Time, Friday.

15th Week in Ordinary Time, Thursday, Year II

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Many people today view the world through a dark lens, and paint it with a dark palette: darkness and death are the way they see the world. Isaiah in today’s First Reading brings justice into that metaphor as the light of dawn. Vigils in the darkness can seem the loneliest at times; it seems that instead of being sleep everything is dead, and there’s a nagging fear that the dawn may never return. In a world plagued with evil, injustice, and death it can seem that those trying to do justice are keeping watch for a dawn that some think will never come.

The dawn is that breath of fresh air when justice has accomplished something. A somber palette of shadows, little by little, gives way to a palette of colors as the sun starts to rise, and what seemed dead in the night is seen to be alive in the light of day. In today’s First Reading the Lord promises that setting out on the path of justice will make life easier for everyone. It will bring peace. It will shed light on the circumstances of daily light to improve them for ourselves and for others.

Nevertheless, Our Lord describes following him and seeking this justice as a yoke to bear. It requires our effort. Let’s persevere in hope as we strive to make justice dawn in our lives and in our world.

Readings: Isaiah 26:7–9, 12, 16–19; Psalm 102:13–14b, 15–21; Matthew 11:28–30. See also 2nd Week of Advent, Wednesday and 15th Week in Ordinary Time, Thursday.

 

15th Week in Ordinary Time, Wednesday, Year II

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In today’s First Reading the Lord warns Assyria about forgetting why it has had military successes. The Lord explains through Isaiah that it was chosen to be an instrument of punishment toward a wicked Israel and that was the reason for its military victories and expansion. However, Assyria gives itself the credit and falls into pride. The Lord’s revelation would be somewhat shocking to the Assyrians, since each nation thought it had its own gods that attended to its own affairs. Here the Lord, the God of Israel, was showing he was greater than any one nation and greater than the gods of Assyria.

Due to their arrogance the Lord warns that misfortune is headed their way. We can all be instruments of God’s will if we seek his help and guidance; it is a way of repaying him for all that he has done for us, but it is also the best path we can take for our own growth and fulfillment. The Lord warned Assyria today that it was taking the wrong path; Our Lord warns us too when a direction we’re taking in life is not in our best interest. We’re free to choose to do his will or not. The consequences are a fruit of our choices.

Ask the Lord today if your life needs to take a new direction.

Readings: Isaiah 10:5–7, 13b–16; Psalm 94:5–10, 14–15; Matthew 11:25–27. See also 1st Week of Advent, Tuesday, 26th Week in Ordinary Time, Saturday, and 15th Week in Ordinary Time, Wednesday.

15th Week in Ordinary Time, Tuesday, Year II

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In today’s First Reading the Kingdom of Judah, the southern part of Palestine, is facing a threat from the Kingdom of Israel, the northern part of Palestine, which has allied with Aram (Syria) to invade Judah. The Lord sends Isaiah to the king of Judah, Ahaz, to ensure him that the kings who seek to invade are “stumps of smoldering brands”: they’re like matches that are about to burn out, flash with little substance. However, the Lord does ask for Ahaz’s faith or else his kingdom would not stand. In the end, Aram would conquer the Kingdom of Israel and Judah would not fall in Ahaz’s time, despite his weak faith.

The Gospel reminds us today what the Lord insisted on through Isaiah: “Unless your faith is firm you shall not be firm.” Our Lord chastises those towns who had received the grace of him and his miracles for their lack of faith: the fate they’d incur was worse that some of the worst cities in the Old Testament. Why so harsh? Because now ignorance was not an excuse. The towns Our Lord scolds had received a visit from God himself; they’d received the Gospel and had not believed. Due to their disbelief them would not be firm and that’s a recipe for disaster.

This pattern continues even today. Society in many sectors, culture in many areas, is not what it should be. Let’s ask Our Lord to bolster our faith and through a life of faith help keep society solid. The faith is not just good for believers; it helps everyone.

Readings: Isaiah 7:1–9; Psalm 48:2–8; Matthew 11:20–24. See also 15th Week in Ordinary Time, Tuesday.