Catholic Caucus: Daily Mass Readings, 10-13-16

USCCB.org/RNAB ^ | 10-13-16 | Revised New American Bible

[Salvation]

October 13, 2016

Thursday of the Twenty-eighth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading 1 Eph 1:1-10

Paul, an Apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God,
to the holy ones who are in Ephesus
and faithful in Christ Jesus:
grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
who has blessed us in Christ
with every spiritual blessing in the heavens,
as he chose us in him, before the foundation of the world,
to be holy and without blemish before him.
In love he destined us for adoption to himself through Jesus Christ,
in accord with the favor of his will,
for the praise of the glory of his grace
that he granted us in the beloved.

In Christ we have redemption by his Blood,
the forgiveness of transgressions,
in accord with the riches of his grace that he lavished upon us.
In all wisdom and insight, he has made known to us
the mystery of his will in accord with his favor
that he set forth in him as a plan for the fullness of times,
to sum up all things in Christ, in heaven and on earth.

Responsorial Psalm Ps 98:1, 2-3ab, 3cd-4, 5-6

R. (2a) The Lord has made known his salvation.
Sing to the LORD a new song,
for he has done wondrous deeds;
His right hand has won victory for him,
his holy arm.
R. The Lord has made known his salvation.
The LORD has made his salvation known:
in the sight of the nations he has revealed his justice.
He has remembered his kindness and his faithfulness
toward the house of Israel.
R. The Lord has made known his salvation.
All the ends of the earth have seen
the salvation by our God.
Sing joyfully to the LORD, all you lands;
break into song; sing praise.
R. The Lord has made known his salvation.
Sing praise to the LORD with the harp,
with the harp and melodious song.
With trumpets and the sound of the horn
sing joyfully before the King, the LORD.
R. The Lord has made known his salvation.

Alleluia Jn 14:6

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
I am the way and the truth and the life, says the Lord;
no one comes to the Father except through me.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel Lk 11:47-54

The Lord said:
“Woe to you who build the memorials of the prophets
whom your fathers killed.
Consequently, you bear witness and give consent
to the deeds of your ancestors,
for they killed them and you do the building.
Therefore, the wisdom of God said,
‘I will send to them prophets and Apostles;
some of them they will kill and persecute’
in order that this generation might be charged
with the blood of all the prophets
shed since the foundation of the world,
from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah
who died between the altar and the temple building.
Yes, I tell you, this generation will be charged with their blood!
Woe to you, scholars of the law!
You have taken away the key of knowledge.
You yourselves did not enter and you stopped those trying to enter.”
When Jesus left, the scribes and Pharisees
began to act with hostility toward him
and to interrogate him about many things,
for they were plotting to catch him at something he might say.

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KEYWORDS: catholic; lk11; ordinarytime; prayer;

[Salvation]

From: Ephesians 1:1-10

Greeting

---

[1] Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, to the saints who are also
faithful in Christ Jesus: [2] Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the
Lord Jesus Christ.

Hymn of Praise

---

[3] Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us
in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, [4] even as he chose
us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless
before him. [5] He destined us in love to be his sons through Jesus Christ, accor-
ding to the purpose of his will, [6] to the praise of his glorious grace which he free-
ly bestowed on us in the Beloved. [7] In him we have redemption through his
blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace [8]
which he lavished upon us. [9] For he had made known to us in all wisdom and in-
sight the mystery of his will, according to his purpose which he set forth in Christ
[10] a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and
things on earth.

*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:

1. As usual St Paul begins with a greeting which identifies who he is, his autho-
rity to write this letter — he is an “apostle of Jesus Christ” — and the dignity of
the people he is addressing — “saints” and “faithful in Christ Jesus”. He presents
himself as an “apostle”, that is, an envoy of Christ Jesus. A calling to the aposto-
late is something that comes from God: it is a grace, a sign of God’s special love.
In St Paul’s case this calling was revealed to him by Christ on the road to Damas-
cus (cf. Acts 9:3-18); the Holy Spirit then set him out to preach (cf. Acts 13:2f),
and the message which he received from the Lord he passed on orally and in wri-
ting (cf. 1 Cor 11:23), so that in every way is it right for him to say that he is an
“apostle” (cf. note on Rom 1:1).

St Paul often refers to the Christians as “saints” (cf. Rom 1:7; 1 Cor 1:2; Phil 1:
1; etc.) and “faithful” (cf. Col 1:2); these titles describe what Baptism does for a
person (cf. Eph 5:26).

All the baptized are called to live a holy life: being “saints”, being “believers”,
commits them to do so. Holiness is, therefore, a gift of God which at the same
time implies an obligation to further its development, as the Second Vatican
Council explains: “It is therefore quite clear that all Christians in any state or
walk of life are called to the fullness of Christian life and to the perfection of love,
and by this holiness a more human manner of life is fostered also in earthly so-
ciety. In order to reach this perfection the faithful should use the strength dealt
out to them by Christ’s gift, so that, following in his footsteps and conformed to
his image, doing the will of God in everything, they may wholeheartedly devote
themselves to the glory of God and to the service of their neighbor. Thus the ho-
liness of the people of God will grow in fruitful abundance, as is clearly shown
in the history of the Church through the life of so many saints” (”Lumen Gen-
tium”, 40).

By describing the Christians as “faithful” St Paul is not only saying that they are
people who have received the gift of faith (cf. Eph 2:8); he is also calling on them
to stay true to the faith despite all the wiles of the devil (cf. Eph 6:10-13).

In the Church it has always been customary to refer to those who have received
Baptism as “faithful”: “Christ’s faithful are those who, since they are incorporated
into Christ through baptism, are constituted the people of God. For this reason
they participate in their own way in the priestly, prophetic and kingly office of
Christ. They are called, each according to his or her particular condition, to exer-
cise the mission which God entrusted to the Church to fulfill in the world” (”Code
of Canon Law”, can. 204, 1).

2. “Shalom!” — “Peace!” — is the usual way Jews greet one another. According to
the prophets, peace was one of the gifts the Messiah would bring. After the incar-
nation of the Son of God, now that the “prince of peace” has come among men
(cf. Is 9:6), when the Apostles use this greeting they are joyfully proclaiming the
advent of messianic peace: all good things, heavenly and earthly, are attainable
because by his death and resurrection Jesus, the Messiah, has removed, once
and for all, the enmity between God and men: “since we are justified by faith, we
have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Rom 5:1).

The same expression — “Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the
Lord Jesus Christ” — is frequently to be found in St Paul’s letters. For its mea-
ning, see the notes on Rom 1:7 and 1 Cor 1:3.

3-14. Verses 3-14 are a hymn of praise to God for the plan of salvation he has
devised and brought to fulfillment in benefit of men and all creation. It is written
in a liturgical style of rhythmic prose, similar to that in Colossians 1:15-20. In
the Greek it is one long complex sentence full of relative pronouns and clauses
which give it a designed unity; we can, however, distinguish two main sections.

The first (v. 3-10), divided into four stanzas, describes the blessings contained in
God’s salvific plan; St Paul terms this plan the “mystery” of God’s will. The sec-
tion begins by praising God for his eternal design, a plan, pre-dating creation, to
call us to the Church, to form a community of saints (first stanza: vv. 3f) and re-
ceive the grace of being children of God through Jesus Christ (second stanza:
vv. 5f). It then reflects on Christ’s work of redemption which brings this eternal
plan of God to fulfillment (third stanza: vv. 7f). This section reaches its climax in
the fourth stanza (vv. 9f) which proclaims Christ as Lord of all creation, thereby
revealing the full development of God’s salvific plan.

The second section, which divides into two stanzas, deals with the application
of this plan — first to the Jews (fifth stanza: vv. 11f) and then to the Gentiles, who
are also called to share what God has promised: Jews and Gentiles join to form
a single people, the Church (sixth stanza: vv. 13f).

Hymns in praise of God, or “eulogies”, occur in many parts of Sacred Scripture
(cf. Ps 8; Ps 19; Dan 2:20-23; Lk 1:46-54, 68-78; etc.); they praise the Lord for
the wonders of creation or for spectacular interventions on behalf of his people.
Inspired by the Holy Spirit, St Paul here praises God the Father for all Christ’s
saving work, which extends from God’s original plan which he made before he
created the world, right up to the very end of time and the recapitulation of all
things in Christ.

We too should always have this same attitude of praise of the Lord. “Our entire
life on earth should take the form of praise of God, for the never-ending joy of our
future life consists in praising God, and no one can become fit for that future life
unless he train himself to render that praise now” (St Augustine, “Enarrationes
in Psalmos”, 148).

Praise is in fact the most appropriate attitude for man to have towards God:
“How can you dare use that spark of divine intelligence — your mind — in any-
thing but in giving glory to your Lord?” (St. J. Escriva, “The Way”, 782).

3. St Paul blesses God as Father of our Lord Jesus Christ because it is through
Christ that all God’s blessings and gifts reach us. God’s actions in favor of man
are actions of all three divine Persons; the divine plan which the Apostle consi-
ders here has its origin in the Blessed Trinity; it is eternal. “These three Persons
are not to be considered separable,” the Eleventh Council of Toledo teaches,
“since we believe that not one of them existed or at any time effected anything
before the other, after the other, or without the other. For in existence and ope-
ration they are found to be inseparable” (”De Trinitate” Creed, “Dz-Sch”, 531).

In the implementation of this divine plan of salvation, the work of Redemption is
attributed to the Son and that of sanctification to the Holy Spirit. “To help us
grasp in some measure this unfathomable mystery, we might imagine the Bles-
sed Trinity taking counsel together in their uninterrupted intimate relationship of
infinite love. As a result of their eternal decision, the only-begotten Son of God
the Father takes on our human condition and bears the burden of our wretched-
ness and sorrows, to end up sewn with nails to a piece of wood” (St. J. Escriva,
“Christ Is Passing By”, 95).

St Paul describes as “spiritual blessings” all the gifts which the implementation
of God’s plan implies, gifts which are distributed by the Holy Spirit. When he
speaks of them as being “in the heavenly places” and “in Christ”, he is saying
that through Christ who has risen from the dead and ascended on high we too
have been inserted into the world of God (cf. 1:20; 2:6).

When man describes God as “blessed” it means he recognizes God’s greatness
and goodness, and rejoices over the divine gifts he has received (cf. Lk 1:46, 68).
Here is what St Thomas Aquinas has to say about the meaning of this passage:
“The Apostle says, ‘Benedictus’ [Blessed be the God ...], that is, may I, and you,
and everyone bless him, with our heart, our mouth, our actions — praising him as
God and as Father, for he is God because of his essence and Father because
of his power to generate” (”Commentary on Eph.”, 1, 6).

Sacred Scripture very often invites us to praise God our Lord (cf. Ps 8:19; 33;
46-48; etc.); this is not a matter only of verbal praise: our actions should prove
that we mean what we say: “He who does good with his hands praises the Lord,
and he who confesses the Lord with his mouth praises the Lord. Praise him by
your actions” (St Augustine, “Enarrationes in Psalmos”, 91, 2).

4. As the hymn develops, the Apostle details each of the blessings contained in
God’s eternal plan. The first of these is his choice, before the foundation of the
world, of those who would become part of the Church. The word he uses, trans-
lated here as “chose”, is the same one as used in the Greek translation of the
Old Testament to refer to God’s election of Israel. The Church, the new people
of God, is constituted by assembling in and around Christ those who have been
chosen and called to holiness. This implies that although the Church was foun-
ded by Christ at a particular point in history, its origin goes right back to the
eternal divine plan. ‘The eternal Father, in accordance with the utterly gratuitous
and mysterious design of his wisdom and goodness, ... ‘predestined (the elect)
to be conformed to the image of his Son in order that he might be the first-born
among many brethren’ (Rom 8:29). He determined to call together in a holy
Church those who believe in Christ. Already present in figure at the beginning
of the world, this Church was prepared in marvelous fashion in the history of the
people of Israel and in the Old Alliance. Established in this last age of the world,
and made manifest in the outpouring of the Spirit, it will be brought to glorious
completion at the end of time” (Vatican II, “Lumen Gentium”, 2).

God’s choice seeks to have us become “holy and blameless before him”. In
the same way as in the Old Testament a victim offered to God had to be unble-
mished, blameless (cf. Gen 17:1), the blameless holiness to which God has
destined us admits of no imperfection. By the very fact of being baptized we
are made holy (cf. note on 1:1), and during our lifetime we try to grow holier
with the help of God; however, complete holiness is something we shall attain
only in heaven.

The holiness with which we have been endowed is an undeserved gift from God:
it is not a reward for any merit on our part: even before we were created God
chose us to be his: “’He chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that
we should be holy.’ I know that such thoughts don’t fill you with pride or lead you
to think yourself better than others. That choice, the root of your vocation, should
be the basis of your humility. Do we build monuments to an artist’s paintbrush?
Granted the brush had a part in creating masterpieces, but we give credit only to
the painter. We Christians are nothing more than instruments in the hands of the
Creator of the world, the Redeemer of all men” (St. J. Escriva, “Christ Is Passing
By”, 1).

“He destined us in love”: the loving initiative is God’s. “If God has honored us with
countless gifts it is thanks to his love, not to our merits. Our fervor, our strength,
our faith and our unity are the fruit of God’s benevolence and our response to his
goodness” (St John Chrysostom, “Hom. on Eph, ad loc”.).

God’s election of Christians and their vocation to holiness, as also the gift of di-
vine filiation, reveals that God is Love (cf. 1 Jn 4:8); we have become partakers of
God’s very nature (cf. 2 Pet 1:4), sharers, that is, in the love of God.

“He destined us in love”, therefore, also includes the Christian’s love of God and
of others: charity is a sharing in God’s own love; it is the essence of holiness, the
Christian’s law; nothing has any value if it is not inspired by charity (cf. 1 Cor 13:
1-3).

5. The Apostle goes on to explore the further implications of God’s eternal plan:
those chosen to form part of the Church have been given a second blessing, as
it were, by being predestined to be adoptive children of God. ‘The state of this
people is that of the dignity and freedom of the sons of God, in whose hearts
the Holy Spirit dwells as in a temple” (Vatican II, “Lumen Gentium, 9).

This predestination to which the Apostle refers means that God determined from
all eternity that the members of the new people of God should attain holiness
through his gift of adoptive sonship. It is God’s desire that all be saved (cf. 1 Tim
2:4) and he gives each person the means necessary for obtaining eternal life.
Therefore, no one is predestined to damnation (cf. Third Council of Valence, “De
Praedestinatione”, can. 3).

The source of the Christian’s divine sonship is Jesus Christ. God’s only Son,
one in substance with the Father, took on human nature in order to make us
sons and daughters of God by adoption (cf. Rom 8:15, 29; 9:4; Gal 4:5). This is
why every member of the Church can say: “See what love the Father has given
us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are” (1 Jn 3:1).

What is involved here is not simply formal adoption, which is something external
and does not affect the very person of the child. Divine adoption affects man’s en-
tire being, it inserts him into God’s own life; for Baptism makes us truly his chil-
dren, partakers of the divine nature (cf. 2 Pet 1:4). Divine sonship is therefore the
greatest of the gifts God bestows on man during his life on earth. It is indeed
right to exclaim “Blessed be God” (v. 3) when one reflects on this great gift: it is
right for children openly to acknowledge their father and show their love for him.

Divine filiation has many rich effects as far as the spiritual life is concerned. “A
child of God treats the Lord as his Father. He is not obsequious and servile; he
‘is not merely formal and well-mannered: he is completely sincere and trusting.
God is not shocked by what we do. Our infidelities do not wear him out. Our
Father in heaven pardons any offense when his child returns to him, when he
repents and asks for pardon. The Lord is such a good father that he anticipates
our desire to be pardoned and comes forward to us, opening his arms laden with
grace” (St. J. Escriva, “Christ Is Passing By”, 64). See the notes on Jn 1:12.

6. The gift of divine filiation is the greatest expression of the glory of God (cf. note
on 1:17 below), because it reveals the full extent of God’s love for man. St Paul
stresses what the purpose of this eternal divine plan is — to promote “the praise
of his glorious grace”. God’s glory has been made manifest through his merciful
love, which has led him to make us his children in accordance with the eternal
purpose of his will. This eternal design “flows from ‘fountain-like love’, the love of
God the Father [...]. God in his great and merciful kindness freely creates us
and, moreover, graciously calls us to share in his life and glory. He generously
pours out, and never ceases to pour out, his divine goodness, so that he who is
Creator of all things might at last become ‘everything to everyone’ (1 Cor 15:28),
thus simultaneously assuring his own glory and our happiness” (Vatican II, “Ad
Gentes”, 2).

The grace which St Paul speaks of here and which manifests the glory of God re-
fers first to the fact that God’s blessings are totally unmerited by us and include
the grace-conferring gifts of holiness and divine filiation.

“In the Beloved”: the Old Testament stresses again and again that God loves his
people and that Israel is that cherished people (cf. Deut 33:12; is 5:1, 7; 1 Mac 6:
11; etc.). In the New Testament Christians are called “beloved by God” (1 Thess
1:4; cf. Col 3:12). However, there is only one “Beloved”, strictly speaking, Jesus
Christ our Lord — as God revealed from the bright cloud at the Transfiguration:
“This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased” (Mt 17:5). The Son of his
love has obtained man’s redemption and brought forgiveness of sins (cf. Col 1:13),
and it is through his grace that we become pleasing to God, lovable by him with
the same love with which he loves his Son. At the Last Supper, Jesus asked his
Father for this very thing — “so that the world may know that thou hast sent me
and hast loved them even as thou hast loved me” (Jn 17:23). “Notice”, St John
Chrysostom points out, “that Paul does not say that this grace has been given
us for no purpose but that it has been given us to make us pleasing and lovable
in his eyes, now that we are purified of our sins” (”Hom. on Eph, ad loc.”).

7-8. St Paul now centers his attention on the redemptive work of Christ — the
third blessing — which has implemented the eternal divine plan described in the
preceding verses.

Redemption means “setting free”. God’s redemptive action began in the Old Tes-
tament, when he set the people of Israel free from their enslavement in Egypt (cf.
Ex 11:7ff): by smearing the lintels of their doors with the blood of the lamb, their
first-born were protected from death. In memory of this salvation God ordained the
celebration of the rite of the passover lamb (cf. Ex 12:47). However, this redemp-
tion from Egyptian slavery was but a prefigurement of the Redemption Christ
would bring about. “Christ our Lord achieved this task [of redeeming mankind and
giving perfect glory to God] principally by the paschal mystery of his blessed pas-
sion, resurrection from the dead, and glorious ascension” (Vatican II, “Sacrosanc-
tum Concilium”, 5). By shedding his blood on the Cross, Christ has redeemed us
from the slavery of sin, from the power of the devil, and from death (cf. note on
Rom 3:24-25). He is the true passover Lamb (cf. Jn 1:29). “When we reflect that
we have been ransomed ‘not with perishable things such as silver or gold but with
the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot’ (1 Pet 1:
18f), we are naturally led to conclude that we could have received no gift more sa-
lutary than this power [given to the Church] of forgiving sins, which proclaims the
ineffable providence of God and the excess of his love towards us” (”St Pius V
Catechism”, I, 11, 10).

The Redemption wrought by Christ frees us from the worst of all slaveries — that
of sin. As the Second Vatican Council puts it, “Man finds that he is unable of
himself to overcome the assaults of evil successfully, so that everyone feels as
though bound by chains. But the Lord himself came to free and strengthen man,
renewing him inwardly and casting out the ‘ruler of this world’ (Jn 12:31), who held
him in the bondage of sin. For sin brought man to a lower state, forcing him away
from the completeness that is his to attain” (”Gaudium Et Spes”, 13).

In carrying out this Redemption, our Lord was motivated by his infinite love for man.
This love, which far exceeds anything man could hope for, or could merit, is to be
seen above all in the universal generosity of God’s forgiveness, for though “sin in-
creased, grace abounded all the more” (Rom 5:20); this forgiveness, achieved by
Christ’s death on the cross, is the supreme sign of God’s love for us, for “greater
love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends” (Jn 15:13).
If God the Father gave up his Son to death for the remission of men’s sins, “it was
to reveal the love that is always greater than the whole of creation, the love that is
he himself, since ‘God is love’ (1 Jn 4:8, 16)”, John Paul II reminds us. “Above all,
love is greater than sin, than weakness, than ‘the futility of creation’ (cf. Rom 8:
20); it is stronger than death” (Redemptor Hominis”, 9).

By enabling our sins to be forgiven, the Redemption brought about by Christ has
restored man’s dignity. “Increasingly contemplating the whole of Christ’s mystery,
the Church knows with all the certainty of faith that the Redemption that took
place through the Cross has definitely restored his dignity to man and given back
meaning to his life in the world, a meaning that was lost to a considerable extent
because of sin” (”Redemptor Hominis”, 10). This action on God’s part reveals his
wisdom and prudence.

9. Through Christ’s redemptive action, God has not only pardoned sin: he has
also shown that his salvific plan embraces all history and all creation. This plan,
which was revealed in Jesus Christ, St Paul calls “the mystery” of God’s will; its
revelation is a further divine blessing. The entire mystery embraces the establish-
ment of the Church and the gift of divine filiation (vv. 4-7), the recapitulation of all
things in Christ (v. 10), and the convoking of Jews and Gentiles to form part of
the Church (vv. 11-14; cf. 3:4-7). All this has been revealed in Christ, in whom,
therefore, God’s revelation reaches its climax. Christ “did this by the total fact
of his presence and self-manifestation — by words and works, signs and mira-
cles, but above all by his death and glorious resurrection from the dead, and fi-
nally by sending the Spirit of truth. He revealed that God is with us, to deliver us
from the darkness of sin and death, and to raise us up to eternal life” (Vatican II,
“Dei Verbum”, 4).

The fact that God reveals his plans of salvation is a further proof of his love and
mercy, for it enables man to recognize God’s infinite wisdom and goodness and
to hear his invitation to take part in these plans. As the Second Vatican Council
puts it, “It pleased God, in his goodness and wisdom, to reveal himself and to
make known the mystery of his will (cf. Eph 1:9). His will was that man should
have access to the Father through Christ, the Word made flesh, in the Holy Spi-
rit, and thus become sharers in the divine nature (cf. Eph 2:18; 2 Pet 1:4). By
this revelation, then, the invisible God (cf. Col 1:15; 1 Tim 1:17), from the fullness
of his love, addresses men as his friends (cf. Ex 33: 11; Jn 15:14f), and moves
among them (cf. Bar 3:38), in order to invite and receive them into his own
company” (”Dei Verbum”, 2).

On the meaning of the word “mystery” in St Paul, see the notes on 1:26, 28; 2:9.

10. The “mystery” revealed by God in his love takes shape in a harmonious way,
in different stages or moments (”kairoi”) as history progresses. The fullness of
time came with the Incarnation (cf. Gal 4:4) and it will last until the End. Through
the Redemption, Christ has rechannelled history towards God; he rules over all
human history in a supernatural way. Not only have God’s mysterious plans be-
gun to take effect: they have been revealed to the Church, which God uses to
implement these plans. “Already the final age of the world is with us (cf. 1 Cor
10:11) and the renewal of the world is irrevocably under way; it is even now anti-
cipated in a certain real way, for the Church on earth is endowed already with a
sanctity that is real though imperfect. However, until there be realized new hea-
vens and a new earth in which justice dwells (cf. 2 Pet 3:13) the pilgrim Church,
in its sacraments and institutions, which belong to this present age, carries the
mark of this world which will pass, and she herself takes her place among the
creatures which groan and travail yet and await the revelation of the sons of God
(cf. Rom 8:19-22)” (Vatican II, “Lumen Gentium”, 48).

The climax of God’s pre-creation plan involves “uniting” (”recapitulating”) all things
in Christ: Christ is to be the cornerstone and head of all creation. This means that,
through his redemptive activity, Christ unites and leads the created world back to
God. Its unity had been destroyed as a result of sin, but now Christ binds it toge-
ther, uniting heavenly things as well as mankind and other earthly things. St John
Chrysostom teaches that “since heavenly things and earthly things were torn a-
part from each other, they had no head [...]. (God) made Christ according to the
flesh the sole head of all things, of angels and of men; that is, he provided one
single principle for angels and for men [...]; for all things will be perfectly united
as they ought to be when they are gathered together under one head, linked by
a bond which must come from on high” (”Hom. on Eph, ad loc.”).

Christ’s being head of all things — as will be made manifest at the end of time —
stems from the fact that he is true God and true man, the head and first-born of
all creation. By rising from the dead, he has overcome the power of sin and death,
and has become Lord of all creation (cf. Acts 2:36; Rom 1:4; Eph 1:19-23); all
other things, invisible as well as invisible, come under his sway.

The motto taken by Pius X when he became Pope echoes this idea of Christ’s
Lordship: “If someone were to ask us for a motto which conveys our purpose we
would always reply, ‘Reinstating all things in Christ’ [...], trying to bring all men
to return to divine obedience” (”E supremi apostolatus”).

“Uniting all things in Christ”: this includes putting Christ at the summit of human
activities, as the founder of Opus Dei points out: “St Paul gave a motto to the
Christians at Ephesus: ‘Instaurare omnia in Christo’ (Eph 1:10), to fill everything
with the spirit of Jesus, placing Christ at the center of everything. ‘And I, when I
am lifted up from the earth, will draw all things to myself’ (Jn 12:32). Through his
incarnation, through his work at Nazareth and his preaching and miracles in the
land of Judea and Galilee, through his death on the cross, and through his resur-
rection, Christ is the center of the universe, the first-born and Lord of all creation.

“Our task as Christians is to proclaim this kingship of Christ, announcing it
through what we say and do. Our Lord wants men and women of his own in all
walks of life. Some he calls away from society, asking them to give up involve-
ment in the world, so that they remind the rest of us by their example that God
exists. To others he entrusts the priestly ministry. But he wants the vast majori-
ty to stay right where they are, in all earthly occupations in which they work —
in the factory, the laboratory, the farm, the trades, the streets of the big cities
and the trails of the mountains” (”Christ Is Passing By”, 105).

*********************************************************************************************
Source: “The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries”. Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.

[Salvation]

From: Luke 11:47-54:

The Hypocrisy of the Scribes and Pharisees (Continuation)

---

(Jesus said to the Pharisees,) [47] “Woe to you! for you build the tombs of the
prophets whom your fathers killed. [48] So you are witnesses and consent to the
deeds of your fathers; for they killed them, and you build their tombs. [49] There-
fore also the Wisdom of God said, ‘I will send them prophets and apostles, some
of whom they will kill and persecute,’ [50] that the blood of all the prophets, shed
from the foundation of the world, may be required of this generation, [51] from the
blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who perished between the altar and the
sanctuary. Yes, I tell you, it shall be required of this generation. [52] Woe to you
lawyers! for you have taken away the key of knowledge; you did not enter your-
selves, and you hindered those who were entering.”

[53] As He went away from there, the scribes and the Pharisees began to press
Him hard, and to provoke Him to speak of many things, [54] lying in wait for Him,
to catch at something He might say.

*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:

51. Zechariah was a prophet who died by being stoned in the temple of Jerusa-
lem around the year 800 B.C. because he accused the people of Israel of being
unfaithful to God’s law (cf. 2 Chronicles 24:20-22). The murder of Abel (Genesis
4:8) and that of Zechariah were, respectively, the first and last murders reported
in these books which the Jews regarded as Sacred Scripture. Jesus refers to a
Jewish tradition which, in His own time and even later, pointed out the stain of
the blood of Zechariah.

The altar referred to here was the altar of holocausts, located outside, in the
courtyard of the priests, in front of the temple proper.

52. Jesus severely reproaches these doctors of the Law who, given their study
and meditation on Scripture, were the very ones who should have recognized
Jesus as the Messiah, since His coming had been foretold in the sacred books.
However, as we learn from the Gospel, the exact opposite happened. Not only
did they not accept Jesus: they obstinately opposed Him. As teachers of the
Law they should have taught the people to follow Jesus; instead, they blocked
the way.

53-54. St. Luke frequently records this attitude of our Lord’s enemies (cf. 6:11;
19:47-48; 20:19-20; 22:2). The people followed Jesus and were enthusiastic
about His preaching and miracles, whereas the Pharisees and scribes would
not accept Him and would not allow the people to follow Him; they tried in every
way to discredit Him in the eyes of the people (cf. John 11:48).

*********************************************************************************************
Source: “The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries”. Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.

[Salvation]

Scripture readings from the Jerusalem Bible by Darton, Longman & Todd

Readings at Mass

Liturgical Colour: Green.

---

First reading

Ephesians 1:1-10 ©

From Paul, appointed by God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus, to the saints who are faithful to Christ Jesus. Grace and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

Blessed be God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,

who has blessed us with all the spiritual blessings of heaven in Christ.

Before the world was made, he chose us, chose us in Christ,

to be holy and spotless, and to live through love in his presence,

determining that we should become his adopted sons, through Jesus Christ

for his own kind purposes,

to make us praise the glory of his grace,

his free gift to us in the Beloved,

in whom, through his blood, we gain our freedom, the forgiveness of our sins.

Such is the richness of the grace

which he has showered on us

in all wisdom and insight.

He has let us know the mystery of his purpose,

the hidden plan he so kindly made in Christ from the beginning

to act upon when the times had run their course to the end:

that he would bring everything together under Christ, as head,

everything in the heavens and everything on earth.

---

Responsorial Psalm	Psalm 97:1-6 ©

The Lord has shown his salvation.

Sing a new song to the Lord

  for he has worked wonders.

His right hand and his holy arm

  have brought salvation.

The Lord has shown his salvation.

The Lord has made known his salvation;

  has shown his justice to the nations.

He has remembered his truth and love

  for the house of Israel.

The Lord has shown his salvation.

All the ends of the earth have seen

  the salvation of our God.

Shout to the Lord, all the earth,

  ring out your joy.

The Lord has shown his salvation.

Sing psalms to the Lord with the harp

  with the sound of music.

With trumpets and the sound of the horn

  acclaim the King, the Lord.

The Lord has shown his salvation.

---

Gospel Acclamation	Ps110:7,8

Alleluia, alleluia!

Your precepts, O Lord, are all of them sure;

they stand firm for ever and ever.

Alleluia!

Or	Jn14:6

Alleluia, alleluia!

I am the Way, the Truth and the Life, says the Lord;

No one can come to the Father except through me.

Alleluia!

---

Gospel	Luke 11:47-54 ©

Jesus said:

  ‘Alas for you who build the tombs of the prophets, the men your ancestors killed! In this way you both witness what your ancestors did and approve it; they did the killing, you do the building.

  ‘And that is why the Wisdom of God said, “I will send them prophets and apostles; some they will slaughter and persecute, so that this generation will have to answer for every prophet’s blood that has been shed since the foundation of the world, from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who was murdered between the altar and the sanctuary.” Yes, I tell you, this generation will have to answer for it all.

  ‘Alas for you lawyers who have taken away the key of knowledge! You have not gone in yourselves, and have prevented others going in who wanted to.’

  When he left the house, the scribes and the Pharisees began a furious attack on him and tried to force answers from him on innumerable questions, setting traps to catch him out in something he might say.

[Salvation]

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7 Powerful Ways to Pray for Christians Suffering in the Middle East

[Salvation]

Pray the Rosary!

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[Salvation]

 

Jesus, High Priest

 

We thank you, God our Father, for those who have responded to your call to priestly ministry.

Accept this prayer we offer on their behalf: Fill your priests with the sure knowledge of your love.

Open their hearts to the power and consolation of the Holy Spirit.

Lead them to new depths of union with your Son.

Increase in them profound faith in the Sacraments they celebrate as they nourish, strengthen and heal us.

Lord Jesus Christ, grant that these, your priests, may inspire us to strive for holiness by the power of their example, as men of prayer who ponder your word and follow your will.

O Mary, Mother of Christ and our mother, guard with your maternal care these chosen ones, so dear to the Heart of your Son.

Intercede for our priests, that offering the Sacrifice of your Son, they may be conformed more each day to the image of your Son, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.

Saint John Vianney, universal patron of priests, pray for us and our priests

This icon shows Jesus Christ, our eternal high priest.

The gold pelican over His heart represents self-sacrifice.

The border contains an altar and grapevines, representing the Mass, and icons of Melchizedek and St. Jean-Baptiste Vianney.

Melchizedek: king of righteousness (left icon) was priest and king of Jerusalem.  He blessed Abraham and has been considered an ideal priest-king.

St. Jean-Baptiste Vianney is the patron saint of parish priests.

[annalex]

Luke
	English: Douay-Rheims	Latin: Vulgata Clementina	Greek NT: Byzantine/Majority Text (2000)
	Luke 11
47.	Woe to you who build the monuments of the prophets: and your fathers killed them.	Væ vobis, qui ædificatis monumenta prophetarum : patres autem vestri occiderunt illos.	ουαι υμιν οτι οικοδομειτε τα μνημεια των προφητων οι δε πατερες υμων απεκτειναν αυτους
48.	Truly you bear witness that you consent to the doings of your fathers: for they indeed killed them, and you build their sepulchres.	Profecto testificamini quod consentitis operibus patrum vestrorum : quoniam ipsi quidem eos occiderunt, vos autem ædificatis eorum sepulchra.	αρα μαρτυρειτε και συνευδοκειτε τοις εργοις των πατερων υμων οτι αυτοι μεν απεκτειναν αυτους υμεις δε οικοδομειτε αυτων τα μνημεια
49.	For this cause also the wisdom of God said: I will send to them prophets and apostles; and some of them they will kill and persecute.	Propterea et sapientia Dei dixit : Mittam ad illos prophetas, et apostolos, et ex illis occident, et persequentur :	δια τουτο και η σοφια του θεου ειπεν αποστελω εις αυτους προφητας και αποστολους και εξ αυτων αποκτενουσιν και εκδιωξουσιν
50.	That the blood of all the prophets which was shed from the foundation of the world, may be required of this generation,	ut inquiratur sanguis omnium prophetarum, qui effusus est a constitutione mundi a generatione ista,	ινα εκζητηθη το αιμα παντων των προφητων το εκχυνομενον απο καταβολης κοσμου απο της γενεας ταυτης
51.	From the blood of Abel unto the blood of Zacharias, who was slain between the alter and the temple: Yea I say to you, It shall be required of this generation.	a sanguine Abel, usque ad sanguinem Zachariæ, qui periit inter altare et ædem. Ita dico vobis, requiretur ab hac generatione.	απο του αιματος αβελ εως του αιματος ζαχαριου του απολομενου μεταξυ του θυσιαστηριου και του οικου ναι λεγω υμιν εκζητηθησεται απο της γενεας ταυτης
52.	Woe to you lawyers, for you have taken away the key of knowledge: you yourselves have not entered in, and those that were entering in, you have hindered.	Væ vobis, legisperitis, quia tulistis clavem scientiæ : ipsi non introistis, et eos qui introibant, prohibuistis.	ουαι υμιν τοις νομικοις οτι ηρατε την κλειδα της γνωσεως αυτοι ουκ εισηλθετε και τους εισερχομενους εκωλυσατε
53.	And as he was saying these things to them, the Pharisees and the lawyers began violently to urge him, and to oppress his mouth about many things,	Cum autem hæc ad illos diceret, cœperunt pharisæi et legisperiti graviter insistere, et os ejus opprimere de multis,	λεγοντος δε αυτου ταυτα προς αυτους ηρξαντο οι γραμματεις και οι φαρισαιοι δεινως ενεχειν και αποστοματιζειν αυτον περι πλειονων
54.	Lying in wait for him, and seeking to catch something from his mouth, that they might accuse him.	insidiantes ei, et quærentes aliquid capere de ore ejus, ut accusarent eum.	ενεδρευοντες αυτον ζητουντες θηρευσαι τι εκ του στοματος αυτου ινα κατηγορησωσιν αυτου

[annalex]

47. Woe to you! for you build the sepulchers of the prophets, and your fathers killed them.
48. Truly you bear witness that you allow the deeds of your fathers: for they indeed killed them, and you build their sepulchers.
49. Therefore also said the wisdom of God, I will send them prophets and apostles, and some of them they shall slay and persecute:
50. That the blood of all the prophets, which was shed from the foundation of the world, may be required of this generation;
51. From the blood of Abel to the blood of Zacharias, which perished between the altar and the temple: verily I say to you, It shall be required of this generation.
52. Woe to you, Lawyers! for you have taken away the key of knowledge: you enter not in yourselves, and them that were entering in you hindered.
53. And as he said these things to them, the Scribes and Pharisees began to urge him vehemently, and to provoke him to speak of many things:
54. Laying wait for him, and seeking to catch something out of his mouth, that they might accuse him.

CYRIL; Having then condemned the burdensome dealing of the Lawyer, He brings a general charge against all the chief men of the Jews, saying, Woe to you who build the tombs of the prophets, and your fathers killed them.

AMBROSE; This is a good answer to the foolish superstition of the Jews, who in building the tombs of the prophets condemned the deeds of their fathers, but by rivaling their fathers' wickedness, throw back the sentence upon themselves. For not the building but the imitation of their deeds is looked upon as a crime. Therefore He adds, Truly you bear witness that you allow, &c.

BEDE; They pretended indeed, in order to win in the favor of the multitude, that they were shocked at the unbelief of their fathers, since by splendidly honoring the memories of the prophets who were slain by them they condemned their deeds. But in their very actions they testify how much they coincide with their fathers' wickedness, by treating with insult that Lord whom the prophets foretold. Hence it is added, Therefore also said the wisdom of God, I will send them prophets and apostles, and some of them they shall slay and persecute.

AMBROSE; The wisdom of God is Christ. The words indeed in Matthew are, Behold I send to you prophets and wise men.

BEDE; But if the same Wisdom of God sent prophets and Apostles, let heretics cease to assign to Christ a beginning from the Virgin; let them no longer declare one God of the Law and Prophets, another of the New Testament. For although the Apostolic Scripture often calls by the name of prophets not only those who foretell the coming Incarnation of Christ, but those also who foretell the future joys of the kingdom of heaven, yet I should never suppose that these were to be placed before the Apostles in the order of enumeration.

ATHAN. Now if they kill, the death of the slain will cry out the louder against them; if they pursue, they send forth memorials of their iniquity, for flight makes the pursuit of the sufferers to redound to the great disgrace of the pursuers. For no one flees from the merciful and gentle, but rather from the cruel and evil-minded man. And therefore it follows, That the blood of all the prophets who have been slain from the foundation of the world may be required of this generation.

BEDE; It is asked, How comes it that the blood of all the prophets and just men is required of the single generation of the Jews; whereas many of the saints, both before the Incarnation and after, have been slain by other nations? But it is the manner of the Scriptures frequently to reckon two generations of men, one of the good, and the other of the evil.

CYRIL; Although then He says pointedly of this generation, He expresses not merely those who were then standing by Him and listening, but every manslayer. For like is attributed to like.

CHRYS. But if He means that the Jews are about to suffer worse things, this will not be undeserved, for they have dared to do worse than all. And they have been corrected by none of their past calamities, but when they saw others sin, and punished, they were not made better, but did likewise; yet it will not be that one shall suffer punishment for the sins of others.

THEOPHYL. But our Lord shows that the Jews have inherited the malice of Cain, since he adds, From the blood of Abel, to the blood of Zacharias, &c. Abel, inasmuch as he was slain by Cain; but Zacharias, whom they slew between the temple and the altar, some say was the Zacharias of old time, the son of Jehoiadah the Priest.

BEDE; Why He begins from the blood of Abel, who was the first martyr, we need not wonder; but why, to the blood, of Zacharias, is a question, since many were slain after him even up to our Lord's birth, and soon after His birth the Innocents, unless perhaps it was because Abel was a shepherd, Zacharias a Priest. And the one was killed in the field, the other in the court of the temple, martyrs of each class, that is, under their names are shadowed both laymen, and those engaged in the office of the altar.

GREG. NYSS.. But some say that Zacharias, the father of John, by the spirit of prophecy forecasting the mystery of the immaculate virginity of the mother of God, in no wise separated her from the part of the temple set apart for virgins, wishing to show that it was in the power of the Creator of all things to manifest a new birth, while he did not deprive the mother of the glory of her virginity. Now this part was between the altar and the temple, in which was placed the brazen altar, where for this reason they slew him. It is said also, that when they heard the King of the world was about to come, form fear of subjection they designedly attacked him who bore witness to His coming, and slew the priest in the temple.

GREEK EX. But others give another reason for the destruction of Zacharias. For at the murder of the children the blessed John was to be slain with the rest of the same age, but Elizabeth, snatching up her son from the midst of the slaughter, sought the desert. And so when Herod's soldiers could not find Elisabeth and the child, they turn their wrath against Zacharias, killing him as he was ministering in the temple.

It follows, Woe to you, lawyers, for you have taken away the key of knowledge.

BASIL; This word woe, which is uttered with pain intolerable, is suited to those who were shortly after to be cast out into grievous punishment

CYRIL; Now we say, the law itself is the key of knowledge. For it was both a shadow and a figure of the righteousness of Christ, therefore it became the Lawyers, as instructors of the Law of Moses and the words of the Prophets, to reveal in a certain measure to the Jewish people the knowledge of Christ This they did not, but on the contrary detracted from the divine miracles, and spoke against His teaching, Why hear you him? So then they took away the key of knowledge. Hence it follows, You entered not in yourselves, and them that were entered in you hindered. But faith also is the key of knowledge. For by faith comes also the knowledge of truth according to that of Isaiah, Unless you have believed, you will not understand. The Lawyers then have taken away the key of knowledge, not permitting men to believe in Christ.

AUG. But the key of knowledge is also the humility of Christ, which they would neither themselves understand, nor let be understood by others.

AMBROSE; Those also are even now condemned under the name of Jews, and made subject to future punishment, who, while usurping to themselves the teaching of divine knowledge, both hinder others, and do not themselves acknowledge that which they profess.

AUG. Now all these things Matthew records to have been said after our Lord had come into Jerusalem. But Luke relates them here, when our Lord was yet on His journey to Jerusalem. From which they appear to me to be similar discourses, of which Matthew has given one, Luke the other.

BEDE; But how true were the charges of unbelief, hypocrisy, and impiety, brought against the Pharisees and Lawyers they themselves testify, striving not to repent, but to entrap the Teacher of truth; for it follows, And as he said these things to them, the Pharisees and Lawyers began to urge him vehemently.

CYRIL; Now this urging is taken to mean pressing upon Him, or threatening Him, or waxing furious against Him. But they began to interrupt His words in many ways, as it follows, And to force him to speak of many things.

THEOPHYL. For when several are questioning a man on different subjects, since he can not reply to all at once, foolish people think he is doubting. This also was part of their wicked design against Him; but they sought also in another way to control His power of speech, namely, by provoking Him to say something by which He might be condemned; whence it follows, Laying in wait for him, and seeking to catch something out of his mouth, that they might accuse him. Having first spoken of "forcing," Luke now says to catch or seize something from His mouth; at one time indeed they asked Him concerning the Law, that they might convict as a blasphemer Him who accused Moses; but at another time concerning Caesar, that they might accuse Him as a traitor and rebel against the majesty of Caesar.

Catena Aurea Luke 11

[annalex]

Ecce Homo

Hieronymus Bosch

1475-80
Tempera and oil on oak panel, 71 x 61 cm
Städelsches Kunstinstitut, Frankfurt

Among the works generally ascribed to Bosch's first period of activity (c. 1470-85) may be included several small biblical scenes: the Epiphany (Adoration of the Magi) in Philadelphia, the Ecce Homo in Frankfurt (with a related version in Boston, Museum of Fine Arts) and an altar wing in Vienna, the Christ Carrying the Cross. Their early date is suggested by their relatively simple compositions and their adherence to traditional compositional types.

In the Ecce Homo, crowned with thorns and his flesh beaten raw by the scourge, Christ stands with Pilate and his companions before the angry mob. The dialogue between Pilate and the crowd is indicated by the Gothic inscriptions. From the mouth of Pilate issue the words Ecce Homo (Behold the Man). There is no need to decipher the inscription Crufige Eum (Crucify Him), the cry which rises from the people below; their animosity is unmistakably conveyed by their facial expressions and threatening gestures. The third inscription Salve nos Christe redemptor (Save us, Christ Redeemer) once emerged from two donors at lower left, but their figures have been painted over. The heathen character of the men surrounding Christ is suggested by their strange dress and headgear, including pseudo-oriental turbans. The scene's essential wickedness is further indicated by such traditional emblems of evil as the owl in the niche above Pilate and the giant toad sprawled on the back of a shield carried by one of the soldiers. In the background appears a city square, the Turkish crescent fluttering from one of its towers. The enemies of Christ have been identified with the power of Islam which in Bosch's day, and long afterwards, controlled the most holy places of Christendom. The buildings, however, are late Gothic; only the oddly bulging tower in the distance evokes a feeling of far-off places.

Source

[Salvation]

Information: St. Edward the Confessor

Feast Day: October 13

Born: 1003 at Islip, Oxford, England

Died: 5 January 1066

Canonized: 1161

Major Shrine: Westminster Abbey

Patron of: difficult marriages, kings. separated spouses

[Salvation]

St. Edward the Confessor, 1042-1065, (Catholic, Anglican Caucus)

[Salvation]

Holy Spirit Interactive Kids: A Saint a Day

St. Edward

Feast Day: October 13
Born:1003 :: Died:1066

Prince Edward was born at Oxford in England to King Ethelred II and Queen Emma. Then the Danes attacked England and his father the king lost his throne. Prince Edward who was only 10 years old at that time was sent along with his brother to Denmark to be quietly killed.

But the officer in-charge took pity on the boys and sent them to Sweden. Later the King of Hungary raised and educated them. When they were grown they moved to Normandy in France where they waited for things to get better so they could return to England.

Finally when he was 40 years old, Edward returned to England where he was chosen king and ascended the throne. King St. Edward was one of the best loved of all the English kings and the people welcomed him with great joy.

St. Edward was a tall, well-built man, but he was never healthy. Still he was able to rule his country well and keep peace most of the time. This was because he trusted in God and held firm when necessary.

King Edward went to daily Mass. He was a gentle, kind man who never spoke sternly. He showed special charity and was always generous to poor people and foreigners. He also helped monks in every way he could.

It was his justice to everyone and his love for God's Church that made St. Edward so popular with the English people. They would cheer him as he rode out of the castle.

Although he was a king with great power, St. Edward showed his honesty by the way he kept his word-to God and to people. This holy king tried throughout his life to use the gifts he had been given in order to help others.

He died in 1066 and was buried in the marvelous monastery he had rebuilt.