Posted on 11/19/2019 8:40:41 PM PST by Salvation
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From: 2 Maccabees 7:1, 20-31
Martyrdom of the Seven Brothers and Their Mother
[20] The mother was especially admirable and worthy of honorable memory.
Though she saw her seven sons perish within a single day, she bore it with
good courage because of her hope in the Lord. [21] She encouraged each of
them in the language of their fathers. Filled with a noble spirit, she fired her wo-
man’s reasoning with a man’s courage, and said to them, [22] “I do not know
how you came into being in my womb. It was not I who gave you life and breath,
nor I who set in order the elements within each of you. [23] Therefore the Crea-
tor of the world, who shaped the beginning man and devised the origin of all
things, will in his mercy give life and breath back to you again, since you now
forget yourselves for the sake of his laws.”
[24] Antiochus felt that he was being treated with contempt, and he was suspi-
cious of her reproachful tone. The youngest brother being still alive, Antiochus
not only appealed to him in words, but promised with oaths that he would make
him rich and enviable if he would turn from the ways of his fathers, and that he
would take him for his friend and entrust him with public affairs.
[25] Since the young man would not listen to him at all, the king called the mo-
ther to him and urged her to advise the youth to save himself. [26] After much
urging on his part, she undertook to persuade her son. [27] But, leaning close
to him, she spoke in their native tongue as follows, deriding the cruel tyrant:
“My son, have pity on me. I carried you nine months in my womb, and nursed
you for three years, and have reared you and brought you up to this point in your
life, and have taken care of you.’ [28] I beseech you, my child, to look at the hea-
ven and the earth and see everything that is in them, and recognize that God did
not make them out of things that existed. Thus also mankind comes into being.
[29] Do not fear this butcher, but prove worthy of your brothers. Accept death,
so that in God’s mercy I may get you back again with your brothers.”
[30] While she was still speaking, the young man said, ‘What are you waiting
for? I will not obey the king’s command, but I obey the command of the law that
was given to our fathers through Moses. [31] But you, who have contrived all
souls of evil against the Hebrews, will certainly not escape the hands of God.”
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Commentary:
7:1-42. This is one of the most famous and popular passages in the history of
the Maccabees — so much so that traditionally (but improperly) these brothers
are usually referred to as “the Maccabees”. The sacred writer does not tell us
the boys’ names, or where it all happened; and he brings in the presence of the
king to heighten the dramatic effect. The bravery of these young men, it would
seem, was inspired by the good example given by Eleazar (cf. 6:28). The mo-
ther’s intervention divides the scene into two parts—first the martyrdom of the
six older brothers (vv. 2-19), and then that of the youngest and the mother her-
self (vv. 20-41).
In the first part the conviction that the just will rise and evildoers will be puni-
shed builds up as the story goes on. Each of the replies given by the six bro-
thers contains some aspect of that truth. The first says that just men prefer to
die rather than sin (v. 2) because God will reward them (v. 6); the second, that
God will raise them to a new life (v. 9); the third, that they will rise with their bo-
dies remade (v. 11); the fourth, that for evildoers there will be no “resurrection to
life” (v. 14); the fifth, that there will be punishment for evildoers (v. 17); and the
sixth, that when just people suffer it is because they are being punished for
their own sins (v. 18).
In the second part, both the mother and the youngest brother affirm what the
others have said: but the boy adds something new when he says that death
accepted by the righteous works as atonement for the whole people (vv. 37-38).
The resurrection of the dead, which “God revealed to his people progressively”
(”Catechism of the Catholic Church”, 992), is a teaching that is grounded first
on Moses’ words about God having compassion on his servants (v. 6; cf. Deut
32:36), and the idea that if they die prematurely they will receive consolation in
the next life. This is the point being made by the first brother, and it implies that
God “faithfully maintains his covenant with Abraham and his posterity” (ibid.).
As the mother sees it (vv. 27-28), belief in the resurrection comes from “faith in
God as creator of the whole man, body and soul” (ibid., 992). Our Lord Jesus
Christ ratifies this teaching and links it to faith in himself (cf. Jn 5:24-25; 11:25);
and he also purifies the Pharisees’ notion of the resurrection, which was an in-
terpretation based only on material terms (cf. Mk12:18-27;1 Cor 15:35-53).
In what the mother says (v. 28) we can also see belief in the creation of the
world out of nothing “as a truth full of promise and hope” (”Catechism of the Ca-
tholic Church”, 297). On the basis of this passage and some New Testament
passages, such as John 1:3 and Hebrews 11:3, the Church has formulated its
doctrine of creation: “We believe that God needs no pre-existent thing or any
help in order to create (cf. Vatican I: DS 3022), nor is creation any sort of ne-
cessary emanation from the divine substance (cf. Vatican I: DS 3023-3024).
God creates freely ‘out of nothing’ (DS 800; 3025). If God had drawn the world
from pre-existent matter, what would be so extraordinary in that? A human ar-
tisan makes from a given material whatever he wants, while God shows his po-
wer by starting from nothing to make all he wants” (”Catechism of the Catholic
Church”, 296).
The assertion that the death of martyrs has expiatory value (vv. 37-38) prepares
us to grasp the redemptive meaning of Christ’s death; but we should remember
that Christ, by his death, not only deflected the punishment that all men deserve
on account of sin, but also, through his grace, makes sinful men righteous in
God’s sight (cf. Rom 3:21-26).
Many Fathers of the Church, notably St Gregory Nazianzen (”Orationes”, 15,
22), St Ambrose (”De Jacob Et Vitae Beata”, 2, 10, 44-57), St Augustine (”In
Epistola loannis”, 8, 7), and St Cyprian (”Ad Fortunatus”, 11) heaped praise on
these seven brothers and their mother. St John Chrysostom invites us to imi-
tate them whenever temptation strikes: “All the moderation that they show in
the midst of dangers we, too, should imitate by the patience and temperance
with which we deal with irrational concupiscence, anger, greed for possessions,
bodily passions, vainglory and suchlike. For if we manage to control their flame,
as (the Maccabees) did the flame of the fire, we will be able to be near them
and have a share in their confidence and freedom of spirit” (”Homiliae in Macca-
baeos”, 1, 3).
*********************************************************************************************
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.
From: Luke 19:11-28
Parable of the Pounds
[20] Then another came, saying, ‘Lord, here is your pound, which I kept laid
away in a napkin; [21] for I was afraid of you, because you are a severe man; you
take up what you did not lay down, and reap what you did not sow.’ [22] He said
to him, ‘I will condemn you out of your own mouth, you wicked servant! You knew
that I was a severe man, taking up what I did not lay down and reaping what I did
not sow? [23] Why then did you not put my money into the bank, and at my co-
ming I should have collected it with interest?’ [24] And he said to those who stood
by, ‘Take the pound from him, and give it to him who has the ten pounds.’ [25]
(And they said to him, ‘Lord, he has ten pounds!’) [26] ‘I tell you, that to every one
who has will more be given; but from him who has not, even what he has will be
taken away. [27] But as for these enemies of mine, who did not want me to reign
over them, bring them here and slay them before me.’”
The Messiah Enters the Holy City
*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:
11. The disciples had a wrong concept of the Kingdom of Heaven: they thought
it was about to happen and they saw it in earthly terms: they envisaged Jesus
conquering the Roman tyrant and immediately establishing the Kingdom in the
holy city of Jerusalem, and that when that happened they would hold privileged
positions in the Kingdom. There is always a danger of Christians failing to grasp
the transcendent, supernatural character of the Kingdom of God in this world,
that is, the Church, which “has but one sole purpose—that the Kingdom of God
may come and the salvation of the human race may be accomplished.” (Vati-
can II, “Gaudium Et Spes”, 45).
Through this parable our Lord teaches us that, although His reign has begun, it
will only be fully manifested later on. In the time left to us we should use all the
resources and graces God gives us, in order to merit the reward.
13. The “mina”, here translated as “pound”, was worth about 35 grams of gold.
This parable is very like the parable of the talents reported in St. Matthew (cf.
25:14-30).
14. The last part of this verse, although it has a very specific context, reflects
the attitude of many people who do not want to bear the sweet yoke of our Lord
and who reject Him as king. “There are millions of people in the world who reject
Jesus Christ in this way; or rather they reject His shadow, for they do not know
Christ. They have not seen the beauty of His face; they do not realize how won-
derful His teaching is. This sad state of affairs makes me want to atone to our
Lord. When I hear that endless clamor—expressed more in ignoble actions than
in words—I feel the need to cry out, ‘He must reign!’ (1 Corinthians 15:25)” (St. J.
Escriva, “Christ Is Passing By”, 179).
17. God counts on our fidelity in little things, and the greater our effort in this re-
gard the greater the reward we will receive: “Because you have been ‘in pauca
fidelis’, faithful in small things, come and join in your Master’s happiness. The
words are Christ’s. ‘In pauca fidelis!...Now will you neglect little things, if Heaven
itself is promised to those who mind them?” (St. J. Escriva, “The Way”, 819).
24-26. God expects us to strive to put to good use the gifts we have received —
and He lavishly rewards those who respond to His grace. The king in the parable
is shown to be very generous towards his servants—and generous in rewarding
those who managed to increase the money they were given. But he is very se-
vere towards the lazy servant who was also the recipient of a gift from his Lord,
who did not let it erode but guarded it carefully—and for this his king criticizes
him: he failed to fulfill the just command the king gave him when he gave him the
money: “Trade till I come.” If we appreciate the treasures the Lord has given us
— life, the gift of faith, grace—we will make a special effort to make them bear fruit
— by fulfilling our duties, working hard and doing apostolate. “Don’t let your life be
barren. Be useful. Make yourself felt. Shine forth with the torch of your faith and
your love. With your apostolic life, wipe out the trail of filth and slime left by the
corrupt sowers of hatred. And set aflame all the ways of the earth with the fire of
Christ that you bear in your heart” (St. J. Escriva, “The Way”, 1).
28. Normally in the Gospels when there is mention of going to the Holy City it
is in terms of “going up” to Jerusalem (cf. Matthew 20:18; John 7:8), probably
because geographically the city is located on Mount Zion. Besides, since the
temple was the religious and political center, going up to Jerusalem had also a
sacred meaning of ascending to the holy place, where sacrifices were offered to
God.
Particularly in the Gospel of St. Luke, our Lord’s whole life is seen in terms of a
continuous ascent towards Jerusalem, where His self-surrender reaches its high
point in the redemptive sacrifice of the Cross. Here Jesus is on the point of ente-
ring the city, conscious of the fact that His passion and death are imminent.
*********************************************************************************************
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.
Liturgical Colour: Green.
First reading |
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2 Maccabees 7:1,20-31 © |
Responsorial Psalm |
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Psalm 16(17):1,5-6,8,15 © |
Gospel Acclamation | 1Jn2:5 |
---|
Or: | cf.Jn15:16 |
---|
Gospel | Luke 19:11-28 © |
---|
Luke | |||
English: Douay-Rheims | Latin: Vulgata Clementina | Greek NT: Byzantine/Majority Text (2000) | |
Luke 19 |
|||
11. | As they were hearing these things, he added and spoke a parable, because he was nigh to Jerusalem, and because they thought that the kingdom of God should immediately be manifested. | Hæc illis audientibus adjiciens, dixit parabolam, eo quod esset prope Jerusalem : et quia existimarent quod confestim regnum Dei manifestaretur. | ακουοντων δε αυτων ταυτα προσθεις ειπεν παραβολην δια το εγγυς αυτον ειναι ιερουσαλημ και δοκειν αυτους οτι παραχρημα μελλει η βασιλεια του θεου αναφαινεσθαι |
12. | He said therefore: A certain nobleman went into a far country, to receive for himself a kingdom, and to return. | Dixit ergo : Homo quidam nobilis abiit in regionem longinquam accipere sibi regnum, et reverti. | ειπεν ουν ανθρωπος τις ευγενης επορευθη εις χωραν μακραν λαβειν εαυτω βασιλειαν και υποστρεψαι |
13. | And calling his ten servants, he gave them ten pounds, and said to them: Trade till I come. | Vocatis autem decem servis suis, dedit eis decem mnas, et ait ad illos : Negotiamini dum venio. | καλεσας δε δεκα δουλους εαυτου εδωκεν αυτοις δεκα μνας και ειπεν προς αυτους πραγματευσασθε εως ερχομαι |
14. | But his citizens hated him: and they sent an embassage after him, saying: We will not have this man to reign over us. | Cives autem ejus oderant eum : et miserunt legationem post illum, dicentes : Nolumus hunc regnare super nos. | οι δε πολιται αυτου εμισουν αυτον και απεστειλαν πρεσβειαν οπισω αυτου λεγοντες ου θελομεν τουτον βασιλευσαι εφ ημας |
15. | And it came to pass, that he returned, having received the kingdom: and he commanded his servants to be called, to whom he had given the money, that he might know how much every man had gained by trading. | Et factum est ut rediret accepto regno : et jussit vocari servos, quibus dedit pecuniam, ut sciret quantum quisque negotiatus esset. | και εγενετο εν τω επανελθειν αυτον λαβοντα την βασιλειαν [και] ειπεν φωνηθηναι αυτω τους δουλους τουτους οις εδωκεν το αργυριον ινα γνω τις τι διεπραγματευσατο |
16. | And the first came, saying: Lord, thy pound hath gained ten pounds. | Venit autem primus dicens : Domine, mna tua decem mnas acquisivit. | παρεγενετο δε ο πρωτος λεγων κυριε η μνα σου προσειργασατο δεκα μνας |
17. | And he said to him: Well done, thou good servant, because thou hast been faithful in a little, thou shalt have power over ten cities. | Et ait illi : Euge bone serve, quia in modico fuisti fidelis, eris potestatem habens super decem civitates. | και ειπεν αυτω ευ αγαθε δουλε οτι εν ελαχιστω πιστος εγενου ισθι εξουσιαν εχων επανω δεκα πολεων |
18. | And the second came, saying: Lord, thy pound hath gained five pounds. | Et alter venit, dicens : Domine, mna tua fecit quinque mnas. | και ηλθεν ο δευτερος λεγων κυριε η μνα σου εποιησεν πεντε μνας |
19. | And he said to him: Be thou also over five cities. | Et huic ait : Et tu esto super quinque civitates. | ειπεν δε και τουτω και συ γινου επανω πεντε πολεων |
20. | And another came, saying: Lord, behold here is thy pound, which I have kept laid up in a napkin; | Et alter venit, dicens : Domine, ecce mna tua, quam habui repositam in sudario : | και ετερος ηλθεν λεγων κυριε ιδου η μνα σου ην ειχον αποκειμενην εν σουδαριω |
21. | For I feared thee, because thou art an austere man: thou takest up what thou didst not lay down, and thou reapest that which thou didst not sow. | timui enim te, quia homo austerus es : tollis quod non posuisti, et metis quod non seminasti. | εφοβουμην γαρ σε οτι ανθρωπος αυστηρος ει αιρεις ο ουκ εθηκας και θεριζεις ο ουκ εσπειρας |
22. | He saith to him: Out of thy own mouth I judge thee, thou wicked servant. Thou knewest that I was an austere man, taking up what I laid not down, and reaping that which I did not sow: | Dicit ei : De ore tuo te judico, serve nequam. Sciebas quod ego homo austerus sum, tollens quod non posui, et metens quod non seminavi : | λεγει δε αυτω εκ του στοματος σου κρινω σε πονηρε δουλε ηδεις οτι εγω ανθρωπος αυστηρος ειμι αιρων ο ουκ εθηκα και θεριζων ο ουκ εσπειρα |
23. | And why then didst thou not give my money into the bank, that at my coming, I might have exacted it with usury? | et quare non dedisti pecuniam meam ad mensam, ut ego veniens cum usuris utique exegissem illam ? | και δια τι ουκ εδωκας το αργυριον μου επι τραπεζαν και εγω ελθων συν τοκω αν επραξα αυτο |
24. | And he said to them that stood by: Take the pound away from him, and give it to him that hath ten pounds. | Et astantibus dixit : Auferte ab illo mnam, et date illi qui decem mnas habet. | και τοις παρεστωσιν ειπεν αρατε απ αυτου την μναν και δοτε τω τας δεκα μνας εχοντι |
25. | And they said to him: Lord, he hath ten pounds. | Et dixerunt ei : Domine, habet decem mnas. | και ειπον αυτω κυριε εχει δεκα μνας |
26. | But I say to you, that to every one that hath shall be given, and he shall abound: and from him that hath not, even that which he hath, shall be taken from him. | Dico autem vobis, quia omni habenti dabitur, et abundabit : ab eo autem qui non habet, et quod habet auferetur ab eo. | λεγω γαρ υμιν οτι παντι τω εχοντι δοθησεται απο δε του μη εχοντος και ο εχει αρθησεται απ αυτου |
27. | But as for those my enemies, who would not have me reign over them, bring them hither, and kill them before me. | Verumtamen inimicos meos illos, qui noluerunt me regnare super se, adducite huc : et interficite ante me. | πλην τους εχθρους μου εκεινους τους μη θελησαντας με βασιλευσαι επ αυτους αγαγετε ωδε και κατασφαξατε εμπροσθεν μου |
28. | And having said these things, he went before, going up to Jerusalem. | Et his dictis, præcedebat ascendens Jerosolymam. | και ειπων ταυτα επορευετο εμπροσθεν αναβαινων εις ιεροσολυμα |
(*) The laconic quality of Latin is notable in verse 15.
Always a pleasure to wake up to God’s words!
Amen!
Pray for Pope Francis.
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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.
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