September 16, 2005
Memorial of Saint Cornelius, pope and martyr, and Saint Cyprian, bishop and martyr
Psalm: Friday 40
Reading I1 Tm 6:2c-12
Beloved:
Teach and urge these things.
Whoever teaches something different
and does not agree with the sound words of our Lord Jesus Christ
and the religious teaching
is conceited, understanding nothing,
and has a morbid disposition for arguments and verbal disputes.
From these come envy, rivalry, insults, evil suspicions,
and mutual friction among people with corrupted minds,
who are deprived of the truth,
supposing religion to be a means of gain.
Indeed, religion with contentment is a great gain.
For we brought nothing into the world,
just as we shall not be able to take anything out of it.
If we have food and clothing, we shall be content with that.
Those who want to be rich are falling into temptation and into a trap
and into many foolish and harmful desires,
which plunge them into ruin and destruction.
For the love of money is the root of all evils,
and some people in their desire for it have strayed from the faith
and have pierced themselves with many pains.
But you, man of God, avoid all this.
Instead, pursue righteousness, devotion,
faith, love, patience, and gentleness.
Compete well for the faith.
Lay hold of eternal life,
to which you were called when you made the noble confession
in the presence of many witnesses.
Responsorial PsalmPs 49:6-7, 8-10, 17-18, 19-20
R.
Blessed the poor in spirit; the Kingdom of heaven is theirs!Why should I fear in evil days
when my wicked ensnarers ring me round?
They trust in their wealth;
the abundance of their riches is their boast.
R.
Blessed the poor in spirit; the Kingdom of heaven is theirs!Yet in no way can a man redeem himself,
or pay his own ransom to God;
Too high is the price to redeem one’s life; he would never have enough
to remain alive always and not see destruction.
R.
Blessed the poor in spirit; the Kingdom of heaven is theirs!Fear not when a man grows rich,
when the wealth of his house becomes great,
For when he dies, he shall take none of it;
his wealth shall not follow him down.
R.
Blessed the poor in spirit; the Kingdom of heaven is theirs!Though in his lifetime he counted himself blessed,
“They will praise you for doing well for yourself,”
He shall join the circle of his forebears
who shall never more see light.
R.
Blessed the poor in spirit; the Kingdom of heaven is theirs!
GospelLk 8:1-3
Jesus journeyed from one town and village to another,
preaching and proclaiming the good news of the Kingdom of God.
Accompanying him were the Twelve
and some women who had been cured of evil spirits and infirmities,
Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out,
Joanna, the wife of Herod’s steward Chuza,
Susanna, and many others
who provided for them out of their resources.
The Gospel of the Lord.
From: 1 Timothy 6:2c-12
False Teachers Described
[2] Teach and urge these duties. [3] If any one teaches otherwise and
does not agree with the sound words of our Lord Jesus Christ and the
teaching which accords with godliness, [4] he is puffed up with
conceit, he knows nothing; he has a morbid craving for controversy and
for disputes about words, which produce envy, dissension, slander, base
suspicions, [5] and wrangling among men who are depraved in mind and
bereft of the truth, imagining that godliness is a means of gain.
[6] There is great gain in godliness with contentment; [7] for we
brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the
world; [8] but if we have food and clothing, with these we shall be
content. [9] But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into
a snare, into many senseless and hurtful desires that plunge men into
ruin and destruction. [10] For the love of money is the root of all
evils; it is through this craving that some have wandered away from the
faith and pierced their hearts with many pangs.
An Appeal to Defend the Faith
[11] But as for you, man of God, shun all this; aim at righteousness,
godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness. [12] Fight the good
fight of the faith; take hold of the eternal life to which you were
called when you made the good confession in the presence of many
witnesses.
Commentary:
1-2. It is reckoned that approximately half the population of Ephesus
were slaves; so it is reasonable to assume that a sizable proportion of
the Christians there were slaves.
The Apostle does not tackle the social problem of slavery in a direct
way; this does not mean that he was happy about the situation; he
simply felt it was more urgent to make people appreciate the intrinsic
dignity of all men and their equality in the order of grace (cf. Gal
3:29). Slaves too have been redeemed by Christ and called to be holy;
therefore, upright conduct is required of them as of others (for other
Pauline texts touching on slavery see, for example, Eph 6:5-9; Col
3:22-4:1; Tit 2:9-10; Philem 8-21 and the notes on same).
St Paul provides two criteria to guide slaves in their dealings with
others--apostolate and fraternity. For many pagans the example of their
slaves was their only way of learning about Christianity; therefore
slaves should act in a way that reflected their faith and their
Christian formation (v. 1). If their masters were believers, the
fraternity between master and slave should not lessen the slaves'
obligations: they should fulfill these obligations out of a deep sense
of Christian love. If this policy is applied, the whole social
structure will become imbued with a Christian spirit and eventually
the permanent abolition of slavery will come about, for "the ferment of
the Gospel has aroused and continues to arouse in the hearts of men an
unquenchable thirst for human dignity" (Vatican II, "Gaudium Et Spes",
26).
See also the note on Col 3:22 - 4:1.
3-10. What he has to say about unmasking false teachers shows he is
writing from long experience. He twice describes them as knowing
nothing. Their intentions are wrong, because they seek only personal
gain (v. 5); the reason why they cause controversy and are forever
arguing is to distract attention from their defects and lack of true
wisdom (v. 4).
"Sound words": words which bring spiritual health, words of salvation
(cf. note on 1:8-10). "The sacred words [words of salvation] of our
Lord Jesus Christ" (v. 3): this phrase, and the quotation from Luke
10:7 in 1 Timothy 5:18, give grounds for thinking that at the time this
letter was written there was in circulation among the Christians of
Ephesus, a written Gospel, specifically that of St Luke. However, there
is no other evidence to support this theory. The Apostle could be
referring to words of our Lord accurately passed on in oral teaching.
"Teaching which accords with godliness" (v. 3). The term "eusebeia"
("pietas"), godliness/religion/piety, which appears in the New
Testament only in the Second Epistle of St Peter and in the Pastoral
Epistles, has a broad meaning. Sometimes it refers to Christian
doctrine, not in the sense of abstract truths but as a revelation of
God to man. Sometimes it means "religion" (cf. 1 Tim 6:54, where it is
translated as "godliness"). In this passage (v. 3) it is the same as
"revealed truth" insofar as revealed truth is our link with God; if
one does not accept the truth, one breaks that link; if one makes use
of it for financial gain one perverts its inner meaning.
10. "The love of money is the root of all evils": probably a proverb
accepted even by pagans of the time, particularly the more educated
ones. Christians were well aware of the harmful effects of greed (cf.
1 Jn 2:17 and note). St Paul uses this memorable phrase to get at the
false teachers: the root cause of all their errors is their greed for
possessions. It is clearly a perverted thing to do to turn godliness,
religion, into a way of making money (v. 5). Those who try to satisfy
this ambition will end up unhappy and wretched.
"It hurts you to see that some use the technique of speaking about the
Cross of Christ only so as to climb and obtain promotion. They are the
same people who regard nothing as clean unless it coincides with their
own particular standards. All the more reason, then, for you to
persevere in the rectitude of your intentions, and to ask the Master to
grant you the strength to say: 'Non mea voluntas, sed tua fiat!--Lord,
may I fulfill your Holy Will with love'"([St] J. Escriva, "Furrow", 352).
These severe warnings show how much St Paul suffers over the harm being
done. "For many, of whom I have often told you and now tell you even
with tears, live as enemies of the cross of Christ" (Phil 3:18). Good
teachers, on the contrary, are content with food and a roof over their
head (v. 8); detachment has always been a pre-condition of apostolic
effectiveness: "The spirit of poverty and charity is the glory and
witness of the Church of Christ" (Vatican II, "Gaudium Et Spes", 88).
11-16. The letter's final piece of advice is given with special
solemnity. There are two reasons for constancy in the fight (v. 12):
the call to eternal life, and fidelity to the confession of faith made
at Baptism. The second obligation, to keep what is commanded (v. 14),
is urged with an appeal to the presence of two witnesses--God the
Father, and Jesus Christ (v. 13), who firmly proclaimed his kingship
to Pontius Pilate.
There is a very close connection between perseverance and the eternal
sovereignty of God (v. 16): "The eternity of God", St Bernard teaches,
"is the source of perseverance [...]. Who hopes and perseveres in love
but he who imitates the eternity of his charity? Truly, perseverance
reflects eternity in some way; only to perseverance is eternity granted
or, to put it better, only perseverance obtains eternity for man"
("Book of Consideration", 5, 14).
11. "Man of God": this expression was used in the Old Testament of men
who performed some special God-given mission--for example, Moses (Deut
33:1; Ps 40:1), Samuel (1 Sam 9:6-7); Elijah and Elisha(1 Kings 17:18;
2 Kings 4:7, 27, 42). In the Pastoral Epistles (cf. also 2 Tim 3:17) it
is applied to Timothy insofar as ordination has conferred on him a
ministry in the Church. Through ordination "the priest is basically a
consecrated man, a 'man of God' (1 Tim 6:11) [...]. The ministerial
priesthood in the people of God is something more than a holy public
office exercised on behalf of the community: it is primarily a
configuration, a sacramental and mysterious transformation of the
person of the man-priest into the person of Christ himself, the only
mediator (cf. 1 Tim 2:5)" (A. del Portillo, "On Priesthood", pp.
44-45).
"Fight the good fight": St Paul often uses military comparisons to
describe the Christian life (cf., e.g., 2 Cor 10:3-6; Eph 6:10-17; Col
1:29; 2 Tim 2:3; 4:7), and they have found their way into the ascetical
tradition of the Church (cf. note on 1 Tim 1:17-19). Here and in 2
Timothy he is referring more to keeping the truth unsullied, and to
preaching: the "good fight of the faith" is of great importance to
everyone.
"Confession in the presence of many witnesses": in addition to the day
of his consecration (cf. 1 Tim 4:14), Timothy would have often had
occasion to make public confession of his faith. However, this phrase
is couched in such formal terms that it seems to refer rather to the
profession of faith which has been made at Baptism ever since the early
years of the Church (cf. Acts 2:38-41).
Source: "The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries". Biblical text
taken from the Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries
made by members of the Faculty of Theology of the University of
Navarre, Spain. Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock,
Co. Dublin, Ireland.
From: Luke 8:1-3
The Holy Women
[1] Soon afterward He (Jesus) went on through cities and villages,
preaching and bringing the Good News of the Kingdom of God. And the
Twelve were with Him, [2] and also some women who had been healed of
evil spirits and infirmities: Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven
demons had gone out, [3] and Joanna, the wife of Chuza, Herod's
steward, and Susanna, and many others, who provided for them out of
their means.
Commentary:
1-3. The Gospel refers a number of times to women accompanying our
Lord. Here St. Luke gives us the names of three of them--Mary, called
Magdalene, to whom the risen Christ appeared beside the Holy Sepulchre
(John 20:11-18; Mark 16:9); Joanna, a lady of some position, whom we
also meet among the women who went to the tomb on the morning of the
Resurrection (Luke 24:10), and Susanna, whom the Gospel does not mention
again. The role of these women consisted in helping Jesus and His
disciples out of their own resources, thereby showing their gratitude
for what Christ had done for them, and in cooperating in His ministry.
Men and women enjoy equal dignity in the Church. Within the context of
that equality, women certainly have specific characteristics which must
necessarily be reflected in their role in the Church: "All the
baptized, men and women alike, share equally in the dignity, freedom
and responsibility of the children of God.... Women are called to
bring to the family, to society and to the Church, characteristics
which are their own and which they alone can give--their gentle warmth
and untiring generosity, their love for detail, their quick-wittedness
and intuition, their simple and deep piety, their constancy.... A
woman's femininity is genuine only if she is aware of the beauty of
this contribution for which there is no substitute--and if she
incorporates it into her own life" ([St] J. Escriva, "Conversations", 14 and
87).
The Gospel makes special reference to the generosity of these women.
It is nice to know that our Lord availed Himself of their charity, and
that they responded to Him with such refined and generous detachment
that Christian women feel filled with a holy and fruitful envy (cf.
[St] J. Escriva, "The Way", 981).
Source: "The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries". Biblical text
taken from the Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries
made by members of the Faculty of Theology of the University of
Navarre, Spain. Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock,
Co. Dublin, Ireland.
Pope Cornelius (251-253) was the successor to Pope Fabian. During his reign a controversy arose concerning the manner of reinstating those who had fallen from the faith under the duress of persecution. The Novatians accused the Pope of too great indulgence and separated themselves from the Church. With the help of St. Lucina, Cornelius transferred the remains of the princes of the apostles to places of greater honor. On account of his successful preaching the pagans banished him to Centumcellae, where he died. St. Cyprian sent him a letter of condolence. At the time of Pope Cornelius there were at Rome forty-six priests, seven deacons, seven subdeacons, forty-two acolytes, fifty-two clerics and more than five hundred widows who were supported by the Church (according to Cornelius' letter to Bishop Fabian of Antioch). 
Thascius Caecilius Cyprianus, illustrious as a pagan rhetorician in Carthage, embraced the true faith in the year 246 and was soon thereafter consecrated priest and bishop of that city (248). He was an energetic shepherd of souls and a prolific writer. He defended the unity of the Church against schismatic movements in Africa and Italy, and greatly influenced the shaping of Church discipline relative to reinstating Christians who had apostatized. He fled during the Decian persecution but guided the Church by means of letters. During the Valerian persecution (258) he was beheaded. He suffered martyrdom in the presence of his flock, after giving the executioner twenty-five pieces of gold. St. Jerome says of him: "It is superfluous to speak of his greatness, for his works are more luminous than the sun." Cyprian ranks as an important Church Father, one whose writings are universally respected and often read in the Divine Office. His principal works are: On the Unity of the Church; On Apostates; a collection of Letters; The Lord's Prayer; On the Value of Patience. 
At Chalcedon, were the deaths of St. Euphemia, virgin and martyr, under Emperor Diocletian and the proconsul Priscus. For her faith in our Lord she was subjected to tortures, imprisonment, blows, the torment of the wheel, fire, the crushing weight of stones, the teeth of the beasts, scourging with rods, the cutting of sharp saws, and burning pans, all of which she survived. But when she was again exposed to the beasts in the amphitheater, praying to our Lord to receive her spirit, one of the animals inflicted a bite on her holy body although the rest of them licked her feet, and she yielded her unspotted soul to God . . . At Rome, the holy martyrs Lucy, a noble matron, and Geminanus, were subjected to grievous afflictions and were for a long time tortured by the command of Emperor Diocletian. Finally, being put to the sword, they obtained the glorious victory of martyrdom. — The Roman Martyrology 
