February 24, 2014

Monday of the Seventh Week in Ordinary Time

Beloved:
Who among you is wise and understanding?
Let him show his works by a good life
in the humility that comes from wisdom.
But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts,
do not boast and be false to the truth.
Wisdom of this kind does not come down from above
but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic.
For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist,
there is disorder and every foul practice.
But the wisdom from above is first of all pure,
then peaceable, gentle, compliant,
full of mercy and good fruits,
without inconstancy or insincerity.
And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace
for those who cultivate peace.

Responsorial Psalm Ps 19:8, 9, 10, 15

R. (9a) The precepts of the Lord give joy to the heart.
The law of the LORD is perfect,
refreshing the soul;
The decree of the LORD is trustworthy,
giving wisdom to the simple.
R. The precepts of the Lord give joy to the heart.
The precepts of the LORD are right,
rejoicing the heart;
The command of the LORD is clear,
enlightening the eye.
R. The precepts of the Lord give joy to the heart.
The fear of the LORD is pure,
enduring forever;
The ordinances of the LORD are true,
all of them just.
R. The precepts of the Lord give joy to the heart.
Let the words of my mouth and the thought of my heart
find favor before you,
O LORD, my rock and my redeemer.
R. The precepts of the Lord give joy to the heart.

Gospel Mk 9:14-29

As Jesus came down from the mountain with Peter, James, John
and approached the other disciples,
they saw a large crowd around them and scribes arguing with them.
Immediately on seeing him,
the whole crowd was utterly amazed.
They ran up to him and greeted him.
He asked them, “What are you arguing about with them?”
Someone from the crowd answered him,
“Teacher, I have brought to you my son possessed by a mute spirit.
Wherever it seizes him, it throws him down;
he foams at the mouth, grinds his teeth, and becomes rigid.
I asked your disciples to drive it out, but they were unable to do so.”
He said to them in reply,
“O faithless generation, how long will I be with you?
How long will I endure you? Bring him to me.”
They brought the boy to him.
And when he saw him,
the spirit immediately threw the boy into convulsions.
As he fell to the ground, he began to roll around
and foam at the mouth.
Then he questioned his father,
“How long has this been happening to him?”
He replied, “Since childhood.
It has often thrown him into fire and into water to kill him.
But if you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.”
Jesus said to him,
“‘If you can!’ Everything is possible to one who has faith.”
Then the boy’s father cried out, “I do believe, help my unbelief!”
Jesus, on seeing a crowd rapidly gathering,
rebuked the unclean spirit and said to it,
“Mute and deaf spirit, I command you:
come out of him and never enter him again!”
Shouting and throwing the boy into convulsions, it came out.
He became like a corpse, which caused many to say, “He is dead!”
But Jesus took him by the hand, raised him, and he stood up.
When he entered the house, his disciples asked him in private,
“Why could we not drive the spirit out?”
He said to them, “This kind can only come out through prayer.”

From: James 3:13-18

True and False Wisdom

[13] Who is wise and understanding among you? By his good life let him show
works in the meekness of wisdom. [14] But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish
ambition in your hearts, do not boast and be false to the truth. [15] This wisdom
is not such as comes down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, devilish. [16]
For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile
practice. [17] But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle,
open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, without uncertainty or insincerity.

[18] And the harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make
peace.

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Commentary:

13-18. These verses point out the qualities of Christian wisdom (cf. 1:5). After ex-
horting his readers to manifest their wisdom by their actions (verse 13), he at-
tacks the signs of false wisdom (verses 14-16) and explains the qualities of the
true (verses 17-18).

St. Paul also makes a distinction between worldly wisdom — the wisdom of man
when he veers away from his correct goal — and the wisdom of God, which rea-
ches its highest expression on the Cross (cf. 1 Corinthians 1:18-3:3). St. James
pays particular attention to the practical effects of godly wisdom—meekness, mer-
cy and peace.

False wisdom, on the contrary, leads to bitter zeal, rivalry and resentment: it is
“earthly” because it rejects things transcendental and supernatural; “unspiritual”
(merely natural, “psychi” in the original Greek), as befits people who follow their
nature as wounded by Original Sin, deprived of the help of the Spirit (cf. notes on
1 Corinthians 2:14-16; Jude 19-20); “devilish”, in the sense that such people are
inspired by the devil, who is envious (cf. Wisdom 2:24), “a liar and the father of
lies” (John 8:44).

18. What this verse means is that the “peacemakers” of the Beatitudes (cf. Mat-
thew 5:6 and note) create around themselves an environment making for righ-
teousness (holiness), and they themselves benefit from the peace they sow.
“There can be no peace,” Bl. John XXIII says, “between men unless there is
peace within each of them: unless, that is, each one builds up within himself
the order wished by God” (”Pacem In Terris”, 165).

The “harvest of righteousness” is the equivalent of righteousness itself: it is kee-
ping the law of the Gospel, doing good works, which show true wisdom. The pas-
sage is reminiscent of Isaiah 32:17-18: “and the effects of righteousness will be
peace, and the result of righteousness, quietness and trust for ever. My people
will abide in a peaceful habitation, in secure dwellings and in quiet resting pla-
ces.”

Every Christian who strives to live in accordance with his vocation is a sower of
holiness and justice-with-peace: “Through your work, through the whole network
of human relations,” St. Escriva says, “you ought to show the charity of Christ
and its concrete expression in friendship, understanding, human affection and
peace. Just as Christ ‘went about doing good’ (Acts 10:38) throughout Palestine,
so much you also spread peace in your family circle, in civil society, at work,
and in your cultural and leisure activities” (”Christ Is Passing By”, 166).

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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: Mark 9:14-29

The Curing of an Epileptic Boy

[14] And when they came to the disciples, they saw a great crowd about them,
and scribes arguing with them. [15] And immediately all the crowd when they
saw Him (Jesus), were greatly amazed, and ran up to Him and greeting Him. [16]
And He asked them, “What are you discussing with them?” [17] And one of the
crowd answered Him, “Teacher, I brought my son to you, for he has a dumb spi-
rit; [18] and wherever it seizes him, it dashes him down; and he foams and grinds
his teeth and becomes rigid; and I asked Your disciples to cast it out, and they
were not able.” [19] And He answered them, “Oh faithless generation, how long
am I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you? Bring him to Me.”

[20] And they brought the boy to Him; and when the spirit saw Him, immediately
it convulsed the body, and he fell on the ground and rolled about, foaming at the
mouth. [21] And Jesus asked his father, “How long has he had this?” And he
said, “From childhood. [22] And it has often cast him into the fire and into the
water, to destroy him; but if You can do anything, have pity on us and help us.”
[23] And Jesus said to him, “If you can! All things are possible to him who be-
lieves.” [24] Immediately the father of the child cried out and said, “I believe; help
my unbelief!” [25] And when Jesus saw that a crowd came running together, He
rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it, “You dumb and deaf spirit, I command
you, come out of him, and never enter him again.” [26] After crying out and con-
vulsing him terribly, it came out, and the boy was like a corpse; so that most of
them said, “He is dead.” [27] But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him up,
and he arose. [28] And when He had entered the house, His disciples asked Him
privately, “Why could we not cast it out?” [29] And He said to them, “This kind
cannot be driven out by anything but prayer and fasting.”

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Commentary:

17. The demon who possessed this boy is described as a “dumb spirit” because
dumbness was the main feature of the possession. On diabolic possession cf.
note on Matthew 12:22-24.

19-24. As on other occasions, Jesus requires submission of faith before He works
the miracle. The exclamation of Jesus refers to the request of the boy’s father
(verse 22), which seemed to suggest some doubt about God’s omnipotence. The
Lord corrects this way of asking and requires him to have firm faith. In verse 24
we can see that the father has quite changed; then Jesus does the miracle. The
man’s strengthened faith made him all-powerful, for someone with faith relies not
on himself but on Jesus Christ. Through faith, then, we become sharers in God’s
omnipotence. But faith is a gift of God, which man, especially at times when he is
wavering, should ask humbly and tenaciously, like the father of this boy: “I believe,
help my unbelief,” and like the Apostles: “Increase our faith!” (Luke 17: 5).

28-29. “In teaching the Apostles how to expel a spirit as evil as this He is teaching
all of us how we should live, and telling us that prayer is the resource we should
use to overcome even the severest temptations, whether they come from unclean
spirits or from men. Prayer does not consist only in the words we use to invoke
God’s clemency but also in everything we do, out of faith, as homage to God.
The Apostle bears witness to this when he says: `Pray constantly’ (1 Thessalo-
nians 5:7)” (St. Bede, “In Marci Evangelium Expositio, in loc.”).

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

Readings at Mass

First reading

James 3:13-18 ©

If there are any wise or learned men among you, let them show it by their good lives, with humility and wisdom in their actions. But if at heart you have the bitterness of jealousy, or a self-seeking ambition, never make any claims for yourself or cover up the truth with lies – principles of this kind are not the wisdom that comes down from above: they are only earthly, animal and devilish. Wherever you find jealousy and ambition, you find disharmony, and wicked things of every kind being done; whereas the wisdom that comes down from above is essentially something pure; it also makes for peace, and is kindly and considerate; it is full of compassion and shows itself by doing good; nor is there any trace of partiality or hypocrisy in it. Peacemakers, when they work for peace, sow the seeds which will bear fruit in holiness.

Psalm

Psalm 18:8-10,15 ©