Wednesday of the Twenty-fourth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading 1 1 Tm 3:14-16

Beloved:
I am writing you,
although I hope to visit you soon.
But if I should be delayed,
you should know how to behave in the household of God,
which is the Church of the living God,
the pillar and foundation of truth.
Undeniably great is the mystery of devotion,

Who was manifested in the flesh,
vindicated in the spirit,
seen by angels,
proclaimed to the Gentiles,
believed in throughout the world,
taken up in glory.

Responsorial Psalm Ps 111:1-2, 3-4, 5-6

R.(2) How great are the works of the Lord!
I will give thanks to the LORD with all my heart
in the company and assembly of the just.
Great are the works of the LORD,
exquisite in all their delights.
R. How great are the works of the Lord!
Majesty and glory are his work,
and his justice endures forever.
He has won renown for his wondrous deeds;
gracious and merciful is the LORD.
R. How great are the works of the Lord!
He has given food to those who fear him;
he will forever be mindful of his covenant.
He has made known to his people the power of his works,
giving them the inheritance of the nations.
R. How great are the works of the Lord!

Alleluia See Jn 6:63c, 68c

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Your words, Lord, are Spirit and life,
you have the words of everlasting life.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel Lk 7:31-35

Jesus said to the crowds:
"To what shall I compare the people of this generation?
What are they like?
They are like children who sit in the marketplace and call to one another,

'We played the flute for you, but you did not dance.
We sang a dirge, but you did not weep.'

For John the Baptist came neither eating food nor drinking wine,
and you said, 'He is possessed by a demon.'
The Son of Man came eating and drinking and you said,
'Look, he is a glutton and a drunkard,
a friend of tax collectors and sinners.'
But wisdom is vindicated by all her children."

From: 1 Timothy 3:14-16

The Church is God’s Household

[14] I hope to come to you soon, but I am writing these instructions to you so
that, [15] if I am delayed, you may know how one ought to behave in the house-
hold of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and bulwark of the
truth.

The Mystery of our Religion

[16] Great indeed, we confess, is the mystery of our religion: He was manifested
in the flesh, vindicated in the Spirit, seen by angels, preached among the nations,
believed on in the world, taken up in glory.

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

15. This verse contains three very evocative expressions which sum up the letter’s
ecclesiology or theology of the Church.

“The Church of the living God”: St Paul usually uses “church of God” and (once)
“church of Christ” (Rom 16:16), thereby implying continuity with the “assemblies
of Yahweh” in the Old Testament. The Church, in other words, is the true people
of God, founded on the New Covenant, heir to the ancient promises and trustee
of the means of salvation (cf. “Lumen Gentium”, 9). It is “the church of the living
God”, that is, it receives from him supernatural life (grace) and distributes it to
all. “It pleased God to call men to share in his life and not merely singly, without
any bond between them, but he formed them into a people, in which his children
who had been scattered were gathered together” Vatican II, “Ad Gentes”, 2).

“The household of God”: in the original Greek the definite article does not appear,
thereby emphasizing the family character of the Church. St Paul frequently de-
scribed the Church as God’s family: “you are fellow citizens with the saints and
members of the household of God” (Eph 2:19). The expression “household of God”
conveys the idea of family and also the idea of the cohesion of Christians as parts
of a holy building: the children of God, convoked by the will of God, form the
Church, a home and a temple, where God dwells in a fuller way than he did in the
ancient temple of Jerusalem (cf. 1 Kings 8:12-64).

This house or household of God is made up of all the believers; they are living
stones, as it were (1 Pet 2:5); its foundations are the Apostles (1 Cor 3:11), and
Christ himself is its cornerstone (Mt 21:42); those who hold office in it are not
domineering overlords but conscientious stewards, who should rule with the
same dedication as a father does in his own household (1 Tim 3:4-5, 12).

“Pillar and bulwark of the truth”: those aspects of the building would have been
very meaningful to Christians familiar with the great pillars of the temple of Jeru-
salem (cf. 1 Kings 7:15-52) or the columns of the huge temple at Ephesus dedi-
cated to the goddess Artemis. They very graphically convey the idea of the
Church’s solidity and permanence in the role of safeguarding and transmitting
the truth, for “the deposit of revelation [...] must be religiously guarded and cou-
rageously expounded” (”Lumen Gentium”, 25).

“The truth” which the Apostle mentions here is the Revelation God has commu-
nicated to men. It is interesting to note that there are three closely connected
expressions in this chapter: deacons are exhorted to hold “the mystery of faith”
(v. 9); the Church is “the pillar and bulwark of the truth” (v. 15); and then “the
mystery of our religion” is extolled (v. 16). These are three ways of looking at
the Church’s reason-of-being—Jesus Christ. For our Lord, who is the fullness of
Revelation (cf. Heb 1:2), is the center of our faith: he alone is the supreme Truth
(cf. In 14:6); and because he is the fullest expression of God’s love for men
(making them children of God), he is “the mystery of our religion” (cf. “Recon-
ciliatio Et Paenitentia”, 19).

16. The “pietatis mysterium”, the mystery of (our) religion, as opposed to the
“mystery of lawlessness” (2:Thess 2:7) which includes the devil and his activity,
refers first and foremost to Christ and his work of redemption and reconciliation.
By describing it as the mystery of “piety”, the virtue which characterizes parent/
children relations, it includes the idea of God’s paternal love for men, for it is
through Christ that men become children of God.

“It is profoundly significant”, John Paul II comments, “that when Paul presents
this “mysterium pietatis” he simply transcribes, without making a grammatical
link with what he has just written, three lines of a Christological hymn which—in
the opinion of authoritative scholars—was used in the Greek-speaking Christian
communities” (”Reconciliatio Et Paenitentia”, 20). The introduction itself (”we
confess”: by the confession of all), the rhythmic style, the fact that no articles
are used in the original Greek, and even the vocabulary — all point to these
verses having been taken from an early liturgical hymn (cf. 1 Cor 14:26; Eph 5:
19). It may even have been a kind of counter to the idolatrous chants of pagan
Ephesians: they used to shout “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!” (Acts 19:
34); St Paul exclaims, “Great is the mystery of our religion.”

The order of ideas in this confession of faith is typical of the christological hymns
in the New Testament (cf. Phil 2:6-11; Col 1:15-20; Heb 1:3), and probably re-
flects the oral preaching of the Apostles which took in the existence of the Word
from all eternity, his incarnation and life on earth; his message of salvation for the
whole world; his passion, death, resurrection and ascension into heaven. Each of
the three parts of this short creed stresses the paradox of the mystery by using
phrases involving contrasts (Semiteswere very fond of this device). The first sen-
tence, professing belief in the Incarnation, uses a very early form of words—”mani-
fested in the flesh” (cf. 1 Jn 4:2; 2 In 7). Pope John Paul II comments as follows:
“he was made manifest in the reality of human flesh and was constituted by the
Holy Spirit as the Just One who offers himself for the unjust” (”Reconciliatio Et
Paenitentia”, 20).

The second phrase describes how Christ is manifested: the angels have direct
sight of him, men came to know him through preaching. Christ is manifested to
all, for just as he is seen by the angels (that part of creation nearest to God), so
is he revealed to the Gentiles (whom the Jews regarded as most distanced from
God): “he appeared to the angels, having been made greater than them, and he
was preached to the nations, as the bearer of salvation” (”ibid.”).

The last words profess faith in the glorification of Christ at the extremes of crea-
tion—earth and heaven. On earth he is glorified because faith in him implies recog-
nizing him as God; and he is glorified in heaven because the Ascension (which in
Pauline teaching marks the definitive victory of Christ—cf. Phil 2:19-2 and note) is
the definitive glorious revelation of his Person: “he was believed in, in the world,
as the one sent by the Father, and by the same Father he was assumed into
heaven as Lord” (”ibid.”).

And so the “mysterium pietatis” involves the reconciliation—union of man with
God in Christ: he takes our flesh without ceasing to be God; the nations of the
earth will recognize him, as will the angels in heaven, he dwells in the hearts of
men through faith, but his mansion is in heaven at the Father’s side.

*********************************************************************************************
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 7:31-35

Jesus Reproaches His Contemporaries

(Jesus spoke to the crowds), [33] For John the Baptist has come eating no bread
and drinking no wine; and you say, ‘He has a demon.’ [34] The Son of Man has
come eating and drinking; and you say, Behold, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend
of tax collectors and sinners!’ [35] Yet wisdom is justified by all her children.”

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

31-34. See the note on Matthew 11:16-19.

[The note on Matthew 11:16-19 states:

16-19. Making reference to a popular song or a child’s game of His time, Jesus
reproaches those who offer groundless excuses for not recognizing Him. From
the beginning of human history the Lord has striven to attract all men to Himself:
“What more was there to do for My vineyard, that I have not done in it?” (Isaiah
5:4), and often He has been rejected: “When I looked for it to yield grapes, why
did it yield wild grapes?” (Isaiah 5:4).

Our Lord also condemns calumny: some people do try to justify their own beha-
vior by seeing sin where there is only virtue. “When they find something which is
quite obviously good,” St. Gregory the Great says, “they pry into it to see if there
is not also some badness hidden in it” (”Moralia”, 6, 22). The Baptist’s fasting
they interpret as the work of the devil; whereas they accuse Jesus of being a
glutton. The evangelist has to report these calumnies and accusations spoken
against our Lord; otherwise, we would have no notion of the extent of the malice
of those who show such furious opposition to Him who went about doing good
(Acts 10:38). On other occasions Jesus warned His disciples that they would
be treated the same as He was (cf. John 15:20).

The works of Jesus and John the Baptist, each in their own way, lead to the ac-
complishment of God’s plan for man’s salvation: the fact that some people do not
recognize Him does not prevent God’s plan being carried into effect.]

35. The wisdom referred to here is divine Wisdom, especially Christ Himself (cf.
Wisdom 7:26; Proverbs 8:22). “Children of Wisdom” is a Hebrew way of saying
“wise men”; he is truly wise who comes to know God and love Him and be
saved by Him—in other words, a saint.

Divine wisdom is revealed in the creation and government of the universe, and,
particularly, in the salvation of mankind. Wise men “justifying” wisdom seems
to mean the wise, the saints, bear witness to Christ by living holy lives: “Let your
light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and give glory to
your Father who is in Heaven” (Matthew 5:16).

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

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

Readings at Mass

Liturgical Colour: Green.

First reading
1 Timothy 3:14-16 ©

The mystery of our religion is very deep

At the moment of writing to you, I am hoping that I may be with you soon; but in case I should be delayed, I wanted you to know how people ought to behave in God’s family – that is, in the Church of the living God, which upholds the truth and keeps it safe. Without any doubt, the mystery of our religion is very deep indeed:

He was made visible in the flesh,

attested by the Spirit,

seen by angels,

proclaimed to the pagans,

believed in by the world,

taken up in glory.

Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 110(111):1-6 ©

Great are the works of the Lord.

Alleluia!

I will thank the Lord with all my heart

in the meeting of the just and their assembly.

Great are the works of the Lord,

to be pondered by all who love them.

Great are the works of the Lord.

Alleluia!

Majestic and glorious his work,

his justice stands firm for ever.

He makes us remember his wonders.

The Lord is compassion and love.

Great are the works of the Lord.

Alleluia!

He gives food to those who fear him;

keeps his covenant ever in mind.

He has shown his might to his people

by giving them the lands of the nations.

Great are the works of the Lord.

Alleluia!

Gospel Acclamation	cf.1Th2:13

Alleluia, alleluia!

Accept God’s message for what it really is:

God’s message, and not some human thinking.

Alleluia!

Or:	cf.Jn6:63,68

Alleluia, alleluia!

Your words are spirit, Lord, and they are life;

you have the message of eternal life.

Alleluia!

Gospel	Luke 7:31-35 ©

'We played the pipes, and you wouldn't dance'

Jesus said to the people:

‘What description can I find for the men of this generation? What are they like? They are like children shouting to one another while they sit in the market-place:

‘“We played the pipes for you,

and you wouldn’t dance;

we sang dirges,

and you wouldn’t cry.”

‘For John the Baptist comes, not eating bread, not drinking wine, and you say, “He is possessed.” The Son of Man comes, eating and drinking, and you say, “Look, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.” Yet Wisdom has been proved right by all her children.’

Luke
	English: Douay-Rheims	Latin: Vulgata Clementina	Greek NT: Byzantine/Majority Text (2000)
	Luke 7
31.	And the Lord said: Whereunto then shall I liken the men of this generation? and to what are they like?	Ait autem Dominus : Cui ergo similes dicam homines generationis hujus ? et cui similes sunt ?	τινι ουν ομοιωσω τους ανθρωπους της γενεας ταυτης και τινι εισιν ομοιοι
32.	They are like to children sitting in the marketplace, and speaking one to another, and saying: We have piped to you, and you have not danced: we have mourned, and you have not wept.	Similes sunt pueris sedentibus in foro, et loquentibus ad invicem, et dicentibus : Cantavimus vobis tibiis, et non saltastis : lamentavimus, et non plorastis.	ομοιοι εισιν παιδιοις τοις εν αγορα καθημενοις και προσφωνουσιν αλληλοις και λεγουσιν ηυλησαμεν υμιν και ουκ ωρχησασθε εθρηνησαμεν υμιν και ουκ εκλαυσατε
33.	For John the Baptist came neither eating bread nor drinking wine; and you say: He hath a devil.	Venit enim Joannes Baptista, neque manducans panem, neque bibens vinum, et dicitis : Dæmonium habet.	εληλυθεν γαρ ιωαννης ο βαπτιστης μητε αρτον εσθιων μητε οινον πινων και λεγετε δαιμονιον εχει
34.	The Son of man is come eating and drinking: and you say: Behold a man that is a glutton and a drinker of wine, a friend of publicans and sinners.	Venit Filius hominis manducans, et bibens, et dicitis : Ecce homo devorator, et bibens vinum, amicus publicanorum et peccatorum.	εληλυθεν ο υιος του ανθρωπου εσθιων και πινων και λεγετε ιδου ανθρωπος φαγος και οινοποτης φιλος τελωνων και αμαρτωλων
35.	And wisdom is justified by all her children.	Et justificata est sapientia ab omnibus filiis suis.	και εδικαιωθη η σοφια απο των τεκνων αυτης παντων

31. And the Lord said, Whereunto then shall I liken the men of this generation? and to what are they like?
32. They are like to children sitting in the marketplace, and calling one to another, and saying, We have piped to you, and you have not danced; we have mourned to you, and you have not wept.
33. For John the Baptist came neither eating bread nor drinking wine; and you say, He has a devil.
34. The Son of man is come eating and drinking; and you say, Behold a gluttonous man, and a wine-bibber, a friend of Publicans and sinners!
35. But wisdom is justified of all her children.

CYRIL; There was as a certain play among, the Jewish children of this kind. A company of boys were collected together, who mocking the sudden changes in the affairs of this life, some of them sang, some mourned, but the mourners did not rejoice with those that rejoiced, nor did those who rejoiced fall in with those that wept. They then rebuked each other in turn with the charge of want of sympathy. That such were the feelings of the Jewish people and their rulers, Christ implied in the following words, spoken in the person of Christ; Whereunto then shall I liken the men of this generation, and to what are they like?

They are like to children sitting in the market-place.

THEOPHYL; The Jewish generation is compared to children, because formerly they had prophets for their teachers, of whom it is said, Out of the mouths of babes and sucklings have you perfected praise.

AMBROSE; But the prophets sung, repeating in spiritual strains their oracles of the common salvation; they wept, soothing with mournful dirges the hard hearts of the Jews. The songs were not sung in the market-place, nor in the streets, but in Jerusalem. For that is the Lord's forum, in which the laws of His heavenly precepts are framed.

GREG. NYSS. But singing and lamentation are nothing else but in the breaking forth, the one indeed of joy, the other of sorrow. Now at the sound of a tune played upon a musical instrument, man by the concordant beating of his feet, and motion of his body, portrays his inward feelings. Hence he says, We have sung, and you have not danced; we have mourned to you and you have not wept.

AUG. Now these words have reference to John and Christ. For when he says, We have mourned, and you have not wept, it is in allusion to John, whose abstinence from meat and drink signified penitential sorrow; and hence he adds in explanation, For John came neither eating bread, nor drinking wine, and you say he has a devil.

CYRIL; They take upon themselves to slander a man worthy of all admiration. They say that he who mortifies the law of sin which is in his members has a devil.

AUG. But his words, We have piped to you, and you have not danced, refer to the Lord Himself, who by using meats and drinks as others did, represented the joy of His kingdom. Hence it follows, The Son of man came eating and drinking &c.

TIT. BOST. For Christ would not abstain from this food, lest He should give a handle to heretics, who say that the creatures of God are bad, and blame flesh and wine.

CYRIL; But where could they point out the Lord as gluttonness? For Christ is found every where repressing excess, and leading men to temperance. But He associated with publicans and sinners. Hence they said against Him, He is a friend of Publicans and sinners, though He could in no wise fall into sin, but on the contrary was to them the cause of salvation. For the sun is not polluted though sending its rays over all the earth, and frequently falling upon unclean bodies. Neither will the Sun of righteousness be hurt by associating with the bad. But let no one attempt to place his own condition on a level with Christ's greatness, but let each considering his own infirmity avoid having dealing with such men, for "evil communications corrupt good manners." It follows, And wisdom is justified of all her children.

AMBROSE; The Son of God is wisdom, by nature, not by growth, which is justified by baptism, when it is not rejected through obstinacy, but through righteousness is acknowledged the gift of God. Herein then is the justification of God, if he seems to transfer His gifts not to the unworthy and guilty, but to those who are through baptism holy and just.

CHRYS. But by the children of wisdom, He means the wise. For Scripture is accustomed to indicate the bad rather by their sin than their name, but to call the good the children of the virtue which characterizes them.

AMBROSE; He well says, of all, for justice is reserved for all, that the faithful may be taken up, the unbelievers cast out.

AUG. Or, when he says, wisdom is justified of all her children, he show that the children of wisdom understand that righteousness consists neither in abstaining from nor eating food, but in patiently enduring want. For not the use of such things, but the coveting after them, must be blamed; only let a man adapt himself to the kind of food of those with whom he lives.

Catena Aurea Luke 7

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.

Pray a Rosary each day for our nation.

1. Sign of the Cross: In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

2. The Apostles Creed: I BELIEVE in God, the Father almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. He descended into hell; on the third day he rose again from the dead; he ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of God, the Father Almighty; from there He shall come to judge the living and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.

3. The Lord's Prayer: OUR Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen.

4. (3) Hail Mary: HAIL Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou amongst women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now, and in the hour of our death. Amen. (Three times)

5. Glory Be: GLORY be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

6. Fatima Prayer: Oh, my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of hell, lead all souls to heaven, especially those in most need of your mercy.

Announce each mystery, then say 1 Our Father, 10 Hail Marys, 1 Glory Be and 1 Fatima prayer. Repeat the process with each mystery.

End with the Hail Holy Queen:
Hail, Holy Queen, Mother of Mercy, our life, our sweetness and our hope! To thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve! To thee do we send up our sighs, mourning and weeping in this vale of tears! Turn then, most gracious advocate, thine eyes of mercy towards us; and after this, our exile, show unto us the blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus!

O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary! Pray for us, O holy Mother of God, that we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

Final step -- The Sign of the Cross

The Mysteries of the Rosary By tradition, Catholics meditate on these Mysteries during prayers of the Rosary. The biblical references follow each of the Mysteries below.

The Glorious Mysteries
(Wednesdays and Sundays)
1.The Resurrection (Matthew 28:1-8, Mark 16:1-18, Luke 24:1-12, John 20:1-29) [Spiritual fruit - Faith]
2. The Ascension (Mark 16:19-20, Luke 24:50-53, Acts 1:6-11) [Spiritual fruit - Christian Hope]
3. The Descent of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:1-13) [Spiritual fruit - Gifts of the Holy Spirit]
4. The Assumption [Spiritual fruit - To Jesus through Mary]
5. The Coronation [Spiritual fruit - Grace of Final Perseverance]

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September 18 2019

Wednesday of the Twenty-fourth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading 1 1 Tm 3:14-16

Responsorial Psalm Ps 111:1-2, 3-4, 5-6

Alleluia See Jn 6:63c, 68c

Gospel Lk 7:31-35

Readings at Mass