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Commentary on Matthew 15:21-28

Jesus is seen on one of his few visits outside Jewish territory. The cities of Tyre and Sidon are on the Mediterranean coast in what is today Lebanon. While he is there he is approached by a Canaanite (i.e. a non-Jewish) woman whose child is “tormented by a demon”. Whether it was an actual possession or some natural physical or mental ailment does not really matter.  Already the woman’s faith and trust in Jesus is indicated by the way she addresses him, “Lord, Son of David!” coupled with her plea for his compassion.

At first, Jesus ignores her completely. The disciples intervene and ask Jesus to give her what she wants because she is making such a nuisance of herself. Jesus replies that his mission is only to the “house of Israel”, to which this woman clearly does not belong.

In the meantime the woman continues her pleading, “Lord, help me.” She is following, in fact, advice that the Gospel gives – keep on asking. Jesus replies in words that sound very harsh, if not racist:

It is not fair to take the children’s food and throw it to the dogs.

‘Dogs’, together with ‘swine’, was a common colloquial expression among Jews for Gentiles. We see this also earlier in Matthew’s Gospel:

Do not give what is holy to dogs, and do not throw your pearls before swine, or they will trample them under foot and turn and maul you. (Matt 7:6)

The dog was regarded as an unclean and promiscuous animal. Because it was such a common expression, it is probably not as harsh as it sounds to us and, if spoken with a measure of humour (implied by Jesus’ use of the diminutive word, ‘doggies’), would not have given offence at all. As they say, everything is in the tone of voice. Jesus was not a racist — that is clear from other situations where he dealt with non-Jews and with other commonly despised groups.

For her part, the woman certainly is not in the least fazed. She comes right back, saying:

Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.

That was enough for Jesus. She had proved her genuineness:

Woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you wish.

Her daughter was cured on the spot. It is a hint of what is to come. Membership as one of God’s people will be measured, not by birth or circumcision, but by a living faith in Jesus as Lord.

A story like this is an occasion for us to look at our own attitudes to people of other races, ethnic groups and nationalities, not to mention the socially disadvantaged or physically or mentally disabled—in other words, any people who are ‘different’. How inclusive are we in word and action? And does our parish community go out of its way to provide a welcome for the ‘outsider’? These are very real questions in societies which are becoming more and more multicultural.

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Commentary on Jeremiah 31:31-34

Today we have our final reading from Jeremiah, although there are still more than 20 chapters of the book left. This passage is regarded as the high point of the prophet’s words with its promise of a new covenant. And we need to remember that this was written 600 years before the coming of Christ and the New Testament or Covenant he brought.

The Jerusalem Bible describes the significance of the passage:

“In verses 31-34 Jeremiah reaches its highest peak of spirituality. The old covenant has been violated, and the attempted reform under Josiah has been short-lived: it is evident now that God has other plans. A disaster will ensue, leaving only a ‘remnant’ of the nation, and then an everlasting covenant will be made, a covenant as in the days of Noah. The former perspectives remain: man’s obedience to the Law, and the divine presence bestowing peace and material prosperity, this ideal being summed up in the formula: ‘I will be your God and you shall be my people’. But the covenant is ‘new’ in three respects:

1. God’s spontaneous forgiveness of sin;
2. individual responsibility and retribution;
3. interiorisation of religion.”

The Law is no longer to be a code regulating external activity, but an inspiration working on the heart of man. Now, under the influence of the spirit of God, the Law gives man a new heart capable of ‘knowing’ God. This new and eternal covenant, proclaimed again both by Ezekiel and by the closing chapters of Isaiah, is also operative in Psalm 51, and will be inaugurated by the sacrifice of Christ. Subsequently, the apostles will proclaim its fulfilment.

This passage is the longest sequence of Old Testament verses to be quoted in its entirety in the New Testament. It is found in the Letter to the Hebrews (8:8-12) and quoted again in part in Hebrews 10:16-17. This is the only passage (in v 31) in the whole of the Old Testament where the term “new covenant” (or “testament”) appears.  That ‘new covenant’ we now recognise in the new relationship with God established by Jesus Christ through his Paschal Mystery.

Jeremiah begins by proclaiming that “the days are surely coming”, a phrase that often refers to the Messianic era and, for us, there is a strong Messianic tone to the passage.

In those “days” God:

…will make a new covenant with the house of Israel [in the north] and the house of Judah [in the south]…

These will once again be united as one kingdom. “New covenant” is a term which is picked up in the New Testament more than once by Paul in his letters and in the Letter to the Hebrews. We know now that, while the old covenant was made solemn by the pouring of the blood of sacrificial animals, the new covenant will be made solemn by the blood of Christ poured out on the cross. The new covenant will differ in many significant ways from what will henceforth be called the ‘old’ or ‘first’ covenant made at Sinai.

In those days Jeremiah says, in a lovely phrase, God “took them by the hand”, echoing the beautiful words of Hosea:

…I took them up in my arms…
led them with cords of human kindness,
with bands of love.
I was to them like those
who lift infants to their cheeks. (Hos 11:3-4)

Yahweh took his people to liberate them from the slavery of Egypt, but as we have seen many times in these readings, it was they, not God, who broke that covenant and, as a result, they experienced many hardships. They would have to learn by painful experience that the Lord and only the Lord was their true ‘master’ (the word ‘master’ here may also be translated ‘husband’).

Then comes a description of this ‘new’ covenant to be made with the house of Israel, now seeing both kingdoms as one. It will not be simply a legal code, like that of Moses, to be observed by external acts:

I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts…

It was to effectively govern their lives, in contrast to the ineffectiveness of merely presenting it in writing, though inscribed on durable stone.

I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

The terms of the old covenant remain, but it is superseded by the new which will fulfil and go far beyond what was understood by the old. It will be a law totally assimilated into their very being so that its observance will flow naturally in all their words and actions. The old covenant is not abrogated; rather it becomes fully internalised.

Jesus will spell this out, especially in the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew’s Gospel, when he says that he comes not to abolish, but to fulfil the Law. And only then will God’s covenant statement be really fulfilled.

Then:

No longer shall they teach one another or say to each other…

In other words, there will no longer be those who are ignorant of God and his will for their lives. True knowledge of the Lord will be shared by all – young and old, the peasant and the powerful.

Because:

…they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest…

Using the word ‘know’ in its fullest sense, it indicates a deep, intimate and direct knowing and not simply an intellectual ‘knowing about’.

The consequence of this deep interpersonal relationship is that:

I will forgive their iniquity and remember their sin no more.

The very mutuality of the relationship will result in perfect reconciliation and forgiveness and the covenant promise will be fully realised:

I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

There will ensue that unity between God and his people of which Jesus will speak at the Last Supper:

I in them and you in me… (John 17:23)

It is for us to live the terms of this new covenant to the full. It is easy for Christians to fall back on an external living of their faith, seeing its observance in the keeping of external rules and regulations. We need to learn how to ‘know’ God in the deepest recesses of our hearts, to find him in every experience, to be aware of his unconditional love and to communicate that love to all those around us.

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Commentary on Matthew 16:13-23

We now reach a high point in Matthew’s narrative. More than any of the other Gospels, his is a Gospel of the Church (Mark emphasises discipleship; Luke the communication of God’s love and compassion; John unity with God through Jesus).

We find Jesus and his disciples in the district of Caesarea Philippi. This is not the fine city of Caesarea built by Herod the Great on the shore of the Mediterranean. It was a town, rebuilt by Herod’s son Philip, who called it after the emperor Tiberius Caesar and himself. It lay just to the north of the Sea of Galilee and near the slopes of Mount Hermon. It had originally been called Paneas, after the Greek god Pan and is known today as Banias.

The area was predominantly pagan, dominated by Rome. In a sense, therefore, it was both an unexpected yet fitting place for Jesus’ identity to be proclaimed. He was, after all, not just for his own people, but for the whole world.

Jesus begins by asking his disciples who people think he really is. They respond with some of the speculations that were going round: he was John the Baptist resurrected from the dead (Herod’s view, for instance), or Elijah (whose return was expected to herald the imminent coming of the Messiah), or Jeremiah or some other of the great prophets.

The Jews at this time expected a revival of the prophetic spirit which had been extinct since Malachi. John was regarded by many of the people as a prophet, although he denied that he was the expected prophet, often thought to be Elijah returned. The early Christians saw Jesus as a prophet, but with the appearance of prophecy as a charism in their communities, the term was dropped in his case.

Interestingly, the people did not seem to think that Jesus himself was on a par with these ‘greats’ of their history. We do tend to undervalue the leaders of our own time when compared with those of the past.

Jesus goes on to ask:

But who do you say that I am?

It was a moment of truth, a very special moment in his disciples’ relationship with their Master. Simon speaks up:

You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.

It is a huge step forward for Simon and his companions. As we shall see, it is not yet a total recognition of his identity or mission. But Jesus is no mere rabbi, no mere prophet, but the long-awaited Messiah and Saviour King who would deliver Israel. It is an exciting moment in their relationship with him. And it is only in Matthew that Simon Peter calls him “Son of God”.

The focus now shifts immediately to Simon. He is praised for his insight but Jesus makes clear that it comes from divine inspiration and is not a mere deduction. A ‘mystery’, in the Scripture sense, is being uncovered.

And now comes the great promise. Simon from now on is to be called “Peter”, a play on the word for ‘rock’ (kepha in Aramaic, petra/petros in Greek), for he will become the rock on which the “church” will be built – a rock which will stand firm against all attacks on it. This promise must have sounded very daring at the time it was written, but throughout more than 2,000 years it has again and again been vindicated. ‘Peter’, in either its Aramaic or Hebrew form, was not a previously known personal name.

The term ‘church’ only appears twice in Matthew and not at all in the other three Gospels. The Hebrew word qahal, which in Greek is rendered as ekklesia, means ‘an assembly called together’. It was used often in the Old Testament to indicate the community of the Chosen People.

According to the Jerusalem Bible:

“By using this term ekklesia side by side with ‘Kingdom of Heaven’, Jesus shows that this eschatological community (community of the ‘end-times’) is to have its beginnings here on earth in the form of an organised society whose leader he now appoints.”

And Peter is given power and authority, the “keys of the kingdom of heaven”, all that he will need to make the Kingdom a reality. His authority and that of the ‘church’ is the authority of Jesus himself. Whatever Peter and the church formally decide is immediately ratified by God; they are his appointed agents.

Lastly, they are strictly ordered not to tell anyone else that Jesus is the Messiah. The people are not ready to hear it. The people have their own expectations, which are very different from the Messiah that Jesus is going to be. The disciples themselves have a totally wrong idea, as becomes immediately clear in what follows.

From the moment that they recognise Jesus as Messiah, he begins to prepare them for what is going to happen:

[The Son of Man] must go to Jerusalem and undergo great suffering at the hands of the elders and chief priests and scribes and be killed and on the third day be raised.

This is the first of three ominous predictions.

After the euphoria of knowing their Master was the Messiah, all their dreams and hopes are shattered by these terrible revelations. It is hard for us to imagine the impact these words must have had. Peter, who had just covered himself in glory and been appointed leader, almost patronisingly takes Jesus aside, saying:

God forbid it, Lord! This must never happen to you.

For him and the others this was an unthinkable scenario for the Messiah for whom they were all waiting. How much more shocked Peter must have been at Jesus’ reaction:

Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me, for you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.

The man who was just now called the Rock is accused of being Satan’s advocate! Instead of being a rock of stability, he is seen as a stumbling block in the way of Jesus.

Peter is seen as doing the very work of the devil in trying to divert Jesus from the way he was called to go, the way in which God’s love would be revealed to us, the way in which we would be liberated for the life of the Kingdom.

It will take time before Peter and the others both understand and accept the idea of a suffering and dying Messiah. It will not happen until after the resurrection. Before that the “Rock” will be guilty of a shameful betrayal of the Man who put such trust in him.

We too should ask ourselves to what extent we accept Jesus the rejected, suffering, dying and rising Messiah.

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Commentary on Nahum 2:1,3;3:1-3,6-7

Today we have a single reading from the very short Book of Nahum (just three chapters). Nahum is one of the so-called ‘minor’ prophets, as opposed to ‘major’ prophets such as Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel and Daniel.

Nahum made his prophecy just before the fall of the Assyrian capital of Niniveh in 612 BC. His joy over the city’s and the empire’s downfall is understandable when one considers the savage cruelty for which it was notorious over nearly three centuries. Rightly he calls it a “bloody city”.

Today’s reading speaks of the imminent collapse of Niniveh, overthrown by the new juggernaut – Babylon. It is a triumphant song of joy over the fall of a great city (remember how the Book of Jonah said it took three days to cross – mostly likely something of an exaggeration).

The passage opens with the messenger coming across the mountains of Judah with a wonderful message of peace. Such good announcements of deliverance are common in Scripture: here it is deliverance from the threat of Assyria. Later there will be the deliverance from exile in Babylon and Paul in the Letter to the Romans will speak of our deliverance from sin through the “good news” of Jesus Christ (Rom 10:15) and quotes from this passage: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!”

The people are now urged to “fulfil your vows”, that is, the promises made to God during the times of distress for “nevermore shall you be invaded by the scoundrel (Belial)… He is completely destroyed.” This statement was fulfilled when Niniveh fell to the Babylonians in 612 BC. The Assyrian invasion in the days of King Manasseh was to be the last – but there were, unfortunately, other invasions to come.

The Lord was now restoring the vineyard, that is, uniting the two kingdoms of Israel and Judah, which had been ravaged and ruined by the enemy.

Niniveh, on the other hand, is a city “soaked in blood”. It is a city “full of lies, stuffed with booty, whose plunderings know no end”.

There is a graphic description of the Assyrian war machine which resulted in a “mass of wounded, countless corpses…” The wholesale killings of its conquered victims was well known. The Assyrians were notorious for their ruthlessness, brutality and terrible atrocities. Many of their victims were beheaded, impaled or burned.

There is a graphic run of short phrases giving a vivid picture of a mighty army at war, over-running its weaker enemies – the crack of the whip, rumbling wheels, galloping horses, racing chariots, charging cavalry, flaming swords, flashing spears bringing death and destruction – heaped corpses, endless bodies to fall over…

We are told that the Assyrian king Shalmaneser III boasted of erecting a pyramid of chopped-off heads in front of an enemy’s city. Other Assyrian kings stacked corpses like cordwood by the gates of defeated cities. The prophet’s descriptions are no exaggeration.

In verses which are omitted from our reading, Nahum describes Assyria as a doomed harlot:

So now Niniveh, the proud and arrogant city, is to be humiliated, “pelted with filth”. Like a disgraced harlot, she will be shamed and made a show of. She will be punished like a prostitute receiving punishment for her adulteries. She is being punished less for her idolatry or her practice of ritual prostitution, for she was a pagan city anyway, but for the terrible cruelties to her victims. Now she is utterly destroyed and there is not a shred of pity for her fate. She has received her just deserts.

There must have been times during the Assyrian conquests that God’s people wondered if it would ever come to an end. But it did. The joy of that discovery pervades the reading. Evil can never last indefinitely. It has always within it the seeds of its own destruction.

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Commentary on Matthew 16:24-28 Read Friday of Week 18 of Ordinary Time – Gospel »

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Commentary on Matthew 17:14-20 Read Saturday of Week 18 of Ordinary Time – Gospel »

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Commentary on Habakkuk 1:12-2:4 Read Saturday of week 18 of Ordinary Time – First Reading »

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Commentary on 2 Thessalonians 1:1-5,11-12

After eight weeks reading from the Old Testament prophets, today we return to the New Testament. For the next three days we will be reading from the Second Letter of Paul to the Christians at Thessalonica (now Thessaloniki), a city in Macedonia, north of Greece. Today we begin the first of three readings from the Second Letter to the Thessalonians.

Although this letter is usually ascribed to Paul, there are serious doubts about his being its real author, or that it was actually directed to the Christians of Thessalonica. Nevertheless, it has always been a part of the recognised canon, and we can read it with confidence as speaking God’s word to us.

The letter opens traditionally with the names of its claimed authors: Paul, with two of his helpers, Silvanus and Timothy, and its addressee, the “church of the Thessalonians” (i.e. the Christian community). There follows a Christian prayer of grace, peace and thanksgiving to God the Father and the Lord Jesus. The writers are full of gratitude to God because of the marvellous growth of faith and mutual love among the Thessalonian Christians, even though they are aware of some shortcomings also.

The Thessalonians are congratulated for standing out among the churches for their perseverance in spite of the persecutions and troubles they have had to face. This was a source of special pride for Paul and the other founders of this church, and they were not ashamed to boast of it. Paul seems to imply that it was somewhat unusual for the founders of a church to boast about this, though others might do so. However, the Thessalonians were so outstanding in this regard that Paul departed from his normal practice.

It shows that God, in allowing them to go through these trials, was right. He gave them the resources they needed and they rose to the occasion and proved themselves “worthy of the kingdom of God”. He provided strength to endure, and this in turn produced spiritual and moral character. Their sufferings are precisely for the promotion of the Kingdom as they give faithful witness to Jesus and the Gospel.

The passage ends with a lovely prayer that God will “fulfill by his power every good resolve and work of faith” and bring to completion all that the Thessalonians have been doing through faith in Christ. God initiates every good purpose and every act prompted by faith; Paul prays accordingly that he will bring these to fulfilment, saying:

…we always pray for you… so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you…

In ancient times one’s name was often more than a personal label; it summed up what a person was. Paul is praying that the name, that is, the person of the Lord Jesus, will be given glory in them, and they in him through the love of God and the Lord Jesus poured into their hearts.

As we read this passage we may reflect on a number of questions:

• Can it be said that our faith and mutual love, individually and collectively, are constantly growing?
• How do we behave and respond when our Christian faith is challenged, attacked or rubbished? Do we stand up or do we go into hiding? Do we hit back or pray for those who attack us?
• Can we see that the trials and setbacks of life are ways by which God is challenging the depth of our faith and calling for a deeper response of love and service?

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Commentary on Luke 9:43-45

After yesterday’s reading where the disciples recognised their Master as the Messiah and are told about the death and resurrection of Jesus, there follows the scene with the three chosen apostles on the mountain where they get a glimpse of Jesus in glory (the transfiguration). This is followed by the healing of the epileptic boy.

The reaction of the crowds to this cure was that:

…all were astounded at the greatness of God.

The were not astounded, we might note, by the mighty power of Jesus. Even the crowds could recognise the real source of what Jesus was able to do.

It is at this high point of Jesus’ popularity that he says just to his disciples:

Let these words sink into your ears: The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into human hands.

What Jesus seems to be saying is that they are to realise there is no contradiction whatsoever between Jesus revealing in himself the unlimited power of God and his being handed over, powerless, to the power of his enemies. Only when they can see and understand the meaning of a suffering Messiah will they fully know the Way of Jesus.

But, Luke tells us, they were not ready yet for this:

…they understood nothing about all these things; in fact, what he said was hidden from them, and they did not grasp what was said. (Luke 18:34)

And Luke tells us today:

…they were afraid to ask him about this saying.

To what extent can we say that we understand and accept the idea of a suffering Messiah? We are used to looking at the cross of Jesus, but to what degree do we see the place of suffering in our own lives? Can we see that, without pain and suffering in our own lives and in those of others, our lives would be in many ways impoverished? Strange as it may seem, it is pain and suffering that can bring out what is most deeply human in all of us.

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Commentary on Ecclesiastes 11:9—12:8

Today we come to the end of our selections from this book. Even in translation, one can see the poetry of the passage. Again, it can be read in a very pessimistic way, or with a sense of realism. The reading deals with the inevitability of old age and what it brings.

In Jewish tradition, going back to the book of Deuteronomy, long life was seen as a reward promised by God, and the greatest blessing given to those who had led good lives. However, for Qoheleth, old age is not happiness but the fear of death, regrets for one’s younger days, the slowing-down of life, and a painful slowing down before “the dust returns to the earth as it was”.

So he begins by urging the young to enjoy their lives while they still have the energy and vigour to do so. As the poet Robert Herrick says, “Gather ye rosebuds while ye may!” The young are told to:

Follow the inclination of your heart and the desire of your eyes…

Even so, there’s a the caveat that some day:

…for all these things God will bring you into judgment.

But there seems to be a mixed signal when he tells them to:

Banish anxiety from your mind, and put away pain from your body, for youth and the dawn of life are vanity.

For such a carefree and hedonistic life is in fact highly deceptive. They are told:

Remember your creator in the days of your youth, before the days of trouble come and the years draw near when you will say, “I have no pleasure in them”…

The wise young person will be mindful of the Creator while there is still time. For the days are coming when:

…the sun and the light and the moon and the stars are darkened and the clouds return with the rain…

This is perhaps describing the weakening sight and cataracts that come with aging.

There follows then a sad but moving description of old age when:

…strong men are bent, and the women who grind cease working…

…and the sound of the grinding is low [hearing difficulties arise]…

…when one is afraid of heights, and terrors are in the road [difficulty walking]…

Yet, while all that is happening, life continues with never-ending normality:

the almond tree blossoms, the grasshopper drags itself along, and the caper bud falls…

But, inexorably we move towards our “eternal home” in the bosom of the earth.

Already the mourners are getting ready to see us off, awaiting the moment:

…before the silver cord is snapped, and the golden bowl is broken, and the pitcher is broken at the fountain, and the wheel broken at the cistern, and the dust returns to the earth as it was, and the breath returns to God who gave it.

These are all poetic ways of describing the ultimate return to the earth of the dust from which we came.

Finally, the Teacher closes his message using the same words with which he opened his book: “Vanity of vanities…all is vanity.”

Yet, as the Jerusalem Bible comments:

“…while the book ends with the same words with which it began, in between it has covered much ground. It reminds us of our wretchedness and powerlessness but also of our greatness, by showing us that there is something greater beyond the world in which we live. It points us in the direction of the God who is above and beyond all that we can experience. It incites the reader to disinterested religion and to that kind of prayer in which a creature, aware of its nothingness, adores the mystery of God.”

Vanity, or meaninglessness, is not the last word.

It is possible to feel depressed on reading this book, but that is not its ultimate purpose and certainly not the intention of those who chose these readings for the liturgy.

Underneath the apparent negativity and cynicism is the deep truth of the transitoriness and fragility of all existence, and the importance of our using well the time—long or short—that has been given to us and, through the joys and pains that make up every life, finding God’s love and compassion there. Life is to be enjoyed but with the realisation that, on this earth, it has a very definite end for each individual.

Underneath it all, one is reminded of the great ‘Contemplation to Attain the Love of God’ which concludes the Spiritual Exercises of St Ignatius Loyola.  In four steps, the one doing the Exercises is urged to be aware of:

1. the blessings of creation and redemption with which one is surrounded;
2. how God is present in every level of creation, bringing it to its destined fulfilment;
3. how God works for me through every created thing, including his Son Jesus Christ; and finally,
4. how reflection and contemplation on all of this brings me to the very Source of everything:  

   For ‘In him we live and move and have our being’; as even some of your own poets have said,

   ‘For we, too, are his offspring.’(Acts 17:28)

To be united with that Source is my final Destiny and I can say with Paul:

For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Rom 8:38-39)