Ordinary Time

Dec 17 2024

Scripture Study for

The account of the dialogue between Abraham and God over the fate of Sodom and Gomorrah is actually a discussion about the nature of divine justice. In traditional societies, there is a tension between communal guilt and innocence and individual guilt and innocence. More emphasis is given to the group than to the individual member. At issue in this passage is the extent to which the righteousness of a few people can balance the sinfulness of most. The story demonstrates the power of the righteous. God is willing to allow a few righteous people to save many.

Paul describes the effects of the triumph of the power of God in the lives of believers as it is manifested in the resurrection of Christ. He does this by relating Christ’s burial in the grave of the earth with the burial of Christians in the waters of baptism. Paul’s argument moves from consideration of actual physical death to spiritual death, the condition of those who, because of sin, are separated from God, who is the source of life. It is important to note that it was precisely while they were sinners that they were saved. The debt owed because of transgressions of the past has been canceled.

Jesus’ own practice of prayer prompted his disciples to ask for direction in their prayer, just as the disciples of other religious leaders asked to be taught to pray. Jesus’ discourse on prayer can be divided into three separate but related segments: the Lord’s Prayer itself (vv. 1–4), an example of persistence in prayer (vv. 5–8), and the assurance of that prayer will be heard (vv. 19–13). There is question about whether this passage should be seen as an actual prayer or as a pattern to follow when praying. The persistence with which one should pray is characterized by the story of the man who woke his sleeping friend. This entire discourse encourages the disciples to persevere in prayer.

Dec 17 2024

Crossing Boundaries

It is instructive to look at the maps found in most Bibles. You get a sense of how “man-made” (here meaning “made by males”) boundaries are. The boundary lines of the biblical world at the time of the Exodus yield to those at the time of King David and then again to those of the world at the time of Babylonian ascendency, and on to the time of Jesus and the early church. The shifting boundaries are a constant over the centuries.

The two stories today reveal a seismic shift in boundaries between God and us. Up until this time in the story of Abraham, God had spoken with Abraham, but now God comes for a home visit. A boundary of intimacy is crossed. Abraham provides a meal and waits on the Lord. In response, God tells Sarah that, after a quarter of a century of hearing the promise, she will have a son by next year.

When Jesus said to Martha that Mary had chosen the better part, he was also approving a shift in boundaries. There were physical boundaries in the Jewish home, “male space” and “female space.” By sitting at the feet of Jesus, Mary had crossed the line. Only a disciple of a teacher would do this and only a man could be a disciple. When Martha notes that Mary is not where she belongs, helping in the kitchen, Jesus makes clear where he stands—and where Mary can sit. All part of a new creation, and not yet a finished one either.

Consider/Discuss

What boundaries have changed in your lifetime?
What boundaries still need to be changed, opening up more shared space?

Responding to the Word

Loving God, you set the boundaries of earth, sky, and sea. In doing this, you provide a place for us to live responsibly and work happily in your creation. Direct our efforts to be as hospitable as Abraham was to passing strangers and as innovative as Jesus was with his friends Martha and Mary.

Dec 17 2024

Scripture Study for

The reading from Genesis follows a classic story form well known in the ancient Near East: heavenly beings come in disguise to a humble home, are shown hospitality, and announce a future birth.

Abraham is portrayed here as the perfect host. One of the visitors foretells the birth of Sarah’s son. Sarah’s significance is clear. She is named rather than merely identified as Abraham’s wife. The child is identified as her son rather than Abraham’s. Obviously, this woman will play an important role in the life of this child. All of this points to the extraordinary nature of the yet unborn child.

Paul rejoices in his sufferings, for he believes that they will benefit the Colossian Christians. He would never say that the sufferings of Jesus were in any way lacking in their atoning efficacy. Rather, he believed that, joined to Jesus, his own sufferings had merit and could be seen as part of the sufferings that would inaugurate the messianic age. Ultimately, the real message that Paul proclaims is Christ the risen Lord. To borrow from the great Jewish rabbi Hillel, everything else is commentary! However, commentary is necessary for us to understand the specific impact of the message in every time and place.

Martha welcomes Jesus into her house. She is not merely overwhelmed with the traditional household duties; she is fulfilling the customary responsibilities of hospitality. The word “service” has specific ministerial connotations. Mary sits at Jesus’ feet, the customary place of a disciple. In their own ways, both sisters are faithful disciples of Jesus, one listening to his word and the other performing service. Jesus is not being asked to intervene in a domestic squabble. He is being asked to set priorities. Last Sunday we saw that attention to the person in need is to be preferred over the fulfillment of one’s everyday responsibilities. The story of Martha and Mary seems to be another example of this principle.

Dec 16 2024

Our Good Neighbor God

The word “neighbor” is rooted in the Old English words “near” (neah) and “a dweller” (gebur). A neighbor, then, is one who dwells near. As a boy, I lived in what was called a row home; all the houses on our street were attached. Our neighbors were those who literally lived next door.

Today’s readings take the definition of a neighbor beyond physical nearness. When the lawyer asks Jesus, “Who is my neighbor?” he was asking about the requirement of the law that commanded that one love one’s neighbor as oneself. Jesus’ answer went to the heart of the issue. To be a neighbor was to reach out to help anyone in need, setting aside any barriers that either society or selfishness might set up. To be a neighbor was to open one’s heart to another, recognizing in the other the image of the God who created them. To be a neighbor was to treat another with mercy.

When Moses said God’s law was “something very near, already in your mouths and in your hearts,” he was presenting God as a true neighbor, as near as our heartbeat. When Paul said Jesus was both the image of the invisible God and the head of his body, the church, could any image better capture the nearness of Christ and his church? St. Teresa of Ávila echoed this when she said, “Christ has no body now but yours, no hands or feet on earth but yours. Yours are the eyes through which Christ’s compassion looks upon the world.”

Consider/Discuss

Is the basic choice to be either a neighbor whose love touches other lives, or a parasite that lives off other lives?
Can being a member of Christ’s body move you to drawing nearer to someone today?

Responding to the Word

God, who placed your law in our hearts, help us to remember your nearness to us in the depths of our being, and to allow your Son’s law of love to guide what we see, say, and do. Increase our openness to your Spirit and how your Spirit guides us.

Dec 16 2024

Scripture Study for

Moses instructs the people about the law’s importance and its accessibility. To those who may say that the law is too difficult to understand or too lofty to observe, Moses replies: No! It is neither mysterious nor remote. Even a cursory examination will show that while it is indeed the word of God, it comes to us through human experience. In other words, the law of God is as close to us as is our own human life. This is a bold claim because it identifies human experience as the place where the word of God is to be found.

The exalted description of Christ in the second reading extols the divine character and activity of Christ rather than his human nature and earthly existence. Paul characterizes Christ as the image of God, firstborn, the beginning, the head of the church. Each image adds a significant dimension to our understanding of Christ. Christ occupies the place of preeminence over the rest of creation, a preeminence that makes creation dependent upon him. Using the metaphor of body, Paul depicts both the union that exists between Christ and the church and the preeminence that is Christ’s as head of that body. Finally, Christ is seen as the agent of reconciliation.

A lawyer challenges Jesus’ knowledge of the law. Jesus shows that he knows and conforms to that law, and then he turns the lawyer’s challenge back on him by asking him to answer his own questions. The lawyer quotes the two passages from scripture that encompass all of one’s responsibilities. Jesus responds with a parable in which he changes the question from “Who is my neighbor?” to “What does it mean to be a neighbor?” The lawyer had asked about required works and is instructed about heartfelt love. The admonition is striking: Go and do likewise! Put aside racial or religious prejudices in order to meet the needs of others! Put aside all other responsibilities in order to love the other!