Year A

Jan 16 2025

Scripture Study for

Israel’s law was quite humane. It exhorted the Israelites to be especially attentive to those within their community who were the most vulnerable, defenseless, and disadvantaged. It singled out the alien, the widow, and the orphan, because in a patriarchal society these groups had very little legal recourse. If they were further oppressed and they cried out to God, God would hear their cry just as God had heard the cry of the Israelites when they were in bondage in Egypt. The law is also concerned with those burdened with financial hardship. Every attempt must be made to ensure that they undergo no added humiliation or distress.

Paul insists that, as important as the transmission of the gospel might be, it is really handed down by the example of lifestyle. He challenges the Christians to follow his example and that of Jesus. He has a particular circumstance in mind when he says this. The Thessalonians were converted in the midst of affliction, and it is within such circumstances that they give witness to others. Those who are faithful amidst the tribulations of this life will be spared the final wrath of God. Paul is not painting a picture of doom; he is giving meaning to the hardships that the Christians are presently enduring.

A Pharisee, a lawyer or expert in the law, asks Jesus to identify which of the six hundred thirteen commandments is the most important, an issue that held con siderable interest at the time. Jesus’ answer is faithful to his own Jewish faith. He endorses the summons that constitutes the Shema, the most significant prayer of the Israelite religion (see Deuteronomy 6:5). He insists that the love of God must occupy one’s entire being and not be simply a superficial allegiance. He then adds a second commandment, which is said to be like the first in importance. From this proclamation flows the responsibility to love God with one’s entire being and to love one’s neighbor as oneself.

Jan 16 2025

God’s Currency

In a country that has a strong commitment to separation of church and state, it is noteworthy that our money, both bills and coins, is inscribed with the words “In God We Trust.” The history of this motto and its relation to our currency goes back to the Civil War. Changing it has never gotten much support. It serves as a helpful reminder about where our true security lies.

In the Gospel, the Pharisees, along with some supporters of the Roman regime called Herodians, get into the act of trying to trap Jesus into taking a stand that would get him in trouble with either the Roman authorities or his own people. But Jesus, as much the fox as Herod was reputed to be, slips out of their net by noting that there can be different loyalties without a loss of priorities.

Jesus calls on them to produce the idolatrous coin that no devout Jew should carry, since it declared Caesar to be a god. Then he advises them to return to the emperor the coin that bears his image but to return to God what bears God’s image, that is, themselves, made in the image of God.

A new order is revealed when we give God’s image back to God by our words and deeds, showing God’s image to others. When this happens, the motto “In God We Trust” becomes not merely stamped on paper or branded on copper, but encountered in living flesh and blood.

Consider/Discuss

Do you ever reflect on the words stamped on the money in your pocket?
When have you experienced the tension between “repay[ing] to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God”?

Responding to the Word

We pray to recognize what it means to be a good citizen, giving to our country what is needed for the support of the common good. And we pray to discern wisely when loyalty to Christ and the building up of the kingdom of God may call for a response that challenges what civil authorities propose.

Jan 16 2025

Scripture Study for

Cyrus was the Persian ruler who permitted the Israelites to return from captivity in Babylon. He is called God’s anointed, a title ascribed to Israelite kings, and particularly Davidic kings. Cyrus the foreigner is the agent of the release of the Israelites, but their release is for the sake of the enlightenment of the foreign nations. It is not by accident that Cyrus plays this role. God has specially chosen him. This call occurred even though Cyrus did not know the God of Israel. God works through people without their even knowing that it is really God who is directing the events of history.

Paul writes in his own name and in the names of two missionary companions, Silvanus and Timothy. Apparently they were the three men who founded the church in Thessalonica and now they are writing back to their own converts. Paul speaks for all three men when he tells the Thessalonians how grateful the missionaries are for their fidelity to the gospel that was preached to them. The converts are remarkable for their show of faith, love, and hope. Theirs is an active faith, one that produces fruits. Probably the most significant expression of faith is the love that they show to others.

The Pharisees hoped to set a trap to ensnare Jesus. They ask him to interpret a point of law: Should the Jews pay taxes to Rome? If Jesus answers no, he can be accused of political insubordination of the type that might incite others to respond in kind. If he says yes, he will appear to have relinquished Israel’s boast of being a people bound only to God. He says neither yes nor no, but directs them to “give back” or “repay” what is owed to both Caesar and God. Jesus’ response suggests that one can indeed be loyal to both a religious tradition and a secular power. It may be very difficult at times, especially when their claims seem to conflict, but it is possible.

Jan 16 2025

Come to the Table Worthily

A newspaper columnist expressed his chagrin at friends not responding to his “e-vites” (e-mail invitations), even after repeated requests. He speculated that some might have held off responding in case “something better” came along.

Jesus tells a tale of invited guests refusing to come to a wedding feast for a king’s son. This parable is aimed once again at the religious leaders, confronting them with their refusal to accept him as one sent by God. Matthew’s violent version of the parable differs from Luke’s peaceful one (14:16–24), since it reflects the destruction of Jerusalem that happened decades later. But it reminded both communities that the invitation to the kingdom of God could be refused.

Matthew also includes the expulsion of a man who comes in without a wedding garment. This seems seem a little strange since people had been called in off the streets. It serves as a reminder that showing up is not enough. The grace of being invited to the Lord’s table, then as now, does not excuse us from wearing the appropriate garment—that is, “putting on” Christ.

Every Eucharist tells us that we have a place at the table, and this table prepares us for another table at the end of time, when all peoples will gather and the Lord will move among us, wiping every tear away, and death shall be no more. We are a people of many tables—of the word, the Eucharist, the world, and the kingdom of God.

Consider/Discuss

Do you see yourself as one who has been invited to have a place at many tables?
What does “putting on Christ” mean to you?
How do you think about the end time when all will gather?

Responding to the Word

We pray to respond wholeheartedly to God’s invitation to that final gathering place where rich food and choice wines will be served and our shepherd God, who even now spreads a table before us, will move among us. We can ask the Spirit to help us wear Christ well.

Jan 16 2025

Scripture Study for

Isaiah depicts a scene of permanent victory, abundant feasting, and life without end. He sees a high mountain on which a sumptuous feast, probably the banquet of the end of time, is prepared for all people. It is also on this mountain that God destroys death. Once death is destroyed there will be no cause for tears. Instead, there will be rejoicing. On that day of fulfillment, the people will acclaim the God to whom they looked for salvation. The hand of God, the symbol of God’s power, will rest on this holy mountain, bringing to fulfillment all of God’s promises and blessings.

Paul is not speaking here of the ordinary trials and sufferings that invade every life. He is talking about the tribulations that will engulf all people at the onslaught of the end time, the suffering known as the “birth pangs of the Messiah.” For Paul, the burdens of his ministry form the avenue by which he enters this time of tribulation. He does not make light of the help that the Philippians must have offered him. Acting this way, they actually participated in his ministerial endeavors, and he is grateful. For this reason, they too are promised a share in the glory of the new age.

Once again Jesus is in confrontation with the leaders of the people. The apocalyptic character of the parable he tells is unmistakable. The metaphor of a banquet to describe the delights of the age of fulfillment can be traced as far back as the ancient prophets (see Isaiah 25:6). An interim exists between the initial invitation to the wedding banquet and the announcement that the banquet is ready. This interim resembles the period of time between the invitation to participate in the age of fulfillment and one’s entrance into that age. The point of the parable is clear: enjoyment of the time of fulfillment is open to all, but guaranteed to none.