Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Jan 15 2025

Scripture Study for

Elijah has retreated into a cave, but God calls him from this place of shelter and darkness to stand before the Lord out in the open. There he witnesses the wind, the earthquake, and the fire associated with God’s appearance, but he does not experience God within these natural marvels. It is only when he hears a “tiny whispering sound” that he is gripped with the realization that God is present. He covers his face in an act of reverence. Most commentators maintain that this tiny whisper points to the importance of the small and seemingly insignificant in life as the stage upon which the revelation of God is enacted.

Paul speaks about his ardent attachment to his Jewish compatriots, his kindred according to the flesh. Although he has turned from proclaiming the gospel to the Jewish people and devoted himself to the conversion of the Gentiles, he never ceases loving the people from whom he came. It is this very love that causes him such anguish, because his own people have not accepted Jesus as the Messiah whom God first promised and then sent to them. Paul lists several prerogatives that they enjoy as the chosen people of God. However, their great est boast is that the anointed one of God came from them.

In the pre-dawn dimness, the apostles saw Jesus walking toward them on the water. To portray Jesus walking on the chaotic water was to cast him in the guise of this creator-god who alone governs chaotic waters. Peter accepted Jesus’ invitation to walk on the water to him. Peter is a model of both faith and lack of faith. He believed that he would be able to walk on the water, and he did; he doubted that he would be able to long endure the chaotic waters, and he did not. Ultimately, it was faith that won out, for Peter cried out to Jesus, knowing that Jesus had the power to save him, and he did.

Jan 12 2025

“Come!”

In the Gospel, the disciples battle a headwind. The sea is rough. Their boat struggles. In the first reading, Elijah has clashed with King Ahab and Queen Jezebel and has run from their death threats. Now he experiences an earthquake and crushing rocks and violent wind. What a lot of trouble in both stories! Do you ever feel pandemonium swirling around you?

In the turbulence, Elijah hears a “silent sound.” He knows the whisper of his God and comes to meet God at the entrance of the cave. From the surface of the stormy sea, Jesus says one word to Peter: “Come.” Peter recognizes the call of his Master. He steps out of the boat.

“Come!” Often, we think about what that means to us. But what does this vibrant beckoning say about the reality of who our God is? The Almighty has the raw power to rock mountains. The Son has the authority to still violent seas. The Spirit hovers over creation. Yet at the core of that Triune sovereignty is the resounding call: “Come!”

We hear “Come!” in the call of the disciples. We hear it in “Let all who thirst, come!” We hear it in “The Spirit and the bride say, ‘Come!’ ” Jesus reveals to us how deeply we are desired: “Come to me.” Augustine says that our hearts are restless until they rest in God. How much more restless is God’s heart for us?

God’s “Come!” enfolds our entire being. We are wanted. That same divine command triggered the process of our birth—we are desired on earth. A heavenly “Come!” will set the process of our death in motion: we are sought after in heaven. No matter what, the chaos will not win. We have nothing to fear. Radiant delight surrounds us at all times.

Consider/Discuss

The eternal “Come!” can be so quiet that we have to tune our spiritual senses to perceive it, for in the bedlam of life, we may miss it. What of the chaos can we “turn down” in order to hear more carefully the still small voice of our Beloved?
Peter steps out of the boat after he recognizes the call of Jesus, the Master. The rest of the disciples do not. Which of the characters in the story do you identify with? Would you stay in the boat? Would you step out onto the water? Why or why not?

Living and Praying with the Word

Jesus, you summon us in prayer, “Come to me!” You beckon us when we are heavily laden. You call to us when we are afraid. You want to give us your peace. At the same time, you know that we push back. You even know why, when we do not. Lord, strengthen our spiritual powers so that we grow more sensitive to hearing you. You are restless for us. Open our hands and help us come to you.

Jan 12 2025

Scripture Study for

After besting Jezebel’s prophets, Elijah runs away to Horeb, where God appears, accusingly asking him why he is there. He responds that his life has been threatened. The command to “stand before the Lord” means to serve God; Elijah is in effect being told to get back to work. Yet before he returns to the task, God has a lesson for him. Visible phenomena that regularly accompany God are not God, who is found in silence, barely perceptible, but nonetheless present. God again asks, so why are you here? Although Elijah’s role as God’s prophet endangers him, God’s protecting presence is with him, even when he cannot see it. He must learn to trust in it.

Paul has proclaimed that God has predestined and foreknown those who would be conformed to Christ and become heirs with him to glory. Thus a difficult question: what to make of the fact that so many Jews have not accepted that Jesus is the Messiah? To speak of the divine plan is to speak of God’s history with Israel, beginning with God’s “adoption” of Israel and culminating in the promised Messiah. Accordingly, they should be receiving the adoption, the inheritance, and the glory now coming to those who have been conformed to Christ through baptism. It would appear that something has gone horribly wrong with God’s plan. Paul will go on to develop his argument that this does not mean that “the word of God has failed” (9:6).

The multiplication of the fish and loaves showed that in Jesus God was providing, something God regularly does in the scriptures. Today’s reading, which immediately follows, features another action associated with God: salvation from chaos, often portrayed as dangerous waters. Just as in the Old Testament God proclaims that in the divine presence there is nothing to fear from chaos, so does Jesus. But it requires faith to believe that Jesus can save from chaos. Thus it is not so much that Jesus has walked on water that causes those in the boat to exclaim that he is the Son of God, as their witness that he has saved Peter from the chaotic waters (despite his lack of faith).

Jan 06 2025

Trustworthy Servants of a Trustworthy God

The author of Hebrews calls our attention to the faith of Abraham. Abraham’s faith showed itself in his willingness to depart from his home and leave his kin, to trust a promise that his descendants would outnumber the stars, and to be willing to trust God to provide even when God asked him to sacrifice the son who guaranteed the promised future. Through all this, a covenant was initiated.

Moses and his people trusted God to take them from the slavery of Egypt to freedom. God’s trustworthiness was shown over the coming centuries, not only by leading them into a promised land, but into a covenantal relationship that found itself renewed again and again, despite Israel’s infidelities.

With Jesus came a new covenant in his blood, and a call to his followers to replace any fear they might have with an abiding trust in the Father to give them the promised kingdom. He spoke about having a fidelity that would characterize them as good servants in the household of faith. The hallmarks of this fidelity would be watchfulness for the master’s return, a commitment to guarding the treasures of the household and caring for its members, and an abiding bond among those who serve.

The stakes of being a good servant are great: either to earn the respect of the master on his return or to lose it, to receive the gratitude of a master who would serve them or to see only sadness and disappointment in his eyes.

Consider/Discuss

How do you respond to the call to be a trustworthy servant?
What form does service to the Lord and the divine household take in your life?

Responding to the Word

Jesus, you have promised that if we are faithful in serving you, as you have been in serving the Father’s will by your life and death, then you will invite us to recline at table on your return and you will wait on us. Help us to find in this promise good reason to serve you.

Jan 06 2025

Scripture Study for

The reading from Wisdom reinterprets the account of the plagues experienced in Egypt. It contrasts the plight of the Israelites and that of the Egyptians, showing how God reversed the very means employed by the Egyptians to afflict the Israelites. The Egyptians themselves were smitten, while the Israelites escaped unscathed. The focus in this account is on the providence of God in sparing the Israelites. For Israel, there was always a point of pride in these wondrous feats. However, they were ultimately accomplished for the glory of God’s name, never for the glory of Israel itself.

The author of Hebrews states that faith is an openness of mind and heart, not merely a set of propositions. He turns to Abraham’s faith to illustrate this. Abraham was willing to leave his home for a land he did not know. His faith became apparent again at the conception of Isaac. Finally, Abraham’s faith was manifested in his willingness to respond to God’s command to sacrifice that son of promise. The prospect of Isaac’s death demonstrates his trust that the God who brought life from a man who was “as good as dead” could bring about the life of this son.

Jesus’ address to his disciples reveals the tender nature of their relationship. The metaphor of a flock suggests both intimate knowledge and wholehearted commitment on the part of the shepherd. He assures them that, regardless of how demanding his teaching might seem, it has their best interests at heart. He announces that the reign of God is theirs, and he then exhorts them to live lives that demonstrate their citizenship in that realm. He directs them to be watchful, instructing them to be prepared like servants awaiting the return of the house holder. He links the return of the householder with the coming of the Son of Man. Since there is no telling when he will arrive, loyal servants must be prepared at all times.