Second Sunday in Ordinary Time

Jan 13 2025

Scripture Study for

The first reading is taken from the second “servant song” of Isaiah. The servant has been called to bring the people back to God. However, this mission has been expanded to include all people. This servant is to be a light to all the nations. It is noteworthy that a people struggling with its own survival because of its defeat by a more powerful nation should envision its God as concerned with the salvation of all, presumably even the nation at whose hands it suffered. Yet this is precisely what “light to the nations” suggests.

Paul begins his letter to the Corinthians by identifying himself as an apostle, one sent by another with a commission. He was called to be an apostle; he did not volunteer. Therefore, as an apostle, it is the authority of Christ that he exercises. He maintains that all of this transpired because it was God’s will. In a very real sense, this official greeting is really a proclamation of faith on Paul’s part. Just as he had been called to be an apostle, so the members of the Corinthian church had been called to be holy.

The scene portrayed in today’s Gospel reading is familiar to many of us. It includes the report of the baptism of Jesus and the Baptist’s identification of Jesus as Lamb of God. John did not know Jesus. He only recognized him through divine revelation. John then contrasts the person of Jesus and himself, as well as the efficacy of their respective baptisms. Jesus may have come after John, but he ranks far above him. And their baptisms are very different. John baptized with water. Jesus will baptize with the Holy Spirit, the same Spirit John saw descend on Jesus at the time of his baptism. This led John to testify to his belief in Jesus as the Son of God. These comparisons and this testimony point to Jesus as Son of God.

Jan 08 2025

Ordinary Time, Holy Life

Blah! We have moved into Ordinary Time. Christmas is over. The January doldrums have set in. We are surrounded by the same plain old life and the same plain old people.

The Super Bowl might break the post-Christmas blahs for football fans. Snow banks can become snow forts for those who like to dig. Otherwise, blah. Where’s the adventure? Where’s the excitement? Those big moments like Christmas and weddings and vacations mark our lives; it’s the six-tiered cake pictures that go into our memory books!

The baptism of Jesus was a big moment. In today’s Gospel, John the Baptist is still talking about it. He is remembering: “I have seen!” He is telling others about how the dove descended and how the Lord spoke: “and I have testified!” He is about to send his followers into action.

Ordinary Time is the time for remembering. Then we put memory into action. Isaiah remembers how God formed him in the womb and called him to a life of prophetic service; therefore, he calls the Israelites back, to be a holy nation. The psalmist remembers how God drew him out of a pit of destruction and put a new song in his mouth. Therefore, he wants to follow: “To do your will is my delight.”

So how do we work our way through Ordinary Time? We remember. Then we act. Every day is a remembering, followed by the noble adventure of following Jesus. Thus it is the everyday moments that make our lives. We may not have a picture of mom’s oatmeal in our memory books, but it nourished us daily. We may not have a picture of the hug that quieted our tears, but it shaped our soul. Day-to-day personal holiness—the faithfulness, kindness, and honesty of everyday life—that is what history is made of.

Consider/Discuss

We don’t have to achieve holiness all by ourselves; the Holy Spirit is called the Sanctifier for a reason. If we grow attuned to listening to the Spirit, we will be brought to holiness. What do you remember of what God has done for you? How does that spur you to act?
Step by step, we are to be transformed into the person of Christ—to be a gift of love to this world. Tell a story of what everyday holiness has looked like in your life.

Living and Praying with the Word

God Almighty, you are grand and glorious! We see your grandeur when we look at the vastness of the stars and the radiance of the sun. Yet our lives are lived in littleness. Getting out of bed each day, taking one step after another, we mark the days of our lives. Send us your grace in abundance so that we will do each little task for love of you. Let your Spirit rest on us as well and make holy our actions, even when they lead through the desert.

Jan 08 2025

Scripture Study for

In Exodus 19:6, God announces that Israel is being formed to be “a holy nation,” a people that shows to the rest of the earth the holiness of God by its way of life. Just so, the servant in the first reading is intended to take up Israel’s role and show forth God’s glory. The servant is first charged with a mission to bring back Israel (“Jacob”) to God, that is, to gather Israel back into faithful relationship with God. The servant will then take up the role of Israel and act as a light to the nations, drawing them to God so that they, like Israel, may receive salvation.

Paul’s greeting to the Corinthians signals a theme of the letter, namely the Corinthians’ holiness. He first alludes to his authority as an apostle of Christ. He will rely on this authority to address problems in the church at Corinth, all of which relate in some way to a failure on the Corinthians’ part to appreciate the implications of their life in Christ, which is to be sanctified and sanctifying. Those who call on the name of Christ are of the church of God—and Paul will remind them of what this means for their conduct, especially with each other.

John the Baptist identifies Jesus as both “Lamb of God” and “Son of God.” The former points toward Jesus’ death on the cross, which the Evangelist will associate with the sacrifice of the Passover lamb (Jesus dies on the “preparation day” when the lambs are slaughtered and his legs are not broken, just as the bones of the Passover lamb are not to be broken [John 19:33, 36; Exodus 12:46]). This image is combined with that of the Suffering Servant of Isaiah 53:5–7, who, “like a lamb led to slaughter” will take on the sins of the people. The death of Jesus as the Lamb of God will be effective because Jesus is the Son of God, on whom now, as at his baptism, the Spirit rests.

Dec 13 2024

Scripture Study for

According to Isaiah, the vindication that is in store for Jerusalem is more than a restoration. The city is promised a new name, and this implies a new creation. One of the best ways of portraying God’s passionate love and the depths of the intimacy that God desires is with marriage imagery. Within the context of such intimacy, the consequence of betrayal of God’s love is characterized as “forsaken” or “barren.” The people who were once forsaken are now the delight of the Lord; the land that once was barren is now newly espoused.

Paul launches into a discourse on the varieties of functions within the Christian community. He speaks of gifts, ministries, and works. “Gifts” here refers to operations of the Spirit, notably speaking in tongues and prophesying, gifts that were usually operative during worship. Ministry was service within the community. Works were feats of great energy or divine power. Since all of these gifts or ministries or works were manifestations of the Spirit, no one was to be considered superior to another. Further, they were not given for the self-aggrandizement of the one who received them. All were given for the benefit of the entire community.

According to John, Jesus’ hour is the time when he will be manifested in all his glory. The culmination of this hour will take place when he is lifted up on the cross. However, throughout his ministry there will be times when aspects of this glory will be manifested. The miracle of changing water into wine at the wedding feast at Cana is one such time. The miracles of Jesus were never mere exhibitions of supernatural power. They were always revelations of the inbreaking of the reign of God. Evidently the hour of his glorification had arrived. In this first sign, Jesus transformed a Jewish ceremonial into a celebration for the end of time. His glory was manifested to his disciples and they believed in him. The establishment of the reign of God had begun.

Dec 13 2024

Our Extravagant Bridegroom

Weddings of the famous have become known for their extravagance. Syndicated radio host Diane Rehm once recalled how she and her husband had gone to two weddings over a few months, each costing over twenty thousand dollars, and neither marriage lasted a year. It seems that as expenses have increased, longevity has decreased. Even so, our faith holds up one marriage whose extravagance is located in its fidelity: Christ’s love for his bride, the church.

One of the less remembered titles Jesus applies to himself in the Gospels is the bridegroom. When asked why his disciples do not fast, he replies that as long as the bridegroom is present, there is no fasting. It is a time for celebration. Jesus remains the bridegroom the Father sent to woo God’s people. The generous and extravagant abundance of the bridegroom comes across in today’s miracle at Cana. Even though he has said his hour—that is, the hour when he reveals the extravagant love of God—has not yet come, still Jesus yields to his mother’s request to remedy the embarrassment of a wedding without wine.

The moral: when the Bridegroom comes, there will be endless joy. Ordinary Time begins with this marvelous story, proclaiming that God’s generosity cannot be overestimated. We see it in the gifts St. Paul mentions in his letter to the fractious Corinthians, gifts that continue to be given. Such abundance and variety of gifts reflect God’s extravagant love for us. Such gifts are given for the good of all.

Consider/Discuss

What does the image of Jesus the Bridegroom say about your relationship with him?
What gifts of a generous God do you see in your own life and in those around you?

Responding to the Word

Lord Jesus, you remain the bridegroom come to reveal your Father’s extravagant love. In union with many of the saints, we dare to call you the spouse of our souls. May we revel in your passionate love shown on the cross, and reveal that love to those most in need of it.