Twenty-Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Jan 30 2025

Continuing Ed

The disciples may have been a bit slow to understand how Jesus was redefining the Messiah he was going to be, but they were not stupid on all accounts. They picked up on the reaction Peter got when he rebuked Jesus for talking about suffering rejection and death. So, when Jesus brought up the subject for a second time in today’s Gospel, they just listened politely, then dropped back out of earshot and changed the subject to a more pleasant one: themselves— and who was the greatest.

Things must have gotten quite animated because when they got home, Jesus asked about it. Their silence surely disappointed him, since he could surmise what had engaged them. But like a good teacher, he tries another way to make his point. There must have been a child nearby, because he calls her over and places his arms protectively around her, and says to them, “If you want to be first, then be last. If you want to be in charge, then serve. When you take in the least, you take in not only me but my Father.” Class dismissed.

It has proven a hard lesson to learn. Or maybe few of us really want to learn it. When you look out at the world, most seem to want to be first, the greatest, the one with the most and best toys, a wielder of power and influence and authority. Choosing to serve the least doesn’t make the top ten on most people’s “to do” list.

Consider/Discuss

What area(s) of your life does this Gospel direct you to consider?
What do you find most difficult about Jesus’ call to be “the last of all and the servant of all”?

Responding to the Word

Lord, help us to follow your call by serving the “little ones,” especially those more likely to be subject to the cruelty and indifference of the world. Sustain us in this work with the assurance that when we receive them, we receive not only you but the One who sent you.

Jan 30 2025

Scripture Study for

The ungodly speak in this passage from Wisdom. They conspire to assault the righteous one who has become a living reproach to them. Three matters in particular plague them. This honorable person stands in opposition to the wrong doings of the wicked; he denounces them for their sin; and he accuses them of not being faithful to their upbringing. The mistreatment that is being planned is extreme, even fatal. The righteous one, described as gentle and patient, is now an innocent victim of the evildoers’ resentment. The reading ends on a note of apprehension. Will the righteous one succumb to the persecution of the wicked? Or will God intervene on behalf of this just person?

Two styles of behavior are described in the Letter of James. Foolishness shows itself in various forms of social unrest—jealousy, selfish ambition, etc. A life motivated by wisdom generates harmony and peace, which give birth to all of the manifestations of love. While wisdom is generally thought to proceed from reflection on experience, it is also believed to be a gift from God. It is this latter dimension of wisdom that James addresses. The wisdom of which he speaks is pure, totally committed to what pertains to God; it is peaceable, drawing the members of the community together in unity; it is fruitful, producing good works in abundance.

Identifying himself as the mysterious Son of Man who comes on the clouds to announce the end of one age and the beginning of the other, Jesus tells his closest associates that he will be handed over and killed, but that he will rise from the dead after three days. It is not surprising that the disciples do not understand. What is surprising is their competitiveness. Without reprimanding them, Jesus seizes the moment to teach an important lesson. He insists that, following his example, those who hold the highest positions within the community must be willing to take the lowest place.

Jan 28 2025

God, Give Me Strength!

He stares at the ground. A spider creeps toward his sandal and then scurries away. This morning in the dark, his chest is heavy. There is so much more that he wants for them, but they don’t get it. The bickering, the hard-heartedness, the self-absorption—it weighs him down.

Images flow across his mind: his disciples striving, competing, “Who is the greatest?” Wanting his favor. Wanting to look good. Wanting to be the best. His brain is tired. They just don’t understand. His spirit is low. What more can he do? It feels as though all of human history has been burdened by this kind of hardness of heart, this continual “no” to an orientation toward goodness. He sees that this mission to bring abundance and light—it is not going to end well. He told his friends that yesterday for the first time. They were not listening. Is this world worth pouring out his life for? Is it worth the cost?

A smell of bread floats through the air. Someone is up before the dawn. Someone has the courage to start this day anew, no matter what yesterday brought. The aroma brings him back to childhood: the bread his mother baked, the joy on Joseph’s face as they broke the warm loaves together at the family table.

He remembers yesterday’s touch of the little boy’s fingers on his forearm. The child had smiled at him while the adults were arguing. The Father must still trust in the human race: God keeps creating children, starting anew, believing once again. The memory of the child’s innocence gives him courage. He can give his life for this child. He will give his life for this child.

The Bread of Life raises his chin from his hand and stands. It is a new day, to be lived for God alone.

Consider/Discuss

Discouraged. Disheartened. Bent low. Do you ever have mornings like that? Or days like that? What little things or memories does God give you that get you moving, pick you up, give you courage, and keep you going?
One of the great slave spiritual hymns has the refrain, “I ain’t gonna grieve my Lord no more.” What kind of sadness does God feel when seeing our human hard-heartedness? What is one thing that I can do differently today to help create a world that doesn’t “grieve the Lord no more”?

Living and Praying with the Word

Lord, I know that you gave me feet. But they aren’t moving this morning. I know that you gave me a brain. But it’s not awake yet. I know that you gave me a heart. I can feel it beating. There are days like this one when it feels as though nothing is happening within me. I don’t even feel that I can pray. But I know that you love me today, too. Maybe you had days like that as well? Whatever I’ve got, I hand it to you. It’s not much, but it’s me. Here, Lord, here it is.

Jan 28 2025

Scripture Study for

In a passage that would be at home in the prophetic literature, the book of Wisdom speaks of a “just one,” who knows the ways of God and strives to live according to them. This is in contrast to the wicked, who reject any notion of the hereafter and are heedless of divine justice and oppress the poor and the pious (Wisdom 2:1–11). The just one’s reproaches in this regard provoke violent plans. If God really does look out for the just, then God will surely defend them from attack. Thus the wicked seek to prove that the pious man who “boasts that God is his Father” (2:16) is deluded. Neither his piety nor God will protect him from condemnation.

James continues to develop the notion of being “doers of the word” by focusing on internal matters within the Christian community and the cultivation of wisdom. The wise are humble, not given to jealousy or self-advancement, and thus true wisdom (as opposed to earthly/unspiritual/demonic wisdom) promotes peace. James has already admonished his audience to control their tongues (3:1–12); now he exhorts them to control those impulses that lead to provoking others and seeking one’s advantage. Worldly wisdom promotes covetousness and greed, leading to grasping for what one does not have. Those who are doers of the word, who have true faith, ask God for what they want rather than try to grab it from others.

On the way to Capernaum, Jesus continues to teach his disciples that he will be abused and killed but will indeed rise. Given Peter’s halted attempt to reason with Jesus earlier, they are understandably confused: this is not what anyone expects of the Messiah. The disciples also fail to discern the larger meaning, which is that divine power is not made manifest in the same way that human power typically is. Jesus’ followers must learn to adjust themselves to act in accordance with God’s ways, not those of the world. Children, who are essentially powerless and who have not yet reached the age when they are grasping for it, are exemplars of the mentality Jesus seeks to inculcate in his disciples.

Jan 15 2025

God as Giver: Generous or Unjust?

If you ever felt you have not gotten what you deserve for all that you have done, or that others have been given more than they deserve for the little that they have done, this Gospel is not going to please you. It is hard not to line up with the grumblers, complaining that those who worked all day should not be given the same as the eleventh-hour crowd. Where’s the justice in this?

Isaiah sets the stage for hearing the Gospel when he calls us to seek and call on God for what we need, especially mercy and forgiveness. But the prophet recognizes that God’s response to this request may baffle us, especially when such overabundant mercy is shown to others.

Jesus is not telling a tale about being fair, or offering a lesson on just wages. He is teaching that God’s rule is marked by generosity, especially to the last and least, the overlooked, the undervalued, the unwanted, those judged as not very capable. This master calls all to do what they can do. For some the work will last longer than for others. But all will be rewarded.

So, be generous as God is generous. We see an example of this in Paul’s willingness to stay working with the early communities. While the Philippians were easy to love, he also ministered to the cantankerous Corinthians and the “stupid” Galatians (Paul’s own words) who were turning away from the gospel he preached to them. Paul heard the call to act differently with these different groups of people.

Consider/Discuss

When are you being asked to be generous rather than “just”? • Is there another way of thinking about justice than how we usually think of it, that is, as getting what we deserve?
Have you known God’s splendid generosity, going beyond anything you have “deserved”?

Responding to the Word

We pray that we might be able to enter into God’s compassion toward those who come later and do less. We pray that we might be able to mirror the generosity of God during the coming week if an opportunity arises.