Br. John R. Barker, OFM

Dec 10 2024

Scripture Study for

As Moses prepares Israel to enter into the land promised to their ancestors, he instructs them to offer firstfruits sacrifices to God once they have entered the land, and to acknowledge that God has indeed been faithful to promises in bringing the people into the land (Deuteronomy 26:1–3). The statement itself has been called Israel’s credo, summarizing as it does the central story of Israel’s relationship with God: the descent into Egypt by Jacob (the wandering Aramean), the oppression and deliverance of his descendants, and their return to the land. This brief recital captures the essence of Israel’s faith in the generous and powerful God who makes—and always keeps—those promises.

The reading from Romans comes from a section of the letter in which Paul is focusing on the contrast between righteousness from observing the Law (perfectly) and righteousness that comes from faith in Christ. His point here is that just as the Law was accessible to Israel (since it was written), so faith in Christ is accessible to all (as long as they have heard the word preached to them [10:14]). Once one has received the word, confession of the lordship of Christ and trust in the proclamation of his resurrection lead to justification and salvation. Justification here means being made “right with God,” and salvation is receiving the gift of eternal life offered by God. This gift is no longer limited to Israel but is now available to Gentiles as well.

In his temptation in the wilderness, Jesus represents both himself and Israel. As God’s Messiah, Jesus faces the temptations to use his relationship with God and his powers to smooth the pathways of his life by avoiding pain (hunger), or commanding the kingdoms of the earth, or even expecting God to save him from danger and death. Jesus shows his humility and obedience by avoiding these temptations. In the Old Testament, Israel is referred to as God’s son (Exodus 4:22–23), a son who failed the test of temptations in the wilderness generations earlier. Through his victory in the wilderness, Jesus not only vindicates himself, but also shows that in him Israel (and eventually all of humanity) can triumph over temptation and sin.

Dec 10 2024

Scripture Study for

A key motif of the book of Sirach is the role of adversity and trial both in forming character and revealing it, a notion expressed here through the image of pottery, which is both tested and strengthened in the fire of a kiln. It is only in being tested that our true character is revealed, which is why we should be careful to assess the character of others (and also of ourselves) before times of trial reveal it. Speech, too, reveals character. Those who are garrulous and imprudent in their speech run the risk of making their own faults manifest to others; one cannot speak for long without revealing who one really is and what one really thinks.

Paul has been arguing that because Christians bear the image of Christ, they will experience resurrection. This means that, although our current bodies will in fact die, death itself has no final hold on us. Christ has won victory over death and will give to each of us the fruits of that victory if only we will hold firm to faith in him, trusting that all we have taken on for the sake of Christ will not have been in vain. Thus Paul concludes his Letter to the Corinthians by assuring them that although the Christian life is difficult and requires much of us, the hope of final victory remains sure for those who endure in steadfast faith.

Jesus has been teaching that everyone must put aside their notions of how good they are and how bad others are, recognizing instead that everyone receives much more from God than they deserve. Jesus continues this lesson by pointing out that we are much better at recognizing others’ faults than our own, and that in fact we tend to be most blind to our most serious faults. We have to do the hard work of submitting to the teaching of Jesus and the mercy of God before we can presume to teach or correct others. Just as only a good tree can produce good fruit, only those who have allowed Jesus to fundamentally transform them have the true “goodness of heart” necessary to guide others.

Dec 10 2024

Scripture Study for

Although Saul had been chosen by God to lead Israel, he is eventually rejected because of his disobedience. God replaces him with David, a man after God’s own heart (1 Samuel 13:14; Acts 13:22). The transfer of power is protracted, however, as Saul refuses to cede to David. In their struggle, David is shown to be both clever and righteous. Despite the fact that he has Saul in his power and can easily kill him, David refuses to do so, recognizing that despite everything Saul is in fact “the Lord’s anointed.” This is one of several scenes illustrating that David, for all his failings and sins, is nevertheless ultimately a man of “justice and faithfulness.”

Having affirmed for the Corinthians that the resurrection of Christ and eventually their own resurrections are real, Paul now turns to the peculiar nature of this resurrection, which involves simultaneously a restoration and a transformation of the “natural” body into a “spiritual” body, which is nevertheless a real “body.” Adam had a natural body and so all his descendants do as well. But Christians also bear the heavenly or spiritual image of Christ, the new Adam. Thus, while we now possess merely natural bodies, we have within us the image of the heavenly Adam, and this image is the “seed,” so to speak, and assurance of the spiritual body we will possess one day.

In his teaching on “doing to others as you would have them do to you,” Jesus challenges his listeners not only to reimagine their response to unreasonable demands, but also (and especially) to reimagine their own self-images. The logic of his teaching demands that they place themselves in the place of those who make such demands, which begins to erode any notion of moral superiority. He pursues this line of thought by pointing out that very often we are only generous with others when we can expect something in return. Our own generosity is often, perhaps rarely, as selfless as we might think. This in turn challenges our comfort in judging others. The ultimate point is that in the end, we are all more or less undeserving of God’s mercy or forgiveness, and yet we all receive it.

Dec 10 2024

Scripture Study for

This oracle from Jeremiah draws on wisdom motifs to warn the people about relying on foreign powers protect them from external enemies. A contrast is drawn between those who act foolishly (who are “cursed”) and those who act wisely (who are “blessed”). Those who act foolishly follow the ways of the world, relying on political and military alliances, for example, to see them through difficult times, rather than turning first to their God. For Jeremiah, this is manifest infidelity to the covenant relationship, the result of which is never good. On the other hand, those who see first to their relationship with God can be assured that all they need to survive and thrive will be theirs, if only they will trust.

Paul has reminded the Corinthians that Christ was raised from the dead. Nevertheless, it appears that at least some of them do not even believe in the resurrection of the dead. Somehow, they become Christians without accepting this indispensable feature of Christian faith. Paul points out to them that if there is no such thing as resurrection, then Jesus was not raised from the dead, rendering everything about their Christian faith pointless. Because their sins have not been forgiven, and they have no hope for life with God after this life, they are the most misguided and “pitiable” people imaginable. The foundation of the entire Christian life is the resurrection of Christ, without which none of it stands or even makes sense.

In the Beatitudes, Jesus draws on traditional wisdom forms to teach what makes one “blessed” and what doesn’t. Blessedness is traditionally seen in prosperity, comfort, and good social relations. Jesus does not deny this, but he insists that the seeds of such blessedness mysteriously lie in their opposites for those who are faithful to God (as were the prophets). Thus, those who suffer now in faith are in fact already blessed. On the other hand, those who are now comfortable and prosperous are in spiritual danger, because their current “blessedness” is deceptive, carrying as it does the seeds of destruction if it is allowed to impede or divert from living within the will of God.

Dec 10 2024

Scripture Study for

Again this week we have the call of a prophet, Isaiah of Jerusalem. The scene is God’s “throne room,” the Holy of Holies in the temple. The fearsome seraphim, whose name means “burning ones,” act here as the agents of God’s purifying action to prepare the prophet for his mission. In the presence of the thrice-holy God, Isaiah recognizes the depths of his sinfulness as well as that of his own people; all of them are “unclean.” The burning of Isaiah’s lips not only prepares him for his role, but foreshadows what God has in store for all of Israel, if they will only allow themselves to be purified by the God who graciously sends this prophet to them.

In his Letter to the Corinthians, Paul has addressed a number of ways in which his audience has failed to recognize or has forgotten important truths about the gospel and the path of Christian discipleship. It is thus fitting that Paul concludes his letter by reminding them of the central and most fundamental truth of the gospel he has preached to them, which is the death and resurrection of Christ. The basic content of the gospel is summed up neatly: Christ died for our sins, but was resurrected, a verification that Jesus was the Messiah sent by God. This central reality was then proclaimed by those who met the risen Christ, including Paul himself, whose own ministry has been nothing but a work of God’s grace.

After announcing his mission to fulfill God’s promises to Israel, Jesus now encounters Simon and other fishermen, who have just arrived home from a disappointing night of fishing. Simon’s response to the command to go back out reveals both a natural tendency to operate according to human expectations (we didn’t catch any fish all night, why would we catch some now?) and openness to something beyond them (at your command I will lower the nets). The result is, of course, symbolic of what Peter and the others will be able to do once they learn to overcome their dependence on human ways of thinking, including the assumption that an imperfect and even sinful person cannot do God’s work.