Posts in category: SUNDAY GOSPEL COMMENTARY

Prayer before praying Scripture

Each year on the fourth Sunday after Easter we are invited to reflect on the parts of John 10. This chapter is justifiably given the title “Good Shepherd” as is the Sunday. However there are other images and relationships put before us in this chapter.  Be alert to discovering something new.

It is time now to read the text.

1. John 10: 27 – 30. It is best to read it from your bible.

Now I suggest that you read the entire chapter so that you will be able to understand today’s reading within its context. I list a few key points that you can watch for as you read.

John Chapter 10

1 – 6
The sheepfold
Jesus the “gate”
Jesus the “shepherd”

6b                   “They did not realise what he was trying to tell them.”

This challenges us to ask, “Do I realise what Jesus is trying to tell me here and now.”

7                      “I am the gate.”
9                      “I am the gate.”
11 – 18            “I am the Good Shepherd”

19                    Divisions ?

24                    In reply to the question, “Are you the Messiah?” Jesus responds, “Do my works”- This is how we will experience Jesus as Messiah.

John 10: 27 – 30         Today’s text

31                    “For which of my works do you want to stone me?” ?

Division ? in the community

42                    Many began to believe.

Reflect back on this chapter and the movement that you see in the characters. Recall the movement you see going on in your relationship with Christ and the people around you.

2. It is time now to look closer into our text.

3. It is now important for us to become aware of the characters here.

²⁷Jesus said, “The sheep that belong to me listen to my voice; I know them and they know me. ²⁸I give them eternal life; they will never be lost and no one will ever steal them from me.

²⁹The Father who gave them to me is greater than anyone, and no one can steal from the Father.  ³⁰The Father and I are one.”

4. Divide the text into parts and give each a title that expresses how it is touching your today. When you have done this see how it compares with what I have done.

My relationship with Jesus

²⁷Jesus said, “The sheep that belong to me listen to my voice; I know them and they know me. ²⁸I give them eternal life; they will never be lost and no one will ever steal them from me.

The Father and humanity

²⁹The Father who gave them to me is greater than anyone, and no one can steal from the Father. ³⁰The Father and I are one.”

5. Having become aware that John is telling us about our relationship with God and humanity let us highlight what in this text tells is important for us.

²⁷Jesus said, “The sheep that belong to me listen to my voice; I know them and they know me. ²⁸I give them eternal life; they will never be lost and no one will ever steal them from me.

²⁹ The Father who gave them to me is greater than anyone, and no one can steal from the Father.

³⁰The Father and I are one.”

Take
TIME NOW TO REFLECT ON THE WORD and TO RESPOND TO IT (PRAY)  each of the qualities of God, how he relates to us/humanity, what he does for us. We have identified these by using colour.

The Father is greater than anyone.
In the Apostles Creed we say: “I believe in God the Father Almighty.” Do not be afraid of this quality of our God. Often we are tempted to sell God short and limit His greatness

6. Movement
“The sheep that belong to me listen to my voice.”
This is our early encounter with the Jesus. We open ourselves to his Word. As we continue to experience the Word of God transforming our lives this contact becomes an encounter with the Word; the Word, Jesus and the Word of God. We enter into and ever deepening and close relationship with him. As this relationship grows it is extended to the Father and we are able to call out just as Jesus did, “Abba, Father.”

7. Our relationship with Jesus and the Father is expressed in the pairing of phrases in the text.

²⁷Jesus said,
“The sheep that belong to me           listen to my voice;
I know them and                                 they know me.
²⁸I give them eternal life;                   they will never be lost and no one will ever steal them from me.
²⁹The Father gave them to me           no one can steal them.

THE FULLNESS OF OUR RELATIONSHIP.

³⁰The Father            ONE with                   I  (Jesus)
Jesus                           ONE with                   Us
We                               ONE with                   Father
Prayer
Spend time with the Lord allowing yourself to come to some understanding of the privileged relationship we have with our God.

Jn 21: 1 – 19

Be with us, Lord Jesus. Be our companion on our way. In your mercy inflame our hearts and raise our hope, so that, in union with one another, we may recognise you in the Scriptures and in the breaking of Bread.

“Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples.” Jn 20: 30

It is with these words that John’s Gospel originally ended. Sometime later another member of John’s community added what is now Chapter 21. The author integrates the same spirit and links with the themes of the rest of the Gospel. He seems to have felt free to do this in the light of John’s ending. There were some things that Jesus did that he thought should be included in this Epilogue.

It is possible that a number of different stories could have been woven together. Keep this in mind as you read the text.

1-8  The miraculous catch of fish.
9 – 14  Breakfast with Jesus; another resurrection experience
15 – 17  Jesus welcomes Peter back into friendship
18 – 19  Peter’s destiny

One more piece of advice before you read the text.

“A lot of the details are symbolic. It is not easy to say what actually did happen. What the evangelist really wants us to know for certain is that the apostles experienced the presence of the Risen Christ, but he is also, at the same time, giving a catechetical lesson to the Christians of his time.”1  Try to identify the details that are symbolic.

* * * * * *

Did you count the number of disciples  present? There were seven. Seven is the symbol of perfection, of wholeness, so Peter and the other disciples represent all the disciples of Jesus. However there are two who are not named. One is “the disciple whom Jesus loved” v7.  The other is, you, the reader.

Many of the Jesus’ appearances took place on a Sunday. In Luke’s Gospel all the appearances including the story of the disciples on the road to Emmaus and the Ascension take place on Easter Sunday. However this fishing incident occurs on a working day. The evangelist wanted Christians to know that the Risen Christ is experienced in our daily lives. Our relationship with Christ is not confined to Sunday worship.

We find this same story in Luke’s Gospel (Lk 5: 1 – 11). Both writers are conveying a similar message. The sea, for the people of Israel, was a symbol of all the forces hostile to man. We are all to be “fishers of men”. It is our task to draw people out of situations that restrict their freedom to love and to live happy, fulfilling lives.

In Luke’s version the nets break. (Lk 5: 6) This suggests that there were so many fish that we will never catch them all without Jesus help. John tells us that the nets did not break.  He is giving us the assurance that all will be saved. He goes on to say that there were 153. There are many explanations of this number. According to the teachers of the time, there existed 153 species of living creatures. Everybody will be saved.

* * * * * *

We are inclined to think that the early Christians came to belief in the Risen Christ   instantly.  As we read the resurrection stories we realise that it was a step by step journey.

The story begins with, “After this Jesus revealed himself again to his disciples.” (v 1) One would imagine that after three appearances they would have got the message that Jesus had risen, apparently not.” The disciples did not realise that it was Jesus” on the shore.  The first person to recognise him was “the disciple whom Jesus loved”. (v 7a)   Peter had to be told  “It is the Lord”. (7b) Only then did he recognise Jesus. Only after being invited to breakfast did everyone else come to believe in the Risen Christ, or did they.  ‘None of them dared to ask him, “Who are you?”’ (v 12)

The story closes with, “This was the third time Jesus was revealed to his disciples after being raised from the dead.” (My counting and John’s do not agree.)

* * * * * *

15 – 17  Jesus welcomes Peter back into friendship
Refresh your memory now by reading these verses.
Unfortunately most translators ignore the fact that Jesus uses a word meaning ‘really love’, while Peter uses a different word which means ‘we are friends’. Here is my t ranslation of the conversation.

Jesus: Simon, son of John, do you really love me?
Peter: Yes, Lord; you know that we are friends.
Jesus: Simon, son of John, do you really love me?
Peter: Yes, Lord; you know that we are friends.
Jesus: Simon, son of John, are we friends?
Peter: Yes, Lord; you know that we are friends.

It is wonderful how Jesus calls us to a deep, loving relationship.  However, just like Peter, we are often unable to respond to this call. Jesus is happy to accept our lesser response and wait till we are able to love him more deeply.

1          Armellini, F;  Celebrating the Word.  P92

Jn 8: 1 – 11

Father, you wait for us until we are open to you.
We wait for your Word to make us receptive.
Attune us to your voice, to your silence.
Speak and bring your Son to us – Jesus – the Word of your peace.

It is important that you now read the text once or twice so that you are familiar with what John has written. Pay particular note  ALL to the characters in the story.

In verse 2 we are told the Jesus, “sat down and taught”. It will be interesting to hear what he has to say to the people. How he structures the lesson. We might even call it a sermon.

His audience turns out to be a cross-section of society. The Pharisees arrive, full of indignation and self-righteousness, with a woman caught committing adultery.  The woman is obviously the victim of a setup. Why else would the man be missing?  Their malice towards Jesus is obvious. They have little concern for public morals. Their concern is to get Jesus. They quite happily lie when they quote the Law. Yes they quote it correctly but only half of the text. They leave out the part that lays down that the man should also be stoned. Look at the cruel way they treat the woman publically exposing her for their own vicious ends.

Then there is the crowd and of course many of Jesus’ disciples would have been present, including the apostles.  Twice we read that Jesus “bent down”.  There was quite a lot of bending down done that morning.  Just look at those openly picking up rocks.  Others at the back did so rather more furtively. Not one of the “crowd” came to her defence. Not one person spoke up demanding that the man be produced. Nobody questioned the obvious injustice. People sin by what they do not do.

The values of the Pharisees, crowd, disciples, placed the Law above the well-being of the person. There was no place for compassion. The institution was far important than mercy and concern for the victim.

Oh, yes, the woman had sinned. She had committed adultery.

What about that sermon/teaching that Jesus was giving? The only thing he has to say is, “Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.”  Twice he we read, “He bent down and wrote on the ground.” We have no idea what he wrote and any suggestions are pure guess work. However he is conveying an important truth about our God. Our God, if he records our sins, writes them down in the sand. That being the case the record is not going to last very long. Our God does not have a computer that remembers every last mistake we have made. Do not forget the final lesson. “Do not sin anymore.”

Jesus does not say one word of condemnation of anyone. The only thing he says is, “Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” Every single person went away, one by one. They go away accepting responsibility for their wrong-doing. No longer do they hide their sinfulness (for whatever reason) under the cloak of “pious virtue”.

¹⁰Then Jesus straightened up and said to her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?”  ¹¹She replied, “No one, sir.” Then Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you.

As Jesus “straightened up” we can see the same thing happening to the woman.  This battered, abused, humiliated, non-person has her dignity restored.  She becomes a person again. Jesus addresses her politely and she responds in like manner, “No one, sir.”

Jesus reaction to sin is to heal, to restore self-esteem, respect the person, to bring us to repent.  Consider all the people who went away healed; the Pharisees, the crowd, the disciples, the apostles and the woman.

One can almost hear each person hearing the gentle,
“Go, and from now on do not sin anymore.”

Can you hear Jesus saying to you,
“Go, and from now on do not sin anymore.”

Some sermon!!

Luke 13: 1 – 9

If it is true, that the development of the world can be influenced by our faith in Christ, then Lord let this power flow through your Word to us and though us.

Speak Lord, your servant is listening.

You have the words of eternal life.

Our Gospel for today is made up of two parts however the one clearly clarifies the other.

We will now read Part 1.

¹It was about this time that some people arrived and told Jesus about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with that of their sacrifices. ²At this he said to them, “Do you suppose these Galileans who suffered like that were greater sinners than any other Galileans?” ³They were not, I tell you. No; but unless you repent you will all perish as they did. ⁴Or those eighteen on whom the tower at Siloam fell and killed them? Do you suppose that they were more guilty than all the other people living in Jerusalem? ⁵They were not, I tell you. No; but unless you repent you will all perish as they did.

The prevailing wisdom at the time of Jesus was that misfortunes were a direct punishment from God for sins committed. Jesus emphatically tells us that this is not the case. Twice we hear him say NO! 

The first incident tells us of the ruthlessness of Pilate. The lesson to be learned from it is that – violence begets violence.  Perhaps the collapse of the tower was due to shoddy workmanship or cost cutting at the expense of safety. Once again Jesus challenges the current thinking. He is actually challenging how people understand God. “Jesus makes it clear that the God he believes in does not relate to people through the medium of disaster and accident. God does not prove he is God by manufacturing a liturgy of sadism whereby he can be acknowledged.” ¹That terrible image of God is pagan. The God whom Jesus believes in and speaks about does not have a charism for disaster; he is a God who wants people to turn to him and discover their true selves.

No; but unless you repent you will all perish as they did. Repent; Jesus calls on us to change our ways of acting and thinking; to change our way of relating to our God and to others; to take responsibility for our actions; to reconsider what is most valuable to us and then act appropriately. At this very moment the world is threatened by global warming.  Have you asked yourself how you can reduce your contribution to this disaster? Turning off one light for Lent does not seem much but when a million people do this, much will be achieved. In this matter if we do not repent we will create our own disaster and it will be our fault, not God’s.

Part 2

⁶He told this parable:

“A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came looking for fruit on it but found none. ⁷He said to the man who looked after the vineyard, ‘Look here, for three years now l have been coming to look for fruit on this fig tree and finding none.  Cut it down: why should it be taking up the ground? ⁸‘Sir.’ The man replied, ‘leave it one more year and give me time to dig round it and manure it; ⁹it may bear fruit next year; if not, then you can it down.’”

In this parable there are two characters, A man and the man who looked after the vineyard.  The “man” seems to only interested in the commercial value of the fig tree – he wants figs. The other person has a completely different approach. He is quite prepared to go to a lot of trouble to care for and encourage the fig tree. Even if the fig tree does not respond to the manure and fertilizer he makes it quite plain that he will not cut it down, then you can it down.

These two men have very different value systems. One only values what will bring him profit the other places the interests of the tree (people) first. Once again we are presented with two contrasting images of God.

Here is a thought that may give you a whole new perspective on this parable.

The inedible variety of figs looks exactly like the edible kind. Moreover, edible figs can only be pollinated by the female fig wasp which carries the pollen from the inedible fig to the buds of the edible one.

The cutting down of the fig tree in the parable would have been disastrous – no more figs.

Luke 4: 1 – 13

Lord, you are divine energy and living irresistible might;
Since of the two of us it is you who are infinitely stronger,
it is you who must set me ablaze and change me into fire that we may be welded together and made one.

To read the gospel with an open mind is to see beyond all possibilities of doubt that You, Jesus, came to bring us, not only a new life, but also..  A new physical power of acting upon our world.                                                                             Tielhard de Chardin

Speak Lord, your servant is listening.
You have the words of eternal life.

Once again we need to understand the genre, the literary form that Luke is using.  This text is not describing what actually took place; it is not an eyewitness account of the event.1  It is a ‘poetic’ way of saying what took place throughout Jesus’ life and shows us how he handled these trials.  We are called to follow his example.

These ‘parables / images’ convey a profound TRUTH.  They tell us that Jesus experienced temptations throughout his life in much the same way as we do.  This text is emphatically teaching us that Jesus is fully human.  Paul is quite clear about this.  In the letter to the Hebrews he writes, “For it is not as if we had a high priest who was incapable of feeling our weaknesses with us; but we have one who has been tempted in every way that we are, though without sin.”  (Heb 4: 15)

“Forty days” and “wilderness” are used symbolically.  The first means a life time.  The wilderness was a place of disorder where demons dwelt.  Jesus is entering a world where he will find good and confront evil in all its forms.

Our reading opens with, “¹Filled with the Holy Spirit, Jesus left the Jordan and was led by the Spirit..”  “Led by the Spirit”, means that Jesus was guided by the Spirit in his response to all the problems he faced.  He was not left on his own as he struggled against injustice and oppression.  The Holy Spirit was with him.  We too can be confident that the Holy Spirit is always active in our lives.

Let us now allow the Lord to speak to us through his Word.  Read Lk4: 1-13 a number of times searching for the TRUTH in the words.

 Twice we hear Jesus being challenged, “If you are the Son of God..”  This sounds more disturbing when we remember that a few verses earlier, just after his baptism by John, Jesus heard, “You are my Son, the Beloved; my favour rest on you.”  Jesus’ relationship with the Father is being challenged, and will be challenged again and again.

As he hung on the cross he was bombarded with the same temptation.

As for the leaders, they jeered at him, “He saved others, let him save himself if he is the Christ of God, the Chosen One.” (23: 35)

The soldiers mocked him too, .. “If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself.” (23: 36-37)

One of the criminals hanging there abused him. “Are you not the Christ? Save yourself and us as well.”  (23: 39)

Is this what Luke is referring to when he concludes with “Return at the appointed time.”  Is this the appointed time?  Jesus continues to be tempted right up to the end of his life.

Luke leaves us in no doubt that Jesus triumphed over all these temptations.  On Calvary the centurion said, “This was a great and good man.”  (23: 47b)  Mark and Matthew go further when they have the centurion say, “In truth this man was a son of God.”

“The Key message for us in this passage is that Jesus mission was to defeat evil in all its manifestations, by the power of the Spirit in love.  This conflict and Jesus’ victory is a theme which permeates the whole of Luke’s gospel.” 2

“If you are the Son of God, tell this stone to become a loaf.”  Jesus is being tempted to go against his very nature.  The Church teaches that Jesus was both human and divine.  Most people have little difficulty accepting Jesus’ divinity, however some struggle with his humanity.  The Vatican Document, Gaudium et Spes tells us that:

Jesus…
worked with human hands,
thought with a human mind,
acted by human choice,
loved with a human heart…
like us in all things except sin.

In this first temptation Jesus is tempted to deny his humanity.  He is tempted to fall back on his divinity, this he will not do.  He will always remain his true self.  When we experience temptations we are drawn away from being our true selves.  We are called into a deep and loving relationship with the Father.  To sin, is for us to abandon this call.

In the second temptation Jesus is tempted to take short cuts in his mission, by buying  peoples loyalty,  rather than to win the world through love, his way of life and his values.

In the third temptation it is suggested that the way to fulfill his mission is to use the spectacular.

Again and again Jesus uses Scripture to conquer evil.  Scripture must have been very important to him. It was central to his spirituality.

Are the Scriptures the foundation of my spirituality?

1. Armellini F, Celebrating the Word, p68
2. Fallon M, Gospel according to Luke, p 82

Luke 4: 1 – 13

Lord, you are divine energy and living irresistible might;
Since of the two of us it is you who are infinitely stronger,
it is you who must set me ablaze and change me into fire that we may be welded together and made one.

To read the gospel with an open mind is to see beyond all possibilities of doubt that You, Jesus, came to bring us, not only a new life, but also. A new physical power of acting upon our world.                                                                             Tielhard de Chardin

Speak Lord, your servant is listening.

You have the words of eternal life.

Once again we need to understand the genre, the literary form that Luke is using. This text is not describing what actually took place; it is not an eyewitness account of the event.1  It is a ‘poetic’ way of saying what took place throughout Jesus’ life and shows us how he handled these trials. We are called to follow his example.

These ‘parables / images’ convey a profound TRUTH. They tell us that Jesus experienced temptations throughout his life in much the same way as we do.  This text is emphatically teaching us that Jesus is fully human.  Paul is quite clear about this. In the letter to the Hebrews he writes, “For it is not as if we had a high priest who was incapable of feeling our weaknesses with us; but we have one who has been tempted in every way that we are, though without sin.”  (Heb 4: 15)

“Forty days” and “wilderness” are used symbolically. The first means a life time. The wilderness was a place of disorder where demons dwelt.  Jesus is entering a world where he will find good and confront evil in all its forms.

Our reading opens with, “¹Filled with the Holy Spirit, Jesus left the Jordan and was led by the Spirit..” “Led by the Spirit”, means that Jesus was guided by the Spirit in his response to all the problems he faced. He was not left on his own as he struggled against injustice and oppression. The Holy Spirit was with him. We too can be confident that the Holy Spirit is always active in our lives.

Let us now allow the Lord to speak to us through his Word.  Read Lk4: 1-13 a number of times searching for the TRUTH in the words.

 Twice we hear Jesus being challenged, “If you are the Son of God..”  This sounds more disturbing when we remember that a few verses earlier, just after his baptism by John, Jesus heard, “You are my Son, the Beloved; my favour rest on you.”  Jesus’ relationship with the Father is being challenged, and will be challenged again and again.

As he hung on the cross he was bombarded with the same temptation.

As for the leaders, they jeered at him, “He saved others, let him save himself if he is the Christ of God, the Chosen One.” (23: 35)

The soldiers mocked him too, .. “If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself.” (23: 36-37)

One of the criminals hanging there abused him. “Are you not the Christ? Save yourself and us as well.”  (23: 39)

Is this what Luke is referring to when he concludes with “Return at the appointed time.” Is this the appointed time?  Jesus continues to be tempted right up to the end of his life.

Luke leaves us in no doubt that Jesus triumphed over all these temptations. On Calvary the centurion said, “This was a great and good man.” (23: 47b)  Mark and Matthew go further when they have the centurion say, “In truth this man was a son of God.”

“The Key message for us in this passage is that Jesus mission was to defeat evil in all its manifestations, by the power of the Spirit in love. This conflict and Jesus’ victory is a theme which permeates the whole of Luke’s gospel.” 2

“If you are the Son of God, tell this stone to become a loaf.” Jesus is being tempted to go against his very nature. The Church teaches that Jesus was both human and divine. Most people have little difficulty accepting Jesus’ divinity, however some struggle with his humanity. The Vatican Document, Gaudium et Spes tells us that:

Jesus…

worked with human hands,
thought with a human mind,
acted by human choice,
loved with a human heart…
like us in all things except sin.

In this first temptation Jesus is tempted to deny his humanity. He is tempted to fall back on his divinity, this he will not do. He will always remain his true self. When we experience temptations we are drawn away from being our true selves. We are called into a deep and loving relationship with the Father. To sin, is for us to abandon this call.

In the second temptation Jesus is tempted to take short cuts in his mission, by buying  peoples loyalty, rather than to win the world through love, his way of life and his values.

In the third temptation it is suggested that the way to fulfill his mission is to use the spectacular.

Again and again Jesus uses Scripture to conquer evil. Scripture must have been very important to him. It was central to his spirituality.

Are the Scriptures the foundation of my spirituality?

1. Armellini F, Celebrating the Word, p68
2. Fallon M, Gospel according to Luke, p 82

Lk 5: 1 – 11

Before we start our reflection on today’s Gospel we need to learn a little about the fishermen of Galilee. We are often told that they were extremely poor. It appears that this may not be correct. We learn from archaeology that the fishing industry, at the time of Jesus, was big business. Peter’s business was large enough for him to have entered into a partnership. Elsewhere in the Gospels we learn that he employed additional staff.

(Mk 1: 20)

Be with us, Lord Jesus. Be our companion on our way. In your mercy inflame our hearts and raise our hope, so that, in union with one another, we may recognise you in the Scriptures and in the breaking of Bread.

Here are some titles for our reading.

Discipleship

Followers of Christ

Christ’s relationship with us and our relationship with him.

As you read this text keep these in mind.  Perhaps after you have read it a number of times you may chose which you like most.

* * * * * *

By now I am sure you are aware that this reading can be divided into three parts. We will deal with each part on its own.

¹Jesus was standing one day by the Lake of Gennesaret, with the crowd pressing round him listening to the word of God, ²when he caught sight of two boats close to the bank.  The fishermen had gone out of them and were washing their nets.  ³He got into one of the boats – it was Simon’s – and he asked him to put out a little from the shore.  Then he sat down and taught the crowds from the boat.

(We will be guided in our reflection by the phrases in colour.)

Our relationship with the Word.

We are immediately called to a deeper understanding of the Word. The enthusiasm of the crowd and their close attention to what Jesus was teaching makes us review how we relate to Scripture. Do we look forward to the time we devote to reflecting on Scripture or is it something that is left to the few minutes on Sunday. This incident took place on a work day. The fisherman were hard at work ‘washing their nets’. Clearly we are being called to integrate reflection on the Word into our daily spirituality. Life and the Word of God go together. ‘He sat down and taught.’ Are you aware of Jesus touching your life as you spend time pondering the opening verses of this reading?

* * * * * *

There are many ways to approach a Gospel reading, each having its own value. I am going to ask you to open yourselves to reading part two in a different way.

Using your imagination visualise Luke sitting in a quiet spot in the shade of a tree. He looks back over the years and marvels at the phenomenal growth in the number of Jesus followers. The impact of Jesus’ teachings on the lives of his community, as conveyed by all those new ministers of the Word, is nothing short of amazing. In fact he is ‘completely overcome.’ Luke has a problem. How will he capture this phenomenal success in his gospel?  At last he gets inspiration, he similes and returns to his writing.

Perhaps, Luke uses this story to project backwards into the life of Jesus, the phenomenal growth of the Christian Community that he was experiencing.

⁴When he had finished speaking he said to Simon, “Put out into the deep water and pay out your nets for a catch.”  ⁵“Master” Simon replied, “we have worked hard all night long and caught nothing, but if you say so, I will pay out the nets.”  ⁶And when they had done this they netted such a large number of fish that their nets began to tear, ⁷so they signalled to their companions in the other boats to come and help them; when they came, they filled the two boats to sinking point.

Acts 2: 14 – 41, records Peter’s first speech. The closing verse reads, “Those who accepted his message were baptised, and about three thousand persons were added that day.”  I am sure you can see the parallel with our reading.

* * * * * *

⁸When Simon Peter saw this he fell at the knees of Jesus saying, “Leave me, Lord; I am a sinful man.” ⁹For he and all his companions were completely overcome by the catch they had made; ¹⁰so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were Simon’s partners.  But Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid; from now on it is men you will catch.”  ¹¹Then, bringing their boats back to land, they left everything and followed him.

How do we react:
when faced with the power of the Word in our lives;
when challenged to accept goodness;
when called to accept the consequences of goodness.

Probably, like Peter, our instinct is to run. No wonder Jesus says, “Do not be afraid; from now on it is men you will catch.”  ‘Catch’ can be better understood as drawing out alive, giving the fullness of life.

* * * * * *

You will have noticed that throughout the reading we hear about ‘Simon’. Just once he is called Simon Peter. Perhaps this reflects how we see ourselves contrasted with how Jesus sees us.

‘Simon’ – my self-image – looking backwards – focusing on past mistakes – avoiding contact with Goodness.

‘Peter’ – Jesus’ view of me – looks to the future – sees the potential in me – focuses on the goodness in me and encourages my growing relationship with him.

Lk 1: 1 – 4;  4: 14 – 21

The Gospel according to Luke,

subtitled,

Reflections of Jesus

Has it occurred to you that this is the Year of Luke. This is my Year of Luke! This is my opportunity to get to know Jesus through the Gospel of Luke.  Luke, the great artist, paints word pictures of Jesus for us. Let us pray.

Father, you gave St Jerome and St Paula delight in their study of Holy Scripture. May we find in your word the flood of salvation and the fountain of life that you have promised, through Christ Our Lord.

This prayer, today, is fitting.  Saints Jerome and Paula were certainly “servants of the Word.”  They worked long and hard with the translation of the Scriptures thus making them available to a much wider audience.

You will have noticed that today’s reading is made up to two parts. The first is the opening statement and the second comes from chapter four.  This second incident in the reading takes place early in Jesus ministry in his home town, Nazareth. It could easily be called, Jesus’ mission statement.  One can also look at this as Luke’s mission statement, his purpose for writing his Gospel

We are going to concentrate on the first part. I have included this text below. Read it slowly and carefully.  This will be very instructive.

Lk 1: 1 – 4

¹Since many have undertaken to set down an orderly account

of the events that have been fulfilled among us,

²just as they were handed on to us

by those who from the beginning

were eyewitnesses and servants of the word,

³I too decided, after investigating everything carefully

from the very first, to write an orderly account for you,

most excellent Theophilus,

⁴so that you may know the truth

concerning the things about which you have been instructed.

Luke wrote a two volume work; The Gospel of Jesus Christ and the Acts of the Apostles.  Both these works were addressed to Theophilus. There is much speculation as to who Theophilus was.  We simply do not know.  The meaning of Theophilus is, ‘Lover of God’ or ‘Beloved of God’.  Either way the Gospel is addressing you and me.

‘Theophilus’ was a gentile who had been converted to Christianity. It appears that he had some doubts that needed to be resolved (⁴so that you may know the truth concerning the things about which you have been instructed.) This is also true of us. Of necessity we have questions, doubts, concerns as we grow in our understanding of Scripture and as we grow in our relationship with Jesus.

By the time Luke came to write his Gospel there was a great deal of written material doing the rounds among the Christian Community. Some of it, like Luke’s books were thoroughly authentic, however there must have been many books the contents of which was doubtful.  Among Luke’s sources were; about one third of His material comes from Mark; 230 verses were taken from Matthews gospel; the remaining third is Luke’s own material. Some of this was based on other written material, copies of which have not survived 2000 years. Luke must also have gathered oral material from those who had been eyewitnesses.

The more he read, the more these texts impacted on his life. The more we expose ourselves to the Word the more it will touch our lives. Again and again these writings were the source of his prayer; it was in prayer that he came to a true understanding of Christ Risen. By bringing the Scriptures to prayer we too will meet Christ Risen.

Luke gives us a broad picture of Jesus and his teachings.  He wanted his community to see Jesus as: ‘A man of prayer’; ‘The friend of the poor and down-trodden’; ‘A man dedicated to raising the status of women’; ‘A friend of gentiles’; ‘A teacher who gave us authentic teaching on the right use of money’; ‘A person open to the guiding influence of the Holy Spirit in his life’.

By the end of this liturgical year may we have come to know Jesus, so that we too ‘may know the truth concerning the things about which we have been instructed.’

Lk 3: 15-16; 21-22 and Is 42: 1-4, 6-7

Prayer before praying Scripture

Your Word is near, O Lord our God.  Your grace is near.  Come to us then, with mildness and power.  Do not let us be deaf to you, but make us receptive and open to Jesus Christ your Son, who will come to look for us and save us today and every day forever and ever.

Each Sunday it is useful to read all three readings as well as the responsorial psalm.  Frequently there is a link between the texts.  One throws light on another, helping us to deepen our understanding of the Sunday readings.  It is often difficult to take in the readings as they are proclaimed.  By being familiar with the readings of the day we are likely to draw more from them during the Liturgy of the Word.

Take plenty of time to read all texts.  Enjoy their beauty and allow the Word of God to speak to you.

Our story starts when Jesus was a boy growing up in Nazareth.  He passed through the teenage years to adulthood.  As with all of us he grew in maturity.  He came to conclusions about what he saw happening around him.  Jesus experienced a growing close relationship with God, a God who was ‘taking by the hand and forming.’  Now, in his early thirties, he was ready for his mission to preach, teach and heal.  He felt ready to challenge his contemporaries and to take the side of the poor against their oppressors.  He had been waiting on God; or rather God had been waiting on him: waiting for the moment when his heart was broken enough, open enough, to receive the fullness of the Spirit that his Father was wanting to pour out upon him.”¹

Please do not read the text as a literal description of what took place.  Luke is using symbolic language to inform us of a profound experience that took place in Jesus’ life.  Jesus had given up his job and left Nazareth determined to become a disciple of John the Baptist.  He was determined to do something for the poor.

“Now when all the people had been baptised.”  With these few words Luke emphatically tells us that Jesus was identifying with the poor, the oppressed, the sinners.  Not convinced!  Look back at the people who Jesus joined for John’s baptism:  ⁷you brood of vipers; ¹²even tax collectors came; ¹⁴soldiers also asked him.   Jesus must often have experienced the burden of helplessness, the pain that he saw around him, and the emptiness of religious practices that left people in their sin and in their misery.  His own experience of God led him to believe that that there had to be a better way.²

“while Jesus after his own baptism was at prayer, heaven opened 22and the Holy Spirit descended on him”

Something must have been troubling Jesus.  The baptism was not the high point.  John had already disappeared from the scene. Luke has Herod arrest him in verse 20.  Jesus had heard John’s preaching.  “You brood of vipers. How will you escape when divine punishment comes.”  No doubt, John was a good man.  However this kind of language was hardly Jesus style.  Jesus went off alone to pray, to converse with his God.  “How should he go about his mission?”

It was while he was at prayer that “heaven opened”.  He clearly understood the way forward.  More than that, he came to a deeper realisation of how much God loved him.  Deep within his being he “heard”, “You are my Son, the beloved; my favour rests on you.”

This experience was not for Jesus only.  Yes, he was the beloved son of God, and God did delight in him.  He realised that this experience was one that was meant for everyone.  The verdict passed by God on the people of this broken and discouraged world was that each and every person is a son or daughter of God, and that the God who creates us does delight in us.³

PRAYER

Lord, we thank you for deep prayer experiences when we are truly one with Jesus.  They always come to us as your free gift, unexpectedly, after a long struggle.

After having been baptised in the waters of loneliness:

• Heaven opens;
• Your  Holy Spirit descends on us;
• We hear a voice resonating so deeply within us,
• Telling us, we are members of your personal family,
• We are beloved and your favour rest forever on us;
• We are your Sons and Daughters.

Thank you, Lord.

1. Fallon M,  The Gospel according to Saint Luke, p 77
2. Fallon M,  The Gospel according to Saint Luke, p 73
3. Fallon M,  The Gospel according to Saint Luke, p 77

Lk 3: 10 – 18

Prayer before praying Scripture

Father you wait for us until we are open to you. We wait for your Word to make us receptive. Attune us to your voice, to your silence, speak and bring your Son to us – Jesus – the Word of your peace.

Let us pause for a few moments just to quieten ourselves down. Breathe slowly savouring the breath of life. Allow your mind to gently empty of the cares and chores of the day.  Sit up straight – enter into your own silence.

Now we are ready to read today’s gospel. Read it slowly and out loud. Having read it once let us read it again and again slowly letting the words filter into our being.

Three parts may begin to stand out for you.

¹⁰When all the people asked John, “What must we do?”

¹⁵ A feeling of expectancy had grown among the people, who were beginning to think that John might be the Christ,

things he said to exhort the people and announce the Good News to them.

When John commenced his mission the whole of Israel was filled with excitement. There had been no prophets in Israel for the past 300 years and now, suddenly, a great prophet had walked onto the scene. Surely God’s silence had come to an end. Surely God was visiting his people. We too should be filled with excitement. The Word, Jesus, is with us all days even to the end of time.

Our reading opens with “What must we do?” This will be asked three times. The same question is in our minds. The answer is the “Good News”, which we find at the close of this reading.

Indeed, John’s message, verses 10 – 14 is Good News.

“If anyone has two tunics he must share with the man who has none.

The one who has something to eat must do the same (share with the man who has none.)

¹³He said to them, “Exact no more than your rate.”

He said to them, “No intimidation! No extortion! Be content with your pay!”

Here we have the essence of Jesus message.

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
to bring glad tidings to the poor.
He sent me to proclaim liberty to captives
and recovery of sight to the blind,
to let the oppressed go free.” Lk 4: 18

The incident that leads to the telling of the parable of the Good Samaritan carries this same message.

“Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

Jesus answered,

“You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your being, with all your strength, with all your mind, with all your being, and your neighbour as yourself.   This is Good News.

The gifts of this reading continue to be showered upon us in the second half.

“he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.”

We are assured that God remains active in our lives. God loves us and God wants the very best for us.

¹⁷His winnowing fan is in his hand to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his barn; but the chaff he will burn in a fire that will never go out.”

At first glance this seems not to be good news. Yes, God is constantly at work in our lives.  God separates the chaff of our lives from all the good that we do. God clears our shortcomings away and they are no more.

We are baptised with the fire of the love of God. We are fired up with the excitement that a deep relationship with God gives us. We are determined to live out lives according to the maxim,

Love God and Love Neighbour and Love Yourself.

“You have been told, O man, what is good,

and what the Lord asks of you;

to act justly,

to love tenderly,

and to walk humbly with your God. Micah 6: 8