Palm Sunday of the Lord's Passion

Agony in the Garden
Assumption Church
Fairfield, CT 1939*

                                   

Today's  reading of the Passion of our Lord is the highlight of the Church year. This year we heard St. Mark's account of the Passion. Next year we will hear St. Luke's account and the year after we will have St. Matthew's account. Of course, on Good Friday we always have the Passion according to St. John. Although each of the Evangelists approaches the life of Christ in a different way, they draw very close to each other when it comes to the Passion.

The narrative of the Passion, which we have just heard, seems like a great drama with a cast of characters we can all identify with. If we could be in the drama, what role would we play? Would we be like the disciples who fell asleep in the Garden of Gethsemane? Or would we be part of the crowd who mocked and taunted Jesus only a short time after cheering Him and waiving palm branches.

Maybe we would like a more important role. We could be the woman who anointed Our Lord with precious oil. We could be Pontius Pilate who condemned Jesus, or Peter who denied Him, or even Judas who betrayed Him. Still, it is clear from today's readings that we are supposed to play the part of Jesus, Himself. The Church has always recognized that in His Passion and Death our Lord gave us an example, which we must follow. Many times during His time on Earth Jesus said, "Follow Me." Many times He urged us to take up our cross and follow Him.

Today's readings show that it is through the practice of humility and self sacrifice that we come to follow the Lord.  At the Last Supper Jesus told the disciples that He would give up His body and blood for us all, and that they should share in this sacrifice. When He asks us at every Mass to eat His Body and drink His Blood, he is also asking us to share in His sacrifice on Calvary.

Today's first reading is about humility and self-sacrifice.

            I gave my back to those who beat me,

            my cheeks to those who plucked my beard;

            my face I did not shield

            from buffets and spitting.

St. Paul in the letter to the Philippians says that Jesus "humbled Himself, becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross."

This is the point of all of our little sacrifices during Lent. Everything that we gave up or did was to remind ourselves that we do not live just for ourselves.  Humility means giving up our own pride and ambition for the sake of others. Didn't our Lord say that we must deny ourselves in order to save ourselves? That we must lose our life in order to find it?

Our Lord was a great teacher but the Passion shows us that He taught by example. ###

Reading 1. Isaiah 50: 4-7

Reading II. Philippians 2: 6-11

Gospel. Mark 14: 1—15:47 (the Passion).

* Photo by Melissa DeStefano

Jesus and the Leper

                           6th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Leprosy was one of the most dreaded diseases of the ancient world. In the Gospels we have a clear picture of the roads of Palestine, particularly those near the entrance of the towns, haunted by lepers, who would hold out their dreadful fingerless hands to awaken the pity of those who passed by, but who would only succeed in terrifying them by the horrible "lion's mask" that the disease sets upon the sufferer's face.

There was no cure for leprosy. The only remedy was to cast the leper out from society. The leper was to go bareheaded, wearing special clothes; he was to live far away from towns and villages, and whenever he came near a healthy person he was to call out in a loud voice, "unclean, unclean." It is no wonder that the disease was considered a spiritual as well as a physical malady.

Today’s first reading contains instructions from the Book of Leviticus on how to deal with lepers. The gospel follows up with the account of the cure of the leper from the first chapter of St. Mark’s. Incredibly, this leper actually approaches Jesus and kneels down before him and begs, “If you wish, you can make me clean.”

Hearing this gospel, it is natural for us to wonder about who are today’s lepers. Who are today’s outcasts? Any number of different types of people will come to mind but maybe we should consider the question from another point of view. No sane person today would think that a dreaded disease like leprosy was the result of someone’s sins. However, there can be a kind of spiritual leprosy.

Whenever we read the gospels, we should always try to put ourselves in the picture. It’s a kind of unofficial sign of the divine inspiration of the gospels that we can usually see that they apply to us and not only to people who lived 2000 years ago. Today, instead of wondering who are the lepers in our society, it might be better to consider that we ourselves are lepers.

While our bodies show no sign of the dreaded disease, our souls could be disfigured. Just because our society no longer believes in the seven deadly sins, it does not mean that they have gone away or that their ugly sores do not disfigure our souls. Pride, anger, lust, gluttony, greed, sloth, and envy have not disappeared from our world.

All we have to do is read the newspapers or watch TV to realize that these things are still among us at every level. Lust is so common that there is no point in even discussing it. Anyone watching Judge Judy knows that anger is all around us. Even children are not immune. When children want everything their friends have, that is envy and it disfigures their souls more than the worst case of acne. Sloth is spiritual laziness and it attracts us even at a young age. It leads all of us to avoid difficult tasks and shirk difficult assignments.

Despite what some say, you don’t have to be rich to be greedy. Sure, the rich and famous build huge mega-mansions for themselves, but just watch ordinary people searching for homes on the Home network if you want to see greed. On one recent episode, a woman wouldn’t even consider a home unless it had granite countertops. Maybe, her attitude also showed the beginnings of pride. She had led a good life and had reached a modest level of success and now felt that she deserved her reward.

Pride is the worst of the sins since it can infect us even after we have managed to avoid or overcome the others. Seniors should be especially concerned since they are often prone to think they know it all.

The whole point of today’s gospel is that we all need to be made clean, and fortunately Jesus has shown us the way. “I do will it. Be made clean.” Interestingly enough, after he had cured the leper, he told him to present himself to the priest and follow the rules prescribed in the Law of Moses. Jesus was telling him that he was now free to re-enter the community. He was no longer a spiritual outcast.           

Today we live in the wealthiest society on the face of the earth. Even our poor have a standard of living that would be the envy of others living in other parts of the world. And yet there are disturbing signs. Who can deny that there is so much unhappiness in our country today? Millions of people are taking anti depressant medication. Just the other day the newspaper carried a story about the increasing use of anti-depressant drugs among teenagers.

Could it be that our unhappiness is related to the constant attacks on religion and morality today that are aimed at destroying the spiritual immune system that once protected us from sin and its consequences. Why do so many people feel like spiritual lepers, unloved and unwanted? Is it because self-indulgence has replaced self-sacrifice?

In today's second reading, St. Paul advises us to practice the virtues that are the opposite of the seven deadly sins. Humility, for example, is the great antidote to pride. No matter what we do we should do everything not for ourselves but for the benefit of others.

The words that Jesus spoke to the leper were also spoken to us:

“I do will it. Be made clean.”

 Reading 1. Leviticus 13: 1-2, 44-46

Reading II. 1 Corinthians 10: 31—11: 1

Gospel. Mark 1: 40-45 (Be made clean)

           

           

           

           

           

Jesus Speaks with Authority

      4th Sunday in Ordinary Time:   B cycle

In today’s first reading from the Book of Deuteronomy, Moses tells the people that the Lord will one day bring them a Messiah, a new Prophet,

            I will raise up for them a prophet like you…

            And will put my words into his mouth;

            He shall tell them all that I command him.

In other words this new Prophet will speak with the authority of God, Himself. Sure enough in today’s gospel we see Jesus, at the outset of his public life, impressing the people in the synagogue at Capernaum as one speaking with authority. This passage in Mark’s gospel comes right after last week’s account of the calling of the first Apostles. You may remember that last week Jesus called the brothers Andrew and Peter, and then James and John, the sons of the fisherman Zebedee. Jesus had met these fishermen on the shores of the Sea of Galilee and archaeologists have discovered ruins of an ancient synagogue at the seaside city of Capernaum.

What does it mean to speak with authority? Scholars tell us that it might refer to the methods used by the ancient scribes. Whenever they were asked for an opinion on some issue, it was their practice to search their books for the opinions of learned rabbis. Typically, there would be many opinions that had to be reconciled. Sometimes the opinions would even be contradictory. Sometimes this method could even provide loopholes that could allow any kind of behavior.

Doesn’t this sound terribly familiar to us today? Look at our cable talk shows. People literally screaming at each other-- some arguing that white is black, or black is white, or that their particular shade of gray is the only correct one.  We have come to expect “spin” from any political or social commentator. During our political campaigns didn’t we wait to hear the supporters of each candidate provide their spin immediately following each debate?

What we see in the media reflects what goes on in society. In politics it seems that corruption has become the normal way of doing business. What authority can a governor or mayor have whose been caught with hands in the cookie jar of bribery or payoffs? Only a fool would listen to their words or be guided by them. In business it’s much the same. Even in sports and entertainment we should know better than to trust the words of celebrities whose words are often belied by their private lives.

There’s an old saying that “It’s not enough to talk the talk, you’ve got to walk the walk.” Some examples. I once heard of a business owner who developed a unique plan to save his company when it got into financial trouble. He cut his own salary and the salary of the top third of his employees by 15%. The middle third were cut 10% and the bottom third 5%. This action saved the company without anyone losing their job. This owner spoke with real authority. I knew a sales manager who would never ask his salespeople to do anything that he was reluctant to do himself. He led by example, not by words.

One of the greatest coaches of all time was John Wooden, the legendary basketball coach of UCLA when they won 4 national championships in a row. Never would you see him jumping off the bench yelling at his players as so many do. He must have realized that if his team was not prepared, it was his fault, not theirs.

In today’s gospel St. Mark says that the people were astounded at the teaching of Jesus for “he taught them as one having authority.” Nevertheless, there was someone there who questioned his authority as many do today,

            What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth?

            Have you come to destroy us?

In our Missal we translate the answer of Jesus as, “Quiet,” but it literally means be “muzzled.” He then cures the man as He often did to show that His teaching had authority, an authority that sprang from who He was. He would not agree with those people today who say that their private lives can be separated from their public lives. If parents neglect their children, will they care for their clients? If politicians lie to their spouses, will they tell the truth to their constituents? People speak with authority if they possess real personal integrity.

Certainly, the people of Corinth thought that St. Paul spoke with authority. Today, we have a somewhat difficult to understand excerpt from the 7^th chapter of his famous letter to the Corinthians. If we read the whole chapter, we would see that he had been asked to advise them on some difficult matters of personal behavior. He admits that he can find no specific rule or commandment in most of these matters and only offers what he calls his own opinion.

In general, he urges the converts to remain in their current situation and work within to achieve the kingdom of God. It is not a question of whether your married or unmarried, circumcised or uncircumcised, slave or free, male or female. You can do the work of God in any station in life. That’s speaking with authority. For Paul, love transcends all.

            Love is patient, love is kind.

            It is not jealous, it is not pompous,

            it is not inflated, it is not rude,

            it does not seek its own interests,

            it is not quick-tempered, it does not brood over injury,

            it does not rejoice over wrongdoing

            but rejoices with the truth.

            It bears all things, believes all things,

            hopes all things, endures all things.

 Reading 1. Deuteronomy 18: 15-20

Reading II. I Corinthians 7:32-35

Gospel. Mark 1: 21-28 (teaching with authority).

           

           

Epiphany of the Lord

Our Lady of the Assumption Church
 Fairfield, CT, 1939.
 Image by Melissa DeStefano

                         

Today we celebrate the great feast of the Epiphany of the Lord. Epiphany is a Greek word which means manifestation or appearance. Traditionally, the story of the "magi from the east" has been seen as a sign of the manifestation of the Lord to all nations

Today's first reading from the Prophet Isaiah with its mention of caravans of camels and dromedaries bearing gold and frankincense has from the earliest days of the Church been associated with the story of the Three Kings or Wise Men. Today's gospel account from St. Matthew only tells us that "magi from the east" followed the star "to the place where the child was." It doesn't say that there were three of them, or that they were kings. But  tradition and art have added the familiar features to the story.  

We have three kings probably because of the three gifts--gold, frankincense, and myrrh--which are associated with royalty. In art, one of the Kings is usually portrayed as an old man, another is middle aged, while the third is young and beardless. They symbolize all the ages of mankind. Tradition called them wise men because the word magi came to mean "magician", or one familiar with the secrets and mysteries of nature. It is common to think of them as astronomers or astrologers because of the famous star that they followed to Bethlehem.

Although legends have embellished the story of the Magi, there is an historical core to their story. There were, after all, "magi" in the East. The members of the ruling priestly class of the Persian empire to the east of Palestine had for centuries been called "magi." They would have been familiar with the Hebrew scriptures and prophecies because so many Jews had emigrated to Persia in the centuries before Christ. Their journey to Bethlehem would have been over a thousand miles but it would have followed established and frequently traveled trade routes.

The reaction of King Herod to their news certainly fits what history has told us about that cruel despot. In those days it was common for rulers to kill anyone who might be a potential threat to their crown. Herod murdered his favorite wife--he had ten--and five of his own sons when he suspected that they were plotting against him. The slaughter of the Innocents which St. Matthew describes a little later in this chapter is certainly in line with Herod's character.

What is the importance of the visit of the Magi? Why is the Feast of the Epiphany one of the greatest in the Church's calendar?

We know that even after the Resurrection of our Lord the first converts to Christianity, even the Apostles themselves, had difficulty in understanding that the mission of our Lord was not just to the Jews. There was a great debate in the early Church where some argued that Gentiles had to convert to Judaism before they could be Christian. In St. Paul's epistles we see that this issue centered around the question of circumcision, that particular rite which signified one's membership in the nation of Israel.

In fact the very first Council of the Church was held at Jerusalem precisely to discuss this very issue. There St. Paul, inspired by his own vision of the Lord, argued that the message of Christ was for all mankind. As he says in today's reading from the Letter to the Ephesians,

         it has now been revealed

         to His holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit:

         that the Gentiles are coheirs, members of the same body,

         and copartners in the promise in Christ Jesus...

For Paul the Messiah promised to the Jews was to be in Isaiah's words a light to all nations. St. Peter, as observant a Jew as St. Paul, will have his own vision in which he sees that what God has created no man can call unclean. Perhaps it is only after this question had been decided that the early Christians began to reexamine the words and life of Jesus for new meaning.

He came to call sinners. He cured the Roman centurion's servant. The Sermon on the Mount did not mention race, creed, or color. He praised the Good Samaritan and insisted that the foreigner was more a neighbor to the beaten Jewish traveler than his countrymen who passed him by on the road to Jericho.

They even discovered an incident at the very beginning of our Lord's earthly life which indicated that He had come as a light to all the nations. The "Magi" had come from the East to bring Him gifts and do Him homage. On the other hand, the despised ruler of the Jews had only sought to put Him to death. Apparently, Herod and his advisers couldn't even see the star that led the "Magi" to the child.

The Christmas season comes to an end with Epiphany. The twelve days of Christmas are completed. Next week, we will begin to follow Jesus as He begins His public life. We will have a whole year to find Him on His way to Jerusalem. A few years ago I found a wonderful Christmas card which said simply,

         Wise men still seek Him.

 Reading 1. Isaiah 60: 1-6

Reading II. Ephesians 3: 2-3a, 5-6

Gospel. Matthew 2: 1-12 (magi from the east).