III. IN VARIOUS PUBLIC CIRCUMSTANCES
23. For Those Held Captive
Readings from the Mass for Any Need may also be use #938-942
932 Gospel
Jesus said to his disciples:
"When the Son of Man comes in his glory,
and all the angels with him,
he will sit upon his glorious throne,
and all the nations will be assembled before him.
And he will separate them one from another,
as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.
He will place the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
Then the king will say to those on his right,
‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father.
Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.
For I was hungry and you gave me food,
I was thirsty and you gave me drink,
a stranger and you welcomed me,
naked and you clothed me,
ill and you cared for me,
in prison and you visited me.’
Then the righteous will answer him and say,
‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you,
or thirsty and give you drink?
When did we see you a stranger and welcome you,
or naked and clothe you?
When did we see you ill or in prison, and visit you?’
And the king will say to them in reply,
‘Amen, I say to you, whatever you did
for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.’
Then he will say to those on his left,
‘Depart from me, you accursed,
into the eternal fire prepared for the Devil and his angels.
For I was hungry and you gave me no food,
I was thirsty and you gave me no drink,
a stranger and you gave me no welcome,
naked and you gave me no clothing,
ill and in prison, and you did not care for me.’
Then they will answer and say,
‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty
or a stranger or naked or ill or in prison,
and not minister to your needs?’
He will answer them, ‘Amen, I say to you,
what you did not do for one of these least ones,
you did not do for me.’
And these will go off to eternal punishment,
but the righteous to eternal life."
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Commentary on Mt 25:31-46
"This passage has a unique position within the eschatological discourse because, in addition to being a prophetic narrative like the rest of the discourse, its style suddenly becomes that of a full-fledged apocalyptic poem." [2]
In this reading, Jesus is telling his disciples and us what will be judged at the end times, the Eschaton. The Lord’s vision echo’s Daniel’s “night visions” (Daniel 7:13-14 “One like a son of man…He received dominion, splendor, and kingship.”) but the tone is more immediate. The reading gives us a vision of what will be asked and how judgment will be passed. This image is used as a teaching tool, to focus those who wish to follow Jesus on loving those who are in need of help: the hungry, the stranger, the naked, the ill, the imprisoned. Unlike Daniel’s vision, Jesus speaks with an immediacy that makes his coming kingship a historical reality, set in the future. There is no ambiguity. Not “One like a son of man,” but “When the Son of Man comes in his glory.” In this intimate setting, speaking quietly with his friends, Jesus tells them what will come, a path already set out, inevitable. [1]
This reading provides yet one more example of how Christ intends the Great Commandment to be lived. Loving God and loving neighbor would be judged by; “Amen, I say to you, whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.” We note that while the general theme is broadly applied to all people, there is special emphasis placed upon the poor and marginalized. The concluding answer expands upon the Hebrew definition in Leviticus (Leviticus 19:1-2, 11-18) as St. Matthew defines "neighbor" in a more inclusive sense.
CCC: Mt 25:31-46 544, 1033, 1373, 2447, 2831; Mt 25:31-36 2443; Mt 25:31 331, 671, 679, 1038; Mt 25:32 1038; Mt 25:36 1503; Mt 25:40 678, 1397, 1825, 1932, 2449; Mt 25:41 1034; Mt 25:45 598, 1825, 2463; Mt 25:46 1038
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[1] Fire of Mercy Heart of the Word Volume III, Erasmo Leiva-Merikakis, Ignatius Press, San Francisco, CA, © 2012 p. 826
[2] Fire of Mercy Heart of
the Word Volume III, Erasmo Leiva-Merikakis, Ignatius Press, San Francisco, CA,
© 2012 p. 711.
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