II. FOR PUBLIC NEEDS
15. For Reconciliation
892 Reading from the Old Testament
First Option
Thus says the LORD:
All you who are thirsty,
come to the water!
You who have no money,
come, receive grain and eat;
Come, without paying and without cost,
drink wine and milk!
Why spend your money for what is not bread,
your wages for what fails to satisfy?
Heed me, and you shall eat well,
you shall delight in rich fare.
Come to me needfully;
listen, that you may have life.
I will renew with you the everlasting covenant,
the benefits assured to David.
Seek the LORD while he may be found,
call him while he is near.
Let the scoundrel forsake his ways,
and the wicked man his thoughts;
Let him turn to the LORD for mercy;
to our God, who is generous in forgiving.
For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
nor are your ways my ways, says the LORD.
As high as the heavens are above the earth,
so high are my ways above your ways
and my thoughts above your thoughts.
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Commentary on Is 55:1-3, 6-9
The post exilic author offers God’s invitation to the heavenly banquet in the New Jerusalem, God’s Kingdom. All that is necessary for admittance is a thirst for the Lord. The theme of gift is emphasized as it is made clear that it is without cost or merit that eternal life is offered. The promise of the Messiah is alluded to as the prophet recalls that God’s covenant with David – the continuation of his line, is assured.
The imagery set forward in this passage recalls the promise of adoption through living water in Baptism (“All you who are thirsty, come to the water!”) and continued grace offered through the Eucharist (“Why spend your money for what is not bread”)
The passage continues with an exhortation to seek the Lord through prayer (call him while he is near) and to repent from sinful ways asking God's forgiveness. The author captures the perfection of God's thoughts (and of Christ's actions prophetically) expressing the perfection of God contrasted with the fallen nature of man and his sinful nature. It is taken from what is known as “Deutero-Isaiah”, that part written after the Babylonian exile. Using words common to the Old Testament (see Amos 5:4, and Psalm 9:11), the prophet exhorts the people to return to God. The essential paradox of God’s presences is explained; “God is transcendent yet near enough to help; man is helpless yet expected to act energetically, the ways of God are exalted yet required of man.”[1]
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Second Option
The days are coming, says the LORD,
when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel
and the house of Judah.
It will not be like the covenant I made with their fathers
the day I took them by the hand
to lead them forth from the land of Egypt;
for they broke my covenant,
and I had to show myself their master, says the LORD.
But this is the covenant that I will make
with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD.
I will place my law within them and write it upon their hearts;
I will be their God, and they shall be my people.
No longer will they have need to teach their friends and relatives
how to know the LORD.
All, from least to greatest, shall know me, says the LORD,
for I will forgive their evildoing and remember their sin no more.
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Commentary on Jer 31:31-34
This passage is called by scripture scholars “Jeremiah’s Spiritual Testament”[2]. In his announcement of the “new covenant,” he condenses his entire message into these few words. While in his day, he is speaking to the returning exiles about the re-establishment of the relationship with God, it can also be seen as predictive of the messianic covenant. This is especially clear given the language in the final verse regarding forgiveness: “All, from least to greatest, shall know me, says the Lord, for I will forgive their evildoing and remember their sin no more.”
CCC: Jer 31 1611; Jer 31:31-34 64, 715, 762, 1965; Jer 31:33 368, 580, 2713
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Third Option
For thus says the LORD God
Seek me, that you may live.
Seek good and not evil,
that you may live;
Then truly will the Lord, the God of hosts,
be with you as you claim!
Hate evil and love good,
and let justice prevail at the gate;
Then it may be that the Lord, the God of hosts,
will have pity on the remnant of Joseph.
I hate, I spurn your feasts, says the Lord,
I take no pleasure in your solemnities;
Your cereal offerings I will not accept,
nor consider your stall-fed peace offerings.
Away with your noisy songs!
I will not listen to the melodies of your harps.
But if you would offer me burnt offerings,
then let justice surge like water,
and goodness like an unfailing stream.
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Commentary on Am 5:4, 14-15, 21-24
The Prophet enjoins the people of Israel to seek salvation in the Lord God as he continues his pronouncement of “Woes to Israel” with what is called the Third Word. “The Lord condemns, not ritual worship in itself, but the cult whose exterior rites and solemnity have no relation to interior morality and justice. The Israelites falsely worshiped him as neighboring nations adored Baal or Chamos, deities which were thought to protect their respective peoples against their enemies in return for ritual observances, without any relation to right conduct.”[3]
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893 Reading from the New Testament
First Option
Peter said to the people:
"The God of Abraham,
the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob,
the God of our fathers, has glorified his servant Jesus,
whom you handed over and denied in Pilate's presence
when he had decided to release him.
You denied the Holy and Righteous One
and asked that a murderer be released to you.
The author of life you put to death,
but God raised him from the dead; of this we are witnesses.
Now I know, brothers,
that you acted out of ignorance, just as your leaders did;
but God has thus brought to fulfillment
what he had announced beforehand
through the mouth of all the prophets,
that his Christ would suffer.
Repent, therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be wiped away."
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Commentary on Acts 3:13-15, 17-19
Following the earlier cure of the lame beggar, a crowd gathers in the temple area and Peter launches into the second kerygmatic discourse or proclamations about the nature of Christ. Peter uses a new title for the Savior, “the author of life.” He concludes this discourse with a call for conversion.
He also uses a new title for the Savior, “The Author of Life.” "This second address by St. Peter contains two parts: in the first (vv. 12-16) the apostle explains that the miracle has been worked in the name of Jesus and through faith in this name; [...] This discourse has the same purpose as that of Pentecost - to show the power of God made manifest in Jesus Christ and to make the Jews see the seriousness of their crime and have them repent." [5]
CCC: Acts 3:13-14 597; Acts 3:13 599; Acts 3:14 438, 601; Acts 3:15-16 2666; Acts 3:15 612, 626, 632, 635; Acts 3:17-18 591, 600; Acts 3:17 597; Acts 3:18 601; Acts 3:19-21 674
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Second Option
Brothers and sisters:
Whoever is in Christ is a new creation:
the old things have passed away;
behold, new things have come.
And all this is from God,
who has reconciled us to himself through Christ
and given us the ministry of reconciliation,
namely, God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ,
not counting their trespasses against them
and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.
So we are ambassadors for Christ,
as if God were appealing through us.
We implore you on behalf of Christ,
be reconciled to God.
For our sake he made him to be sin who did not know sin,
so that we might become the righteousness of God in him.
Working together, then,
we appeal to you not to receive the grace of God in vain.
For he says:
In an acceptable time I heard you,
and on the day of salvation I helped you.
and on the day of salvation I helped you.
Behold, now is a very acceptable time;
behold, now is the day of salvation.
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Commentary on 2 Cor 5:17-6:2
St. Paul begins this passage with an image of Baptism (“Whoever is in Christ is a new creation”) which is how we are reconciled to God through Christ. He (God) goes on using Christ as the tool for the remission of sin (trespasses) and using Christians to spread that word to the world. Next evangelist exhorts the Corinthians. He calls them to faithfulness, to be reconciled with God in Christ because of Jesus’ great sacrifice for us all.
In Chapter 6, St. Paul brings home the need for reconciliation to God and within the Christian Community. He quotes Isaiah 48:8 from the Septuigant to establish the urgency of this need. He anticipates the salvation of the Lord and the judgement that will accompany it.
CCC: 2 Cor 5:17 1214, 1265; 2 Cor 5:17-18 1999; 2 Cor 5:18-21 2844; 2 Cor 5:18 981, 1442, 1461; 2 Cor 5:19 433, 620; 2 Cor 5:20 859, 1424, 1442; 2 Cor 5:21 602; 2 Cor 6:2 1041
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Third Option
My children, I am writing this to you
so that you may not commit sin.
But if anyone does sin, we have an Advocate with the Father,
Jesus Christ the righteous one.
He is expiation for our sins,
and not for our sins only but for those of the whole world.
The way we may be sure that we know him is to keep
his commandments.
Those who say, "I know him," but do not keep his commandments
are liars, and the truth is not in them.
But whoever keeps his word,
the love of God is truly perfected in him.
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Commentary on 1 Jn 2:1-5
This selection provides a principle teaching of St. John. He writes to the faithful that they might know the commandments of Christ. He then tells them that in order to keep from sin they must keep “Jesus’” commandments. He contrasts professed faith and observed actions saying that if you say you belong to Christ but do not follow his commandments, you are a liar. (see also 1 John 4:20, 1 John 5:10).
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894 Responsorial Psalm
First Option
R. (12a) Create a clean heart in me, O God.
Have mercy on me, O God, in your goodness;
in the greatness of your compassion wipe out my offense.
Thoroughly wash me from my guilt
and of my sin cleanse me.
R. Create a clean heart in me, O God.
A clean heart create for me, O God,
and a steadfast spirit renew within me.
Cast me not out from your presence,
and your Holy Spirit take not from me.
R. Create a clean heart in me, O God.
Give me back the joy of your salvation,
and a willing spirit sustain in me.
I will teach transgressors your ways,
and sinners shall return to you.
R. Create a clean heart in me, O God.
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Commentary on Ps 51:3-4, 12-13, 14-15
Psalm 51 provides a call to repentance. It is a lament and the most famous of the seven penitential psalms. “The Psalmist’s plea extends beyond a desire for a physical cure (that cure is a sign that his sin has been forgiven). He begs God to renew his inner being by an act of creation (v. 10), which will allow him to dwell in the presence of God and share in the life that he possesses and bestows (‘thy holy Spirit’, thy deliverance’; v. 11-12). The psalmist speaks of the fidelity to God which the prophets have said will appear in the New Covenant that God will make with his people (cf. Jeremiah 24:7, 31:33; Ezekiel 36: 25-27).”[4]
CCC: Ps 51:12 298, 431
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Second Option
R. (7bc) With the Lord there is mercy, and fullness of redemption.
Out of the depths I cry to you, O LORD;
LORD, hear my voice!
Let your ears be attentive
to my voice in supplication.
R. With the Lord there is mercy, and fullness of redemption.
If you, O LORD, mark iniquities,
LORD, who can stand?
But with you is forgiveness,
that you may be revered.
R. With the Lord there is mercy, and fullness of redemption.
I trust in the LORD;
my soul trusts in his word.
My soul waits for the LORD
more than sentinels wait for the dawn.
R. With the Lord there is mercy, and fullness of redemption.
More than sentinels for the dawn,
let Israel wait for the LORD,
For with the LORD is kindness
and with him is plenteous redemption;
And he will redeem Israel
from all their iniquities.
R. With the Lord there is mercy, and fullness of redemption.
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Commentary on Ps 130:1-2, 3-4, 5-6ab, 6c-8
Psalm 130 is a song of lament. The psalmist cries out to God to hear the voice of the one who calls and to forgive the sins they have committed. The singer recognizes that grace from God comes without merit because of the sins committed. It is only through God's mercy that sins are forgiven and grace is restored. The author continues to express his great desire that the Word of God might come, look at this passage from the perspective of those redeemed in Christ, it is clear the victory over sin and death has been one by our risen Lord, Jesus Christ.
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896 Gospel
First Option
When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain,
and after he had sat down, his disciples came to him.
He began to teach them, saying:
“Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are they who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the land.
Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be satisfied.
Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
Blessed are the clean of heart,
for they will see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called children of God.
Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you
and utter every kind of evil against you falsely because of me.
Rejoice and be glad,
for your reward will be great in heaven.”
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Commentary on Mt 5:1-12a
This section of the Sermon on the Mount begins the first of five great discourses in St. Matthew’s Gospel. He begins using a formula common in the Wisdom literature of the Old Testament with “Blessed are the poor in spirit.”(Job 5:17; Proverbs 3:13; Sirach 25:8-9) This designation identifies those without material resources, completely dependent upon God. (This distinction is for the devout poor.) The discourse continues blessing those who mourn, who are meek, who “hunger” for righteousness (to adopt the Lord’s law of love in their hearts), the merciful, the clean of heart (those who are reconciled to God), the peacemakers, the persecuted, and finally those who will be reviled because they profess faith in Christ.
The litany of praises for those to be blessed by the Lord has an overarching theme. It holds up the spiritual strength of complete dependence on God for life, health, and prosperity. St. Matthew captures the strength in that dependence and God’s promise of salvation through the words of the Savior.
It is noteworthy that the word “Blessed” [μακάριοι (makάrios) in Greek and Beati in Latin] is translated “Happy” in many Old Testament texts. The idea of happiness or peace as a blessing from God is an important understanding about the intent of this discourse.
CCC: Mt 5:1 581; Mt 5:3-12 1716; Mt 5:3 544, 2546; Mt 5-7 2763; Mt 5-6 764; Mt 5:8 1720, 2518; Mt 5:9 2305, 2330; Mt 5:11-12 520
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Second Option
John the Baptist said to the crowds who came out to be baptized by him,
"You brood of vipers!
Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath?
Produce good fruits as evidence of your repentance;
and do not begin to say to yourselves,
'We have Abraham as our father.'
for I tell you, God can raise up children to Abraham
from these stones.
Even now the ax lies at the root of the trees.
Therefore every tree that does not produce good fruit
will be cut down and thrown into the fire."
And the crowds asked him,
“What then should we do?”
He said to them in reply,
“Whoever has two cloaks
should share with the person who has none.
And whoever has food should do likewise.”
Even tax collectors came to be baptized and they said to him,
“Teacher, what should we do?”
He answered them,
“Stop collecting more than what is prescribed.”
Soldiers also asked him,
“And what is it that we should do?”
He told them,
“Do not practice extortion,
do not falsely accuse anyone,
and be satisfied with your wages.”
Now the people were filled with expectation,
and all were asking in their hearts
whether John might be the Christ.
John answered them all, saying,
“I am baptizing you with water,
but one mightier than I is coming.
I am not worthy to loosen the thongs of his sandals.
He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.
His 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 with unquenchable fire.”
Exhorting them in many other ways,
he preached good news to the people.
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Commentary on Lk 3:7-18
The passage begins with St. John the Baptist taking to task the Jews, who thought because of their heritage as "Children of Abraham" they were predestined to the redemptive salvation promised by God. He tells them that heritage is of no consequence: "...God can raise up children to Abraham from these stones." What is important is that their actions reflect the love of God and of neighbor, in other words, "bear fruit."
St. John the Baptist, in this passage unique to Luke’s Gospel, establishes the universal nature of redemption, speaking first to members of the secular crowd (and their body guards). We note he does not try for a highly mystical faith, but rather a pragmatic application of the precepts of that faith (e.g. “Whoever has two cloaks should share with the person who has none. And whoever has food should do likewise.”). This address would have been made to Tax Collectors (publicans), a group despised by polite Jewish society.
The passage continues with the messianic vision of what will come. St. John calls people to symbolically demonstrate their repentance by the pouring of water (“I am baptizing you with water"). The Messiah (the use of “one mightier [strong]” is frequently used in scripture to designate the leader who will overthrow evil: Mark 3:27, Luke 11:20-22) comes in the common analogy of the threshing floor. The use of this image envisions the end times, when the good will be separated from the evil (wheat from chaff). The use of the image of fire can be seen both as the eternal punishment for the damned and the temporal purification of those destined for eternal life.
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Third Option
Tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to listen to Jesus,
but the Pharisees and scribes began to complain, saying,
“This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”
So to them Jesus addressed this parable.
“A man had two sons, and the younger son said to his father,
‘Father, give me the share of your estate that should come to me.’
So the father divided the property between them.
After a few days, the younger son collected all his belongings
and set off to a distant country
where he squandered his inheritance on a life of dissipation.
When he had freely spent everything,
a severe famine struck that country,
and he found himself in dire need.
So he hired himself out to one of the local citizens
who sent him to his farm to tend the swine.
And he longed to eat his fill of the pods on which the swine fed,
but nobody gave him any.
Coming to his senses he thought,
‘How many of my father’s hired workers
have more than enough food to eat,
but here am I, dying from hunger.
I shall get up and go to my father and I shall say to him,
“Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you.
I no longer deserve to be called your son;
treat me as you would treat one of your hired workers.”’
So he got up and went back to his father.
While he was still a long way off,
his father caught sight of him, and was filled with compassion.
He ran to his son, embraced him and kissed him.
His son said to him,
‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you;
I no longer deserve to be called your son.’
But his father ordered his servants,
‘Quickly, bring the finest robe and put it on him;
put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet.
Take the fattened calf and slaughter it.
Then let us celebrate with a feast,
because this son of mine was dead, and has come to life again;
he was lost, and has been found.’
Then the celebration began.
Now the older son had been out in the field
and, on his way back, as he neared the house,
he heard the sound of music and dancing.
He called one of the servants and asked what this might mean.
The servant said to him,
‘Your brother has returned
and your father has slaughtered the fattened calf
because he has him back safe and sound.’
He became angry,
and when he refused to enter the house,
his father came out and pleaded with him.
He said to his father in reply,
‘Look, all these years I served you
and not once did I disobey your orders;
yet you never gave me even a young goat to feast on with my friends.
But when your son returns
who swallowed up your property with prostitutes,
for him you slaughter the fattened calf.’
He said to him,
‘My son, you are here with me always;
everything I have is yours.
But now we must celebrate and rejoice,
because your brother was dead and has come to life again;
he was lost and has been found.’“
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Commentary on Lk 15:1-3, 11-32
The topic of repentance and forgiveness comes to a climax with St. Luke’s Parable of the Prodigal Son, one of the two “Parables of Mercy” found in this section. The parables distill the essence of the Good News. Found only the St. Luke’s Gospel, the imagery is instantly clear that this is to be an analogy. The father in the story represents God and the Prodigal Son followers of Christ, when they repent their sins. Interestingly, the older brother also represents Christians when they do not forgive those who have also sinned. We are given the picture of the loving father welcoming his son home, an allusion used also in the parable of the Lost Sheep (Luke 15:3-7). The implicit invitation is that those who seek forgiveness find it in God.
“The Pharisaical mentality can simply not tolerate
anything that escapes the control of the ritual prescriptions of which they are
the stewards—which is to say, anything that escapes their personal control, the
tyranny of their virtues! Thus, the Greek Church prays on the Sunday of the
Pharisee and the Publican, the day that launches the preparation for the season
of Lent: ‘We see that the mad arrogance that comes from a wealth of virtues
fosters the greatest indigence; but self-abasement is the means to acquire
justification, because the plight is so extreme. Let us, then, build humility
as our foundation.’” [6]
CCC: Lk 15 1443, 1846; Lk 15:1-2 589; Lk 15:11-32 545, 2839; Lk 15:11-31 1700; Lk 15:11-24 1439; Lk 15:18 1423, 2795; Lk 15:21 2795; Lk 15:23-32 589; Lk 15:32 1468
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[1] Jerome Biblical Commentary, Prentice Hall, Inc., © 1968, 22:49, pp. 380
[2] Jerome Biblical Commentary, Prentice Hall, Inc., © 1968, pp.327, 89.
[3] See NAB footnote on Amos 5:21
[4] The Navarre Bible: “Psalms”, Scepter Publishers, Princeton, NJ, © 2003, pp. 186-187
[5] The Navarre Bible, “Gospels and Acts”, Scepter Publishers, Princeton, NJ, © 2002, pp. 738
[5] The Navarre Bible, “Gospels and Acts”, Scepter Publishers, Princeton, NJ, © 2002, pp. 738
[6] Leiva-Merikakis, Erasmo. Fire of Mercy, Heart of the Word: Volume I (Ignatius
Press. Kindle Edition), 528.
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