Monday of the Twenty-second Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 431
Lectionary: 431
We do not want you
to be unaware, brothers and sisters,
about those who have fallen asleep,
so that you may not grieve like the rest, who have no hope.
For if we believe that Jesus died and rose,
so too will God, through Jesus,
bring with him those who have fallen asleep.
Indeed, we tell you this, on the word of the Lord,
that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord,
will surely not precede those who have fallen asleep.
For the Lord himself, with a word of command,
with the voice of an archangel and with the trumpet of God,
will come down from heaven,
and the dead in Christ will rise first.
Then we who are alive, who are left,
will be caught up together with them in the clouds
to meet the Lord in the air.
Thus we shall always be with the Lord.
Therefore, console one another with these words.
about those who have fallen asleep,
so that you may not grieve like the rest, who have no hope.
For if we believe that Jesus died and rose,
so too will God, through Jesus,
bring with him those who have fallen asleep.
Indeed, we tell you this, on the word of the Lord,
that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord,
will surely not precede those who have fallen asleep.
For the Lord himself, with a word of command,
with the voice of an archangel and with the trumpet of God,
will come down from heaven,
and the dead in Christ will rise first.
Then we who are alive, who are left,
will be caught up together with them in the clouds
to meet the Lord in the air.
Thus we shall always be with the Lord.
Therefore, console one another with these words.
Responsorial PsalmPS 96:1 AND 3, 4-5, 11-12, 13
R. (13b) The Lord comes to judge the earth.
Sing to the LORD a new song;
sing to the LORD, all you lands.
Tell his glory among the nations;
among all peoples, his wondrous deeds.
R. The Lord comes to judge the earth.
For great is the LORD and highly to be praised;
awesome is he, beyond all gods.
For all the gods of the nations are things of nought,
but the LORD made the heavens.
R. The Lord comes to judge the earth.
Let the heavens be glad and the earth rejoice;
let the sea and what fills it resound;
let the plains be joyful and all that is in them!
Then shall all the trees of the forest exult.
R. The Lord comes to judge the earth.
Before the LORD, for he comes;
for he comes to rule the earth.
He shall rule the world with justice
and the peoples with his constancy.
R. The Lord comes to judge the earth.
Sing to the LORD a new song;
sing to the LORD, all you lands.
Tell his glory among the nations;
among all peoples, his wondrous deeds.
R. The Lord comes to judge the earth.
For great is the LORD and highly to be praised;
awesome is he, beyond all gods.
For all the gods of the nations are things of nought,
but the LORD made the heavens.
R. The Lord comes to judge the earth.
Let the heavens be glad and the earth rejoice;
let the sea and what fills it resound;
let the plains be joyful and all that is in them!
Then shall all the trees of the forest exult.
R. The Lord comes to judge the earth.
Before the LORD, for he comes;
for he comes to rule the earth.
He shall rule the world with justice
and the peoples with his constancy.
R. The Lord comes to judge the earth.
GospelLK 4:16-30
Jesus came to
Nazareth, where he had grown up,
and went according to his custom
into the synagogue on the sabbath day.
He stood up to read and was handed a scroll of the prophet Isaiah.
He unrolled the scroll and found the passage where it was written:
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to bring glad tidings to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives
and recovery of sight to the blind,
to let the oppressed go free,
and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord.
Rolling up the scroll,
he handed it back to the attendant and sat down,
and the eyes of all in the synagogue looked intently at him.
He said to them,
“Today this Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing.”
And all spoke highly of him
and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his mouth.
They also asked, “Is this not the son of Joseph?”
He said to them, “Surely you will quote me this proverb,
‘Physician, cure yourself,’ and say, ‘Do here in your native place
the things that we heard were done in Capernaum.’”
And he said,
“Amen, I say to you, no prophet is accepted in his own native place.
Indeed, I tell you,
there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah
when the sky was closed for three and a half years
and a severe famine spread over the entire land.
It was to none of these that Elijah was sent,
but only to a widow in Zarephath in the land of Sidon.
Again, there were many lepers in Israel
during the time of Elisha the prophet;
yet not one of them was cleansed, but only Naaman the Syrian.”
When the people in the synagogue heard this,
they were all filled with fury.
They rose up, drove him out of the town,
and led him to the brow of the hill
on which their town had been built, to hurl him down headlong.
But he passed through the midst of them and went away.
and went according to his custom
into the synagogue on the sabbath day.
He stood up to read and was handed a scroll of the prophet Isaiah.
He unrolled the scroll and found the passage where it was written:
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to bring glad tidings to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives
and recovery of sight to the blind,
to let the oppressed go free,
and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord.
Rolling up the scroll,
he handed it back to the attendant and sat down,
and the eyes of all in the synagogue looked intently at him.
He said to them,
“Today this Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing.”
And all spoke highly of him
and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his mouth.
They also asked, “Is this not the son of Joseph?”
He said to them, “Surely you will quote me this proverb,
‘Physician, cure yourself,’ and say, ‘Do here in your native place
the things that we heard were done in Capernaum.’”
And he said,
“Amen, I say to you, no prophet is accepted in his own native place.
Indeed, I tell you,
there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah
when the sky was closed for three and a half years
and a severe famine spread over the entire land.
It was to none of these that Elijah was sent,
but only to a widow in Zarephath in the land of Sidon.
Again, there were many lepers in Israel
during the time of Elisha the prophet;
yet not one of them was cleansed, but only Naaman the Syrian.”
When the people in the synagogue heard this,
they were all filled with fury.
They rose up, drove him out of the town,
and led him to the brow of the hill
on which their town had been built, to hurl him down headlong.
But he passed through the midst of them and went away.
Meditation: "No
prophet is acceptable in his own country"
How would you react
if Jesus spoke this message from the pulpit of your church? It was customary
for Jesus to go weekly to the synagogue to worship and on occasion to read the
Scriptures and comment on them to the people. His hometown folks listened with
rapt attention on this occasion because they had heard about the miracles he
had performed in other towns. What sign would he do in his hometown? Jesus
startled them with a seeming rebuke that no prophet or servant of God can
receive honor among his own people. He then angered them when he complimented
the Gentiles who seemed to have shown more faith in God than the "chosen
ones" of Israel. They regarded Gentiles as "fuel for the fires of
hell." Jesus' praise for "outsiders" caused them offence because
they were blind-sighted to God's mercy and plan of redemption for all nations.The word "gospel" literally means "good news". Isaiah had prophesied that the Messiah would come in the power of the Holy Spirit to bring freedom to those oppressed by sin and evil (see Isaiah 61:1-2). Jesus came to set people free from the worst tyranny possible – the tyranny of slavery to sin and the fear of death, and the destruction of both body and soul. God's power alone can save us from emptiness and poverty of spirit, from confusion and error, and from the fear of death and hopelessness. The gospel of salvation is "good news" for us today. Do you know the joy and freedom of the gospel?
"Lord Jesus, you are the fulfillment of all our hopes and desires. Your Spirit brings us grace, truth, life, and freedom. Fill me with the joy of the gospel and inflame my heart with love and zeal for you and for your will".
www.dailyscripture.net
 “He Who Hears You, Hears Me.” |
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Monday of the
Twenty-Second Week in Ordinary Time
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Luke 4:16-30
Jesus came to Nazareth, where he had grown
up, and went according to his custom into the synagogue on the sabbath day.
He stood up to read and was handed a scroll of the prophet Isaiah. He
unrolled the scroll and found the passage where it was written: The
Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring glad
tidings to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives and
recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, and to proclaim
a year acceptable to the Lord. Rolling up the scroll, he handed it back
to the attendant and sat down, and the eyes of all in the synagogue looked
intently at him. He said to them, "Today this scripture passage is
fulfilled in your hearing." And all spoke highly of him and were amazed
at the gracious words that came from his mouth. They also asked, "Isn´t
this the son of Joseph?" He said to them, "Surely you will quote me
this proverb, ´Physician, cure yourself,´ and say, ´Do here in your native
place the things that we heard were done in Capernaum.´" And he said, "Amen,
I say to you, no prophet is accepted in his own native place. Indeed, I tell
you, there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah when the sky was
closed for three and a half years and a severe famine spread over the entire
land. It was to none of these that Elijah was sent, but only to a widow in
Zarephath in the land of Sidon. Again, there were many lepers in Israel
during the time of Elisha the prophet; yet not one of them was cleansed, but
only Naaman the Syrian." When the people in the synagogue heard this,
they were all filled with fury. They rose up, drove him out of the town, and
led him to the brow of the hill on which their town had been built, to hurl
him down headlong. But he passed through the midst of them and went away.
Introductory Prayer: Lord, I love you and thank you for all that
you have done for me. And yet, Lord, so many times I have plea-bargained with
you and made my prayer conditional on receiving what I ask for. This time,
Lord, I want to be completely open –– no strings attached. In this prayer I
place myself completely at your disposal, confident of your good will and
grace.
Petition: Lord, I welcome you into my soul. Help me to
allow you to enter and rule over the house of my soul.
1. Speak Lord, Your Servant Is
Listening: As curious as it seems,
our openness to a message often depends quite heavily on our openness to its
messenger. Have you ever rejected somebody’s advice outright only to later
embrace it when it comes from a different person? Have you disregarded a
light from God because he revealed it to you through a person you would not
have chosen, or even imagined God would have chosen? This is the common,
simple error of the Nazarenes that Christ felt he had to point out to them.
What has Christ been trying to tell me recently? Through whom? Am I ready to
listen to him and allow him to use whatever messenger he may choose?
2. Open My Heart to Your Message: Initially, the people of Nazareth in today’s
Gospel seemed quite receptive to Christ’s message, his delivery, and his
authority. What they couldn’t stomach was that they believed him just “one of
them.” He would later prove himself “too much for them.” Surely they must
have thought that he had forgotten his roots and that his Capernaum fame had
gone to his head. But of course, the Nazarenes were neither the first nor the
last to fall into the trap of focusing more on the messenger than on the
message. This is precisely why Christ brought up the example of Naaman the
Syrian, who was rewarded with a cure only after overcoming his rationalism
and eating a bit of “humble pie.” (See his story in 2 Kings 5.) Has my hurt
pride ever blinded me from listening to what Christ is desperately trying to
tell me?
3. Lord, I Trust in You: At one point in his public ministry, Christ
would tell his listeners, “If you don’t believe the words that I speak, at
least believe the works that I do” (cf. John 14:10-11). Why wouldn’t he at
least give his own people from Nazareth the same advice and opportunity? Are
a few miracles too much to waste on Nazarene soil? We must remember that
faith is a gift. It is given and not bargained for or merited. On Calvary
some would taunt him with a similar deal, “If you come down from the cross,
then we will believe in you” (Cf. Mark 15:32). We must wonder from whom came the
harder blow: from his accusers, or from “his own.” A proud demand is
especially ugly and hurtful when it comes from a friend or loved-one.
Conversation with Christ: Jesus, I accept your invitation to come to
the house of my soul. Help me to see the areas of my life in need of
cleaning. Help me to see the areas of my life which prevent you from coming –
those rooms that I close to you. Help me be humble enough to let your grace
set to work in me.
Resolution: I will console Christ with a total and immediate
trust in him and in his plan for my life today, whatever may come.
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MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 2
LUKE 4:16-30
(1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; Psalm 96)
KEY VERSE: "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring glad tidings to the poor" (v 18).
READING: Because Jesus' reputation had spread throughout the land, he was often called upon to teach in the synagogue. On one occasion, Jesus read from the prophetic text of Isaiah (61:1-2), announcing that these words were fulfilled in his own person. God's Spirit had anointed him to proclaim the good news of liberation, and bring healing and salvation to all who believed in him. Jesus declared a "Jubilee," a year of favor from the Lord in which all wrongdoings were redressed, and all oppressed set free through the liberating power of God (Lv 25:10). The people were amazed by Jesus' words, but they had trouble accepting his claim. Jesus compared his own ministry to that of Elijah and Elisha who were sent to the Gentiles after their prophetic mission was rejected by their own people. This angered the crowd and they tried to throw Jesus over a cliff; however, Jesus miraculously eluded them. This incident prefigured the persecution that Jesus continually faced. He would find no escape from his ultimate fate on Calvary.
REFLECTING: How can I practice the justice Jesus proclaimed?
PRAYING: Holy Spirit, anoint me to make known the good news to all whom I meet.
LABOR DAY (USA) First Monday in
September
Labor Day is a creation of the labor movement and is dedicated to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of our country. The first Labor Day holiday was celebrated on Tuesday, September 5, 1882, in New York City, in accordance with the plans of the Central Labor Union. In 1884 the first Monday in September was selected as a "workingman's holiday." The idea spread with the growth of labor organizations, and in 1885 Labor Day was celebrated in many industrial centers of the country.
On May 15, 1891, Pope Leo XIII issued
his encyclical Rerum Novarum ("Condition of
Labor"), the Church's position on modern day labor. Although the
Encyclical follows the lines of the traditional teaching concerning the rights
and duties of those possessing property and the relations of employer
and employee, it applies the old doctrines specifically to modern conditions.
As the years go by, an increasing number of persons look upon this statement of
Leo XIII as the most fruitful and effective principle of industrial justice
that has ever been enunciated.
www.daily-word-of-life.comSeptember 2
Blessed John Francis Burté and Companions
(d. 1792; d. 1794)
These priests were victims of the French Revolution. Though their
martyrdom spans a period of several years, they stand together in the Church’s
memory because they all gave their lives for the same principle. The Civil
Constitution of the Clergy (1791) required all priests to take an oath which
amounted to a denial of the faith. Each of these men refused and was executed.
John
Francis Burté became a Franciscan at 16 and after ordination taught theology to
the young friars. Later he was guardian of the large Conventual friary in Paris
until he was arrested and held in the convent of the Carmelites.
Appolinaris
of Posat was born in 1739 in Switzerland. He joined the Capuchins and acquired
a reputation as an excellent preacher, confessor and instructor of clerics.
Sent to the East as a missionary, he was in Paris studying Oriental languages
when the French Revolution began. Refusing the oath, he was swiftly arrested
and detained in the Carmelite convent.
Severin
Girault, a member of the Third Order Regular, was a chaplain for a group of
sisters in Paris. Imprisoned with the others, he was the first to die in the
slaughter at the convent.
These
three plus 182 others—including several bishops and many religious and diocesan
priests—were massacred at the Carmelite house in Paris on September 2, 1792.
They were beatified in 1926.
John
Baptist Triquerie, born in 1737, entered the Conventual Franciscans. He was
chaplain and confessor of Poor Clare monasteries in three cities before he was
arrested for refusing to take the oath. He and 13 diocesan priests were
guillotined in Laval on January 21, 1794. He was beatified in 1955.
Comment:
"Liberty, Equality, Fraternity" was the motto of the French Revolution. If individuals have "inalienable rights," as the Declaration of Independence states, these must come not from the agreement of society (which can be very fragile) but directly from God. Do we believe that? Do we act on it?
"Liberty, Equality, Fraternity" was the motto of the French Revolution. If individuals have "inalienable rights," as the Declaration of Independence states, these must come not from the agreement of society (which can be very fragile) but directly from God. Do we believe that? Do we act on it?
Quote:
“The upheaval which occurred in France toward the close of the 18th century wrought havoc in all things sacred and profane and vented its fury against the Church and her ministers. Unscrupulous men came to power who concealed their hatred for the Church under the deceptive guise of philosophy.... It seemed that the times of the early persecutions had returned. The Church, spotless bride of Christ, became resplendent with bright new crowns of martyrdom” (Acts of Martyrdom).
www.americancatholic.org“The upheaval which occurred in France toward the close of the 18th century wrought havoc in all things sacred and profane and vented its fury against the Church and her ministers. Unscrupulous men came to power who concealed their hatred for the Church under the deceptive guise of philosophy.... It seemed that the times of the early persecutions had returned. The Church, spotless bride of Christ, became resplendent with bright new crowns of martyrdom” (Acts of Martyrdom).
The martyrs of September It is common
knowledge that in France on the eve of the great revolution of 1789 there were
a number of Catholic religious, priests and bishops who could scarcely be
called “good shepherds.” In contrast to these worldly churchmen, there were
other clerics who made up for the weakness of their brothers by defending the
faith even with their lives. Best known among these Christian heroes were the
clerics executed in September, 1792. Once established, the revolutionary
government had claimed the “republican” right to take control of the Catholic
Church in France. In 1790 it enacted a “constitution” or law that denied to the
pope any authority over French Catholicism. Each French priest and bishop was
ordered to take an oath to uphold this law. Some priests did so. Most of them
decided they could not, because they would then be denying the universal
authority of the popes. For this refusal they would eventually suffer. The
“liberty” for which the French Revolution was fought, was not very consistent.
As the Revolution moved on, its leadership came more and more into the hands of
extremists. In 1792, the radical Jacobins determined to punish with death not
only the aristocrats, but clergy who had refused the oath. The “non-jurors” —
those who had refused the oath — were arrested en masse in August, 1792, and
herded into several Parisian monasteries out of which the resident monks had
been driven. These prisoners were priests, bishops and religious from many
dioceses. Then on September 2, a band of violent armed men, perhaps 150 in
number, was sent by the “Committee of Vigilance” to one after the other of
these temporary prisons. One detail arrived at the Abbey of St. Germain just
when a number of prisoners got there, transferred from other places of
detention. The executioners shot them down in cold blood. Then they went to the
old Carmelite monastery, where another group of cutthroats joined them. They
ordered all the prisoners to come out into the garden, even the oldest and most
disabled. The clerics had already discussed once more the question of taking
the oath, and all had agreed they could not and would not subscribe to it. Now
the gang fell upon the first priests they met and cut them down. Then they
called out, “The Archbishop of Arles!” Archbishop John du Lau of Arles was
praying in the chapel. When summoned, he came out and he said, “I am he whom
you seek.” Thereupon, they cracked his skull, stabbed him and trampled him
underfoot. Then the leader set up a “tribunal” before which the imprisoned were
herded and ordered to take the oath. All refused; so, as they passed down the
stairway, they were hacked to pieces by the murderers. The bishop of Beauvais
had earlier been wounded in the leg. When summoned, he answered, “I do not
refuse to die with the others, but I cannot walk. I beg you to have the
kindness to carry me where you wish me to go.” For a moment, his courtesy
silenced the assassins. But, when he, too, refused the oath, he was killed like
the rest. Later on the purge was carried out elsewhere in France. Some 200
clergymen fell that September, and they were only a small percentage of the
1500 clergy, laymen and laywomen who were massacred in 1792 alone. (Saints)
Pope Pius XI beatified 191 of the priest martyrs, in 1926, assigning to them the title of “Blessed John du Lau and Companions, Martyrs.” They had been the helpless victims of wild revolutionary ideology. As usual, however, their heroism in the defence of the papacy was remembered long after the names of their blood-thirsty executioners had been forgotten. They saved the reputation of France as “eldest daughter of the Church.”
Pope Pius XI beatified 191 of the priest martyrs, in 1926, assigning to them the title of “Blessed John du Lau and Companions, Martyrs.” They had been the helpless victims of wild revolutionary ideology. As usual, however, their heroism in the defence of the papacy was remembered long after the names of their blood-thirsty executioners had been forgotten. They saved the reputation of France as “eldest daughter of the Church.”
LECTIO: LUKE
4,16-30
Lectio:
Monday, September 2, 2013
Ordinary Time
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1) Opening prayer
Almighty God,
every good thing comes from you.
Fill our hearts with love for you,
increase our faith,
and by your constant care
protect the good you have given us.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
every good thing comes from you.
Fill our hearts with love for you,
increase our faith,
and by your constant care
protect the good you have given us.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
2) Gospel Reading - Luke 4,16-30
Jesus came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and went
into the synagogue on the Sabbath day as he usually did. He stood up to read,
and they handed him the scroll of the prophet Isaiah. Unrolling the scroll he
found the place where it is written: The spirit of the Lord is on me, for he
has anointed me to bring the good news to the afflicted. He has sent me to
proclaim liberty to captives, sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free,
to proclaim a year of favour from the Lord.
He then rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the assistant and sat down. And all eyes in the synagogue were fixed on him. Then he began to speak to them, ‘This text is being fulfilled today even while you are listening.’
And he won the approval of all, and they were astonished by the gracious words that came from his lips. They said, ‘This is Joseph’s son, surely?’
But he replied, ‘No doubt you will quote me the saying, “Physician, heal yourself,” and tell me, “We have heard all that happened in Capernaum, do the same here in your own country.” ‘ And he went on, ‘In truth I tell you, no prophet is ever accepted in his own country. ‘There were many widows in Israel, I can assure you, in Elijah’s day, when heaven remained shut for three years and six months and a great famine raged throughout the land, but Elijah was not sent to any one of these: he was sent to a widow at Zarephath, a town in Sidonia.
And in the prophet Elisha’s time there were many suffering from virulent skin-diseases in Israel, but none of these was cured—only Naaman the Syrian.’ When they heard this everyone in the synagogue was enraged. They sprang to their feet and hustled him out of the town; and they took him up to the brow of the hill their town was built on, intending to throw him off the cliff, but he passed straight through the crowd and walked away.
He then rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the assistant and sat down. And all eyes in the synagogue were fixed on him. Then he began to speak to them, ‘This text is being fulfilled today even while you are listening.’
And he won the approval of all, and they were astonished by the gracious words that came from his lips. They said, ‘This is Joseph’s son, surely?’
But he replied, ‘No doubt you will quote me the saying, “Physician, heal yourself,” and tell me, “We have heard all that happened in Capernaum, do the same here in your own country.” ‘ And he went on, ‘In truth I tell you, no prophet is ever accepted in his own country. ‘There were many widows in Israel, I can assure you, in Elijah’s day, when heaven remained shut for three years and six months and a great famine raged throughout the land, but Elijah was not sent to any one of these: he was sent to a widow at Zarephath, a town in Sidonia.
And in the prophet Elisha’s time there were many suffering from virulent skin-diseases in Israel, but none of these was cured—only Naaman the Syrian.’ When they heard this everyone in the synagogue was enraged. They sprang to their feet and hustled him out of the town; and they took him up to the brow of the hill their town was built on, intending to throw him off the cliff, but he passed straight through the crowd and walked away.
3) Reflection
• Today we begin the meditation on the Gospel of Luke, which
will extend three months until the end of the liturgical year. Today’s Gospel
speaks about Jesus’ visit to Nazareth and the presentation of his program to
the people of the Synagogue. In the first moment the people were admired. But,
immediately, when they become aware that Jesus wants to accept all, without
excluding anyone, people rebel and want to kill him.
• Luke 4, 16-19: The proposal of Jesus. Urged by the Holy Spirit, Jesus returned to Galilee (Lk 4, 14) and begins to announce the Good News of the Kingdom of God. He goes to the community, teaches in the Synagogue and arrives to Nazareth, where he had grown. He was returning to the community, in which he had participated since he was small, and during thirty years. The following Saturday, as it was the custom, Jesus went to the Synagogue to participate in the celebration and he stands up to read. He chooses the text of Isaiah which speaks about the poor, of the prisoners, of the blind and the oppressed (Is 61, 1-2). This text is an image of the situation of the people of Galilee at the time of Jesus. The experience which Jesus had of God, the Father of Love, gave him a new look to evaluate the reality. In the name of God, Jesus takes a stand to defend the life of his people and, with the words of Isaiah, he defines his mission: (1) to announce the Good News to the poor, (2) to proclaim liberty to captives, (3) to give sight to the blind; (4) to release the oppressed, and taking the ancient tradition of the prophets, (5) to proclaim “a year of grace from the Lord”. He proclaims the Jubilee Year!
• In the Bible, the "Jubilee Year” was an important Law. Every seven years, at the beginning (Dt 15, 1; Lv 25, 3) it was necessary to restore the land to the clan of origin. All had to be able to return to their own property; and this way they prevented the formation of large estates and families were guaranteed their livelihood. It was also necessary to forgive their debts and to redeem the persons who were slaves. (Dt 15, 1-18). It was not easy to have the Jubilee Year every seven years (cf. Jr 34, 8-16). After the exile, it was decided to have it every fifty years (Lv 25, 8-12). The objective of the Jubilee was and continues to be: to re-establish the rights of the poor, to accept the excluded and to re-integrate them into the society to live together with others. The Jubilee was a legal instrument to return to the original sense of the Law of God. This was an occasion offered by God to make a revision of the path being followed, to discover and to correct the errors and to start again from the beginning. Jesus begins his preaching proclaiming a Jubilee “A year of grace from the Lord”.
• Luke 4, 20-22: To unite the Bible and Life. Having finished the reading, Jesus updates the text of Isaiah and says: “This text is being fulfilled today even while you are listening!” Taking the words of Isaiah as his own, Jesus gives them a full and definitive sense and he declares himself Messiah who comes to fulfil the prophecy. This way of updating the text provokes a reaction of discredit on the part of those who were in the Synagogue. They were scandalized and do not want to know anything about him. They do not accept that Jesus is the Messiah announced by Isaiah. They said: “Is he not the son of Joseph?” They were scandalized because Jesus speaks about accepting the poor, the blind and the oppressed. The people do not accept Jesus’ proposal. And, thus when he presents the project of accepting the excluded, he himself is excluded.
• Luke 4, 23-30: To overcome the limits of race. In order to help the community to overcome the scandal and to help them understand that his proposal formed part of tradition. Jesus tells two stories known in the Bible, the story of Elijah and the one of Elisha. Both stories criticise the mental closeness of the people of Nazareth. Elijah was sent to the widow of Zarephath (1 K 17, 7-16). Elisha was sent to take care of the foreigner of Syria (2 K 5, 14). Here arises the concern of Luke who wants to show that openness already comes from Jesus. Jesus had the same difficulty which the communities at the time of Luke were having. But the call of Jesus did not calm down people, all the contrary! The stories of Elijah and Elisha produced even greater anger. The community of Nazareth reaches the point of wanting to kill Jesus. But he keeps calm. The anger of others does not succeed in drawing him away from his own path. Luke tells us that it is difficult to overcome the mentality of privilege and of mental closeness.
• It is important to notice the details used in the Old Testament. Jesus quotes the text of Isaiah up to the point where it says: “to proclaim a year of grace from the Lord”. He does not quote the rest of the phrase which says: and a “day of vengeance from our God”. The people of Nazareth throw stones at Jesus because he pretends to be the Messiah, because he wants to accept the excluded and because he has omitted to read the phrase about vengeance. They wanted the day of Yahweh to be a day of vengeance against the oppressors of the people. In this case, the coming of the Kingdom would not have been a true change or conversion of the system. Jesus does not accept this way of thinking; he does not accept vengeance (cf. Mt 5, 44-48) His new experience of God Father/Mother helped him to understand better the sense of the prophecies.
• Luke 4, 16-19: The proposal of Jesus. Urged by the Holy Spirit, Jesus returned to Galilee (Lk 4, 14) and begins to announce the Good News of the Kingdom of God. He goes to the community, teaches in the Synagogue and arrives to Nazareth, where he had grown. He was returning to the community, in which he had participated since he was small, and during thirty years. The following Saturday, as it was the custom, Jesus went to the Synagogue to participate in the celebration and he stands up to read. He chooses the text of Isaiah which speaks about the poor, of the prisoners, of the blind and the oppressed (Is 61, 1-2). This text is an image of the situation of the people of Galilee at the time of Jesus. The experience which Jesus had of God, the Father of Love, gave him a new look to evaluate the reality. In the name of God, Jesus takes a stand to defend the life of his people and, with the words of Isaiah, he defines his mission: (1) to announce the Good News to the poor, (2) to proclaim liberty to captives, (3) to give sight to the blind; (4) to release the oppressed, and taking the ancient tradition of the prophets, (5) to proclaim “a year of grace from the Lord”. He proclaims the Jubilee Year!
• In the Bible, the "Jubilee Year” was an important Law. Every seven years, at the beginning (Dt 15, 1; Lv 25, 3) it was necessary to restore the land to the clan of origin. All had to be able to return to their own property; and this way they prevented the formation of large estates and families were guaranteed their livelihood. It was also necessary to forgive their debts and to redeem the persons who were slaves. (Dt 15, 1-18). It was not easy to have the Jubilee Year every seven years (cf. Jr 34, 8-16). After the exile, it was decided to have it every fifty years (Lv 25, 8-12). The objective of the Jubilee was and continues to be: to re-establish the rights of the poor, to accept the excluded and to re-integrate them into the society to live together with others. The Jubilee was a legal instrument to return to the original sense of the Law of God. This was an occasion offered by God to make a revision of the path being followed, to discover and to correct the errors and to start again from the beginning. Jesus begins his preaching proclaiming a Jubilee “A year of grace from the Lord”.
• Luke 4, 20-22: To unite the Bible and Life. Having finished the reading, Jesus updates the text of Isaiah and says: “This text is being fulfilled today even while you are listening!” Taking the words of Isaiah as his own, Jesus gives them a full and definitive sense and he declares himself Messiah who comes to fulfil the prophecy. This way of updating the text provokes a reaction of discredit on the part of those who were in the Synagogue. They were scandalized and do not want to know anything about him. They do not accept that Jesus is the Messiah announced by Isaiah. They said: “Is he not the son of Joseph?” They were scandalized because Jesus speaks about accepting the poor, the blind and the oppressed. The people do not accept Jesus’ proposal. And, thus when he presents the project of accepting the excluded, he himself is excluded.
• Luke 4, 23-30: To overcome the limits of race. In order to help the community to overcome the scandal and to help them understand that his proposal formed part of tradition. Jesus tells two stories known in the Bible, the story of Elijah and the one of Elisha. Both stories criticise the mental closeness of the people of Nazareth. Elijah was sent to the widow of Zarephath (1 K 17, 7-16). Elisha was sent to take care of the foreigner of Syria (2 K 5, 14). Here arises the concern of Luke who wants to show that openness already comes from Jesus. Jesus had the same difficulty which the communities at the time of Luke were having. But the call of Jesus did not calm down people, all the contrary! The stories of Elijah and Elisha produced even greater anger. The community of Nazareth reaches the point of wanting to kill Jesus. But he keeps calm. The anger of others does not succeed in drawing him away from his own path. Luke tells us that it is difficult to overcome the mentality of privilege and of mental closeness.
• It is important to notice the details used in the Old Testament. Jesus quotes the text of Isaiah up to the point where it says: “to proclaim a year of grace from the Lord”. He does not quote the rest of the phrase which says: and a “day of vengeance from our God”. The people of Nazareth throw stones at Jesus because he pretends to be the Messiah, because he wants to accept the excluded and because he has omitted to read the phrase about vengeance. They wanted the day of Yahweh to be a day of vengeance against the oppressors of the people. In this case, the coming of the Kingdom would not have been a true change or conversion of the system. Jesus does not accept this way of thinking; he does not accept vengeance (cf. Mt 5, 44-48) His new experience of God Father/Mother helped him to understand better the sense of the prophecies.
4) Personal questions
• The program of Jesus is to accept the excluded. Do we accept
everybody or do we exclude some? Which are the reasons which lead us to exclude
certain persons?
• Is the program of Jesus truly our program, my program? Who are the excluded whom we should accept better in our community? Who or what thing gives us the strength to carry out the mission which is entrusted to us by Jesus?
• Is the program of Jesus truly our program, my program? Who are the excluded whom we should accept better in our community? Who or what thing gives us the strength to carry out the mission which is entrusted to us by Jesus?
5) Concluding Prayer
How I love your Law, Lord!
I ponder it all day long.
You make me wiser than my enemies
by your commandment which is mine for ever. (Ps 119,97-78)
I ponder it all day long.
You make me wiser than my enemies
by your commandment which is mine for ever. (Ps 119,97-78)
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