September 27, 2025
Memorial of Saint Vincent de Paul, Priest
Lectionary: 454
Reading 1
I, Zechariah, raised my eyes and looked:
there was a man with a measuring line in his hand.
I asked, "Where are you going?"
He answered, "To measure Jerusalem,
to see how great is its width and how great its length."
Then the angel who spoke with me advanced,
and another angel came out to meet him and said to him,
"Run, tell this to that young man:
People will live in Jerusalem as though in open country,
because of the multitude of men and beasts in her midst.
But I will be for her an encircling wall of fire, says the LORD,
and I will be the glory in her midst."
Sing and rejoice, O daughter Zion!
See, I am coming to dwell among you, says the LORD.
Many nations shall join themselves to the LORD on that day,
and they shall be his people and he will dwell among you.
Responsorial Psalm
R. (see 10d) The Lord will guard us as a shepherd
guards his flock.
Hear the word of the LORD, O nations,
proclaim it on distant isles, and say:
He who scattered Israel, now gathers them together,
he guards them as a shepherd guards his flock.
R. The Lord will guard us as a shepherd guards his flock.
The LORD shall ransom Jacob,
he shall redeem him from the hand of his conqueror.
Shouting, they shall mount the heights of Zion,
they shall come streaming to the LORD's blessings.
R. The Lord will guard us as a shepherd guards his flock.
Then the virgins shall make merry and dance,
and young men and old as well.
I will turn their mourning into joy,
I will console and gladden them after their sorrows.
R. The Lord will guard us as a shepherd guards his flock.
Alleluia
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Our Savior Christ Jesus destroyed death
and brought life to light through the Gospel.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
While they were all amazed at his every deed,
Jesus said to his disciples,
"Pay attention to what I am telling you.
The Son of Man is to be handed over to men."
But they did not understand this saying;
its meaning was hidden from them
so that they should not understand it,
and they were afraid to ask him about this saying.
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/092725.cfm
Commentary on
Zechariah 2:5-9,14-15
Today, we have the first of three readings from the prophet
Zechariah. The book is closely, very closely, linked with Haggai whom we have
been reading over the previous two days. The introduction is dated Oct-Nov, 520
BC—only weeks away from the prophecy of Haggai.
The Book of Zechariah consists of two distinct parts:
chapters 1-8 and 9-14. The first part is concerned with Israel’s messianic
future, emanating from the Temple. It begins with eight visions. The second
part of the book (from which the other two readings will be taken) is entirely
different and seems to be another work altogether, written at a later time,
perhaps under the reign of Alexander the Great (who had overthrown the
Persians).
Like Haggai, Zechariah was concerned with the rebuilding of
the Temple, but more than Haggai, was also concerned with national
‘restoration’ and the high level of moral behaviour which was linked with it.
This restoration is expected to inaugurate a messianic era in which the
priesthood, represented by Joshua, will be held in increasing honour. But the
sovereign power will be wielded by the ‘Branch’, a messianic title which the
prophet applies to Zerubbabel. The two ‘Anointed Ones’ will rule in perfect
harmony. As things turn out, the two ‘Anointed Ones’—Priest and King—will be
combined in one Person, Jesus Christ.
Today’s reading presents parts of the third of eight visions
the prophet has about a future glorious Jerusalem. We need to remember that
these words were written when the exiles had only recently returned from exile
and Jerusalem was still in a sorry state. The rebuilding of the Temple had not
gone beyond the laying of the foundation, and both Haggai and Zechariah are
concerned that the rest of the rebuilding process get under way as soon as
possible.
Today Zechariah is trying to build up the morale and
confidence of the returnees. Raising his eyes, the prophet says he has had a
vision. He sees a man with a measuring line in his hand. The line is for taking
measurements for the new building work and is a symbol of the overall
‘restoration’, not just of the Temple, but of the people also. Zechariah asks
the man where he is going. The man replies:
To measure Jerusalem, to see how wide and how long it is.
And, while the first man (now described as an ‘angel’, but
evidently Zechariah himself) walks away, another angel comes out. The prophet
is to go and tell the young man (Zechariah):
Run, say to that young man: Jerusalem shall be inhabited
like unwalled villages because of the multitude of people and animals in it.
The prophet is being led to realise that the rebuilt Temple
is not just for those who are living there now. What is in question is a New
Jerusalem and a New Temple, whose population will overflow to such an extent
that the City will be as if it had no walls.
Because, as “the Lord of hosts” (Yahweh) himself declares:
For I will be a wall of fire all around it…and I will be
the glory within it.
The messianic Jerusalem will be protected by Yahweh himself,
who has returned to his rebuilt Temple. This is reminiscent of the time in the
desert when Yahweh accompanied his people with a pillar of cloud by day and a
pillar of fire by night. Earlier on Isaiah, too, had said:
Then the Lord will create over the whole site of Mount
Zion and over its places of assembly a cloud by day and smoke and the shining
of a flaming fire by night. Indeed, over all the glory there will be a canopy.
It will serve as a pavilion, a shade by day from the heat and a refuge and a
shelter from the storm and rain. (Is 4:5-6)
Our reading then concludes with part of a hymn of
exhortation to the exiles:
Sing and rejoice,
O daughter Zion!
For I will come and dwell in your midst, says the Lord.
Many nations shall join themselves to the Lord on that day and shall be my
people,
and I will dwell in your midst.
Here we have, in part, the return of the Lord among his
people which will happen once the new Temple is rebuilt and dedicated. But
there is also a looking forward to a greater Jerusalem, one inaugurated by the
coming of God’s Son to live among us with a totally new Presence, sealed in a
New Covenant. It will certainly be a city without walls to which all the
nations of the world will be invited to come and stay.
We, the baptised and members of Christ’s Body, are among
those who have been invited to come and live among God’s own people and who, by
the grace of God, are now ourselves the Temple of God all over the world. As
Paul said to the Corinthians:
Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s
Spirit dwells in you?…For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple. (1
Cor 3:16,17)
It is an awesome responsibility!
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Commentary on
Luke 9:43-45
After yesterday’s reading where the disciples recognised
their Master as the Messiah and are told about the death and resurrection of
Jesus, there follows the scene with the three chosen Apostles on the mountain,
where they get a glimpse of Jesus in glory (the transfiguration). This is
followed by the healing of the epileptic boy.
The reaction of the crowds to this cure was that:
…all were astounded at the greatness of God.
The were not astounded, we might note, by the mighty power
of Jesus. Even the crowds could recognise the real source of what Jesus was
able to do.
It is at this high point of Jesus’ popularity that he says
just to his disciples:
Let these words sink into your ears: The Son of Man is
going to be betrayed into human hands.
What Jesus seems to be saying is that they are to realise
there is no contradiction whatsoever between Jesus revealing in himself the
unlimited power of God and his being handed over, powerless, to the power of
his enemies. Only when they can see and understand the meaning of a suffering
Messiah will they fully know the Way of Jesus.
But Luke tells us, they were not ready yet for this:
…they understood nothing about all these things; in fact,
what he said was hidden from them, and they did not grasp what was said. (Luke
18:34)
And Luke tells us today:
…they were afraid to ask him about this saying.
To what extent can we say that we understand and accept the
idea of a suffering Messiah? We are used to looking at the cross of Jesus, but
to what degree do we see the place of suffering in our own lives? Can we see
that, without pain and suffering in our own lives and in those of others, our
lives would be in many ways impoverished? Strange as it may seem, it is pain
and suffering that can bring out what is most deeply human in all of us.
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https://livingspace.sacredspace.ie/o1257g/
Ordinary Time
Opening Prayer
Father, guide us, as you guide creation according to your
law of love. May we love one another and come to perfection in the eternal life
prepared for 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.
Gospel Reading - Luke 9: 43b-45
Everyone was awestruck by the greatness of God. But while
everyone was full of admiration for all he did, he said to his disciples, ‘For
your part, you must have these words constantly in mind: The Son of man is
going to be delivered into the power of men.’
But they did not understand what he said; it was hidden from
them so that they should not see the meaning of it, and they were afraid to ask
him about it.
Reflection
The Gospel today presents the second announcement of the
Passion, Death and Resurrection of Jesus. The disciples do not understand the
words about the cross, because they are neither capable to understand a Messiah
who becomes the servant of his brothers. They continue to dream about a
glorious Messiah. • Luke 9: 43b-44: The contrast. “Everyone was full of
admiration for all he did.” Jesus said to his disciples “For your part you must
have these words constantly in mind: The Son of Man is going to be delivered
into the power of men.” The contrast is very big. On one side, the vibration
and admiration of the people for everything that Jesus said and did. Jesus
seems to correspond to all that people dream, believe and expect. On the other
side, the affirmation of Jesus that he will be put to death and delivered in
the hands of men, that is, the opinion of the authority on Jesus is totally
contrary to the opinion of the people.
• Luke
9: 45: The announcement of the Cross. “But they did not understand what he
said; for them it was so mysterious, that they did not understand the sense and
were afraid to ask questions concerning this argument.” The disciples listened
to him but they did not understand the words about the cross. But even in this
way, they do not ask for any clarification. They are afraid to show their
ignorance!
• The title Son of Man. This name appears quite frequently in the Gospels: 12 times in John, 13 in Mark, 28 in Luke, 30 in Matthew. In all, it appears 83 times in the four Gospels. This is the name which pleased Jesus the most. This title comes from the Old Testament. In the Book of Ezekiel, is indicated the very human condition of the prophet (Ez 3: 1, 4, 10, 17; 4: 1 etc.). In the Book of Daniel, the same title appears in the apocalyptic vision (Dn 7: 1-28), in which Daniel describes the empires of the Babylonians, of the Medes, of the Persians and of the Greeks. In the vision of the prophet, these four empires have the appearance of “monstrous animals” (cf. Dn 7: 3-8). They are animal empires which are brutal, inhuman, which persecute, dehumanize and kill (Dn 7: 21, 25). In the vision of the prophet, after the anti-human kingdoms, the Kingdom of God appears which has the appearance, not of an animal, but rather of a human person, Son of Man. That is, a Kingdom with the appearance of people, a human kingdom, which promotes life, it humanizes (Dn 7: 13-14). In the prophecy of Daniel the Son of Man represents, not an individual, but rather, as he himself says, the “people of the Saints of the Most High” (Dn 7: 27; cf. Dn 7: 18). It is the People of God who do not allow themselves to be dehumanized nor deceived or manipulated by the dominating ideology of the animal empires. The Mission of the Son of Man, that is, of the People of God, consists in realizing the Kingdom of God like a human kingdom. That is, a Kingdom which promotes life, which humanizes persons.
• Presenting
himself as Son of Man to the disciples, Jesus makes his own this mission which
is the mission of all the People of God. It is as if he would say to them and
to all of us: “Come with me! This mission is not only mine, but it belongs to
all of us! Let us go together to carry out the mission which God has entrusted
to us, and thus realize the human and humanizing Kingdom which he dreamt!” And
he did this during all his life, especially during the last three years. Pope
Leo the Great said: “Jesus was so human, but so human, like only God can be
human.” The more human he was, the more divine he was. The more he is “Son of
Man” the more he is “Son of God!” Everything which dehumanizes persons draws
away from God. That was condemned by God, who has placed the good of the human
person above all the laws, above the Sabbath or Saturday (Mk 2: 27). At the
moment when he was condemned to death by the religious tribunal of the
Synedrium, Jesus assumes this title. When he was asked if he was “the Son of
God” (Mk 14: 61), he answered that he is the “Son of Man”: “I am. And you will
see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of the Almighty” (Mk 14: 62).
Because of this affirmation he was declared, by the authority, guilty deserving
death. He himself knew it because he had said: “The Son of Man did not come to
be served, but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Mk 10: 45).
Personal Questions
• How
do you combine in your life, suffering and faith in God?
• In
the time of Jesus there was contrast: people thought and expected or hoped in a
certain way; the religious authority thought and expected or hoped in a
different way. Today, this same contrast exists.
Concluding Prayer
Forever, Yahweh, your word is planted firm in heaven. Your constancy endures from age to age; you established the earth and it stands firm. (Ps 119: 89-90)
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