By Martin Jumbam
Mother Church celebrates Sunday, July 6, 2014, as the 14th Sunday of Ordinary Time, year A. In the Entrance Antiphon we pray: “Within your temple, we ponder your loving kindness, O God. As your name, so also your praise reaches to the ends of the earth; your right hand is filled with justice. Amen” In today’s first reading, the prophet Zechariah proclaims that the Messiah will come not like a mighty king, but as one who serves. He comes to us as a humble son of a village carpenter, riding on a donkey. But he who accepts and follows this humble king will experience true peace. The Son of God gives us the theme of this day’s Mass: “Learn from me,” he says in Matthew’s Gospel of this day, “for I am gentle and humble of heart.” Saint Paul, in the second reading from his letter to the Romans, explains that God’s friendship means that the Spirit of God dwells in the man of faith. He, however, urges us to put an end to the misdeeds of the body and stick to Jesus so as to be sharers of his resurrection and glory.
First Reading: Zechariah 9::9-10.
Thus says the Lord: Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king comes to you; triumphant and victorious he is, humble and riding on a donkey, on a colt the foal of a donkey. I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim and the war horse from Jerusalem; and the battle bow shall be cut off, and he shall command peace to the nations; his dominion shall be from sea to sea, and from the River to the ends of the earth.
V/ The word of the Lord.
R/ Thanks be to God.
Comment
The African Bible tells me that Zechariah’s prophetic mission began in 520 BC and lasted for two years. Zechariah’s message is contained in eight apocalyptic visions, each giving some warning and instruction about the rebuilding of the temple after the return of the Jewish people from exile, the protection and conduct of the people of Jerusalem, the purification of the priesthood and of temple worship, and the future of the messianic age.
The second half of the book, from where the passage of this day’s meditation is taken, deals with the coming messianic age, the return of all the exiles and the destruction of Judah’s enemies. The reading of today gives one of the most famous messianic texts in the Old Testament, one which lies behind the Gospel account of our Lord’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem prior to his passion. The Messiah-King enters his capital victorious, but not with the weapons of mass destruction. His is a humble victory; the arms he uses stem from the justice of God. Yet his kingdom will extent to the four corners of the world.
What can we draw as a lesson from this day’s reading? The themes the prophet deals with remain relevant to us today. The social oppression in Africa of the poor and the weak still makes a mockery of genuine religion. Only true justice and the practice of mutual kindness and compassion can build a society that is compatible with God’s will and that brings his blessing upon it.
Of particular importance to us, Christians, is the prophet’s teaching on the coming of the peaceful and peace-giving Messiah-King, who inaugurates the universal reign of God. Unfortunately, this Messiah-King is rejected by the people. He is none other than Jesus Christ, Son of the living God.
Let us pray, with the Psalmist, for the courage to accept Christ as our Lord and Redeemer, who has come to save us from eternal damnation. “I will extol you, O my God and King, and I will bless your name forever and ever. Everyday I will bless you, and I will praise your name forever and ever because you are gracious and merciful, slow to anger and of great kindness. You are good to all and compassionate toward all your works. You are faithful in your words and holy in all your works. You lift up all who are falling and raise up all who are bowed down. Continue to bless and protect us from the snares of the Evil One. We make this supplication through Christ our Lord. Amen.” (Ps 145).
Second Reading: Romans 8:9. 11-13.
Brethren: You are not in the flesh, you are in the Spirit, if the Spirit of God really dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also through his Spirit who dells in you. So then, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh – for if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body you will live.
V/ The word of the Lord.
R/ Thanks be to God.
Comment
After treating freedom from sin, death and the Law, Paul now explains how hope, love and the Holy Spirit are found in the divine plan. In every man and woman, there is tension between the body and the spirit, love of life and fear of death. To receive God’s friendship means that the Spirit of God dwells in the man and woman of faith; their whole existence becomes filled with the Spirit. It is thus through God’s Spirit that we can ensure our baptismal union with Christ. It is the same Spirit that caused Christ’s resurrection in the first place. His life will conquer our death too.
Saint Paul urges us to put an end to the misdeeds of the body and to stick to Jesus so as to be sharers of his resurrection and glory.
Since Christ is alive in the Christian, the Holy Spirit, the third Person of the Trinity, is also present in him. Where the Holy Spirit is absent from the life of a Christian, then death reigns supreme. With the Holy Spirit, one possesses Christ, one vies for honour with the angels. As Saint John Chrysostom says, “With the Spirit, the flesh is crucified, one tastes the delight of immortal life, one has a pledge of future resurrection and advances rapidly on the path of virtue. This is what Paul calls putting the flesh to death.”
Let us pray to the Holy Spirit to come down upon us because the life of the Spirit is a life of hope. It is the only life that is open to an unending future. Let us say together this prayer which the American bishop, Monsignor Michael Buckley, composed for the Church: “Holy Spirit, make our lives new by your divine power, that we may live by the light of the resurrection and work in a manner inspired by you. May Christ, our brother, be with us today and every day, now and for ever. Amen.”
Gospel: Matthew 11: 25-30.
At that time Jesus declared, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to infants; yes, Father, for such was your gracious will. All things have been delivered to me by my Father; and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the son and any one to whom the Son chooses to reveal him. Come to me, all who labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”
V/ The Gospel of the Lord.
R/ Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
Comment
The Gospel reading of today contains several indications of what a Christian life should and should not be. We can meditate on a number of points this day. The first of them is the practice of virtue: pride and lowliness.
“What you have hidden from the learned and the clever, you have revealed to the merest of children,” says the Lord to his Father. In biblical language “learned and clever” means pride. Christ is certainly not praising ignorance. He is merely condemning pride. Pride is excessive love of oneself. It is unhealthy self-esteem. It despises others, disregards and has contempt for other’s talents, achievements, ideas, and judgement. It is the tendency to make oneself a god. Merest of children is the opposite of pride. It means openness to others and their ideas. It means dependency on God. How do we depend on God? Through our prayers, through worthy reception of the sacraments, through carrying out our conjugal and parental duties faithfully and lovingly.
Notice that there is no mid-way situation. You are either with God and are behaving like the merest of children, or you are with the learned and clever and priding yourself everywhere.
The second set of virtues we can meditate on from the gospel reading is gentleness and humility. “Be gentle and humble of heart,” urges our Lord. A person who is gentle is kind, considerate of others, well-behaved, and tender-hearted. Such a person is neither violent nor severe. He or she is humble and modest and respects others. The question to ask as we listen to this gospel reading is how to live these virtues in our Christian life.
Another virtue we can learn from this day’s gospel reading is friendship with Christ. He says: “Come to me all you who labour and I’ll give you rest. Take my yoke upon your shoulders.” Here Christ extends us an invitation to become his friends. “A faithful friend,” says Sirach, is a sturdy heart. He who finds one finds a treasure.” (Sirach 6:14). A false friend, continues Sirach, is a friend when it suits him or her, he or she would not be with you in time of distress or when sorrow comes.
Christ is a true friend to us all. He is a friend who refuses to abandon us even though we are sinners and have fallen short of his grace. He promises to be with us till the end of times. His friendship refuses the limits imposed by time. We should then ask ourselves how we have responded to Christ’s friendship. Have we taken the time to listen to his invitation to us? Are we just convenient friends of Christ, coming to him only when things are good for us?
Our Lord calls everyone to come to him. His attitude is one of invitation, knowledge and compassion. Indeed, it is one of offering, promise, friendship, goodness, remedy of our ailments. He is our comforter, our nourishment, our daily bread that gives us energy and life.
As Saint Augustine says: “Any other burden oppresses and crushes you, but Christ actually takes the weight off you. Any other burden weighs you down, but Christ gives you wings. If you take a bird’s wings away, you might seem to be taking weight off it, but the more weight you take off, the more you tie it down to the earth. There it is on the ground, and you wanted to relieve it of a weight; give it back the weight of its wings and you will see how it flies.” Let us pray to God to help us to make Jesus our friend. He alone has the key to our burdens. Amen.
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