Thursday

22nd Week of Ordinary Time

(I) 1st Reading: Colossians 1:9-14

Prayer for Advancement in Holiness; Exhortation to Gratitude
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[9] And so, from the day we heard of it, we have not ceased to pray for you, as-
king that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom
and understanding, [10] to lead a life worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him,
bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God. [11]
May you be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all
endurance and patience with joy, [l2] giving thanks to the Father, who has quali-
fied us to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. [13] He has delivered us
from the dominion of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved
Son, [14] in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

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Commentary:

9-11. Knowledge that the brethren are advancing on the way to holiness gives
Paul joy and also leads him to intensify his prayer and encourage them to keep
up their effort. St John Chrysostom explains this with a graphic example: "Just
as at the racecourse the shouts to encourage the riders increase the nearer they
get to the finish, so the Apostle vigorously encourages those faithful who are clo-
sest to perfection" ("Hom. on Col, 2, ad loc.").

The Apostle asks God to fill the Colossians with knowledge of his will (v. 9), and
he puts particular emphasis on their needing the Holy Spirit to nlighten them with
his gifts of wisdom and understanding, to enable them to distinguish good tea-
ching from the misleading teaching of the false apostles; this insight should ex-
press itself in all kinds of good works: as St Thomas comments, "it is not enough
to have knowledge, for he who knows what is the right thing to do and fails to do
it commits sin (cf. Jas 4:17); therefore, one must need to perform virtuous actions"
("Commentary on Col, ad loc."). Christians therefore should always rely on God
to strengthen them to do good; if they do so, they will always be happy.

"To lead a life" (v. 10): literally, "to make your way", a typical Hebrew expression
often used in Sacred Scripture. Leading a life worthy of the Lord means keeping
his commandments, acting in a way that reflects the dignity of God who created
us and made us his children through grace, and who watches all our doings with
fatherly affection; it means being very faithful to our Christian calling, which leaves
us in our place (cf. 1 Cor 7:21-24) but requires us to bear "fruit in every good work".

12-14. "The dominion of darkness": the condition of enslavement to the devil of a
person in the state of sin. As is frequent in Sacred Scripture (cf. Is 58:10; Jn 12:
35; 1 Jn 1:5; 2:8; 2 Cor 6:14; Rom 13:11-14; Eph 5:7-13), the simile of movement
from darkness to light is used to refer to "redemption" or the change from a condi-
tion of sin to one of righteousness and friendship with God, which is effected by
infusion of sanctifying grace (cf. St Thomas, "Commentary on Col, ad loc.").

"Light": this is a symbol of the risen Christ and also of the abundance of graces
which he won for mankind in his Easter Mystery. It also describes the whole en-
semble of supernatural benefits which grace brings with it--goodness, righteous-
ness (or holiness) and truth (cf. Eph 5:9), which lead to the glory of heaven (cf.
2 Cor 4:6). Hence the "rite of light", so richly a symbol of supernatural realities,
which has formed part of baptismal liturgy since the first centuries.

The struggle between light and the power of darkness is referred to in many pas-
sages of Sacred Scripture (cf. Jn 1:5, 9-11). Darkness means both evil and the
power of the Evil One. Before the redemption took place, all men--as a conse-
quence of original sin and their personal sins -- were slaves to sin; this slavery
darkened their minds and made it difficult for them to know God, who is the true
light. Christ our Lord, by carrying out the redemption and obtaining forgiveness
for our sins (cf. v. 14), rescued us from the kingdom of darkness from the tyran-
ny of the Evil One, and brought us into the kingdom of light, the kingdom of truth
and justice, of love and of peace (cf. "Preface for the Solemnity of Christ the
King"), enabling us to enjoy "the glorious freedom of the children of God" (Rom
8:21).

"His beloved Son": the Hebrew expression "Son of his love", which is paralleled
in the Greek, is one of the ways Jesus Christ is referred to in the New Testament
(cf. Mt 12:6; Lk 20:13). A variation, "my Son, the Beloved", is spoken by the
voice from heaven, that is, by the Father, at Jesus' baptism (cf. Mt 3:17; Mk 1:
11; Lk 3:22) and at the Transfiguration (cf. Mt 17:5; Mk 9:7; Lk 9:35).

By speaking in this way St Paul, like St John, is underlining the fact that "God
is love" (1 Jn 4:8). God's love for us was made manifest by his sending his only
Son into the world so that we might live through him (cf. 1 Jn 4:9). By dying on
the Cross he won life for us; by redeeming us with his blood he obtained forgive-
ness for our sins (cf. Col 1:14; Eph 2:4ff): "He revealed to us that God is love,
and he gave us the 'new commandment' of love (Jn 13:34), at the same time
communicating to us the certainty that the path of love is open for all people, so
that the effort to establish universal brotherhood is not a vain one (cf. "Gaudium
Et Spes", 38). By conquering through his death on the Cross evil and the power
of sin, by his loving obedience he brought salvation to all" (John Paul II, "Recon-
ciliatio Et Paenitentia", 10).

On the meaning of "redemption" and "forgiveness of sins", see the note on Eph
1:7-8.

12. We Christians should be grateful to God for his great mercy in deigning to
free us from the power of the devil, forgiving our sins and making us worthy to
"share in the inheritance of the saints". We have benefited in so many ways: "In
addition to the gift itself, he also gives us the power we need so receive it [...].
God has not only honored us by making us share in the inheritance, but has
made us worthy to possess it. And so we receive a double honor from God --
firstly, the position itself; and secondly, the capacity to measure up to it" (Chry-
sostom, "Hom. on Col, ad loc.").

Our sharing in "the inheritance of the saints" enables us to draw on the treasury
of spiritual goods which the Church is continually applying to its members -- pra-
yers, sacrifices and all kinds of meritorious actions, which benefit every Christian.
This "inheritance of the saints"--in which we begin to share in this present life --
will be found in its full and permanent form by those who attain everlasting joy.
The grace of conversion originates in God's loving kindness. "Prior to God's gift
of grace, although not every man might be sinful there is nothing that he does or
can do which would merit forgiveness or the grace of God. You must realize", St
John of Avila says, "that it is God who has brought you out of darkness into his
wonderful light [...]. And what caused him to do so was not your past merits or
any service you have rendered him, but his kindness alone and the merits of our
only mediator, Jesus Christ our Lord" ("Audi, Filia", 65).


(II) 1st Reading: 1 Corinthians 3:18-23

Apostolic Ministry (Continuation)
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[18] Let no one deceive himself. If any one among you thinks that he is wise in
this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise. [19] For the wisdom
of this world is folly with God. For it is written, "He catches the wise in their craf-
tiness," [20] and again, "The Lord knows that the thoughts of the wise are futile."
[21] So let no one boast of men. For all things are yours, [22] whether Paul or
Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or the present or the future, all
are yours; [23] and you are Christ's; and Christ is God's.

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Commentary:

18-20. As an application of his teaching about true wisdom, St Paul shows Chris-
tians that the worst kind of foolishness is that of thinking one is wise when one in
fact is not. He uses two biblical quotations (Job 5:13; Ps 94:11 ) as a gloss to
prove that an exclusively human approach is always doomed to failure.

Christians, therefore, are wiser the more they identify their desires with the plan
God has for each; that is, the more supernatural their outlook on life is: "We
must learn to acquire the divine measure of things, never losing our supernatural
outlook, and realizing that Jesus makes use also of our weaknesses to reveal his
glory. So, whenever your conscience feels the stirrings of self-love, of weariness,
of discou- rage- ment, or the weight of your passions, you must react immediately
and listen to the Master, without letting the sad truth about our lives frighten us,
because as long as we live our personal failings will always be with us" (St. J.
Escriva, "Friends of God", 194).

21-23. One consequence of the defective wisdom which St Paul spoke about in
the preceding verses is the Corinthians' desire to seize on one particular teacher.
They have forgotten that all ministers are there to serve the faithful (v. 5). In fact,
the Apostle tells them, it is not only the teachers that are theirs: "all things are
yours." This clearly emphasizes the great dignity involved in being a Christian:
by being an adoptive son of God, a brother of Jesus Christ, the Christian has a
share in Christ's lordship over the universe (cf. 1 Cor 15:24-28), and is the mas-
ter of all creation (cf. 2 Cor 6:10), through which he should move with a certain
proprietorial feeling, called as he is to live in the freedom of the glory of the sons
of God (cf. Rom 8:21), a freedom which God has won for him (cf. Gal 4:31). Hu-
man factions and dissensions of the type that have arisen among the Corinthians
show that they have forgotten all this and therefore their sense of vocation has
become impoverished. The Christian belongs to Christ alone: he has only one
master, Christ. "Mine are the heavens and mine is the earth", St John of the
Cross explains; "mine are the people, the righteous are mine and the Mother of
God, and all things are mine; and God himself is mine and for me, for Christ is
mine and all for me. What, then, do you ask for and seek, my soul? All this is
yours, and it is all for you. Do not despise yourself, do not despise the crumbs
that fall from your Father's table" ("A Prayer of the Soul Enkindled by Love").

The Apostle's words also remind us of the love and respect that man should have
for created things, which God has entrusted to him (cf. Vatican II, "Gaudium Et
Spes", 37). "The world is not evil," Monsignor Escriva reminds us "for it has come
from God's hands; it is his creation; Yahweh looked upon it and saw that it was
good (cf. Gen 1:7ff). We ourselves, mankind, make it evil and ugly with our sins
and infidelities [...] our age needs to give back to matter and to the most trivial
occurrences and situations their noble and original meaning. It needs to restore
them to the service of the Kingdom of God, to spiritualize them, turning them
into a means and an opportunity for a continuous meeting with Jesus Christ [...].
It is understandable that the Apostle should write: 'all things are yours, you are
Christ's and Christ is God's (1 Cor 3:22-23). We have here an ascending move-
ment which the Holy Spirit, infused in our hearts, wants to call forth from this
world, upwards from the earth to the glory of the Lord" ("Conversations", 114-115).


Gospel Reading: Luke 5:1-11

The Miraculous Catch of Fish and the Calling of the First Disciples
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[1] While the people pressed upon Him (Jesus) to hear the word of God, He was
standing by the Lake of Gennesaret. [2] And He saw two boats by the lake, but
the fishermen had gone out of them and were washing their nets. [3] Getting into
one of the boats, which was Simon's, He asked him to put out a little from the
land. And He sat down and taught the people from the boat. [4] And when He
had ceased speaking, He said to Simon, "Put out into the deep and let down
your nets for a catch." [5] And Simon answered, "Master, we toiled all night and
took nothing! But at your word I will let down the nets." [6] And when they had
done this, they enclosed a great shoal of fish; and as their nets were breaking,
[7] they beckoned to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And
they came and filled both the boats, so that they began to sink. [8] But when Si-
mon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, "Depart from me, for I am
a sinful man, O Lord." [9] For he was astonished, and all that were with Him, at
the catch of fish which they had taken; [10] And so also were James and John,
sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, "Do
not be afraid; henceforth you will be catching men." [11] And when they had
brought their boats to land, they left everything and followed Him.

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Commentary:

1. "Just as they do today! Can't you see? They want to hear God's message,
even though outwardly they may not show it. Some perhaps have forgotten Christ's
teachings. Others, through no fault of their own, have never known them and they
think that religion is something odd. But of this we can be sure, that in every man's
life there comes a time sooner or later when his soul draws the line. He has had
enough of the usual explanations. The lies of the false prophets no longer satisfy.
Even though they may not admit it at the time, such people are longing to quench
their thirst with the teachings of our Lord" (St. J. Escriva, "Friends of God", 260).

3. The Fathers saw in Simon's boat a symbol of the pilgrim Church on earth. "This
is the boat which according to St. Matthew was in danger of sinking and accor-
ding to St. Luke was filled with fish. Here we can see the difficult beginnings of
the Church and its later fruitfulness" (St. Ambrose, "Expositio Evangelii sec. Lu-
cam, in loc."). Christ gets into the boat in order to teach the crowds--and from the
barque of Peter, the Church, He continues to teach the whole world.

Each of us can also see himself as this boat Christ uses for preaching. Externally
no change is evident: "What has changed? There is a change inside our soul, now
that Christ has come aboard, as He went aboard Peter's boat. Its horizon has been
expanded. It feels a greater ambition to serve and an irrepressible desire to tell all
creation about the "magnalia Dei" (Acts 2:11), the marvellous doings of our Lord,
if only we let Him work" ([St] J. Escriva, "Friends of God", 265).

4. "When He had finished His catechizing, He told Simon: 'Put out into the deep,
and lower your nets for a catch.' Christ is the master of this boat. He it is who pre-
pares the fishing. It is for this that He has come into the world, to do all He can so
that His brothers may find the way to glory and to the love of the Father" ("Friends
of God", 260). To carry this task out, our Lord charges all of them to cast their nets,
but it is only Peter He tells to put out into the deep.

This whole passage refers in some way to the life of the Church. In the Church the
bishop of Rome, Peter's successor, "is the vicar of Jesus Christ because he repre-
sents Him on earth and acts for Him in the government of the Church" ("St. Pius X
Catechism", 195). Christ is also addressing each one of us, urging us to be daring
in apostolate: '"Duc in altum. Put out into deep water!' Throw aside the pessimism
that makes a coward of you. 'Et laxate retia vestra in capturam. And pay out you
nets for a catch.' Don't you see that you, like Peter, can say: 'In nomine tuo, laxa-
bo rete': Jesus, if You say so, I will search for souls?" (St. J. Escriva, "The Way",
792).

"If you were to fall into the temptation of wondering, 'Who's telling me to embark
on this?', we would have reply, 'Christ Himself is telling you, is begging you.' 'The
harvest is plentiful enough, but the laborers are few. You must ask the Lord to
whom the harvest belongs to send laborers out for the harvesting' (Matthew 9:
37-38). Don't take the easy way out. Don't say, 'I'm no good at this sort of thing;
there are others who can do it; it isn't my line.' No, for this sort of thing, there is no
one else: if you could get away with that argument, so could everyone else. Christ's
plea is addressed to each and every Christian. No one can consider himself exempt,
for whatever reason--age, health or occupation. There are no excuses whatsoever.
Either we carry out a fruitful apostolate, or our faith will prove barren" ("Friends of
God", 272).

5. When Christ gives him these instructions, Peter states the difficulties involved.
"A reasonable enough reply. The night hours were the normal time for fishing, and 
this time the catch had yielded nothing. What was the point of fishing by day? But
Peter has faith: 'But at Your word I will let down the nets.' He decides to act on
Christ's suggestion. He undertakes the work relying entirely on the word of our
Lord" ("Friends of God", 261).

8. Peter does not want Christ to leave him; aware of his sins, he declares his un-
worthiness to be near Christ. This reminds us of the attitude of the centurion who
confesses his unworthiness to receive Jesus into his house (Matthew 8:8). The
Church requires her children to repeat these exact words of the centurion before
receiving the Blessed Eucharist. She also teaches us to show due external reve-
rence to the Blessed Sacrament when going to Communion: by falling down on
his knees Peter also shows that internal adoration of God should be also be ex-
pressed externally.

11. Perfection is not simply a matter of leaving all things but of doing so in order
to follow Christ--which is what the Apostles did: they gave up everything in order
to be available to do what God's calling involved.

We should develop this attitude of availability, for "Jesus isn't satisfied 'going
halves': He wants the lot" (St. J. Escriva, "The Way", 155).

If we don't give ourselves generously we will find it very difficult to follow Jesus:
"Detach yourself from people and things until you are stripped of them. For, says
Pope St. Gregory, the devil has nothing of his own in this world, and naked he
comes to battle. If you go clothed to fight him, you will soon be pulled to the
ground: for he will have something to catch you by" ("The Way", 149).
　

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Source: "The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries". Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States. We encourage readers to purchase
The Navarre Bible for personal study. See Scepter Publishers for details.

[참고: 이 파일은 저서명 "가톨릭 교회의 말씀 전례에 따른 성경공부 해설서"(엮은이: 소순태, 출판사: 가톨릭출판사)의 각주의 연장으로 마련되었습니다].