Tuesday
8th Week of Ordinary Time
(I) 1st Reading: Sirach 35:1-12
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[1] He who keeps the law makes many offerings;
he who heeds the commandments sacrifices a peace offering.
[2] He who returns a kindness offers fine flour,
and he who gives alms sacrifices a thank offering.
[3] To keep from wickedness is pleasing to the Lord,
and to forsake uprighteousness is atonement.
[4] Do not appear before the Lord empty-handed,
[5] for all these things are to be done because of the commandment.
[6] The offering of a righteous man anoints the altar,
and its pleasing odour rises before the Most High.
[7] The sacrifice of a righteous man is acceptable,
and the memory of it will not be forgotten.
[8] Glorify the Lord generously,
and do not stint the first fruits of your hands.
[9] With every gift show a cheerful face,
and dedicate your tithe with gladness.
[10] Give to the Most High as he has given,
and as generously as your hand has found.
[11] For the Lord is the one who repays,
and he will repay you sevenfold.
[12] Do not offer him a bribe, for he will not accept it;
and do not trust to an unrighteous sacrifice;
for the Lord is the judge, and with him is no partiality.
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Commentary:
1-11 Ben Sirach has nothing against religious ceremonies; on the contrary; the
Law prescribes the offerings that should be made to God, and it should be
generously adhered to (cf. 35:10). However, he has three very clear things to say
that help to personalize religious worship: almsgiving is an act of worship (35:2);
an upright life, that keeps to the Law, is an offering pleasing to God (35:3); and
offerings to the Lord should be generously and gladly made (35:4-10).
From 35:11 on, the Lord is the subject of the sentences. Ben Sirach tells us who
God is: he pays well (35:11), he is a just judge (35:11-15), who rewards a person
according to his works; and he identifies the person whom God listens to – the
generous giver (35:11);, the one who is wronged (35:13), the orphan and the
widow (35:14), the one who serves Him (35:16), the humble person (35:17). Most
of these qualities (those of God as well as those of people who have recourse to
him) can be found, all together, in Jesus’ attitude to the sick, to sinners and to the
poor.
(II) 1st Reading: 1 Peter 1:10-16
Praise and Thanksgiving to God (Continuation)
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[10] The prophets who prophesied of the grace that was to be yours searched
and inquired about this salvation; [11] they inquired what person or time was
indicated by the Spirit of Christ within them when predicting the sufferings of
Christ and the subsequent glory. [12] It was revealed to them that they were
serving not themselves but you, in the things which have now been announced
to you by those who preached the good news to you through the Holy Spirit
sent from heaven, things into which angels long to look.
Christians Are Called To Be Saints
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[13] Therefore gird up your minds, be sober, set your hope fully upon the grace
that is coming to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. [14] As obedient children,
do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, [15] but as he
who called you is holy, be holy yourselves in all your conduct; [16] since it is
written, "You shall be holy, for I am holy."
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Commentary:
10-12. These verses of thanksgiving (vv. 3-12) end with a reference to the role of
the Holy Spirit in salvation: he acted in the Old Testament through the prophets
by announcing salvation, and now, through preachers of the Gospel, he reveals
that it has come about.
The passage is a clear acknowledgment of the unity and continuity of the Old and
New Testaments: in the Old the sufferings and subsequent glorification of Christ
are proclaimed, in such a way that "what the prophets predicted as future events,"
says St Thomas, "the Apostles preached as something which had come true"
("Commentary on Eph" 2:4). "The economy of the Old Testament was deliberately
orientated to prepare for and declare in prophecy the coming of Christ, Redeemer
of all men, and of the messianic Kingdom (cf. Lk 24:44; Jn 5:39; 1 Pet 1:10) [...].
God, the inspirer and author of the books of both Testaments, in his wisdom has
so brought it about that the New should be hidden in the Old and that the Old
should be made manifest in the New. For although Christ founded the New Cove-
nant in his blood (cf. Lk 22:20; 1 Cor 11:25), still the books of the Old Testament,
all of them caught up into the Gospel message, attain and show forth their full
meaning in the New Testament (cf. Mt 5:17; Lk 24:27; Rom 16:25-26; 2 Cor 3:14-
16) and in their turn, shed light on it and explain it" (Vatican II, "Dei Verbum", 15-
16).
These verses show the Holy Spirit's role as cause and guide of the evangelizing
activity of the Church. In the early days of the spread of Christianity, as described
in Acts, the action of the third Person of the Blessed Trinity was palpable.
12. The Greek word translated at the end of this verse as "look" contains the idea
of bending over carefully in order to get a better look. This metaphor, then, depicts
the angels in heaven contemplating with joy the mystery of salvation. St Francis
de Sales, referring to this passage, exclaims: "Now in this complacency we sati-
ate our soul with delights in such a manner that we do not yet cease to desire to
be satiated [...]. The fruition of a thing which always contents never lessens, but
is renewed and flourishes incessantly; it is ever agreeable, ever desirable. The
perpetual contentment of heavenly lovers produces a desire perpetually content"
("Treatise on the Love of God", 5, 3).
1:13-2:10. Having focused their attention on the sublimity of the Christian calling,
St Peter exhorts the faithful to a holiness in keeping with it. He provides some
reasons why they should strive for holiness--the holiness of God (vv. 13-16) and
the price paid for their salvation, the blood of Christ (w. 17-21). He then goes on
directly to refer to the importance of love (vv. 22-25); and he encourages them to
grow up in their new life (2:1-3) so that as "living stones" they can form part of
the spiritual building of the Church, which has Christ as its cornerstone (vv. 4-10).
13-16. Israel was chosen by God from all the peoples of the earth to implement
his plan of salvation: he set the people of Israel free from the slavery of Egypt,
established a covenant with them and gave them commandments about how to
live. These commandments in their highest form tell them to be holy as God is
holy (cf. Lev 19:2). However, those events in the life of Israel were only an imper-
fect foreshadowing of what would happen when Jesus Christ came: Christians
constitute the new chosen people; by Baptism they have been set free from sin
and have been called to live in a fully holy way, with God himself as their model.
The Second Vatican Council solemnly declared that all are called to holiness (cf.,
e.g., "Lumen Gentium", 11, 40, 42). St. Escriva, who anticipated the Council's
teaching on this and other points, had constantly preached about this universal
call to holiness: "Christ bids all without exception to be perfect as his heavenly
Father is perfect. For the vast majority of people, holiness means sanctifying
their work, sanctifying themselves in it, and sanctifying others through it -- there-
by finding God as they go about their daily lives [...]. Since the foundation of the
Work in 1928, my teaching has been that sanctity is not the reserve of a privi-
leged few; all the ways of the earth, every state in life, every job, every honest
occupation, can be divine" (Bernal, "Monsignor Josemaria Escriva de Balaguer",
III, 3).
13. "Gird up your minds": a metaphor based on the custom of the Jews, and Mid-
dle Easterners in general, of gathering up their rather full garments prior to setting
out on a journey, to let them walk with greater ease. In the account of the Exodus
we are told that God laid it down that when the Israelites celebrated the Passover
they should do so with their loins girt, their sandals on and a staff in their hand (cf.
Ex 12:11), because they were about to start on the journey to the promised land.
St Peter evokes this image (which our Lord also used: cf. Lk 12:35ff), because
Baptism, the new Exodus, marks the start of the Christian pilgrimage to heaven,
our lasting home (cf. 1:17; 2:11); and he applies it to sobriety: we need to control
our feelings and inclinations if we are to walk with joy along the route which will
take us to the glorious coming of the Lord.
"The revelation of Jesus Christ": this is a reference, above all, to his eschatologi-
cal coming at the end of time. The revelation of Jesus began with his incarnation
and will reach its climax at the end of this world. Therefore, the "grace" mentioned
should be understood not only as sanctifying grace but also the whole ensemble
of benefits the Christian receives at Baptism, which will find their full expression
in heaven.
14. "Your former ignorance": the sacred writer contrasts his hearers' present posi-
tion with their former one. He does not mean that prior to Baptism they were per-
verse and ignorant, but that the Christian vocation brings such clear knowledge of
God and so many aids to practise virtue that their previous position can be viewed
as one of concupiscence and ignorance. "The followers of Christ, called by God,
not in virtue of their works but by his design and grace, and justified in the Lord
Jesus, have been made sons of God in the baptism of faith and partakers of the
divine nature, and so are truly sanctified" (Vatican II, "Lumen Gentium", 40).
Gospel Reading: Mark 10:28-31
Poverty and Renunciation (Continuation)
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[28] Peter began to say to Him (Jesus), "Lo, we have left everything and followed
You." [29] Jesus said, "Truly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or
brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or lands, for My sake and for the
Gospel, [30] who will not receive a hundredfold now in this time, houses and bro-
thers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions, and in
the age to come eternal life. [31] But many that are first will be last, and the last
first."
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Commentary:
28-30. Jesus Christ requires every Christian to practise the virtue of poverty: He
also requires us to practise real and effective austerity in the possession and use
of material things. But of those who have received a specific call to apostolate--as
in the case, here, of the Twelve--He requires absolute detachment from property,
time, family, etc. so that they can be fully available, imitating Jesus Himself who,
despite being Lord of the universe, became so poor that He had nowhere to lay
His head (cf. Mt 8:20). Giving up all these things for the sake of the Kingdom of
Heaven also relieves us of the burden they involve: like a soldier shedding some
encumbrance before going into action, to be able to move with more agility. This
gives one a certain lordship over all things: no longer the slave of things, one ex-
periences that feeling St. Paul referred to: "As having nothing, and yet posses-
sing everything" (2 Cor 6:10). A Christian who sheds his selfishness in this way
has acquired charity and, having charity, he has everything: "All are yours; you
are Christ's; and Christ is God's" (1 Cor 3:22-23).
The reward for investing completely in Christ will be fully obtained in eternal life:
but we will also get it in this life. Jesus says that anyone who generously leaves
behind his possessions will be rewarded a hundred times over in this life.
He adds "with persecutions" (v. 30) because opposition is part of the reward for
giving things up out of love for Jesus Christ: a Christian's glory lies in becoming
like the Son of God, sharing in His cross so as later to share in His glory: "pro-
vided we suffer with Him in order that we may also be glorified with Him (Rom 8:
17); "all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted' (2 Tim
3:12).
29. These words of our Lord particularly apply to those who by divine vocation
embrace celibacy, giving up their right to form a family on earth. By saying "for
My sake and for the Gospel" Jesus indicates that His example and the demands
of His teaching give full meaning to this way of life: "This, then, is the mystery of
the newness of Christ, of all that He is and stands for; it is the sum of the highest
ideals of the Gospel and of the Kingdom; it is a particular manifestation of grace,
which springs from the paschal mystery of the Savior and renders the choice of
celibacy desirable and worthwhile on the part of those called by our Lord Jesus.
Thus, they intend not only to participate in Christ's priestly office, but also to
share with Him His very condition of living" (Paul VI, "Sacerdotalis Coelibatus",
23).
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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].