October 10, 2009
Saturday of the Twenty-seventh Week in Ordinary Time
While he was speaking, a woman from the crowd called out and said to him, "Blessed is the womb that carried you and the breasts at which you nursed." He replied, "Rather, blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it." Luke 11:27-28
Piety
The LORD loves those who hate evil, protects the lives of the faithful, rescues them from the hand of the wicked. Light dawns for the just; gladness, for the honest of heart. Rejoice in the LORD, you just, and praise his holy name. (Psalm 97:10-12)
Study
Did you ever notice what happens when you try to sit on a two-legged stool? You probably end up hurting your south end when you hit the floor. A two-legged stool has no stability. Piety and study are important but alone they don’t provide the complete foundation for our Fourth Day. The requirement for “action,” the third and final leg, becomes evident in today’s Gospel.
After Jesus teaches us how to pray, he then gives us some personal, down-to-earth examples so we can put prayer into practice as easily as we can help our neighbors or give gifts to our children. Today, however, Luke has Jesus echo a theme which has been woven throughout this Gospel. The Word needs to be put into action through faithful observation.
When Luke set out to record the life of Jesus, he knew that many others had undertaken the same task. He tried to make his unique purpose the effort to capture the life of Jesus in words for the people so that we “may realize the certainty of the teachings you have received.” (emphasis added)
Luke wants us to make these real in our lives like Jesus made them real in his life. For that, we need to put the teachings into practice in our lives like the first examples he provides, Zechariah, Mary and John the Baptist.
The first time we encounter the young Jesus, he is in the Temple going about his duties in his “Father’s house.” After his retreat in the desert, Jesus returned again to the temple where he set out his plan of action. "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." (Luke 4:18-19)
Of all the passages he chose from Isaiah, he picked one which echoed the words of Mary to the Angel Gabriel. “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me.” This spirit wakens Mary, Jesus and us to the work ahead. Then, Jesus lists what some call the Nazareth Manifesto that guides his actions. We also can look at this list as a “Bill of Responsibilities” for Christians.
Luke’s Gospel is an active Gospel…full of building and healing. The word “do” appears time after time as action follows prayer throughout. Today’s message about putting this divine plan into action is not a new pronouncement. It is a theme reiterated throughout Luke’s writing. Here is what Jesus had to say elsewhere in Luke’s Gospel:
But as for the seed that fell on rich soil, they are the ones who, when they have heard the word, embrace it with a generous and good heart, and bear fruit through perseverance. "No one who lights a lamp conceals it with a vessel or sets it under a bed; rather, he places it on a lampstand so that those who enter may see the light. (Luke 8:15-16)
"My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and act on it." (Luke 8:21)
"If anyone wishes to come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it." Luke 9:23-24
Indeed we need the character of Martha and Mary in order to fulfill the Nazareth Manifesto. Prayer alone will not suffice. If the holy men do not stop to help the man ambushed by robbers like the Good Samaritan does, then their life of prayer is not complete.
Action
Then shall you know that I, the LORD, am your God, dwelling on Zion, my holy mountain; Jerusalem shall be holy, and strangers shall pass through her no more. And then, on that day, the mountains shall drip new wine, and the hills shall flow with milk; And the channels of Judah shall flow with water: A fountain shall issue from the house of the LORD, to water the Valley of Shittim. Joel 4:17-18
The dream for peace in the Middle East, especially Jerusalem, has echoed throughout Biblical History. A recent Action Alert from CRS about Middle East Peace echoes that call from the Book of Joel and the Hebrew Bible.
(From an Action Alert by CRS)
TAKE ACTION NOW! Sign this petition to President Obama that supports strong U.S. leadership to achieve a negotiated, sustainable resolution to the conflict in the Middle East. This statement has already been signed by Most Reverend Howard Hubbard, Bishop of Albany and Chairman, Committee on International Justice and Peace, U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) and Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, Archbishop Emeritus of Washington.
WHY IS STRONG SUPPORT FOR U.S. LEADERSHIP ON MIDDLE EAST PEACE CRITICAL NOW? President Obama has repeatedly stated that achieving peace in the Holy Land is a top foreign policy priority for his administration. As the petition that we are urging you to sign states: “This is a moment of great opportunity and urgency. After decades of tragic conflict, many Israelis and Palestinians despair of the possibility of peace. While the international community and majorities of the Israeli and Palestinian people are committed to a two-state solution as the best option for achieving peace and security, the window of opportunity is rapidly closing.”
WHAT DOES THE PETITION ASK OF PRESIDENT OBAMA? The petition was organized by Churches for Middle East Peace, a coalition of Christian churches and agencies with which CRS and USCCB collaborate, and others. It is a statement of principles supporting strong U.S. leadership to achieve a negotiated, sustainable resolution to the conflict. It recognizes President Obama’s efforts to move Middle East peace forward and declares support for:
• Israel's right to exist in security and the right of the Palestinian people to a viable, sovereign and secure state of their own;
• Resolution of important issues such as refugees, borders, Jerusalem, settlements, and security;
• Bold American leadership to help Israelis and Palestinians make the difficult decisions necessary to achieve lasting peace and hold the parties to account should they fail to honor their commitments; and
• A comprehensive peace agreement encompassing Syria and Lebanon as well as normalization of relations between Israel and the countries of the Arab world.
WHAT DOES PEACE IN THE HOLY LAND HAVE TO DO WITH MY FAITH? Our Catholic faith teaches us to be peacemakers. The U.S. Bishops wrote in The Challenge of Peace, “Peacemaking is not an optional commitment. It is a requirement of our faith. We are called to be peacemakers, not by some movement of the moment, but by our Lord Jesus.” Our Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI, has called on the international community to help Israelis and Palestinians to discard the “dead end” of violence and pursue instead “the path of dialogue and negotiations.”
WHAT IS THE CATHOLIC CHURCH DOING TO PROMOTE PEACE IN THE HOLY LAND? The USCCB has been part of an unprecedented interreligious initiative that engages Jewish, Christian and Muslim religious leaders and communities within the United States in a coordinated effort to promote a just peace in the Middle East. Catholic Relief Services (CRS) has worked in the Holy Land for nearly half a century, supporting peace with justice for all people, while responding to the humanitarian and sustainable development needs of Palestinians.
Together, USCCB and CRS are encouraging Catholics to advocate for stronger U.S. leadership to hold both parties to the conflict accountable in building a just peace through the Catholics Confront Global Poverty initiative. We also support U.S. funding for the Palestinian Authority to increase its ability to govern and build its capacity for a future state as well as for urgently needed humanitarian assistance for the Palestinian people.
