March 30, 2011
Wednesday of the Third Week of Lent
By Jack Finnerty
Moses spoke to the people and said: “Now, Israel, hear the statutes and decrees which I am teaching you to observe, that you may live, and may enter in and take possession of the land which the LORD, the God of your fathers, is giving you. Therefore, I teach you the statutes and decrees as the LORD, my God, has commanded me, that you may observe them in the land you are entering to occupy. Deuteronomy 4:1, 5-9
Jesus said to his disciples: “Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have come not to abolish but to fulfill….Amen, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or the smallest part of a letter will pass from the law, until all things have taken place. Matthew 5:17-19
Piety
Faith of Our Fathers
1. Faith of our fathers, living still,
In spite of dungeon, fire, and sword;
Oh, how our hearts beat high with joy
Whene’er we hear that glorious Word!
Refrain:
Faith of our fathers, holy faith!
We will be true to thee till death.
Frederick W. Faber, pub.1849
Study
“I have come not to abolish but to fulfill.” These words from Matthew’s gospel are part of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount. Because of the crowds, Jesus had climbed a hill in Galilee to be able to speak to the thousands that have flocked to hear this man. Who was he? Was he the one for whom they had been waiting? What was his message? Was he changing the emphasis of the understanding, as taught by the scribes and Pharisees, of the only bible the Jewish people had?
Jesus was just starting his work, beginning to be noticed; his reputation spreading. It was important for him to state what he came to do, to make clear his mission. Jesus tells the crowd before him that everything the OT was talking about pointed to him, making absolutely sure that they understood what he is talking about. So he addresses not only the purpose and nature of the Law, but the extent of the Law - how much of the Old Testament he fulfills? He says, "not the smallest letter or the smallest part of a letter will pass from the law" - that is, every bit of it. He fulfilled the moral law in the way he lived, fulfilling every precept God ever laid down; and the ceremonial law in the way he died, climbing another hill near Jerusalem and willingly dying on a cross for us.
We are asked not just to admire Jesus as a moral teacher but to imitate Jesus in our daily life. Last Wednesday evening, a son of Fairfax, Virginia, and member of St. Mary of Sorrows parish, willingly moved his boot-clad feet to a waiting airplane for deployment to Afghanistan, joining thousands of men and women who have served, and probably thousands more who will be called to serve in the future for us. After his last Sunday Mass here, he was prayed over by the choir members, and then one of his very last appointments on a long checklist was to go to reconciliation. He boarded his flight with the prayers and blessings of parents, relatives, and friends. He stuffed some mementos in pockets, others he wore around his neck, some he carried to read during long flights. What we could not see with our eyes nor reach out and touch, but could only know in our hearts is that he possesses a wonderful, strong faith. A faith that has been handed on for many, many generations, a faith that was totally fulfilled by Jesus after he climbed that hill of Golgotha, the faith of our fathers, mothers and ourselves.
Action
The women on the just completed 132d Women’s Cursillo of the Arlington Diocese heard the Layperson in the Church talk. The key point of that talk is “You and I may be the only scripture that many people will ever read.” This requires us to become not only bearers of the Gospel, but to truly live its message. During Lent, now nearly half over, how are we being that living scripture?
