"He Will Baptize With Fire": The Readings for the 2nd Sunday of Advent

This Sunday as we continue to prepare for Christmas--for the coming of the Lord--the lectionary has us reflect on the gift Christ comes to bestow upon us: the Spirit of the Lord.

Here's a brief commentary on the Sunday readings

FIRST READING: Isaiah 11:1-10

The Messiah as "the Branch"

On that day, a shoot shall sprout from the stump of Jesse,
and from his roots a bud shall blossom.

Here we have a prophecy that played a pivotal role in the development of Israel's messianic hopes. While the term "messiah" is not specifically used, ancient Jews clearly linked this passage to such expectations (cf. 1 Enoch 49:3, which links the passage to the Danielic "son of man"; cf. also later rabbinic tradition, Gen. Rab. 97; Ruth Rab. 8:2). Many of the themes that appear were clearly associated with the messianic age (e.g., the age of justice, the inclusion of Gentiles, etc.)

Specifically, the prophecy here alludes to the apparent non-fulfillment of God's promise to David. Let me explain.

Logos Software Releases Verbum Plus Libraries!

I am pleased to share news that Logos Bible software is releasing an awesome update to their Catholic package, "Verbum", which now includes even better libraries and features!

I've been given a sneak peak and, let me just say, this is incredible!

If you're a Catholic who is interested in studying your faith, you need this software.

Upfront, I should tell you the following:
1. If you owned an older Verbum library you do not lose anything by upgrading.
2. There are many more books and features than I am able to mention here in these new Plus packages.

Nevertheless, here's a brief overview. . .

(By the way, here's the link to the Black Friday Deal.)

Better tools to study the lectionary

The first thing I love about this update is that Logos is now helping users better navigate the lectionary. When you first open the software you can now immediately see the readings of the day (or another day if you wish - just click a date on the calendar).

You can also have numerous tools open up alongside of the readings (e.g., commentaries, writings from the fathers and doctors, references in the Catechism of the Catholic Church, etc.).

This is going to be hugely helpful. Right now I'm setting my preferred commentaries up. One of them will certainly be the Ignatius Catholic Study Bible: New Testament by Scott Hahn and Curtis Mitch. I'll also be using Thomas Aquinas' Catena Aurea, my JPS Torah Commentary Series, Word Biblical Commentary, and Hermeneia series--among other things!

A Fantastic "Catholic Topical Index"

But even more awesome is the new Catholic index. Logos has assembled an incredible list of terms and concepts, including, "Eucharist," "Absolution," etc. For example, select "filioque" and you will immediately be taken to a list of biblical passages, writings from the fathers, and other important resources.

Basically, you have every theoloical source on the topic at the click of your fingers.

Let's just be clear about what this means: I've got virtually every major work by every major early church father at my finger tips. If I'm looking at "baptism", I can quickly search and find every key statement made by the fathers and doctors of the Church. I can also see every time magisterial sources talk about it, including, the Catechism, Church Councils, etc.

You can even get every papal encyclical going back to 1740!

All these resources are tagged and linked together. It's simply stunning!

Happy New Year! The 1st Sunday of Advent

Happy New Year, everyone!  The Church Year begins this week with the First Sunday of Advent, and we are back to reading cycle A in 2014. 

There is a very ancient tradition in the Church of reading the Book of Isaiah during Advent.  In antiquity, both Jews and Christians considered the Book of Isaiah to be one extended prophesy of the “age to come,” the “latter days” when the Anointed One (Heb. “Meshiach,” =”Messiah”) would arrive.  The First Readings for Sunday Mass and for weekday Masses, as well as the Office of Readings in the Liturgy of the Hours, are dominated by Isaiah during this liturgical season.

In the Gospel sequence, the First Sunday of Advent focuses on Jesus’ Second Coming, forming a good transition from the month of November with its focus on the Last Things.  The Second and Third Sundays of Advent focus on John the Baptist, the fore-runner of Jesus.  The Fourth Sunday finally casts its gaze on the events leading directly to Jesus birth. 

That’s the journey we are about to begin, so without further ado, let’s plunge in!

1.  The First Reading is Isaiah 2:1-5:

Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe: 34th Sunday of OT

The Church year comes to an end this Sunday with the Solemnity of Christ the King, one of my favorite feast days.  The Readings focus heavily on the theme of the kingdom of Christ, which was typified or foreshadowed by the Kingdom of David in the Old Testament.

1.  The First Reading is 2 Samuel 5:1-3:

In those days, all the tribes of Israel
came to David in Hebron and said:
"Here we are, your bone and your flesh.
In days past, when Saul was our king,
it was you who led the Israelites out 

The End is Near! The 33rd Sunday in OT

 

I was driving my son to his orthodontist this past week, and while touring through the back hills of Ohio, we passed a billboard in a farmer’s field that advertised to all passing by on OH-45: “God has a Judgment Day coming!” 

My son asked me if the farmer who had placed the billboard in his field was Catholic or Protestant.  I suggested he probably was a Protestant.  My son asked why Catholics didn’t put up billboards like that.  I theorized that perhaps fewer Catholics owned farms close to the highway, or maybe they were less convinced that announcing the coming judgment was really an effective means of evangelism. 

Billboards announcing judgment day are not a part of American Catholic culture.  Nonetheless, the Readings for this coming Sunday affirm the truth of that well-meaning farmer’s sign.  God does have a day of judgment coming.  Is that good news or bad news?  It would depend, I suppose, on whether we have suffered injustice or committed it.

1.  Our First Reading Malachi 3:19-20a:

Hope for a Hopeless World: 32nd Sunday in Ordinary Time

Some of the readers of our blog are aware that I wrote a little book, Bible Basics for Catholics (Ave Maria Press), that introduces people to the basic outline of the biblical storyline, in seven chapters from Creation to Jesus. 

 

Last week, a bishop sent me an email saying he liked the book, but thinks I should add a final chapter on the Book of Revelation, the resurrection, and the life to come.  One of the reasons for the suggestion, he said, was that people nowadays are experiencing not just a crisis of faith, but also of hope.  They feel like there is nothing to believe in, but just as importantly: there is nothing to look forward to.

The bishop’s comments ring in my ears as I look over the Readings that the Church has selected for us this coming Sunday.  We are in the month of November, the time of the Church Year given over to contemplating the Last Things: Death, Judgment, Heaven, Hell.  The Readings this week focus our thoughts on a topic intertwined with each of the Last Things: the Resurrection.  They remind us that, as Christians, we are not a people whose hopes are tied to this life.  It they were, how sorry we would be! 

1.  Our First Reading is from 2 Maccabees 7:1-2, 9-14:

The Importance of Making Things Right: 31st Sunday in O.T.

 

Happy November, everyone!  This month constitutes its own unofficial liturgical season, focused on the Last Things.  We begin the month with All Saints and round it out with the Feast of Christ the King.  This Sunday’s Readings introduce themes that will be developed throughout the month: repentance, the Kingdom of God, and final judgment.  In particular, the Gospel Reading urges us not merely to repent while we still have time, but also to make right the wrongs we have done to others, that is, to make reparation.  Some non-Catholic theologies deny the need for reparation, but it is a biblical concept that has within it the power of healing and reconciliation.

1. Our First Reading is Wisdom 11:22-12:2:

What Does it Mean to Be Poor? The 30th Sunday in OT

Several years ago, an experiment was done in which three American families were taken to a remote part of the Midwest and left to survive with few belongings and 19th century technology (horse-drawn plows, etc.) for a year.  

As I recall, two families were able to persevere through the year without being rescued, and at the end of it, they returned to their twentith-century lives, with video games, TV, etc.

When interviewed a year after the end of the experiment, almost to a person the family members agreed that the year "in the past" had been very difficult, but they were happier during that year than they were now.  

Which raises the question: what is true poverty?  Were the participants poorer during the experiment, or in their present lives?

The Readings for this Sunday take up the question of true poverty, and the Gospel reading puts a "spin" on the previous three Scriptures.

 

1.  Our First Reading is Sirach 35:12-14, 16-18:

Prayer as Warfare: The 29th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Usually we think of men of prayer and men of war as complete opposites.  A monk in a habit—such as St. Francis—is a man dedicated to peace, a total contrast to one clad in armor brandishing weapons.  Yet the Readings for this Sunday combine the imagery of war and prayer in interesting ways that provoke our thoughts about the nature and reality of supplicating God.

1.  Our First Reading is Exodus 17:8-13:

Is Anyone Grateful? The 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time

 

The themes of the Readings for this Sunday focus on the gratitude for God’s salvation.  Gratitude is an important psychological and spiritual disposition.  Dr. Daniel G. Amen, the popular brain researcher and public health spokesman, identifies gratitude as a key character quality of persons with physiologically healthy brains.  That’s right: gratitude affects your physical health, including the shape and functioning of your brain.  This Sunday’s Readings focus particularly on gratitude to God, and how it should be expressed.

1.  Our First Reading is 2 Kgs 5:14-17:

Free download: "The Bible and the Rosary: How to Hear the Word of God in Prayer"

Today is the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary. In honor of the occasion the St. Paul Center is offering a free download of a talk I gave earlier this year at a popular-level Catholic conference on the topic.

The talk is a bit biographical and laced with (my attempt at) humor. I hope you'll enjoy it.

The Bible and the Rosary (FOT 2013) by Michael Barber

Lessons in Faith and Faithfulness (Twenty-Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time)

"By faith, man completely submits his intellect and his will to God [Vatican II, Dei Verbum 5]. With his whole being man gives his assent to God the revealer. Sacred Scripture calls this human response to God, the author of revelation, 'the obedience of faith' [cf. Rom 1:5; 16:26]." (Catechism of the Catholic Church, no. 39.

What exactly is faith? How is it lived out? These are the lessons taught to us in the Scripture passages read from the lectionary this Sunday. Let us look at them in some detail.

The First Reading: Habakkuk 1:2-3; 2:2-4

Habakkuk was a prophet in the late seventh century B.C. In his day, the destruction of the southern kingdom of Judah was imminent. The Book of Habakkuk explains that God's judgment is about to befall Jerusalem in the form of the conquering armies of the Babylonians, who would destroy the city and the temple and carry the Jews off into exile.

In chapter one he laments the injustice he sees all around him, calling out to the Lord:

"How long, O LORD? I cry for help
but you do not listen!
I cry out to you, "Violence!"
but you do not intervene.
Why do you let me see ruin;
why must I look at misery?
Destruction and violence are before me;
there is strife, and clamorous discord. (Hab 1:2-3)

Although it is not read in the lectionary, the next verse describes "the law" as "paralyzed". This seems most likely a reference to God's Law. In short, the prophet seems to indict his own people for failing to remain faithful to the Lord. Indeed, Jeremiah, a contemporary of Habakkuk announced a similar message (cf. Jer 7:3–6; 9:1–6; 12:1–4; 15:10; 20:7–8; 22:3, 13–17).

Habakkuk seems to indict the Lord: how could he abide this situation?

The Lord makes it clear that while the prophet may be tempted to think his prayers have gone unheard, this is simply not the case. God explains: "I am doing a work in your days
that you would not believe if told" (Hab 1:5).

What is the Lord about to do? He is about to use a Gentile nation--Babylon--to bring his recompense. 

Then the LORD answered me and said:
Write down the vision clearly upon the tablets,
so that one can read it readily.
For the vision still has its time,
presses on to fulfillment, and will not disappoint;
if it delays, wait for it,
it will surely come, it will not be late.
The rash one has no integrity;
but the just one, because of his faith, shall live." (Hab 2:2-4)

God is not working on Habakkuk's desired timetable but this does not mean the Lord has ignored the injustices taking place. Justice will come. The vision of judgment "will not disappoint". It may seem as if it "delays" but "it will not be late".

The critical lesson one must learn is to trust in the Word of the Lord: "the just one, because of his faith, shall live" (Hab 2:2-4). The righteous one will have life so long as he has faith.

This passage is famously used by St. Paul to illustrate the importance of faith (cf. Rom 1:17).
 However, it is important to point out that faith here is more than mere "intellectual assent". The Greek word for "faith" here has a range of meaning; i.e., it can simply mean "believe". But for Paul saving "faith" is more than just intellectual knowledge.

James makes this point crystal clear; even the demons believe in God, i.e., they have "faith" inasmuch as they intellectually assent to his existence (cf. James 2:19).

Actually, in Greek the term translated "faith" may best be understood in terms of "faithfulness". In light of this Habakkuk's meaning is made more clear. Habakkuk condemns the unfaithfulness of his people. Yet, though God's people are unfaithful to the Law, God himself remains faithful. He is faithful to his Word.

God will make good on his promise to carry out judgment; and those who live by faith--i.e., faithfulness--will live.

Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 95
--> The psalm used for the Responsorial Psalm, Psalm 95, is a psalm that is used regularly in the Liturgy of the Hours (the Divine Office). It draws heavily from Israel’s wilderness experience, once again highlighting God's faithfulness in the face of Israel's unfaithfulness. Once again, the reader is urged to fidelity to the Lord.

R. (8) If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.

Come, let us sing joyfully to the LORD;
let us acclaim the Rock of our salvation.
Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving;
let us joyfully sing psalms to him. 

R. If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.
Come, let us bow down in worship;
let us kneel before the LORD who made us.
For he is our God,
and we are the people he shepherds, the flock he guides. 

R. If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.
Oh, that today you would hear his voice:
"Harden not your hearts as at Meribah,
as in the day of Massah in the desert,
Where your fathers tempted me;
they tested me though they had seen my works." 

Its opening reference to singing to the Lord God, described as the “Rock”, evokes Deuteronomy 32. In fact, Psalm 95 appears as part of a collection of psalms (Psalms 90-100) that all appear to draw upon or allude to this important passage in some way or another.

Specifically, the invitation to praise God and its declaration, “For the Lord is a great God” (Ps 95:3) evokes the opening of the Moses’ Song: “Ascribe greatness to our God” (Deuteronomy 32:3). The psalm also evokes the sea imagery of Exodus 15: “The sea is His, for He made it” (Psalm 95:5).

The reference to the "rock of our salvation" likely alludes, however, not only to Deuteronomy 32 but also to miraculous rock that gave Israel water. Interestingly, St. Paul explains in the New Testament that the "rock was Christ" (1 Cor. 10:4). 

Of course, in the story of the miraculous rock we also hear about Israel's grumbling against the Lord and lack of faith. Indeed, the rock itself ultimately was the scene of Moses' own failure to trust in the Lord.

Psalm 95 ends with the recollection of Israel’s disobedience in Exodus 17.

Set in the context of the exile, which Habakkuk announced, Psalm 95 calls upon Israel in the wilderness of the nations not to forget the works God has wrought in the past, while at the same time, giving rise to the hope of a future miraculous deliverance.

The Second Reading: 2 Timothy 1:6-8, 13-14

In the Second Reading, St. Paul exhorts Timothy to faithfulness, noting that faith itself is not merely the result of human effort. As the Catechism of the Catholic Church states, "Faith is a gift of God, a supernatural virtue infused by him" (no. 153). 

Beloved:
I remind you, to stir into flame
the gift of God that you have through the imposition of my hands.
For God did not give us a spirit of cowardice
but rather of power and love and self-control.
So do not be ashamed of your testimony to our Lord,
nor of me, a prisoner for his sake;
but bear your share of hardship for the gospel
with the strength that comes from God.

Take as your norm the sound words that you heard from me,
in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.
Guard this rich trust with the help of the Holy Spirit
that dwells within us.

Here we can note two things. First, Paul recognizes the "faith" and "love" are found "in Christ Jesus". Faith is not merely a human virtue; it is a supernatural virtue that is only possible through union with Christ. These are to be guarded as a "rich trust" and can only be maintained "with the help of the Holy Spirit".

In short, to view faith as the result of human effort is to misunderstand it. Faith is ultimately "a grace". Again, the Catechism of the Catholic Church makes this point beautifully. Under the subheading, "Faith is a grace", we read:

When St. Peter confessed that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God, Jesus declared to him that this revelation did not come “from flesh and blood,” but from “my Father who is in heaven.” [Matt 16:17; cf. Gal. 1:15; Matt. 11:25]. Faith is a gift of God, a supernatural virtue infused by him. “Before this faith can be exercised, man must have the grace of God to move and assist him; he must have the interior helps of the Holy Spirit, who moves the heart and converts it to God, who opens the eyes of the mind and ‘makes it easy for all to accept and believe the truth.’” [cf. Vatican II, Dei Verbum, no. 5]

Let our prayer be that of the man in Mark 9:24: "I believe; help my unbelief!”

Second, Timothy has been established by Paul in his ministry through the laying on of hands. Here we have one of the earliest texts identifying what would later be understood as the sacrament of Holy Orders. Timothy hasn't simply been appointed for ministry because of his natural gifts; he has been given a supernatural gift to empower him to fulfill his ministry. 

Timothy is called upon to persevere in the midst of adversity but he is not to do this without divine assistance: his faithfulness will be the result of the working of the power of the Spirit "that dwells within us".  

Gospel: Luke 17:5-10

The Gospel begins with the apostles petition: "Increase our faith!"

Jesus goes on to explain, however, that even a little bit of faith goes a long way. Indeed, all he needs is for us to have "faith the size of a mustard seed". With that, great things can be accomplished:

The apostles said to the Lord, "Increase our faith."
The Lord replied,
"If you have faith the size of a mustard seed,
you would say to this mulberry tree,
'Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.

But notice that "faith" here is not simply "belief". In other contexts this saying is related to confidence in prayer (cf., e.g., Mark 11:23-24). In Luke 17 Jesus is not simply speaking of practicing a form of "name-it-and-claim-it" spirituality. (Nor is that really in view elsewhere but I digress). Here Jesus describes "faith" in terms of "faithfulness":

"Who among you would say to your servant
who has just come in from plowing or tending sheep in the field,
'Come here immediately and take your place at table'?
Would he not rather say to him,
'Prepare something for me to eat.
Put on your apron and wait on me while I eat and drink.
You may eat and drink when I am finished'?
Is he grateful to that servant because he did what was commanded?
So should it be with you.
When you have done all you have been commanded,
say, 'We are unprofitable servants;
we have done what we were obliged to do.'"

To the apostles' request, "Increase our faith", Jesus responds with a teaching about doing "all you have been commanded".

Faith is ultimately not simply "believing in". Faith entails faithfulness. Faith is a gift, but it also entails a human response; it is a human act made possible by God's grace (cf. Catechism of the Catholic Church, no 154).

That I think is the point of the readings this Sunday. In fact, the subtext is that God is faithful even though we are not. Let us turn to him and ask him for his grace so that we may be faithful ourselves.  

The Church Fathers on "Works of the Law"

Origen

Michael Bird has been writing on patristic interpretation of Paul's phrase "works of the law" (ergōn nomou), noting that some link the term to the ceremonial laws of the Old Testament (here, here). Bird mentions that this interpretation is found in Ambrosiaster, Jerome and Pelagius.

I cover the history of interpretation of this phrase whenever I teach Pauline Epistles and thought I'd share some what I give to my students here.

The view that "works of the law" relate to the ceremonial precepts is found as early as Origen:

“One should know that the works which Paul repudiates and frequently criticizes are not the works of righteousness [opera iustitiae] which are commanded in the law, but those in which they boast who keep the law according to the flesh; that is, the circumcision of the flesh, the sacrificial rituals, the observance of Sabbaths and new moon festivals [cf. Col 2.18]. These and works of a similar nature are the works by which he says no one can be saved, and concerning which he says in the present passage, ‘not on the basis of works; otherwise, grace would no longer be grace.’ For if anyone is justified through these, he is not justified gratis. But these works are by no means sought from the one who is justified through grace; but this one should take care that the grace he has received should not be in him ‘in vain’ [cf. 1 Cor 15.10] . . . So then, one does not make grace become in vain who joins works to it that are worthy and who does not show himself ungrateful for the grace of God. For anyone who sins after having attained grace becomes ungrateful to him who offered the grace.”—Origen, Commentary on Romans 8, 7, 6. Cited from Thomas Scheck, Origen and the History of Justification: The Legacy of Origen’s Commentary on Romans (Notre Dame: University of Notre Dame Press, 2008), 48–49.

Does it Matter How We Treat Others? The 26th Sunday of Ordinary Time

Does it matter how we treat others?  What does my neighbor’s suffering have to do with me?  Can I continue living in comfort while bypassing those around me who are in misery?   

 

These are questions that the Readings for this Sunday raise, and to which they provide uncomfortable answers.  Let’s read and let the Holy Spirit move us outside our comfort zone.

1.  The First Reading is Am 6:1a, 4-7:

Thus says the LORD the God of hosts:
Woe to the complacent in Zion!
Lying upon beds of ivory,
stretched comfortably on their couches,
they eat lambs taken from the flock,
and calves from the stall!

God and Mammon: The 25th Sunday in Ordinary Time

As Jesus continues his “death march” to Jerusalem in Luke’s Gospel (Luke 9–19), he challenges us this Sunday to choose, in a clear and conscious way, our goal in life: God or money.  The First Reading reminds us that wealth was a seductive trap for the people of God throughout salvation history.

1. The First Reading is Amos 8:4-7:

Prodigal Son Sunday: 24th Sunday in OT

This upcoming Sunday marks one of only two times in the main Lectionary cycle that we hear the Parable of the Prodigal Son proclaimed (the other being the 4^th Sunday of Lent [C]).  The Readings are marked by the theme of repentance and forgiveness. 

1. Our First Reading is Ex 32:7-11, 13-14:

The LORD said to Moses,
“Go down at once to your people,
whom you brought out of the land of Egypt,
for they have become depraved.
They have soon turned aside from the way I pointed out to them,
making for themselves a molten calf and worshiping it,
sacrificing to it and crying out,
‘This is your God, O Israel,
who brought you out of the land of Egypt!’

The Cost of Discipleship: 23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time

One of the most famous German opponents of Adolf Hitler and Nazism was the Lutheran pastor and theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer, whom the Nazis executed by hanging in April 1945 for his involvement in a plot against Hitler himself.  Bonhoeffer’s most famous work was a meditation on the Sermon on the Mount entitled (in English) The Cost of Discipleship.  In it, Bonhoeffer parted ways with a Protestantism that understood “salvation by faith alone” as some kind of easy road to heaven.  Bonhoeffer criticized “easy-believism” as “cheap grace”:

Cheap grace is the preaching of forgiveness without requiring repentance, baptism without church discipline, communion without confession. Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ.

Costly grace confronts us as a gracious call to follow Jesus, it comes as a word of forgiveness to the broken spirit and the contrite heart. It is costly because it compels a man to submit to the yoke of Christ and follow him; it is grace because Jesus says: "My yoke is easy and my burden is light.

Bonhoeffer was a Protestant, but there is much in his writings that a Catholic can affirm, including the passage above.  Like St. Maximillian Kolbe, he died at the hands of a totalitarian government because he would not compromise his faith in Christ.  I could not help thinking of Bonhoeffer as I meditated on the Readings for this coming Sunday, which stress the high cost of discipleship to this mysterious man Jesus of Nazareth, who is nothing other than the Wisdom of God in the flesh.

1.  Our First Reading is Wis 9:13-18b: