The Son of Man is lord of the sabbath
Memorial of Saint Gregory the Great, pope and doctor of the Church
Sept 3rd 2011
Reading 1 Col 1:21-23
Sing joyfully to the LORD, all you lands;
serve the LORD with gladness;
come before him with joyful song.
Reading 1 Col 1:9-14
Brothers and sisters:
You once were alienated and hostile in mind because of evil deeds;
God has now reconciled you
in the fleshly Body of Christ through his death,
to present you holy, without blemish,
and irreproachable before him,
provided that you persevere in the faith,
firmly grounded, stable,
and not shifting from the hope of the Gospel that you heard,
which has been preached to every creature under heaven,
of which I, Paul, am a minister.
You once were alienated and hostile in mind because of evil deeds;
God has now reconciled you
in the fleshly Body of Christ through his death,
to present you holy, without blemish,
and irreproachable before him,
provided that you persevere in the faith,
firmly grounded, stable,
and not shifting from the hope of the Gospel that you heard,
which has been preached to every creature under heaven,
of which I, Paul, am a minister.
Notice that it is God who reconciles us. He is the one who first acts in our life. Salvation comes from him, not from us. He will purify us and make us fit for himself. We have to remain firm in our faith – this means our union with Christ through prayer. Prayer too means being in the conscious awareness of his presence and surrendered to him. God’s presence to us is the Good News of our Salvation. We are to remain in it and allow him to work in us.
R.God himself is our help
O God, by your name save me,
and by your might defend my cause.
O God, hear my prayer;
hearken to the words of my mouth.
and by your might defend my cause.
O God, hear my prayer;
hearken to the words of my mouth.
Gospel Lk 6:1-5
While Jesus was going through a field of grain on a sabbath,
his disciples were picking the heads of grain,
rubbing them in their hands, and eating them.
Some Pharisees said,
"Why are you doing what is unlawful on the sabbath?"
Jesus said to them in reply,
"Have you not read what David did
when he and those who were with him were hungry?
How he went into the house of God, took the bread of offering,
which only the priests could lawfully eat,
ate of it, and shared it with his companions?"
Then he said to them, "The Son of Man is lord of the sabbath."
his disciples were picking the heads of grain,
rubbing them in their hands, and eating them.
Some Pharisees said,
"Why are you doing what is unlawful on the sabbath?"
Jesus said to them in reply,
"Have you not read what David did
when he and those who were with him were hungry?
How he went into the house of God, took the bread of offering,
which only the priests could lawfully eat,
ate of it, and shared it with his companions?"
Then he said to them, "The Son of Man is lord of the sabbath."
The Jews observed the Sabbath with fervour. Jesus does not abolish it but fulfills it beyond recognition. This causes the Pharisees to bitterly oppose him. They live in the past. The Messiah has come. Jesus himself is the fulfillment of the Sabbath. He himself replaces the Old Covenant. The Law and the Temple as they know them are obsolete. Jesus is everything. He is the Sabbath. He is the Temple. Where he is there is the Holy of Holies. His disciples are the new priests gathered there. He gives them the Bread of Life to eat. The Sabbath has shifted. Sunday is now The Day of the Lord. It is a day of festivity. Through Jesus we have the life of God. As his royal children we share in the Sacred Banquet. We are not slaves. On Sunday we are to live as His children. Do you?
Friday of the Twenty-Second Week in Ordinary Time
September 2nd 2011
Reading 1 Col 1:15-20
Brothers and sisters:
Christ Jesus is the image of the invisible God,
the firstborn of all creation.
For in him were created all things in heaven and on earth,
the visible and the invisible,
whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers;
all things were created through him and for him.
He is before all things,
and in him all things hold together.
He is the head of the Body, the Church.
He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead,
that in all things he himself might be preeminent.
For in him all the fullness was pleased to dwell,
and through him to reconcile all things for him,
making peace by the Blood of his cross
through him, whether those on earth or those in heaven.
Christ Jesus is the image of the invisible God,
the firstborn of all creation.
For in him were created all things in heaven and on earth,
the visible and the invisible,
whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers;
all things were created through him and for him.
He is before all things,
and in him all things hold together.
He is the head of the Body, the Church.
He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead,
that in all things he himself might be preeminent.
For in him all the fullness was pleased to dwell,
and through him to reconcile all things for him,
making peace by the Blood of his cross
through him, whether those on earth or those in heaven.
Paul shows that the angels or invisible
powers (v. 16) whether from the Bible or
the story tellers of “gnosis” with their Thrones,
Authorities, Principles… are nothing compared
with Christ. He is neither agent nor intermediary
of a creative adventure without a
true creator. He is not one of the saviors of a
history rather impersonal: there is only God-
Creator and in him is Christ. See the same
idea in Hebrews 1.
In all that he is and in all that he does, Christ
among us is the perfect image of the Father
and of his mercy: his actions reveal God’s way
of thinking and acting. Already before he became
man, the Son of God existed in God, as
the eternal and invisible image of God eternal
and invisible, the radiance of the glory of the
Father (Heb 1:3), the Expression or Word ofGod (Jn 1:1). (Christian Community Bible)
Responsorial Psalm Ps 100:1b-2,3,45
R. (2b) Come with joy into the presence of the Lord.Sing joyfully to the LORD, all you lands;
serve the LORD with gladness;
come before him with joyful song.
The scribes and Pharisees said to Jesus,
"The disciples of John the Baptist fast often and offer prayers,
and the disciples of the Pharisees do the same;
but yours eat and drink."
Jesus answered them, "Can you make the wedding guests fast
while the bridegroom is with them"
But the days will come, and when the bridegroom is taken away from them,
then they will fast in those days.
And he also told them a parable.
"No one tears a piece from a new cloak to patch an old one.
Otherwise, he will tear the new
and the piece from it will not match the old cloak.
Likewise, no one pours new wine into old wineskins.
Otherwise, the new wine will burst the skins,
and it will be spilled, and the skins will be ruined.
Rather, new wine must be poured into fresh wineskins.
And no one who has been drinking old wine desires new,
for he says, "The old is good."
"The disciples of John the Baptist fast often and offer prayers,
and the disciples of the Pharisees do the same;
but yours eat and drink."
Jesus answered them, "Can you make the wedding guests fast
while the bridegroom is with them"
But the days will come, and when the bridegroom is taken away from them,
then they will fast in those days.
And he also told them a parable.
"No one tears a piece from a new cloak to patch an old one.
Otherwise, he will tear the new
and the piece from it will not match the old cloak.
Likewise, no one pours new wine into old wineskins.
Otherwise, the new wine will burst the skins,
and it will be spilled, and the skins will be ruined.
Rather, new wine must be poured into fresh wineskins.
And no one who has been drinking old wine desires new,
for he says, "The old is good."
For the Pharisees religion was a matter of obligations, the Law. Jesus teaches us that love and religion are synonymous. The prophets had taught that God wanted a personal relationship of love with his people by describing the relationship of God and Israel as that of bride and groom. God wanted to call his people his wife. Jesus continuing in the same tradition sees himself as the Bridegroom. His religion is one of the joy of being with a Lover. However many of us prefer a religion of ritual and practices rather than a life lived for Someone. When we live a life of love this love affects every aspect of our life and every thought and action. Do you see yourself as ‘the bride’ of Christ for whom you live and die? If you do not, you have not tasted the new wine. This is the new cloak.
Reading 1 Col 1:9-14
Brothers and sisters:
From the day we heard about you, we do not cease praying for you
and asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of God's will
through all spiritual wisdom and understanding
to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord,
so as to be fully pleasing, in every good work bearing fruit
and growing in the knowledge of God,
strengthened with every power, in accord with his glorious might,
for all endurance and patience,
with joy giving thanks to the Father, who has made you fit to share
in the inheritance of the holy ones in light.
He delivered us from the power of darkness
and transferred us to the Kingdom of his beloved Son,
in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
From the day we heard about you, we do not cease praying for you
and asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of God's will
through all spiritual wisdom and understanding
to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord,
so as to be fully pleasing, in every good work bearing fruit
and growing in the knowledge of God,
strengthened with every power, in accord with his glorious might,
for all endurance and patience,
with joy giving thanks to the Father, who has made you fit to share
in the inheritance of the holy ones in light.
He delivered us from the power of darkness
and transferred us to the Kingdom of his beloved Son,
in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
He has transferred us to the kingdom of
his beloved Son. While the Colossians are interested
in an invisible world of supernatural
forces, where luminous powers battle with
those of darkness (see the Intro duction, and
also Eph 1:21), Paul immediately clarified the
situation: there is nothing other than the power
of Darkness and the kingdom of the Son. (Christian Community Bible)
R. (2) The Lord has made known his salvation.
The LORD has made his salvation known:
in the sight of the nations he has revealed his justice.
He has remembered his kindness and his faithfulness
toward the house of Israel.
Gospel Lk 5:1-11 The LORD has made his salvation known:
in the sight of the nations he has revealed his justice.
He has remembered his kindness and his faithfulness
toward the house of Israel.
While the crowd was pressing in on Jesus and listening to the word of God,
he was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret.
He saw two boats there alongside the lake;
the fishermen had disembarked and were washing their nets.
Getting into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon,
he asked him to put out a short distance from the shore.
Then he sat down and taught the crowds from the boat.
After he had finished speaking, he said to Simon,
"Put out into deep water and lower your nets for a catch."
Simon said in reply,
"Master, we have worked hard all night and have caught nothing,
but at your command I will lower the nets."
When they had done this, they caught a great number of fish
and their nets were tearing.
They signaled to their partners in the other boat
to come to help them.
They came and filled both boats
so that the boats were in danger of sinking.
When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at the knees of Jesus and said,
"Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man."
For astonishment at the catch of fish they had made seized him
and all those with him,
and likewise James and John, the sons of Zebedee,
who were partners of Simon.
Jesus said to Simon, "Do not be afraid;
from now on you will be catching men."
When they brought their boats to the shore,
they left everything and followed him.
he was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret.
He saw two boats there alongside the lake;
the fishermen had disembarked and were washing their nets.
Getting into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon,
he asked him to put out a short distance from the shore.
Then he sat down and taught the crowds from the boat.
After he had finished speaking, he said to Simon,
"Put out into deep water and lower your nets for a catch."
Simon said in reply,
"Master, we have worked hard all night and have caught nothing,
but at your command I will lower the nets."
When they had done this, they caught a great number of fish
and their nets were tearing.
They signaled to their partners in the other boat
to come to help them.
They came and filled both boats
so that the boats were in danger of sinking.
When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at the knees of Jesus and said,
"Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man."
For astonishment at the catch of fish they had made seized him
and all those with him,
and likewise James and John, the sons of Zebedee,
who were partners of Simon.
Jesus said to Simon, "Do not be afraid;
from now on you will be catching men."
When they brought their boats to the shore,
they left everything and followed him.
Their fishing had been a total failure, not even one fish. Now Jesus comes full of the Spirit. Having sat on the boat of Peter and preached the Word, he tells him to throw his net into the deep water. Peter reiterates their failure but on the strength of Jesus’ word throws out the net and gets an astounding catch. But now he is not to catch fish for dinner but men and women for salvation in Jesus. Peter leaves everything including the fish and follows Jesus. This is the beginning of his vocation. It will be a long time before he becomes Saint Peter but the process has begun. Jesus calls every disciple, he calls you. His call always includes being ’fishers of men’. How does he want you to catch them? Have courage, you throw out the net. He causes the catch. Are you willing to leave everything?
August 31, 2011
Wednesday of the Twenty-Second Sunday in Ordinary Time
Reading 1
Col 1:1-8Paul, an Apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God,
and Timothy our brother,
to the holy ones and faithful brothers and sisters in Christ in Colossae:
grace to you and peace from God our Father.
We always give thanks to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
when we pray for you,
for we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus
and the love that you have for all the holy ones
because of the hope reserved for you in heaven.
Of this you have already heard
through the word of truth, the Gospel, that has come to you.
Just as in the whole world it is bearing fruit and growing,
so also among you,
from the day you heard it and came to know the grace of God in truth,
as you learned it from Epaphras our beloved fellow slave,
who is a trustworthy minister of Christ on your behalf
and who also told us of your love in the Spirit.
Paul, as usual, praises his readers. Actually,
he is writing because of the information
Epaphras gave him about the Colossians’ concerns.
Epaphras, about whom Paul speaks (v. 7),
is a man from Colossae. When Paul was organizing
the evange li zation of the province of
Ephesus (see Acts 19:26 and 20:4), he did not
go to every city, but would send his assistants.
Epaphras of Colossae announced the Good
News and had started to form communities in
Colossae and then in the neighboring cities of
Laodicea and Hierapolis (see Col 4:13). He
was the man who came to Rome to inform
Paul of the difficulties.
Your faith… your love… in hope… (vv. 4-
5). Paul constantly regroups these three Christian
powers: believe, love and hope. In the
Christian world, they are called theological
virtues (i.e., powers that go straight to God).
The three go together, otherwise they do not
exist. In a sense hope is the first: if it is no
longer alive, faith and love remain powerless.
Straight away, Paul presents faith as being
matchless: the Gospel has already been
preached and believed throughout the world
(v. 6) (which is rather too quickly said); faith
opens for us the way to true knowledge: precisely
what the Colossians are looking for (see
Introduction); through this faith God has already
placed us in the kingdom of Light (v. 12).
He has transferred us to the kingdom of
his beloved Son. While the Colossians are interested
in an invisible world of supernatural
forces, where luminous powers battle with
those of darkness (see the Introduction, and
also Eph 1:21), Paul immediately clarified the
situation: there is nothing other than the power
of Darkness and the kingdom of the Son.
(Christian Community Bible)
Responsorial Psalm
R. (10) I trust in the mercy of God for ever.
I, like a green olive tree
in the house of God,
Trust in the mercy of God
forever and ever.
I, like a green olive tree
in the house of God,
Trust in the mercy of God
forever and ever.
Gospel
After Jesus left the synagogue, he entered the house of Simon.
Simon’s mother-in-law was afflicted with a severe fever,
and they interceded with him about her.
He stood over her, rebuked the fever, and it left her.
She got up immediately and waited on them.
Simon’s mother-in-law was afflicted with a severe fever,
and they interceded with him about her.
He stood over her, rebuked the fever, and it left her.
She got up immediately and waited on them.
At sunset, all who had people sick with various diseases brought them to him.
He laid his hands on each of them and cured them.
And demons also came out from many, shouting, “You are the Son of God.”
But he rebuked them and did not allow them to speak
because they knew that he was the Christ.
He laid his hands on each of them and cured them.
And demons also came out from many, shouting, “You are the Son of God.”
But he rebuked them and did not allow them to speak
because they knew that he was the Christ.
At daybreak, Jesus left and went to a deserted place.
The crowds went looking for him, and when they came to him,
they tried to prevent him from leaving them.
But he said to them, “To the other towns also
I must proclaim the good news of the Kingdom of God,
because for this purpose I have been sent.”
And he was preaching in the synagogues of Judea.
The crowds went looking for him, and when they came to him,
they tried to prevent him from leaving them.
But he said to them, “To the other towns also
I must proclaim the good news of the Kingdom of God,
because for this purpose I have been sent.”
And he was preaching in the synagogues of Judea.
Jesus has come to defeat the Evil One. He confronts evil and overpowers the forces of evil in all their manifestations. Hence he rebukes the sickness of Simon’s mother-in-law. He is the Servant of Yahweh and on being healed she joins him in serving and carrying out God’s will, as ordained for her. We too are given gifts, the greatest of which is to give people love through word and deed. Jesus spends the evening laying his hands on each of the crowd and healing them. It is love in action. In the early morning he goes to a lonely place to be alone with God. He needs this to know his Father’s will and he discerns that despite the temptation to respond to the crowd earnestly searching for him, he must leave. Are you a servant of Yahweh? Is your prayer a time to discern God’s will for you?
August 30, 2011
Tuesday of the Twenty-Second Week in Ordinary Time
Reading 1
1 Thes 5:1-6, 9-11Concerning times and seasons, brothers and sisters,
you have no need for anything to be written to you.
For you yourselves know very well
that the day of the Lord will come like a thief at night.
When people are saying, “Peace and security,”
then sudden disaster comes upon them,
like labor pains upon a pregnant woman,
and they will not escape.
But you, brothers and sisters, are not in darkness,
for that day to overtake you like a thief.
For all of you are children of the light
and children of the day.
We are not of the night or of darkness.
Therefore, let us not sleep as the rest do,
but let us stay alert and sober.
For God did not destine us for wrath,
but to gain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ,
who died for us, so that whether we are awake or asleep
we may live together with him.
Therefore, encourage one another and build one another up,
as indeed you do.
5.1 Christ comes at night and believers
are people of the light. These words are rich in
meaning. Those who follow their evil desires
are people of darkness, hiding to do evil. While
children of the light are beyond reproach,
transparent before God and with nothing to
hide from him. The unbeliever sleeps and is
off-guard while the believer keeps watch and
stays awake: he likes to pray all night long until
dawn as if waiting for the day to welcome
Christ. As for those who have died, they are
not dead: they are only “asleep,” ready to rise
when the Lord comes.
Encourage one another and build up one
another (v. 11). In this the Church is seen as
the true community needed by believers so
they can grow in faith and overcome trials. In
every difficulty, the help of the community will
be the proof that we are surrounded by the
love of God and of Christ, as was said in the
first line of the letter. (Christian Community Bible)
Responsorial Psalm
R. (13) I believe that I shall see the good things of the Lord in the land of the living.
The LORD is my light and my salvation;
whom should I fear?
The LORD is my life’s refuge;
of whom should I be afraid?
The LORD is my light and my salvation;
whom should I fear?
The LORD is my life’s refuge;
of whom should I be afraid?
Gospel
Jesus went down to Capernaum, a town of Galilee.
He taught them on the sabbath,
and they were astonished at his teaching
because he spoke with authority.
In the synagogue there was a man with the spirit of an unclean demon,
and he cried out in a loud voice,
“What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth?
Have you come to destroy us?
I know who you are–the Holy One of God!”
Jesus rebuked him and said, “Be quiet! Come out of him!”
Then the demon threw the man down in front of them
and came out of him without doing him any harm.
They were all amazed and said to one another,
“What is there about his word?
For with authority and power he commands the unclean spirits,
and they come out.”
And news of him spread everywhere in the surrounding region.
He taught them on the sabbath,
and they were astonished at his teaching
because he spoke with authority.
In the synagogue there was a man with the spirit of an unclean demon,
and he cried out in a loud voice,
“What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth?
Have you come to destroy us?
I know who you are–the Holy One of God!”
Jesus rebuked him and said, “Be quiet! Come out of him!”
Then the demon threw the man down in front of them
and came out of him without doing him any harm.
They were all amazed and said to one another,
“What is there about his word?
For with authority and power he commands the unclean spirits,
and they come out.”
And news of him spread everywhere in the surrounding region.
At last hope has come into this world. The Anointed One has come and evil cannot resist him. Jesus is full of the Spirit of God. He teaches with authority. Does he teach you? Do you listen? Jesus is still present in the world but invisible and silent. So he anoints the baptized with the same Holy Spirit that he received. He can now continue his work through them to confront evil in all its forms and to teach with authority. Have you entered into his life and work? Have you taken your anointing seriously praying constantly for the Spirit to possess you and use you? Do you surrender yourself to Jesus so that he can be again a power to destroy evil and proclaim God’s rule but this time through you and in your world? If you cooperate you can be a saviour in your world
August 29, 2011
The Memorial of the Martyrdom of
Saint John the Baptist
Saint John the Baptist
Reading 1
1 Thes 4:13-18
We do not want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters,
about those who have fallen asleep,
so that you may not grieve like the rest, who have no hope.
For if we believe that Jesus died and rose,
so too will God, through Jesus,
bring with him those who have fallen asleep.
Indeed, we tell you this, on the word of the Lord,
that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord,
will surely not precede those who have fallen asleep.
For the Lord himself, with a word of command,
with the voice of an archangel and with the trumpet of God,
will come down from heaven,
and the dead in Christ will rise first.
Then we who are alive, who are left,
will be caught up together with them in the clouds
to meet the Lord in the air.
Thus we shall always be with the Lord.
Therefore, console one another with these words.
We do not want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters,
about those who have fallen asleep,
so that you may not grieve like the rest, who have no hope.
For if we believe that Jesus died and rose,
so too will God, through Jesus,
bring with him those who have fallen asleep.
Indeed, we tell you this, on the word of the Lord,
that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord,
will surely not precede those who have fallen asleep.
For the Lord himself, with a word of command,
with the voice of an archangel and with the trumpet of God,
will come down from heaven,
and the dead in Christ will rise first.
Then we who are alive, who are left,
will be caught up together with them in the clouds
to meet the Lord in the air.
Thus we shall always be with the Lord.
Therefore, console one another with these words.
The Thessalonian community
is made up of Christians who are all recent
converts with little experience. For years they
had accepted the fate of being born to die.
Now, on the contrary, they awaken each day
with the assurance of overcoming death:
Christ will come soon and take them to the
heavenly Kingdom. They are grieved nevertheless
over their dead relatives whom Christ
will not be able to save. This is what they
thought because Greek culture had diffi culties
believing in a resurrection of the dead.
Those who are already asleep. Those who
have died are not dead, but they are asleep,
waiting for the time of the resurrection, the
time of rising as new persons transformed by
Christ: we will all be transformed. The word
“cemetery” comes from a word meaning
sleeping place.
God will bring them together with Jesus.
Paul supposes that he and his readers will be
alive when Christ returns and he describes the
event according to the cultural expressions of
the time. Let us not forget that up to the time
of Galileo, everyone thought that heaven had
its place in the universe, very high above and
that God, although a spirit, was in some way
present there.
We will be with the Lord forever. That is
essential and always true even if it does not
mean that Jesus will come on a beautiful cloud
to the sound of heavenly trumpets. We already
have some experience of the Lord’s presence
in our earthly life, but then there will be nothing
but this presence and this joy.
This brief message of hope leaves obscure
essential questions concerning the resurrection
of the dead. Paul will fully deal with this subject
later on in 1 Corinthians 15. There he will
show that resurrection is first a transformation
of our whole being through the energies flowing
from the resurrected Christ.
Comfort one another. The way of celebrating
funerals in the Church must comfort
the dead person’s relatives and strengthen
their faith in the resurrection. There is no
room for expressions of des pair which Jesus
himself scorned (see Mk 5:40): these are peculiar
to people who consider the separation
to be final. A funeral mass without any spectacular
display, when the fervent prayer of the
community is experienced, produces a great
impact on people who are indifferent. (Christian Community Bible)
Responsorial Psalm
R. (13b) The Lord comes to judge the earth.
Sing to the LORD a new song;
sing to the LORD, all you lands.
Tell his glory among the nations;
among all peoples, his wondrous deeds.
R. The Lord comes to judge the earth.
Sing to the LORD a new song;
sing to the LORD, all you lands.
Tell his glory among the nations;
among all peoples, his wondrous deeds.
R. The Lord comes to judge the earth.
Gospel
Herod was the one who had John the Baptist arrested and bound in prison
on account of Herodias,
the wife of his brother Philip, whom he had married.
John had said to Herod,
“It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.”
Herodias harbored a grudge against him
and wanted to kill him but was unable to do so.
Herod feared John, knowing him to be a righteous and holy man,
and kept him in custody.
When he heard him speak he was very much perplexed,
yet he liked to listen to him.
She had an opportunity one day when Herod, on his birthday,
gave a banquet for his courtiers,
his military officers, and the leading men of Galilee.
Herodias’ own daughter came in
and performed a dance that delighted Herod and his guests.
The king said to the girl,
“Ask of me whatever you wish and I will grant it to you.”
He even swore many things to her,
“I will grant you whatever you ask of me,
even to half of my kingdom.”
She went out and said to her mother,
“What shall I ask for?”
She replied, “The head of John the Baptist.”
The girl hurried back to the king’s presence and made her request,
“I want you to give me at once
on a platter the head of John the Baptist.”
The king was deeply distressed,
but because of his oaths and the guests
he did not wish to break his word to her.
So he promptly dispatched an executioner with orders
to bring back his head.
He went off and beheaded him in the prison.
He brought in the head on a platter and gave it to the girl.
The girl in turn gave it to her mother.
When his disciples heard about it,
they came and took his body and laid it in a tomb.
on account of Herodias,
the wife of his brother Philip, whom he had married.
John had said to Herod,
“It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.”
Herodias harbored a grudge against him
and wanted to kill him but was unable to do so.
Herod feared John, knowing him to be a righteous and holy man,
and kept him in custody.
When he heard him speak he was very much perplexed,
yet he liked to listen to him.
She had an opportunity one day when Herod, on his birthday,
gave a banquet for his courtiers,
his military officers, and the leading men of Galilee.
Herodias’ own daughter came in
and performed a dance that delighted Herod and his guests.
The king said to the girl,
“Ask of me whatever you wish and I will grant it to you.”
He even swore many things to her,
“I will grant you whatever you ask of me,
even to half of my kingdom.”
She went out and said to her mother,
“What shall I ask for?”
She replied, “The head of John the Baptist.”
The girl hurried back to the king’s presence and made her request,
“I want you to give me at once
on a platter the head of John the Baptist.”
The king was deeply distressed,
but because of his oaths and the guests
he did not wish to break his word to her.
So he promptly dispatched an executioner with orders
to bring back his head.
He went off and beheaded him in the prison.
He brought in the head on a platter and gave it to the girl.
The girl in turn gave it to her mother.
When his disciples heard about it,
they came and took his body and laid it in a tomb.
Many think that if they commit themselves to Jesus, then life will be trouble-free. Often the opposite happens. Externally there can be trials and persecutions and internally temptations and suffering. St. Paul tells us in the letter to the Ephesians (6:12) that we are engaged in war. Satan is waging war on God. He cannot touch God and so he attacks those who belong to God. He often blinds people to the truth and instigates them to attack those who belong to Christ. Herod listened to John eagerly but was confused. Caught up in the situation of his oath he has John executed. Let us expect trials and difficulties in our following of Jesus who goes before us to Mt. Calvary. Like Jesus we find strength and consolation in God since we know ultimate victory is ours. In your trials can you unite yourself with Jesus and his martyrs?
