INTENTIONS OF THE HOLY FATHER FOR
NOVEMBER 2008
INTENTIONS OF THE HOLY FATHER FOR
NOVEMBER 2008
1) General Intention:
1) That the testimony of love offered by the Saints may fortify Christians in their service to God and neighbor, imitating Christ who came not to be served but to serve;
2) Mission Intention:
2) That Christian communities in Asia, contemplating the face of Christ, may find the most suitable way to announce Him in full fidelity to the Gospel to the peoples of that vast continent so rich in culture and ancient forms of spirituality.
THIRTY-THIRD SUNDAY
IN ORDINARY TIME
November 16, 2008
Blessed are you who fear the Lord.
~ Psalm 128:1 ~
READINGS:
Daily
Bible Readings
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a single passage.
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Take all that you can of this book upon reason and the balance by faith,
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the Bible is the best book which God has given to man."
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SUNDAY READINGS & REFLECTION:
Proverbs 31:10-13 The value of a worthy woman is beyond measure.
Psalm 128 “Blessed are those who fear the Lord.”
1 Thessalonians 5:1-6 The day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night.
Matthew 25:14-30 The parable of the talents.
GOSPEL MEDITATION:
HOLY PLACES, HOLY LIVES
Roman Catholics in the United States at the beginning of the twenty-first century have had more than their share of experiences of unholy things going on in holy places. And, in light of the extreme reaction that Jesus has to this phenomenon at the Temple in today’s Gospel, it may seem unusual to be celebrating what, on the surface, seems to be a feast of a building: the pope’s Cathedral Church for his role as the Bishop of Rome, the Cathedral of St. John (the Baptist) Lateran.
Throughout time, human beings have come to discern, through the Spirit, various physical locations for the work and activity of God: creation, the Ark of the Covenant, the Jerusalem temples, the womb of a Galilean girl, a cross and tomb, an upper room. All these physical places have the potential to be sources of holy things, of God’s ongoing grace in the world.
As we hear in today’s Gospel, we must always look to Christ, the one, eternal, always-holy dwelling place of God. Then we who are baptized must pray that we always be guided to lead holy lives in holy places, in all places, at all times.
DWELLING PLACES
The rabbis of Israel had a saying: “When Israel wandered, God dwelt with them; when Israel had a dwelling, God wandered.” Of course, God did not actually desert the chosen people. What the rabbis were saying was that it is a common human weakness to mistake concrete, physical people, places, and things for the actual presence of the Lord.Israel believed that—among others—the top of Mount Sinai, the Ark of the Covenant, and the Jerusalem temples were places wherein God truly dwelt. They were right, but they also learned that mountains get left behind, arks get lost, and temples get destroyed. When Thomas Aquinas was developing his understanding of the real and substantial presence of the Lord in the Eucharist, it was necessary for him to explain how the physical actuality of the bread and wine got left behind. He knew that, ultimately, our earthly, physical things cannot be, in and of themselves, the presence of God.
GOD’S FORWARDING ADDRESS
The Scriptures today use many images for God’s dwelling places: a temple filled with living, flowing water for a thirsty desert people; the flesh and blood of the baptized early Christians, who did not have the luxury of large public places to identify them; the Temple of Jerusalem, tainted by scandalous behavior, which would ultimately be destroyed. But finally, there is Christ, the only--begotten of God, the dwelling--place in flesh of God’s eternal Word. For all the many places
the Spirit might lead us to find God, only to Jesus Christ can we look for the eternal, living presence of the one true God. Like John the Baptist, for whom the Lateran cathedral is named, our mission is to know God’s dwelling in us through the water and Spirit of our baptism, and to make our sole purpose in life the proclamation of the Good News of our salvation in Christ
TREASURES FROM OUR TRADITION
What is the name of the pope’s cathedral? If you said the Vatican, or St. Peter’s, you were off by a few miles, since the answer is the Basilica of St. John, the Lateran, the “Mother Church” of all the churches of the world and the cathedral of the Diocese of Rome. It takes its name from the Lateran family, the Trumps of their day, who somehow ran afoul of the Emperor Nero. He seized all their property, including their vast Roman palace and estate. We don’t know how Plautius displeased Nero so badly, but eventually all the Lateran property came to Constantine, the first Christian emperor, through his wife, Fausta. Early in the fourth century, when Christianity was at last legalized, Constantine gave the property to the Church. Soon the great meeting halls were expanded and adapted.
Over the centuries, the church building has been sacked by armies, ruined by fire, torn down, and rebuilt.
The oldest and most unchanged part of the Lateran is a vast, separate baptistery with steps leading down to a huge green basalt pool. Imagine what a triumphal moment the dedication of this public church building was for a community that had worshiped in secret for so long! Today’s feast is really about the tradition of consecrating space for worship, and so by extension, a feast for your parish church building and, given the beautiful second reading, for its baptistery as well.
Readings for the week:
Monday: Ti 1:1-9; Lk 17:1-6
Tuesday: Ti 2:1-8, 11-14; Lk 17:7-10
Wednesday: Ti 3:1-7; Lk 17:11-19
Thursday: Phlm 7-20; Lk 17:20-25
Friday: 2 Jn 4-9; Lk 17:26-37
Saturday: 3 Jn 5-8; Lk 18:1-8
Sunday: Prv 31:10-13, 19-20, 30-31; Ps 128
Readings for next Sunday: 11/23/2008
Solemnity of Jesus Christ the King1st reading: Ezekiel 34:11-17
Response: Psalm 23
2nd reading: 1 Corinthians 15:20-26
Gospel: Matthew 25:31-46
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