First Reading - Ephesians 1:1-10
Gospel - Luke 11:47-54
The first reading presents a beautiful Christological hymn. The hymn can be summarized as "the dignity of the call in Christ Jesus, which the recipients of the letter have received." In fact, the hymn reminds the followers of Jesus that they have gained a renewed life in Christ. However, what interests me most is the opening line of Paul, where he addresses the Christians as "the saints who are faithful to Christ Jesus." The faithfulness of Christians to Jesus qualifies their realization of the richness and dignity of their call in Christ. Hence, faithfulness to Jesus also implies living an authentic life according to His teachings.
In the Gospel, Jesus criticized the blatant hypocrisy and false zeal of the scribes and Pharisees in decorating the old monuments and building new monuments for the past prophets who had been persecuted and murdered by their forefathers. These same scribes and Pharisees did not obey the injunctions of the very prophets they honored. Abel’s martyrdom is the first recorded in the Bible (Gn 4:8), and Zechariah was a prophet stoned in the temple of Jerusalem around 800 B.C. because he accused Israel of being unfaithful to God’s law (cf. 2 Chronicles 24:20-22). The murder of Abel (Genesis 4:8) and that of Zechariah were, respectively, the first and last murders reported in the Scriptures, which the Jews regarded as sacred. Jesus remarked that the bloodguilt inherited by the ancestors of the scribes and Pharisees throughout the Old Testament era would spill over when the priests (most of them scribes) and Pharisees conspired to execute Jesus, the Messiah.
Since the scribes (religious lawyers) were the official interpreters of the Scriptures, they held the “office of the keys.” Unfortunately, their interpretation of the Scriptures became so distorted and difficult to understand that others were “shut out” of the Scriptures. This is why Jesus condemned their actions, which deprived people of the kingdom of heaven.
Dear friends, walking our talk is a challenge because it requires courage and conviction. In the first reading, Paul invites all Christians to faithfully observe the teachings of Jesus, which is the path to authenticity. The Gospel contains accusations against the Pharisees and scribes because they failed to live authentic lives; they failed to integrate their preaching with their lives. Their lives contrasted sharply with their preaching and teaching. Through His denunciation, Jesus invites them, and by extension all Christians, to live lives of integrity. We are called by Jesus to live an authentic Christian life by living, preaching, and teaching our faith through both words and deeds.
.jpeg)
0 Comments