“Hi, this is Father Andrew Ricci, and you're listening to Catholic Inspiration, a podcast from my website at studyprayserve.com. These homilies and presentations form part of my ministry as a Catholic priest for the Diocese of Superior. And now, I invite you to open your heart to some Catholic inspiration.

Gospel

Now, as we take a look at the readings for the third Sunday of the year, we have to start with the Gospel. This particular passage comes to us from Luke. Now, it's an interesting passage because part of it is taken from chapter 1 verses 1 to 4, and then the second part of this is taken from chapter 4 verses 14 to 21.

So we've got a gap in here. We miss all the infancy narrative stuff, and we're going to go from the introduction of the Gospel into part of the earthly ministry of Jesus. So if we look first at this passage, we have here…

“It's like Luke is talking directly to us. Since many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the events that have been fulfilled among us, just as those who were eyewitnesses from the beginning and ministers of the Word have handed them down to us, I too have decided after investigating everything accurately anew to write it down in an orderly sequence for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may realize the certainty of the teachings you have received. This is Luke just kind of going direct to the heart here speaking to this guy named Theophilus, setting the stage for how he's introducing an orderly sequence of the events surrounding the life of Jesus.

Now after we get that, then we go, boom, chapter four, and we're with the Lord in Galilee. He's going to return now to Nazareth, where he grew up. Now I grew up in a small town, for those of you listening from Cumberland, Wisconsin, I'm proud of my heritage, but it's a small town.

“And here, Nazareth is like a tiny, tiny small town. The Lord's small town is smaller than my small town. But Nazareth, where he grew up, and here he's going to come back.

He's been doing some great deeds, some mighty works, but now he comes back and, you know, people in town, they talk and they listen and they're going to wait and see what he does. What he does is extraordinary. In the synagogue, while they're at prayer, Jesus is going to be granted an opportunity.

He's going to go and read from a scroll. This is from the book of the prophet Isaiah. And what he does is he enrolls the scroll and he finds this passage.

It's taken from the 61st chapter of Isaiah. So Isaiah chapter 61 verses one and two, the spirit of the Lord is upon me because he has anointed me to bring glad tidings to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives, recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord.”

“Those are mighty words, words of hope, but also words of liberation, words that raise up the people and protect those on the margin, to bring new comfort and strength to those who have been truly oppressed. And then after he rolls up the scroll and everybody's looking at him, he says, today, the scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing. Now, there's a powerful statement that Jesus is just simply going to say, okay, I'm on the scene.

“The prophecy of Isaiah is now fulfilled and not just any prophecy, but here a prophecy really of liberation, where the chains of those bound are going to be broken, where those who have been oppressed are now going to have freedom, where there will be healing, that sight will be given, but there's going to be this sense that things are going to get shook up because the Messiah is in the house. Well, those are stirring and powerful words. And in modern times, that's kind of the rallying cry for what we call liberation theology, where the gospel is meant to have a direct impact on those who live in the margins, particularly those who are impoverished, those who are suffering from unjust principles and leadership, for those who've been oppressed because of dictatorship or some sort of really destructive rule, those who, because of maybe the greed of others, are living lives in horrible conditions.”

“Obviously, this passage and this reference means that as Christians, what are we doing to alleviate the suffering of our brothers and sisters? And you know what? That's something we've always got to have in mind, that amongst the many things that we do as disciples of Jesus, we're still striving and doing our part to help our brothers and sisters to the best of our ability and to look for ways, not only to recognize injustice, but also look for ways to take these wrongs and make them right.

Powerful words. Now, let's take the context of that and go back to the first reading. It comes to us from Nehemiah.

First Reading

Now, it's important to understand that this book of Nehemiah and what's going on here, you've got Ezra and Nehemiah. They're instructing the people, they're teaching, they're reading. But this is after the Babylonian captivity.”

“The people have come back home, but the glory that was theirs before their captivity, before they were dragged away and in captivity for 50 years, that's all gone. Imagine if you were dragged off from your home, and for 50 years, you know, it laid desolate. And so the beautiful churches you had or even the buildings, your own home, it would have fallen into disrepair.

So now the people have to recall who they are. They have to remember God's promises. And so here you have Ezra reading from one of the books of the law.

We don't know what part of the Old Testament this is read, but there's this understanding that people are hungry to hear about their identity, that they're patiently listening. And you have everybody here, men and women, the children of old enough to understand. They're all together.

And he's reading out of this book from daybreak till midday. And then they're instructing them as the people listen attentively to the book. They're learning who they are.”

“And then Ezra and Nehemiah are going to instruct the people. They're going to interpret it. They're going to explain it.

There's this wonderful, wonderful conclusion where Nehemiah says, Today is holy to the Lord your God. Do not be sad. Do not weep.

For all the people were weeping as they heard the words of the law. He said further, Go eat rich foods, drink sweet drinks, and allot portions to those who had nothing prepared. For today is holy to our Lord.

Do not be saddened this day, for rejoicing in the Lord must be your strength. Now, this is an act of worship. The people are gathered together.

Just where Jesus was in an act of worship here in the synagogue at Nazareth, now you have the people. They're in Jerusalem. They've come back to their home, but everything's been devastated, and they have to rebuild from ground zero.”

“So they're recalling who they are. They're hearing the words of the law, weeping as they recall all of God's promises and the mighty deeds, how God led the people out of slavery and bondage in Egypt. And now that the people have been freed from their bondage in Babylon, they're coming back, and there's a lot of conflicting emotions.

But it's still in this context of worship where God's mighty proclamation is proclaimed. Now this is going to get picked up when you hear the Psalm. This is taken from Psalm 19.

Your words, Lord, are spirit and life. And you hear these words. Just listen to some of these lines.

The law of the Lord is perfect, refreshing the soul. The decree of the Lord is trustworthy, giving wisdom to the simple. The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart.

The command of the Lord is clear, enlightening the eye. The fear of the Lord is pure, enduring forever. The ordinances of the Lord are true, all of them just.”

“Let the words of my mouth and the thoughts of my heart find favor before you, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer. Here we have the law of the Lord, the decree of the Lord, the precepts of the Lord, the command of the Lord, the fear of the Lord, the ordinances of the Lord. In other words, friends, a godly life is a blessed life, not an easy one, but it's going to be filled with God's power to help us engage whatever comes our way.

We have, then, this Jesus in the Act of Worship in Nazareth in the synagogue, talking about the fulfillment of the prophecy of Isaiah. You have Ezra and Nehemiah teaching and instructing the people as the book of the law is read to them as they listen attentively, weeping and yet being told to rejoice. And then this Psalm from Psalm 19, just bringing to heart how all of these precepts, laws, teachings of the Lord strengthen us.

“With all of that, then we take another little sidestep. You might recall, and this is an important little reminder, that the second reading is often what we call semi-continuous. That is, in a desire to give us a bunch of different elements of the sacred scriptures, a little variety.

Second Reading

The second reading isn't usually tied to the Gospel or the first reading. It's just kind of a continuous or semi-continuous passage that leads from one week to the next. And this is no exception to that rule.

Last week, we heard from Paul's letter, his first letter to the Corinthians, chapter 12 verses 4 to 11. This week, we pick up on that with the next verse, verse 12 to 30. So what we had last week, talking about different kinds of gifts with the same spirit, how those gifts are given for the benefit of the person and for all.”

“All right, now, Paul is going to take that point and lead it one step further. He's going to speak about the body, a human body, as an example that can teach us about the body of Christ. He says this, As a body is one through it, though it has many parts, and all the parts of the body, though many, are one body, so also Christ.

For in one spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, slaves or free persons. We're all given to drink of one spirit. So you have to imagine now this sense that he's going to use this as both a kind of like a real understanding of what the church is, but he's also using it as a simile, right?

Just as so also. But then he's going to take it apart. Now the body is not a single part, but many.

“If a foot should say, because I'm not a hand, I do not belong to the body, it does not for this reason belong any less to the body. Or if an ear should say, because I'm not an eye, I do not belong to the body, it does not for this reason belong any less to the body. And then he goes on, if the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be?

If the whole body were hearing, where would the sense of smell be? But as it is, God placed the parts, each one of them, in the body as he intended. So there's this unique quality of all of the different parts of the body, and they all have a different response.

You need all these parts. You just can't have an eye, right? We need eyes and ears and noses.

We need fingers and teeth and hands. We need legs and arms. We need a head.”

“We need a heart. But we also need kneecaps, you know? We need some of the things that aren't quite so pleasant, but we need it all.

We need all of it working together. And he cites that. He goes on and on.

Indeed, the parts of the body that seem to be weaker are all the more necessary. And those parts of the body that we consider less honorable, we surround with greater honor. But then Paul talks about how this applies in a spiritual sense.

He says, now you are Christ's body, and individually are parts of it. Some people God has designated in the Church to be first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then mighty deeds, gifts of healing, assistance, administration, varieties of tongues. Are all apostles?

Are all prophets? Are all teachers? You get the idea here.”

“We aren't. We need everybody working together, just as a body needs to work together in its own unique parts to form the whole. So we, as the body of Christ, have our unique parts with our unique roles that work together as a whole.

Now, as we talk this through and look at it, some really rich insights here, this notion of Jesus proclaiming his fulfillment of a mighty prophecy, Ezra and Nehemiah instructing and teaching the people, recalling to them God's law, God's precepts. We picked that up in the psalm, how these very ordinances of the Lord bring joy to the heart. And then finally, continuing from last week, we have St. Paul using now the example of a body to show the interconnectedness that through uniqueness we are united into something greater, something that as a unity is precious, is powerful, and is blessed by God.

“Perhaps for our reflection today, how is God calling us to remember who we are? How is God calling us to consider how we might help to alleviate the sufferings of those in need around us, kind of in keeping with the gospel passage? Or perhaps to recognize what unique gift am I called to share, to use, that I can't just be an island unto myself, but rather in light of the second reading, I'm part of the body of Christ.

So how do I offer my gifts and talents to help the people around me, those closest to me, those in the community, and perhaps those in other parts of the world? It's good food for thought. May God help us, and may God bless us all.

SOURCE: Study, Pray, Serve