Discerning the will of God

Prepare for Mass - 22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time
After Simon Peter’s confession to Jesus, – “You are the Christ” – and Jesus entrusting the keys of the kingdom of heaven and the authority that goes along with it to Peter, Jesus began to tell his disciples of his mission.  He told them he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things, be killed, and on the third day be raised.

Peter took offense to this and rebuked Jesus.  He said, “this shall never happen to you.”  By saying this, Peter was putting his belief of what should happen first instead of submitting to the will of God.  Jesus response to Peter was “get behind me Satan”.

Paul tells us in Romans 12:2 to not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may prove what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

In Jeremiah 20:7-9, the prophet says in prayer that the word of the Lord has become a reproach and a derision.  It is at first a complaint but then an acknowledgement that a fire burns from within when he is not mindful of the Lord.

The readings all relate to discerning God’s will and to seek his will and having the humility to submit to the will of God rather than our own will.

Acknowledging God as God (Matthew 16,21-27)

Father Ted Tyler from Australia reflects on the Gospel of the 22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time Year A

Christ by his commitment to his passion and death shows us what it is to acknowledge God as God (Twenty second Sunday in Ordinary Time A, 08, Matthew 16, 21-27)

More from Father Ted Tyler on his website at www.catholic-church.org/ejtyler

Upon This Rock I Will Build My Church

Prepare for Mass – 21st Sunday in Ordinary Time – Today’s Readings

God will never leave his Church abandoned.  The Church, the assembly of the People of God, is drawn together and is given life by the Word of God.  Since this is true, we can also say that the Church herself becomes Christ’s Body.

Catechism paragraph 752
In Christian usage, the word “church” designates the liturgical assembly (Cf. 1 Cor. 11:18; 14:19, 28, 34, 35), but also the local community (Cf. 1 Cor 1:2; 16:1) or the whole universal community of believers (Cf. 1 Cor 15:9; Gal 1:13; Phil 3:6). These three meanings are inseparable. “The Church” is the People that God gathers in the whole world. She exists in local communities and is made real as a liturgical, above all a Eucharistic, assembly. She draws her life from the word and the Body of Christ and so herself becomes Christ’s Body.

Christ himself, the eternal high priest, according to the order of Melchizedek fulfilled what the priesthood represented in the Old Covenent. Sacrifice of animals was fulfilled by the holy and perfect sacrifice where Jesus becomes present to us in his Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity during each and every Mass. It is through this sacrifice and by the primacy that he gave to St. Peter that Christ keeps his promise never to abandon his Church.

Keys. Christ gave Peter keys to St Peter entrusting him and confirming him as shepherd of the whole Church. This is an office which continues unbroken and will continue unbroken until the end of time.

Catechism paragraphs 880-882
When Christ instituted the Twelve, “he constituted [them] in the form of a college or permanent assembly, at the head of which he placed Peter, chosen from among them.” Just as “by the Lord’s institution, St. Peter and the rest of the apostles constitute a single apostolic college, so in like fashion the Roman Pontiff, Peter’s successor, and the bishops, the successors of the apostles, are related with and united to one another.”

The Lord made Simon alone, whom he named Peter, the “rock” of his Church. He gave him the keys of his Church and instituted him shepherd of the whole flock. “The office of binding and loosing which was given to Peter was also assigned to the college of apostles united to its head.” This pastoral office of Peter and the other apostles belongs to the Church’s very foundation and is continued by the bishops under the primacy of the Pope.

The Pope, Bishop of Rome and Peter’s successor, “is the perpetual and visible source and foundation of the unity both of the bishops and of the whole company of the faithful.” “For the Roman Pontiff, by reason of his office as Vicar of Christ, and as pastor of the entire Church has full, supreme, and universal power over the whole Church, a power which he can always exercise unhindered.”

In the Old Testament we hear of the Lord thrusting Shebna from office and placing the key of the House of David on Eliakim’s shoulders. But, Eliakim was not the king. He was the one designated to oversee the master’s affairs. The key belongs to the King. The key belongs to Jesus’. He gave it to his deputy entrusted to oversee his affairs. We in the Church belong to the Mystical Body of Christ and show obedience to the one Christ designated to oversee his affairs. The bishops have no authority if not united with Peter’s successor who is united with Christ and guided by the Holy Spirit.

We have received the faith as a gift.  God’s plan of salvation is received through the Church.  Christ created the Church and gave her a mission and setup a variety of offices for the good of the whole.  The ones entrusted to this office are invested with a sacred power, dedicated to the interest of the body so that all who follow may attain to salvation.

Gather us in

Prepare for Mass - 20th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year A
Today’s Readings
The blessings of the covenant between God and His people are received through faith. The fulfillment of the covenant is for all of mankind.  In Is 56:1, 6-7 we read about the foreigners who join themselves to the Lord and their sacrifices are acceptable to the Lord. Psalm 67:3 says “So shall your rule be known upon the earth, your saving power among all the nations.” Paul, the Apostle of the Gentiles, said about them, “for if God did not spare the natural branches, (perhaps) he will not spare you either.”
 
Jesus has an encounter with a Canaanite women in the region of Tyre and Sidon.  This was a gentile region.  This woman, a foreigner and a woman of great faith, was appealing for Jesus to heal her daughter who was possessed by a demon.

In the exchange between Jesus and the Canaanite woman, there were three appeals made by the woman and it was after the third plea that Jesus healed her daughter after remarking on her “great faith”.  She did not give up.  She did not doubt.  She knew who she was dealing with.  She was given a test of faith and she passed with high honors.

The first test. First the Canaanite woman said, “Have pity on me, Lord, Son of David! My daughter is tormented by a demon.” (Mt 15:22) Jesus ignored her first plea. “But he did not say a word in answer to her.” (Mt 15:23)

The second test.  The woman said “Lord, help me.” (Mt 15:25) Jesus replied “it is not right to take the food of the children and throw it to the dogs.”  The woman didn’t get insulted by the fact that Jesus was referring the word “children” as the people of Israel and the word “dog” as a reference to the contempt that Jews had for the people of her lineage.

The third test. The woman replied “please, Lord, for even the dogs eat the scraps that fall from the table of their masters.” (Mt 15:27). Jesus replied “O woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you wish.” (Mt 15:28)

As we see in Mt 15:24, Jesus focused mainly on calling together the chosen people of Israel.  He appointed twelve, the number being significant to the number of tribes of Israel. He sent them to preach and gave them authority to cast out demons.  It is after His Resurrection that He tells them to go and make disciples of all nations.  The Church is the pillar and bulwark of Truth.

Catechism of the Catholic Church paragraph 171 The Church, “the pillar and bulwark of the truth”, faithfully guards “the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints”. She guards the memory of Christ’s words; it is she who from generation to generation hands on the apostles’ confession of faith. As a mother who teaches her children to speak and so to understand and communicate, the Church our Mother teaches us the language of faith in order to introduce us to the understanding and the life of faith.