It-Tlettax-il
Ħadd taż-Żmien ta’ Matul is-Sena
Reading 1 2 KINGS 4:8-11, 14-16A
One day Elisha came to Shunem, where
there was a woman of influence, who urged him to dine with her. Afterward,
whenever he passed by, he used to stop there to dine. So, she said to her
husband, “I know that Elisha is a holy man of God. Since he visits us often,
let us arrange a little room on the roof and furnish it for him with a bed,
table, chair, and lamp, so that when he comes to us he can stay there.”
Sometime later Elisha arrived and stayed in the room overnight. Later Elisha
asked, “Can something be done for her?” His servant Gehazi answered, “Yes! She
has no son, and her husband is getting on in years.” Elisha said, “Call her.”
When the woman had been called and stood at the door, Elisha promised, “This
time next year you will be fondling a baby son.”
Qari I mit-Tieni Ktieb tas-Slaten 4, 8-11.14-16a
Ġurnata waħda Eliżew kien għaddej minn Sunem. Hawn kienet toqgħod mara għanja, u din ġagħlitu joqgħod jiekol għandha; u kull meta kien jgħaddi minn hemm kien idur għal għandha biex jiekol hemm. U hi qalet lil żewġha: “Ara, jien żgura li dan ir-raġel, li jgħaddi għandna sikwit, hu raġel qaddis ta’ Alla. Ħa ntellgħulu għorfa fuq is-setaħ, u nqegħdulu fiha sodda, mejda, siġġu u mnara, u meta jgħaddi għandna, ikun jista’ jidħol fiha”. U ġurnata waħda wasal hemm, u daħal fl-għorfa, u raqad hemm. U Eliżew qal lil Ġeħażi, il-qaddej tiegħu: “X’nistgħu nagħmlulha lil din il-mara?”. U Ġeħażi wieġbu: “Jaħasra, ma għandhiex tfal, u żewġha xiħ!”. U wieġbu: “Sejħilha”. U dak sejħilha u ġiet fil-bieb. U Eliżew qalilha: “Bħal dan iż-żmien sena, int tkun tħaddan iben”. Il-Kelma tal-Mulej
Responsorial
Psalm PSALM 89:2-3, 16-17, 18-19
The promises of the LORD I will sing forever, through all generations my mouth shall proclaim your faithfulness.For you have said, “My kindness is established forever;” in heaven you have confirmed your faithfulness. R. For ever I will sing the goodness of the Lord.
Blessed the people who know the joyful shout; in the light of your countenance, O LORD, they walk. At your name they rejoice all the day, and through your justice they are exalted. R. For ever I will sing the goodness of the Lord
You are the splendour of their
strength, and by your favour our horn is
exalted. For to the LORD belongs our shield, and the Holy One of Israel, our king. R. For ever I will sing the goodness
of the Lord.
Salm Responsorjali Salm 88 (89), 2-3.16-17.18-19
R/. (2a): It-tjieba tal-Mulej irrid dejjem ngħanni
It-tjieba tal-Mulej irrid dejjem ngħanni; f’kull żmien ixandar fommi l-fedeltà tiegħek. Għax jien għedt: “Tjubitek tibqa’ sħiħa għal dejjem;bħas-smewwiet int wettaqt il-fedeltà tiegħek”. R/.
Hieni l-poplu li jaf jgħajjat
bil-ferħ, li jimxi, Mulej, fid-dawl ta’ wiċċek.B’ismek jithennew il-jum kollu, u bil-ġustizzja tiegħek jifirħu. R/.
Għax inti l-foħrija tal-qawwa tagħhom; għal tjubitek nerfgħu rasna fl-għoli. Għax il-Mulej it-tarka tagħna, il-Qaddis ta’ Iżrael is-sultan tagħna. R/.
Reading 2 ROMANS 6:3-4, 8-11
Brothers and sisters: Are you unaware that we who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were indeed buried with him through baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might live in newness of life. If, then, we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him. We know that Christ, raised from the dead, dies no more; death no longer has power over him. As to his death, he died to sin once and for all; as to his life, he lives for God. Consequently, you too must think of yourselves as dead to sin and living for God in Christ Jesus.
Qari II mill-Ittra lir-Rumani 6, 3-4.8-11
Ħuti, ma tafux li aħna lkoll li tgħammidna fi Kristu Ġesù, tgħammidna fil-mewt tiegħu? Indfinna miegħu fil-mewt permezz tal-magħmudija sabiex kif Kristu kien imqajjem mill-imwiet permezz tal-qawwa glorjuża tal-Missier, hekk aħna ngħixu ħajja ġdida. Jekk aħna mitna ma’ Kristu, nemmnu wkoll li għad ngħixu ma’ Kristu. Nafu li Kristu qam mill-imwiet u ma jmutx aktar; il-mewt ma għadhiex taħkem fuqu. Hu li miet, miet darba għal dejjem għad-dnub; u issa li qiegħed jgħix, qiegħed jgħix għal Alla. Hekk ukoll intom għandkom tqisu lilkom infuskom mejtin għad-dnub, iżda ħajjin għal Alla fi Kristu Ġesù. Il-Kelma tal-Mulej
Gospel MATTHEW 10:37-42
Jesus said to his apostles: “Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; and whoever does not take up his cross and follow after me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. "Whoever receives you receives me, and whoever receives me receives the one who sent me. Whoever receives a prophet because he is a prophet will receive a prophet’s reward, and whoever receives a righteous man because he is a righteous man will receive a righteous man’s reward. And whoever gives only a cup of cold water to one of these little ones to drink because the little one is a disciple— amen, I say to you, he will surely not lose his reward.”
Evanġelju Qari skond San Mattew 10, 37-42
F’dak iż-żmien, Ġesù qal lill-appostli tiegħu: “Min iħobb lil missieru jew lil ommu iżjed minni ma jistħoqqlux li jkun miegħi; min iħobb lil ibnu jew lil bintu iżjed minni ma jistħoqqlux li jkun tiegħi. U min ma jerfax salibu u jimxi warajja ma jistħoqqlux li jkun miegħi. Min isib lil ħajtu, jitlifha; u min jitlef lil ħajtu minħabba fija jsibha. Min jilqa’ lilkom jilqa’ lili, u min jilqa’ lili jkun jilqa’ lil dak li bagħatni. Min jilqa’ profeta għax hu profeta, ħlas ta’ profeta jieħu; u min jilqa’ bniedem ġust għax hu ġust, ħlas ta’ wieħed ġust jieħu. U kull min jagħti mqar tazza ilma frisk lil xi ħadd minn dawn l-iżgħar għax hu dixxiplu, tassew ngħidilkom li ma jitlifx il-ħlas tiegħu”. Il-Kelma tal-Mulej
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A reflection by Fr. Raniero Cantalamessa, OFMCap, Pontifical Household Preacher
When Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI's book "Jesus of Nazareth" appeared some years ago I thought that I would take account of the Pope's reflections in my commentary on some of the next Sunday Gospels. First of all, I'd like to remark on the content and purpose of the book. It treats of Jesus in the period from his baptism in the Jordan to the moment of his transfiguration, that is, from the beginning of his public ministry almost to its epilogue.
The Pope says that if God gives him sufficient strength and time to write it, a second volume will deal with the accounts of Jesus' death and resurrection along with the infancy narratives. These were not treated in the first volume.
The book presupposes historical-critical exegesis and uses its findings, but desires to go beyond this method, aiming at a properly theological interpretation, that is, one that is global, not narrow, and that takes seriously the witness of the Gospels and Scriptures as books inspired by God.
The purpose of the book is to show that the figure of Jesus that is arrived at in this way is "much more logical and, from the historical point of view, also more understandable than the reconstructions that we have seen in the last decades. I hold," the Pope adds, "that precisely this Jesus -- that of the Gospels -- is a historically sensible and convincing figure."
It is quite significant that the Pope's choice to attend to the Jesus of the Gospels finds a confirmation in the more recent and authoritative orientation of the same historical-critical approach, in, for example, the Scottish exegete James Dunn's monumental work "Christianity in the Making."
According to Dunn, "the synoptic Gospels bear testimony to a pattern and technique of oral transmission which has ensured a greater stability and continuity in the Jesus tradition that has thus far been generally appreciated."
But let us come to the Gospel reading for the 13th Sunday in Ordinary Time. It recounts three different meetings Jesus had on the same journey. We will focus on one of these meetings. "And to another Jesus said, 'Follow me.' But he replied, 'Lord, let me go first and bury my father.' But Jesus answered him, 'Let the dead bury their dead. But you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.'"
In his book, the Pope comments on the theme of family relations alluded to in the above Gospel passage in dialogue with the Jewish-American Rabbi Jacob Neusner. In his book "A Rabbi Talks with Jesus," Rabbi Neusner imagines himself as present in the crowds when Jesus speaks.
Rabbi Neusner explains why, despite his great admiration for the "Rabbi of Nazareth," he would not have been able to become his disciple. One of the reasons for this is Jesus' position on family relations. Rabbi Neusner says that on many occasions Jesus seems to invite transgression of the fourth commandment, which says that we must honour our father and mother. Jesus asks someone, as we just heard, to forget about burying his own father and elsewhere he says that whoever loves father and mother more than him is not worthy of him.
Often the response to these objections is to cite other words of Jesus that strongly affirm the permanent validity of family bonds: the indissolubility of marriage, the duty to help one's father and mother.
In his book, however, the Pope offers a more profound and illuminating answer to this objection, an objection that is not only Rabbi Neusner's, but also that of many Christian readers of the Gospel. He takes his point of departure from something else Jesus says. "Who is my mother? Who are my brothers? ... Whoever does the will of my Father who is in heaven is my brother, sister, and mother" (Matthew 12:48-50).
Jesus does not thereby abolish the natural family, but reveals a new family in which God is father, and men and women are all brothers and sisters thanks to a common faith in him, the Christ. Rabbi Neusner asks whether he has a right to do this. This spiritual family already existed: It was the people of Israel, united by observance of the Torah, that is, the Mosaic law.
A son was only permitted to leave his father's house to study the Torah. But Jesus does not say, "Whoever loves father or mother more than the Torah is not worthy of the Torah." He says, "Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me." He puts himself in the place of the Torah and this can only be done by someone who is greater than the Torah and greater than Moses, who promulgated it.
Benedict XVI thinks that the rabbi is right to conclude: "Only God can demand of me what Jesus asks." The Pope notes that the discussion about Jesus and family relations -- like that about Jesus and observance of the Sabbath -- thus brings us to the true heart of the matter, which is to know who Jesus is. If a Christian does not believe that Jesus acts with the authority itself of God and is himself God, then Rabbi Neusner, who refuses to follow Jesus, has a more coherent position than that particular Christian does. One cannot accept Jesus' teaching if one does not accept his person.
Let us take some
practical instruction from this discussion. The "family of God,"
which is the Church, not only is not against the natural family, but is its
guarantee and promoter. We see it today. It is a shame that some divergences of
opinion in our society on questions linked to marriage and the family impede
many from recognizing the providential work of the Church on behalf of the
family. She is often without support in this decisive battle for the future of
humanity.
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