Sunday Readings Commentary and Reflections

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Sunday ReadingsCommentary and Reflections

• 29th Sunday in Ordinary Time A
• World Mission Sunday
• October 19, 2014
• In preparation for this Sundays Liturgy
• As aid in focusing our homilies and sharing

Prepared by Fr. Cielo R. Almazan, OFM
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1st reading Isaiah 45,1.4-6

• 1 Thus says the LORD to his anointed, Cyrus,
  whose right hand I grasp, subduing nations before
  him, and making kings run in his service, opening
  doors before him and leaving the gates unbarred
  4 For the sake of Jacob, my servant, of Israel my
  chosen one, I have called you by your name,
  giving you a title, though you knew me not. 5 I
  am the LORD and there is no other, there is no
  God besides me. It is I who arm you, though you
  know me not, 6 so that toward the rising and the
  setting of the sun men may know that there is
  none besides me. I am the LORD, there is no other.

The focus is on the call of Cyrus.
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1st reading Isaiah 45,1.4-6

• Commentary
• In v.1, God talks to Cyrus (the Great), a pagan
  king of Persia.
• The author is aware of Cyrus successful
  activities
• Subduing nations, kings (Babylon, Elam)
• Leaving doors open to the Lord
• V.4 contains the message of God to Cyrus.
• God has called him, though Cyrus was ignorant of
  him, to liberate Israel from the bondage of the
  Babylonians.
• In v.5, God introduces himself to Cyrus.
• He is the Lord and God, no other besides him. (He
  picks up Ex 20,2-3)
• It is God who makes him powerful.
• In v.6, God states his purpose for empowering
  him
• That people may realize there is no other God
  than God.

• 1 Thus says the LORD to his anointed, Cyrus,
  whose right hand I grasp, subduing nations before
  him, and making kings run in his service, opening
  doors before him and leaving the gates unbarred
  4 For the sake of Jacob, my servant, of Israel my
  chosen one, I have called you by your name,
  giving you a title, though you knew me not. 5 I
  am the LORD and there is no other, there is no
  God besides me. It is I who arm you, though you
  know me not, 6 so that toward the rising and the
  setting of the sun men may know that there is
  none besides me. I am the LORD, there is no other.

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Reflections on the 1st reading

• We, as individuals, may not know much about God,
  but he may use us, like Cyrus, to be his
  instrument in bringing peace and salvation to his
  people.
• It is God who makes us accomplish great things.
• If we feel that God is calling us to do some
  mission, we must say Yes to him. We learn more
  about him later.

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Resp. Ps 961, 3, 4-5, 7-8, 9-10

• (7b) Give the Lord glory and honor.1 Sing to the
  LORD a new songsing to the LORD, all you
  lands.3 Tell his glory among the nationsamong
  all peoples, his wondrous deeds.
• 4 For great is the LORD and highly to be
  praisedawesome is he, beyond all gods.5 For
  all the gods of the nations are things of
  nought,but the LORD made the heavens.
• 7 Give to the LORD, you families of nations,give
  to the LORD glory and praise8 give to the LORD
  the glory due his name!Bring gifts, and enter
  his courts.
• 9 Worship the LORD, in holy attiretremble
  before him, all the earth10 say among the
  nations The LORD is king,he governs the peoples
  with equity.

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Resp. Ps 961, 3, 4-5, 7-8, 9-10

• (7b) Give the Lord glory and honor.1 Sing to the
  LORD a new songsing to the LORD, all you
  lands.3 Tell his glory among the nationsamong
  all peoples, his wondrous deeds.
• 4 For great is the LORD and highly to be
  praisedawesome is he, beyond all gods.5 For
  all the gods of the nations are things of
  nought,but the LORD made the heavens.
• 7 Give to the LORD, you families of nations,give
  to the LORD glory and praise8 give to the LORD
  the glory due his name!Bring gifts, and enter
  his courts.
• 9 Worship the LORD, in holy attiretremble
  before him, all the earth10 say among the
  nations The LORD is king,he governs the peoples
  with equity.

• Commentary
• The psalm is classified as royal psalm of Yahweh
  King.
• V.1 exhorts everyone to sing to the Lord.
• V.3 exhorts everyone to proclaim Gods wonderful
  deeds to all.
• Vv.4-5 recognize the God of Israel as the
  greatest and true God. Other gods are nothing.
  They did not create anything.
• Vv.7-8 exhort all families of the earth to give
  praise, glory and gifts to God in his Temple.
• Vv.9-10 exhort that people worship God with
  proper attire (holy attire), that they acclaim
  God as King, who governs with fairness.

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Reflections on the Psalm

• We are called to give praise to God.
• We are enjoined to proclaim his greatness and
  wonderful deeds.
• We dont keep quiet about God.
• Our liturgies help us to express our praise in an
  organized manner.

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2nd reading 1 Thess 1,1-5b

• 1 Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy to the church of
  the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord
  Jesus Christ grace to you and peace. 2 We give
  thanks to God always for all of you, remembering
  you in our prayers, unceasingly 3 calling to
  mind your work of faith and labor of love and
  endurance in hope of our Lord Jesus Christ,
  before our God and Father, 4 knowing, brothers
  loved by God, how you were chosen. 5 For our
  gospel did not come to you in word alone, but
  also in power and in the holy Spirit and (with)
  much conviction. You know what sort of people we
  were (among) you for your sake.

The focus is on the church of Thessalonica.
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2nd reading 1 Thess 1,1-5b
A simple outline!

• Greetings of Paul
• 1 Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy to the church of
  the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord
  Jesus Christ grace to you and peace.
• Thanksgiving of Paul
• 2 We give thanks to God always for all of you,
  remembering you in our prayers, unceasingly 3
  calling to mind your work of faith and labor of
  love and endurance in hope of our Lord Jesus
  Christ, before our God and Father, 4 knowing,
  brothers loved by God, how you were chosen.
• The gospel preached that effected change
• 5 For our gospel did not come to you in word
  alone, but also in power and in the holy Spirit
  and (with) much conviction. You know what sort of
  people we were (among) you for your sake.

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2nd reading 1 Thess 1,1-5b

• Commentary
• In v.1, Paul, together with Silvanus (Silas), and
  Timothy send their greetings to the Christians in
  Thessalonika.
• 1 Thess is the first letter written by Paul.
• It displays his affection and concern to his
  spiritual sons and daughters, his new friends,
  the fruits of their missionary efforts.

• Greetings of Paul
• 1 Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy to the church of
  the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord
  Jesus Christ grace to you and peace.
• Thanksgiving of Paul
• 2 We give thanks to God always for all of you,
  remembering you in our prayers, unceasingly 3
  calling to mind your work of faith and labor of
  love and endurance in hope of our Lord Jesus
  Christ, before our God and Father, 4 knowing,
  brothers loved by God, how you were chosen.
• The gospel preached that effected change
• 5 For our gospel did not come to you in word
  alone, but also in power and in the holy Spirit
  and (with) much conviction. You know what sort of
  people we were (among) you for your sake.

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2nd reading 1 Thess 1,1-5b

• Greetings of Paul
• 1 Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy to the church of
  the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord
  Jesus Christ grace to you and peace.
• Thanksgiving of Paul
• 2 We give thanks to God always for all of you,
  remembering you in our prayers, unceasingly 3
  calling to mind your work of faith and labor of
  love and endurance in hope of our Lord Jesus
  Christ, before our God and Father, 4 knowing,
  brothers loved by God, how you were chosen.
• The gospel preached that effected change
• 5 For our gospel did not come to you in word
  alone, but also in power and in the holy Spirit
  and (with) much conviction. You know what sort of
  people we were (among) you for your sake.

• In vv.2-3, St. Paul is thankful to God
• for the active faith of the Thessalonians
• Their labor of love
• Their endurance in hope
• In v.4, Paul indicates how they were chosen by
  God.
• V.5 indicates how the gospel preached by Paul
  came to them
• - in word
• - in power
• - and in the holy Spirit
• V.5b indicates how well Paul and the others
  behaved for their sake, so that they would not be
  scandalized.

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Reflections on the 2nd reading

• Do we love people, whom we try to evangelize?
• Do we treat them with delicadeza or scandalize
  them?
• If we are not careful with our dealings with
  them, we cannot be missionaries.
• Like St. Paul, all missionaries, we, should leave
  pleasant memories to those who welcome our
  preaching.

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Gospel reading Matthew 22,15-21

• 15 Then the Pharisees went off and plotted how
  they might entrap him in speech. 16 They sent
  their disciples to him, with the Herodians,
  saying, "Teacher, we know that you are a truthful
  man and that you teach the way of God in
  accordance with the truth. And you are not
  concerned with anyone's opinion, for you do not
  regard a person's status. 17 Tell us, then, what
  is your opinion Is it lawful to pay the census
  tax to Caesar or not?" 18 Knowing their malice,
  Jesus said, "Why are you testing me, you
  hypocrites? 19 Show me the coin that pays the
  census tax." Then they handed him the Roman coin.
  20 He said to them, "Whose image is this and
  whose inscription?" 21 They replied, "Caesar's."
  At that he said to them, "Then repay to Caesar
  what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to
  God."

The focus is on rendering to God what belongs to
God.
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Gospel reading Matthew 22,15-21
A simple outline!

• The Malicious Scheme of the Pharisees
• 15 Then the Pharisees went off and plotted how
  they might entrap him in speech. 16 They sent
  their disciples to him, with the Herodians,
  saying, "Teacher, we know that you are a truthful
  man and that you teach the way of God in
  accordance with the truth. And you are not
  concerned with anyone's opinion, for you do not
  regard a person's status. 17 Tell us, then, what
  is your opinion Is it lawful to pay the census
  tax to Caesar or not?"
• The wise response of Jesus
• 18 Knowing their malice, Jesus said, "Why are you
  testing me, you hypocrites? 19 Show me the coin
  that pays the census tax." Then they handed him
  the Roman coin. 20 He said to them, "Whose image
  is this and whose inscription?" 21 They replied,
  "Caesar's." At that he said to them, "Then repay
  to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what
  belongs to God."

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Gospel reading Matthew 22,15-21

• The Malicious Scheme of the Pharisees
• 15 Then the Pharisees went off and plotted how
  they might entrap him in speech. 16 They sent
  their disciples to him, with the Herodians,
  saying, "Teacher, we know that you are a truthful
  man and that you teach the way of God in
  accordance with the truth. And you are not
  concerned with anyone's opinion, for you do not
  regard a person's status. 17 Tell us, then, what
  is your opinion Is it lawful to pay the census
  tax to Caesar or not?"

• Commentary
• V.15 reveals the evil intent of the Pharisees on
  Jesus.
• The Pharisees plotted to destroy him, by
  entrapping him in speech.
• V.16 reveals how they connive with the Herodians
  (followers of Herod Antipas) as accessories.
• In v.16b, they lace their evil intent with sweet
  talk.
• They enumerate the good traits of Jesus (which
  are actually true).
• The trap is in v.17. It is a question of paying,
  or not, the census tax to Caesar.

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Gospel reading Matthew 22,15-21

• In v.18, Jesus responds to their malicious
  question, by striking back, calling them
  hypocrites.
• In the first place, Jesus should not be talking
  to them.
• But in vv.19-21, he asks for a coin.
• They hand him a Roman coin with an image and
  inscription of Caesar.
• In v.21b, Jesus gives his enigmatic answer.
• They got more than what they needed to know.
• He inserted God.
• What belongs to God is Jesus. They should not
  destroy him.

• The wise response of Jesus
• 18 Knowing their malice, Jesus said, "Why are you
  testing me, you hypocrites? 19 Show me the coin
  that pays the census tax." Then they handed him
  the Roman coin. 20 He said to them, "Whose image
  is this and whose inscription?" 21 They replied,
  "Caesar's." At that he said to them, "Then repay
  to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what
  belongs to God."

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Reflections on the gospel reading

• When we approach God, we must have the proper
  motivation.
• Bad motivation does not lead us anywhere.
• In the same way, it is not right to put our
  brothers and sisters to the test (ilagay sa
  alanganin).
• We should purify our motives when dealing with
  our fellowmen.
• We better give justice to God and to our fellow
  human beings.

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Tying the 3 readings and the Psalm

• The first reading reminds us that God may use
  temporal powers to restore his people.
• The psalm celebrates Gods power and glory.
• The second reading reminds us to make good of
  what we have learned from the gospel.
• The gospel reminds us to give God what is his.

We must be open to the new missionaries.
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How to develop your homily / sharing

• We, Christians, must realize that God can use
  (choose, anoint, send) any person to touch us.
• That anointed person may be someone, who, we
  have met for the first time, new, ignorant, does
  not know theology very well, or, may be someone
  who is powerful and talented.
• Like what God did to Cyrus in the first reading,
  God sends him to liberate Israel from the
  Babylonians.

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• In the second reading, Paul and company became
  Gods instruments of spreading the gospel.
• They were successful evangelizers (missionaries),
  though nobody trained them formally.
• They might be neophyte missionaries, yet, they
  were able to deliver the message of the gospel.
• They were happy to hear from their converts of
  their faithfulness to the gospel and to Jesus.
• Their steadfast faith built the missionaries
  self-confidence and gave them more courage to do
  more.

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• The gospel reading, teaches that we must approach
  God with a pure heart and mind.
• The Sadducees approached Jesus with malice (with
  bad intention).
• They did not get what they want. Their plans were
  foiled and they were put to shame, by being
  reminded that they should render to God what is
  Gods.

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• Jesus is Gods instrument (missionary par
  excellence) in saving his people.
• Our mission is to teach people restore all things
  back to God, and not appropriate anything as
  their own and to accept Jesus.

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• In our communities, we have the tendency to deny
  God of his rights.
• This is manifested when we drive away someone who
  is new, who might be sent by God.
• Usually, members of a cliché (group, club,
  barkada) plot against a newcomer who disturbs us,
  because of his/her better ideas and ways.

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• We better not continue with our evil schemes.
• God will put us to shame.
• Everyone should be allowed to do his mission.
• As a church, we must do our mission.
• We cannot do our mission if we are busy
  persecuting one another.

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• The eucharist is the sacrament in which we
  recognize that Jesus is the anointed one of God,
  the one sent by God.
• When we receive the eucharist, we render to God
  what is Gods.
• With the eucharist, God opens to us a lot of
  possibilities in which he accomplishes his will
  for us.
• The eucharist strengthens us in our mission.

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Our Context of Sin and Grace

• Insecurity
• Plotters, barkada, syndicate
• Conspiracy
• Controlling personality
• Bad influence
• Back stabbing
• Character assassination
• Bad intention

• Missionaries, local and foreign
• Open to everyone
• Respecting Gods rights
• Recognizing talents of each one
• Non appropriation of place, time and positions
• Detachment from things

The End
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Suggested Songs

• Go Tell Everyone
• Its Time to Prepare
• http//www.youtube.com/watch?vSIandBaBMck