Reading
I
Zec
12:10-11; 13:1
Thus says the LORD:
I will pour out on the house of David
and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem
a spirit of grace and petition;
and they shall look on him whom they have pierced,
and they shall mourn for him as one mourns for an only son,
and they shall grieve over him as one grieves over a firstborn.
On that day the mourning in
as the mourning of Hadadrimmon in the plain of Megiddo.
On that day there shall be open to the house of David
and to the inhabitants of
a fountain to purify from sin and uncleanness.
Responsorial
Psalm
Ps 63:2, 3-4,
5-6, 8-9
R. (2b) My soul is thirsting for you, O Lord my God.
O God, you are my God whom I seek;
for you my flesh pines and my soul thirsts
like the earth, parched, lifeless and without water.
R. My soul is thirsting for you, O Lord my God.
Thus have I gazed toward you in the sanctuary
to see your power and your glory,
for your kindness is a greater good than life;
my lips shall glorify you.
R. My soul is thirsting for you, O Lord my God.
Thus will I bless you while I live;
lifting up my hands, I will call upon your name.
As with the riches of a banquet shall my soul be satisfied,
and with exultant lips my mouth shall praise you.
R. My soul is thirsting for you, O Lord my God.
You are my help,
and in the shadow of your wings I shout for joy.
My soul clings fast to you;
your right hand upholds me.
R. My soul is thirsting for you, O Lord my God.
Gal
3:26-29
Brothers and sisters:
Through faith you are all children of God in Christ Jesus.
For all of you who were baptized into Christ
have clothed yourselves with Christ.
There is neither Jew nor Greek,
there is neither slave nor free person,
there is not male and female;
for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
And if you belong to Christ,
then you are Abraham's descendant,
heirs according to the promise.
Gospel
Lk 9:18-24
Once when Jesus was praying in solitude,
and the disciples were with him,
he asked them, "Who do the crowds say that I am?"
They said in reply, "John the Baptist;
others, Elijah;
still others, 'One of the ancient prophets has arisen.'"
Then he said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"
Peter said in reply, "The Christ of God."
He rebuked them
and directed them not to tell this to anyone.
He said, "The Son of Man must suffer greatly
and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes,
and be killed and on the third day be raised."
Then he said to all,
"If anyone wishes to come after me, he must deny himself
and take up his cross daily and follow me.
For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it,
but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it."
In the First Reading, God’s
pouring out of a spirit of grace and petition means that he will be the one who
will bring about a change in them that will give them a new attitude. The people
must have repentance for some apparent wrong they have committed. They must turn
to God to implore his favor. Looking upon the one they have pierced and mourning
alludes to someone they have caused harm, but the verse is too vague to permit
identification. Many scholars have pointed out the similarities between these
verses and those found in Isaiah’s Suffering Servant. The name Hadad-rimmon
refers to the storm-god Hadad and the fountain symbolizes
In the Second Reading, Paul describes the ontological reality of Baptism: the baptized become a new creation through Christ Jesus (en Christō). The Galatians have apparently experienced this new reality that Paul speaks of. To put on Christ should not be taken to mean the same as putting on a garment. Rather it is to be taken to mean having Christ’s disposition (his heart); in essence it is to live as Christ.
Today’s Gospel presents several important points:
1. Revelation of Jesus’ true identity
2. Peter’s role as leader
3. First prediction of the passion
4. Taking up the cross
The fact that Jesus is immersed in silent prayer is a sign
that a very decisive moment is about to arrive. He asks his followers a pivotal
question: “Who do the crowds say that I am?” It’s obvious that most
of the followers did not know since their answers are only a repetition of
public opinion: “John the Baptist”, “Elijah”, “some ancient prophet
that has arisen”. Jesus then asks them to formulate their own conclusion
about who he is. Only Peter answers and in doing so is speaking for the others
and thus points to the future when he will lead the Church. Even though Peter
answers correctly, he and the others are admonished to keep silent. They have
not yet understood the true meaning of Messiah. Jesus is not a patriotic zealot
savior who will release
“If anyone wishes to come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me”. These words are a clear contradiction to the philosophy of modern man. Every day, our secular society uses eye-catching images and convincing words to sell us the idea that “it’s all about me” – what I want, what I need, what will make me happy, what I deserve, etc. Our modern society is trying to convince us that Jesus’ words are nothing more than an unattainable ideal. Jesus preaches what he himself put in practice every day of his life, that what is most important is to live for others – to give our self even onto death if necessary for the sake of another.
There is no doubt that most of us are willing to give ourselves entirely for those we love: our spouse, children, parents, a close friend. But do we give ourselves for others? For those we dislike? For those that do us harm or destroy our reputation? Jesus’ words are clear, we must deny ourselves and this means to live for others despite our wants and needs. It means to put others first even if this means losing our own life. To deny ourselves is to give undivided attention to those who speak to us even if we disagree with what they are saying. It means to stop what we are doing in order to do for others and these others are our loved ones (for sure) but also those whom we can gain nothing from, those who cannot or will not repay us. There is no more difficult cross than this, to live for others.
New American Bible; United States Conference of Catholic Bishops; Mason, R., “The Books of Haggai, Zehcariah and Malachi”; Barrett, C. K., “Freedom and Obligation: A Study of the Epistle to the Galatians”; Bruce, F. F., “The Epistle to the Galatians”; Ebeling, G., “The Truth of the Gospel: An Exposition of Galatians”; Fitzmyer, J. A., “TheGospel According to Luke”; LaVerdiere, E., “Luke”; Maddox, R., “The Purpose of Luke-Acts”; Brown, Raymond E., S.S., “Introduction to the New Testament”; Brown, Fitzmyer, and Murphy (ed.) “The New Jerome Biblical Commentary".
Deacon Lazaro J. Ulloa