Breaking Open the Word
By James Cavanagh
Feb. 14: Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Scripture readings: (Click here to read)
- Jeremiah 17:5-8
- Psalm 1:1-6
- 1 Corinthians 15:12, 16-20
- Luke 6:17, 20-26
Overview: The readings this week focus on trust. We know the right answer: trust God. But do our actions and attitudes reflect that? The reading from Jeremiah is divided into two parts. The first part says that those who trust in human power are cursed, while the second part says that those who trust in the Lord are blessed. But what do these words, “cursed” and “blessed,” mean? Jeremiah uses vivid picture-language to convey important ideas. Thus the one who is cursed is like “a barren bush in the desert” while the blessed person is like “a tree planted beside a flowing stream.” The heart of the Gospel is the proclamation that Christ was raised bodily from the dead. In the second reading Paul reproaches the Corinthians for their inconsistency. They accepted Christ’s resurrection, but doubted that all the dead will one day rise again. Christ’s resurrection is not an isolated event, Paul explains, but is the first instance of the new creation that awaits everyone. We don’t just hope that we’ll go heaven when we die, but that one day the whole creation, including our bodily existence will be “raised up.” The Gospel reading follows the same line of thought as our first reading and psalm. Notice that Jesus addresses not the crowds, as in the Sermon on the Mount, but rather the disciples in the presence of the crowds. The ethical teachings of Christ stand in marked contrast to the moral values of the secular world. They bear witness to a higher standard that ennobles the human person and enriches the culture.
Key verse: “Blessed is the one who trusts in the LORD” (Jer 17:7).
Catechism of the Catholic Church: “Faith is first of all a personal adherence of man to God. At the same time, and inseparably, it is a free assent to the whole truth that God has revealed. As personal adherence to God and assent to his truth, Christian faith differs from our faith in any human person. It is right and just to entrust oneself wholly to God and to believe absolutely what he says. It would be futile and false to place such faith in a creature” (No. 150).
Pope Benedict XVI: “We must rediscover the courage of non-conformism in the face of the trends of the affluent world. Instead of following the spirit of the times, we ourselves must witness that spirit of nonconformity with evangelical seriousness. As Christians, we cannot live just like everybody else” (The Ratzinger Report).
Life Application: The highest moral value in Christianity is charity, which is based on trust. The love of God and the love of neighbor “made in the image and likeness of God” informs all our ethical decisions, or should. Christian charity extends to the unborn child, the foreigner, the enemy, the elderly, the deformed and deficient. Such values set us apart from the rest of world.
