XXXII
SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME - CYCLE B – NOVEMBER 8, 2015
Today in the Gospel Jesus tells us that the poor widow put
more money in the Temple’s treasury than anybody else.
FIRST READING: I
Re 17:10-16
Ø The
two books of King are the continuation of the two books of Samuel.
Ø In
the Greek translation of the Hebrew Scriptures, called the Septuaginta, and in the Latin translation called Vulgata, the books of Kings are called
III and IV of Kings, because the books of Samuel are called I and II Kings.
Ø These
books are part of what is called the Deuteronomist history, which goes from the
entrance into the promised land to the Babylonian exile (587 BC)
Ø The
Jews called these books “The former prophets”
Ø The
author of these books writes them after the return from the exile.
Ø They
have the same theology as the rest of the Deuteronomist books:
o
Monotheism. The God of Israel is the only God. Israel
acknowledges that its God is the only God because he is different, but the
other peoples have their own gods.
o
The
messianic hope, for the Southern
Kingdom we have the promises of the Emmanuel, which fulfills the promise made
to David that his dynasty will remain on the throne of Israel.
o
On the other hand the Northern Kingdom
establishes its legitimacy in their condition as heirs of Jacob and
Joseph.
o
The exile
is seen as a punishment for their infidelity to the Covenant with Yahweh.
In this Sunday’s reading we encounter the prophet Elijah, in
what it is called the Cycle of Elijah (cc. 17-19 of
I Kings). Elijah does his prophetic ministry in the Northern Kingdom, he
denounces the unfaithfulness of the kings and of the people.
« The
country suffers a strong drought and in the book of Kings it is attributed to the
words of Elijah who asked God to stop the rain until Elijah will ask him the
contrary.
« Elijah
has asked this as a punishment for the unfaithfulness of the Kingdom of Israel
or the Northern Kingdom.
« After
Solomon’s death his kingdom was divided in two Kingdoms: Northern-Israel,
Southern- Judah.
« The
culture of those people attributed all the natural phenomena to God, they are
his weapons.
« The
scene of this Sunday first reading is situated in the context of the great
drought and the poverty which comes from it.
« Elijah
arrives to Zarephath of Phoenicia as God
had told him.
« Elijah
talks with a widow. He asks her for food and drink, the woman has only a small
amount of food for her and her son, afterwards she will wait for death to come.
« Elijah
asks her to give him food, and assures her that the little provisions she has
will last until the drought comes to an end.
« The
woman believes in the word of the man of God, and the promise becomes a
reality.
SALMO
RESPONSORIAL – Sal. 146 ALABA ALMA MÍA AL SEÑOR.
R. Praise the Lord, my soul!
The LORD keeps faith forever,
secures justice for the oppressed,
gives food to the hungry.
The LORD sets captives free
secures justice for the oppressed,
gives food to the hungry.
The LORD sets captives free
.
R. Praise the Lord, my soul!
The LORD gives sight to the blind.
The LORD raises up those who were bowed down;
the LORD loves the just.
The LORD protects strangers.
R. Praise the Lord, my soul!
The LORD gives sight to the blind.
The LORD raises up those who were bowed down;
the LORD loves the just.
The LORD protects strangers.
R. R. Praise the Lord, my soul!
The fatherless and the widow he sustains,
but the way of the wicked he thwarts.
The LORD shall reign forever;
your God, O Zion, through all generations. Alleluia.
R. Praise the Lord, my soul!
ü This psalm is a hymn to God, the creator of the universe and defender of
the poor. God
o
makes justice to the poor
o
gives food to the hungry
o
gives freedom to the captive
o
gives sight to the blind
o
raises those who are bowed down
o
loves the just and protects the foreigner
o
upholds the widow and the orphan
o
destroys the plans of the wicked.
o
God reigns, this is his way to reign.
ü We
may say that God reigns by protecting and caring, that is serving his creature
with love and tenderness.
GOSPEL Mk 12:38-44
« Jesus
begins saying that we need to be careful and do not trust those who seek honors and distinctions, making us believe that they are
superior and different from us.
« These
who ask us to honor them, instead of all of us honoring God, devour the little
that the poor have, for their own benefit.
« And
Jesus, who is observing the people who give their donation for the Temple, sees
a poor widow who comes also and deposits two coins, because she has nothing
else to give. Nobody pays attention to her donation
which is so insignificant.
« But
Jesus sees more, he sees the heart, our truth or our lie. He sees the truth of
the poor woman, her full trust in her God.
« And
Jesus considers this situation so important that he calls his disciples around
him, in the same way he did when he wanted to teach them about service. Now the
lesson will be about complete trust in God, which is the true poverty mentioned
in the first beatitude.
o
Look, he said, this widow has given more than
anyone else. We can imagine the surprise in the face of the disciples, really
our Teacher says sometimes estrange things.
o
She has given more than anyone else because she
has given the little she had for her sustenance, while the others have given
the leftovers.
« How
happy we would be if we could open up ourselves to Jesus. He invites us to be
free from how little or how much we have, and to have the freedom to share it
with others.
« Happy
are we if we learn the lesson on poverty, how free we will be!
SECOND READING : Heb 9:24-28
ü We
read again from this beautiful letter on the priesthood of Christ.
ü Christ
has entered not into a copy of the true sanctuary, like the sacred temple of
Jerusalem, but he has entered into God’s abode in heaven.
ü To
be in the presence of God to intercede for us, He is our mediator, our
redeemer.
ü He
does not have to offer sacrifices over and over again. He came at the end of
time, and he offers the sacrifice once and for all for all of us, the people
from the past, present and future.
ü The
reading ends with these words: in the same way that we die once and afterwards comes
the judgement
ü In
the same way Christ offered his life only once to take away the sins of
many=all
ü And
he will appear a second time to bring salvation to those who anxiously await
for him
ü In
the Eucharistic Celebration we proclaim his death and we await his second
coming.
And so it has happened in this
foundation, that though the Archbishop was unwilling to be concerned for this
or that, he has been, by Divine impulse,
concerned for everything, because I have never expressed a desire of mine
except when I have been asked. I think that my silence itself gave place to
them to ask me, and God put in them more desire to advance the work, more than
what I manifested, because this is the way of God in this work. I say this for
the new ones coming to us, to learn how to hope in God against all hope. Venerable Maria
Antonia París, Foundress of the Claretian Missionary Sisters, Autobiography 218.
I sometimes
ask myself, "What cause have you to be so upset? Everyone in the palace
respects you; the whole royal family appreciates you and values your presence;
Her Majesty the Queen loves you and dotes on you. Well, then, what makes you
have such violent feelings on the subject?" In truth, I have none. I can't
come up with any good reason for it. My only answer to the enigma is that the
repugnance I feel is a grace God has sent me to prevent me from becoming
attached to the prestige, honors, and riches of this world. For I can see
clearly that this constant feeling of disgust for the court and my desire to
escape from it have kept me from envy and from setting my heart on the things
the world holds dear. Saint Anthony Mary Claret, Founder of the Claretian Missionary Sisters. Autobiography 622.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
CLARET, Antonio María. Autobiografía.
PARIS, María Antonia. Autobiografía en Escritos.
Schökel, Luis Alonso, La Biblia de
nuestro Pueblo.
Sagrada Biblia. Versión oficial de la Conferencia episcopal
española.
