Twenty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 128
Reading 1
Thus says the LORD:
Say to those whose hearts are frightened:
Be strong, fear not!
Here is your God,
he comes with vindication;
with divine recompense
he comes to save you.
Then will the eyes of the blind be opened,
the ears of the deaf be cleared;
then will the lame leap like a stag,
then the tongue of the mute will sing.
Streams will burst forth in the desert,
and rivers in the steppe.
The burning sands will become pools,
and the thirsty ground, springs of water.
Responsorial Psalm
R. (1b) Praise the Lord, my soul!
or:
R. Alleluia.
The God of Jacob keeps faith forever,
secures justice for the oppressed,
gives food to the hungry.
The LORD sets captives free.
R. Praise the Lord, my soul!
or:
R. Alleluia.
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!
or:
R. Alleluia.
The fatherless and the widow the LORD 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!
or:
R. Alleluia.
Reading 2
My brothers and sisters,
show no partiality
as you adhere to the faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ.
For if a man with gold rings and fine clothes
comes into your assembly,
and a poor person in shabby clothes also comes in,
and you pay attention to the one wearing the fine clothes
and say, “Sit here, please, ”
while you say to the poor one, “Stand there, ” or “Sit at my feet, ”
have you not made distinctions among yourselves
and become judges with evil designs?
Listen, my beloved brothers and sisters.
Did not God choose those who are poor in the world
to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom
that he promised to those who love him?
Alleluia
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Jesus proclaimed the Gospel of the kingdom
and cured every disease among the people.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
Again Jesus left the
district of Tyre
and went by way of Sidon to the Sea of Galilee,
into the district of the Decapolis.
And people brought to him a deaf man who had a speech impediment
and begged him to lay his hand on him.
He took him off by himself away from the crowd.
He put his finger into the man’s ears
and, spitting, touched his tongue;
then he looked up to heaven and groaned, and said to him,
“Ephphatha!”— that is, “Be opened!” —
And immediately the man’s ears were opened,
his speech impediment was removed,
and he spoke plainly.
He ordered them not to tell anyone.
But the more he ordered them not to,
the more they proclaimed it.
They were exceedingly astonished and they said,
“He has done all things well.
He makes the deaf hear and the mute speak.”
MY BROTHERS AND SISTERS,
Today’s Scripture Reading leaves no doubt what a right relationship with Jesus Christ will bring us. Through the prophet Isaiah, there is a straightforward vision and a set of promises that cannot be broken. The word “vindication” means, “the action of clearing someone of blame or suspicion.” It is through God that these things are washed away, and we are left with a new beginning, a clean slate if you will. That is what God promises: forgiveness and a life free from the trappings of sin and anxiety. It is through God that we can be raised above the brokenness of this world and we can be raised up as a new creation. This is where the term “Born again,” comes from.
Jesus said, “ No one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and spirit.”
This is reminder of our baptism and Confirmation and what it does for us. Through the last couple of weeks, we were concentrating on the Eucharist and how it is a central part of our faith. Now we move forward with a vision of the other two Sacraments of Initiation in the Church. All three together offer a powerful counterbalance to the evils of the world. It is through these sacraments that we become renewed and free from the trappings of sin. Recognizing their power brings us closer to God and gives us an understanding of just how powerful God is: He offers us forgiveness and redemption and offers us instruction to achieve these things. We are never alone when it comes to our God. God goes as far as to tell us not to fear anything, for God is before us. There is no mediocracy with God. The vision of His greatness put forth through the Prophet Isaiah leaves no doubt to the greatness of God. He comes forward curing the blind and deaf, bring forth water from the desert. Fire will be quenched much like our flaming passions that we found ourselves immersed in before we found God. All these promises are for our benefit. They do not have to be earned but are offered when we let Gods into our hearts.
Because salvation is freely given and not earned by us, the playing field is leveled. A person’s status is too often judged in material terms: a person’s success is based upon their wealth instead of who they are as a human being. This then adds to the decline of morality and a loss of virtue. A person’s shortcomings can easily be overlooked as long as their power of wealth stays intact. The Christian Way goes directly against all of these things. In fact, the poor are elevated to a higher positing in the eyes of Jesus Christ. It is through the poor that the Kingdom of God is realized. Why? It is because the poor suffer in the world arguably in reaction to situations beyond their control. These situations are created by those who possess wealth and power. These people have the power to stop the suffering, but choose not to, for the suffering inflicted on other people enforces their status and position. There is no enforcement necessary with God. We all are equal in the eyes of God. We cannot judge our fellow brothers and sisters. Instead, we accept them as who they are and, through wisdom and chastisement, we help to mold them and ourselves into new creations through Jesus Christ. We all come forward to Jesus Christ with one request: to be loved and forgiven. Just as Jesus Christ died for all of us, then all those coming forward receiving forgiveness are equal in God’s eyes.
In the Gospel Reading today, Jesus reveals He is the fulfillment of the prophecy of Isaiah.. It is through Him we can receive healing, comfort, and forgiveness. He becomes a weapon of goodness in this life which is many times filled with evil. Nothing can stand up against Him, thus nothing can stand up against us. The reading is also a reminder that it is through Jesus Christ that our eyes and ears are open to a new reality: one filled with honesty., joy, and promise. As long as we keep ourselves united with Jesus Christ, that our eyes will remain open, along with our eyes and heart.
Deacon Tom
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