Saturday September 25

TWENTY-FIFTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME

 I WILL LIVE AMONG YOU

 

Introduction

      The prophet Zechariah gives us today a vision of joy, hope and universalism. The rebuilding of the Temple and of Jerusalem after the exile assures that God lives in the midst of his people and that many nations will find God there, among his people. They must be an open people, without walls, for God himself will protect them.

       “They did not understand it at all,” says the gospel about the disciples, when Jesus told them about his coming passion. Jesus speaks of himself as the “Son of Man,” the mysterious person of heavenly origin predicted by Daniel. “He must be delivered up,” for he is also the Suffering Servant of the songs of Second Isaiah. Indeed, all this, about one who comes from God, is a servant, and has to suffer and die, is hard to reconcile and accept, at least from the human viewpoint. And to be told to follow his example is difficult to take too.

 

Opening Prayer

Lord our God,
you chose for your new people
no one else than the people
set free by the blood of your Son.
How can we be your sign among the nations
unless you are alive in our midst
in our welcome to all, our peace,
our spirit of service, our love without boundaries?
Make us capable of all these, Lord,
by the saving power of your Son,
Jesus Christ our Lord.

 

Reading 1: Zec 2:5-9, 14-15a

I, Zechariah, raised my eyes and looked:
there was a man with a measuring line in his hand.
I asked, “Where are you going?”
He answered, “To measure Jerusalem,
to see how great is its width and how great its length.”

Then the angel who spoke with me advanced,
and another angel came out to meet him and said to him,
“Run, tell this to that young man:
People will live in Jerusalem as though in open country,
because of the multitude of men and beasts in her midst.
But I will be for her an encircling wall of fire, says the LORD,
and I will be the glory in her midst.”

Sing and rejoice, O daughter Zion!
See, I am coming to dwell among you, says the LORD.
Many nations shall join themselves to the LORD on that day,
and they shall be his people and he will dwell among you.

 

Responsorial Psalm: Jeremiah 31:10, 11-12ab, 13

(see 10d) The Lord will guard us as a shepherd guards his flock.
Hear the word of the LORD, O nations,
proclaim it on distant isles, and say:
He who scattered Israel, now gathers them together,
he guards them as a shepherd guards his flock.
R. The Lord will guard us as a shepherd guards his flock.
The LORD shall ransom Jacob,
he shall redeem him from the hand of his conqueror.
Shouting, they shall mount the heights of Zion,
they shall come streaming to the LORD’s blessings.
R. The Lord will guard us as a shepherd guards his flock.
Then the virgins shall make merry and dance,
and young men and old as well.
I will turn their mourning into joy,
I will console and gladden them after their sorrows.
R. The Lord will guard us as a shepherd guards his flock.

 

Alleluia: 2 Tm 1:10

Alleluia, alleluia.
Our Savior Jesus Christ destroyed death
and brought life to light through the Gospel.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

 

Gospel: Lk 9:43b-45

While they were all amazed at his every deed,
Jesus said to his disciples,
“Pay attention to what I am telling you.
The Son of Man is to be handed over to men.”
But they did not understand this saying;
its meaning was hidden from them
so that they should not understand it,
and they were afraid to ask him about this saying.

 

Intercessions

–   That we may be a Church without discrimination, where everyone is welcome, we pray:

–   That with God, who lets the sun shine on all, we may learn to see the good there is in people and refuse to condemn, we pray:

–   That our communities may be kind and hospitable to all the people whom God has placed on our way, we pray:

 

Prayer over the Gifts

God our Father,
you invite us to sit at the table
of Jesus Christ your Son.
Make it a long table, Lord,
that spans the earth,
and at which can sit down and take place
all people willing to come
and eager to be nourished
with the word and the body
of Jesus Christ our Lord.

 

Prayer after Communion

God our Father,
through this meal of the eucharist
you have bound us more closely
to Jesus your Son and to one another.
Make it obvious for all to see
that he is alive among us,
not because we are better
but because he is our strength and hope.
By his power we try,
awkwardly and not always too well,
to love one another as he has loved us,
for he is our Lord for ever.

 

Blessing

An open people is a people where God is welcome and can welcome all his sons and daughters from the whole wide world. There is room there for his kingdom to feel at home and grow. May we be such a people, with the blessing of almighty God, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

 

Commentary

The special concern of Yahweh for Jerusalem appears again in the prophet Zechariah. It is not difficult for us to understand the deep affection that the city holds for the fervent Jew in our times. Here the prophet predicts a peaceful return for its people who will dwell peacefully in its midst; God himself will be its pro­tective wall of fire. The prophet almost cries in seeing that, even though the city’s inhabitants were repeatedly unfaithful, God’s fidelity remained.

Once again Jesus in today’s Gospel speaks of his impending betrayal. The disciples, who by this time have come to recognize him as the Messiah, cannot accept the idea of a suffering Messiah. Indeed, at that time its meaning was hidden from them. Only as events unfolded, and with the Spirit’s help, would they come to a better understanding.

Jerusalem was rebuilt because of God’s fidelity. Jesus was handed over to death because of God’s redemptive love. There are many events in our fives today that remain incomprehensible. Yet we remain convinced that their sense will eventually become clear. Unlike some of the Mesopotamian gods, ours is not a God of caprice or deception. But his ways are not our ways. As we look back on our long religious history, we are in a better position to evaluate events. God is ultimately truth and love. Even with our questions, of that we can be assured.

 

Points to Ponder

God’s love of Jerusalem

The disciples’ incomprehension

Making sense of events in faith.