First Reading (Numbers 21: 4-9)
With their patience worn out by the journey, the people complained against God and Moses, "Why have you brought us up from Egypt to die in this desert, where there is no food or water? We are disgusted with this wretched food!" In punishment the Lord sent among the people saraph serpents, which bit the people so that many of them died. Then the people came to Moses and said, "We have sinned in complaining against the Lord and you. Pray the Lord to take the serpents from us." So Moses prayed for the people, and the Lord said to Moses, "Make a saraph and mount it on a pole, and if any who have been bitten look at it, they will live." Moses accordingly made a bronze serpent and mounted it on a pole, and whenever anyone who had been bitten by a serpent looked at the bronze serpent, he lived.
Responsorial Psalm (Psalm 78: 1-2, 34-38)
Refrain: Do not forget the works of the Lord.
1) Hearken, my people, to my teaching; incline your ears to the words of my mouth.
I will open my mouth in a parable, I will utter mysteries from of old. (Refrain)
2) Do not forget the works of the Lord! While he slew them they sought him and inquired after God again,
Remembering that God was their rock and the Most High God, their redeemer. (Refrain)
3) But they flattered him with their mouths and lied to him with their tongues,
Though their hearts were not steadfast toward him, nor were they faithful to his covenant. (Refrain)
4) But he, being merciful, forgave their sin and destroyed them not;
Often he turned back his anger and let none of his wrath be roused. (Refrain)
Second Reading (Philippians 2: 6-11)
Brothers and sisters: Christ Jesus, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God something to be grasped. Rather, he emptied himself taking the form of a slave, coming in human likeness; and found human in appearance, he humbled himself, becoming obedient to death, even death on a cross. Because of this, God greatly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, of those in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Jesus said to Nicodemus: "No one has gone up to heaven except the one who has come down from heaven, the Son of Man. And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life." For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him.
(Reprinted with permission from ICEL. From Lectionary for Mass. Copyright 1970, 1986, 1992, 1998, 2001 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc. Washington D.C. All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by an information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.
Copyright 1970, 1997, 1998 Contraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc. Washington, D.C. All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by an information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.
The English translation of some Psalm responses, some Alleluia and Gospel verses and the Lenten Gospel Acclamations, some Summaries, and the Titles and Conclusion of the Readings, from the Lectionary for Mass copyright 1968, 1981, 1997, International Committee on English in the Liturgy, Inc., Washington D.C. All rights reserved.
The poetic English translation of the sequences of the Roman Missal are taken from the Roman Missal approved by the National Conference of Catholic Bishops of the United States, copyright 1964 by the National Catholic Welfare Conference, Inc. All rights reserved.)
Sources:
- Days of the Lord, Volume 7, pp. 223-235. The Liturgical Press, Collegeville, Mn., 1993.
- The Gospel of John, by William Barclay. Westminster John Knox Press, Knoxville, Tn.
- Catechism: #464-469 (True God and True Man). United States Catholic Conference, Washington, D.C.: 1994. [As recommended in: A Homily Sourcebook (The Universal Catechism), by N. Abeyasingha. The Pastoral Press, Washington, D.C.: 1993.]
Related Songs:
What Wondrous Love is This
During my freshman year at a Jesuit college preparatory school, I was "fortunate" enough to qualify for placement in the Greek Honor class for the following three years. Although I have long since forgotten most of what I learned during those years and in the next few years of Jesuit seminary, I am still fascinated when a commentator discusses the nuances of the language, which are much more subtle than in English. Such is the case with the second reading from today's liturgy, which is a classic text from Paul's letter to the Philippians. By researching the Greek words from which our English translation has been derived, we can get a better understanding of what Paul was trying to convey to this community of believers.
Paul says that "Christ Jesus, though he was in the form of God, emptied himself taking the form of a slave." In this verse, there are two Greek words which have both been translated as "form": "morphe" and "schema". "Morphe" is the essential form which never alters; "schema" is the outward form which changes from time to time and from circumstance to circumstance. For instance, the "morphe" of any human being is humanity and this never changes; but his "schema" is continually changing. A baby, which becomes a child and grows into a youth, matures to middle age and finally to old age, will always have the "morphe" of humanity, but the outward "schema" changes all the time. Roses, daffodils, tulips, and chrysanthemums all have the one "morphe" of flowers; but their "schema" is different. Aspirin, penicillin and magnesia all have the one "morphe" of drugs; but their "schema" is different. The "morphe" never alters; the "schema" continually does.
The word Paul uses for Jesus being in the form of God is "morphe"; that is to say, his unchangeable being is divine. However his outward "schema" might alter, he remained in essence divine.
Paul goes on to say that "Jesus did not regard existence with God as something to be grasped at." The Greek word which is translated as "something to be grasped at" is harpagmos, which comes from the verb meaning to snatch or to clutch to oneself. The phrase can mean either of two things: that Jesus did not need to snatch at equality with God, because he had it as a right; or that he did not clutch at equality with God, as if to hug it jealously to himself, but laid it willingly down for our sake.
Then Paul adds that "Jesus was born in the likeness of men". The word which is translated as "born" is from the Greek verb "ginesthai", which describes a state which is not a permanent one. In other words, the humanity of Jesus, although completely real, was transitory. He was coming from his "morphe" of God, assuming his "schema" of humanity, and ultimately returning to his original "morphe" of God, but taking his new glorified "schema" with him. What a wonderful concept and such a marvelous clarification of this difficult truth of our faith! There is probably no other passage in the New Testament which so movingly sets forth the utter reality of the divinity and humanity of Christ and makes so vivid the sacrifice that he made when he laid aside his divinity and took our humanity upon himself.
What exactly was Paul trying to convey to the Philippians? In his letter, Paul is pleading with them to live in harmony, to forget their disagreements, to get rid of their personal ambitions, their pride and their desires for prominence and prestige, and to replace them in their hearts with that humble, selfless desire to serve which was the essence of the life of Christ. The great characteristics of Jesus' life were humility, obedience, and self-renunciation. He did not desire to dominate men but only to serve them; he did not desire his own way but only God's way; he did not desire to exalt himself but only to renounce all his glory for our sake. If humility, obedience, and self-renunciation were the supreme characteristics of the life of Jesus, they must also be the hall-marks of the Christian.
In the same way, we are called to live lives of service to others. But all too often, our "selves" get in the way. Consider the following story. The author writes:
- Honk, honk, slice, splash, stop, start. Thick traffic. Teeming rain. My seven-year-old Volkswagen jerked along the freeway like a bug on sticky tape. Problems droned angrily around in my head. For weeks I'd been pouring all my hopes and energy into preparing an interior design presentation for a fat-cat client, and I'd just learned that I'd lost the job to a competitor. But your biggest mistake, Linda, I scolded myself, was counting on the money. When will you learn not to assume?
Traffic ground to a stop, and I fished my checkbook out of my purse and opened it. Balance, less than forty dollars. I was nearly broke - again. I couldn't begin to stretch that to cover what my fifteen-year-old son Tim and I were going to need until my next check.
Since my divorce the problems had come pouring down like the rain dimming my view through the wind shield. Not only scarce money, but long hours at a stressful job, guilty feelings for once again not making it to the school basketball game, the always-present feeling of "being in this all alone," the self-imposed pressure of expecting peak-level, super-human performance from myself at all times and in all kinds of different situations.
The car ahead of me inched forward and I turned off on my exit ramp. I had planned to stop by the grocery store, but with my make-up streaked from crying and my checkbook balance what it was, I decided to drive past and make dinner with what we had at home.
This afternoon Tim wasn't scheduled to work at his weekend and after-school job at the local Tastee-Freez. I knew he'd be home before me, and he might have started cooking dinner. He enjoyed the kitchen and managed to cook for us quite often. Right now his specialty was chili, so there was a good chance that we'd be having it tonight.
I hope so, I thought. Chili would taste good on a cold, rainy night like this.
I started to make plans for the evening. I deserve to pamper myself, I decided, so no bookwork tonight. Dinner, a hot bath, maybe a little television. I'd done a load of laundry before leaving that morning and had told Tim to put it in the dryer for me. I would fold that and then I'd be done.
I pulled into our gravel drive, parked and hurried inside. Coming through the kitchen door, I was greeted by the tangy aroma of simmermg chili.
Oh good! I thought. Tim had set the table with the dill pickles we had canned last summer, crackers, tall glasses of milk - and he had even baked chocolate chip cookies!
"Hi, Tim," I called as I scurried downstairs to fold the laundry. I opened the door of our antique clothes dryer and saw - a big black hole. An empty black hole. Tim had forgotten to put the laundry in the dryer. My just-beginning-to-rise spirits went clunk.
All I do is work and worry, I thought.
Slowly, I walked back up the stairs. Tim was watching television.
"I would like to talk to you, Tim." One look at my face and the warm smile left his.
"Things haven't been exactly easy around here," I began. "I am trying to maintain this house and a way of life for us both. I get no assistance from your father, so it's up to me. I don't ask you to do much, but when I do, I expect it done - like putting clothes in the dryer. I need some help every now and then, Tim. I have to depend on you. We have to depend on each other. Do you know what would happen to us if I forgot to do what was expected of me today?"
Tim looked as if I'd slapped him in the face, but he sat quietly and waited for me to finish. Then he got up from the sofa, came over and took my hand. I will never forget that moment. His expression was that of a man, not that of a young boy.
"Okay Mom, I'm sorry if I let you down. But I want to ask you something. Next time you get together with your friends and someone says their sister is dying or their oldest son is on drugs or their mother is in a nursing home, are you going to say, 'Oh, that's nothing. Tim forgot to put the clothes in the dryer'?"
He was not being flippant. He was being earnest. In that instant, with those words, we had changed roles. He was the parent and I was the child.
That was many rainy afternoons ago. But Tim's clear perspective continues to help me see past the obstruction when problems seem to jam up my life.
Everyone has problems: single parents like me, young folks, old folks, married people, unmarried people. It isn't the problems themselves that are harmful. It's letting them block you from feeling the powerful force that God had given you to compensate for them. (2)
In our second reading, Paul was speaking to the Philippians of his day but he may as well have been speaking to us. The lessons for us in this day and age are the same as they were then.
- Some years ago now, the Archbishop of Boston, Sean O'Malley, settled a law suit brought against the Archdiocese of Boston by those who were abused by priests after months of fruitless negotiations between the lawyers and Cardinal Bernard F. Law, the former archbishop. Both teams of lawyers attributed the settlement directly to O'Malley who surprised the lawyers by showing up himself for a meeting with them. Archbishop O'Malley is a Capuchin Franciscan, and like other Franciscans, wears a coarse brown robe and shuns the trappings of wealth and power. One of his first actions after being installed as archbishop was to give up the mansion occupied by his predecessors in favor of a humble rectory in a less than fashionable section of the city.
This is an example of someone who exemplified the meaning of humility, obedience and service to others in their lives. As the author of our story points out so well, we sometimes get lost in the “small stuff” in our ordinary, hum-drum lives, and fail to see the big picture. We can all too easily focus on one small failure and not see the many good things in our lives. Not putting clothes in the dryer pales in comparison to living a good life, helping others in their need or avoiding excessive drinking or drugs.
The challenge for us is clear. We need to follow Christ's example to be humble and obedient to the will of God. Sometimes, this is not easy. But then again, the cross wasn't easy either.
References:
1. The Letter to the Philippians, by William Barclay. Westminster John Knox Press, Louisville, Kentucky.
2. A Bowl of Humility by Linda LaRocque. Reprinted with the author's permission from Chicken Soup for the Unsinkable Soul, pp. 40-41. Copyright 1999 by Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen. Health Communications, Inc., Deerfield Beach, FL.
During my freshman year at a Jesuit college preparatory school, I was "fortunate" enough to qualify for placement in the Greek Honor class for the next three years. Although I have long since forgotten most of what I learned during those years and in the next few years of Jesuit seminary, I am still fascinated when a commentator discusses the nuances of the language, which are much more subtle than in English. Such is the case with the second reading from today's liturgy, which is a classic text from Paul's letter to the Philippians. By researching the Greek words from which our English translation has been derived, we can get a better understanding of what Paul was trying to convey to this community of believers.
Paul says that "Christ Jesus, though he was in the form of God, emptied himself taking the form of a slave." In this verse, there are two Greek words which have both been translated as "form": "morphe" and "schema". "Morphe" is the essential form which never alters; "schema" is the outward form which changes from time to time and from circumstance to circumstance. For instance, the "morphe" of any human being is humanity and this never changes; but his "schema" is continually changing. A baby, which becomes a child and grows into a youth, matures to middle age and finally to old age, will always have the "morphe" of humanity, but the outward "schema" changes all the time. Roses, daffodils, tulips, and chrysanthemums all have the one "morphe" of flowers; but their "schema" is different. Aspirin, penicillin and magnesia all have the one "morphe" of drugs; but their "schema" is different. The "morphe" never alters; the "schema" continually does.
The word Paul uses for Jesus being in the form of God is "morphe"; that is to say, his unchangeable being is divine. However his outward "schema" might alter, he remained in essence divine.
Paul goes on to say that "Jesus did not regard existence with God as something to be grasped at." The Greek word which is translated as "something to be grasped at" is harpagmos, which comes from the verb meaning to snatch or to clutch to oneself. The phrase can mean either of two things: that Jesus did not need to snatch at equality with God, because he had it as a right; or that he did not clutch at equality with God, as if to hug it jealously to himself, but laid it willingly down for our sake.
Then Paul adds that "Jesus was born in the likeness of men". The word which is translated as "born" is from the Greek verb "ginesthai", which describes a state which is not a permanent one. In other words, the humanity of Jesus, although completely real, was transitory. He was coming from his "morphe" of God, assuming his "schema" of humanity, and ultimately returning to his original "morphe" of God, but taking his new glorified "schema" with him. What a wonderful concept and such a marvelous clarification of this difficult truth of our faith! There is probably no other passage in the New Testament which so movingly sets forth the utter reality of the divinity and humanity of Christ and makes so vivid the sacrifice that he made when he laid aside his divinity and took our humanity upon himself.
What exactly was Paul trying to convey to the Philippians? In his letter, Paul is pleading with them to live in harmony, to forget their disagreements, to get rid of their personal ambitions, their pride and their desires for prominence and prestige, and to replace them in their hearts with that humble, selfless desire to serve which was the essence of the life of Christ. The great characteristics of Jesus' life were humility, obedience, and self-renunciation. He did not desire to dominate men but only to serve them; he did not desire his own way but only God's way; he did not desire to exalt himself but only to renounce all his glory for our sake. If humility, obedience, and self-renunciation were the supreme characteristics of the life of Jesus, they must also be the hall-marks of the Christian.
Paul states that some day "every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord". In the early days of the church, the four words "Jesus Christ is Lord" comprised their first creed. Based on those four words, many early martyrs met their death. The great title by which Jesus came to be known in the early Church was "kurios," Lord, which has an interesting history: it began by meaning master or owner, and soon became the official title of the Roman Emperors. It also became the title of the heathen gods, and was the word used to translate the Hebrew "Jehovah" in the Greek version of the Hebrew scriptures. So, then, when Jesus was called "kurios," "Lord," it meant that he was the Master and the Owner of all life; he was the King of kings; he was the Lord in a way in which the heathen gods and the dumb idols could never be; and he was nothing less than divine. So when the Christians professed that "Jesus Christ is Lord", they were putting Christ up against the Roman Emperors, the pagan gods and the Hebrew "Yahweh". No wonder they had so many enemies.
Finally, Paul clarifies that Jesus Christ is Lord, not for his own glory, but "to the glory of God the Father." Jesus draws all to himself that he may draw them to God. Among the Philippians, there were those whose aim was to gratify a selfish ambition; the aim of Christ was to serve others, no matter what the depths of self-renunciation that service might involve. In the Philippian community, there were those whose aim was to focus the eyes of others upon themselves; the aim of Jesus was to focus the eyes of all upon God. Paul's message for us today is no different than it was for the Philippian community of his day. Selfishness and all of its forms destroys our likeness to Christ and our fellowship with each other. Every follower of Christ must always think not of themselves, but of others, not of our own glory, but of the glory of God. (1)
If we could summarize all of this in a song, I think we could do no better than this one:
- When I survey the wondrous cross on which the Prince of glory died;
My richest gain I count but loss, and pour contempt on all my pride.Forbid it, Lord, that I should boast save in the death of Christ, my Lord. The vain things that now tempt me most, I sacrifice them to his blood. Were ev'ry form of nature mine, my gift would still be far too small; Love so amazing, so divine, demands my soul, my life, my all. (2)
1. The Letter to the Philippians, by William Barclay. Westminster John Knox Press, Louisville, KY.
2. When I Survey the Wondrous Cross. Text by Isaac Watts, music by Lowell Mason.
(Copyright 2011 by the Spirit through Deacon Sil Galvan, with a little help from the friends noted above. Permission is freely granted for use, in whole or in part, in oral presentations. For permission to use in writing, please contact the human intermediary at deaconsil@comcast.net.)
Lord Jesus, you emptied yourself and became one like us. Lord, have mercy.
Christ Jesus, you humbled yourself and became obedient even to death on the cross. Christ, have mercy.
Lord Jesus, you are our Lord and Savior, to the glory of God the Father. Lord, have mercy.
Celebrant: Jesus emptied himself and became one like us. Therefore, confident that Christ will intercede for us, we offer our prayers and petitions to the Father.
Deacon/Lector: Our response is: "Lord, hear our prayer."
For the members of the Church, especially those who suffer the cross of oppression, we pray to the Lord.
For the poor, the hungry and the sick, who bear the cross of Christ most especially in their lives, we pray to the Lord.
For all those who have experienced the loss of a loved one and who are carrying the cross of grief in their hearts, we pray to the Lord.
For all those who feel burdened by life, that they may find comfort in knowing that Christ carried the burden of his cross before them, we pray to the Lord.
For all of us, that we may come to realize the great love which God has for us which was manifested through his Son, we pray to the Lord.
For all of the intentions we hold in our hearts and which we now recall in silence. (Pause) For all of these intentions, we pray to the Lord.
Celebrant: God of all, we ask you to hear and answer the prayers which we have offered in the name of Jesus Christ, your Son, who is our Lord for ever and ever. Amen.