29th Sunday in Ordinary Time (“B”)
October 18, 2009

Q. 550: The Prophet Isaiah says that “the Lord was pleased to crush him in infirmity” (Isaiah 53:10). How can this be? How can crushing someone possibly please God?

A. 550: God our Father is neither sadistic nor cruel. There is not even a hint of those negative attributes, if the Isaian passage is properly understood. We are in the area of divine mystery here, so let’s explore this mystery of our faith as best we can.

First of all, we need to remember the Jewish understanding of God’s will back in Jesus’ time. Life was simple. God directly caused everything to happen, both life and death, pleasure and pain. The Jewish understanding of covenant was also simple: God will either reward or punish you, based on your behavior. If you sinned, you would incur the wrath of God, because he is a God of justice. If you repented and changed your ways, you would be restored to right relationship with God, because he is a God of mercy.

But there came the promised New Covenant. Jesus offered his life as a sacrifice for the sins of all humanity. His agony and death were the cup that he asked James and John to share (Mark 10:35-45). He was indeed crushed for our sins, for all the sins of humanity that were unrepented and unforgiven. God did not cause the pain and death of Jesus; rather, he permitted the free will choices of ungodly people to happen during Holy Week, knowing it would bring him great glory. The offer of Jesus’ life was accepted by the Father, as an atonement for the sins of all humanity. Jesus redeemed us all, and won the victory over sin and death. This action of Jesus is what brought the Father great joy and pleasure, because it opened up a way, once and for all, for each one of us to have a restored relationship with Him! The gates of heaven were open again!

KNOW YOUR CATECHISM! By his obedience unto death, Jesus accomplished the substitution of the suffering Servant – atoning for our faults and making satisfaction for our sins to the Father (CCC #615).

Deacon Paul Rooney
Mary Our Queen Parish, Omaha

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