Suy Niệm Bài Đọc thứ Ba Tuần thứ 15 Thường Niên

Suy Niệm Bài Đọc thứ Ba Tuần thứ 15 Thường Niên

            Nhiệm vụ quan trọng nhất của Chúa Giêsu là đến để hướng dẫn dân riêng của Ngài trước hết, như Tin Mừng đã cẩn thận chỉ dẫn cho các môn đệ và chúng ta về ơn cứu độ của Thiên Chúa. Tuy nhiên, Ngài cũng cảnh báo sự chối bỏ Thiên Chúa và tội lỗi của dân chúng trong các thành phố Chorazin, Bethsaida và Capernaum. Họ còn không tin vào Thiên Chúa mặc dù Chúa Giêsu đã dành nhiều thời giờ giảng dạy và làm rất nhiều phép lạ cho họ ở đó. Nhưng họ vẫn còn nghi ngờ và thờ ơ nguội lạnh với những lời giáo huấn của Chúa. Trong thời ấy, thuật phù thủy là một hành vi phạm tội sẽ bị trừng phạt bằng cái chết. Bởi vì đó là hành vi cuồng tín, gây ra sự chống đối Chúa Giêsu và giáo huấn của Ngài. Vì vậy, Chúa Giêsu đã cho họ lời cảnh báo trước để họ biết ăn năn, hối cải, tránh xa đường lối và những sự xấu xa của họ.
            Tội chối bỏ Thiên Chúa của họ còn lớn hơn cả cái tội mà dân thành Sodom đã phạm và họ sẽ bị xét xử một cách khắc nghiệt trong ngày phán xét. Chúng ta hãy tự xét mình và kiểm thảo cuộc sống của chúng ta mỗi ngày và nhất là trong ngày hôm nay, chúng ta đã làm gì, chúng ta đã chống lại Thiên Chúa bằng những việc làm, lời nói và sự suy nghĩ của chúng ta?. Tội chống lại Thiên Chúa là tội chống lại  giới răn thứ nhất và cũng là điều răn lớn nhất.
 
Reflection
            The mission of Jesus was directed to his own people first and foremost, as the Gospels are careful to show. Yet he warns them that their response will show them to be less than the pagans whom they despise.
            Matthew was primarily writing his gospel for Jewish Christians to whom it caused great pain that pagans responded to the Good News in greater numbers than their own people. This passage demonstrates that Jesus Himself shared their amazement and sorrow at the lack of response by Israel.         Lord, grant us the grace to respond to Your Word always.
 
Tuesday 15^th Ordinary Time 2023
“Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty deeds done in your midst had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would long ago have repented in sackcloth and ashes. But I tell you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment than for you.” Matthew 11:21–22
Chorazin and Bethsaida were Jewish towns that Jesus visited frequently to preach and to perform many “mighty deeds.” They were located just north of His city of residence, Capernaum. Tyre and Sidon were pagan coastal cities northeast of Chorazin and Bethsaida, in modern-day Lebanon, and were towns known for their immoral living. Though Jesus did not spend much time in those cities, He did visit them at times. During Jesus’ first recorded visit there, recall His encounter with the Syrophoenician woman who begged Him to heal her daughter (Matthew 15:21–28). The Gospel passage quoted above took place prior to Jesus making that journey.
Why was Jesus so harsh toward the towns He spent so much of His time in. Why did He rebuke Chorazin, Bethsaida and Capernaum? To answer this, it’s important to remember that Jesus spent most of His time preaching to the “lost sheep of the house of Israel.” In other words, His primary mission during His public ministry was to share the Gospel with those who were descendants of Abraham and had been entrusted with the Law of Moses, the teachings of the prophets and the liturgical rites. For that reason, Jesus not only preached with perfection to these people, He also did miracle after miracle. And though there were many who did believe in Him and became His disciples, there were many others who were indifferent or who flatly refused to believe in Him.
Today, Chorazin, Bethsaida and Capernaum could be seen as symbols of those Catholics who were born and raised in the faith and were given good formation by their parents and others. Many parents whose children have gone astray from the faith wonder what they did wrong. But the truth is that even Jesus Himself was rejected, despite His perfect preaching, perfect charity and undeniable miracles. And the same happens today. There are many who, despite being raised within the holy faith given to us by Christ Himself, reject that faith and turn a blind eye to the Gospel and the Church.
Jesus’ rebuke of those towns should echo today in the minds of those who, despite being given so much in regard to a good upbringing, have rejected God. Of course, that rejection is not always absolute and total. More often, it is a rejection in degrees. First, the rejection comes in the form of missing Mass. Then moral compromises. Then a lack of faith. And eventually confusion, doubt and a complete loss of faith sets in.
If you are one who has started down the road of becoming more and more lukewarm in your faith, then the rebuke of these towns by Jesus should be understood to also be directed at you in love. “Every one to whom much is given, of him will much be required…” (Luke 28:48). Therefore, to those who have been taught the faith well, much is expected. And when we fail to live up to that which is demanded of us by God out of love, a holy rebuke is exactly what we need.
Reflect, today, upon whether the rebuke Jesus issues toward these towns is also issued toward you. Have you been blessed with a good formation in the faith? If so, have you done all you can to help nourish that faith and grow in your love of God? Or have you allowed your faith to dim, to become lukewarm and to begin to wither and die? If you have been given much, have been raised in the faith and have been privileged with good examples in your life, then know God expects much of you. Answer that high calling that is given to you and respond to God with all your heart.
My passionate Jesus, You poured out Your heart and soul through Your preaching to the people of Israel. Although many accepted You, many others rejected You. I thank You for the privilege I have been given to hear Your holy Word preached to me. Help me to respond to You with all my heart so that I will be counted among those who listen and believe. Jesus, I trust in You.
 
Tuesday 15^th Ordinary Time 2024
Opening Prayer: Lord God, you are the Lord of history and direct all things. I trust in your loving care to guide me to a good end. Enlighten my mind today to know your will and the path I need to take. Guide my decisions so that I may extend your reign in the world.
Encountering the Word of God
1. King Ahaz of Judah and the Prophet Isaiah: The First Reading introduces us to the figure of Ahaz, the eleventh King of Judah. Ahaz was a royal descendant of David, but he was a wicked and evil king who reigned over Judah for twenty years, from 736 to 716 B.C. 2 Kings 16:2-4 tells us that he went so far as to burn his son as an offering, to sacrifice to idols, and to replace the altar of the Lord with a pagan altar (2 Kings 16:10-16). During the reign of King Ahaz, King Pekah of Israel and King Rezin of Damascus (Aram) allied against the Assyrian Empire and invited Ahaz to join them. Ahaz refused and so Israel and Damascus attacked Judah with the intent of replacing Ahaz with a puppet ruler, called “the son of Tabeel,” who was someone more favorable to their enterprise (2 Kings 16:5; Isaiah 7:1). When Isaiah encountered King Ahaz, the king was debating whether or not to ask Assyria for protection. Isaiah demanded that the king not join with Assyria, as it was revealed to him that Israel and Damascus would soon be destroyed. Isaiah tells Ahaz to trust not in an alliance with Assyria, but in the Lord and ask the Lord God for a sign. Ahaz feigns piety and says that he will not ask for a sign and put the Lord to the test. The Lord gives him a sign anyway: “A virgin shall conceive and bear a son and shall call his name Immanuel” (Isaiah 7:14). Where do I place my trust: In powerful politicians, in people with wealth, in the stock market, in my retirement fund, or in the Lord?
2. The Assyrian Invasion of Israel: Despite the reassurances of Isaiah and the Immanuel sign, King Ahaz did not follow Isaiah’s counsel and appealed to Assyria for protection. He sent messengers to the Assyrian king saying, “I am your servant and your son. Come up, and rescue me from the hand of the king of Aram and from the hand of the king of Israel who are attacking me” (2 Kings 16:7). Realizing that Ahaz did not follow his counsel, Isaiah withdrew for a time and formed a group of disciples who would learn the ways of the Lord (Isaiah 8:11-20). King Tiglath-Pileser of Assyria invaded Syria and Israel and subdued them in 732 B.C.; he killed the king of Aram and appointed a new king in Israel. He deported some of the people of Israel to the east, foreshadowing the coming exile a decade later. Although Judah survived, the kingdom had to pay an indemnity to Assyria and become its vassal. Against the background of these historical events, Isaiah foretells the day when the people, who have suffered oppression at the hands of the Assyrians, will see a great light (Isaiah 9:1-5). “The light will be revealed in the person of the true son of David, who will extend his dominion outward from Jerusalem in a reign of everlasting peace” (Duggan, The Consuming Fire, 266).
3. The Invitation to Repentance: The First Reading and the Gospel both bring out the need to trust in God and believe in the one he sent, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of David. The invitations to faith are accompanied by great signs and mighty deeds. Just as King Ahaz refused to trust in God, the people of Chorazin, Bethsaida, and Capernaum refused to believe in Jesus. The people did not repent even though they witnessed Jesus’ mighty deeds, the signs that gave witness to the authenticity and truth of his message (see John 10:38). Jesus’ mighty deeds are “works of wisdom” that show that he is the Messiah. They are manifestations of the power of God. All things were created in the beginning through the Word of God and all things are being recreated by the Incarnate Word. Jesus doesn’t want the people just to gape in awe for a moment at his deeds but rather be transformed by them in a lasting way. Recognizing Jesus as the Messiah and Son of God is the beginning of this transformation (see Leiva-Merikakis, Fire of Mercy Heart of the Word, Vol. 1, 674).
Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus, I hear your invitation to repent and change my mindset. I seek to conform my thoughts and my will to you. I want to imitate you and share in your life to the full. Help me to see your mighty works in the Church and the world today.
Living the Word of God: Today, in the Liturgy of the Word, we hear the voice of God and learn about his Son’s mighty works. God asks us to respond to him, not by hardening our hearts, but by opening up our hearts to his grace. Unlike King Ahaz, let us fully place our trust in the Lord. Unlike the people of Chorazin and Bethsaida, let us repent and accept the Power and Wisdom of God into our lives. Unlike the people of Capernaum, among whom Jesus made his home, let us truly welcome Jesus as Messiah and Lord and allow him to reign in our hearts and homes.
 
Tuesday of the Fifteenth Week in Ordinary Time 2023
Father Shawn Aaron, LC Matthew 11: 20-24
Introductory Prayer: God our Father, you are my shelter against the burning heat of the day and the storms of life. I know, and I believe that I can count on your help when I stumble, that you will catch me when I fall and guide my steps firmly in faith toward the promise of eternal life.
Petition: Jesus, help me to seek you with a sincere heart.
1. Blessings and Responsibility: Much will be required of the person entrusted with much, and still more will be demanded of the person entrusted with more (cf. Luke 12:48). With every blessing comes a degree of responsibility. The mighty deeds worked in these towns were not seen by everyone in Israel, let alone the world. Therefore, those who do see them have a greater responsibility than those who do not. Jesus reproaches them to awaken them from their stupor. Since the miracles have not moved them to a more profound faith, then perhaps the reminder that they will one day be answerable to God might. Do I need a similar fear of punishment to drive me from my sins, or am I more focused on pleasing God in the details of my life?
2. The Goal is Repentance: The goal of all of Jesus' signs is to bring about a change of heart. Even in the Old Testament, the signs and wonders worked by Yahweh were intended to elicit a response of faith and trust from Israel. The danger for Israel, as for Jesus' listeners and us, is to become accustomed to these signs and to demand more signs, thus losing sight of their purpose – a redirection of our life from self-centeredness to Christ-centeredness. Like Herod, we want to be dazzled by Jesus' miracles, but we do not want to change our lives. Jesus never works a miracle to impress, but only to convert a heart back to God or to bring it into a deeper union with God.
3. Reward or Punishment: We can learn a great deal from this strong phrase: Firstly, that we will be judged for our actions and our omissions; secondly, that judgment from God has varying degrees. Since God sees and knows perfectly, the judgment will be objective; those who knew less will be judged less strictly. In other words, Sodom, Tyre, and Sidon will indeed be judged, but according to natural law and not according to the Christian faith, which they did not have access to at the time. Finally, but not exhaustively, we can deduce that there will be different gradations in heaven and hell according to how well our actions corresponded to what we knew to be true and good. This knowledge should stimulate us to be more generous with God and more centered on things that are above. Our Lord will handsomely reward our smallest good deed.
Conversation with Christ: Dear Lord, open my eyes to the constant workings of your grace in my life. Never allow me to become complacent or to undervalue the tremendous gift of faith in my life. Thank you for reminding me of the importance of my daily decisions. Mother Most Pure, make my heart only for Jesus.
Resolution: Today, I will read nos. 1783-1785 from the Catechism of the Catholic Church.