Suy Niệm Bài Đọc thứ Ba Tuần thứ 15 Thường Niên

 

Tuesday 15^th Ordinary Time; Scripture:  Matthew 11:20-24
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 2025
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. Leading Up to the Kingdom: In the Gospel, we are reading from the two chapters in the Gospel according to Matthew that lead up to the seven Parables about the Kingdom of Heaven (Matthew 13:1-53). The narrative of Matthew 11-12 highlights the division between the disciples who follow Jesus and those who reject his teaching – those who refuse to repent (Matthew 11:20-24) and the Pharisees who have hardened their hearts and begun to plot Jesus’ death (Matthew 12:14). Jesus mentions three cities in Galilee – Chorazin, Bethsaida, and Capernaum – who all have experienced and seen his mighty deeds. He also mentions two Gentile cities outside of Galilee that were not privileged to witness his mighty deeds – Tyre and Sidon. If they had seen what the Galileans had seen, they would have repented from their sins. This all speaks to us – how are we receiving the message of Jesus to repent? How are we reacting to the mighty deeds of Jesus accomplished in our lives through the sacraments? Are we no better than the people of the Galilean towns?
2. Moses and Jesus: In the Liturgy of the Word, the Gospel of Matthew is read alongside the first five books of the bible – Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. Just as Moses is credited with these five books, Matthew organizes the sermons of Jesus, the New Moses, into five long discourses. As the New Moses, Jesus reenacts experiences from Moses’ infancy – just as Pharaoh sought to kill the baby Moses, so also Herod sought to kill the baby Jesus (Matthew 2:13-18). Just as Moses departed from Egypt, so also Jesus will be brought forth from Egypt (Matthew 2:15). “By applying this Exodus motif to the Christ child, Matthew shows that Jesus now embodies Israel’s sonship relationship with God. As the representative of Israel, Jesus will relive the Exodus story in his own life. Just as God’s people were called out of Egypt and brought to the Promised Land in order to evangelize the nations, soon Jesus will be called out of Egypt to bring Israel’s worldwide mission to completion and extend God’s salvation to all the earth” (Sri, Dawn of the Messiah, 146).
3. Dominicans and Franciscans: There were two religious orders founded in the twelfth century. The Dominicans were founded by Saint Dominic in 1216. The Franciscans were founded by Saint Francis in 1209. The two religious orders produced two of the greatest medieval doctors of the Church. Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274) was a member of the Dominicans, and Bonaventure of Bagnoregio (1221-1274) was a member of the Franciscans. The charism of the Dominicans is to contemplate and to transmit to others what they have contemplated. The charism of the Franciscans is to imitate the life of Christ, poor and humble, as Francis did. The Dominicans tended to emphasize the intellectual life and the pursuit of truth. The Franciscans emphasized the heart and the pursuit of love. Bonaventure’s spirituality emphasizes the journey of our soul towards God, integrating intellectual understanding with mystical union. Our deep love for God is essential for spiritual growth, and this love should be expressed through acts of service and compassion.
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.