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Today, 23rd of November, we celebrate
Saint Clement I and
Saint Columban.
Brothers and sisters:
We are the circumcision,
we who worship through the Spirit of God,
who boast in Christ Jesus and do not put our confidence in flesh,
although I myself have grounds for confidence even in the flesh.
If anyone else thinks he can be confident in flesh, all the more can I.
Circumcised on the eighth day,
of the race of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin,
a Hebrew of Hebrew parentage,
in observance of the law a Pharisee,
in zeal I persecuted the Church,
in righteousness based on the law I was blameless.
But whatever gains I had,
these I have come to consider a loss because of Christ.
More than that, I even consider everything as a loss
because of the supreme good of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.
R./ Let hearts rejoice who search for the Lord. or: Alleluia.
Sing to him, sing his praise,
proclaim all his wondrous deeds.
Glory in his holy name;
rejoice, O hearts that seek the Lord!
R./ Let hearts rejoice who search for the Lord. or: Alleluia.
Look to the Lord in his strength;
seek to serve him constantly.
Recall the wondrous deeds that he has wrought,
his portents, and the judgments he has uttered.
R./ Let hearts rejoice who search for the Lord. or: Alleluia.
You descendants of Abraham, his servants,
sons of Jacob, his chosen ones!
He, the Lord, is our God;
throughout the earth his judgments prevail.
R./ Let hearts rejoice who search for the Lord. or: Alleluia.
Tax collectors and sinners were seeking the company of Jesus, all of them eager to hear what he had to say. But the Pharisees and the scribes frowned at this, muttering. "This man welcomes sinners and eats with them." So Jesus told them this parable:
"Who among you, having a hundred sheep and losing one of them, will not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness and seek out the lost one till he finds it? And finding it, will he not joyfully carry it home on his shoulders? Then he will call his friends and neighbors together and say: 'Celebrate with me for I have found my lost sheep.' I tell you, just so, there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one repentant sinner than over ninety-nine upright who do not need to repent.
"What woman, if she has ten silver coins and loses one, will not light a lamp and sweep the house in a thorough search till she finds the lost coin? And finding it, she will call her friends and neighbors and say: 'Celebrate with me for I have found the silver coin I lost!' I tell you, in the same way there is rejoicing among the angels of God over one repentant sinner."
The parable of the unfaithful steward is, in my opinion, one of the Gospel passages that causes the most perplexity and confusion. We wonder what it means, and when we look for authoritative commentaries, we find few and not very convincing.
The reader who is not a specialist in exegesis may be scandalized by the fact that Jesus is praising disloyal behavior. In fact, it is not Jesus who praises him, but the master who is betrayed by the unfaithful steward. It is within the realm of possibility that Jesus was recounting a real event that would have caused much gossip and some laughter in the region. It is not Jesus who admires cunning. He is merely describing the reaction of the defrauded master, praising the cunning skill with which his steward tries to find a way out, since “he can neither dig nor beg…”.
If we complete the fragment of Luke’s text (16:1-8) that we hear today in the Liturgy of the Word, at least up to verse 13, it is possible that we will better understand this parable and what Jesus wanted us to learn. And even more so if we continue to read what is a complete teaching on the use of goods that must be practiced by those who follow the Master. Just one sentence to meditate on: “Surely the children of this world are more cunning among their own people than are the children of light.
The word cunning in most cases alludes to a certain ability to deceive and trick. But it can also be understood as prudence: something like the ability to foresee, to have the prudence and foresight to appreciate the consequences of our actions and the extent to which they can serve good. Jesus asks his followers to learn to be wise in order to make friends in heaven, that is, to do good. He asks us to use our riches (material or non-material, since talent, culture and knowledge are also riches) wisely, so that they will be a guarantee when we are judged. We are children of the light: let us walk as such.
Virginia FernandezLord our God,
we know that Jesus came for everybody,
yet he wanted to find back
the very one given up by people:
the tax collector, the sinner, the prodigal.
Do not allow us in our zeal for what is right and good
to lose sight of this one person
who was written off by people,
yet who merited the special concern of your Son,
Jesus Christ our Lord.
First Reading Introduction
As a Jew, Paul could be proud of many things: born as a member of the chosen people and circumcised; as a Pharisee, secure in the strict observance of the Law... Yet all these had proven to be not advantages, but obstacles to encountering Christ: instead, they had made him a persecutor of Christ; the Law had made him a prisoner of the Law rather than a servant of God. And now, he is happy that by the grace of God, he has discovered the foolishness of the cross. God has found him; Christ has become his riches, and all the rest doesn’t matter.
Gospel Introduction
The whole chapter 15 of Luke deals with people who have lost something and find it back: a man finds a lost sheep, a woman a coin, and a father his son. All are extremely happy at the end, except the brother of the lost son. This joy expresses Jesus’ attention for all that is lost, rejected, devaluated in the eyes of people. Like Jesus, we have to keep looking for these people and to rejoice when they come back to God and to people.
– That leaders of the Church and of society may not lose themselves in chasing after power, prestige and wealth, we pray:
– That the Lord may give to his Church shepherds who care very much about people who go astray and try to bring them back to the Lord, we pray:
– That in our communities we support one another in trying to live the life of Christ, we pray:
Lord our God,
let your bread and wine remind us
of our solidarity even with all those
who live on the fringes of society.
You love them and they are part of us
May we speak to them the encouraging word
for which they are waiting
May we too look for them and love them
with our Lord Jesus Christ,
your Son and our Lord for ever.
Lord our God,
your kingdom is not the private domain
of those you have given the grace
to find you and to believe in you.
May we care with you and search with you
for the weak, the embarrassed and the timid,
without any attitude of superiority or condescension
Help us to be a community
in which there is enough space for everyone
for human growth and dignity for all.
We ask you this through Christ our Lord.
God looked for us and found us because he loved us long before we were aware of it. We know he loves all and wants all to belong to his kingdom. May we help anyone to find the Lord, with the blessing of almighty God, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
