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November 11, 2008 –  Tuesday of 32nd Week in Ordinary Time       DAILY LITURGICAL/THEME MEDITATION: "We are unworthy servants; we have only done what was our duty" UNIVERSAL CHURCH/WORLD EVENT(S): Uruguay Prelates: No Eucharist for Abortion Backers SAINT OF THE DAY St. Martin of Tours  GENERAL MARIOLOGY The Virgin Mary in the New Testament, Part I DIVINE MERCY On Glory, Glorify: My Destiny — To Glorify God's Mercy và  TEACHING/TESTIMONY/CONVICTION: Vatican Official Warns of Repeating Nazi Evil   Monthly Index

DAILY LITURGICAL MEDITATION

Tuesday (11/11):  "We are unworthy servants; we have only done what was our duty" Scripture:  Luke 17:7-10 7 "Will any one of you, who has a servant plowing or keeping sheep, say to him when he has come in from the field, `Come at once and sit down  at table'?  8 Will he not rather say to him, `Prepare supper for me, and gird yourself and serve me, till I eat and drink; and afterward you shall eat and drink'? 9 Does he thank the servant because he did what was commanded? 10 So you also, when you have done all that is commanded you, say, `We are unworthy servants; we have only done what was our duty.'" Meditation: Are you ready to give the Lord your best, regardless of what it might cost you? Perhaps we are like the laborer in Jesus' parable who expected special  favor and reward for going the extra mile? How unfair for the master to compel him to give more than what was expected! Don't we love to assert our rights: "I will give only what is required and no more!" But who can satisfy the claims of love? Jesus used this parable of the dutiful servant to explain that we can never put God in our debt or make the claim that God owes us something. We must regard ourselves as God's servants, just as Jesus came "not to be served, but to serve" (Matthew 20:28). Service of God and of neighbor is both a voluntary or free act and a sacred duty. One can volunteer for service or be compelled to do service for one's country or one's family when special needs arise. Likewise, God expects us to give him the worship and praise which is his due. And he gladly accepts the  free-will offering of our lives to him and to his service. What makes our offering pleasing to God is the love we express in the gift of self-giving. True love is sacrificial, generous, and selfless. How can we love others selflessly and unconditionally? Scripture tells us that God himself is love (1 John 4:16) because he is the author of life and source of all relationships. He created us in love for love and he fills our hearts with the boundless love that gives whatever is good for the sake of another (Romans 5:5). If we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us (1 John 4:12). God honors the faithful servant who loves and serves others generously. He is ever ready to work in and through us for his glory. We must remember, however, that God can never be indebted to us. We have no claim on him. His love compels us to give him our best! And when we have done our best, we have simply done our duty. We can never outmatch God in doing good and showing love. God loves us without measure. Does the love of God compel you to give your best? "Lord Jesus, fill my heart with love, gratitude and generosity. Make me a faithful and zealous servant for you. May I generously pour out my life in loving service for you and for others, just as you have so generously poured yourself out in love for me." Psalm 34:1-14 1 I will bless the LORD at all times; his praise shall continually be in my mouth. 2 My soul makes its boast in the LORD; let the afflicted hear and be glad. 3 O magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt his name together! 4 I sought the LORD, and he answered me, and delivered me from all my fears. 5 Look to him, and be radiant; so your faces shall never be ashamed. 6 This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles. 7 The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him, and delivers them. 8 O taste and see that the LORD is good! Happy is the man who takes refuge in him! 9 O fear the LORD, you his saints, for those who fear him have no want! 10 The young lions suffer want and hunger; but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing. 11 Come, O sons, listen to me, I will teach you the fear of the LORD. 12 What man is there who desires life, and covets many days, that he may enjoy good? 13 Keep your tongue from evil, and your lips from speaking deceit. 14 Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace, and pursue it.   RETURN TO TOP

UNIVERSAL CHURCH/WORLD EVENTS

Uruguay Prelates: No Eucharist for Abortion Backers Point to Canon Law   MONTEVIDEO, Uruguay, NOV. 10, 2008 (Zenit.org).- Uruguayan bishops are recalling that those who vote in favor of abortion exclude themselves from communion with the Church. The prelates appealed to canon law in recalling the Catholic position on abortion during their Nov. 5-12 plenary assembly. In a communiqué Friday, the bishops responded to a bill regarding "reproductive and sexual health" currently under consideration. They cited a declaration from last year, titled, "In Defending Human Life, All of Us Win." There, the prelates affirmed, "Legalizing abortion doesn't change bad into good. Once it is made concrete, things go badly for everyone. A human life is lost. The mother ends up with wounds that do not easily heal. The doctor goes against the essence of his noble profession. Society loses a life because of not opening its arms to receive it. The culture of life is attacked." The bishops go on to say that no "honest law can justify the elimination of a defenseless being who has the right to life and to be born." Regarding Catholics who promote and/or vote for laws in favor of abortion, they recalled that such a person breaks the link that unites them to Christ and the Church. While he remains committed to this position, the bishops affirmed, he is impeded from approaching Eucharistic Communion, according to what is established in the Code of Canon Law, canons 1341 and 1398. "Uruguayans need to multiply the signs of favor for human life in the midst of emigration and the demographic winter that compromises our future," the prelates concluded. "The well-being of our people requires sons and daughters to bring joy to homes, to fill the classrooms and playgrounds. We are in favor of the integral development of human life, which as Catholic bishops we see from the perspective of Jesus Christ, who came to the world to bring worthy and abundant life." RETURN TO TOP

DAILY LITURGICAL SAINT

November 11, 2008 St. Martin of Tours (316?-397)   A conscientious objector who wanted to be a monk; a monk who was maneuvered into being a bishop; a bishop who fought paganism as well as pleaded for mercy to heretics—such was Martin of Tours, one of the most popular of saints and one of the first not to be a martyr. He was born of pagan parents in what is now Hungary and was raised in Italy. The son of a veteran, he was forced to serve in the army against his will at the age of 15. He became a Christian catechumen and was baptized at 18. It was said that he lived more like a monk than a soldier. At 23 he refused a war bounty from the emperor with the words, "I have served you as a soldier; now let me serve Christ. Give the bounty to those who are going to fight. But I am a soldier of Christ and it is not lawful for me to fight." After great difficulties, he was discharged and went to be a disciple of Hilary of Poitiers. He was ordained an exorcist and worked with great zeal against the Arians. He became a monk, living first at Milan and later on a small island. When Hilary was restored to his see after exile, Martin returned to France and established what may have been the first French monastery near Poitiers. He lived there for 10 years, forming his disciples and preaching throughout the countryside. The people of Tours demanded that he become their bishop. He was drawn to that city by a ruse—the need of a sick person—and was brought to the church, where he reluctantly allowed himself to be consecrated bishop. Some of the consecrating bishops thought his rumpled appearance and unkempt hair indicated that he was not dignified enough for the office. Along with St. Ambrose, Martin rejected Bishop Ithacius’s principle of putting heretics to death—as well as the intrusion of the emperor into such matters. He prevailed upon the emperor to spare the life of the heretic Priscillian. For his efforts, Martin was accused of the same heresy, and Priscillian was executed after all. Martin then pleaded for a cessation of the persecution of Priscillian’s followers in Spain. He still felt he could cooperate with Ithacius in other areas, but afterwards his conscience troubled him about this decision. As death approached, his followers begged him not to leave them. He prayed, "Lord, if your people still need me, I do not refuse the work. Your will be done." Comment: Martin's worry about cooperation reminds us that almost nothing is either all black or all white. The saints are not creatures of another world: They face the same perplexing decisions that we do. Any decision of conscience always involves some risk. If we choose to go north, we may never know what would have happened had we gone east, west or south. A hypercautious withdrawal from all perplexing situations is not the virtue of prudence; it is, in fact, a bad decision, for "not to decide is to decide."   RETURN TO TOP

GENERAL MARIOLOGY

The Virgin Mary in the New Testament, Part I By Fr. Settimio M. Manelli, F.I.   Mary in the Accounts of the Origin and of the Infancy of Christ The accounts of the infancy of Jesus (3) are fundamental for understanding the rest of the Gospel. They provide the keys to interpreting whatever follows. Thanks to them we can correctly explain the identity of Christ and the mission accomplished by him, his words, his actions and his deeds (4). Before examining references to the Virgin Mary in the infancy accounts according to Matthew and Luke, we will first analyze a verse of the prologue of the Gospel of St. John, which deals with the eternal preexistence of the Word and his origin in time, and then the passage of Galatians 4:4, which mentions the divine plan concerning Mary. Mary’s unique relation to the preexistence of the Word and her singular place in the divine plan of salvation are fundamental to Catholic Mariology; hence the special importance of these two passages in the New Testament. These are not simply dogmatic truths implicit in other Marian assertions of the Bible, but are explicitly affirmed.  "Born not of Blood" (Jn 1:13) In the first verses of his gospel, St. John solemnly describes the nature and mission of the Word. According to a great many exegetes, ancient and modern, the evangelist-theologian inserts in this context a brief allusion to the virginal conception of Jesus. Hence, this is the first passage in the fourth gospel to make reference to Mary, in particular to the mystery of the Incarnation of the Word in her most pure womb. We will examine this passage first, since its context is exceptionally "original." In fact, this first Marian citation in John is sublimely framed in the eternal origin of the Word of God. Let us next consider the full text of the prologue under study (Jn 1:12-13), as it is commonly given in critical editions: 12. To those who have accepted him, he has given the power to become sons of God: to those who believe in his name, 13. who (plural = those)/ who (singular = his) not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God are born/is born. As one can see, verse 13 contains textual variations. It may be read in the plural or singular. Let us immediately explain these differences. To understand this passage correctly, it is important to keep in mind what Ignatius de la Potterie has clearly demonstrated in various articles, but especially in his well-known book, Mary in the Mystery of the Covenant (5). He tells us that "the fourth evangelist knows perfectly well that the Father of Jesus is God himself, that God is ‘his very own Father,’ as John states explicitly in 5:18," and not Joseph, as was thought in those days (p. 121). The proof of this first assertion is the result of the analysis which the aforementioned scholar makes of two passages in the Gospel of John where Joseph is called father of Jesus by the crowd. In those two instances the evangelist simply reports the opinion of the Jews who did not know Jesus, without any intention of declaring his own convictions (pp. 101-120) (6). As noted above, even at the very beginning of his gospel John alludes expressly to the mystery of the virginal conception of Jesus (1:12-13). It must, however, also be said that the text in question is the subject of considerable controversy, both from the standpoint of textual criticism and of exegesis. That notwithstanding, our explanation enjoys the support of a good part of the patristic and theological Tradition. With de la Potterie it should be noted above all that the text of John represents a literary genre different from the accounts of Jesus’ origin found in Matthew and Luke. While the latter are historical accounts in the true and proper sense containing much circumstantial detail, that of John in the prologue is primarily concerned with a theological view of the real fact of the Incarnation (7). The first point to clarify, then, regards the text. I. de la Potterie tackles the question from two perspectives: the analysis of textual witness extraneous to the Gospel itself (manuscripts, papyrus, citations of the Fathers), and the internal examination of the gospel (vocabulary and the theology of John) (8). As regards the witness of the textual tradition, "practically all the critical editions and almost all the translations give the plural at the end of verse 13:" hoi … ek Theou egennéthesan, who have been born of God. "So understood, the verse speaks of the spiritual rebirth of Christians" (9). It is true that no Greek manuscript of the gospel gives the reading for verse 13 in the singular. But one should keep in mind that the earliest manuscripts we possess of the fourth gospel all date from the fourth century, with the exception of a papyrus fragment of the second century, one without our text, however. On the other hand, there are other more ancient testimonies to the original reading. These are especially interesting for the critical study of the text, because they show how the gospel was read in the centuries preceding the fourth. Concretely, we are dealing with citations from the Fathers and from the ancient translations. Now, de la Potterie claims that "all the ‘witnesses’ of the second century support a reading in the singular:" who was born of God, and in addition "these witnesses are not all confined to one locality, but are found throughout the Mediterranean basin" (10). This is extremely important, because it means that already in the second century "the text was read in the singular and only in the singular. And this less than a century after the composition of the fourth gospel" (11). Internal criticism of the Gospel of John (study of its style, of its linguistic character, of its structure, of the theology of the evangelist) confirms what was said above (12). The verse cannot be read in the plural, because it would then refer to the spiritual rebirth of Christians. But when John speaks of this theme, he always makes use of the present perfect tense (cf. 1 Jn 5:18), never the aorist found in Jn 1:13, were the plural reading to be accepted. But the aorist form found there is appropriate for a reference to the Incarnation of Christ, a historical fact of the past, while the rebirth of Christians is a continuing fact, one therefore best expressed by a verbal form in the present perfect tense (cf. p. 127ff.). Textual comparison, therefore, favors a reading of verse 13 of the prologue in the singular. If one were to accept the plural reading with its reference to the spiritual rebirth of Christians by faith and baptism, it also becomes difficult to explain the sense of the three following negations: not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, reflecting the evangelist’s polemic with the Ebionites. In reality John intends a reference to a corporal birth, from which certain modalities are excluded. The three negations cannot be explained on the premise that the spiritual rebirth of Christians is being treated here, a rebirth entirely spiritual (cf. Jn 3:5). Instead, the three negations nicely accord with the corporal birth of Jesus, of which they are the modalities (cf. p. 129ff.). Verse 13, then, treats of the Incarnation of the Word and "is par excellence a Christological verse" (p. 130). From the theological point of view the verse makes explicit reference to the human, temporal birth of Christ, and implicitly to the eternal birth of the Son of God (cf. p. 131). At this juncture a correct reading of verse 12: "To those, however, who have accepted him, he has given the power to become sons of God: to those who believe in his name," enjoys crucial importance. The name here spoken of refers to Christ. The pronoun preceding it ("his&quot refers, in fact, to the first part of the verse: "To those who accept him." In turn this pronoun refers to the "true light" in verse 9, recalled in verses 10 and 11 by way of the personal pronoun. Further, one must keep in mind that in John the expression "believe in the name" always refers to Christ (Jn 2:23; 3:18; 20:31; 1 Jn 3:23; 5:13; cf. also Jn 1:18; Mk 16:17; Acts 10:43. cf. p. 128). Now, in the Gospel of John "the ‘name’ of Christ is ‘the Son’; and the name of God is always ‘the Father’" (p. 128). Even at the beginning of verse 14 John speaks of the "only-begotten Son of the Father." The initial pronoun, then, of verse 13, read in the singular, refers to the "only-begotten Son of the Father." Hence, it must be translated thus: "To those, however, who have accepted him, he has given the power to become sons of God: to those who believe in his name; him who has been begotten, not of blood … but of God." Thus read, verse 14 also links better with what precedes it: "And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us and we have seen his glory, the glory of the only-begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth." Now we may pass on to the three negations of verse 13. The first, who not of blood, is the more difficult, in so far as the plural form of blood (bloods) was generally employed in the Old Testament and in profane literature to denote the violent shedding of blood, as in the case of massacres in time of war. In our case, however, this is not the meaning to be given to the term. Following in the footsteps of P. Hofrichter (13), de la Potterie holds instead that the plural, viz., bloods, is used in the text of Leviticus 12 in reference to the laws of purification of the mother, rendered impure by bloods lost at the moment of parturition. John 1:13, read in the light of this context, intends to say that at the moment of Christ’s birth there was no shedding of blood on the part of his Mother. In other words, at the moment of Jesus’ birth there was no need "of ritual purification by the Mother of Jesus, because in her there had been absolutely no loss of blood" (p. 136). The second negation, nor of the will of the flesh, has a more general meaning and excludes from the process of the Incarnation every carnal desire. The third, nor of the will of man, excludes in particular the intervention of a man (cf. p. 132) (14). In this way the virginal conception of the Son of God is affirmed. De la Potterie claims to see an ascending progression in the verse: At the beginning we find the exclusion of the more material element, "the bloods" (at the moment of birth); next a more general assertion, that of "carnal" desire in an animal nature while conceiving; finally the exclusion of the will of a human being, the male, in this very conception. The finale, put positively rather than negatively, is raised to a transcendent level, underscoring God’s role in this generation: God himself is presented as Father of the Word incarnate. (to be continued)  RETURN TO TOP

DIVINE MERCY

Dairy from St. Faustina On Glory, Glorify Glorify Mercy For Endless Ages O eternal God, how ardently I desire to glorify this greatest of Your attributes; namely, Your unfathomable mercy (Diary, 835). †  I take into my hands the two rays that spring from Your merciful Heart; that is, the Blood and the Water; and I scatter them all over the globe so that each soul may receive Your mercy and, having received it, may glorify it for endless ages (Diary, 836). RETURN TO TOP

CATHOLIC  TEACHING/CONVICTION/TESTIMONY

Vatican Official Warns of Repeating Nazi Evil Says Memory of Barbarism Key for Justice Today   NUREMBERG, Germany, NOV. 10, 2008 (Zenit.org).- Europe should not forget the tragedy instigated by the Nazi regime, but rather ensure that history does not repeat itself, says a Vatican official. Archbishop Jean-Louis Bruguès, secretary of the Congregation for Catholic Education, affirmed this at the fourth seminar for ministers of nations that belong to the European Cultural Convention, which took place last week in Nuremberg and Dachau. Referring to the site, the prelate said Nuremberg "was a witnesses of the massive Nazi gatherings, but also of the proceedings against those who had stained themselves with grave crimes against humanity." These facts speak "of the drama of an epoch in which liberty and justice were denied and the dignity of man was trampled upon," he said. It is important, Archbishop Bruguès continued, to keep alive the memory of these facts, especially as time passes and there are fewer remaining eye witnesses, so that "a similar tragedy is not repeated in any corner of Europe." "The memory of the drama of the victims, the honor of their memory, demands that everyone realize that those sinister circumstances should be a call to responsibility for constructing the today and tomorrow of our continent," he said. Being more The Vatican official noted that rights and liberty "are essential to avoid falling again into totalitarianism that does not respect man." Still, he said, rights should be founded on an elevated sense of dignity and justice. "Protecting the dignity of man does not mean merely not killing, torturing or mutilating him," he explained. "It also means allowing for the possibility of satisfying the hunger and thirst for justice of which man is capable." Archbishop Bruguès contended that it is necessary to "redouble efforts" in the fight against racism, exclusion, marginalization and xenophobia, and cautioned that hints of these evils can be found in modern society He continued, "We run the risk of falling again into barbarity if we don't have passion for justice and liberty and if we don't work, each one according to his own capacity, to ensure that evil does not prevail over good." In this regard, the prelate added, the Holy See praises the efforts of the countries that have signed the convention to "contribute through education to the construction of a more solidary and democratic Europe, which respects diversity and is aware of its identity." The purification of memory should contribute, he added, citing words from Benedict XVI in Auschwitz in 2006, to "learn to love together." It is about "making man more human," man who "can be more, and not just have more, who can learn to live not only with others, but for others." "The duty of memory," the archbishop concluded, "should continue moving our hearts and our minds to lead reason to recognize evil and reject it, to stir up in us the courage of goodness and resistance to evil."   RETURN TO TOP

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