First Reading Commentary
In the twelfth chapter of Saint Matthew's Gospel
is found the fulfillment of this prophecy from Isaiah concerning the
Messiah. In fact, this Reading is used
in that chapter to show that Christ has indeed fulfilled it.
Generally, whenever the word "nations"
is used in most modern translations, the older texts translate as
"Gentiles". And so, the
Messiah prophesied here shall bring forth justice to the Gentiles; and justice
means moral and religious discernment and knowledge of right and wrong which is
an attribute of the Messiah.
In the older translations of prophecy the
interpreters tend to approach the Scriptures with a pre-Messianic mindset, and
thus the reader will read that God's plan of salvation will include both Jews
and Gentiles. The more modern
translations use the word "nations" to express a point of view from
the post-Resurrection age to show that there is no longer any distinction
between Jew and Gentile.
It is because of Christ's humble Humanity that
He is called a Servant. "The coastlands
will wait for His teaching" in the Latin Vulgate translates as, "The
islands shall wait for His law" while the Septuagint translates as,
"The Gentiles shall hope in His Name." From the verse, "I, the Lord, have
called you . . ." to the end of this Reading seems to be an addition which
came later and is probably not from the original author. These closing verses show that the Messiah's
mission is ordained by God, in which He will be set as a Covenant of the people
- all people, and a Light for the nations - all nations.
Christ healed those who were physically blind
but most likely the blindness in this Reading refers to spiritual blindness in
which many were imprisoned and in darkness because of a lack of spirituality
and an obsession for material wealth.
Beyond the interpretation of Jesus as the
Messiah, this Reading also invites us as individuals to reflect on our own
baptism. In baptism the soul hears the
Voice of God saying: "Here is my servant whom I uphold, my chosen one with
whom I am pleased, upon whom I have put My Spirit." How faithful have I been to that calling to
be a servant of God? How committed am I
to pleasing Him? Am I a holy temple in
which His Spirit can dwell? These are
questions worth reflecting on as we try to get closer to God.
Second Reading Commentary
Cornelius was a centurion who was very devout
and believed in Israel's God. Peter's
speech is the first recorded address to Gentiles. Peter publicly states that all nations and
all peoples who act uprightly are acceptable to God. Observance of the Mosaic Law is not a
prerequisite for belonging to God.
The Greek text is a little unclear as to whether
the word that God sent to the Israelites is referring to Jesus Christ, the
eternal "Word", or the "word" meaning Christ's teachings
and/or the Gospel. Most translations
accept it to mean the latter; although the peace proclaimed through Jesus
Christ could not have been proclaimed by anyone else because Jesus is the
Source of true peace.
Peter proclaims Christ as "Lord of
all" which is proof of His Divinity.
Peter continues by stating that the Jesus story began after the baptism
that John preached which is an acceptance of John the Baptist's ministry and a
belief that John was part of a divine plan.
God anointed Jesus' Human Nature with the graces of the Holy Spirit so
that He may begin His public Ministry as the Messiah.
Gospel Commentary
The depths of the waters are not our natural
habitat. We cannot breathe there; and if there for too long we will struggle
and fight for our natural life. Saint Gregory Nazianzen explains that: “John
baptizes, Jesus comes to him perhaps to sanctify the Baptist, but certainly to
bury the whole of the old Adam in the water” (Oratio XXXIX, In Sancta Lumina). The man of sin, the man of eternal death is buried in the depths of
the waters by the God Who became Man to restore man to his dignity, to his
destiny of eternal life, his Paradise. In this natural struggle below the
surface of the waters, we get a glimpse at the possibility of our death; we
enter a state of panic, we stare at our own weakness, our own helplessness. The
words of Jesus echo in our heart and soul: “Without Me you can do nothing” (John 15:5). And when those words of our Lord are realized to be truer than true,
the words of the psalmist come to the forefront: “Out of the depths I cry to
You, Lord” (Psalm 129 [130]:1). For in the depths of the waters we cannot speak,
but God hears the cries of the heart and soul, He hears our fearful silence.
In baptism we are freed from our inevitable doom
and pulled from the depths of the waters by Jesus Christ through His minister;
we rise from the depths with Christ. And it is then that we meet the Most
Blessed Trinity: Christ Who saved us from eternal death by pulling us out of
the depths to a new life, a life that is eternal; the Holy Spirit in the form
of a dove unseen by human eyes, but present nevertheless, Who descends upon us,
saves us, and seals us as God’s very own; and finally the Voice of the Father,
undetected by human ears, but nevertheless speaking those mysterious,
incomprehensible words: “This is My beloved” (Matthew 3:17). It is perhaps foretold by the psalmist:
"The Voice of the Lord is upon the waters; the God of majesty has
thundered, the Lord is upon many waters. The Voice of the Lord is in power; the
Voice of the Lord in magnificence" (Psalm 28
[29]:3-4). As unfathomable as those words are, may they speak
within us every time we reflect on our own baptism, every time we witness a
baptism, every time we try to understand our own royal dignity. It is no easier
for the psalmist to grasp our filial relationship with our God as he writes:
“What is man, that You are mindful of him, or the son of man that You visit
him? You have made him a little less than the angels, You have crowned him with
glory and honor; and have set him over the works of your hands. You have
subjected all things under his feet” (Psalm
8:5-8). In the Old Testament, there is a story of a baby which
perhaps points us to that day of our own glorious baptism. That baby the world
would come to know as Moses. As he was floating down the river in a basket he
was seen by Pharaoh’s daughter. She took the baby and as the Scripture
continues: “She adopted him for a son and called him Moses, saying, ‘Because I
took him out of the water’” (Exodus
2:10).
Nicholas Cabasilus, a fourteenth century
Byzantine theologian and mystic wrote: “We cannot lift ourselves up to God by
our means, thus He came down to meet us. We were not looking for Him but He
wanted us. The sheep did not seek the Shepherd, nor did the lost coin search
for the Master of the house. It was He Who came to the earth and retrieved His
own image. He came to where the sheep were straying and lifted them
up. God made us heavenly while yet remaining on earth and imparted to us
the heavenly life without leading us up to heaven, but instead bending heaven
down to us.”
Christ has saved us, He has defeated the enemy.
And for a final reflection on baptism let us turn once again to the wisdom of
the psalmist: “Our soul has passed through a torrent; perhaps our soul had
passed through water insupportable. Blessed be the Lord Who has not given us to
be a prey to their teeth. Our soul has been delivered as a sparrow out of the
snare of the fowlers. The snare is broken and we are delivered. Our help is in
the Name of the Lord Who made heaven and earth” (Psalm 123 [124]:5-8).
