First Reading Commentary
In the Hebrew text the opening verse
literally translates as, “Break bread with the hungry.” While it would be proper to interpret this Reading
very literally and see in it the Christian duty of taking care of the less
fortunate, it’s also necessary to go deeper, past the physical aspects and
allow this Reading to speak to us spiritually and prophetically. It is our Lord Jesus Christ Who feeds the
hungry with the Bread of Life. He lifted
and removed our state of oppression when He allowed Himself to be lifted up on
the Cross which obliterated our slavery to sin and death. We are strangers in a
foreign land who are journeying to our heavenly homeland.
Being naked speaks of
vulnerability and conveys to us how much we depend on our Lord. The light breaking forth like the dawn is the
Light of Christ Who heals our wounds of sin and suffering. Our submission to our Savior allows His Light
to shine on our darkness and the Light will always overpower the darkness; and
when we do His will, His Power working through us becomes very evident as He
speaks to our spirit proclaiming, “Here I am!”
Second Reading Commentary
The message Saint Paul is proclaiming here is
that for the spiritual person, the wisdom, power and eloquence which derives
from God is far superior to that which the world esteems. In this letter, Paul tries to accentuate this
point by asking the Corinthians to recollect his example of total reliance on
the Lord when he visited Corinth. Paul’s
weakness, fear and trembling are probably a reference to his sufferings
experienced in Macedonia. At the time of
this writing, Paul’s physical health may have also been a challenge for
him.
When reading Saint Paul’s letters, it’s only
natural to be curious about what it must have been like to have seen this man
of God in action. Truthfully, we are not
deprived of this because it is not Saint Paul but God Who is seen in action
through representatives like Saint Paul.
Today we are
fortunate to have seen God in action through saintly individuals like John Paul
II, Padre Pio, Father Solanus Casey and Mother Teresa of Calcutta to name
several. Have you seen God work and move
in your own life?
Salt is added to food as a seasoning which
makes the food tastier. While your
doctor might tell you to avoid excessive use of it, spiritually speaking you
and I as disciples of Christ are called upon to be the moral seasoning for the
world in which we live. In ancient
Palestinian usage, when the salt of Christian discipleship becomes impure, then
there is nothing left in the world to restore its savor.
Saint John Chrysostom points out that the
merits of Christ delivers us from the corruption of sin; but the care and labor
of His disciples preserves us from returning to it again.
The next example is light. In a world of darkness, followers of Christ
are obligated to light the path which leads to the Lord. Our negligence in this is a nonuse of our
gifts which is comparable to a lamp put under a bushel basket. Looking at the big picture, the Church is the
light of the world built upon Christ Who is the Mountain.
