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Today, 6th of December, we celebrate
Saint Nicholas
Ezk 24:15-23
The word of the LORD came to me:
Son of man, by a sudden blow
I am taking away from you the delight of your eyes,
but do not mourn or weep or shed any tears.
Groan in silence, make no lament for the dead,
bind on your turban, put your sandals on your feet,
do not cover your beard, and do not eat the customary bread.
That evening my wife died,
and the next morning I did as I had been commanded.
Then the people asked me, “Will you not tell us what all these things
that you are doing mean for us?”
I therefore spoke to the people that morning, saying to them:
Thus the word of the LORD came to me:
Say to the house of Israel:
Thus says the Lord GOD:
I will now desecrate my sanctuary, the stronghold of your pride,
the delight of your eyes, the desire of your soul.
The sons and daughters you left behind shall fall by the sword.
Ezekiel shall be a sign for you:
all that he did you shall do when it happens.
Thus you shall know that I am the LORD.
You shall do as I have done,
not covering your beards nor eating the customary bread.
Your turbans shall remain on your heads, your sandals on your feet.
You shall not mourn or weep,
but you shall rot away because of your sins and groan one to another.
Dt 32:18-19,20,21
R./ You have forgotten God who gave you birth.
You were unmindful of the Rock that begot you.
You forgot the God who gave you birth.
When the LORD saw this, he was filled with loathing
and anger toward his sons and daughters.
R./ You have forgotten God who gave you birth.
“I will hide my face from them,” he said,
“and see what will then become of them.
What a fickle race they are,
sons with no loyalty in them!”
R./ You have forgotten God who gave you birth.
“Since they have provoked me with their ‘no-god’
and angered me with their vain idols,
I will provoke them with a ‘no-people’;
with a foolish nation I will anger them.”
R./ You have forgotten God who gave you birth.
Matthew 19:16-22
A young man approached him and asked, "Master, what good work must I do to receive eternal life?" Jesus answered, "Why do you ask me about what is good?" Only one is Good. If you want to enter eternal life, keep the commandments." The young man said, "Which commandments?" Jesus replied, "Do not kill, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not bear false witness, honor your father and mother, and love your neighbor as yourself."
The young man said to him, "I have kept all these commandments, what is still lacking?" Jesus answered, "If you wish to be perfect, go and sell all that you possess and give the money to the poor and you will become the owner of a treasure in heaven. Then come back and follow me."
On hearing this answer, the young man went away sad for he was a man of great wealth.
Jesus totally changes this man’s approach in today’s Gospel. The man asked about one thing, and Jesus answered with something else. Today we’d say Jesus took him out of his comfort zone. But we must recognize that this is what Jesus usually does with us. And it’s what’s good for us most of the time.
I say this because the man approaches Jesus worried about his salvation. He has big blinders on and short-sighted vision. His «ego» comes first. The man wonders if he will be saved and what he has to do to be saved. At first, the rest of the world – including nature and people near and far – gives the impression that he doesn’t care about it in the slightest. The man is focused on himself and his salvation: «What good deed must I do to have eternal life?»
At first, Jesus leaves him where he is. If you want life, just keep the commandments. Nothing more is needed. But the man seeks, as we often do, security. He wants to be sure of being saved. He wants to have a kind of policy or certificate that guarantees he’s on the right track. So he keeps asking. He already keeps the commandments, but he wants that extra bit of security. Like someone who has health insurance but buys another more expensive one with better doctors, just to feel more secure.
That’s where Jesus answers him by taking him out of his boxes. He tells him to stop thinking about himself and his salvation, to look up to the horizon, to notice his brothers and sisters, to leave everything – everything that seemed to make him feel secure – and to follow him. Following Jesus means entering into total insecurity. It’s about walking without a fixed destination, extending a hand to those in need of all kinds. It’s about thinking of others and their needs before oneself. It means living in insecurity. It means accepting that everything can end badly, as it did, and that one can only trust blindly in the Father-Abba.
Fernando Torres, cmfLord our God,
we are eager to follow your Son
wherever he leads us,
but not if we have to give up
our little or big attachments to things or persons.
God, give us the mentality of your Son
and his Spirit of courage,
that with Jesus we may not count the cost
of giving ourselves to people and to you.
Be you our only God and our all
now and for ever.
Introduction to the First Reading
When his wife dies, Ezekiel is not allowed by God to mourn. This is a symbolic action prefiguring that when the temple will be destroyed and many of the people killed at the total destruction of the city and the going into exile, no one will be left to mourn.
Introduction to Gospel Reading
We probably pity the young man in today's gospel for not having the courage to give up his wealth for a higher good. He was a just man, full of good will, eager for more than an average, contented life. Yet when Jesus' call is directed to him, he cannot decide to give up his possessions to become fully happy. But are we better than he? Are we willing to share, also when it hurts, also at a cost of ourselves?
- For people who have a hard time to share their riches, that the Lord open their eyes to the needs of people, we pray:
- For those who hear the Lord calling them to special vocations in the Church, that they may generously answer that call, we pray:
- For all of us, that we may appreciate God's gifts with gratitude and use them for the good of all, we pray:
Lord our God,
with this bread and this wine
we welcome your Son in our midst.
As he places himself into our hands,
entirely and without holding anything back,
may he give us the strength
to go with him all the way,
without looking back
and without counting the cost,
for he is our Lord for ever.
Lord our God,
you have satisfied our hunger
for food that lasts.
Let it be a hunger that cannot be stilled
for you, for people, for life in its fullness.
Give us the courage to sacrifice everything
for Jesus and his gospel,
that with him we may give you
not only the best of what we have
but our whole selves, our all,
by the power of Jesus Christ our Lord.
"What do I lack?" We think perhaps that, in good faith and without boasting we have done much for the Lord. Have we given ourselves? What is there that we could not give up? May almighty God bless you, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
