First Reading: Nm 24:2-7, 15-17a
When Balaam raised his eyes and saw Israel encamped, tribe by tribe,
the spirit of God came upon him,
and he gave voice to his oracle:
The utterance of Balaam, son of Beor,
the utterance of a man whose eye is true,
The utterance of one who hears what God says,
and knows what the Most High knows,
Of one who sees what the Almighty sees,
enraptured, and with eyes unveiled:
How goodly are your tents, O Jacob;
your encampments, O Israel!
They are like gardens beside a stream,
like the cedars planted by the LORD.
His wells shall yield free-flowing waters,
he shall have the sea within reach;
His king shall rise higher,
and his royalty shall be exalted.
Then Balaam gave voice to his oracle:
The utterance of Balaam, son of Beor,
the utterance of the man whose eye is true,
The utterance of one who hears what God says,
and knows what the Most High knows,
Of one who sees what the Almighty sees,
enraptured, and with eyes unveiled.
I see him, though not now;
I behold him, though not near:
A star shall advance from Jacob,
and a staff shall rise from Israel.
Responsorial Psalm: Ps 25:4-5ab, 6 and 7bc, 8-9
R./ Teach me your ways, O Lord.
Your ways, O LORD, make known to me;
teach me your paths,
Guide me in your truth and teach me,
for you are God my savior.
R./ Teach me your ways, O Lord.
Remember that your compassion, O LORD,
and your kindness are from of old.
In your kindness remember me,
because of your goodness, O LORD.
R./ Teach me your ways, O Lord.
Good and upright is the LORD;
thus he shows sinners the way.
He guides the humble to justice,
he teaches the humble his way.
R./ Teach me your ways, O Lord.
Gospel Reading: Mt 21:23-27
Jesus had entered the Temple and was teaching when the chief priests, the teachers of the Law and the Jewish authorities came to him and asked, "What authority have you to act like this? Who gave you authority to do all this?"
Jesus answered them, "I will also ask you a question, only one. And if you give me an answer, then I will tell you by what authority I do these things. When John began to baptize, was it a work of God, or was it merely something human?"
They reasoned out among themselves, "If we reply that it was a work of God, he will say: Why, then, did you not believe him? And if we say: The baptism of John was merely something human, beware of the people: since all hold John as a prophet." So they answered Jesus, "We do not know."
And Jesus said to them, "Neither will I tell you by what right I do these things."
In the Gospel passages proclaimed at Mass, we frequently find Jesus praising the Father for the faith of the simple and the poor—those who accept His word, meaning they accept Him as the Messiah and Lord.
However, in today’s reading, what we hear is a sharp and biting response to those questioning His authority. It is an answer that unsettles His questioners because it unveils their arrogance and hypocrisy. They believe they have authority simply because they consider themselves superior and wise. And, in a worldly sense, they are. Let’s say they are the “elite” among the Jews. The Temple priests, rabbis, and scribes know the Sacred Law, but they also know political intrigues and the levers of power. Yet, they are unable to explain where they stand regarding John the Baptist, who was beheaded by Herod. The answer is just too compromising for them.
The point goes to Jesus. He knows them better than they know themselves, and the result is the immediate silence of these inquisitors. The truth is, Jesus clearly had the upper hand in this debate—as it could not be otherwise.
First reflection: There is no doubt that the Lord knows our worries and questions even before we ask them. Surely, at some point, we have demanded explanations from Him. He does not reject us; He understands us perfectly. Who knows the depths of the human heart like Jesus? We have often prayed that prayer with the surprising opening: “My Lord Jesus Christ, true God and true Man, my Creator, Father, and Redeemer…” This God we adore, Creator and Father, has come into our flesh and became man.
And a second reflection: When faced with things we do not understand, the only condition for God to restore our peace and give us strength is a humble and trusting attitude. That humble attitude—with which we accept His authority, His power, and His redeeming goodness—is the requirement for us to accept His answer, His apparent silence, and even the suffering we sometimes experience. It is the key to waiting with hope to know Him and see His face shining with power and love: contemplating Him helpless in Bethlehem, in His life culminated on the Cross, and especially—”whatever you do to the least of these, you do to me”—in everyone who suffers by our side.
Virginia Fernández“We want to be liberated from those illusions, frustrations, injustices and repression to which the modern world has subjected us in violation of its promises – this is what the young are saying, the disinherited, the automatons of modern technology: we want to be free persons, real persons, people rescued from hunger and from the spiral of incurable inferiority. Yes, answers the Man of people: come to me all you who are in tribulation and I will console you. I am with you, with the power of the Spirit, not with violence and passion. Wisdom alone liberates the world.” Paul VI, Christmas Message, Dec. 25, 1970.
Lord our God,
in a world of injustice, war and exploitation,
in which more and more people
have the means to live
but not many reasons to live for,
you promise us a star to follow,
Jesus, your Son.
God, keep in us the hope alive
that he will come today
and that, if we are willing
to take the demands of the Gospel seriously,
we can become indeed a new people
completely renewed in Christ,
our Savior for ever and ever.
– Lord Jesus, make your Church be a star that proclaims that you are present among your people when we love one another and have a sense of justice, we pray:
– Lord, let those who wander about without knowing where they are going discover in the gospel something that gives meaning to their lives, above all the person of Jesus, we pray:
– Lord, as we prepare for Christmas, may you become closer and more real to us these days, we pray:
Lord God, in these signs of bread and wine
your Son Jesus gives himself to us.
May we learn from him
that we have to give up
our selfish interests and our attitudes of superiority
if we want to reshape this world
into a place where all can live in peace
and into the sign of the higher reality
where you will be everything to all,
for ever and ever.
Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
your Son has been with us
in this eucharistic celebration.
May our unity here in you be the promise
of his presence among us in life
as our God-with-us.
Let him go with us all the way,
that our hope may never die,
for he is the way, our way
to a life and a future
that will last for ever and ever.
I see the Lord Jesus as close to us; I see him as the star of our lives. May we see him as our Savior and friend. May God bless you, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit
