The Sunday of the Word of God!
The Sunday of the Word of God!
On September 30, 2019, on the Feast of St. Jerome, Pope Francis declared the Third Sunday in Ordinary Time as Sunday of the Word of God. On this day, he published an Apostolic Letter, the Motu Proprio "Aperuit illis", which also marks the 1600th anniversary of the death of St. Jerome, who translated the Bible into Latin. St. Jerome said: "Ignorance of scripture is ignorance of Christ." The Sunday of the Word of God is dedicated to the celebration, study, and dissemination of the Word of God. The Second Vatican Council’s Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation, Dei Verbum, was solemnly promulgated by Pope Paul VI on November 18, 1965. Pope Francis says that Dei Verbum makes clear that “the words of God, expressed in human language, are in every way like human speech, just as the Word of the eternal Father, in taking upon himself the weak flesh of human beings, also took on their likeness” (No. 13).
In No. 8, Pope Francis says, “As the Second Vatican Council teaches, “the Church has always venerated the divine Scriptures as she has venerated the Lord’s body, in that she never ceases, above all in the sacred liturgy, to partake of the bread of life and to offer it to the faithful from the one table of the word of God and the body of Christ” (Dei Verbum, 21).” The Gospel of John chapter 1 says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (1:1) … “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us” (1:14).
Today, we have thousands and thousands of missionaries proclaiming the “Word of God” around the world. We are the missionaries sent out in our neighborhood. Through the Baptism, we are called to continue Jesus’ ministry – proclaiming the Good News. Every time we gather to celebrate Eucharist, we receive Jesus, in the “Word of God,” and in the “Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity.” Then we are sent out to live the Eucharist and to share our mission with many.
The Sunday of Word of God reminds us to spend time with the Word of God. As Catholics, we are privileged to hear the entire Bible read over three years during Mass. If we take time to read the Sunday readings prior to Mass and read them again after the Mass, we will have a great understanding of the Bible in three years.
Tourists were visiting the famous Carlsbad Caverns in New Mexico. While they were below ground in the giant cave, the lights went out. Among those trapped in the darkness were two children: an eight-year-old boy and a five-year-old sister.
The situation was scary, especially for children. Suddenly, the little girl began to cry. The eight-year-old brother was heard saying, “Don’t worry, Amy. There is a man up there who knows how to turn the lights on again.”
The story is a beautiful illustration of the prophecy of Isaiah in the first reading. In the Gospel of Matthew, it says this prophecy is fulfilled: ‘the people who sit in darkness have seen a great light, on those dwelling in a land overshadowed by death, light has arisen.’ Matthew 5:17, Jesus says, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have come not to abolish but to fulfill.”
A thousand years before Jesus, God promised King David that his kingdom would last forever (2 Samuel 7). David’s kingdom consisted of the 12 sons of Jacob and their descendants, which made the 12 tribes of the kingdom of Israel. However, by 922 BC, after the death of Solomon, the kingdom of Israel was divided into two: the 10 tribes in the north formed the kingdom of Israel, and the two tribes in the south formed the kingdom of Judah. Isaiah lived in a divided Israel.
Invaders like Assyrians, Babylonians, and Romans always came through the north. It was the trade route. What were. The tribes of Zebulun and Naphtali were the first two tribes to go into exile. In 722 BC, the Assyrian exile, most of the tribes of the Northern Kingdom of Israel were wiped out from the face of the map. In 587 BC, the remaining two tribes, the Kingdom of Judah, were taken into exile by the Babylonians. Around 537 BC Persians defeated the Babylonians and liberated the two tribes in the south. For sixth-century Jews, all of God’s promises were broken, and the kingdom was ruined. Isaiah says, “The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light” (9:1). Isaiah proclaimed that God’s power is greater than the power of darkness and assured them of great light. Matthew sees here, through the coming of the Messiah to Zebulun and Naphtali, that this prophecy is fulfilled. Precisely where the exile began is where Jesus will start the restoration, undoing its effects. Jesus started the restoration by announcing, “Repent, for the kingdom of God is at hand.” The Greek word “metanoia” means a profound change of heart.
In the second part of the Gospel, Jesus called four of the Apostles, two pairs of brothers, to follow him. They left everything and followed him. Jesus told them, “Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men.” They found the “great light” and learned everything from him.
The question is, how is Jesus going to gather the twelve tribes of Israel? He chose twelve apostles and prepared them to gather the people of the new Israel. He entrusted the light to the twelve to carry to the end of the world. Today, we are counted among the twelve to carry the light to those who are in darkness. Today, we, the new Israel, gather in celebration of the Eucharist, the nourishment for our journey, and send out to proclaim the Good News in our daily lives.