Issue 10 / October / 2011

The Gospel of Matthew

e-Good News
The Gospels in October are beginning to prepare us to reflect on the life of Jesus and some of the struggles that he faced.
Matthew wrote his Gospel during a time of change. He lived in a mixed community of Jews and pagans.
There were certain tensions in their life together. It might be a stretch of imagination, but we are living in a time of tension and transition. The Gospels in October help us to reflect on the life of Jesus and some of the struggles that he faced. Matthew uses a number of scenes to teach us how Jesus responded to this period of difficulty. On a deeper level, we also get clues within Jesus teaching as to how the church-community are to live when he is gone. During his lifetime, his mission was to the house of Israel. His followers, and that includes many of us who strive to follow him today, have to find ways of reaching out to all the nations of the earth. The challenge of evangelisation is bringing Good News to everyone. Appropriately in October we celebrate Mission Sunday, a milestone for everyone to reflect, pray and witness to mission of the Gospel today in our world and in our life.

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Sunday 2nd October - 23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time The parable of the vineyard
Matthew 21:33-43

Sunday Reflection
This parable is also found in Mark and in Luke. It takes place in the temple in Jerusalem. To help to understand this parable, the owner is God; the vineyard is Israel, the tenants are the Jewish leaders; the servants are the prophets; the son is Jesus; the new tenants are the early Church.
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pointers for Prayer

The target audience of this parable are the Jewish chief priests and elders portrayed here as rejecting Jesus and his teaching, and as a consequence losing out on what God was offering them. It is a story of opportunity for life presented and rejected, and they lose out in the process. How important have you found it to recognise and accept opportunities for growth, development and new life when these were presented to you? The parable is also a cautionary tale about the destructive effects of greed doing violence to the rights of others and eventually destroying the greedy themselves. What attitude towards possessions has helped you to be at peace in yourself and at peace with others? The vineyard of the Lord is an image for Gods people. As we look at the vineyard we have been given we can ask ourselves are we good tenants? Recall times when you have been a good tenant, and reached out caringly for those around you. The landowner in the story is angered at the behaviour of the tenants. In his anger he takes steps to pass the care of his vineyard on to others. When have you allowed your anger at injustice, or at the abuse of people to move you to take steps to redress the injustice? When have you used the energy of your anger to motivate you to take a positive step?

This is the third of three vineyard parables in succession. In Matthews version the owner is called a householder - a term used in Matthew (7+1+4) to refer to God in the parables (Matthew 10:25; 13:27, 52; 20:1, 11; 21:33; 24:43). The absentee landowner may reflect actual conditions in Galilee during the ministry of Jesus. The harvest is the time of judgement; the slaves are the prophets sent regularly to the people of Israel. Notice that in Matthew they are sent to collect his produce. The stoning of a prophet occurs in 2 Chronicles 24:21. The second set of slaves might be a reference in Matthews rabbinic mind to the former and the latter prophets of the Hebrew Bible. After the previous experience, it seems naive of household (God) to send his son (Jesus), but this is the naivety of love, continuing to trust and to hope. The use of finally is evidence that Matthew sees a new stage of salvation history opening the Jesus death. The sequence in Mark is altered (they seized him, killed him, and threw him out of the vineyard) so that the Son is killed outside the vineyard, effecting a clearer reference to Golgotha. Again, Mark is transformed and supplemented: What then will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy the tenants and give the vineyard to others. (Mark 12:9) The transition to the Christian dispensation is anything but complacent - the fruit is still expected. A reference to Jesus as the cornerstone. A tough and forthright clarification, unique to Matthew. Lest it lead to smugness, it is best read in the light of Romans 11.

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Prayer
YOURS, O God is the vineyard and its harvest, yours the kingdom of justice and peace. You call your people to tend its growth. Bless the work entrusted to our hands, that we may offer you an abundance of just works, a rich harvest of peace. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God for ever and ever. Amen.

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Sunday 9th October - 24th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Matthew 22:1-14

Sunday Reflection
This parable is also found in Luke (14:15-24). In this version, Matthew presents the image that the Kingdom of God is open to all comers. His version make the parable edgy and uncomfortable to read.
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pointers for Prayer

Scripture often speaks of the Kingdom of God as a banquet. It is not meant to be taken only as referring to life after death but it also shows how God wants us to be in our relationships with one another in this life. The image of people being at a meal where everyone is happy and welcome and where all hunger and thirst is satisfied gets across the idea that God loves, accepts and welcomes us and wants us to make that experience available to one another. Think of times in your life when you have had banquet experiences and when you have felt accepted and loved? The host enlists the help of his servants to invite people to the banquet. We are commissioned by the Lord to invite people to the banquet of the kingdom, to the fullness of life as parents, teachers, friends, etc. What has it been like for you to play a part in leading others to a fuller life? There are many ways in which we can reflect on the guests invited, for example, a) The ones invited first all found excuses to refuse the invitation. How do you feel when someone turns down an invitation you offer? Have there been times when you have found excuses to refuse an invitation from the Lord, or from others? What effect did this have in your life, or on others? b) The second round of invitations went out to everyone in the streets, good and bad. What is it like for you to receive an invitation, particularly when you do not consider yourself worthy of that invitation? c) Notice that the banquet of the Kingdom is an inclusive one. When have you given an open, inclusive invitation to others? As in the parable last week there is a message about being alert to invitations that offer a fuller life and the danger of losing out if we neglect to respond to such invitations. Perhaps there have been opportunities offered to you that you missed, and now regret. Think also of the blessings you received because you seized the moment and took an opportunity that presented itself. The second parable puts the focus on how we respond to invitations. Some invitations are ones that challenge us to change, to conversion, to put on a wedding garment. What has been your experience of change of mind or opinion?

This unexpected interruption is most like Matthews reflection on the Jewish War and the destruction of the Holy City and the Temple. This verse marks the transition to the final paragraph. Naturally the other version in Luke lacks the distinction good and bad and goes its own, also theological way: Then the master said to the slave, Go out into the roads and lanes, and compel people to come in, so that my house may be filled. For I tell you, none of those who were invited will taste my dinner. (Luke 14:23-24). This awkward, well-remembered verse is found only here in the New Testament. It represents the growth of a more stringent, even pessimistic view of the Kingdom, in some contrast with the parables of extraordinary growth.

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Prayer
GOD OF ALL goodness and kindness, you invite all peoples to the banquet and offer them a feast beyond compare. Give us your saving grace to keep unstained the robe of our baptism, until that day when you welcome us to heavens joyful table. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God for ever and ever. Amen.
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Sunday 16th October - 25th Sunday in Ordinary Time Give to God the things that are Gods
Matthew 22:15-21(22)

Sunday Reflection
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This resumes the threatening tone through these chapters and serves to undermine the sincerity of the questions being asked. Actually, Pharisees did not have disciples - Matthew just means Pharisees. No one really knows who the Herodians were. It cant really mean members of the ruling family. The introduction is a ridiculously obvious attempt at flattery. Nevertheless, although they do not mean it, the four things said of Jesus are, for the believer, absolutely true.
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his opponents and disconcerting them with a very different, higher perspective. It may have also served to help the membership of Matthews community to know how to relate to the Roman Empire after the fall of Jerusalem in AD 70. They have been under pressure from fellow Jews to distance themselves further from the state.

POINTERS FOR PRAYER

The story sees a mixture of religion and politics, a potentially explosive combination. Jesus does not ask us to avoid politics, but that our involvement in the affairs of the world be informed by the perspective of the Reign of God. How does the gospel give you a vision of how your involvement in society should be? Pharisees and Herodians were not natural allies but a shared dislike of Jesus brought them together in an attempt to discredit him. Perhaps you experience the same opposition in society today when you profess to being a Christian or a Catholic. Jesus did not get into an argument with them but simply professed his belief in the priority of God in his life. What have you found helpful in bearing witness to the fact that you are still a believing Christian or still go to church?

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To answer no would align Jesus with the Zealots, whose goal was political revolution. To answer yes would detach Jesus the mendicant prophet from his audience the poor. The introduction of this very tax had provoked a rebellion in AD 6 under Judas of Galilee. The writers opinion (malice) and Jesus understanding (hypocrisy) coincide. The question is not about the tax but about Jesus! Putting Jesus to the test is the work of the devil: Jesus said to him (i.e. the devil), Again it is written, Do not put the Lord your God to the test. (Matthew 4:7). The original text has image rather than head, and inscription rather than title (as in the NRSV). It is interesting that they do have the coin within the Temple precincts, as Judaism was totally aniconic, not allowing even human representation. The only valid image of God is the human being, according to Genesis 1:26-27. At the time, the denarius of Tiberias carried the legend: Tiberias Caesar, son of the divine Augustus and High Priest (lit. pontifex maximus!). Having the coin in your pocket means you have already accepted the imperial system and the authority of Rome. These are not equal sentiments, although they seem balanced. The emperor is due his tax. God is due all that we are, as we are just about to hear in the following verses: Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest? He said to him, You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and first commandment. (Matthew 22:36 -38) Giving to Caesar is the least of it, as they say. The second part has great power because it obliges us to ask, what is Gods and how do I give to God? Thus concludes this round of debates. The Pharisees do not disappear altogether and are back in the text shortly. In its historical context (both in the ministry and in the Gospel) this text does not deal with the relationship of church and state. Instead, it is part of the build-up against Jesus and responds obliquely to critics of his indiscriminate inclusion of all in Gods project or kingdom. It shows Jesus turning the table on
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Prayer
O GOD, whose image we bear and whose name we carry, yours in the world and all it contains. Recall us to our true allegiance, so that above the power and rulers of this world you alone may claim our fullest loyalty and love. We make our prayer through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God for ever and ever. Amen.

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Sunday 23rd October - 26th Sunday in Ordinary Time The greatest commandment
MATTHEW 22:34-40

Sunday Reflection
The challenge in this text is not in reading it, but living it. This exchange is found in all three synoptic gospels.
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pointers for Prayer

You may feel some sympathy with the Jews struggling to cope with 613 laws and wondering which were the important ones. But have you ever felt overwhelmed by the rules and regulations of your own tradition? And have you ever been blessed by meeting someone, or reading something, that was able to cut through all the layers and point out to you what is essential in life? Who was that person? What did s/he say or do? Is there some phrase or text that encapsulates such wisdom for you? If you were asked what is most important in life, what would your answer be? Recall the experiences and relationships you have had. Which are the ones that you treasure most? What has particularly enriched your life? How would you encourage another person who asked you how she/he could live a full life?

The Pharisees and the Sadducees did not agree on all points of doctrine (e.g. the resurrection). Lawyer here means someone versed in religious law, i.e. a kind of theologian. This question was often asked in the later rabbinic tradition and the answer there given does not contradict our text. The Shema Yisrael still prayed three times daily by practicing Jews. A pointed evaluation, perhaps best grasped in the light of 1 John above. It is often commented these days that there is an implied approval of loving yourself - and there is, except that the emphasis here falls on loving your neighbour the same way. A summary statement. Law = the Pentateuch, the first five books of Moses.

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Prayer
YOUR LOVE, O God is boundless. We who were strangers have been made your children. We who were defenceless have been brought into your household. Keep us mindful of your deeds of mercy, that we may love you with all our heart and love our neighbour as ourselves. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God for ever and ever. Amen.

Read the Gospel either from your missal or from your Bible

Sunday 30th October - 26th Sunday in Ordinary Time Judgment of false leaders
MATTHEW 23:1-12

Sunday Reflection
Both parts of this Gospel reading offer direct challenges to the whole church in our day. The meaning is not really difficult to discern. It is noticeable that the discourse is not directed to the scribes and the Pharisees, but oddly to the crowds and the disciples.
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pointers for Prayer

Do our actions match our words? People whose behaviour matches the values they profess have a much greater influence for good. Recall people whom you admired for this quality. Perhaps your own experience at times confirms this. Jesus also has hard words for those whose priority lies in receiving acknowledgement and recognition of honour and status from others. Even for the people honoured, such words and gestures can have an empty feeling. How much better for us to be comfortable in our own skin, recognising our goodness, and acknowledging our limitations. Our passage ends with a paradox. Those who exalt themselves will be humbled and those who humble themselves will be exalted. For Jesus the way to greatness and a full life is through service of others. When have you found the way of service brought unexpected rewards?

The address to the disciples means this teaching is not just about the past but also about the present church reality. They were Moses successors in authority and in teaching. The command is clear and faithful. It is in some tension with comments elsewhere in this Gospel. The advice in the second part constitutes the most serious and severe critique that can be offered to religious leadership. It has not lost any of its relevance for today, alas. The burdens are the details of Jewish Law with its 613 commandments (see for example 12:9-14). Such show is always a risk of all forms of external religion. Compare Luke 14:1-11. Rabbi means literally great one. Christ as teacher is clearly present in this Gospel in the long teaching discourses. This means first of all no one at all, including your own father! This is a repeat of v. 8 with the addition of the idea of a trained teacher. Found widely across the New Testament. Status reversal is a mark of the Kingdom.
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Prayer
SOVEREIGN GOD, We have no father but you, Conform our lives to the faith we profess preserve us from arrogance and pride and teach us in Christ the greatness of humility and service. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God for ever and ever. Amen.

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