Through this Eucharistic Celebration, may you not only hear the word, positively respond to it, but also proclaim it in your personal life through humble service to your needy neighbors. Happy Sunday +John I. Okoye.
DOCTRINE AND FAITH, 3RD SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
(Nehemiah 8,2-4a, 5-6, 8-10; 1 Corinthians 12,12-30; Luke 1,1-4; 4:14-21
In the first reading Ezra presides in the reading of the law which takes about six or seven hours, from daybreak to midday. Interpretation was provided along with the reading because the community, made up of descendants of those who had been taken into exile, may not have understood the Hebrew in which the law was written. Ezra and those with him hand down the tradition they have received. Thus the people can accept it as their own and can identify with events and communities of the past. Their response to this instructive reading is curious-they weep. The assembly itself was intended to be a joyful one, but the people weep. They were however exhorted to rejoice, to participate in a festive meal.
In the second reading Paul gives instruction on the diversity found within the community by using the analogy of the body. In the body each part has its own unique function, but all parts work for the good of the whole. This figure of speech characterises several aspects of the ideal Christian community. First, it portrays unity in diversity, a unity that is far from uniformity. Second, it underscores the absence of competition among members, since no one activity is elevated above the others. Lowly service is no less important than charismatic gifts. Third, it underscores the interdependence that exists within the community. The unity within the community is based on common baptism. All were baptised in the Spirit, and all were baptised into the body of Christ. In this community there are no severely discriminating distinctions, whether based on religious background (Jew or Greek) or on social status (slave or free). Cultural and gender differences will remain, but they will not determine one's membership within the community. All drink of the same Spirit, so all live by the same life, the life of the Spirit. The metaphor of the body helps us see how important every member is. The analogy indicates also that Christians should be particularly considerate of members of the community who are in need of care. God seems to care for the neediest, and so should the members of the Christian community. Finally, the solidarity that should flourish within the Church is poignantly characterised: If one part suffers, all suffer; If one part is honoured, all are honoured. There is no room for competition or resentment in this kind of community.
In the gospel story of today, Jesus is at home in the synagogue of his village, attending service there. He is handed the Isaian scroll and the passage read was 61,1-2. There we find a prophet endowed with the Spirit, having been anointed by the Lord and has accompanying duties. The principal function of the prophet is proclamation. He is called to announce liberty, release prisoners, heal the sick and declare the year of the Lord. The good news proclaimed to them promises they will be the beneficiaries of the year of release/jubilee. The year of the Lord became a powerful metaphor for general emancipation and economic restructuring as well as eschatological fulfilment. It symbolised the advent of a new era, a time of deliverance for the disadvantaged. This was a year that was instituted through the favour of the Lord, not the goodwill of others. With the eyes of the synagogue fixed on him, Jesus makes a bold claim: Today this Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing. He is the prophet who is filled with the Spirit; he is the one who inaugurates the year of deliverance; he is the one who has launched the era of eschatological fulfilment. The primary theme that comes through the readings of this Sunday is the word of God. Just as the Christmas season was the time to celebrate the incarnation of the Word of God in human form, so today we reflect on the proclamation of the word of God as found in the religious traditions that are handed down. In both the first reading from Nehemiah and the gospel passage from Luke we see the dynamic power of the word of God as it is proclaimed. Paul's teaching originated as oral proclamation, and like the texts read by Ezra the priest and the one interpreted by Jesus himself, it was first proclaimed aloud. Only later were each of these proclamations regarded as the written word of God, handed down from one community to another, from one generation to the next. This word reminds the people of their identity as People of God. It situates them within the long and glorious stream of covenanted people. It calls them to the faithful living out of the implications of their identity.
There is something unique about hearing the word of God, realising that it is fulfilled in our hearing. Part of this certainly stems from the oral character of our earliest ancestors. However, there is more to it. In a very real sense, the ear is the threshold through which the word of God penetrates the consciousness of the person. Thus the fundamental summons of the people of Israel was, Hear, O Israel! Hear means take into yourself; allow it to penetrate the deepest resources of your being. Hear the word of God proclaimed and allow it to take root, like the seed that is sown by the sower. The word of God elicits various responses from those who hear it. The first reading for today provides us with an example of openness to that word. The people who heard Ezra cried out in response: Amen, amen! So be it! We hear and we will obey! The audience of Jesus must have been equally touched by his exposition of the sacred words of Scripture. Can we do less? The people at the time of Ezra were at a turning point in their history, and they knew it. The people in the synagogue of Nazareth were also at a turning point, but they probably were unaware of the importance of the moment within which they stood. We too are at a turning point, a new season of the Liturgical Year. The frantic excitement of Christmas is over; the ordinariness of life has taken hold. However, the word of God as proclaimed always insists we are on the threshold of the new age. And how will we respond? Are we eager to obey? Do we view the law as a treasure, as life-giving? Have we learned to live with one another as members of one body, each member being important and contributing to the total health of the entire body? Have we moved into the new age of fulfilment eager to be transformed? Do we live differently in our families: Are we more patient, more understanding? Are we more generous in our local communities? In our churches? In our villages, in our zones and stations and parishes? Have we crossed into a new era with renewed commitment? Has hearing the word of God proclaimed made any kind of difference in our lives? Or do we have ears that are uncircumcised, closed to the power of the word of God? Both Ezra and Jesus proclaimed the word of God within the context of a liturgical celebration, a setting similar to the ones wherein most people today hear God's word proclaimed. According to the teaching of Vatican II, the liturgy is described as the source and summit of our lives, and the Liturgy of the Word is an essential part of that celebration. With the people of Ezra we are invited to respond: Amen, amen! Thanks be to God! It is also in the complex makeup of the liturgical assembly that we realise that though one body in Christ, we respond as different members of that body. Some identify with the hand, others with the foot. Some who hear the word proclaimed do so from situations of poverty, others from positions of power. Both women and men hear it, as do people from different ethnic groups and tribes. In addition to this, Christians of various denominations hear the same word and respond in ways shaped by their respective religious tradition. All are open to the word, and it takes root in them as seed that is sown. It enjoys various yields because it takes root in different ground. This diversity need not separate us; actually, it can enrich us. May Jesus Christ in today’s liturgy help us to be mindful of some of what we are accepting when we reply Thanks be to God! to the word of God being proclaimed. Happy Sunday!+John I. Okoye
pictures by Chukwubike
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