1
Kings 8:1-7, 9-13 / Mark 6:53-56
The ark is placed in the Temple: A
cloud filled the Temple.
In
his spiritual autobiography The Seven Storey Mountain, Thomas Merton describes
a religious experience he had. The summer after graduating from high school, he
traveled around Europe on his own. During his travels, he discovered Europe’s
magnificent cathedrals, with their inspiring statues and stained glass. He
writes: “I began to haunt the churches. . . . For the first time in my life I
began to find out something about who the person was that men called Christ. . . .But
above all.
. . [I began to experience] Christ himself present in those churches.” It was
this kind of experience of God’s presence that the people had in today’s
reading.
****
Where
do we experience God’s presence most in our own life? “God enters by a private
door into every individual.” Ralph Waldo Emerson
****
Whatever poor
opinions some people may have about the Mass, there might be times when we
wish that something dramatic will happen at Mass that will make them change
their minds. But whatever we wish may also not be likely to happen, and those
who are skeptical and cynical about the Mass may not be likely to change their
stand, even if something dramatic happens.
In the 1st
reading, something dramatic did happen when the ark of the covenant was brought
into the Temple. A cloud, a symbol of the presence of God, filled the Temple and
because of the cloud, the priests could no longer perform their duties: the
glory of the Lord filled the Temple.
We may think that this dramatic event will reinforce the
faith of the people and that it will be remembered by future generations.
Yet, in 586 BC, the Temple was razed to the ground by
Israel's enemies because the people lost faith in God and they even defiled the
Temple, maybe because they couldn't see God's presence in the Temple.
But when Jesus stepped out of the boat at Gennesaret, the
people recognized Him and started hurrying all through the countryside and
brought the sick on stretchers for Him to heal them and they even begged to
touch the fringe of His cloak so that they could be healed.
Somehow, the people were able to see the presence of God in
Jesus. God's presence was not just in the Temple. God has now come to be with
the people in the person of Jesus. And Jesus is now present in us and because
we receive Him in Holy Communion, we carry His presence in our hearts.
May others see the presence of Jesus in us, and may we also
believe deeply in the presence of Jesus at Mass.
****
Monday of 5th Week -Liturgy
A GOD SO NEAR WE CAN TOUCH
Introduction
The first reading
describes the dedication of the Temple built by King Solomon. God comes to take
possession of his temple. It was so holy that the priests could not stay inside
to perform their duties. In the New Testament, God’s Son is close to the
people. They recognize the face of Jesus, run after him, and touch his clothes.
They can now see and feel the nearness and humanity of God in Jesus Christ.
Opening Prayer
All-loving and healing
God, in your Son, Jesus Christ, you have shown us what it means to be fully
human and you let him bring to all who receive him the healing of forgiveness
and life. Let him touch us with his saving hands and let him speak to us his
restoring word, that he may make us whole and free and that with him, we may
fight all evil and serve you, our living God, and the people you have entrusted
to us. We ask this in the name of Jesus, the Lord.
Commentary
Our readings today are
full of movement. In the reading from Kings, there is a solemn procession
bringing the ark of the covenant to its resting place in the Holy of Holies of
the newly completed temple. Sacrifices are offered with the presence of the
priests and elders. With the ark, the presence of the invisible God was
“localized.” It served as his throne or footstool and contained the tablets of
the law that Moses had placed there. It remained in the most sacred part of the
temple, where only the high priest entered once a year on the Day of Atonement
(Yom Kippur) for ritual sacrifice. This description of the temple’s dedication
reflects the sacredness of the moment for the Hebrew people. The Gospel reminds
us that God is present in Jesus in a most unique way. In his ministry, he
cannot escape the crowd. Wherever he goes, he is recognized, with people
bringing their sick to him in ever greater numbers. In Jesus, God becomes
accessible, something certainly worthy of our reflection. Ours is not some
distinct deity, infinitely separated from us. Our God shares our human
experience in knowing what it means to be ill, to be alone, to be in need. And,
in addition, there is our added access in the Eucharist, through that we can
come to him to be nourished, strengthened, and consoled on our earthly journey.
The psalm today prays for our God to advance to his resting place. Yet in this
new dispensation, he has become the source of our rest. His great desire is to
be of help. As Mark says today, all who touched him were healed.
Points to Ponder
The sacredness of the ark
The temple and the
presence of the ark
Jesus as the presence of
God
The Eucharist: our source
of life
Intercessions
– That the sick and all
those who suffer may feel how the Lord Jesus touches them in those who care for
them, we pray:
– That those who have
lost the way to church may still pray to the Lord, and eventually return to the
community, we pray:
– That the men and the
women who help keep our churches neat and clean and those who help make our
places of worship attractive may grow close to the Lord, we pray:
Prayer over the Gifts
Almighty God, as we bring
before you these gifts of bread and wine, we thank you with Jesus and through
him, for the healing you let him bring to us. Keep touching us with his gentle
hands and speaking to us his kindly words that restore us and create us anew. Inspire
us to live for one another and for you, our living God, now and for ever.
Prayer after Communion
Lord, our God, you let
your Son become one of us, and through him, you can fully understand the pains
and joys we experience. By the strength and healing, he has brought us here, may
we reach out to one another and share in each other’s laughter and pain. And
when words fail us, let us just be near to those who suffer in respectful
silence, by the grace of him who is near to us and heals us from all our ills, Jesus
Christ, our Lord.
Blessing
As people healed by the
touch of Jesus, let us become healers to one another, with the blessing of
almighty God, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
***
Saint Agatha
Feast day February 5
Saint Agatha is the patroness of nurses, foundry workers,
miners, jewelers, and Alpine guides. She is invoked against fire, earthquakes,
famine, thunderstorms, and volcanic eruptions. In Italy, her feast day is
celebrated with fireworks. According to some stories, Agatha was born in Sicily
of noble parents in the third century. Her loveliness and kindness came to the
attention of Quintian, governor of Sicily. He put her into prison for being a
Christian, and there she underwent the extreme tortures that finally killed
her. Art shows her holding a plate, a candle, or a house in flames.
It is certain that Agatha was a martyr. She probably died
during the persecutions under the emperor Decius between 240 and 251. Agatha’s
name came to be included in the canon of the Roman Mass. She is honored for her
courage in suffering and in remaining pure for the sake of Christ.
