From: Acts 8:26-40
Philip Baptizes a Eunuch
“As a sheep led to the slaughter
or a lamb before its shearer is dumb,
so he opens not his mouth.
[33] In his humiliation justice was denied him.
Who can describe his generation?
For his life is taken up from the earth.”
[34] And the eunuch said to Philip, “About whom, pray, does the prophet say
this, about himself or about some one else?” [35] Then Philip opened his mouth,
and beginning with this scripture he told him the good news of Jesus. [36] And
as they went along the road they came to some water, and the eunuch said,
“See, here is water! What is to prevent my being baptized?” [38] And he com-
manded the chariot to stop, and they both went down into the water, Philip, and
the eunuch, and he baptized him. [39] And when they came up out of the water,
the Spirit of the Lord caught up Philip; and the eunuch saw him no more, and
went on his way rejoicing. [40] But Philip was found at Azotus, and passing on
he preached the gospel to all the towns till he came to Caesarea.
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Commentary:
26-40. The baptism of the Ethiopian official marks an important step in the spread
of Christianity. St Luke’s account underlines the importance of Sacred Scripture,
and its correct interpretation, in the work of evangelization. This episode encapsu-
lates the various stages in apostolate: Christ’s disciple is moved by the Spirit (v.
29) and readily obeys his instruction; he bases his preaching on Sacred Scripture
— as Jesus did in the case of the disciples of Emmaus — and then administers
Baptism.
27. Ethiopia: the kingdom of Nubia, whose capital was Meroe, to the south of
Egypt, below Aswan, the first cataract on the Nile (part of modern Sudan). Can-
dace, or Kandake, is not the name of an individual; it was the dynastic name of
the queens of that country, a country at that time ruled by women (cf. Eusebius,
“Ecclesiastical History”, II, 1, 13).
The term “eunuch”, like its equivalent in Hebrew, was often used independently
of its original physiological meaning and could refer to any court official (cf. for
example, Gen 39:1; 2 Kings 25:19). This particular man was an important official,
the equivalent of a minister of finance. We do not know if he was a member of
the Jewish race, a proselyte (a Jew not by race but by religion) or — perhaps —
a God-fearer (cf. note on Acts 2:5-11).
28. “Consider,” St John Chrysostom says, “what a good thing it is not to neglect
reading Scripture even when one is on a journey.... Let those reflect on this who
do not even read the Scriptures at home, and, because they are with their wife,
or are fighting in the army, or are very involved in family or other affairs, think that
there is no particular need for them to make the effort to read the divine Scrip-
tures. [...] This Ethiopian has something to teach us all—those who have a family
life, members of the army, officials, in a word, all men, and women too (particu-
larly those women who are always at home), and all those who have chosen the
monastic way of life. Let all learn that no situation is an obstacle to reading the
word of God: this is something one can do not only when one is alone at home
but also in the public square, on a journey, in the company of others, or when
engaged in one’s occupation. Let us not, I implore you, neglect to read the
Scriptures” (St John Chrysostom, “Hom. on Acts”, 35).
29-30. The fact that they are alone, that the road is empty, makes it easier for
them to have a deep conversation and easier for Philip to explain Christian tea-
ching. “I think so highly of your devotion to the early Christians that I will do all I
can to encourage it, so that you—like them—will put more enthusiasm each day
into that effective Apostolate of discretion and friendship” St. Escriva, “The Way”,
971). This was in fact one of the characteristic features of the kind of apostolate
carried out by our first brothers and sisters in the faith as they spread gradually
all over the Roman empire. They brought the Christian message to the people
around them — the sailor to the rest of the crew, the slave to his fellow slaves,
soldiers, traders, housewives .... This eager desire of theirs to spread the Gos-
pel showed their genuine conviction and was an additional proof of the truth of
the Christian message.
31. “How can I understand it, unless some one guides me?”: to a Jew of this pe-
riod the very idea of a Messiah who suffers and dies at the hands of his enemies
was quite repugnant. This explains why the Ethiopian has difficulty in understan-
ding this passage—and, indeed, the entire song of the Servant of Yahweh, from
which it comes (cf. Is 53).
Sometimes it is difficult to understand a passage of Scripture; as St Jerome com-
ments: “I am not,” to speak in passing of himself, “more learned or more holy than
that eunuch who traveled to the temple from Ethiopia, that is, from the end of the
earth: he left the royal palace and such was his desire for divine knowledge that
he was even reading the sacred words in his chariot. And yet...he did not realize
whom he was venerating in that book without knowing it. Philip comes along, he
reveals to him Jesus hidden and as it were imprisoned in the text [...], and in that
very moment he believes, is baptized, is faithful and holy. [...] I tell you this to
show you that, unless you have a guide who goes ahead of you to show you the
way, you cannot enter the holy Scriptures” (”Letter 53”, 5-6).
This guide is the Church; God, who inspired the sacred books, has entrusted
their interpretation to the Church. Therefore, the Second Vatican Council teaches
that “If we are to derive their true meaning from the sacred texts,” attention must
be devoted “not only to their content but to the unity of the whole of Scripture,
the living tradition of the entire Church, and the analogy of faith. [...] Everything to
do with the interpretation of Scripture is ultimately subject to the judgment of the
Church, which exercises the divinely conferred communion and ministry of wat-
ching over and interpreting the Word of God” (Vatican II, “Dei Verbum”, 12).
35. “The eunuch deserves our admiration for his readiness to believe,” St John
Chrysostom comments. “He has not seen Jesus Christ nor has he witnessed
any miracle; what then is the reason for his change? It is because, being obser-
vant in matters of religion, he applies himself to the study of the sacred books
and makes them his book of meditation and reading” (”Hom. on Acts”, 19).
36. “What is to prevent my being baptized?”: the Ethiopian’s question reminds us
of the conditions necessary for receiving Baptism. Adults should be instructed in
the faith before receiving this sacrament; however, a period of “Christian initiation”
is not required if there is a good reason, such as danger of death.
The Church’s Magisterium stresses the obligation to baptize children without de-
lay. “The fact that children are incapable of making a personal profession of faith
does not deter the Church from conferring this sacrament on them; what it does
is baptize them in its own faith. This teaching was already clearly expressed by
St Augustine: ‘Children are presented for the reception of spiritual grace, not so
much by those who carry them in their arms—although also by them, if they are
good members of the Church as by the universal society of saints and faithful.
It is Mother Church herself who acts in her saints, because the whole Church be-
gets each and all’ (”Letter 98”, 5; cf. “Sermon 176”, 2). St Thomas Aquinas, and
after him most theologians, take up the same teaching: the child who is baptized
does not believe for itself, by a personal act of faith, but rather through others ‘by
the faith of the Church which is communicated to the child’ (”Summa Theologiae”,
III, q.69, a.6, ad 3; cf. q. 68, a. 9, ad 3). This same teaching is expressed in the
new rite of Baptism, when the celebrant asks the parents and godparents to pro-
fess the faith of the Church ‘in which the children are being baptized’”(”Instruction
on Infant Baptism”, 20 October 1980).
The Instruction goes on to say that “it is true that apostolic preaching is normal-
ly addressed to adults, and that the first to be baptized were adults who had
been converted to the Christian faith. From what we read in the New Testament
we might be led to think that it deals only with adults’ faith. However, the practice
of Baptism of infants is based on an ancient tradition of apostolic origin, whose
value must not be underestimated; furthermore, Baptism has never been admini-
stered without faith: in the case of infants the faith that intervenes is the Church’s
own faith. Besides, according to the Council of Trent’s teaching on the sacra-
ments, Baptism is not only a sign of faith: it is also the cause of faith” (”ibid.”).
Christian parents have a duty to see that their children are baptized quickly. The
Code of Canon Law specifies that parents are obliged to see that their infants are
baptized within the first few weeks. As soon as possible after the birth, indeed of-
ten before it, they are to approach the parish priest to ask for the sacrament for
their child, and to be themselves duly prepared for it” (can. 867).
37. This verse, not to be found in some Greek codices or in the better transla-
tions, was probably a gloss which later found its way into the text. In the Vulgate
it is given in this way: “Dixit autem Philippus: Si credis ex toto corde, licet. Et res-
pondens ait: Credo, Filium Dei esse Jesum Christum”, which translated would be:
“Philip said, If you believe with all your heart, you may. And he replied, I believe
that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.” This very ancient gloss, inspired by baptis-
mal liturgy, helps to demonstrate that faith in Christ’s divine worship was the nu-
cleus of the creed a person had to subscribe to in order to be baptized. On this
occasion Philip, guided by the Holy Spirit, lays down no further condition and he
immediately proceeds to baptize the Ethiopian.
39. St John Chrysostom pauses to note that the Spirit takes Philip away without
giving him time to rejoice with the man he has just baptized: “Why did the Spirit
of the Lord bear him away? Because he had to go on to preach in other cities.
We should not be surprised that this happened in a divine rather than a human
way” (”Hom. on Acts”, 19).
The official “went on his way rejoicing” that God had made him his son through
Baptism. He had received the gift of faith, and with the help of divine grace he
was ready to live up to all the demands of that faith, even in adverse circumstan-
ces: quite probably he would be the only Christian in all Ethiopia.
Faith is a gift of God and is received as such at Baptism; but man’s response is
necessary if this gift is not to prove fruitless.
Baptism is one of the sacraments which imprints an indelible mark on the soul
and which can be received only once. However, a baptized person needs to be
continually renewing his commitment; this is not something to be done only du-
ring the Easter liturgy: in his everyday activity he should be striving to act like a
son of God.
It is natural and logical for the Ethiopian to be so happy, for Baptism brings with
it many graces. These St John Chrysostom lists, using quotations from the Gos-
pels and from the letters of St Paul: “The newly baptized are free, holy, righteous,
sons of God, heirs of heaven, brothers and co-heirs of Christ, members of his bo-
dy, temples of God, instruments of the Holy Spirit.... Those who yesterday were
captives are today free men and citizens of the Church. Those who yesterday
were in the shame of sin are now safe in righteousness; not alone are they free,
they are holy” (”Baptismal Catechesis”, III, 5).
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Source: “The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries”. Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.
Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.
From: John 6:44-51
The Discourse on the Bread of Life (Continuation)
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Commentary:
44-45. Seeking Jesus until one finds Him is a free gift which no one can obtain
through his own efforts, although everyone should try to be well disposed to re-
ceiving it. The Magisterium of the Church has recalled this teaching in Vatican II:
“Before this faith can be exercised, man must have the grace of God to move
and assist him; he must have the interior help of the Holy Spirit, who moves the
heart and converts it to God, who opens the eyes of the mind and makes it easy
for all to accept and believe the truth” (”Dei Verbum”, 5).
When Jesus says, “They shall all be taught by God”, He is invoking Isaiah 54:13
and Jeremiah 31:33ff, where the prophets refer to the future Covenant which God
will establish with His people when the Messiah comes, the Covenant which will
be sealed forever with the blood of the Messiah and which God will write on their
hearts (cf. Isaiah 53:10-12; Jeremiah 31:31-34).
The last sentence of verse 45 refers to God’s Revelation through the prophets
and especially through Jesus Christ.
46. Men can know God the Father only through Jesus Christ, because only He
has seen the Father, whom He has come to reveal to us. In his prologue St. John
already said: “No one has ever seen God; the only Son, who is in the bosom of
the Father, He has made Him known” (John 1:18). Later on Jesus will say to Phi-
lip at the Last Supper: “He who has seen Me has seen the Father” (John 14:9),
for Christ is the Way, the Truth and the Life, and no one goes to the Father ex-
cept through Him (cf. John 14:6).
In other words, in Christ God’s revelation to men reaches its climax: “For He
sent His Son, the eternal Word who enlightens all men, to dwell among men
and to tell them about the inner life of God (cf. John 1:1-18). Hence, Jesus Christ,
sent as ‘a man among men’, ‘utters the words of God’ (John 3:34), and accompli-
shes the saving work which the Father gave Him to do (cf. John 5:36; 17:4). To
see Jesus is to see His Father (cf. John 14:9)” (Vatican II, “Dei Verbum”, 4).
48. With this solemn declaration, which He repeats because of His audience’s
doubts, (cf. John 6:35, 41, 48), Jesus begins the second part of His discourse,
in which He explicitly reveals the great mystery of the Blessed Eucharist.
Christ’s words have such a tremendous realism about them that they cannot be
interpreted in a figurative way: if Christ were not really present under the species
of bread and wine, this discourse would make absolutely no sense. But if His
real presence in the Eucharist is accepted on faith, then His meaning is quite
clear and we can see how infinite and tender His love for us is.
This is so great a mystery that it has always acted as a touchstone for Christian
faith: it is proclaimed as “the mystery of our faith” immediately after the Conse-
cration of the Mass. Some of our Lord’s hearers were scandalized by what He
said on this occasion (cf. verses 60-66). Down through history people have tried
to dilute the obvious meaning of our Lord’s words. In our own day the Magiste-
rium of the Church has explained this teaching in these words” “When Transub-
stantiation has taken place, there is no doubt that the appearance of the bread
and the appearance of the wine take on a new expressiveness and a new pur-
pose since they are no longer common bread and common drink, but rather the
sign of something sacred and the sign of spiritual food. But they take on a new
expressiveness and a new purpose for the very reason that they contain a new
‘reality’ which we are right to call “ontological”. For beneath these appearances
there is no longer what was there before but something quite different [...] since
on the conversion of the bread and wine’s substance, or nature, into the body
and blood of Christ, nothing is left of the bread and the wine but the appearances
alone. Beneath these appearances Christ is present whole and entire, bodily pre-
sent too, in His physical ‘reality’, although not in the manner in which bodies are
present in place.
For this reason the Fathers have had to issue frequent warnings to the faithful,
when they consider this august Sacrament, not to be satisfied with the senses
which announce the properties of bread and wine. They should rather assent to
the words of Christ: these are of such power that they change, transform, ‘trans-
element’ the bread and the wine into His body and blood. The reason for this, as
the same Fathers say more than once, is that the power which performs this ac-
tion is the same power of Almighty God that created the whole universe out of
nothing at the beginning of time” (Paul VI, “Mysterium Fidei”).
49-51. The manna during the Exodus was a figure of this bread — Christ Himself
— which nourishes Christians on their pilgrimage through this world. Communion
is the wonderful banquet at which Christ gives Himself to us: “the bread which I
shall give for the life of the world is My flesh”. These words promise the manifes-
tation of the Eucharist at the Last Supper: “This is My body which is for you” (1
Corinthians 11:24). The words “for the life of the world” and “for you” refer to the
redemptive value of the sacrifice of Christ on the cross. In some sacrifices of the
Old Testament, which were a figure of the sacrifice of Christ, part of the animal
offered up was later used for food, signifying participation in the sacred rite (cf.
Exodus 11:3-4). So, by receiving Holy Communion, we are sharing in the sacri-
fice of Christ: which is why the Church sings in the Liturgy of the Hours on the
Feast of Corpus Christi: “O sacred feast in which we partake of Christ: His suf-
ferings are remembered, our minds are filled with His grace and we receive a
pledge of the glory that is to be ours” (”Magnificat Antiphon”, Evening Prayer II).
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Source: “The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries”. Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.
Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.