Posted on 09/26/2016 8:02:28 AM PDT by Salvation
Today I would like to discuss the Gospel from last Saturday morning’s daily Mass (25th Week of the Year). For indeed one of the more beautiful passages in the Old Testament is the 12th Chapter of Ecclesiastes. It is a melancholy but soulful meditation on old age. Its poetic imagery is masterful as it draws from the increasingly difficult effects of old age such as hearing loss, fading eyesight, difficulty walking, digestive issues, and even gray hair.
Remember your Creator in the days of your youth, before the evil days come And the years approach of which you will say, I have no pleasure in them; Before the sun is darkened. and the light, and the moon, and the stars, while the clouds return after the rain; When the guardians of the house tremble, and the strong men are bent, And the grinders are idle because they are few, and they who look through the windows grow blind; When the doors to the street are shut, and the sound of the mill is low; When one waits for the chirp of a bird, but all the daughters of song are suppressed; And one fears heights, and perils in the street; When the almond tree blooms, and the locust grows sluggish and the caper berry is without effect, Because man goes to his lasting home, and mourners go about the streets; Before the silver cord is snapped and the golden bowl is broken, And the pitcher is shattered at the spring, and the broken pulley falls into the well, And the dust returns to the earth as it once was, and the life breath returns to God who gave it. Vanity of vanities, says Qoheleth, all things are vanity! (Ecclesiastes 12:1-8)
And now some commentary on each verse (my comments are in blue)
Remember your Creator in the days of your youth, before the evil days come And the years approach of which you will say, I have no pleasure in them;
We are advised to give thanks to God for the vigor of youth because “evil” days will come. Here evil does not mean “sinfully evil.” Rather, it refers to days that are difficult and bad, days that bring challenge and pain.
We might want to be thankful for living in the modern age, because the burdens of old age are far less than they were in ancient times. Consider all the medicines and aids that make aging less difficult: Pain medicines alleviate arthritis; calcium supplements help with osteoporosis; blood pressure medication helps prevent stroke and partial paralysis; motorized scooters increase mobility; eyeglasses and hearing aids improve our ability to interact. In the ancient world, age only brought increasing and cumulative burdens, so that our author says regarding these days, “I have no pleasure in them.”
Before the sun is darkened. and the light, and the moon, and the stars, while the clouds return after the rain;
This is a poignantly poetic description of eyesight going bad. The light darkens, the moon and stars are less visible (perhaps they are blurry), and the clouds of cataracts begin to afflict the elderly.
When the guardians of the house tremble, and the strong men are bent, And the grinders are idle because they are few, and they who look through the windows grow blind;
The “guardians of the house” are the arms. They begin to tremble with the tremors common to old age, even without Parkinson’s disease.
The “strong men” are the legs. They are bent, less able to carry the weight of the body. Bent also describes the legs when we are seated, unable to walk.
The “grinders” are the teeth and they are few! We have far better dental health today. In ancient times, it was common for the elderly to have lost many if not most of their teeth. This made it difficult to eat and required food to be mashed.
The image of an elderly person sitting by a window looking out, but able to see less and less, is surely sad, but also vivid. I remember my grandmother in her last years. She could no longer read much because her eyesight was so poor and her mind could not concentrate on the text. So she sat for hours and just looked out the window.
When the doors to the street are shut, and the sound of the mill is low; When one waits for the chirp of a bird, but all the daughters of song are suppressed;
The “doors to the street” are the tightly compressed lips common to the very elderly, especially when teeth are missing. It also depicts how many of the elderly stop talking much. Their mouths seem shut tight.
The sound of the mill may be another reference to chewing. Many of the elderly lose their appetite. One the psalms says regarding the elderly, “I moan like a dove and forget to eat my bread” (Psalm 102:4).
Waiting for the chirp of the birds may be a reference to the silence of the elderly, but it may also be a reference to deafness, as many can no longer hear their singing and chirping, something the young often take for granted.
And one fears heights, and perils in the street; When the almond tree blooms, and the locust grows sluggish and the caper berry is without effect,
Walking is difficult, sometimes treacherous, and requires great effort for many of the elderly. Whereas the young may not think twice about climbing a flight of stairs, the elderly may see them as an insurmountable obstacle.
Perils in the street like loose or upturned stones cause fear because falls for the elderly can be catastrophic. They may also not be able to get up if they fall.
The almond tree blooming is a symbol for gray hair because almond trees had white blooms.
The caper berry had several uses in the ancient world. It was an appetite stimulant, an aphrodisiac, and was also used to treat rheumatism! But in old age, it would seem that the desired effects are hard to come by.
Because man goes to his lasting home, and mourners go about the streets; Before the silver cord is snapped and the golden bowl is broken, And the pitcher is shattered at the spring, and the broken pulley falls into the well, And the dust returns to the earth as it once was, and the life breath returns to God who gave it.
Finally, death comes, as symbolized by the mourners in the street. The silver cord and the golden bowl, symbols of life, are now snapped and broken.
The broken pitcher symbolizes that the body no longer contains the soul.
The pulley, a device used to lift, is now broken, indicating that the body will no longer rise from its place but rather fall into the well of the grave.
And we return to the dust and the soul goes to God.
Vanity of vanities, says Qoheleth, all things are vanity!
In the end, all things pass. Nothing remains. Because all things are to pass, they are vain (empty). The physical world is less real than the spiritual world, because the physical passes while the spiritual remains. Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is seated at God’s right hand (Col 1:3).
This chapter from Ecclesiastes is a sad but powerfully beautiful description of old age. I have often shared it with the very elderly and those who are suffering the ill effects of old age. I remember reading it slowly to my father as he lay dying in his hospital room. He could no longer talk much, but as I read it to him I saw him nod and raise his hands as if to say “Amen!” It was almost as if he meant to say, “Somebody understands; God understands.” Perhaps you also know an elderly person who could benefit from this passage. I know that it is sad and that not everyone is in a condition that they can hear such a stark and sad description, but some are in a frame of mind such that they can derive peace from it, as God, through His word, tell them that He knows exactly what they are going through.
Monsignor Pope Ping!
One of the things that just recently hit me was about the use of “evil” in the bible. It says God causes evil. That used to bother me until I found out what “evil” means in our english translations. It means “a bad thing happening”. e.g. falling and breaking your arm is an “evil”. Getting bit by a dog is “evil” When a murderer is executed it is “evil”.
i.e. it is not about sin. It’s about unpleasant things happening.
That being said, it CAN be about sin. But in our English translations, that is not the core usage of the word.
I’m so depressed!! :)
I think i’ll pass on reading it to mom.
It’s like a 2 hour depressing movie with a good 2 minute ending.
They could have saved lot of room by writing “old age sucks, but they you die and go to Heaven”
Ecclesiastes is my favorite OT book. I can listen to it three times through on my way to work.
People say Proverbs is the book of wisdom. I disagree. Proverbs is wisdom 101. Ecclesiastes is post graduate wisdom.
I call it “solomon, after he’s had the cars, the chicks, the jet and the villa in the alps, finally discovers and communicates that the whole thing is pointless. Rather, you should use the body gave you to work and bring value to others, enjoy the fruits of that labor, and then life ends. And it is all good. And chapter 12 wraps up the whole thing beautifully.
It is fun to read Ecclesiastes followed by John.
Peter Kreeft says Ecclesiastes is the question the rest of the bible was written to answer. It’s the best description I’ve ever heard. And you’re right, it’s a awesome book. It points out every existential issue that Nietzsche raises, but did it thousands of years earlier. There really is nothing new under the sun.
Yes indeed and life goes as fast as the video. I’m at the hearing part now. That also contributes to old age silence for you can’t hear to comment. Anyway I have a trip to the VA audiologist coming up. Vanity of Vanities. No problem reading. Thanks
Thank you for posting this. I’m now ninety, so true. But thanks to modern medical research, the VA just did cataract
operation on my eyes and I can see clearly again.
The VA gave me hearing aids too.
Yes....
that’s a GREAT saying
Cataract surgery is great.
I urge all to whom it might be recommended to go ahead with the surgeries. (They do one eye at a time.)
Good reminder. Thanks.
bump
That's why I'm going to keep teaching middle schoolers at our parish until I can't go on.
Just started my 19th year teaching Old Testament to our 6th graders. A couple of years ago, I vowed I would limit myself to Wednesday night, and not double up on Sunday (different dynamic, way too many kids).
This year, my son started in the HS ministry, which is right after 4:30 Sunday Mass. It's important that he continue, so I made the decision we'll both go to 4:30, and I'll spend the time as a "floater" in classes that are short a teacher.
I was put to work right away, in a class that was, ahem, energetic...lol. The class for the night was on discovering the Bible, and how to locate chapters/verses, I had them look up 1 John 3:18, my favorite verse, and one I'm passionate about. I surprised myself, as they sat quietly during my "sermon".
Is this part of His "plan"? All I know is that just about every year, 6th grade struggles to get the necessary number of teachers to meet the Safe Child guidelines, i.e. two adults to a room. There's been a few times where it was just me, although another adult would check in every 10-15 minutes.
Hopefully, I'll still be around and able to teach my grandson in 6 years.
BTTT
Too often teachers present what they think their church would have them teach rather than depending on Gods Spirit to teach the children through them what he would have them to know.
After years of teaching I would suspect you already know this......as teachers bare a great responsibility to get it right.
We needed it, as we now have one of the largest Catholic parishes in the country, and the largest in the Dallas Diocese. Twenty years ago, we had about 1000 families; now, it's upward of 8,000 families. Our middle school program is over 500 students strong.
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