Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam (To the Greater Glory of God)
For: Tuesday, August 16, 2011
20th Week in Ordinary Time
Optional Memorial: St Stephen of Hungary
From: Judges 6:11-24a
God calls Gideon
[19] So Gideon went into his house and prepared a kid, and unleavened cakes
from an ephah of flour; the meat he put in a basket, and the broth he put in a
pot, and brought them to him under the oak and presented them. [20] And the
angel of God said to him, “Take the meat and unleavened cakes, and put them
on this rock, and pour the broth over them. And he did so. [21] Then the angel
of the Lord reached out the tip of the staff that was in his hand, and touched the
meat and the unleavened cakes; and there sprang up fire from the rock and con-
sumed the flesh and the unleavened cakes; and the angel of the Lord vanished
from his sight; [22] Then Gideon perceived that he was the angel of the Lord;
and Gideon said, “Alas, O Lord God! For now I have seen the angel of the Lord
face to face. [23] Then Gideon built an altar there to the Lord.
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Commentary:
6:11-32. This is one of the oldest accounts of calling in Holy Scripture; in it the
sacred writer includes features to be found in all instances of vocation.
Gods choice falls on a man who never would have expected a vocation; he re-
ceives the call in the course of his ordinary work, when he is grinding corn (v.
11). The call is Gods initiative. In some particularly important cases (such as
this), the Lord uses an angel to convey his message (cf. Lk 1:11, 28). His gree-
ting begins with references to the fact that the Lord is close to his chosen one —
“The Lord is with you (v. 12; cf. Lk 1:28) and to the mission being assigned
him: God has seen the needs of his people and is going to send this man to
their aid (v. 14). the Lord did not pick this man because he deserved it or be-
cause he came of a distinguished family (v. 15).
The usual reaction to a call from God is a reluctance to respond. Gideon recites
all the difficulties and limitations which would disqualify him from the task: how
did we get into this situation (v. 13)?, how can I deliver Israel (v. 15)?. And he
even asks for a sign to confirm that the call really does come from God (v. 17).
On this occasion God gives him tangible proof, and Gideon is quite bowled over
when he sees that it really is the Lord (vv. 19-22). Then, when he decides to ac-
cept the role God is offering him, he is given words of consolation (”Do not fear)
and feels at peace (v. 23).
In the Old Testament we meet many people who are called by God and accept
that call Samuel (cf. 1 Sam 3:1-18), David (cf. 1 Sam 16:1-13), Elisha (cf. 1
Kings 19:19-21), etc. And in the New Testament the positive response to their
callings given by the Blessed Virgin (Lk 1:26-38), the apostles (Mt. 4:18-22 and
par.; 9:9 and par.; Jn 1:35-51), St Paul (Acts 9:1-19), etc. were crucial to salva-
tion history. God continues to call men and women today, to yield abundant di-
vine fruit in the name of the Lord. “If you respond to the call the Lord has made
to you, your life your poor life will leave a deep and wide furrow in the history
of the human race, a clear and fertile furrow, eternal and godly (St. J. Escriva,
The Forge, 59).
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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.
Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam (To the Greater Glory of God)
For: Tuesday, August 16, 2011
20th Week in Ordinary Time
Optional Memorial: St Stephen of Hungary
From: Matthew 19:23-30
Christian Poverty and Renunciation
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Commentary:
24-26. By drawing this comparison Jesus shows that it is simply not possible for
people who put their hearts on worldly things to obtain a share in the Kingdom of
God.
“With God all things are possible”: that is, with God’s grace man can be brave
and generous enough to use wealth to promote the service of God and man. This
is why St. Matthew, in Chapter 5, specifies that the poor “in spirit” are blessed
(Matthew 5:3).
28. “In the new world”, in the “regeneration”: a reference to the renewal of all
things which will take place when Jesus Christ comes to judge the living and the
dead. The resurrection of the body will be an integral part of this renewal.
The ancient people of God, Israel, was made up of twelve tribes. The new people
of God, the Church, to which all men are called, is founded by Jesus Christ on
the Twelve Apostles under the primacy of Peter.
29. These graphic remarks should not be explained away. They mean that love
or Jesus Christ and His Gospel should come before everything else. What our
Lord says here should not be interpreted as conflicting with the will of God Him-
self, the creator and sanctifier of family bonds.
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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.