Catholic Caucus: Daily Mass Readings 10-December-2022

Matthew
	English: Douay-Rheims	Latin: Vulgata Clementina	Greek NT: Byzantine/Majority Text (2000)
10.	And his disciples asked him, saying: Why then do the scribes say that Elias must come first?	Et interrogaverunt eum discipuli, dicentes : Quid ergo scribæ dicunt, quod Eliam oporteat primum venire ?	και επηρωτησαν αυτον οι μαθηται αυτου λεγοντες τι ουν οι γραμματεις λεγουσιν οτι ηλιαν δει ελθειν πρωτον
11.	But he answering, said to them: Elias indeed shall come, and restore all things.	At ille respondens, ait eis : Elias quidem venturus est, et restituet omnia.	ο δε ιησους αποκριθεις ειπεν αυτοις ηλιας μεν ερχεται πρωτον και αποκαταστησει παντα
12.	But I say to you, that Elias is already come, and they knew him not, but have done unto him whatsoever they had a mind. So also the Son of man shall suffer from them.	Dico autem vobis, quia Elias jam venit, et non cognoverunt eum, sed fecerunt in eo quæcumque voluerunt. Sic et Filius hominis passurus est ab eis.	λεγω δε υμιν οτι ηλιας ηδη ηλθεν και ουκ επεγνωσαν αυτον αλλα εποιησαν εν αυτω οσα ηθελησαν ουτως και ο υιος του ανθρωπου μελλει πασχειν υπ αυτων
13.	Then the disciples understood, that he had spoken to them of John the Baptist.	Tunc intellexerunt discipuli, quia de Joanne Baptista dixisset eis.	τοτε συνηκαν οι μαθηται οτι περι ιωαννου του βαπτιστου ειπεν αυτοις

Catena Aurea by St. Thomas Aguinas

Matthew CHAP. 17

17:10–13

10. And his disciples asked him, saying, Why then say the Scribes that Elias must first come?

11. And Jesus answered and said unto them, Elias truly shall first come, and restore all things.

12. But I say unto you, That Elias is come already, and they knew him not, but have done unto him whatsoever they listed. Likewise shall also the Son of man suffer of them.

13. Then the disciples understood that he spake unto them of John the Baptist.

JEROME. It was a tradition of the Pharisees following the Prophet Malachi, that Elias should come before the coming of the Saviour, and bring back the heart of the fathers to the children, and the children to the fathers, and restore all things to their ancient state. The disciples then consider that this transformation which they had seen in the mount was His coming in glory, and therefore it is said, And his disciples asked him, saying, How then say the Scribes that Elias must first come? As though they had said, If you have already come in glory, how is it that your forerunner appears not yet? And this they say chiefly because they see that Elias is departed again.

CHRYSOSTOM. (Hom. lvii.) The disciples knew not of the coming of Elias out of the Scriptures; but the Scribes made it known to them; and this report was current among the ignorant multitude, as was that concerning Christ. Yet the Scribes did not explain the coming of Christ and of Elias, as they ought to have done. For the Scriptures speak of two comings of Christ; that which has taken place, and that which is yet to be. But the Scribes, blinding the people, spake to them only of His second coming, and said, If this be the Christ, then should Elias have come before Him. Christ thus resolves the difficulty, He answered and said, Elias truly shall come, and restore all things; but I say unto you, that Elias has already come. Think not that here is a contradiction in His speech, if He first say that Elias shall come, and then that he is come. For when He says that Elias shall come and restore all things, He speaks of Elias himself in his own proper person, who indeed shall restore all things, in that he shall correct the unbelief of the Jews, who shall then be to be found; and that is the turning the hearts of the fathers to the children, that is, the hearts of the Jews to the Apostles.

AUGUSTINE. (Quæst. Ev. i. 21.) Or; He shall restore all things, that is those whom the persecution of Antichrist shall have overthrown; as He Himself should restore by His death those whom He ought.

CHRYSOSTOM. But if there shall so much good arise out of the presence of Elias, why did He not send him at that time? We shall say, Because they then held Christ to be Elias, and yet believed not on Him. But they shall hereafter believe Elias, because when he shall come after so great expectation announcing Jesus, they will more readily receive what shall be taught by Him. But when He says that Elias is come already, He calls John the Baptist Elias from the resemblance of their ministry; for as Elias shall be the forerunner of His second coming, so was John the forerunner of His first. And He calls John Elias, to shew that His first coming was agreeable to the Old Testament, and to prophecy.

JEROME. He then who at the Saviour’s second coming should come in the truth of His body, come now in John in power and spirit. It follows, And they knew him not, but did unto him whatsoever they would, that is, despised and beheaded him.

HILARY. As he announced the Lord’s coming, so he was also to foreshew His passion by the example of his own suffering and wrong? whence it follows, So also shall the Son of Man suffer of them.

CHRYSOSTOM. He takes the opportunity from the passion of John to refer to His own passion, thus giving them much comfort.

JEROME. It is enquired how, seeing that Herod and Herodias were they that killed John, it can be said that Jesus also was crucified by them, when we read that He was put to death by the Scribes and Pharisees? It must be answered briefly, that the party of the Pharisees consented to the death of John, and that in the Lord’s crucifixion Herod united his approval, when having mocked and set Him at nought, he sent Him back to Pilate, that he should crucify Him.

RABANUS. From the mention of His own passion which the Lord had often foretold to them, and from that of His forerunner, which they beheld already accomplished, the disciples perceived that John was set forth to them under the name of Elias; whence it follows; Then understood the disciples that he spake to them of John the Baptist.

ORIGEN. That He says of John, Elias is already come, is not to be understood of the soul of Elias, that we fall not into the doctrine of metempsychosis, which is foreign to the truth of Church doctrine, but, as the Angel had foretold, he came in the spirit and power of Elias.

Catena Aurea Matthew 17

Saint Eulalia of Mérida

Feast day December 10

St. Eulalia died a martyr at Mérida, Spain, during the persecution of Diocletian. In the early Middle Ages, her story captivated the hearts of Catholics throughout Europe. People admired her because they believed that she was only 12 when she submitted to a monstrous death. And the church in Spain now celebrates Eulalia as its greatest virgin martyr.

Around 405, Prudentius wrote a hymn in Eulalia’s honor, which popularized her story. In the poem she appears as a child mature beyond her 12 years. Because she seemed determined to defy the decree requiring worship of the gods, her mother hid her at a home in the countryside. But Eulalia slipped off at night and the very next morning fearlessly confronted the judge. Prudentius wrote:

“Miserable men, for the Christians you search! Lo, I am one of that odious race, foe to your fiendish idolatrous rites. Witness to Christ with my heart and lips, Under my feet I will trample your gods. . . .”

The judge tried bribery and gentle persuasion to win her, suggesting that she need only let her finger touch a little salt and incense. But Eulalia rebuffed him and she tramped on the offering cake. Losing all patience, the judge threatened her with instruments of torture.

As Prudentius tells it:

Forthwith two slaughterers seized her. When the executioners touched flames to her wounds, Eulalia’s hair caught fire and she was burned alive. Prudentius says that as she died a miraculous sign of her innocence amazed the onlookers.

Then of a sudden a snowy-white dove Springs from the martyr and flies Forth to the stars in the sight of the crowd. It was Eulalia’s innocent soul, winging its way to celestial heights. Snow fell, covering Eulalia’s remains until the Christians buried them nearby. Later, to mark the spot where she died, they constructed a church that became a popular shrine for pilgrims. Augustine, Jerome, and Venantius Fortunatus wrote about Eulalia, establishing her fame. And the earliest known French poem celebrated her courageous sacrifice.

loyolapress.com

NAVARRE BIBLE COMMENTARY (RSV)

Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam (To the Greater Glory of God)

From: Sirach 48:1-14

Elijah
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[1] Then the prophet Elijah arose like a fire, and his word burned like a torch. [2] He brought a famine upon them, and by his zeal he made them few in number. [3] By the word of the Lord he shut up the heavens, and also three times brought down fire.

[4] How glorious you were, 0 Elijah, in your wondrous deeds! And who has the right to boast which you have? [5] You who raised a corpse from death and from Hades, by the word of the Most High; [6] who brought kings down to destruction, and famous men from their beds; [7] who heard rebuke at Sinai and judgments of vengeance at Horeb; [8] who anointed kings to inflict retribution, and prophets to succeed you. [9] You who were taken up by a whirlwind of fire, in a chariot with horses of fire; [10] you who are ready at the appointed time, it is written, to calm the wrath of God before it breaks out in fury to turn the heart of the father to the son, and to restore the tribes of Jacob. [11] Blessed are those who saw you, and those who have been adorned in love; for we also shall surely live.

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Commentary:

48:1-16. This passage is a summary of the lives of the prophets Elijah and Elisha. The author highlights Elijah's mission to turn the heart of the father to his sons, to placate God's wrath (v. 10). In the New Testament these same words are applied to John the Baptist, with reference to his mission of preparing the way of the Lord (Lk 1:17; cf. Matt 4:5-6). Thanks to the preaching of those prophets, Sirach reminds us, a remnant of the people remained faithful (v. 16), and the continuation of the history of salvation was assured.

From: Matthew 17:9a, 10-13

The Transfiguration (Continuation)
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[9] And as they were coming down the mountains, [10] (And) the disciples asked Him (Jesus), "Then why do the scribes say that Elijah must come?" [11] He replied, "Elijah does come, and he is to restore all things; [12] but I tell you that Elijah has already come, and they did not know him, but did to him whatever they pleased. So also the Son of Man will suffer at their hands." [13] Then the disciples understood that He was speaking to them of John the Baptist.

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Commentary:

10-13. Malachi 4:5 (3:23 in the Hebrew) speaks of the coming of Elijah the prophet before "the great and terrible day of the Lord", the Judgment Day. When Jesus says that Elijah has already come, He is referring to St. John the Baptist, whose mission it was to prepare the way for the First Coming of the Lord, the same as Elijah will have to do prior to His last coming. The scribes failed to grasp the meaning of the prophecy of Malachi; they thought it referred simply to the coming of the Messiah, the First Coming of Christ.

Source: Daily Word for Reflection—Navarre Bible

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Readings at Mass

The prophet Elijah will come again

Elijah has come already and they did not recognise him

Christian Art

Catena Aurea by St. Thomas Aguinas

Matthew CHAP. 17

Saint Eulalia of Mérida

Feast day December 10