Holy Family of Bordeaux - Province of Ireland and Britain

Jesus has just performed an exorcism. The demon in the man who was possessed recognises Jesus. He even asks Jesus if the final hour for Satan’s reign has come. He even recognises Jesus as ‘the Holy One of God.’ Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit. Fear came over the crowd and they wondered about the source of Jesus’ authority. “Never did any man speak like this man,” they said.

Jesus speaks to our hearts, too, and opens the dark reserves of our unconscious. St. Catherine of Siena said, “You will never love the neighbour outside you unless you have accepted the darkness within you.” We are spellbound by Jesus’ teaching, for the words have authority. Evil permeates our world too, but Jesus’ power is far greater than Satan’s. St. Paul prays: “Glory to God whose power at work within us can do infinitely more than we can ask or imagine.” (Ephesians 3:20) Through Scripture and prayer we are in the presence of Jesus.

In today’s Gospel passage, Jesus goes to the synagogue at Nazareth and reads from the scroll of the prophet, Isaiah.  It is Jesus’ inaugural address.  At the end of the reading Jesus says ‘this scripture passage has been fulfilled in your hearing today.” It was Jesus’ formal proclamation of his mission.

God’s anointed herald is Jesus himself and the mission entrusted to him will be spelt out by Luke in the remaining part of his Gospel – Jesus would preach the Good News to the poor, announce liberty to captives, restore sight to the blind and lift up the down-trodden.

The solemnity of the proclamation is indicated by the way it is described and highlights the importance of the Word of God for the congregation. This event in the synagogue is carefully structured and might be presented as follows :

                        In the synagogue

                                             He got up

                                                  He was handed the scroll

                                                          He unrolled the scroll

                                                                 He found the passage from Isaiah (Is 61:1-2)

                                                    He rolled the scroll

                                     He handed it back

                        He sat down

                In the synagogue

Major themes in Luke’s Gospel show concern for the poor people’s amazement at Jesus’ outreach to the Gentiles. The text says that “the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him.” The role of the Spirit is emphasised here: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me”. Jesus proclaims himself a prophet. We, too, must be spirited with high enthusiasm and great joy. Jesus concluded. “The Reign of God is already in your midst.”

Jesus is the guest of a Pharisee – in this case a ‘leading’ Pharisee. It is obvious that this was a ‘set-up’ meal: the text says that the people there were ‘watching him closely.’ ’ More than likely, all the guests would have been Pharisees. Among the guests was a man who was suffering from dropsy (oedema). It is important too to note that it was the Sabbath day. The Pharisees were the professional observers of the Sabbath. Healing on that day would have been regarded by them as ‘work’ which would be included among the 613 laws that were forbidden on the Sabbath. The Sabbath had been established as a day of worship – not observance of the Law – a day of rest that would ensure a day off especially for slaves. A sure sign of degeneration of religion is the preoccupation with institutional law…Jesus asked the guests: “Is it lawful to cure people on the Sabbath or not?” But they were silent. So, Jesus healed the man.

Jesus was always willing to accept an invitation to a meal: they were opportunities for proclaiming the Kingdom. ’ More than likely, all the guests would have been Pharisees.

For Jesus, the Reign of God was a banquet – let’s celebrate. The meals Jesus took in company reveal his simple acceptance of the ‘smiling side’ of life. A meal, for example, was called for as an appropriate way for welcoming home the Prodigal Son. The Last Supper was a particularly important meal – a farewell meal. Meals, too, were symbolic. Peig Sayers’ concept of heaven was that of a banquet hall where all would be gathered round a table of plenty – a banquet, as expressed in Psalm 23 – “You have prepared a banquet for me…” Jesus performed the first of his signs at the wedding feast at Cana in Galilee.

It was a stumbling block to the Pharisees, the self-righteous that Jesus dined with sinners.

Today we celebrate one of the greatest theologians the Church has ever known. Augustine is a model of conversion for Christians of all ages, and his life, after his own conversion, is a great witness to the patience of God.

One day, when he heard children singing the phrase : “take and read,” he picked up the New Testament where he read Paul’s letter to the Romans. He saw there that he could not hide from God, that God is love and that we are loved by God.

In Matthew we read that God invites us not to imitate the Pharisees, who were convinced that conversion of heart and a change of life were not necessary. Augustine understood what the Pharisees did not.

He was baptised by Saint Ambrose and when he became Bishop of Hippo he defended the faith against many heresies. He finally found rest and peace when he discovered the pearl of great price and the meaning of life.

(Picture is Saint Augustine with his mother Saint Monica)