January 17, 2005 - Monday, 2nd Week in Ordinary Time
Memorial of Saint Anthony, abbot

Old and New

Readings:
Heb 5:1-10; Ps 110:1, 2, 3, 4
Mk 2:18-22

Opening Prayer

Unchanging and ever-new God,
you want us to be your pilgrim people
on the march with Jesus your Son
toward a new future of justice and love.
Do not allow us to suffocate in being contented
with old habits and sluggish ways.
Help us to accept the pain
of leaving the familiar behind us
and open us to the challenge of the gospel
to become more like your Son
who guides our faltering steps,
Jesus Christ our Lord.

Liturgy of the Word

First Reading Introduction:

This very well known passage of Hebrews evokes the central place in our faith of the passion and glorification of Christ. Jewish priests had to offer first sacrifices for their own sins. Christ replaced the “I will not serve” with the service of obedience to the will of the Father.

First Reading: Heb 5:1-10

Every High Priest is taken from among mortals and appointed to be their representative before God to offer gifts and sacrifices for sin. He is able to understand the ignorant and erring for he himself is subject to weakness. This is why he is bound to offer sacrifices for his sins as well as for the sins of the people. Besides, one does not presume to take this dignity, but takes it only when called by God, as Aaron was.

Nor did Christ become High Priest in taking upon himself this dignity, but it was given to him by the One who says: You are my son, I have begotten you today. And in another place: You are a priest forever in the priestly order of Melchizedek.

Christ, in the days of his mortal life, offered his sacrifice with tears and cries. He prayed to him who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his humble submission. Although he was Son, he learned through suffering what obedience was, and once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for those who obey him. This is how God proclaimed him Priest in the order of Melchizedek.

Responsorial Psalm: Psalms 110:1, 2, 3, 4

R (4b) You are a priest for ever, in the line of Melchizedek.

The LORD said to my Lord: "Sit at my right hand
till I make your enemies your footstool."
R (4b) You are a priest for ever, in the line of Melchizedek.

The scepter of your power the LORD will stretch forth from Zion:
"Rule in the midst of your enemies."
R (4b) You are a priest for ever, in the line of Melchizedek.

"Yours is princely power in the day of your birth, in holy splendor;
before the daystar, like the dew, I have begotten you."
R (4b) You are a priest for ever, in the line of Melchizedek.

The LORD has sworn, and he will not repent:
"You are a priest forever, according to the order of Melchizedek."
R (4b) You are a priest for ever, in the line of Melchizedek.

Gospel Introduction:

You know from experience that change is always a problem to us. It calls us away from the security of our ingrained habits and our certainties and it forces us to go unfamiliar ways. That is why, as if by nature, we resist change. It is an inherent law of Christianity to be always open to renewal and conversion. The trouble is that the old and the new are usually intolerant of one another.

Gospel Reading: Mk 2:18-22

One day, when the disciples of John the Baptist and the Pharisees were fasting, some people asked Jesus, "Why is it that both the disciples of John and of the Pharisees fast, but yours do not?" Jesus answered, "How can the wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them? As long as they have the bridegroom with them, they cannot fast. But the day will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them and on that day they will fast.

"No one sews a piece of new cloth on an old coat, because the new patch will shrink and tear away from the old cloth, making a worse tear. And no one puts new wine into old wineskins, for the wine would burst the skins and then both the wine and the skins would be lost. But new wine, new skins!"

Commentary

ALREADY Jesus is running into resistance from his own leaders because of his practices. He and his disciples do not fast like John's followers or the Pharisees. When questioned he tells them he is the bridegroom-in prophetic terms, the messiah! And that while his presence is with them there is no fasting. But the warning comes too: there will all too soon come a time when there will be cause for fasting when he is taken from them.

Jesus is something altogether new, like a piece of new cloth that cannot be sewn into a piece of cloth that is unraveling and torn or like new wine that will burst asunder on old skin. Jesus is shockingly new, a discontinuity in the continuity tradition-do we ever let this reality shock us into radical change? Does any area of our life burst apart because of the presence of Jesus who brings a kingdom for the poor and justice for those most in need?

General Intercessions

–          For the Church, that the People of God and its leaders may follow the promptings of the creative Spirit to speak to the people of today in the language of today the ever-new message of the gospel of Jesus Christ, we pray:

–          For artists, poets and inventors, that they may reveal to us the splendor of creation and the riches of life beyond its apparent drabness, we pray:

–          For our communities, that we may not be afraid of authentic change, and draw from Christ the courage to start the renewal of the world and of the Church with the renewal of ourselves, we pray:

Prayer over the Gifts

Lord our God,
with bread and wine we celebrate
the covenant you renew with us
in the blood of Jesus Christ.
Make us indeed your new faithful people
bound to you in an everlasting union of love.
Renew our hearts;
make us your new wine of hope and joy,
that we may rebuild this earth today
and march forward with your Son
toward a new heaven,
where you will be our God for ever.

Prayer after Communion

God of hope,
you have given us Jesus your Son
as our companion on the road
for understanding the old, familiar things
with a new and young heart
and for renewing ourselves and the world.
Let him prod us on
when we try to compromise
by merely patching up the old here and there;
let him curb our impatience
when we try to rush people
beyond their capacity for growth.
Lead us ever forward through our trusted guide,
Jesus Christ our Lord.

Blessing

Yes, it is not easy to change ourselves, our Church, our world. But life is growth. We have to grow up to the size and the stature of Christ. We have to become mature Christians in mature communities, with the Blessing of almighty God, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

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