DAILY GOSPEL: 28/03/2011
«Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.» John 6,68
Monday of the Third week of Lent
2nd book of Kings 5:1-15.
Naaman, the army commander of the king of Aram, was highly esteemed and respected by his master, for through him the LORD had brought victory to Aram. But valiant as he was, the man was a leper.
Now the Arameans had captured from the land of Israel in a raid a little girl, who became the servant of Naaman's wife.
"If only my master would present himself to the prophet in Samaria," she said to her mistress, "he would cure him of his leprosy."
Naaman went and told his lord just what the slave girl from the land of Israel had said.
"Go," said the king of Aram. "I will send along a letter to the king of Israel." So Naaman set out, taking along ten silver talents, six thousand gold pieces, and ten festal garments.
To the king of Israel he brought the letter, which read: "With this letter I am sending my servant Naaman to you, that you may cure him of his leprosy."
When he read the letter, the king of Israel tore his garments and exclaimed: "Am I a god with power over life and death, that this man should send someone to me to be cured of leprosy? Take note! You can see he is only looking for a quarrel with me!"
When Elisha, the man of God, heard that the king of Israel had torn his garments, he sent word to the king: "Why have you torn your garments? Let him come to me and find out that there is a prophet in Israel."
Naaman came with his horses and chariots and stopped at the door of Elisha's house.
The prophet sent him the message: "Go and wash seven times in the Jordan, and your flesh will heal, and you will be clean."
But Naaman went away angry, saying, "I thought that he would surely come out and stand there to invoke the LORD his God, and would move his hand over the spot, and thus cure the leprosy.
Are not the rivers of Damascus, the Abana and the Pharpar, better than all the waters of Israel? Could I not wash in them and be cleansed?" With this, he turned about in anger and left.
But his servants came up and reasoned with him. "My father," they said, "if the prophet had told you to do something extraordinary, would you not have done it? All the more now, since he said to you, 'Wash and be clean,' should you do as he said."
So Naaman went down and plunged into the Jordan seven times at the word of the man of God. His flesh became again like the flesh of a little child, and he was clean.
He returned with his whole retinue to the man of God. On his arrival he stood before him and said, "Now I know that there is no God in all the earth, except in Israel. Please accept a gift from your servant."
Psalms 42(41):2.3.43(42):3.4.
As the deer longs for streams of water, so my soul longs for you, O God.
My being thirsts for God, the living God. When can I go and see the face of God?
Send your light and fidelity, that they may be my guide And bring me to your holy mountain, to the place of your dwelling,
That I may come to the altar of God, to God, my joy, my delight. Then I will praise you with the harp, O God, my God.
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke 4:24-30.
Jesus said to the people in the synagogue at Nazareth: «Amen, I say to you, no prophet is accepted in his own native place.
Indeed, I tell you, there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah when the sky was closed for three and a half years and a severe famine spread over the entire land.
It was to none of these that Elijah was sent, but only to a widow in Zarephath in the land of Sidon.
Again, there were many lepers in Israel during the time of Elisha the prophet; yet not one of them was cleansed, but only Naaman the Syrian."
When the people in the synagogue heard this, they were all filled with fury.
They rose up, drove him out of the town, and led him to the brow of the hill on which their town had been built, to hurl him down headlong.
But he passed through the midst of them and went away.
Naaman, the army commander of the king of Aram, was highly esteemed and respected by his master, for through him the LORD had brought victory to Aram. But valiant as he was, the man was a leper.
Now the Arameans had captured from the land of Israel in a raid a little girl, who became the servant of Naaman's wife.
"If only my master would present himself to the prophet in Samaria," she said to her mistress, "he would cure him of his leprosy."
Naaman went and told his lord just what the slave girl from the land of Israel had said.
"Go," said the king of Aram. "I will send along a letter to the king of Israel." So Naaman set out, taking along ten silver talents, six thousand gold pieces, and ten festal garments.
To the king of Israel he brought the letter, which read: "With this letter I am sending my servant Naaman to you, that you may cure him of his leprosy."
When he read the letter, the king of Israel tore his garments and exclaimed: "Am I a god with power over life and death, that this man should send someone to me to be cured of leprosy? Take note! You can see he is only looking for a quarrel with me!"
When Elisha, the man of God, heard that the king of Israel had torn his garments, he sent word to the king: "Why have you torn your garments? Let him come to me and find out that there is a prophet in Israel."
Naaman came with his horses and chariots and stopped at the door of Elisha's house.
The prophet sent him the message: "Go and wash seven times in the Jordan, and your flesh will heal, and you will be clean."
But Naaman went away angry, saying, "I thought that he would surely come out and stand there to invoke the LORD his God, and would move his hand over the spot, and thus cure the leprosy.
Are not the rivers of Damascus, the Abana and the Pharpar, better than all the waters of Israel? Could I not wash in them and be cleansed?" With this, he turned about in anger and left.
But his servants came up and reasoned with him. "My father," they said, "if the prophet had told you to do something extraordinary, would you not have done it? All the more now, since he said to you, 'Wash and be clean,' should you do as he said."
So Naaman went down and plunged into the Jordan seven times at the word of the man of God. His flesh became again like the flesh of a little child, and he was clean.
He returned with his whole retinue to the man of God. On his arrival he stood before him and said, "Now I know that there is no God in all the earth, except in Israel. Please accept a gift from your servant."
Psalms 42(41):2.3.43(42):3.4.
As the deer longs for streams of water, so my soul longs for you, O God.
My being thirsts for God, the living God. When can I go and see the face of God?
Send your light and fidelity, that they may be my guide And bring me to your holy mountain, to the place of your dwelling,
That I may come to the altar of God, to God, my joy, my delight. Then I will praise you with the harp, O God, my God.
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke 4:24-30.
Jesus said to the people in the synagogue at Nazareth: «Amen, I say to you, no prophet is accepted in his own native place.
Indeed, I tell you, there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah when the sky was closed for three and a half years and a severe famine spread over the entire land.
It was to none of these that Elijah was sent, but only to a widow in Zarephath in the land of Sidon.
Again, there were many lepers in Israel during the time of Elisha the prophet; yet not one of them was cleansed, but only Naaman the Syrian."
When the people in the synagogue heard this, they were all filled with fury.
They rose up, drove him out of the town, and led him to the brow of the hill on which their town had been built, to hurl him down headlong.
But he passed through the midst of them and went away.
Saint Ambrose (c.340-397), Bishop of Milan and Doctor of the Church
Mysteries, § 16-21 (trans. SC 25, p. 112)
Lent leads us to a baptismal resurrection
Naaman was a Syrian who had leprosy and could not be cured by anyone. Then a young slave girl said there was a prophet in Israel who could cleans him of his leprous affliction... Now learn who was that young girl among his slaves: she was the youthful gathering from among all the Gentiles, namely the Church of the Lord, who had formerly been crushed by the slavery of sin when as yet she did not possess the freedom of grace. It was on her advice that this empty-headed gentile people paid attention to the prophets' words, which they had long held in doubt. No sooner had he believed he must obey than he was washed free of every infection from his misdeeds. Naaman had doubted before his cure; but you have been cured already and therefore ought not to doubt.
This is the reason why you have already been told not just to believe what you see as you draw near to the baptistery, lest you say: "Is this the great mystery that 'eye has not seen nor ear heard, nor has it entered into the human heart'? (1Cor 2,9). I see water as I see it every day; can these waters, into which I have frequently gone down without ever being cleansed, make me clean?" Learn from this that water does not cleanse without the Spirit. This is why you have read that: the "three witnesses at baptism are one: the water, the blood and the Spirit" (1Jn 5,7-8). For if you take one of these away it is no longer the sacrament of baptism. Indeed, what use is the water without the cross of Christ? It's just plain matter without any kind of sacramental effect. Similarly, without water there is no mystery of regeneration. "No one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit" (Jn 3,5). The catechumen believes in the cross of the Lord Jesus with which he is signed, but if he has not been baptised in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit he cannot receive the remission of his sins nor draw from the gift of spiritual grace.
So this Syrian immersed himself seven times in the Law, but you have been baptised in the name of the Trinity. You have confessed the Father...., you have confessed the Son, you have confessed the Holy Spirit... You have died to the world and risen again for God and, after a certain fashion, been buried in this worldly element at the same time. Dead to sin, you have been raised for eternal life (Rm 6,4).
This is the reason why you have already been told not just to believe what you see as you draw near to the baptistery, lest you say: "Is this the great mystery that 'eye has not seen nor ear heard, nor has it entered into the human heart'? (1Cor 2,9). I see water as I see it every day; can these waters, into which I have frequently gone down without ever being cleansed, make me clean?" Learn from this that water does not cleanse without the Spirit. This is why you have read that: the "three witnesses at baptism are one: the water, the blood and the Spirit" (1Jn 5,7-8). For if you take one of these away it is no longer the sacrament of baptism. Indeed, what use is the water without the cross of Christ? It's just plain matter without any kind of sacramental effect. Similarly, without water there is no mystery of regeneration. "No one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit" (Jn 3,5). The catechumen believes in the cross of the Lord Jesus with which he is signed, but if he has not been baptised in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit he cannot receive the remission of his sins nor draw from the gift of spiritual grace.
So this Syrian immersed himself seven times in the Law, but you have been baptised in the name of the Trinity. You have confessed the Father...., you have confessed the Son, you have confessed the Holy Spirit... You have died to the world and risen again for God and, after a certain fashion, been buried in this worldly element at the same time. Dead to sin, you have been raised for eternal life (Rm 6,4).
 St Gontran, King (545-592)SAINT GONTRAN King (545-592) St. Gontran was the son of King Clotaire, and grandson of Clovis I. and St. Clotildis. Being the second son, whilst his brothers Charibert reigned at Paris, and Sigebert in Ostrasia, residing at Metz, he was crowned king of Orleans and Burgundy in 561, making Chalons his capital. When compelled to take up arms against his ambitious brothers and the Lombards, he made no other use of his victories, under the conduct of a brave general called Mommol, than to give peace to his dominions. The crimes in which the barbarous manners of his nation involved him he effaced by tears of repentance. The prosperity of his reign, both in peace and war, condemns those who think that human policy cannot be modelled by the maxims of the Gospel, whereas nothing can render a government more flourishing. He always treated the pastors of the Church with respect and veneration. He was the protector of the oppressed, and the tender parent of his subjects. He gave the greatest attention to the care of the sick. He fasted, prayed, wept, and offered himself to God night and day as a victim ready to be sacrificed on the altar of His justice, to avert His indignation which he believed he himself had provoked and drawn down upon his innocent people. He was a severe punisher of crimes in his officers and others, and, by many wholesome regulations, restrained the barbarous licentiousness of his troops; but no man was more ready to forgive offences against his own person. With royal magnificence he built and endowed many churches and monasteries. This good king died in 592, in the sixty-eighth year of his age, having reigned thirty-one years and some months. Lives of the Saints, by Alban Butler, Benziger Bros. ed. [1894] | |
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