Ask the Experts

Mar 16: Thursday of the Third Week of Lent

Today’s Gospel has a quote many people attribute to Lincoln. Abraham Lincoln was an educated man of the 19th century. He was very familiar with the Bible, and could be sure his audience, even if they couldn’t cite chapter and verse, would recognize the reference.

Today, however, we get stuff like this, because people have lost the original referent—

Lincoln was a great orator, but he wasn’t Jesus. When you study your Bible, you quickly learn how much of our culture, even popular culture, is built on Christian culture.

Reading 1

Jer 7:23-28

Thus says the LORD: This is what I commanded my people: Listen to my voice; then I will be your God and you shall be my people. Walk in all the ways that I command you, so that you may prosper.

But they obeyed not, nor did they pay heed. They walked in the hardness of their evil hearts and turned their backs, not their faces, to me. From the day that your fathers left the land of Egypt even to this day, I have sent you untiringly all my servants the prophets. Yet they have not obeyed me nor paid heed; they have stiffened their necks and done worse than their fathers. When you speak all these words to them, they will not listen to you either; when you call to them, they will not answer you. Say to them: This is the nation that does not listen
to the voice of the LORD, its God, or take correction. Faithfulness has disappeared; the word itself is banished from their speech.

Jeremiah is referring to yesterday’s reading, where God commanded the Israelites to keep every commandment. But of course, they didn’t. Who could? We’re only human.

So Jeremiah warns them they’re still going to be an example, but not the positive one originally envisioned. Instead, they’ll be an example of what goes wrong when you don’t follow God.

Responsorial Psalm

Ps 95:1-2, 6-7, 8-9

R. If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.
Come, let us sing joyfully to the LORD;
let us acclaim the Rock of our salvation.
Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving;
let us joyfully sing psalms to him.
R. If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.
Come, let us bow down in worship;
let us kneel before the LORD who made us.
For he is our God,
and we are the people he shepherds, the flock he guides.
R. If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.
Oh, that today you would hear his voice:
"Harden not your hearts as at Meribah,
as in the day of Massah in the desert,
Where your fathers tempted me;
they tested me though they had seen my works."
R. If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.

Hey, we sung this on Sunday! There’s only 150, so if you sing a psalm every day, even part of a psalm, you’re going to run out pretty quickly. But do we have to repeat the same one twice in the same week?

I guess the lectionary thinks it’s pretty important, so it bears repeating.

Verse Before the Gospel

Jl 2:12-13

Even now, says the LORD,
return to me with your whole heart,
for I am gracious and merciful.

Joel reminds us that it’s not outward signs of obedience but inward change that God wants from us.

Gospel

Lk 11:14-23

Jesus was driving out a demon that was mute, and when the demon had gone out, the mute man spoke and the crowds were amazed. Some of them said, "By the power of Beelzebul, the prince of demons, he drives out demons."

Others, to test him, asked him for a sign from heaven. But he knew their thoughts and said to them, "Every kingdom divided against itself will be laid waste and house will fall against house. And if Satan is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand? For you say that it is by Beelzebul that I drive out demons. If I, then, drive out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your own people drive them out? Therefore they will be your judges. But if it is by the finger of God that I drive out demons, then the Kingdom of God has come upon you. When a strong man fully armed guards his palace, his possessions are safe. But when one stronger than he attacks and overcomes him, he takes away the armor on which he relied and distributes the spoils. Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters."

The point of the famous quote, along with Jesus’ whole speech, is that you can’t cast out demons without attacking Satan. He takes it a step further, when He says, “by whom do your own people drive them out?” He’s referring to Jewish exorcists of the time.

Exorcism isn’t a new thing, or even a uniquely Catholic thing. It’s been necessary as long as Satan has been doing his evil deeds. And he’s been doing them a long time. He’s the “strong man fully armed.” And Jesus? He’s the “one stronger than he.”