Taking Shape

Aug. 1: Memorial of Saint Alphonsus Liguori, Bishop and Doctor of the Church

St. Alphonsus had a plan for his life—he was set to be an learned (and wealthy) lawyer in Naples. Instead, in 1696, he left his promising career to enter the priesthood. He was drawn to work with thieves, prostitutes, and the destitute, rather than prosecute them. God’s mercy acted in his life, and he wanted to allow God’s mercy to work through him and shape his very soul.

Reading 1

Jer 18:1-6

This word came to Jeremiah from the LORD: Rise up, be off to the potter’s house; there I will give you my message. I went down to the potter’s house and there he was, working at the wheel. Whenever the object of clay which he was making turned out badly in his hand,  he tried again, making of the clay another object of whatever sort he pleased. Then the word of the LORD came to me: Can I not do to you, house of Israel, as this potter has done? says the LORD. Indeed, like clay in the hand of the potter, so are you in my hand, house of Israel.

God can make and re-make reality with a word; that’s how the world came to be. But when it comes to humanity, He allows us freedom of choice. Thus, His interactions with us (beginning with the Israelites) is less about forcing us into position than guiding us into the shape He intends.

Responsorial Psalm

Ps 146:1B-2, 3-4, 5-6AB

R. (5a)  Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob.
Praise the LORD, O my soul;
I will praise the LORD all my life;
I will sing praise to my God while I live.
R.  Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob.
Put not your trust in princes,
in the sons of men, in whom there is no salvation.
When his spirit departs he returns to his earth;
on that day his plans perish.
R. Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob.
Blessed he whose help is the God of Jacob,
whose hope is in the LORD, his God.
Who made heaven and earth,
the sea and all that is in them.
R. Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob.

This is a Psalm not for someone who just trusts in God, but trusts only in God. God, not kings or dictators or presidents, is the potter. We all need guidance, but we should be careful who’s guidance we accept.

Alleluia

Acts 16:14

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Open our heart, O Lord,
to listen to the words of your Son.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

This is a reference to Lydia of Thyatira, a wealthy gentile. She opened her heart to the Good News Paul brought to her town, and allowed it to shape her.

Gospel

Mt13:47-53

Jesus said to the disciples: “The Kingdom of heaven is like a net thrown into the sea, which collects fish of every kind. When it is full they haul it ashore and sit down to put what is good into buckets. What is bad they throw away. Thus it will be at the end of the age. The angels will go out and separate the wicked from the righteous and throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.”

“Do you understand all these things?”

They answered, “Yes.”

And he replied, “Then every scribe who has been instructed in the Kingdom of heaven is like the head of a household who brings from his storeroom both the new and the old.”

When Jesus finished these parables, he went away from there.

Even in Jesus’ time on Earth, there was a hierarchy in the Church. Jesus Himself was, is, and will always its head. He set Peter as the rock upon which the Church would be built, and He sent the Apostles to spread the word.

Here, we see He also had scribes—teachers “instructed in the kingdom of heaven,” who could bring together the teachings of Jesus (“the new”) with the law and prophets (“the old”). Just as bishops are the descendants of the Apostles, so theologians inherit the responsibilities of scribes.

But the scribe/theologians have no authority of themselves; all of their good guidance ultimately comes from God, the potter’s, hand.