Sharing of life: What are you most and least grateful for this week?

Facilitator reads focus statement: Having completed the Advent/Christmas season our church year now moves to the Sundays in Ordinary Time. It is important that we do not look upon these Sundays as having lesser importance than the Sundays of the two great seasons of the year (Advent/Christmas and Lent/Easter), since every Sunday celebrates the resurrection of Jesus. Each celebration of the Lord’s Day is very important. Ordinary Time started last Monday, which explains why this Sunday is the Second Sunday in Ordinary Time. This year, in this first section of Ordinary Time, we will have three Sundays. We will continue with Ordinary Time after we have celebrated the fifty days of Easter, which culminates with the feast of Pentecost. This Sunday all three readings speak about how we are called, consecrated and commissioned to do God’s work.

If you did not read the commentary prior to your meeting, consider reading it before or after you read the scripture readings.

FIRST READING: Isaiah 49:3, 5-6

Our first reading is the second of Isaiah’s suffering servant poems. The prophet wrote these songs while he was in exile with his people. The identity of the servant is not clear. The servant is called, consecrated and commissioned to play a twofold role: to call Israel back to faithfulness to God and on a global level, to be a light to the nations. In the gospels, we will see that Jesus identified very much with the servant and saw himself as called, consecrated and commissioned by God to gather in the lost sheep of the House of Israel and to be a Light to the nations of the world.

RESPONSORIAL PSALM 40

The refrain to today’s responsorial psalm (“Here I am Lord, I come to do your will.”) underlines the importance of obedience in the life of God’s servants.

SECOND READING: 1 Corinthians1:1-3

For the next three weeks the second reading will be from chapters 1 and 2 of the First Letter of Paul to the church at Corinth. In these opening verses, Paul underlines how he and his readers and all the baptized have been called and sanctified by God to continue the work of Jesus.

GOSPEL: John 1:29-34

Like the servant in the first reading and Paul in the second reading, John the Baptist was also called, consecrated and commissioned to prepare people for the coming of the Messiah.

In this passage, John the Evangelist is addressing, among others, the disciples of John the Baptist who continued to believe that John was superior to Jesus because he came before Jesus and because Jesus submitted to being baptized by him (a matter which John the Evangelist is silent about). To respond to the faithful disciples of John who continued to believe in his superiority, John the Evangelist has John the Baptist point to the superiority of Jesus. He does this in several ways: First, John identifies Jesus as the “Lamb of God.” Second, John says Jesus existed before him: “A man is coming after me who ranks ahead of me because he existed before me.” Third, it is on Jesus whom the Spirit comes, the same Spirit who tells John the Baptist that Jesus is the Chosen Son of God. In all of this it is as if John the Evangelist is saying to the disciples of the Baptist: “Look, it is John himself, your leader, who proclaimed that Jesus is superior to him.”

FAITH SHARING QUESTIONS

1. What verse, image or idea in the readings spoke to you most? Why?

2. “Called, consecrated and commissioned by God to do God’s work”; What does this mean to you in your daily life?

3. Can you relate to the first stanza of the psalm? If so, in what way?

4. “Ears open to obedience you gave me” (psalm). Do these words speak to your faith life in any way? If so, how?

RESPONDING TO GOD’S WORD

Name one way you can act on God’s word in today’s readings. Suggestion: This week reflect upon the baptismal fact that you are called, consecrated and commissioned to do God’s work. Ask yourself how you are responding to this, your baptismal call.

CONCLUDE WITH PRAYERS OF PETITION AND INTERCESSION

Pray for the grace to be more aware and responsive to the truth that you are called, consecrated and commissioned to do God’s work in your piece of his creation. Pray for women considering abortion at this time. Pray for the conversion of all who are pro-choice and pro-capital punishment. ©