August 16, 2015
Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time Cycle B
Our Sunday Readings
6
9:1S
B
VER
-7
P RO M 3 4 : 2
-20
L
PSA
5:15
S
N
ESIA :51-58
H
P
E
N6
JOH
Eat & Drink
for Life
Prayer
(from Eucharistic Exposition and Benediction)
Lord Jesus Christ,
you have given us Bread from heaven
having all sweetness within it.
You gave us the eucharist as the
memorial of your suffering and
death.
May our worship of this sacrament
of your body and blood
help us to experience the salvation
you won for us
and the peace of the kingdom,
where you live with the Father and
the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
Amen.
Dearest Lord Jesus, how great is the joy of the devout
soul who feasts at your banquet, where the food set
before it is none other than your very self, its onlybeloved, desirable above all the heart’s desire!
–St.Thomas Á Kempis,
The Imitation of Christ
prepared by Edrianne Ezell | EIU Newman Catholic Center | eiunewman.org | 217-348-0188 | [email protected]
IGNORANCE OF SCRIPTURE IS IGNORANCE OF CHRIST
PROVERBS 9:1-6
Reading closely
1. What all is Wisdom doing?
2. How eager is Wisdom to have people come to her banquet?
3. Who is the meal for?
4. What kind of people would accept Wisdom’s invitation?
5. Who would reject Wisdom’s invitation and why?
6. What do you think happens after people show up?
7. How is learning about God comparable to eating fine food?
Living the word
8. Can you share a time you learned something about your faith that nourished you?
9. How would you behave at such a feast?
THE FIRST READING
Parallelism
In order to better understand this
passage it’s helpful to know a little about
the most common poetic form in the
Bible: parallelism. What’s said in the first
line is rephrased in the next line, as in vv.
1-2. Sometimes the first line is
contrasted by the second, as in v.6.
Wisdom’s banquet
God’s wisdom, here personified as a
woman, has prepared a great feast. She
has sent servants to invite people, and
she herself calls out for people to join
her. The seven columns or pillars of her
home represent perfection: all a person
needs to know they will learn from her.
God’s laws or teachings were sometimes
compared to good food. Lady Wisdom’s
banquet is thus a feast of learning. By
learning how God intends for us to live,
the wise person, the one who accepts
Wisdom’s invitation, has life (v.6a).
Jesus, wisdom of God
Jesus drew on this presentation of God’s
wisdom much more than Christians
realize. Jesus himself is a sage or learned
teacher who invites people to learn from
him. He sends out disciples. He feeds
people. Those who dine with him find
life.
THE GOSPEL READING
Forbidden blood
As Jesus continues his discussion with
the Jews, he introduces a new element:
blood. Jews were forbidden from
consuming any meat that hadn’t been
properly drained of its blood, so Jesus’
words were both baffling and offensive.
Literal vs. hidden reality
John’s Gospel is filled with moments in
which people confuse the spiritual for
the physical. Here people think Jesus
wants them to eat him physically. Instead,
he’s pointing to his crucifixion and death.
After Jesus gives himself on the cross,
those who believe that he truly is from
God will be with him by celebrating the
eucharist
in his name. Their
thanksgiving will no
longer be
based on what
God did for their
ancestors but on what
God has done in Jesus.
Thus, Jesus replaces
life-saving moments from
the past, like God feeding
his people with manna. Jesus fulfills and
perfects all that came before him.
–ST. JEROME
Flesh and blood
The emphasis on Jesus’ flesh and blood
may be John’s way of contradicting those
who claimed that Jesus wasn’t really
human but only divine.
In vv.54-58 Jesus also uses a different
Greek word for eat. Some think this
word choice is significant, but Jesus (or
John) was probably using a synonym. If he
deliberately chose a word that implied a
more physical eating, then this would
undermine his distinction between the
physical and the sacramental.
Communion
Jesus promises to give life to those who
feed on him. Jesus is in union with God,
his Father. Those who feed on him are
drawn into union with God and each
other. Just as God lives forever, so will
those who become one with God
through their faith in his Son.
Never cast out
When John wrote his Gospel, Jews who
believed in Jesus may have been
persecuted and cast out of synagogues
by their fellow Jews. Jesus’ words in this
passage assure them that they are not
cut off from God for believing in him. On
the contrary, they will live forever (v.58c).
JOHN 6:51-58
Reading closely
1. What might the Jews be saying as they quarrel?
2. How do people have life now?
3. What life does Jesus promise?
4. What do you think it means to remain in Jesus?
5. What might the disciples be thinking during all this?
6. Why might Jesus have been invited to speak in the
synagogue?
Applying the word
7. If you’d been among the people listening to Jesus, how would you have reacted?
8. Do you ever confuse physical needs with eternal ones?