Readings for Sunday January 23, 2011

Third Sunday in Ordinary Time

Summary of the Gospel from YM central

In whom do you put your trust? As Catholics, we are invited to put our trust in a place that is foreign to most of the world. Our society tells us to put our trust in ourselves, our work and in our superstars. Companies spend millions of dollars in advertising, all with the hope that you and I will trust them with their products. What makes us different is that we as Catholics don’t put our trust in a philosophy or a product, but we put it in a Person, Jesus Christ. As we begin Ordinary Time, the Gospel takes us back to Jesus’ calling of His first Apostles, the men He would choose to govern His Church. We see in this passage how these men put their complete trust in Jesus. The passage begins by showing us how St. John the Baptist’s mission ended with his arrest and, as we know, his eventual beheading. St. John knew that this was going to happen because it was his time to ‘decrease’ as Christ ‘increased’. Jesus spent His time traveling around the region of Galilee, all in fulfillment of the words of the Prophet Isaiah. This shows us how St. Matthew was very interested in Jesus as the fulfillment (not replacement) of the Old Covenant. St. Matthew also makes clear the core of Jesus’ message: Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand. While many people try to come up with their opinions about the core of Jesus’ message, Jesus shows us that the heart of His ministry is to help each one of us reconcile with the Father. To help with this mission of reconciliation, Jesus begins to delegate his work by recruiting the Apostles. Jesus calls Simon Peter, Andrew, John and James, and St. Matthew makes it a point to us to describe the immediate response each one of them made to Jesus’ call. This is what made the Apostles great: They didn’t waste time trying to talk themselves out of their calling, but made the decision to follow Him, no matter the cost. We cannot underestimate the cost that each one of them paid, giving up families, friends, and familiarity with their way of life. Christ makes the invitation to follow Him to all of us. So often we get caught up in the burdens and responsibilities of everyday life, and forget God. We end out living lives in which God has no practical, day-to-day influence in our decisions and actions. God does not want us to live lives that look the same as the atheist! He wants us to live lives that show our complete trust in every action of the day, as a child would depend on their loving Father. May we have the ability to respond to Jesus as quickly as the Apostles did, and trust Him with control over our entire lives.



Reading 1 Isaiah 8:23—9:3

8:23First the Lord degraded the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali; but in the end he has glorified the seaward road, the land west of the Jordan, the District of the Gentiles. Anguish has taken wing, dispelled is darkness: for there is no gloom where but now there was distress. 9:1 The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; upon those who dwelt in the land of gloom a light has shone. 9:2 You have brought them abundant joy and great rejoicing, as they rejoice before you as at the harvest, as people make merry when dividing spoils. 9:3 For the yoke that burdened them, the pole on their shoulder, and the rod of their taskmaster you have smashed, as on the day of Midian.

Questions for Discussion:

1. How do you see God’s light in your life?

2. What changes can you make to share that light with the people around you?

3. How has God shattered some of the “yokes” that burden you? Which is one “yoke” that you desire to have Him shatter now?


Reading II 1 Corinthians 1:10-13, 17

10 I urge you, brothers and sisters, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree in what you say, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and in the same purpose. 11 For it has been reported to me about you, my brothers and sisters, by Chloe’s people, that there are rivalries among you. 12 I mean that each of you is saying, “I belong to Paul,” or “I belong to Apollos,” or “I belong to Cephas,” or “I belong to Christ.” 13 Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?
17 For Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel, and not with the wisdom of human eloquence, so that the cross of Christ might not be emptied of its meaning.

Questions for Discussion:

1. Is Paul talking about quarreling to the Corinthians or to your parish? If Paul fixed this problem in his time with his message why do we still have the problem today?

2. There will always be disagreements. Is there a way to handle them so that good or growth could come out of them? How?


Gospel Matthew 4:12-23

12 When Jesus heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew to Galilee. 13 He left Nazareth and went to live in Capernaum by the sea, in the region of Zebulun and Naphtali, 14 that what had been said through Isaiah the prophet might be fulfilled:
15 Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali, the way to the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles, 16 the people who sit in darkness have seen a great light, on those dwelling in a land overshadowed by death light has arisen.
17 From that time on, Jesus began to preach and say, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” 18 As he was walking by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon who is called Peter, and his brother Andrew, casting a net into the sea; they were fishermen. 19 He said to them, “Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men.” 20 At once they left their nets and followed him. 21 He walked along from there and saw two other brothers, James, the son of Zebedee, and his brother John. They were in a boat, with their father Zebedee, mending their nets. He called them, 22 and immediately they left their boat and their father and followed him. 23 He went around all of Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom, and curing every disease and illness among the people.

Questions for Discussion:

1. What human need do you see Jesus exhibiting in the second half of this gospel story? Why were friends important to him? Why is the community important to Christianity?

2. What was Peter’s and Andrew’s response time? How fast is your response time when you are inspired to do something for your neighbor, e.g. to give time or money to those I need?
3. What would be the greatest thing you would like to do with your life? What is keeping you from doing it?
4. What gifts do you feel God has given you? How do you think God wants you to use your gifts as you follow Jesus?

5. How has your call from Christ been similar / different to the call of the Apostles given in this passage? Describe.

6. Activity: Using a New Testament Bible map, take time to plot the various places that are mentioned in this passage. How close are the villages in this Gospel to each other? What kind of distances did Jesus travel?