RE: Commentaries

Commentary – Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion

March 29, 2015

First Reading – Isaiah 50.4-7
The Lord GOD has given me
a well-trained tongue,
that I might know how to speak to the weary
a word that will rouse them.
Morning after morning
he opens my ear that I may hear;
and I have not rebelled,
have not turned back.
I gave my back to those who beat me,
my cheeks to those who plucked my beard;
my face I did not shield
from buffets and spitting.

The Lord GOD is my help,
therefore I am not disgraced;
I have set my face like flint,
knowing that I shall not be put to shame.
Commentary
ISRAEL, GOD’S SERVANT
Each year we read this amazing passage from a section of the book of Isaiah that we know as the “Servant Songs”. These are of particular interest to Christians for two reasons: first, because of the message that Isaiah gives to his contemporaries; and secondly, because the early Christians applied these Servant Songs to Jesus Christ.

I shall begin with Isaiah’s message to his contemporaries. One thing is certain: Isaiah was obviously not thinking about Jesus Christ when he wrote this, probably in the 6th century BC, during the Babylonian Exile; the conditions in which the exiles find themselves are very harsh; fearing that they may become discouraged, Isaiah reminds them that they are still God’s servant; and that as God’s servant God counts on them to achieve his plan of salvation for humanity. They are indeed God’s servant - nourished each morning by God’s Word and persecuted because of their faith in it, yet still holding on despite hardships.

In this text, Isaiah describes the extraordinary relationship that unites the servant (Israel) to God. At its core is the capacity to listen to God’s Word: “he opens my ear,” says Isaiah. To listen to the Word, to be taught by it, means to live in trust so that one may be trained to speak like a disciple.

To listen has a unique significance in the Bible: it means to trust. We typically think in terms of two opposing attitudes: on the one hand, confidence in God and serene abandonment to God’s will because we know from experience that God wants our good; and on the other hand, suspicion of God’s intentions followed by rebellion when trials come our way, a rebellion that can lead us to believe that God has abandoned us, or worse, that God finds satisfaction in our suffering. But the prophets repeatedly entreat the people to trust God no matter what happens: they say, “Hear, O Israel” or, “if today you hear God’s voice”; and in their mouth “to hear” always means to trust God always and in all things. St. Paul explains why: it is because “We know that all things work together for good for those who love God” (Romans 8.28). From every evil, out of every difficulty and trial, God brings forth good. God counters hatred with a stronger love, persecution with the power of forgiveness, and death with life and with resurrection.

The servant’s relationship with God is one of mutual trust. God has confidence in the servant to whom God has entrusted a mission; in return the servant confidently accepts the mission. And it is this mutual trust that gives the servant the necessary strength to stand firm even in the face of inevitable opposition. The mission is one of witness: “that I might know how to speak to the weary a word that will rouse them,” says the servant. The Lord provides the necessary strength for the mission as well as the right words: “The Lord GOD has given me a well-trained tongue.” God also provides the confidence to boldly witness to others: “He opens my ear,” indicates that listening (in the biblical sense of trusting) is itself a gift from God. Everything is gift: the mission and also the strength and the confidence that makes one unwavering in one’s mission.  It is characteristic of the believer to recognize everything as a gift from God.

HOLDING FAST IN TIMES OF TROUBLE
Whoever lives in this permanent giftedness from God is ready to face anything: “I have not rebelled, have not turned back.” Fidelity to the mission entrusted inevitably brings persecution: true prophets, that is to say those who actually speak the word of God, are rarely appreciated in their lifetime. And so Isaiah warns his contemporaries: hold on tight, the Lord has not abandoned you; on the contrary, God has entrusted you with a mission; so do not be surprised if you are mistreated. Why? Because the servant who truly "listens" to the Word of God, who concretely lives it, quickly becomes discomfiting to others. Out of own conversion he calls others to conversion. Some hear the call ... others reject it and turn against the servant. Each morning, the servant must renew his strength at the foot of the One who enables him to face whatever comes: “Morning after morning he opens my ear ... The Lord GOD is my help, therefore I am not disgraced...” And here Isaiah uses a typically Hebrew expression: “I have set my face like flint”*: it expresses resolve and courage.  We sometimes say of a distraught person that his “face fell”; well here the servant says, “you won’t see me with a fallen face; nothing will crush me, I will hold on no matter what happens.” This confidence is not a prideful boast; it comes from knowing the source of his strength: “The Lord GOD is my help, therefore I am not disgraced...”

I said at the beginning that the prophet Isaiah was addressing his humiliated and persecuted contemporaries in exile in Babylon; but, of course, when one reads the Passion of Christ, it is obvious that Christ perfectly embodies this image of the servant of God: an open ear to God’s Word, an unshakable confidence that brings with it the certainty of victory in the midst of persecution, all this characterized Jesus as the crowds cheered him on in his triumphal entry into Jerusalem, thereby precipitating his fateful end.

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*Luke uses this exact phrase when speaking of Jesus: “When the days drew near for him to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem” (Luke 9. 51).

Responsorial Psalm – 22.8-9, 17, 19-20, 23-24
R/ My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?
All who see me scoff at me;
they mock me with parted lips, they wag their heads:
“He relied on the LORD; let him deliver him,
let him rescue him, if he loves him.”
R/My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?
Indeed, many dogs surround me,
a pack of evildoers closes in upon me;
They have pierced my hands and my feet;
I can count all my bones.
R/My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?
They divide my garments among them,
and for my vesture they cast lots.
But you, O LORD, be not far from me;
O my help, hasten to aid me.
R/My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?
I will proclaim your name to my brethren;
in the midst of the assembly I will praise you:
“You who fear the LORD, praise him;
all you descendants of Jacob, give glory to him;
revere him, all you descendants of Israel!”
R/My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?
Commentary
FROM A CRY OF DISTRESS TO PRAISE AND THANKSGIVING
Psalm 22 holds a few surprises. First surprise: It begins with the well-known phrase “My God, My God, why have you abandoned me?” - a phrase over which has been poured much ink and many musical notes! Unfortunately, we have taken this phrase out of its context, and as a result it is sometimes misinterpreted. In order to understand this phrase, we must read the entire psalm. It is fairly long: 32 verses, yet we rarely read the final verses. What does the psalm say? It is an act of thanksgiving: “…you have rescued me.
I will tell of your name to my brothers and sisters;
in the midst of the congregation I will praise you.” He who cried out, “My God, My God, why have you abandoned me?” in the first verse, gives thanks a few verses later for the salvation granted. Not only is he not dead, he is giving thanks to God for not abandoning him!

Second surprise: At first sight, we might think that Psalm 22 was written about Jesus Christ: “They have pierced my hands and feet; I can count all my bones.” Indeed this describes the agony of a man crucified under the cruel eyes of his executioners and perhaps even of curious onlookers: “Indeed, many dogs surround me, a pack of evildoers closes in upon me… They stare at me and gloat. They divide my garments among them, and for my vesture they cast lots.”

But in reality, this psalm was not written about Jesus Christ; it was composed after the people’s return from the Babylonian exile. This return is compared to the resurrection of a man condemned to death - because the exile was indeed the death sentence of the people of Israel; they were close to being wiped off the map!

And so, in this Psalm, Israel is compared to a condemned man who nearly dies on the cross (the cross was a very common form of punishment which explains why the example of crucifixion is used); the offender has suffered insults, humiliation, the piercing of nails, abandonment in the hands of executioners ... and then, miraculously, he has escaped, he is not dead. Translate: ‘Israel has returned from exile’. And now he abandons himself to his joy and shouts it to everyone; his cries of joy are louder than his cries of distress. The crucifixion is not central to the psalm; its purpose is to showcase the thanksgiving prayer of the one (Israel) who has just escaped from the horror of the exile.

From the midst of its distress, Israel has never ceased to call for help nor did it ever doubt that God was listening. Its well-known loud cry: "My God, My God, why have you abandoned me?" is a cry of distress before God's silence, but it is not a cry of despair, much less a cry of doubt. Quite the contrary! It is the prayer of the one who dares to shout out his suffering. Incidentally, this sheds light on our own prayer when we are suffering: we have the right to scream; the Bible invites us to do so.

This psalm then, is Israel’s thanksgiving song for its return from exile. Israel recalls its suffering, its anguish, and God’s apparent silence; it had thought itself abandoned in the hands of its enemies ... but continued to pray nevertheless, which proves that the people had not completely lost hope! Throughout its exile Israel never forgot the covenant and all of God’s blessings.

PSALM 22: AN EX-VOTO
Basically, this psalm is the equivalent of our ex-voto: during times of great danger, we pray and make a vow: “if I come out of this, I will offer a votive offering to such or such a saint” (The word “ex-voto” means “following a vow”). Once our prayer has been answered, we keep our promise. In certain churches in the south of France, for example, the walls are covered with paintings depicting dangers escaped – perhaps from a fire, an accident or a shipwreck ... perhaps it is a young woman dying in childbirth with many young children at her bedside. The potential danger is always depicted dramatically; there are parents and relatives sobbing helplessly; they are usually the ones who requested the painting, fulfilling a promise made while the loved one was still in danger. In general, the painting is divided into three sections: the danger encountered, the family and relatives in prayer, and at the top of the canvas, in a corner of the sky, the saint or the Virgin who came to their assistance. This painting with its various scenes is the ex-voto - the expression of thanksgiving welling up in the hearts of those for whom all ended well.

Psalm 22 is exactly like that: it paints the horror of the exile, the distress of the people of Israel and of Jerusalem under siege by Nebuchadnezzar, and the sense of helplessness in this time of trial caused by none other than the hatred of men. The people pray in supplication: “My God, My God, why have you abandoned me?” which can be translated as “Why, to what end, have you abandoned me to the hatred of my enemies?” God knows the many times that the people of Israel faced the hatred of men. But this psalm, just like our ex-votos, goes beyond this: it is also the thanksgiving prayer of someone who acknowledges that he owes his salvation to God alone. “But you, O LORD, be not far from me… I will proclaim your name to my brethren; in the midst of the assembly I will praise you: You who fear the LORD, praise him!” The final verses of the psalm are an expression of praise and gratitude. Unfortunately, we do not sing them for Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion ... perhaps because we are supposed to know them by heart: “The poor will eat their fill; those who seek the LORD will offer praise. May your hearts enjoy life forever! All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the LORD; all the families of nations will bow low before him… And I will live for the LORD; my descendants will serve you. The generation to come will be told of the Lord, that they may proclaim to a people yet unborn the deliverance you have brought.”


Second Reading – Philipians 2.6-11
Christ Jesus, though he was in the form of God,
did not regard equality with God
something to be grasped.
Rather, he emptied himself,
taking the form of a slave,
coming in human likeness;
and found human in appearance,
he humbled himself,
becoming obedient to the point of death,
even death on a cross.
Because of this, God greatly exalted him
and bestowed on him the name
which is above every name,
that at the name of Jesus
every knee should bend,
of those in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and every tongue confess that
Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.
Commentary
JESUS, SERVANT OF GOD
During the Babylonian exile in 6 BC, the prophet Isaiah, speaking on behalf of God, had assigned a mission and a title to his contemporaries: the title of servant of God, and the mission of remaining faithful to the faith of their ancestors in the midst of hardship and to witness to that faith to the pagan Babylonians, even under persecution and humiliation.

The early Christians, faced with the scandal of the cross, meditated on the mystery of Christ’s own destiny and found in the following words the best explanation: “he emptied himself, taking the form of a slave.” He too faced opposition, humiliation and persecution, yet his strength also came from his Father in whom he always trusted.

You may interject that since he is God why did he not seek the glory and the honor that are rightfully God’s? Precisely because he is God, and being God he wants to save humanity. Therefore, it is as a human being and only as a human being that he tries to show humanity the way. Paul says, “Christ Jesus, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God.” It is precisely because he is in the form of God that Jesus Christ claims nothing; he knows the meaning of love freely given; he knows that an attitude of entitlement serves no one and so he does not regard equality with God as his right... And yet this is exactly what God wants to give us! But to give as Gift, which is what Jesus receives in the end. *

To give as Gift and not as a reward: because it is tempting to read this text in terms of our human idea of reward - as if the pattern went like this: Jesus behaved admirably and therefore he received a wonderful reward! If I speak of temptation it is because any presentation of God's benevolent plan in terms of calculation, of reward, of merit is contrary to God’s free grace. As its name suggests, grace is gratuitous! Oddly enough, it is difficult for us to think in terms of gratuity; we are always tempted to talk about merits; but if God waited for us to produce merits, then we would have reason to worry... The wonder of God's love is that it does not wait for us to merit it; this in any case is what the people of the Bible discovered through Revelation. When we forget that everything is Gift from God our theology suffers.

GOD’S BENEVOLENT PLAN IS GRATUITOUS
For Paul, this is obvious. To summarize Paul's thought, God's benevolent plan is to invite us into God’s intimacy, happiness and perfect love: all this is absolutely free, which is not surprising, since it is a project of love. Our part is simply to accept with wonder and awe this gift of God, this entry in divine life; there is no room for merit here since it is a gift freely offered. With God, everything is gift. But we exclude ourselves from this free gift if we adopt an attitude of entitlement, if we behave like the woman in the Garden of Eden: she takes the forbidden fruit, she takes it like a demanding child in a toy store ... Jesus Christ, on the contrary, was totally receptive (what St. Paul calls ‘obedient’), and because he was open to accepting the gift of God and did not claim it as his own, this gift was given him to the full. Our task is to follow in the way that he has shown us.

Jesus receives the name that is above every other name: the name of God! To say that Jesus is Lord is to say that he is God. In the Old Testament, the title ‘Lord’ was reserved for God – as was the act of genuflecting. “That at the name of Jesus every knee should bend” is a reference to a phrase from the prophet Isaiah:  “To me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear, says God” (Is 45.23).

Jesus lived his human life in humility and trust, even when faced with the worst, that is to say, with human hatred and death. I used the word ‘trust’ whereas Paul speaks of ‘obedience’.  To obey, ‘ob-audire’ in Latin, literally means to put one’s ear (audire) to (ob) the spoken word: it is the attitude of truly open dialogue, of total trust. If you put your ear to the word it is because you know that word is love; you can hear it without fear.

The hymn ends with “every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father”: the glory referred to here is the manifestation, the revelation of infinite love; it is love personified. When we witness Christ loving without bounds, even to the point of accepting death to show us the extent of God’s love, we can say with the centurion, “Yes, truly, this one is the Son of God”... because God is love.
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*This receptivity is also at the heart of the story of Christ’s temptations in the desert (which we read the first Sunday of Lent). The divider (in Greek, this is precisely what the word ‘devil’ - diabolos - means) tempts Jesus only with things that are already part of God's plan! But Jesus refuses to take them. He relies on his Father to give them to him. The Tempter says, "If you are the Son of God, you are entitled to everything, your Father cannot refuse you anything. So if you are hungry turn these stones into bread... God will always protect you so throw yourself from the heights, ... the world is yours, if you only worship me." But Jesus waits for all things from God alone.

Addendum
This text is familiar to us: we often call it the Christ Hymn, because we have the impression that it was not penned by Paul, but quoted from a well known liturgical hymn.

Gospel – Mark 15.1-39
As soon as morning came,
the chief priests with the elders and the scribes,
that is, the whole Sanhedrin held a council.
They bound Jesus, led him away, and handed him over to Pilate.
Pilate questioned him,
“Are you the king of the Jews?”
He said to him in reply, “You say so.”
The chief priests accused him of many things.
Again Pilate questioned him,
“Have you no answer?
See how many things they accuse you of.”
Jesus gave him no further answer, so that Pilate was amazed.

Now on the occasion of the feast he used to release to them
one prisoner whom they requested.
A man called Barabbas was then in prison
along with the rebels who had committed murder in a rebellion.
The crowd came forward and began to ask him
to do for them as he was accustomed.
Pilate answered,
“Do you want me to release to you the king of the Jews?”
For he knew that it was out of envy
that the chief priests had handed him over.
But the chief priests stirred up the crowd
to have him release Barabbas for them instead.
Pilate again said to them in reply,
“Then what do you want me to do
with the man you call the king of the Jews?”
They shouted again, “Crucify him.”
Pilate said to them, “Why? What evil has he done?”
They only shouted the louder, “Crucify him.”
So Pilate, wishing to satisfy the crowd,
released Barabbas to them and, after he had Jesus scourged,
handed him over to be crucified.

The soldiers led him away inside the palace,
that is, the praetorium, and assembled the whole cohort.
They clothed him in purple and,
weaving a crown of thorns, placed it on him.
They began to salute him with, “Hail, King of the Jews!”
and kept striking his head with a reed and spitting upon him.
They knelt before him in homage.
And when they had mocked him,
they stripped him of the purple cloak,
dressed him in his own clothes,
and led him out to crucify him.

They pressed into service a passer-by, Simon,
a Cyrenian, who was coming in from the country,
the father of Alexander and Rufus,
to carry his cross.

They brought him to the place of Golgotha
—which is translated Place of the Skull —
They gave him wine drugged with myrrh,
but he did not take it.
Then they crucified him and divided his garments
by casting lots for them to see what each should take.
It was nine o’clock in the morning when they crucified him.
The inscription of the charge against him read,
“The King of the Jews.”
With him they crucified two revolutionaries,
one on his right and one on his left.
Those passing by reviled him,
shaking their heads and saying,
“Aha! You who would destroy the temple
and rebuild it in three days,
save yourself by coming down from the cross.”
Likewise the chief priests, with the scribes,
mocked him among themselves and said,
“He saved others; he cannot save himself.
Let the Christ, the King of Israel,
come down now from the cross
that we may see and believe.”
Those who were crucified with him also kept abusing him.

At noon darkness came over the whole land
until three in the afternoon.
And at three o’clock Jesus cried out in a loud voice,
“Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?”
which is translated,
“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”
Some of the bystanders who heard it said,
“Look, he is calling Elijah.”
One of them ran, soaked a sponge with wine, put it on a reed
and gave it to him to drink saying,
“Wait, let us see if Elijah comes to take him down.”
Jesus gave a loud cry and breathed his last.

Here all kneel and pause for a short time.

The veil of the sanctuary was torn in two from top to bottom.
When the centurion who stood facing him
saw how he breathed his last he said,
“Truly this man was the Son of God!”
Commentary
Two peculiarities are noteworthy in Mark’s account of the Passion of Christ: Jesus’ solitude and Jesus’ silence.

Jesus’ solitude: in Mark’s account Jesus is particularly alone; after Peter's denial, Jesus is bereft of any friendly presence; the female disciples are mentioned, but only after his death (unlike other gospel accounts).

As for his silence, it is striking: he speaks only a few words at his trial and then as Mark notes, “Jesus gave (him) no further answer”, which surprises Pilate.  “Again Pilate questioned him, “Have you no answer? See how many things they accuse you of.” Jesus gave him no further answer, so that Pilate was amazed” (Mark 15.4-5). Then, on the cross Jesus says but one thing: “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?” Interpreted by a Roman soldier, these words sound like a cry of despair; but the Jews present needed no interpretation: they recognized these words as the first of a well known song of victory - as we saw above Psalm 22 is anything but a cry of despair or even doubt!

Faced with Jesus’ solitude and silence one wonders what secret he is holding back. Within a short period of time this man has gone from popularity to rejection, from a regal entry into the city of Jerusalem to exclusion and execution outside its walls, from recognition as God’s messenger (“Blessed be the one who comes in the name of the Lord”) to being sentenced for blasphemy and executed in the name of the Law (an indication to everyone that he was cursed by God); recognized as the Messiah, the promised King of Israel, the long awaited liberator and savior by his disciples and many enthusiastic supporters, he is now quickly done away with after a mock trial.

Jesus reacted neither to his triumph nor to his persecution. In doing so, the mystery of his person continued; it is only after the Resurrection that his disciples finally understood.

It seems that the sobriety of Mark's account is intended to highlight two aspects of the mystery of Jesus: the Messiah-King and the Priest-Messiah.

THE AWAITED MESSIAH-KING
Christ’s kingship is at the centre of the story, whether as a question, in derision, or as an affirmation. The first question Pilate asks of this bound man brought before him is “Are you the king of the Jews?” The reply is cryptic: “ You say so” (15.2).  Yet Pilate twice gives this title to Jesus, “Do you want me to release to you the king of the Jews?” (V. 9) and “Then what do you want me to do with the man you call the king of the Jews?” (V.12). And, oddly enough, nobody contradicts this! Then comes the soldiers’ parody, with royal coat, crown and acclamation: “Hail, King of the Jews!”  And the sign at the top of the cross, ill intentioned perhaps, but still calling out to every passer-by: “ here is the king of the Jews.” Even the chief priests and the scribes mockingly give him this title: “He saved others; he cannot save himself. Let the Christ, the King of Israel, come down now from the cross” (15.32).

THE AWAITED PRIEST-MESSIAH
The second aspect of the mystery of Jesus highlighted by Mark's account is that of the Priest-Messiah. It was the high priests who led the way in the conviction and death of Jesus; they obviously have a key role in the tragedy that is being forged. It is they who bring Jesus to Pilate and watch over the trial: “As soon as morning came, the chief priests with the elders and the scribes, that is, the whole Sanhedrin held a council. They bound Jesus, led him away, and handed him over to Pilate.” And it is they who stir up the crowd to call for the release of Barabbas: “the chief priests stirred up the crowd to have him release Barabbas for them instead” (15.11). Pilate himself is not fooled, and Mark notes that: “For he (Pilate) knew that it was out of envy that the chief priests had handed him over” (15.10). Their envy was perhaps justified since in good faith they thought that Jesus’ success was leading the people into false hope. Nevertheless, the true priest, the Priest-Messiah that everyone was waiting for was before their very eyes. Mark is the only one, along with John, who notes that the soldiers clothed Jesus in purple to mock him. Purple was the color reserved for kings and for the high priests. What blind mockery: the ones wearing purple garments completely miss the truth. It is a pagan who recognizes what is truly happening: “When the centurion who stood facing him saw how he breathed his last he said, truly this man was the Son of God!”

Translated with permission by Simone Baryliuk, from: Commentaires de Marie Noëlle Thabut, 29 mars, 2015
http://www.eglise.catholique.fr/foi-et-vie-chretienne/commentaires-de-marie-noelle-thabut.html