June 23, 2013
Reflection on Lectoring
“I
am who am.”
When Moses tells God that the Hebrews will want to know
who sent him, God gives Moses what might sound like a less than helpful
answer. “This is what you will tell the Israelites: ‘I AM has sent me to you’ ”
(Exodus 3:14).
St. Thomas Aquinas was able to explain the name I AM in clear
philosophical and theological terms when he said that for our infinite God, his
essence is his existence.
One of the concerns frequently expressed by lectors
relates to the words and phrases in Scripture that range from the very profound
to the sometimes obscure. Scripture
commentaries try to help by providing background information to illuminate what
is unclear. As with today’s first
reading, these commentaries may explain what kind of mourning took place “in the plain of Megiddo” ((Zechariah
12:11). They may also analyze the rationale
for certain numbers like the 153 fish caught by the apostles after a night of
catching nothing (John 21:11).
Details such as these were put into the Scriptures for a
purpose. However, just as your hearers
in the assembly may not fully understand the equivalency of God’s essence with
his existence (no one completely does), neither should we as lectors be overly
concerned that every nuance and every obscure name may not be completely
understood or remembered.
What is important is that worshipers at Mass have the
opportunity to feel closer to their transcendent God. God
gave us the Scriptures - all of the Scriptures - to guide our less than perfect
understanding of him and his love for us.
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First Reading - Zechariah 12:10-11, 13:1
Real Meaning from Difficult Words
In the above Reflection on Lectoring, we suggested that
real meaning is more important than a complete understanding of every difficult
word.
The name Hadadrimmon mentioned in today’s first reading is
one of those difficult words. Some
scholars think that Hadadrimmon may refer to the Phoenician fertility god. Others think it refers to the name of an
actual place near Megiddo where King Josiah was killed by Pharaoh Neco.
“Him
whom they have pierced” is another source of uncertainty and
debate. Some think he is a priestly
leader, a prophet, or historic figures like Onias III or Simon Maccabeus who were
murdered. Most, however, agree that John
in 19:34 makes a connection to the crucified Christ pierced by the soldier’s
lance
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Second Reading - Galatians 3:26-29
Unity, Diversity, Identity
Equality comes not from externally imposed laws or
regulations, but from the infinite dignity and worth possessed by each
individual person as a child of God. And
the proof of that worth was demonstrated by the willingness of the Father to
sacrifice his only Son for his children.
Paul begins chapter 3 with the words, “O stupid Galatians!” Their identity is to be found in Christ not
in Jewish normative laws which excluded all non-Jews. The Galatians’ true source of unity is found
in today’s second reading: “For all of
you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.”
It is a unity and identity that includes the diversity of
people living throughout the world . . . Jews and Greeks. . . slaves and free persons . . . male and female.
© George Fournier 2013
