Twenty-Third Sunday in Ordinary Time
September 8, 2013

Reflection on Lectoring

There are some things you can intuitively know as unquestionably real:

     -  a child’s hand in yours

     -  a drink of water when you are thirsty

     -  a smile

     -  a sunrise

     -  candlelight in a dark room

     -  the happiness of your wife

     -  the happiness of your husband

These are simple, yet profound things.

Is God on your list of things unquestionably real?

In a wonderful way, God’s reality can be experienced in some of the simplest things - the kinds of things that bring truth, beauty and goodness to everyday life - the kinds of things that point to the person who created them all.

The Scriptures are full of the simple, yet profound, things of life.  You can find them on every page. They are the kinds of things that can make God unquestionably real - as real and profound as a child’s smile.

A lector has the extraordinary privilege to bring all these real things to life.

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First Reading  -  Exodus 32:7-11, 13-14
Bridging the Gulf

”Who can know God’s counsel, or who can conceive what the Lord intends?”

How can finite creatures with finite, limited minds grasp an infinite God who far transcends our understanding? 

Does the distance between an infinite God and his creatures result in a gulf that cannot be bridged?  These are the eternal questions asked by today’s first reading.

The Book of Wisdom offers a reassuring answer.  It mentions wisdom as a human virtue bestowed from above and the “holy spirit from on high.”

Humans use their life experiences of love, goodness, and beauty to create analogies to better understand the attributes of their creator.  With the help of wisdom, we avoid the pitfall of anthropomorphism, receive insights into our relationship with our maker, and recognize the “paths of those on earth made straight.”

In today’s first reading, Wisdom anticipates what became the ultimate manifestation of God - the Incarnation of the Son, followed by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.  For lectors, this reading offers an opportunity to express how the gulf between an infinite creator and his finite creatures can be bridged.  It offers an answer to the essential question about how simple creatures can “conceive what the Lord intends.”

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Second Reading  -  1 Timothy 1:12-17
From Slave to Partner

In the letter to the Philippians written while he was in prison, Paul describes himself as a slave of Christ Jesus (1:1).  In the letter to Philemon, also written in prison, Paul writes about another slave whom he hopes will be welcomed back as “more than a slave” by Philemon and the people in his house-church.

The name Onesimus means “useful” in Greek.  Under Roman law, Onesimus could have been put to death as a runaway slave.  Instead, Paul urges forgiveness.  He also suggests that God has given Onesimus a useful purpose, first to serve him in prison, and then to serve God after his return to Philemon.  It is a purpose that gives Onesimus equal human status “as a man and in the Lord.”

This is the shortest of the Pauline letters (only 335 words), but it touches on truly profound subjects such as freedom, forgiveness, and each person’s right to fulfill God’s purpose.  It was a radical message in a time of extreme social stratification.  From slavery, to freedom, to equal partner - all because every child of God is also a brother and sister.

© George Fournier  2013