Welcome to our SAAP Sunday Bible Study

12th Sunday in the Ordinary Time C

June 23, 2013In preparation for this Sunday’s liturgy

As aid in focusing our homilies and sharingPrepared by Fr. Cielo R. Almazan,

OFM

1st Reading: Zechariah 12,10-11; 13,1

10 Thus says the Lord: I will pour out on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and petition; and they shall look on him whom they have thrust through, and they shall mourn for him as one mourns for an only son, and they shall grieve over him as one grieves over a first-born. 11 On that day the mourning in Jerusalem shall be as great as the mourning of Hadadrimmon in the plain of Megiddo.

13:1 On that day there shall be open to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, a fountain to purify from sin and uncleanness. The focus is on the messiah.

1st Reading: Zechariah 12,10-11; 13,1

10 Thus says the Lord: I will pour out on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and petition; and they shall look on him whom they have thrust through, and they shall mourn for him as one mourns for an only son, and they shall grieve over him as one grieves over a first-born. 11 On that day the mourning in Jerusalem shall be as great as the mourning of Hadadrimmon in the plain of Megiddo.

13:1 On that day there shall be open to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, a fountain to purify from sin and uncleanness.

Commentary In v.10, God promises through the

prophet “a spirit of grace and petition” to the Davidic dynasty and Jerusalemites.

V.10 also predicts what would happen to the “messiah.”

It makes us remember Jesus when the centurion thrusts his sword upon his side.

As a result of his death, there will be a lot of grieving and mourning. (vv.10-11)

V.13:1 reiterates the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem mentioned in v.10.

We presuppose that the death of the messiah will bring about purification from sin and impurities.

Textual Context of Zech 12,10-11; 13,1

First Zechariah 1-8Second Zechariah 9-14

Part I 9-11 First Oracle which cannot be dated contains messianic

vision of the coming of the prince of PeacePart II 12-14 Second Oracle: restoration proclaims victory God's people over the

pagans.Zechariah 9-14 (Boadt, 442)9,1-8 God as a divine warrior9,9-10 The king as prince of peace9,11-17 The victorious exiles10,1-12 God gathers his exiles11,1-3 The fall of pagan tyrants11,4-17 The bad and good shepherds12,1-9 The victory of Judah12,10-14 Jerusalem mourns13,1-6 God cleanses her sins14,1-21 The day of the Lord

Zechariah

Reflections on the 1st reading The messiah comes from a royal family,

not from an ordinary family. He is sent by God to save us, at a great

price. God does not send just anybody, but his

only Son. God is generous with his love. His son is the same. He is willing to

undergo pain and death. We must realize how God treasures us,

sinners.

Resp. Ps 63:2, 3-4, 5-6, 8-9R.     (2b) My soul is thirsting for you, O Lord my God.

2 O God, you are my God whom I seek; for you my flesh pines and my soul thirsts Like the earth, parched, lifeless and without water.

3 Thus have I gazed toward you in the sanctuary to see your power and your glory,4 For your kindness is a greater good than life; my lips shall

glorify you.

5 Thus will I bless you while I live; lifting up my hands, I will call upon your name.6 As with the riches of a banquet shall my soul be satisfied, and with exultant lips my mouth shall praise you.

8 You are my help, and in the shadow of your wings I shout for joy.

9 My soul clings fast to you; your right hand upholds me.

Resp. Ps 63:2, 3-4, 5-6, 8-9R.     (2b) My soul is thirsting for

you, O Lord my God.2 O God, you are my God whom I seek; for you my flesh pines and my soul

thirsts like the earth, parched, lifeless and

without water.

3 Thus have I gazed toward you in the sanctuary to see your power and your glory,

4 For your kindness is a greater good than life; my lips shall glorify you.

5 Thus will I bless you while I live; lifting up my hands, I will call upon

your name.6 As with the riches of a banquet shall

my soul be satisfied, and with exultant lips my mouth shall

praise you.

8You are my help, and in the shadow of your wings I shout for joy.

9 My soul clings fast to you; your right hand upholds me.

Commentary The psalm beautifully

expresses our desire for God.

V.2 uses similes to describe how the psalmist longs for God.

In v.3, the psalmist finds God in the Temple.

V.4 recognizes the supremacy of God’s kindness over life.

In v.5, the psalmist promises to bless and pray to God.

V.6 speaks of satisfaction of the psalmist.

The psalmist assures of his praise and thanksgiving.

V.8 affirms God’s protection. In v.9, the psalmist

expresses his deep faith in God and God’s protection to him.

Reflections on the Psalm We should be able to appropriate the psalm to

ourselves. We should become psalmists ourselves, not just

readers of the psalm. We best express ourselves when we adopt the

way of the psalmist. In this form of prayer, we should feel God’s

presence better.

2nd Reading: Galatians 3,26-29

26 Through faith you are all children of God in Christ Jesus. 27 For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. 28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free person, there is not male and female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's descendant, heirs according to the promise.The focus is on Christ.

Textual Context of Galatians 3,26-29

Outline of Galatians by NAB

I. Address (1,1-5)II. Loyalty to the Gospel (1,6-10)III. Paul’s Defense of His Gospel and His Authority (1,11—2,21)IV. Faith and Liberty (3,1—4,31)V. Exhortation to Christian Living (5,1—6,10)VI. Conclusion (6,11-18)

2nd Reading: Galatians 3,26-29

26 Through faith you are all children of God in Christ Jesus. 27 For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. 28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free person, there is not male and female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's descendant, heirs according to the promise.

Commentary In v.26, Paul affirms that we are

God’s children. We become God’s children

through faith in Christ = Messiah (v.26) and through baptism (v.27).

In God’s family, there are no distinctions. We are made one in Christ. V.28

In v.29, Paul also affirms our common ancestry (Abraham) and we are entitled to God’s promise as heirs, through Jesus Christ.

Reflections on the 2nd reading As Christians, we have to realize and

appreciate that Christ has done many great things for us.He made us children of God.He made us united as one, though of different

cultures, genders and races. (No more distinctions which are sources of divisions).

He made us heirs in the kingdom. What more can we ask?

Gospel Reading: Luke 9,18-24Identifying Jesus correctly 18 Once when Jesus was praying in solitude, and

the disciples were with him, he asked them, "Who do the crowds say that I am?“ 19 They said in reply, "John the Baptist; others, Elijah; still others, 'One of the ancient prophets has arisen.'“ 20 Then he said to them, "But who do you say that I am?" Peter said in reply, "The Messiah of God.“ 21 He rebuked them and directed them not to tell this to anyone.

The Suffering Christ and discipleship 22 He said, "The Son of Man must suffer greatly

and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed and on the third day be raised.” 23 Then he said to all, "If anyone wishes to come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. 24 For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it.The focus is on the Messiah.

Textual Context of Luke 9,18-24

Outline from the NAB Mission of the Twelve (9,1-6) Herod’s Opinion of Jesus (9,7-9) The Return of the Twelve and the Feeding of the

5000 (9,10-17) Peter’s Confession about Jesus (9,18-21) The First Prediction of the Passion (9,22) The Conditions of Discipleship (9,23-27) The Transfiguration of Jesus (9,28-36)

Gospel Reading: Luke 9,18-24Identifying Jesus correctly 18 Once when Jesus was praying

in solitude, and the disciples were with him, he asked them, "Who do the crowds say that I am?“ 19 They said in reply, "John the Baptist; others, Elijah; still others, 'One of the ancient prophets has arisen.'“ 20 Then he said to them, "But who do you say that I am?" Peter said in reply, "The Messiah of God.“ 21 He rebuked them and directed them not to tell this to anyone.

The Suffering Christ and discipleship

22 He said, "The Son of Man must suffer greatly and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed and on the third day be raised.” 23 Then he said to all, "If anyone wishes to come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. 24 For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it.

Commentary V.18 presents Jesus as praying, in the

presence of his disciples. In the context of prayer, Jesus asks

his disciples how people size him up. V.19 enumerates the wrong answers

of the people. They do not appreciate who Jesus is.

In v.20, Jesus asks the same question to his apostles.

Peter, the spokesman of the apostles, answers correctly.

Surprisingly in v.21, Jesus rebukes (as if he scolds them) and wants them to keep his identity secret.

Then, in v.22, Jesus clarifies what kind of Messiah he is. A suffering, rejected, and “killed”

Messiah. In v.23, Jesus challenges his apostles

if they want to follow him, they too must suffer.

In v.24, Jesus does not buy the idea of self-preservation when following him.

Reflections on the gospel reading

We Christians must know who Jesus is. We must not mistake his identity. He is the Christ (Greek, christos), Messiah (Hebrew,

masiha). But we should not misinterpret what kind of

Messiah he is. Misinterpretation has devastating effect on our

discipleship and mission. In this Year of Faith, are you being clarified who

Jesus is by your pastor or your Church?

Tying the 3 readings and the Psalm

The first reading talks about the Messiah. The psalm talks about longing for God (for the

Messiah). The second reading talks about Christ. The gospel reading talks about Messiah.

On this Sunday, we focus on the Messiah.

How to develop your homily / sharing

To begin with, ask the audience what they know about Jesus.

They may give these answers:He is our Savior. He is our Lord. He is God. He

is the good Shepherd, Christ… etc. Now ask if they really know the meaning of

Christ. Is it Jesus’ surname? In those days, it was OK to call a man “Jesus.” But whether he is the “Christ” or not, that was

something else. If you claim to be Christ (anointed), you have a

problem.

In the first reading, Zechariah (333 BC) has long predicted the coming of the Messiah.

The prophet Zechariah rightly identifies the Messiah as the only Son, whose violent death has caused so much sorrow, but has brought us forgiveness and new life.

Jesus has properly submitted himself to the inhumanities committed against him, according to the plan of God as revealed by the prophet.

Likewise, you have a problem also if you don’t know who Christ is.

You can’t be his true disciple. Don’t imagine you know him, if you have never

encountered him in the sacraments and in the Church.

What you may know about him is not the real Christ.

It is the Christ of your (or other’s) imagination.

In the gospel reading, the people did not identify Jesus as the Messiah; but Peter and the other apostles did. Why?

Knowledge of Jesus is not a one-shot deal. One encounter with him is not enough. The apostles had the privilege of encountering

him always, as they were following him, beginning from his baptism up to this moment.

So they know him, at the very least, 50% of him.

What about the other 50%, which tells them what kind of Messiah he is?

They will come to know when they follow him, up to the Calvary, when they see him die on the cross.

And they will complete their knowledge of him, when they too will die like him.

We Christians come to know Jesus more when we continue encountering him in the sacraments, reading the Bible and listening to those who are trained to interpret biblical texts.

We must also journey with Christ. Our knowledge of him as the Messiah will never

be complete, if we refuse to carry our crosses and be crucified at the end.

The second reading enumerates what Christ has done for us.

Christ can do much for us because of his passion, death and resurrection.

He has won life for us the hard way through his blood.

We, too, will really enjoy the inheritance set aside for us, if we keep the faith in Christ.

In our churches, let us speed up catechetical work and ongoing formation.

Many of us are still ignorant about Christ.

We do many things without knowing why.

We, Christians, should know the meaning of what we are doing, especially in the liturgy, in which we encounter Christ best.

In the Eucharist, we come to know more about Jesus.

In the Eucharist, we participate in the journey of Jesus (passion, death and resurrection).

In the Eucharist, Christ promises us eternal life.

Our Context of Sin and GraceLazy to study faithNo bible readingNo going to MassLazy to attend liturgyNo participation in study groupsNo catechismNo theology

Well catechizedLectio divinaAttentive at MassDiligent in studyingBuys commentariesAble to sacrifice and be insultedWilling to be crucified

Suggested SongsOne Bread One Body

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WIl8CHLR4CQ

Sino ba ang Diyos?http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m8glIv39uK

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