Fr Erasto Fernandez SSS, a priest from India, continues his series on the Eucharist during this the Year for Priests. This week: The Word of God speaks to us.
Since Vatican II liturgical reform every Sacramental celebration has its proper Scripture reading. Besides, the passages proclaimed at Eucharist cover almost the entire Bible over a three-year cycle for Sundays and a two-year cycle for weekdays. Every important passage in the Bible is thus offered to us so that our encounter with the Risen Lord can be meaningful and effective.
When the Scriptures are proclaimed in the Liturgy, it is the Risen Lord himself and his Spirit who proclaim and also interpret the message for us. As he painstakingly explained the Scriptures to the two disciples of Emmaus, or again as Philip unveiled the story of salvation to the Ethiopian, so the same Lord speaks to us, eager that we understand all that is said. The point, of course, is whether we are equally keen and interested in understanding and entering into communion with him.
Purpose: To Reveal the Father
The Word is not meant primarily to instruct us, or even to correct our waywardness. It is never meant to make us focus on ourselves, but rather on God! “No one has ever seen God. It is God’s only Son, who is close to the Father’s heart, who has made him known (Jn 1:18). So, the primary purpose of God’s Word is to reveal to us who the Father is. God reminds us often how totally different (holy) he is from us: “My thoughts are not your thoughts…” (Is 55:8-13). His qualities, especially his mercy and love (hesed-emeth), are unimaginable and unbelievable, beyond our wildest dreams, almost too good to be true. That is why we need faith to accept God as he reveals himself to us in Jesus!
So, we listen to every biblical proclamation with a question in our minds: “Which qualities of God does this passage reveal to me?” When we listen thus, it is amazing what we discover. In the parable of the Sower, for example, we discover God as ‘generous, patient, taking the initiative, persevering, respectful of our freedom, impartial’ and the like. We would never discover such insights if we understand the parable as merely telling us that we must produce more fruit.
Again, the Scriptures reflect like a mirror, not only who God is, but also the innermost secrets of our hearts. In the Scripture Jesus speaks to Peter, the Samaritan woman and other personages – but never directly to us. We only overhear, as it were, what he says to these personages. But then we notice that what Jesus says to them is equally applicable to our own situation. It is as if ‘his-story’ becomes really my own story; the past becomes present for me!
At other times, the Scripture stories can actually ‘hook up’ with our own life experiences, throwing light on what God has been saying to us through them. In Acts 10, Peter has a vision three times: a huge sheet containing all kinds of animals is let down from heaven and he is told to kill and eat. Horrified, because these animals are ‘unclean,’ Peter is still puzzling over the meaning of the vision when the servants of Cornelius ask for him. Later, as he listens to Cornelius recount his own experiences while at prayer, Peter suddenly grasps the meaning of his triple vision: ‘Nothing is unclean to God!’ Cornelius’ narration helps Peter understand God’s message to him. So also, when we listen to the experiences narrated in the Scriptures, they could throw light on our own human life-experiences.
“Your Word is a lamp for my steps …” (Ps 119:105).