15th Week, Friday, July 21: St Lawrence of Brindisi
Exodus 11:10 -12:14 / Matthew 12:1-8
The Israelites celebrate the Passover; "Procure a lamb. "
The Apostle Paul called Christ "our Passover lamb." 1 Corinthians (TEV) The relationship between the first Passover lamb and Christ "our Passover lamb" is striking. Just as the first Israelites were saved by the blood of the first Passover lamb, so we are saved by the blood of Christ. Likewise, just as the first Israelites ate the flesh of the first Passover lamb, so we are nourished by the flesh of Christ. The flesh and blood of the first Passover lamb saved Israel from physical slavery and death. The flesh and blood of Christ saves not just Israel but all peoples everywhere from spiritual slavery and death.***
How deeply do we appreciate the close relationship God set up between the Old and the New Testaments? "Our Passover Festival is ready, now that Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed. Let us celebrate." 1 Corinthians 5:7-8 (TEV)
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The sight of blood is never a pleasant sight. Whether the blood is in the tube as when it is collected for testing or in a translucent packet as for blood transfusion, the sight of blood can be quite uncomfortable for some people. More so when blood is being splattered when an animal is slaughtered, or when there is a serious accident and the blood is oozing out from the victims, it can be quite a terrible sight. In the biblical sense, blood is not just a fluid that is contained in the body of a human being or an animal. It is a sign of life from God. When Abel was killed by Cain, his blood cried out to God (Genesis 4:10) In the 1st reading, the blood of the lamb that was slaughtered by each household on that first Passover in Egypt was to be smeared on the two doorposts and the lintel of the houses where it is eaten.
Because that night, the Lord will go through the land of Egypt and strike down all the firstborns in the land of Egypt, man and beast alike, and deal out punishment to all the gods of Egypt. But the blood of the lamb shall serve to mark the houses that the Israelites live in, and when the Lord sees the blood, the Lord will pass over them and they shall escape the destroying plague that the Lord will strike the land of Egypt. Jesus is the Lamb of God who shed His blood on the Cross to save us. At every Mass, the blood of Jesus marks us with salvation and washes away our sins.
Let us meditate deeply on the Cross, and may the blood that Jesus shed to save us always remind us of the new life that we have in Him.
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When God brought punishing plagues on the Egyptians for oppressing his people, he saved the Hebrew families, which had eaten the paschal lamb and smeared its blood on the door posts. Christ communicates his salvation to us in the eucharist, the new Passover meal. Here he is our Passover lamb that saved us by his blood from the slavery of sin. He is the paschal lamb, the Lamb of God, who is our food on the road of life. Laws are not above the service to people, for the service of God does not contradict the love and mercy to be shown to people. Laws, and commandments are based on the freedom God has brought to us in Christ.
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This passage tells to what extent a Pharisee's interpretation of the law can go. Jesus makes two interesting remarks. The loaves of the offering were two piles of six chapattis each, put on a table, with some golden cups, as would be used for wine as a libation. On it they placed also a platter with incense. Every week the unleavened bread was changed and the incense burnt. The loaves were only to be eaten by the priests. David, on a campaign with a few hungry soldiers, entered the holy of holies, where the table was and which they were not allowed to enter. Was he wrong? Jesus asked the Pharisees. Have you different standards for different people? All of them had spoken about this. Love is more important than a ritual. The Pharisees found it wiser not to answer these arguments.
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Prayer
Lord our God, you want us to seek security not in observing the letter of the law but to seek the insecurity of committing ourselves to you and to people in mercy and service. Give us the courage to take the risk and, like Jesus, to make the sacrifice of giving ourselves to you in our neighbour in need, of sharing in their joys and sorrows, their problems and their protests, that we may know and serve them as you know and serve us in Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen
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Feast day July 21
Lawrence of Brindisi was born in Italy in 1559. After he was ordained a priest, he devoted his life to preaching. He was most attentive to correcting the errors by Reformation preaching. Because he spoke eight languages, he was a popular and powerful preacher in several countries.
Lawrence became known for his goodness, his simplicity, and his prudence as a teacher. He was especially devoted to the Blessed Virgin. Besides being the superior general of about 9,000 Capuchin friars in Italy, France, Belgium, Spain, and Switzerland, Lawrence had a splendid reputation as a missionary and as a diplomat. In 1959, Pope John XXIII declared him a Doctor of the Church.
