Word to the Wise
Thursday, August 2, 2007 - Seventeenth Thursday in Ordinary Time [St. Eusebius of Vercelli]
[Exodus 40:16-21; 34-38 and Matthew 13:47-53]Then every scribe who has been instructed in the Kingdom of heaven is like the head of a household who brings from his storeroom both the new and the old.
A visit to the homes of my friends who are married and have children is an exercise in understanding the storeroom with the new and the old in it. I often am brought in through the garage, which, as we know, is used less and less by automobiles! A quick look around reveals the results of many birthdays and Christmases and wedding anniversaries! Much of it is there because of the thought: "This is still good, I'm not going to throw it away! It may come in handy someday!" The Gospel of Matthew is concerned in many ways with the old and the new. The disciples in the intended audience were most likely those who were brought up Jewish, which represents the tradition they knew. Yet now they are confronted with their faith in someone new: Jesus of Nazareth. Many adjustments are being required as their preaching about Jesus creates tension with their fellow Jews! The wise disciple had to know, like a good householder, how to mix the old with the new. Eventually there would be a complete separation from the synagogue for the Christian community. Yet we still have roots in Judaism, most notably represented in the scriptures of the Old Testament, which we consider to be revelation as well as the New Testament. The tension between old and new is also being represented in the recent document easing restrictions on the pre-Vatican II Latin liturgy. For some, this will mean the reappropriation of a wise and beautiful way. For others it will be like going up in the attic and putting on clothes that belonged to grandma and grandad - fun for a rainy day but not meant for everyday wear! Is Pope Benedict XVI being a wise scribe? If the letter accompanying the decree is any indicator, there are bishops who think it's a bad move and others who think it's a good one. Needless to say, there are laity on both sides as well. He's the head of the household, however, and time will tell how things play out. In the meantime, we might pay attention to our own spiritual households and take an inventory of the old and the new. While we're at it, maybe we should clean out the attic and garage too! AMEN
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