16 Now when he went to Natzeret, where he had been brought up, on Shabbat he went to the synagogue as usual. He stood up to read, 17 and he was given the scroll of the prophet Yesha‘yahu. Unrolling the scroll, he found the place where it was written,
18 “The Spirit of Adonai is upon me;
therefore he has anointed me
to announce Good News to the poor;
he has sent me to proclaim freedom for the imprisoned
and renewed sight for the blind,
to release those who have been crushed,
19 to proclaim a year of the favor of Adonai.”[Luke 4:19 Isaiah 61:1–2; 58:6]
20 After closing the scroll and returning it to the shammash, he sat down; and the eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fixed on him. 21 He started to speak to them: “Today, as you heard it read, this passage of the Tanakh was fulfilled!” 22 Everyone was speaking well of him and marvelling that such appealing words were coming from his mouth. They were even asking, “Can this be Yosef’s son?”
Saint Raymond of Penyafort, Priest (Optional Memorial)
The eyes of all in the synagogue looked intently at him.(Luke 4:20)How often does your mind drift when you are listening to the readings at Mass? Maybe a cell phone is vibrating nearby or you feel an itch or you begin thinking about your plans for the day. As Jesus’ listeners sat on benches and on the floor of the synagogue in Nazareth, they also could have been distracted by any number of items. But not on this day. This Sabbath liturgy was different: they looked at Jesus intently.
The passage that Jesus read was a very familiar one from the Book of Isaiah. Most of the people could have probably recited it themselves. Not to mention, the place where he spoke was their hometown synagogue—a comfortable, familiar place where they went to pray every week. On the surface, there was nothing out of the ordinary at all. But something about Jesus turned the ordinary into the extraordinary. Before he even said, “This Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing,” his listeners were paying rapt attention to him (Luke 4:21). Somehow, they could sense that something new and important was unfolding before their eyes. The word of God, spoken by the Son of God, came to life in a way they had never experienced before.
This can be our experience as well. The Church teaches that God speaks to his people in a special way when the Scriptures are read during the Liturgy of the Word at Mass. Even though it’s an ordinary lector reading the words, Jesus is speaking through that lector in a powerful way. And if Jesus is speaking, you can be sure he has a message for each person there.
Whether you are hearing the passages for the first time or the hundredth, God always has something new to say to you through them. Gazing at you in love, he proclaims his message of liberation directly to you: Be free from your chains. Rise up and walk. Go in peace.
The next time you hear the Scriptures at Mass, try to close your eyes and imagine Jesus standing before you, speaking the words. He has something to say—something meant just for you. Listen closely, and you’ll hear it.
“Jesus, I believe your word is for me today. I marvel at the power of your message.” Amen!
1 John 4:19 We ourselves love now because he loved us first. 20 If anyone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar. For if a person does not love his brother, whom he has seen, then he cannot love God, whom he has not seen. 21 Yes, this is the command we have from him: whoever loves God must love his brother too.
5:1 Everyone who believes that Yeshua is the Messiah has God as his father, and everyone who loves a father loves his offspring too. 2 Here is how we know that we love God’s children: when we love God, we also do what he commands. 3 For loving God means obeying his commands. Moreover, his commands are not burdensome, 4 because everything which has God as its Father overcomes the world. And this is what victoriously overcomes the world: our trust.
Psalm 72:(0) By Shlomo:
(1) God, give the king your fairness in judgment,
endow this son of kings with your righteousness,
2 so that he can govern your people rightly
and your poor with justice.
14 He will redeem them from oppression and violence;
their blood will be precious in his view.
15 May [the king] live long!
May they give him gold from the land of Sh’va!
May they pray for him continually;
yes, bless him all day long.
17 May his name endure forever,
his name, Yinnon, as long as the sun.[Psalm 72:17 Or: “May his name flourish/propagate as long as the sun.” Jewish tradition considers Yinnon a name of the Messiah.]
May people bless themselves in him,
may all nations call him happy.
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