August 4, 2010. Lectionary #410

Scripture: Aug.4. Lectionary # 410. Jeremiah 31:31-34. Psalm
51:12-13.14-15.18-19. Matthew 16:13-23:

Jeremiah speaks of the new and renewed covenant of the Lord.It is so
personal that one will experience God in a new way. "and they shall teach
no more every man his neighbor, and everyman his brother, saying: 'Know the
Lord'; for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest
of them, saith the Lord; for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin
will I remember no more." (Jeremiah 31:33). The commentary from the Hebrew
notes of Soncino on Jeremiah has this to say: "in their inward parts, and
in their heart. I will no longer be something external to them, but so
deeply ingrained in their consciousness as to be part of them. This,
indeed,is the aim of all religious teaching."

This revelatory insight is seen in the Gospel excerpt for today. It helps
us think about a Synod on Scripture in which Benedict XVI urged the pastors
and priests to have an interpretation of faith when they present the
Scriptures to others and when they themselves are nourished by the
Scriptures through study and careful preparation. We can learn from Peter
who listens to the Father and receives the revelation that Jesus is Messiah
and the Son of the living God. No one could teach him this but his faith
of the heart led him to express this near Caesarea Philippi. Peter is
blessed by Jesus and given a new name--Rock. This is to tell Peter that
the Church will be built upon this "Rock" (Peter). Peter not only called
Jesus Messiah but also identified him and separated his faith in Jesus from
those who thought Jesus was the Baptist, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets!

We too approach the Scriptures with listening hearts in the liturgy. This
is not a study hall but a place of prayer where in listening to the word of
God our gift of faith is put into practice and yields a hundred fold. Here
is where we can experience the Christ and the living voice of Jesus. We
are not alone in this as we gather with others for the Eucharist.

The covenant that Jeremiah speaks about is given by the Father to the
People of Israel and to us. The covenant Jesus is speaking about does not
supercede the Mosaic covenant or the one written on the hearts of
believers, but is a renewal and a new perspective of God's covenantal love
for all of us. God's covenant from the beginning stands...for the gifts of
God are without repentance, that is, they are not taken back on the part of
God. Jesus renews these covenantal texts and makes them a part of his own
teaching to the disciples. We are their inheritors. Amen.