Luke 6:17, 20-26

Jeremiah 17:5-8

Psalm 1:1-2, 3, 4 & 6

1 Corinthians 15:12, 16-20

Luke 6:17, 20-26

Jesus came down with the Twelve

and stood on a stretch of level ground

with a great crowd of his disciples

and a large number of the people

from all Judea and Jerusalem

and the coastal region of Tyre and Sidon.

And raising his eyes toward his disciples he said:

“Blessed are you who are poor,

for the kingdom of God is yours.

 Blessed are you who are now hungry,

for you will be satisfied.

 Blessed are you who are now weeping,

       for you will laugh.

 Blessed are you when people hate you,

       and when they exclude and insult you,

       and denounce your name as evil

       on account of the Son of Man.

Rejoice and leap for joy on that day!

Behold, your reward will be great in heaven.

For their ancestors treated the prophets in the same way.

But woe to you who are rich,

        for you have received your consolation.

Woe to you who are filled now,

for you will be hungry.

Woe to you who laugh now,

       for you will grieve and weep.

Woe to you when all speak well of you,

for their ancestors treated the false prophets in this way.”

Opening Prayer: Lord God, thank you for inviting me to enter into a covenant relationship with you as your child. May I always strive to be faithful and docile to your holy will. Help me to hear your powerful voice amid the distracting noise of the world.

Encountering the Word of God

1. Old Covenant Blessings and Curses: In a covenant relationship between two parties, fidelity to the other brings blessing, while infidelity in the relationship triggers curses. In a marriage covenant, for example, faithful love often flourishes and brings about happiness, while infidelity tends to destroy the relationship and break the trust between the two. In a divine covenant, God is always faithful, while time and time again human beings prove themselves to be unfaithful. When human beings trigger the curses of a divine covenant, they often have a remedial function and are a way to bring human beings back into a right relationship with God. In the First Reading, Jeremiah contrasts the cursed from the blessed. While the former trust in human beings and power, the latter trust in the Lord and place their hope in him. While the former are like a barren bush in the desert, the latter are like a tree planted beside the waters. While the former are empty in an empty place, the latter bear fruit for God’s Kingdom. 

2. New Covenant Blessings and Curses: Just as there are blessings and curses in the Old Covenant, there are also blessings and curses in the New Covenant. In the Gospel of Matthew, for example, the Sermon on the Mount contains eight blessings, and, near the end of the Gospel Jesus pronounces seven woes or covenant curses on the scribes and pharisees. In Luke’s Gospel, the Sermon on the Plain contrasts the blessings and curses of the New Covenant. Jesus pronounces blessing on the poor, the hungry, those who weep, and those who are hated, excluded, insulted, and denounced because of their fidelity to Jesus, the Son of Man. At the same time, Jesus pronounces woe on those who are rich, are filled, laugh, and are spoken well of. This indicates, on the one hand, that the situation of the present world will be reversed in the world to come. On the other, it indicates that what are often counted as blessings in this life – such as wealth and earthly celebrity – can become obstacles to attaining true happiness.

3. Christ Has Been Raised: In the Second Reading, Paul speaks to the Corinthians about those among them who deny that there is no resurrection of the dead. Paul argues that if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Jesus Christ has not been raised from the dead. And if Christ has not been raised, then our faith is in vain and our sins have not been forgiven. “[A]t the heart of our faith lies the hope in the Resurrection, and that without this hope, our faith is empty and we are the most pitiful of people. Why? Because in this life, we are not going to enjoy the reward for whatever good we do and holiness we attain” (Bergsma, The Word of the Lord: Year C, 240). Paul affirms his faith in Christ’s resurrection from the dead and that Jesus is the first-fruits of those who have died. As members of Christ’s Body, we will follow where our Head has gone. As children of God, we will follow where the first-born eternal Son of God has gone. And just as an Israelite brought the first harvest sheaf of grain to the priest and, in this way, consecrated the entire harvest to God, so also we, as God’s harvest, will follow where the first-fruit, Jesus Christ, has gone.

Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus, I believe that you are the resurrection and the life. I praise you for your great work of redemption, for suffering on account of our sins, for dying to destroy death, and for rising to bring us, your brothers and sisters, into the eternal presence of the Father.

Living the Word of God: How is my covenant relationship with my God? How am I unfaithful? How can I grow in fidelity? How have I been blessed by God over the years?