Servant of the Lord: Called to be a Light for All Nations

Julie South [00:00:07]:
Welcome to your catholic corner. I'm your show host, Julie south. Your catholic corner helps Catholics spiritually prepare for each Sunday's mass. Starting midweek each week, you can listen to your catholic corner at your catholic today we're uncovering the biblical gems hidden in the biblical books of the Prophet Isaiah, Paul's first letter to the Corinthians, and John's Gospel. In catholic speak. We are back in ordinary time in year b. We'll start with this week's question of the week from a listener. Thank you very much.

Julie South [00:00:50]:
What is ordinary time and why have it? Then we will listen to the readings, and we'll pray the readings, and then I'll share what I hear God saying to me through these three men. My reflections but before that, a quick.

Julie South [00:01:07]:
Word about your catholic corner, just in case this is your first time here. Regardless of where you are on your spiritual journey, whether you've only just heard of that man called Jesus, you're new to Catholicism or you're a cradle Catholic, my prayer is that your catholic corner will help bring God's word to life in your heart through insights, reflections and practical applications that help deepen your relationship with God. Every Thursday, we'll start preparing for mass by uncovering the richness hidden in each Sunday's Bible readings, from Old Testament prophecies to gospel parables. I invite you to join me and.

Julie South [00:01:49]:
The parishioners of the Cathedral of the.

Julie South [00:01:51]:
Blessed Virgin Mary in Hamilton, New Zealand, sponsors of your catholic corner so that together we can hear God's word and echo. Samuel, speak, Lord, your servant is listening.

Julie South [00:02:03]:
Now let's get back to today's show, ordinary time. Interestingly, ordinary doesn't actually mean ordinary as you and I usually know it. It doesn't mean being boring or mundane. Instead, it comes from the latin word ordinal, which is all about numbering and series. In this case, in the catholic liturgical sense, we are talking numbered weeks, the mass service this coming Sunday. As I'm recording this, the 15 January 2024 is the second Sunday of ordinary time in year b. We'll look at how the years are worked in another episode. So ordinary time is a liturgical period in the Catholic Church that is anything but ordinary, especially when we're talking about the sense of being unimportant or uninteresting.

Julie South [00:03:02]:
If liturgical or liturgy is a new word for you, then maybe check out the episode on your catholic corner entitled Sheep's shepherds and Scrutiny. Exploring the metaphors in Ezekiel, Corinthians and Matthew because I actually introduced that was one of the questions of the week back then. I'll put a link to that episode in the show notes page for you@yourcatholiccorner.com. So you can check that out now. Here is some interesting info, I think, for you about ordinary time. It's actually the longest period, the longest catholic period, if you like, in each calendar year and then each liturgical year. When it comes to its place in the liturgical calendar, ordinary time occurs twice. The first time is between the seasons of Christmas and Lent, and that's what we're in right now.

Julie South [00:04:00]:
And then between Pentecost and Advent. So after Easter, after Pentecost, as I said just now, it's the longest time in the calendar and it comprises around 33 weeks, plus or minus, depending on the calendar year at the time. The liturgical color for ordinary time is green. This is because green symbolizes growth and life. The priest's vestments, his clothing is green. Ordinary time focuses on the growth of the church. It also focuses on your spiritual growth through the teachings of Jesus. While other liturgical seasons have definitive focuses, for example, Jesus'birth during Christmas or his resurrection during Easter, ordinary time is devoted to the continuous growth in the christian life.

Julie South [00:04:55]:
It's a time for our reflecting on and living out the teachings of Jesus for us to do as Jesus would do and would want us to do. The Bible readings during ordinary time actually cover a broad range of Jesus's teachings and miracles. Also included are other parts of scripture that aren't specifically tied to a particular mystery of our faith. Because of this, it gives us a more in depth exploration of the Bible over the course of the year. As I've mentioned a few times now, ordinary time is an opportunity for us Catholics to deepen our faith and practice our spiritual disciplines outside the more intense and precisely focused other seasons like Lent, it's a time for us to grow in our virtuousness and put our faith into action every single day. Even though ordinary time isn't focused around the major events in Jesus'life, like his birth say, it still includes lots of important feast days. It also commemorates or honours our saints. These feast and saint days give us additional opportunities for us Catholics to reflect and celebrate our Lord.

Julie South [00:06:17]:
As you can see, hopefully, ordinary time is special in the Catholic Church because it's a period of around 33 weeks, plus or minus, where we're focused on personal and shared growth in faith, hope and love. All of this happens through the regular rhythm of church life. The emphasis is focused on the teachings and the everyday life of Jesus. Now, with our three Bible readings today, Bible passages today we have Isaiah, chapter 49, verses the and five through six. First letter of Paul to the Corinthians. So that's one corinthians, chapter one, verses one to three. And the Gospel according to John, the first chapter, chapter one, verses 29 through 234. So those are today's readings.

Julie South [00:07:25]:
What is their common unifying theme? Because there will be one. That's why the Catholic Church has chosen those specific passages. Sometimes it connects all three. The linking thread actually weaves through all three. Other times it's just the first passage from the Old Testament or the Hebrew Bible with the New Testament Gospel reading. So what do we have today? Well, one of the first places that I go to start to see where that connecting thread might start, what it might be about is with the responsorial psalm. I actually look at the response of the psalm today. It is here I am, Lord.

Julie South [00:08:13]:
I've come to do your will. So really, does that give us any hints? Well, I think it's a good place to start, especially with linking the Old Testament passage of Isaiah through to the New Testament from the New Testament passage from John. Let's have a look. Why and how. There are actually a few connections. First, both passages speak of a servant who will be sent by God to bring salvation to the world. In Isaiah, chapter 49, verse three, the servants described as being a light to all nations and a covenant for the people. In John's Gospel, chapter one, verse 29, John the Baptist identifies Jesus as the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.

Julie South [00:09:07]:
Both passages also speak of the servant's suffering. In Isaiah 49, verses five to six, the servants described as being despised and rejected by men and a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. In John's Gospel, John one, verse 35, John the Baptist says that Jesus is the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. If you're a regular catholic mass goer, that statement is likely familiar to you. It's what the priest says when he breaks the host before we receive holy communion. Now you know where it comes from. What that statement also implies is that Jesus is the one who will suffer and die on the cross to save the world from sin. To save you and me from sin, us.

Julie South [00:10:07]:
Another connection between the Isaiah and John passages is the use of the word servant. In Isaiah, chapter 49, verse three, the servant is described as being a servant of the Lord. In John, chapter one, verse 14, Jesus is described as being the word who became flesh and dwelt among us. This suggests that Jesus is a servant of God who came to earth to save the world. And then finally both passages speak of the servant's victory. In Isaiah 49, verses seven through nine, the servant is described as being victorious over his enemies. In John one, verse 51, John the Baptist says that Jesus is the son of man who is in heaven. This this mention of heaven suggests that Jesus is the victorious servant who will defeat his enemies and bring salvation to the world.

Julie South [00:11:12]:
So as you can see and listen out, for we have a few connections between the Isaiah and John passages from the Hebrew Bible of Isaiah through to the New Testament reading from John. Both speak of a servant who will be sent by God to bring salvation to the world. Both also speak of the servant's suffering and victory and the going back to the beginning, the first reading Isaiah. These connections suggest that Jesus is the one who was prophesied about in Isaiah 49. If your haven't checked out your catholic corner website recently, please have a dig around@yourcatholiccorner.com my plan is to add each of the authors of each bible passage there so that you can discover a little bit more about them. You can check that page out at forward slash guests a reading from the prophet Isaiah the Lord said to me, you are my servant Israel, in whom I shall be glorified. I was honored in the eyes of the Lord. My God was my strength.

Julie South [00:12:54]:
And now the God has spoken. He who formed me in the womb to be his servant to bring Jacob back to him, to gather Israel to him. It is not enough for you to be my servant to restore the tribes of Jacob and bring back the survivors of Israel. I will make you the light of the nations so that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth. A reading from the first letter of Paul to the corinthians. I, Paul, appointed by God to be an apostle, together with my brother Sistinas, sent greetings to the church in God of Corinth, to the holy people of Jesus Christ, who I called to take their place among all the saints everywhere who pray to our Lord Jesus Christ, for he is their lord, no less than ours. May God our father and the Lord Jesus Christ send you grace and peace. A reading from the gospel according to John.

Julie South [00:14:06]:
Seeing Jesus come towards him, John said, look, there is a lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world. This is the one I spoke of when I said, a man is coming after me who ranks before me. Because he existed before me, I did not know him myself. And yet it was to reveal him to Israel that I came baptizing with water. John also declared, I saw the spirit coming down on him from heaven like a dove and resting on him. I did not know him myself, but he who sent me to baptize with water had said to me, the man on whom you see the spirit come down and rest is the one who is going to baptize with the Holy Spirit. Yes, I have seen, and I am the witness that he is the chosen one of God, the word of the Lord. Okay, how can we bring these three Bible passages into our life this week? What can we do? How might God be talking to us? What I like to do is look at the metaphors that are used in the passages, because when we think about it, the Bible is all about love.

Julie South [00:15:40]:
The Bible is all about our salvation and God saving the world and love, that's just what the Bible is. So let's look a little deeper and get a little bit more of a deeper understanding, perhaps, of these three passages. Let's start with the metaphor of the servant of the Lord. This is Jesus Christ. And for us Catholics, it confirms that Jesus is the one who serves God and does God's will. Then we have the light of the world that is used to describe Jesus, because it's Jesus who brings light into the darkness of the world. When I think about my own conversion, I guess my passage from living in the dark to living in the light, that is one metaphor that I use. I feel like before I became Catholic, before I had God in my life, I was living in the dark.

Julie South [00:16:46]:
I just didn't know that. And then we have the cornerstone of the church. This metaphor is fully Jesus Christ. He is. That's the metaphor to describe Jesus. It confirms that Jesus is the foundation of the church, that everything in the church rests on him. And the finally, we have the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. This is the metaphor used to describe Jesus.

Julie South [00:17:15]:
It confirms again that he is the one who died on the cross to take away your sin. My sin? Our sins, the sins of the world. Of course, we can interpret these metaphors in a number of ways. So let's look at them first. In understanding the nature of Jesus, we know that Jesus is the servant of the Lord. He is the light of the world. He is the cornerstone of the church, and he is the lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. These metaphors help us to understand and confirm, reconfirm who Jesus is and what he's done for us.

Julie South [00:17:55]:
Second, we can see these metaphors as a way of understanding our relationship with Jesus. We are called to be servants of God as catholic Christians, as Christians, we are called to be servants of God, to be the light in the darkness. It could be the light for those who are living in dark. You could be the witness that helps somebody find out about Jesus. Then we've got being built on the foundation of Jesus Christ with the church and to be forgiven of our sins through Jesus. These metaphors help us understand how we can live in relationship with Jesus. And then finally we can see that these metaphors are a way of our understanding the world around us. The world is sadly a dark place, but Jesus is the light.

Julie South [00:18:51]:
The world is full of sin, but Jesus is the lamb of God who takes away that sin of the world. When we think about these metaphors, they can help us understand the world around us and how we can live in it as followers of Jesus. These are little insights of what Jesus is saying to me through these three men on this second Sunday or for the second Sunday of ordinary time. And I'd just like to say that what God says to me might not be what God says to you. What I pick up isn't necessarily what you pick up. What I talk about may not ring any bells or may not strike any chords in your heart. That's because God talks with us and to us differently depending on what is going on in our lives each day. Your I hope you found all this interesting and helpful.

Julie South [00:20:06]:
I hope this podcast helps you prepare and maybe even understand just a teeny, tiny, incy wincy dinky bit better the wonderful word of God and the catholic faith. Thank you for spending the last half an hour or so of your life with God and me, Isaiah, St. Paul and St. John. I pray that each of these men, coupled hopefully with my little bit, has been able to make the difference God wishes for you today in their own way in your life. Thank you for getting this far. Can I ask you to do God and I a huge favor? Please. If you enjoyed today's show, can you please help me spread God's word about your catholic corner? All you have to do is tell your friends and family about this podcast so they can hopefully benefit as well.

Julie South [00:20:59]:
Letting them know about it is really easy. Just invite them to visit yourcatholiccorner.com where they can subscribe and follow the show from there. It's free, it doesn't cost anything. Thank you very much. Wherever you are, I pray that God's glass of love overflows in your heart and your life and that when your ready, you're able to accept God's invitation to you to join him to share in Holy Communion this week at your local parish. And finally, I'd like to say thank you to the parishioners of the Cathedral of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Hamilton, New Zealand, who helped me bring this podcast to you today. This is Julie south signing off until next week. Peace be with you.

Julie South [00:21:44]:
God bless.