Saturday of the Thirty-second Week in Ordinary Time

Lectionary: 496



When peaceful stillness compassed everything and the night in its swift course was half spent, your all-powerful word, from heaven’s royal throne bounded, a fierce warrior, into the doomed land, bearing the sharp sword of your inexorable decree. And as he alighted, he filled every place with death; he reached to heaven, while he stood upon the earth...

After they beheld stupendous wonders they ranged about like horses, and bounded about like lambs, praising you, O Lord, their deliverer.


Today's first reading from the Book of Wisdom recounts with light-hearted joy the ancient story of Israel's deliverance from Egypt. By the time of this writing, it is a very old story. Since then they have seen the destruction of many enemies; the rise, flourish and collapse of their own sovereign kingdom; the sweeping conquest and inevitable fall of several empires; and the settled era of the Pax Romana. 
Under Roman rule they were free to practice their own peculiar religion so long as it didn't directly threaten the payment of tribute to the empire. Trade and learning flourished. There was even some tourism as young adventurers sampled different languages, peoples, cultures and religions. Dispersed Jews from Europe, Asia and Africa could make pilgrimage to Jerusalem, the Holy City. They "ranged about like horses and bounded about like lambs." 

If the Roman empire maintained its rule with the threat of slavery for armed opposition and crucifixion for criminals, it seemed a fair trade-off for the chaos of former times. Jews didn't mind praying for their civil rulers, so long as they were fair and not terribly corrupt. 

Love and truth will meet;justice and peace will kiss.Truth will spring from the earth;justice will look down from heaven. Psalm 85:10

Justice and judgment are the foundation of your throne;mercy and faithfulness march before you. Psalm 89:15

The Savior of the World was born about fifty years after the appearance of this Book of Wisdom. It was an era ready for his coming, when Greek philosophers admired Jewish ethics and Jewish scholars found verification for their belief in One God in the writings of Greek wisdom. 

Today we can pray that our "Pax Americana" might also produce blessings for future generations. Our experiment with hospitality for all races and religions, with democracy and government by the middle class, and with the four freedoms (of speech, of worship, from want, from fear) might continue even into the fourth millennium after Christ.