July 17, 2013

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Wednesday of the Fifteenth Week in Ordinary Time 
Lectionary: 391

Reading 1EX 3:1-6, 9-12

Moses was tending the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian.
Leading the flock across the desert, he came to Horeb,
the mountain of God.
There an angel of the LORD appeared to him in fire
flaming out of a bush.

The angel of the Lord turns out to be God.  One of the three persons of the Holy Trinity, as we will see.

As he looked on, he was surprised to see that the bush,
though on fire, was not consumed.

The bush which is not consumed by the fire is considered to be a prefiguring of the Virgin Mary.

So Moses decided,
“I must go over to look at this remarkable sight,
and see why the bush is not burned.”

When the LORD saw him coming over to look at it more closely,
God called out to him from the bush, “Moses! Moses!”

Therefore, the Angel of the Lord is actually God.

He answered, “Here I am.”
God said, “Come no nearer!
Remove the sandals from your feet,
for the place where you stand is holy ground.
I am the God of your father,” he continued,
“the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, the God of Jacob.
The cry of the children of Israel has reached me,
and I have truly noted that the Egyptians are oppressing them.
Come, now! I will send you to Pharaoh to lead my people,
the children of Israel, out of Egypt.”

God reveals that He has chosen Moses to lead the people of Israel out of Egypt.  Here, it is noteworthy to see that God calls the Israelites, "my people."  A little bit later, He will no longer do so, but will call them "your people".

But Moses said to God,
“Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh
and lead the children of Israel out of Egypt?”
He answered, “I will be with you;
and this shall be your proof that it is I who have sent you:
when you bring my people out of Egypt,
you will worship God on this very mountain.”

Moses was doubtful that he could lead the people.  But God said that He would be with him.

Responsorial PsalmPS 103:1B-2, 3-4, 6-7

R. (8a) The Lord is kind and merciful.
Bless the LORD, O my soul;
and all my being, bless his holy name.
Bless the LORD, O my soul,
and forget not all his benefits.
R. The Lord is kind and merciful.
He pardons all your iniquities,
he heals all your ills.
He redeems your life from destruction,
he crowns you with kindness and compassion.
R. The Lord is kind and merciful.
The LORD secures justice
and the rights of all the oppressed.
He has made known his ways to Moses,
and his deeds to the children of Israel.
R. The Lord is kind and merciful.

The Lord is truly kind and merciful.  Although they did not deserve salvation, God pulled the people of Israel from Egypt and saved them.  The Lord was kind towards the Israelites.  But harsh towards the Egyptians.

GospelMT 11:25-27

At that time Jesus exclaimed:
“I give praise to you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth,
for although you have hidden these things
from the wise and the learned
you have revealed them to the childlike.
Yes, Father, such has been your gracious will.
All things have been handed over to me by my Father.
No one knows the Son except the Father,
and no one knows the Father except the Son
and anyone to whom the Son wishes to reveal him.”

To go to the Father, we must go through Jesus Christ.  Jesus is the way, the life and the truth.  He is salvation incarnate.