1st Week in Ordinary Time (Year A) : Wednesday 11th January 2023

Jesus begins His public life and ministry, and arrives at Capernaum. Jesus heals Peter’s mother-in-law and many people who were sick and those who were possessed by the devil. He dedicated the entire day, till evening, attending to the needs of those who came seeking healing and forgiveness. Early the next day, before dawn, Jesus rises and goes to a lonely place to pray and commune with His Father. “Everybody is looking for you,” they say to Him. He replies: “Let us go elsewhere, to the neighbouring country towns so that I can preach there too because that is why I came.”

Why did Jesus come? Today’s first reading from the Letter to the Hebrews points to the significance of Jesus’ incarnation, that is, the necessity of suffering and faithfulness to God. An earlier verse (v.10) sums up this theme: God brings human beings to salvation through the suffering of Jesus, the divine Son who became human. The idea that it is fitting for God to become a human being and suffer death (v. 14) would seem foolish and blasphemous to many, both ancient and modern. But it is at the heart of the Christian Gospel, expressed in this passage. Jesus is both the originator and the pioneer of human salvation. And yet He is the merciful and faithful high priest we can rely on because He is totally available and reliable.

The response for today’s psalm is most apt: “The Lord remembers His covenant forever.”

Praise be God forever!