A reading from the Letter to the Hebrews 5:1-10
Brothers and sisters: Every high priest is taken from among men and made their representative before God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins. He is able to deal patiently with the ignorant and erring, for he himself is beset by weakness and so, for this reason, must make sin offerings for himself as well as for the people. No one takes this honor upon himself but only when called by God, just as Aaron was. In the same way, it was not Christ who glorified himself in becoming high priest, but rather the one who said to him: You are my Son: this day I have begotten you; just as he says in another place, You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek. In the days when he was in the Flesh, he offered prayers and supplications with loud cries and tears to the one who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverence. Son though he was, he learned obedience from what he suffered; and when he was made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him.
REFLECTION:
“Son though he was, he learned obedience from what he suffered; and when he was made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him.”
My immediate reaction to this verse was to question why the author says Jesus “was made perfect." We know Jesus was sinless, even the same author points it out in verse 4:15 “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who has similarly been tested in every way, yet without sin.”
Jesus left the glory of heaven, became human, subjected Himself to the miseries of this exile, and accepted to endure a terrible death for the sins of others, none of which He deserved to suffer. Our beloved Jesus “was made” a “perfect” offering because, even though he was sinless and blameless, He accepted undeserved suffering in loving and humble obedience to God.
Jesus’ perfect obedience counteracted the sad disobedience that took place at the Garden of Eden. Adam and Eve acted in complete disobedience to God’s command by eating from the tree of good and evil, even though they had no legitimate right to do it; they doubted God’s goodness and believed that He was trying to keep them from extra happiness. At the other end of the spectrum, our beloved Lord Jesus, in perfect LOVE and obedience to God the Father, gave up what was rightfully His (living in the glory of God). Jesus with complete trust in His Father's goodness, took upon Himself the punishment for crimes he had not committed. This action reversed the offense of original sin and "became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him." . As a result, “God elevated him to the place of highest honor and gave him the name above all other names” (Philippians 2:9)
Refraining ourselves from what is rightfully ours, and taking upon us other people’s burdens are beautiful ways to imitate the generosity and true love exhibited by our Lord Jesus. Could we give a donation to feed the hungry instead of eating out on Friday night? Or could we listen to others rather than talking about ourselves? Could we give up some of our leisure or sleeping time to add more prayer time to our daily routine? Or could we visit the Blessed Sacrament and Pray for the sanctity of our priests and Church? Wouldn't Jesus do these things?
O Mary conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee!
St. Padre Pio, pray for us!
St. Faustina, pray for us!
St. Gemma Galgani, pray for us!
