When almighty God had rejected Saul because of his pride, He told Samuel to anoint as king, the youngest son of Jesse, still a young boy. Samuel anointed him in the midst of his family, while from that day the spirit of God departed from Saul and descended upon David.
Soon after, the Philistines wishing to renew the war, assembled their army on the slope of a mountain while Saul drew up his in a similar position, in such a way that they were separated only by a valley with a mountain stream. From out of the Philistines' camp came the giant, Goliath, having "a helmet of brass upon his head and he was clothed with a coat of mail. And he had greaves of brass on his legs and a buckler of brass covered his shoulders. And the staff of his spear was like a weaver's beam, and the head of his spear weighed six hundred sides of iron. And standing he cried out to the bands of Israel and said to them: "Am I not a Philistine and you the servants of Saul? Choose out a man of you and let him come down and fight hand to hand. If he be able to fight with me and kill me we will be servants to you; but if I prevail against him, and kill him, you shall be servants, and shall serve us." And Saul and all the Israelites hearing these' words of the Philistines were dismayed and greatly afraid."
For forty days the Philistine came forward morning and evening, renewing his challenge which not one had the courage to accept. At this juncture young David visited Saul's camp, where his brothers were, and hearing Goliath and witnessing the terror of Israel cried out full of faith: "Who is this uncircumcised Philistine, who hath dared to curse the army of the living God?" Let not any man's heart be dismayed in him. I, thy servant, will go and will fight against the Philistine." And Saul said to David: "Go, and the Lord be with thee."
Then David, taking his staff and sling, crossed the bed of the stream and choosing five smooth stones went boldly forward to meet the Philistine Goliath, who seeing a mere lad coming towards him exclaimed with great contempt: "Am I a dog that thou comest to me with a staff?" And the Philistine cursed David by his gods. And David said to the Philistine: "I came to thee in the name of the Lord of Hosts, the God of the armies of Israel which thou hast defied. And all this assembly shall know, that the Lord saveth not with sword and spear; for it is His battle and He will deliver you into our hands."
Then Goliath rushed on David, who hastily loading his sling with one of the stones he had brought, swung it round so that the stone buried itself in the giant's forehead, while he fell like a log, face downwards, on the earth. David leapt towards him and drawing his victim's sword from its sheath gave him his death blow, cutting off his head and holding it up for the Philistines to see; the result being that the latter fled in confusion, while the Israelites, raising a war cry, pursued them with great slaughter.
"The Children of Israel," says St. Augustine, "had been for forty days face to face with the enemy. By these forty days, because of the four seasons and four quarters of the world, is represented this present life during which the Lord's people are never without the necessity of fighting a Goliath and his army, that is the devil and his angels. None the less, they would never gain the victory, if Christ, the true David, had not come down to earth with His staff, i.e. the mystery of His Cross. For David, a type of Christ, stepped from the ranks, took his staff in his hand and went forth against the giant so that in his person we see prefigured what came to pass later on in the case of our Lord Himself. For Christ, the true David, who came to fight the spiritual Goliath, that is the devil, Himself carried His cross. Observe, my dear brethren, the precise spot where Goliath was struck by David. It was on his forehead where he had not the sign of the cross. In the same way that the staff represented the cross, so the stone which struck Goliath was a figure of Christ, our Lord" (2nd Nocturn).
The army of Israel is the Church who endures the humiliations inflicted upon her by her enemies. She groans while waiting for her deliverance (Epistle). She asks the Lord who is "a refuge of the poor in tribulation" (Alleluia), and who is "a refuge" and "deliverer " (Communion) to come to her assistance, lest the enemy say: "I have prevailed against her" (Offertory). With confidence she cries: "Help us O Lord our Saviour, and for the honour of Thy name, O Lord, deliver us" (Gradual). "The Lord is my light and my salvation: whom shall I fear? The Lord is the protector of my life, of whom shall I be afraid? If armies in camp should stand together against me, my heart shall not fear. My enemies that trouble me have themselves been weakened and have fallen" (Introit).
It is that under the guidance of Providence, that the Church renders "glad service" to God "in peace" (Collect). This is also clear from the Gospel, chosen because of the near approach of the feast kept on the twenty-ninth of June; in fact a Gospel book (Evangeliarium) of Wurtzburg actually calls this Dominica ante natalem Apostolorum (Sunday before the heavenly birth-day of the Apostles).
It was from Peter's boat that our Lord chose to preach; it was Simon Peter that He told to launch out into the deep, and it was he who, at the Master's word of command, laid down the nets which became so full that they broke. Finally, it was Peter who overcome with astonishment and fear, adored His Master and was chosen by Him as a fisher of men.
"St. Matthew," St. Ambrose tells us, "describes this boat as tossed by the waves, while St Luke describes it as full of fish; here we have a picture of the Church's vicissitudes in her early days and of her wonderful prosperity later on. The vessel which carries divine Wisdom and which is wafted by the wind of Faith runs no danger. What indeed can it fear, when for its pilot it has Him who is the very strength of the Church? Peril is encoutered when Faith is rare; but here there is safety since love is perfect (3rd Nocturn).
Commenting on a Gospel which is very similar to this, in which St, John records a miraculous draught of fishes which took place after our Lord's resurrection, St. Gregory writes: "What does the sea represent, if not the present age in which the changes and chances of this mortal life are like waves which unceasingly dash and break against each other? Of what is the firm ground of the shore a figure if not the permanence of eternal rest? Because the disciples were still surrounded by the waves of this mortal life, they toiled on the sea; and as our Redeemer had put off the corruptibility of the flesh after His resurrection, He stood on the shore."
Again in St. Matthew, our Lord compares the Kingdom of heaven to "a net cast into the sea and gathering together all kinds of fishes. Which, when it was filled they drew out; and sitting by the shore, they chose out the good fishes but the bad they cast forth.
In the same way Baptism was represented in the Catacombs by a fisher drawing a fish out of the water. Here then, is the function of the Church whose head is Peter, "to fish for men", to free souls from the dangers they encounter in the world represented by the sea. "Certainly a new method of fishing", says St. John Chrysostom. "For fishers drew their fish from the water to kill them, but we cast our nets into the water and those whom we take are made alive." And St. Gregory says, in to-day's homily: "The apostles' nets do not destroy those whom they catch, but preserve them, bringing them from the bottom of the abyss to the light; raising to the heights those who are tossed about in the lowest depths."
In St Peter's bark, tossed by the angry waves and the storms of this world, let us put all our trust in Christ. Through His Church He will save us from the attacks of "the strong man armed", who is the devil, and as by David He saved the hosts of Israel, when they defied the giant Goliath.
Dominus illuminatio mea, et salus mea, quem timebo? Dominus defensor vitae meae, a quo trepidabo? qui tribulant me inimici mei, ipsi infirmati sunt, et ceciderunt. * Si consistent adversum me castra: non timebit cor meum.
The Lord is my light and my salvation: whom shall I fear? The Lord is the protector of my life: of whom shall I be afraid? My enemies that trouble me have themselves been weakened and have fallen. * If armies in camp should stand together against me, my heart shall not fear.
(Psalm 26:1-3 from the introit of mass)
Da nobis, quaesumus, Domine: ut et mundi cursus pacifice nobis tuo ordine dirigatur; et Ecclesia tua tranquilla devotione laetetur.
Grant, we beseech Thee, O Lord, that the course of this world may be so peaceably ordered by Thee, that Thy Church may joyfully serve Thee in quiet devotion.
(Collect)
Continuation of the Holy Gospel, according to St. Luke.
At that time, when the multitude pressed upon Jesus to hear the word of God, He stood by the lake of Genesareth. And He saw two ships standing by the lake; but the fishermen were gone out of them, and were washing their nets; and going up into one of the ships that was Simon's, He desired him to draw back a little from the land: and sitting He taught the multitudes out of the ship. Now when He had ceased to speak, He said to Simon: Launch out into the deep, and let down your nets for a draught. And Simon, answering, said to Him: Master, we have laboured all the night, and have taken nothing, but at Thy word I will let down the net. And when they had done this, they enclosed a very great multitude of fishes; and their net broke: and they beckoned to their partners that were in the other ship, that they should come and help them; and they came, and filled both the ships, so that they were almost sinking. Which when Simon Peter saw, he fell down at Jesus's knees, saying: Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord. For he was wholly astonished, and all that were with him, at the draught of fishes which they had taken: and so were also James and John the sons of Zebedee, who were Simon's partners. And Jesus saith to Simon: Fear not, from henceforth thou shalt catch men. And having brought their ships to land, leaving all things they followed him.
(St Luke 5:1-11)
No comments:
Post a Comment