The fourth of the series of psalms known as the
Hallel, Psalm 116 has been sung
by generations of faithful Jews after the Passover meal.
It was sung by our Lord on the evening of the Last Supper.
In the Upper Room, Psalm 116 became the hymn of the new and eternal
covenant. In Psalm 116 the
great Eucharist of Christ unfolds, and we hear the voice of the Bridegroom
intoning the new song of redemption.
Scholars have debated the origins of Psalm 116.
Was it originally one
psalm which, for thematic purposes, was divided into
two?
Or was it two psalms
which, for liturgical purposes, were joined into
one?
The current Liturgy of the Hours presents Psalm 116 both ways. We
suspect that back in the 13th century, Scripture-loving St.
Francis of
This was not hard to do. For
the very first words of Psalm 116,
I
love the Lord, would awaken in the Little Poor Man a desire to love in
the manner of his Divine Master who laid down His life so that the world
would know He loved the Father.
cf. John 14:31 The
early Franciscan sources bear witness to how diligently St. Francis sought
to make his whole life a proclamation of love for the Lord.
Let us love the Lord our God,
living and true, Francis would urge his followers.
Love is not loved, was his
anguished cry when beholding the indifference and ingratitude of a sin-sated
world.
Dear Lord, I would like to love You
was the heartfelt appeal of the saint of
Psalm 116 celebrates a twin marvel: GOD HEARS and GOD ANSWERS!
God hears when anyone
calls, at any time, in any need.
The Incarnation “put flesh” on the image:
for He turned His ear to me when I
called Him. For the Gospels
show us Jesus literally turning His ear to those who called Him.
Full of courtesy and compassion, our Lord answered – and invites us
to believe in a heavenly Father who
hears the cry of our appeal… and answers!
Dying on the Cross,
surrounded
by the snares of death, faced
with the anguish of the tomb, Jesus called on the Lord’s name:
My God, my God!
And the Father responded by raising Him from the dead.
This fact of faith filled St. Francis with gratitude.
How many personal proofs he had of God hearing
the cry of his appeal and
answering – perhaps not right away, perhaps not in the way he envisioned.
But, there was always an answer.
It is a matter of keeping ears and heart open to God’s way of
responding. Francis heard God’s
reply to his appeals – in a passage from the Gospel, in the events of daily
life with his friars, in the imprinting of the wounds of Christ on his body.
The Lord still invites His children to give voice to
the cry of their appeal, to wait
for His answering love and, hearing the voice of His reply, to
walk in the presence of the Lord in the land of the living.
Psalm 116
I
I love the
Lord for He has heard
the cry of
my appeal;
for He
turned His ear to me
in the day
when I called Him.
They
surrounded me,
the snares
of death,
with the
anguish of the tomb;
they caught
me,
sorrow and
distress.
I called on
the Lord’s name:
O Lord, my
God,
deliver me!
How gracious
is the Lord,
and just;
our God
has
compassion.
The Lord
protects the simple hearts;
I was
helpless, so He saved me.
Turn back,
my soul, to your rest
for the Lord
has been good;
for He has
kept
my soul from
death,
my eyes from
tears,
my feet from
stumbling.
I will walk
in the
presence of the Lord
in the land
of the living.
