October 5, 2019 Saturday of the Twenty-sixth Week in Ordinary Time

2019년 10월 5일 연중 제26주간 토요일  

오늘의 복음 : http://info.catholic.or.kr/missa/default.asp 

제1독서

바룩서 4,5-12.27-29
5 이스라엘이라 불리는 내 백성아, 용기를 내어라. 6 너희가 이민족들에게 팔린 것은 멸망하기 위해서가 아니었다. 너희가 하느님을 진노하시게 하였기에, 원수들에게 넘겨진 것이다. 7 사실 너희는, 하느님이 아니라 마귀들에게 제사를 바쳐, 너희를 만드신 분을 분노하시게 하였다. 8 너희는 너희를 길러 주신 영원하신 하느님을 잊어버리고, 너희를 키워 준 예루살렘을 슬프게 하였다.
9 예루살렘은 너희에게 하느님의 진노가 내리는 것을 보고 이렇게 말하였다. “들어라, 시온의 이웃들아! 하느님께서 나에게 큰 슬픔을 내리셨다. 10 나는 영원하신 분께서 내 아들딸들에게 지우신 포로살이를 보았다. 11 나는 그들을 기쁨으로 키웠건만, 슬픔과 눈물로 그들을 떠나보내야 했다.
12 과부가 되고 많은 사람에게 버림받은 나를 두고, 아무도 기뻐하지 말아 다오. 나는 내 자식들의 죄 때문에 황폐해졌다. 그들은 하느님의 율법을 멀리하였다.
27 아이들아, 용기를 내어 하느님께 부르짖어라. 이 재앙을 내리신 주님께서 너희를 기억해 주시리라.
28 너희 마음이 하느님을 떠나 방황하였으나, 이제는 돌아서서 열 배로 열심히 그분을 찾아야 한다. 29 그러면 너희에게 재앙을 내리신 그분께서 너희를 구원하시고, 너희에게 영원한 기쁨을 안겨 주시리라.”

 

복음

 루카 10,17-24
그때에 17 일흔두 제자가 기뻐하며 돌아와 말하였다. “주님, 주님의 이름 때문에 마귀들까지 저희에게 복종합니다.”
18 그러자 예수님께서 그들에게 이르셨다. “나는 사탄이 번개처럼 하늘에서 떨어지는 것을 보았다. 19 보라, 내가 너희에게 뱀과 전갈을 밟고 원수의 모든 힘을 억누르는 권한을 주었다. 이제 아무것도 너희를 해치지 못할 것이다.
20 그러나 영들이 너희에게 복종하는 것을 기뻐하지 말고, 너희 이름이 하늘에 기록된 것을 기뻐하여라.”
21 그때에 예수님께서 성령 안에서 즐거워하며 말씀하셨다. “아버지, 하늘과 땅의 주님, 지혜롭다는 자들과 슬기롭다는 자들에게는 이것을 감추시고 철부지들에게는 드러내 보이시니, 아버지께 감사를 드립니다. 그렇습니다, 아버지! 아버지의 선하신 뜻이 이렇게 이루어졌습니다.”
22 “나의 아버지께서는 모든 것을 나에게 넘겨주셨다. 그래서 아버지 외에는 아들이 누구인지 아무도 알지 못한다. 또 아들 외에는, 그리고 그가 아버지를 드러내 보여 주려는 사람 외에는 아버지께서 누구이신지 아무도 알지 못한다.”
23 그리고 예수님께서는 돌아서서 제자들에게 따로 이르셨다. “너희가 보는 것을 보는 눈은 행복하다. 24 내가 너희에게 말한다. 많은 예언자와 임금이 너희가 보는 것을 보려고 하였지만 보지 못하였고, 너희가 듣는 것을 들으려고 하였지만 듣지 못하였다.”

October 5, 2019

Saturday of the Twenty-sixth Week in Ordinary Time

Daily Readings — Audio

Daily Reflections — Video

http://www.usccb.org/bible/ 

Daily Mass : http://www.catholictv.com/shows/daily-mass 

Reading 1

Bar 4:5-12, 27-29
Fear not, my people!
Remember, Israel ,
You were sold to the nations
not for your destruction;
It was because you angered God
that you were handed over to your foes.
For you provoked your Maker
with sacrifices to demons, to no-gods;
You forsook the Eternal God who nourished you,
and you grieved Jerusalem who fostered you.
She indeed saw coming upon you
the anger of God; and she said:

“Hear, you neighbors of Zion !
God has brought great mourning upon me,
For I have seen the captivity
that the Eternal God has brought
upon my sons and daughters.
With joy I fostered them;
but with mourning and lament I let them go.
Let no one　 gloat over me, a widow,
bereft of many:
For the sins of my children I am left desolate,
because they turned from the law of God.

Fear not, my children; call out to God!
He who brought this upon you will remember you.
As your hearts have been disposed to stray from God,
turn now ten times the more to seek him;
For he who has brought disaster upon you 
will, in saving you, bring you back enduring joy.”

Responsorial Psalm
Ps 69:33-35, 36-37
R. (34) The Lord listens to the poor.
“See, you lowly one　s, and be glad;
you who seek God, may your hearts revive!
For the LORD hears the poor,
and his own who are in bonds he spurns not.
Let the heavens and the earth praise him,
the seas and whatever moves in them!”
R. The Lord listens to the poor.
For God will save Zion
and rebuild the cities of Judah .
They shall dwell in the land and own it,
and the descendants of his servants shall inherit it,
and those who love his name shall inhabit it.
R. The Lord listens to the poor.

Gospel
Lk 10:17-24
The seventy-two disciples returned rejoicing and said to Jesus,
“Lord, even the demons are subject to us because of your name.”
Jesus said, “I have observed Satan fall like lightning from the sky.   
Behold, I have given you the power
‘to tread upon serpents’ and scorpions
and upon the full force of the enemy
and nothing will harm you.
Nevertheless, do not rejoice because the spirits are subject to you,
but rejoice because your names are written in heaven.”

At that very moment he rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said,
“I give you praise, 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 who the Son is except the Father,
and who the Father is except the Son
and anyone to whom the Son wishes to reveal him.”

Turning to the disciples in private he said,
“Blessed are the eyes that see what you see.
For I say to you,
many prophets and kings desired to see what you see,
but did not see it,
and to hear what you hear, but did not hear it.”

http://evangeli.net/gospel/tomorrow

 «At that time Jesus was filled with the joy of the Holy Spirit and said, ‘I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth’»

+ Fr. Josep VALL i Mundó
(Barcelona, Spain)

Today, evangelist Luke tells us what brings Jesus to praise his Father for the benefits granted to Mankind. He rejoices for the revelation made to the very simple at heart, to the smaller ones of the Kingdom. Jesus shows his joy when realizing how they accept, understand and practice what, through Him, God tells them. on other occasions, when in intimate dialogue with his Father, Jesus will also praise him for always listening to Him. He praises that leper Samaritan who, having been healed —along with other nine—, is the only one that returned, and with a loud voice glorified and thanked Jesus for the benefit received.

St. Augustine writes: «What can we better carry in our heart, or say with our mouth, or write with the pen, than these words ‘Thanks to God’? There is nothing that can be said so briefly, nor listened to with more joy, nor make you feel with more elation, nor done with more profit». This is what we are always to do with God and our neighbor, even for those gifts we are not aware of, as St. Josemaria Escriva used to write. Gratitude towards our parents, our friends, our teachers, our pals. Towards everybody that may help us, may spur us, may serve us. And logically, gratitude also, for our Mother the Church.

Gratitude is not a very “common” or practiced virtue, and, nevertheless, is one of the most pleasant to experiment. We must admit, though, that it is not an easy virtue to live with. St. Theresa asserted: «I have such a grateful heart that I could be bribed with a sardine». This has always been the saints' demeanor. And they have done it in three different ways, as St. Thomas Aquinas pointed out: first, trough the own awareness of the benefits received; secondly, by praising God externally with words; and, thirdly, by trying to pay back our benefactor with deeds, depending upon our own capabilities.

http://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/daily.html

 

Today in the Gospel reading for Saturday of the 26th week in Ordinary Time, we hear of the disciples on their journey, with Jesus on his journey, moving from Galilee to Jerusalem.  They have experienced success as they tell him: “Lord, even the demons are subject to us because of your name.”

Jesus corrects them a bit, perhaps so they don’t get too pompous.  He reminds them to rejoice because their names “are written in heaven.”  He goes on to say that the Father has revealed these things “to the childlike.”

Further, he says to the disciples: “blessed are the eyes that see what you see.  For I say to you, many prophets and kings desired to see what you see, but did not see it, and to hear what you hear, but did not hear it.”  He reminds them and us that being child-like, being humble, being a servant…are all crucial qualities.

A question and a theme surface for me, based on other experiences of God on my spiritual journey these days.  I offer them in case they are helpful for you, too. 

The question in my mind as I focus on this interaction and words of Jesus to his disciples, is about awareness on the journey.  How were these disciples open and aware of what God and Jesus were trying to teach them?  What were they focused on …. and what weren’t they focused on?  For many of us, we may struggle with wanting to experience epiphanies, lessons and realizations from God, and not receiving it, even after praying for an answer.  And, also, for many of us, we find that we experience lessons or even ‘successes’ in our spiritual journeys by paying attention, by being open, by being more aware of God’s presence than by our own preferences or will. 

A theme for me that also surfaced here with these readings is the idea of journey. The disciples are with Jesus as he journeys toward Jerusalem.  They are learning, listening, praying; literally and figuratively walking with him.  Having recently participated in an Ignatian pilgrimage with a group of faculty, staff and student pilgrims from around Creighton to Spain and Rome, this notion of being a pilgrim has continued with me even on my return from the pilgrimage, to my regular life.  I have been praying to be a companion on the journey with Jesus, as Ignatius was.  Being a companion often reveals successes and spiritual lessons.  Being a companion is often difficult and involves walking uphill. 

I pray for each of us, humble pilgrims on our own journeys (and collective journey) towards God, with Jesus, that we don’t get too disappointed by setbacks or too self-congratulatory about successes.  Let us continue to be aware and guided by Jesus as we accompany him in our everyday responsibilities, tasks and steps in this “ordinary time.”

 http://www.presentationministries.com/obob/obob.asp

GOD'S LOST AND FOUND

"For the sins of my children I am left desolate, because they turned from the law of God." �Baruch 4:12

Is there any greater anguish than that of a godly parent who must watch their child choose to forsake God? (Bar 4:8) "With joy" these parents "fostered" the faith in their children (Bar 4:11). Then, after their child has rejected God, they must "let [the child] go" with "mourning and lament" (Bar 4:11). If you have experienced this, imagine the experience of God the Father. Could anyone foster children (see Hos 11:4) better than the Father raises every human being? If children rebel against the incomparable parental love of God the Father, then don't feel like a total failure if your guidance is rejected. Though your children reject your instruction and no longer listen to your appeals, take courage. "Bear patiently" this situation (Bar 4:25). Know that God is even more of a Parent to your child than you are. He will search diligently through "the wasteland" of your child's life until He has rescued him or her (Lk 15:4). So "turn now ten times the more to seek" God (Bar 4:28). Jesus is your only Hope, and "those who hope in" Him "shall never be disappointed" (Is 49:23). "Fear is useless. What is needed is trust" (Mk 5:36). Therefore, "trust in Him at all times" (Ps 62:9). "Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved, and all your household" (Acts 16:31).

Prayer: Father, may I have an eternal family reunion with You in heaven � with no family members missing.

Promise: "He Who has brought disaster upon you will, in saving you, bring you back enduring joy." —Bar 4:29

Praise: Bl. Francis Xavier Seelos was a humble Redemptorist priest in New Orleans in the mid 1800s. Numerous miracles of healing are attributed to his intercession, including healing of paralysis and leukemia.

 http://dailyscripture.servantsoftheword.org/readings/

 "Your names are written in heaven"

Do you know and experience in your personal life the joy of the Lord? The Scriptures tell us that "the joy of the Lord is our strength" (Nehemiah 8:10). Why does Jesus tell his disciples to not take joy in their own successes, even spiritual ones? Jesus makes clear that the true source of our joy is God himself, and God alone. Regardless of the circumstances, in good times and bad times, in success or loss, God always assures us of victory in the Lord Jesus Christ.

Jesus assures his disciples that he has all power over all evil, including the power of Satan and the evil spirits (demons) - the fallen angels who rebelled against God and who hate men and women who have been created in God's image and likeness (Genesis 1:29). Jesus told his disciples that he came into the world to overthrow the evil one (John 12:31). That is why Jesus gave his disciples power over Satan and his legion of demons (rebellious angels). We, too, as disciples of Jesus have been given spiritual authority and power for overcoming the works of darkness and evil (1 John 2:13-14).

Self-centered pride closes the mind to God's revelation and wisdom
Jesus thanks the Father in heaven for revealing to his disciples the wisdom and knowledge of God. What does Jesus' prayer tell us about God and about ourselves? First, it tells us that God is both Father and Lord of earth as well as heaven. He is both Creator and Author of all that he has made, the first origin of everything and transcendent authority, and at the same time, goodness and loving care for all his children. All fatherhood and motherhood is derived from him (Ephesians 3:14-15).

Jesus' prayer also contains a warning that pride can keep us from the love and knowledge of God. What makes us ignorant and blind to the things of God? Sinful pride springs from being self-centered and holding an exaggerated view of oneself. Pride closes the mind to God's truth and wisdom for our lives. Lucifer, who was once the prince of angels, fell into pride because he did not want to serve God but wanted to be equal with God. Through his arrogant pride he led a whole host of angels to rebel against God. That is why the rebellious angels (whom Scripture calls evil spirits, devils, and demons) were cast out of heaven and thrown down to the earth. They seek to lead us away from God through pride and rebellion.

How can we guard our hearts from sinful pride and rebellion? The virtue of humility teaches us to put our trust in God and not in ourselves. God gives strength and help to those who put their trust in him. Humility is the only true remedy against sinful pride. True humility, which is very different from the feelings of inferiority or low self-esteem, leads us to a true recognition of who we are in the sight of God and of our dependence on God.

Humility is the only soil where God's grace and truth can take root
Jesus contrasts intellectual pride with child-like simplicity and humility. The simple of heart are like "babes" or "little children" in the sense that they see purely without pretense or falsehood and acknowledge their dependence and trust in one who is greater, wiser, and more trustworthy. They seek one thing - the "summum bonum" or "greatest good" who is God himself. Simplicity of heart is wedded with humility, the queen of virtues, because humility inclines the heart towards grace and truth.

Just as pride is the root of every sin and evil inclination, so humility is the only soil in which the grace of God can take root. It alone takes the right attitude before God and allows him as God to do all. God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble (Proverbs 3:34, James 4:6). The grace of Christ-like humility inclines us towards God and disposes us to receive God's wisdom and help. Allow the Lord Jesus to heal the wounds of pride in your heart and to fill you with the joy of the Holy Spirit who transforms us into the likeness of Christ himself - who is meek and humble of heart (Matthew 11:29).

Nothing can give us greater joy than the knowledge that we are God's beloved and that our names are written in heaven. The Lord Jesus has ransomed us from slavery to sin, Satan, and death and has adopted us as God's beloved sons and daughters. That is why we no longer belong to ourselves - but to God alone. Do you seek to be like Jesus Christ in humility and simplicity of heart?

The Lord Jesus wants us to know him personally - experientially
Jesus makes a claim which no one would have dared to make: He is the perfect revelation of God - he and the Father are perfectly united in a bond of unbreakable love and fidelity. one of the greatest truths of the Christian faith is that we can know the living God. Our knowledge of God is not simply limited to knowing something about God, but we can know God personally. The essence of Christianity, and what makes it distinct from Judaism and other religions, is the knowledge of God as our Father. Jesus makes it possible for each of us to personally know God as our Father. Saint Augustine of Hippo wrote: "God loves each of us as if there were only one of us to love."

Seek God with expectant faith and trust
To see Jesus is to see what God is like. In Jesus we see the perfect love of God - a God who yearns over men and women, who cares intensely for them and who shows them unceasing kindness, mercy, and forgiveness. That is why the Father sent his only begotten Son who laid down his life for us on the cross. Jesus taught his followers to confidently pray to the Father with expectant faith, "Our Father who art in heaven ...give us this day our daily bread." Do you believe in your heavenly Father's care and love for you and do you pray with confident trust and hope that he will give you what you need to live as his son or daughter?

"Most High and glorious God, enlighten the darkness of our hearts and give us a true faith, a certain hope and a perfect love. Give us a sense of the divine and knowledge of yourself, so that we may do everything in fulfillment of your holy will; through Jesus Christ our Lord." (Prayer of Francis of Assisi, 1182-1226)

Psalm 69:32-36

32 Let the oppressed see it and be glad; you who seek God, let your hearts revive.
33 For the LORD hears the needy, and does not despise his own that are in bonds.
34 Let heaven and earth praise him, the seas and everything that moves therein.
35 For God will save Zion and rebuild the cities of Judah;  and his servants shall dwell there and possess it;
36 the children of his servants shall inherit it, and those who love his name shall dwell in it.

Daily Quote from the early church fathers: The power of the Kingdom of God, by Cyril of Alexandria (376-444 AD)

"He also gave the holy apostles power and might even to raise the dead, cleanse lepers, heal the sick, and by the laying on of hands to call down from heaven the Holy Spirit on anyone they wanted. He gave them power to bind and to loose people's sins. His words are 'I say to you, whatever you will bind on earth, will be bound in heaven (Matthew 18:18). Whatever you will loose on earth, will be loosed in heaven.' These are the things we see ourselves possessing. Blessed are our eyes and the eyes of those of all who love him. We have heard his wonderful teaching. He has given us the knowledge of God the Father, and he has shown him to us in his own nature. The things that were by Moses were only types and symbols. Christ has revealed the truth to us. He has taught us that not by blood and smoke, but rather by spiritual sacrifices, we must honor him who is spiritual, immaterial and above all understanding." (excerpt from COMMENTARY on LUKE, HOMILY 67)

  

More Homilies

October 7, 2017