2019년 11월 27일 연중 제34주간 수요일
오늘의 복음 : http://info.catholic.or.kr/missa/default.asp
제1독서
다니엘 예언서. 5,1-6.13-14.16-17.23-28
그 무렵 1 벨사차르 임금이 천 명에 이르는 자기 대신들을 위하여 큰 잔치를 벌이고, 그 천 명 앞에서 술을 마시고 있었다. 2 술기운이 퍼지자 벨사차르는 자기 아버지 네부카드네자르가 예루살렘 성전에서 가져온 금은 기물들을 내오라고 분부하였다. 임금은 대신들과 왕비와 후궁들과 함께 그것으로 술을 마시려는 것이었다.
3 예루살렘에 있던 성전 곧 하느님의 집에서 가져온 금 기물들을 내오자, 임금은 대신들과 왕비와 후궁들과 함께 그것으로 술을 마셨다.
4 그렇게 술을 마시면서 금과 은, 청동과 쇠, 나무와 돌로 된 신들을 찬양하였다. 5 그런데 갑자기 사람 손가락이 나타나더니, 촛대 앞 왕궁 석고 벽에 글을 쓰기 시작하였다.
임 금은 글자를 쓰는 손을 보고 있었다. 6 그러다가 임금은 얼굴빛이 달라졌다. 떠오르는 생각들이 그를 놀라게 한 것이다. 허리의 뼈마디들이 풀리고 무릎이 서로 부딪쳤다. 13 다니엘이 임금 앞으로 불려 왔다. 임금이 다니엘에게 물었다. “그대가 바로 나의 부왕께서 유다에서 데려온 유배자들 가운데 하나인 다니엘인가? 14 나는 그대가 신들의 영을 지녔을뿐더러, 형안과 통찰력과 빼어난 지혜를 지닌 사람으로 드러났다는 말을 들었다.
16 또 나는 그대가 뜻풀이를 잘하고 어려운 문제들을 풀어낼 수 있다는 말을 들었다. 이제 그대가 저 글자를 읽고 그 뜻을 나에게 설명해 줄 수 있다면, 그대에게 자주색 옷을 입히고 금 목걸이를 목에 걸어 주고 이 나라에서 셋째 가는 통치자로 삼겠다.”
17 그러자 다니엘이 임금에게 대답하였다. “임금님의 선물을 거두시고 임금님의 상도 다른 이에게나 내리십시오. 그래도 저는 저 글자를 임금님께 읽어 드리고 그 뜻을 설명해 드리겠습니다. 임금님께서는 23 하늘의 주님을 거슬러 자신을 들어 높이셨습니다. 주님의 집에 있던 기물들을 임금님 앞으로 가져오게 하시어, 대신들과 왕비와 후궁들과 함께 그것으로 술을 드셨습니다.
그리고 은과 금, 청동과 쇠, 나무와 돌로 된 신들, 보지도 못하고 듣지도 못하며 알지도 못하는 신들을 찬양하셨습니다.
그러면서 임금님의 목숨을 손에 잡고 계시며 임금님의 모든 길을 쥐고 계신 하느님을 찬송하지 않으셨습니다.
24 그리하여 하느님께서 손을 보내셔서 저 글자를 쓰게 하신 것입니다.
25 그렇게 쓰인 글자는 ‘므네 므네 트켈’, 그리고 ‘파르신’입니다. 26 그 뜻은 이렇습니다.
‘므네’는 하느님께서 임금님 나라의 날수를 헤아리시어 이 나라를 끝내셨다는 뜻입니다.
27 ‘트켈’은 임금님을 저울에 달아 보니 무게가 모자랐다는 뜻입니다.
28 ‘프레스’는 임금님의 나라가 둘로 갈라져서, 메디아인들과 페르시아인들에게 주어졌다는 뜻입니다.”
복음
루카 21,12-19
그때에 예수님께서 제자들에게 말씀하셨다.
12 “사람들이 너희에게 손을 대어 박해할 것이다. 너희를 회당과 감옥에 넘기고, 내 이름 때문에 너희를 임금들과 총독들 앞으로 끌고 갈 것이다. 13 이러한 일이 너희에게는 증언할 기회가 될 것이다.
14 그러나 너희는 명심하여, 변론할 말을 미리부터 준비하지 마라. 15 어떠한 적대자도 맞서거나 반박할 수 없는 언변과 지혜를 내가 너희에게 주겠다.
16 부모와 형제와 친척과 친구들까지도 너희를 넘겨 더러는 죽이기까지 할 것이다. 17 그리고 너희는 내 이름 때문에 모든 사람에게 미움을 받을 것이다. 18 그러나 너희는 머리카락 하나도 잃지 않을 것이다. 19 너희는 인내로써 생명을 얻어라.”
November 27, 2019
Wednesday of the Thirty-fourth Week in Ordinary
Daily Mass : http://www.catholictv.com/shows/daily-mass
Reading 1
Dn 5:1-6, 13-14, 16-17, 23-28
with whom he drank.
Under the influence of the wine,
he ordered the gold and silver vessels
which Nebuchadnezzar, his father,
had taken from the temple in Jerusalem,
to be brought in so that the king, his lords,
his wives and his entertainers might drink from them.
When the gold and silver vessels
taken from the house of God in Jerusalem had been brought in,
and while the king, his lords, his wives and his entertainers
were drinking wine from them,
they praised their gods of gold and silver,
bronze and iron, wood and stone.
Suddenly, opposite the lampstand,
the fingers of a human hand appeared,
writing on the plaster of the wall in the king's palace.
When the king saw the wrist and hand that wrote, his face blanched;
his thoughts terrified him, his hip joints shook,
and his knees knocked.
Then Daniel was brought into the presence of the king.
The king asked him, "Are you the Daniel, the Jewish exile,
whom my father, the king, brought from Judah?
I have heard that the Spirit of God is in you,
that you possess brilliant knowledge and extraordinary wisdom.
I have heard that you can interpret dreams and solve difficulties;
if you are able to read the writing and tell me what it means,
you shall be clothed in purple,
wear a gold collar about your neck,
and be third in the government of the kingdom."
Daniel answered the king:
"You may keep your gifts, or give your presents to someone else;
but the writing I will read for you, O king,
and tell you what it means.
You have rebelled against the Lord of heaven.
You had the vessels of his temple brought before you,
so that you and your nobles, your wives and your entertainers,
might drink wine from them;
and you praised the gods of silver and gold,
bronze and iron, wood and stone,
that neither see nor hear nor have intelligence.
But the God in whose hand is your life breath
and the whole course of your life, you did not glorify.
By him were the wrist and hand sent, and the writing set down.
"This is the writing that was inscribed:
MENE, TEKEL, and PERES.
These words mean:
MENE, God has numbered your kingdom and put an end to it;
TEKEL, you have been weighed on the scales and found wanting;
PERES, your kingdom has been divided and given to the Medes and Persians."
Responsorial Psalm
Dn 3:62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67
"Sun and moon, bless the Lord;
praise and exalt him above all forever."
R. Give glory and eternal praise to him.
"Stars of heaven, bless the Lord;
praise and exalt him above all forever."
R. Give glory and eternal praise to him.
"Every shower and dew, bless the Lord;
praise and exalt him above all forever."
R. Give glory and eternal praise to him.
"All you winds, bless the Lord;
praise and exalt him above all forever."
R. Give glory and eternal praise to him.
"Fire and heat, bless the Lord;
praise and exalt him above all forever."
R. Give glory and eternal praise to him.
"Cold and chill, bless the Lord;
praise and exalt him above all forever."
R. Give glory and eternal praise to him.
Gospel
Lk 21:12-19
"They will seize and persecute you,
they will hand you over to the synagogues and to prisons,
and they will have you led before kings and governors
because of my name.
It will lead to your giving testimony.
Remember, you are not to prepare your defense beforehand,
for I myself shall give you a wisdom in speaking
that all your adversaries will be powerless to resist or refute.
You will even be handed over by parents,
brothers, relatives, and friends,
and they will put some of you to death.
You will be hated by all because of my name,
but not a hair on your head will be destroyed.
By your perseverance you will secure your lives."
http://evangeli.net/gospel/tomorrow
«Through perseverance you will possess your own selves»
Fr. Manuel COCIÑA Abella
(Madrid, Spain)
Today, we pay attention to this short but sharp sentence of our Lord, which sticks into our soul and makes us wonder: why perseverance is so important? why does Jesus tell us our salvation depends upon the exercise of this virtue?
Because the disciple is no more than his Master —«you will be hated by all for my name's sake» (Lk 21:17)—, and if the Lord was a sign of contradiction, we, his disciples, must necessarily be one too. The belligerents will get hold of the Kingdom of God, those who fight against the enemies of the soul, those who energetically combat, as St. Josemaria Escriva liked to say, “this most beautiful war of peace and love”, which Christian life consists of. All roses have thorns, and the way to Heaven is not without difficulties and obstacles. This is why, without the cardinal virtue of fortitude, our good intentions would turn out unfruitful. And perseverance is part of fortitude. Perseverance, concretely, drives us to the strength we need to carry our contradictions with joy.
Perseverance, in its maximum degree, is accomplished at the Cross. This is why, perseverance confers freedom by granting the possession of oneself through love. Christ's promise is indefectible: «Through perseverance you will possess your own selves!» (Lk 21:19), and this is so because what is saving us is the Cross. It is the strength of love that gives each one of us the patient and joyous acceptance of God's will, when, in a first moment, it upsets —as it happens at the Cross— our poor human will.
only in a first moment, because afterwards, the overflowing energy of perseverance is liberated to help us understand the difficult science of the Cross. This is why, perseverance engenders patience, which goes much beyond simple resignation. Even more so. It has nothing to do with stoical attitudes. Patience decisively contributes to understand that the Cross is, well before pain, essentially love.
Our Mother in Heaven, who understood better than anyone else this saving truth, will help us understanding it too.
http://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/daily.html
Jesus speaks here of others "giving us up," putting us in positions where we will be called upon (even violently) to give witness to our faith in God. We think of this as being hauled before Caesar or in front of synagogues, but the fact is that such violent acts will happen to relatively few of us.
On the other hand, we face this inquisition more subtly many times each day, whether we are at work, at play, or even lying alone, sick in bed: we must witness to our faith, to our love for Jesus, His Father, and His Spirit, in every one of our choices. That witness is not necessarily directly to other people, even if most of the time it is, and often enough it can unfortunately have the unconscious negative reaction in those surrounding us of “Well, if that is a Catholic, I am certainly not interested.”
No, the most difficult part of that witnessing originates in the inmost recesses and hidden corners of our hearts: we choose to go this way or that, to let ourselves imagine something not godly – or we don't, choosing instead to act in every way in every fiber of our being to be godly, grateful to God, as faithful as we can manage, knowing full well that we will never, in this world, be completely successful in handing our hearts to the Amazing Three who have loved us so well.
In making our choices for God, we are witnessing to our selves, and while we learn the tricks which we play on ourselves to avoid the gift of giving ourselves constantly and totally to God we also learn what our serious, loving attempts to turn ourselves completely over to God do to us. And in that transformation that God works in us as we seek Him comes a difference also in that witnessing to those others in our daily lives: the gifts of the Spirit, the fruits of the Spirit, and everything in between make us filled with inner peace, patience, generosity, purity, gentleness, and all the rest, and others can see how God is at work in us.
Today we are in the last week of the liturgical year, crunch time before we externally celebrate the Kingship of Jesus, the Lordship of our God. And God is asking us the question posed in a very ungrammatical but equally insistent manner in the old jazz song, "Is you is or is you ain't my baby?" (Louis Jordan, 1946).
What is our response?
http://www.presentationministries.com/obob/obob.asp
http://dailyscripture.servantsoftheword.org/readings/
"Not a hair of your head will perish"
If the Gospel message is good news, then why do so many people treat Christians with contempt and hostility for their beliefs and practices? Jesus warns his followers that they will be confronted with wickedness, false teaching, persecution, as well as the temptation to renounce their faith when it is put to the test.
Satan destroys and kills - God restores and gives life
The real enemy of the Gospel - the good news of Jesus Christ - is Satan (also called Lucifer), the powerful leader of the fallen angels who rebelled against God and who were cast out of heaven. Satan opposes God and all who follow his rule of peace and righteousness (moral goodness) on the earth. Jesus calls Satan a "murderer" who turns brother against brother and the "father of lies" who twists the truth and speaks falsehood (John 8:44). Satan not only opposes God's rule, he seeks to destroy all who would obey God. Satan will use any means possible to turn people away from God. He tempts people through envy, deception, hatred, and fear to provoke hostility towards those who follow the Lord Jesus Christ.
What is Jesus' response to hostility and persecution? Love, forbearance, and forgiveness. only love - the love which is rooted in God's great compassion and faithfulness - can overcome prejudice, hatred, and envy. God's love purifies our heart and mind of all that would divide and tear people apart. Knowing God as our compassionate Father and loving God's word of truth and righteousness (moral goodness) is essential for overcoming evil. Jesus tells us that we do not need to fear those who would oppose us or treat us harshly for following the Lord Jesus. He promises to give us supernatural strength, wisdom, and courage as we take a stand for our faith and witness to the truth and love of Christ.
The Gospel is good news for the whole world because it is God's eternal word of truth, love, pardon, and salvation (being set free from sin and evil) through his Son, Jesus Christ. The Lord Jesus has won the victory for us through his atoning death on the cross for our sins and his rising from the grave - his resurrection power that brings abundant life and restoration for us. That is why the Gospel has power to set people free from sin, fear and death, and bring peace, pardon, and new life.
Endurance never gives up hope in God
Jesus tells his disciples that if they endure to the end they will gain their lives - they will inherit abundant life and lasting happiness with God. Endurance is an essential strength which God gives to those who put their trust in him. Endurance is the patience which never gives up hope, never yields to despair or hatred. Patience is long-suffering because it looks beyond the present difficulties and trials and sees the reward which comes to those who persevere with hope and trust in God. That is why godly endurance is more than human effort. It is first and foremost a supernatural gift of the Holy Spirit which enables us to bear up under any trial or temptation.
Endurance is linked with godly hope - the supernatural assurance that we will see God face to face and inherit all the promises he has made. Jesus is our supreme model and pioneer who endured the cross for our sake (Hebrews 12:2). "God shows his love for us in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us" (Romans 5:8). Jesus willingly shed his blood for us - to win for us pardon and peace with God. Our joy and privilege is to take up our cross each day to follow the Lord Jesus.
True martyrs live and die as witnesses of Christ and the Gospel of peace
The word "martyr" in the New Testament Greek means "witness". The Book of Revelation says that "Jesus was the faithful witness ...who freed us from our sins by his blood" (Revelation 1:5). Tertullian, a second century lawyer who converted when he saw Christians singing as they went out to die by the hands of their persecutors, exclaimed: "The blood of the martyrs is seed." Their blood is the seed of new Christians, the seed of the church.
The third century bishop, Cyprian said: "When persecution comes, God's soldiers are put to the test, and heaven is open to martyrs. We have not enlisted in an army to think of peace and to decline battle, for we see that the Lord has taken first place in the conflict." True martyrs live and die as witnesses of the Gospel. They overcome their enemies through persevering hope and courage, undying love and forbearance, kindness, goodness, and compassion.
God may call some of us to be martyrs who shed their blood for bearing witness to Jesus Christ. But for most of us, our call is to be 'dry' martyrs who bear testimony to the joy and power of the Gospel in the midst of daily challenges, contradictions, temptations and adversities which come our way as we follow the Lord Jesus.
We do not need to fear our adversaries
What will attract others to the truth and power of the Gospel? When they see Christians loving their enemies, being joyful in suffering, patient in adversity, pardoning injuries, and showing comfort and compassion to the hopeless and the helpless. Jesus tells us that we do not need to fear our adversaries. God will give us sufficient grace, strength, and wisdom to face any trial and to answer any challenge to our faith. Are you ready to lay down your life for Christ and to bear witness to the joy and freedom of the Gospel?
"Lord Jesus Christ, by your atoning death on the cross you have redeemed the world. Fill me with joyful hope, courage, and boldness to witness the truth of your love for sinners and your victory over the powers of sin, Satan, and death."
Psalm 119:33-40
33 Teach me, O LORD, the way of your statutes; and I will keep it to the end.
34 Give me understanding, that I may keep your law and observe it with my whole heart.
35 Lead me in the path of your commandments, for I delight in it.
36 Incline my heart to your testimonies, and not to gain!
37 Turn my eyes from looking at vanities; and give me life in your ways.
38 Confirm to your servant your promise, which is for those who fear you.
39 Turn away the reproach which I dread; for your ordinances are good.
40 Behold, I long for your precepts; in your righteousness give me life!
Daily Quote from the early church fathers: The faithful Christian is recognized by belief in the resurrection of the body, by Augustine of Hippo, 354-430 A.D.
"We should have no doubt that our mortal flesh also will rise again at the end of the world... This is the Christian faith. This is the Catholic faith. This is the apostolic faith. Believe Christ when he says, 'Not a hair of your head shall perish' Putting aside all unbelief, consider how valuable you are. How can our Redeemer despise any person when he cannot despise a hair of that person's head? How are we going to doubt that he intends to give eternal life to our soul and body? He took on a soul and body in which to die for us, which he laid down for us when he died and which he took up again that we might not fear death." (excerpt from Sermon 214.11-12)
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