February 5, 2020 Memorial of Saint Agatha, virgin and martyr

2020년 2월 5일 연중 제4주간 수요일  

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

제1독서

  사무엘기 하. 24,2.9-17
그 무렵 다윗 2 임금은 자기가 데리고 있는 군대의 장수 요압에게 말하였다.
“단에서 브에르 세바에 이르기까지
이스라엘의 모든 지파를 두루 다니며 인구를 조사하시오.
내가 백성의 수를 알고자 하오.”
9 요압이 조사한 백성의 수를 임금에게 보고하였는데,

이스라엘에서 칼을 다룰 수 있는 장정이 팔십만 명,
유다에서 오십만 명이었다.
10 다윗은 이렇게 인구 조사를 한 다음, 양심에 가책을 느껴 주님께 말씀드렸다.
“제가 이런 짓으로 큰 죄를 지었습니다.
그러나 주님, 이제 당신 종의 죄악을 없애 주십시오.
제가 참으로 어리석은 일을 저질렀습니다.”
11 이튿날 아침 다윗이 일어났을 때,
주님의 말씀이 다윗의 환시가인 가드 예언자에게 내렸다.
12 “다윗에게 가서 ‘주님께서 이렇게 말씀하십니다.’ 하면서 일러라.
‘내가 너에게 세 가지를 내놓을 터이니, 그 가운데에서 하나를 골라라.
그러면 내가 너에게 그대로 해 주겠다.’”
13 가드가 다윗에게 가서 이렇게 알렸다.
“임금님 나라에 일곱 해 동안 기근이 드는 것이 좋습니까?
아니면, 임금님을 뒤쫓는 적들을 피하여
석 달 동안 도망 다니시는 것이 좋습니까?
아니면, 임금님 나라에 사흘 동안 흑사병이 퍼지는 것이 좋습니까?
저를 보내신 분께 무엇이라고 회답해야 할지
지금 잘 생각하여 결정하시기 바랍니다.”
14 그러자 다윗이 가드에게 말하였다.
“괴롭기 그지없구려. 그러나 주님의 자비는 크시니,
사람 손에 당하는 것보다 주님 손에 당하는 것이 낫겠소.”
15 그리하여 주님께서 그날 아침부터 정해진 날까지 이스라엘에 흑사병을 내리시니,
단에서 브에르 세바까지 백성 가운데에서 칠만 명이 죽었다.
16 천사가 예루살렘을 파멸시키려고 그쪽으로 손을 뻗치자,
주님께서 재앙을 내리신 것을 후회하시고
백성을 파멸시키는 천사에게 이르셨다.
“이제 됐다. 손을 거두어라.”
그때에 주님의 천사는 여부스 사람 아라우나의 타작마당에 있었다.
17 백성을 치는 천사를 보고, 다윗이 주님께 아뢰었다.
“제가 바로 죄를 지었습니다. 제가 못된 짓을 하였습니다.
그러나 이 양들이야 무슨 잘못이 있습니까?
그러니 제발 당신 손으로 저와 제 아버지의 집안을 쳐 주십시오.”

 

복음

 마르코. 6,1-6
그때에 1 예수님께서 고향으로 가셨는데 제자들도 그분을 따라갔다.
2 안식일이 되자 예수님께서는 회당에서 가르치기 시작하셨다.
많은 이가 듣고는 놀라서 이렇게 말하였다.
“저 사람이 어디서 저 모든 것을 얻었을까? 저런 지혜를 어디서 받았을까?
그의 손에서 저런 기적들이 일어나다니!
3 저 사람은 목수로서 마리아의 아들이며,
야고보, 요세, 유다, 시몬과 형제간이 아닌가?
그의 누이들도 우리와 함께 여기에 살고 있지 않는가?”
그러면서 그들은 그분을 못마땅하게 여겼다.
4 그러자 예수님께서 그들에게 이르셨다.
“예언자는 어디에서나 존경받지만
고향과 친척과 집안에서만은 존경받지 못한다.”
5 그리하여 예수님께서는 그곳에서 몇몇 병자에게 손을 얹어서
병을 고쳐 주시는 것밖에는 아무런 기적도 일으키실 수 없었다.
6 그리고 그들이 믿지 않는 것에 놀라셨다.
예수님께서는 여러 마을을 두루 돌아다니며 가르치셨다.

February 5, 2020

Memorial of Saint Agatha, virgin and martyr

Daily Readings — Audio

Daily Reflections — Video

http://www.usccb.org/bible/ 

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

Reading 1 

2 Sm 24:2, 9-17

King David said to Joab and the leaders of the army who were with him,
Tour all the tribes in Israel from Dan to Beer-sheba
and register the people, that I may know their number.
Joab then reported to the king the number of people registered:
in Israel, eight hundred thousand men fit for military service;
in Judah, five hundred thousand.

Afterward, however, David regretted having numbered the people,
and said to the LORD:
I have sinned grievously in what I have done.
But now, LORD, forgive the guilt of your servant,
for I have been very foolish.
When David rose in the morning,
the LORD had spoken to the prophet Gad, David's seer, saying:
"Go and say to David, 'This is what the LORD says:
I offer you three alternatives;
choose one of them, and I will inflict it on you.'"
Gad then went to David to inform him.
He asked: "Do you want a three years' famine to come upon your land,
or to flee from your enemy three months while he pursues you,
or to have a three days' pestilence in your land?
Now consider and decide what I must reply to him who sent me."
David answered Gad: "I am in very serious difficulty.
Let us fall by the hand of God, for he is most merciful;
but let me not fall by the hand of man."
Thus David chose the pestilence.
Now it was the time of the wheat harvest
when the plague broke out among the people.
The LORD then sent a pestilence over Israel
from morning until the time appointed,
and seventy thousand of the people from Dan to Beer-sheba died.
But when the angel stretched forth his hand toward Jerusalem to destroy it,
the LORD regretted the calamity
and said to the angel causing the destruction among the people,
"Enough now! Stay your hand."
The angel of the LORD was then standing
at the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.
When David saw the angel who was striking the people,
he said to the LORD: "It is I who have sinned;
it is I, the shepherd, who have done wrong.
But these are sheep; what have they done?
Punish me and my kindred."
 

Responsorial Psalm

 Ps 32:1-2, 5, 6, 7

R. (see 5c) Lord, forgive the wrong I have done.
Blessed is he whose fault is taken away,
whose sin is covered.
Blessed the man to whom the LORD imputes not guilt,
in whose spirit there is no guile.
R. Lord, forgive the wrong I have done.
Then I acknowledged my sin to you,
my guilt I covered not.
I said, "I confess my faults to the LORD,"
and you took away the guilt of my sin.
R. Lord, forgive the wrong I have done.
For this shall every faithful man pray to you
in time of stress.
Though deep waters overflow,
they shall not reach him.
R. Lord, forgive the wrong I have done.
You are my shelter; from distress you will preserve me;
with glad cries of freedom you will ring me round.
R. Lord, forgive the wrong I have done.
 

Gospel 

Mk 6:1-6

Jesus departed from there and came to his native place,
accompanied by his disciples.
When the sabbath came he began to teach in the synagogue,
and many who heard him were astonished.
They said, "Where did this man get all this?
What kind of wisdom has been given him?
What mighty deeds are wrought by his hands!
Is he not the carpenter, the son of Mary,
and the brother of James and Joseph and Judas and Simon?
And are not his sisters here with us?"
And they took offense at him.
Jesus said to them,
"A prophet is not without honor except in his native place
and among his own kin and in his own house."
So he was not able to perform any mighty deed there,
apart from curing a few sick people by laying his hands on them.
He was amazed at their lack of faith

http://evangeli.net/gospel/tomorrow

 «How did this come to him? What kind of wisdom has been given to him that he also performs such miracles?»

Fr. Miquel MASATS i Roca
(Girona, Spain)

Today, the Gospel shows Jesus going to the Synagogue, in Nazareth, where He had grown up. The Sabbath is the day dedicated to our Lord when Jews get together to listen to God's Word. Every Sabbath, Jesus went to the synagogue to teach, not like the scribes and the Pharisees, but as one who had authority (cf. Mk 1:22).

Today, God also speaks to us through the Scriptures. At the synagogue, the Scriptures were read and, afterwards, the learned ones commented them and explained the sense of the message God wanted to transmit through them. The following thought is attributed to saint Augustine: «As we speak to God through prayer, God speaks to us through reading».

The fact that Jesus, the Son of God, is well known among his fellow citizens because of his work, offers us an unsuspected perspective for our ordinary life. Our professional activities are also a way for us to meet God and, therefore, a sanctified and sanctifying reality. Saint Josemaria Escrivà says: «Your human vocation is a part —and an important part— of your divine vocation. That is the reason why you must strive for holiness, giving a particular character to your human personality, a style to your life; contributing at the same time to the sanctification of others, your fellow men; sanctifying your work and your environment: the profession or job that fills your day, your home and family and the country where you were born and which you love».

The text of the Gospel ends with the words: «Jesus could work no miracles there (...). Jesus himself was astounded at their unbelief» (Mk 6:5-6). Today also our Lord demands more faith in Him to carry out things that overpower our human possibilities. Miracles show God's power and our need for daily dependence on God.

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

 

As we reflect on today’s readings as well as the life of Saint Agatha, we are forced to  take a hard look at our own lives.  How are we responding to the hardships and challenges we find around us in our day-to-day lives?  Does the way we live our life reflect an “all in” faith – a faith clearly apparent to others?

I would encourage you to take the time to look into the life of Saint Agatha.   It is a life of unwavering faith, a faith that empowered her to cling to her Savior through unbearable persecution and torture.  Her life certainly shames me when I consider all the whining and complaining I have done when faced with the little hardships throughout my life.  Her life forces me to evaluate the level of my faith, to consider how well I am answering God’s call.

Today’s reading from Hebrews certainly provides some insight into how we should be facing the valley’s in our lives.  We are directed to “throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles” and to “run with perseverance the race marked out for us.”    Doesn’t this passage tell us that our life (our personal “race”) is no accident -  that God has us exactly where He needs us and that we need to persevere in the life we have instead of wishing for something better?  Facing life with our eyes “fixed  upon Jesus” certainly seems to be the secret to developing meaningful faith.  Yet, I far too often let the world close in on me and distract me from this crucial mission of focusing everything upon my Savior.  

Today’s Responsorial Psalm provides strong advice for us as we face our trials.  We need to simply “long for” our Lord.  Longing is a strong, persistent desire -  an action that reaches to our heart, the very essence of our being.  Perhaps developing this “longing” is the secret of keeping our eyes fixed upon our Savior.

In the Gospel reading from Mark, we are given detailed accounts of what unshakable faith really looks like.  The race marked out for Jairus certainly was not anything that he would have chosen.  His beloved twelve year old daughter was very sick - to the point of death.  We are not told about the level of his faith, but simply that he came to Jesus pleading for his daughter’s life.   Perhaps that is the point of this story – that God does not check the level of our faith before responding.   God is with us in our suffering, regardless of the outcome and more importantly regardless of how we might rate the level of our faith. 

Jairus’ story deepens as he and Jesus were heading to see his daughter.  A woman who had been afflicted by a medical problem heard that Jesus was nearby.  Her life “race” had produced twelve long years of suffering.  one wonders how strong her faith had been through all those years.  Was she able to keep her eyes focused upon Jesus?  Was she able to continually “long for” her Savior?  Perhaps the point of this piece of her life and, for that matter, this piece of Jairus’ life was that the events of our lives really do serve a purpose – an opportunity to point others to God, for His glory.   That certainly was the outcome of these two stories.

Maybe that is indeed the secret to keeping our eyes focused upon Jesus, to truly longing for our Savior.  When we realize that our lives are no accident but rather a race marked out for us, then perhaps we could grasp that we have a profound assignment of using every aspect of our life as a means of pointing others to Christ.  As Jesus reminded Jairus, do not be afraid; just have faith.

Dear Heavenly Father, open my heart to a truly unshakable faith.  The kind of faith that confidently faces all of life’s challenges, realizing that each one is an opportunity to point others to You. Help me to keep my eyes constantly focused upon you.
In the name of my Lord and Savior, Jesus the Christ.

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

LORD, "INCREASE OUR FAITH" (LK 17:5)

"He could work no miracle there, apart from curing a few who were sick by laying hands on them, so much did their lack of faith distress Him." �Mark 6:5-6

Will you travel somewhere today? I drove to morning Mass, and then to work. I had faith that the roads were in good condition, that no bridges were going to collapse, and the roads on which I was driving still led to the same places they led yesterday. I had faith in these structures made by the Ohio Department of Transportation. People have faith in worldly things, such as roads. Yet when it comes to Almighty God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, such faith is in crisis in today's world. God so loved the world that He sent His only Son to save, bless, and heal the world's people (see Jn 3:16). He comes to bring life to the full (Jn 10:10). Yet there is such an epidemic of skepticism, doubt, and unbelief prevailing in the world. Even Jesus was unable to do much good in such an environment (Mk 6:1-6ff). Though He could have sovereignly worked wonders, Jesus desires to work in an atmosphere of faith. Many times in the Gospels, Jesus heals and then says that the person's faith had been the catalyst (see e.g. Mk 5:34). Jesus reveals that if we had faith even the size of the tiniest seed, we could move mountains (Mt 17:20). St. Paul even states that "all depends on faith" (Rm 4:16). Therefore, ask the Lord to reveal any lack of faith in your life. Repent deeply, and beg the Lord to increase your faith (Lk 17:5). Jesus Himself says that everything is possible to one who believes (Mk 9:23).

Prayer: Father, may Jesus dwell in my heart through faith (Eph 3:17).

Promise: "I said, 'I confess my faults to the Lord,' and You took away the guilt of my sin." —Ps 32:5

Praise: St. Agatha is venerated as a virgin-martyr of the early Church. She was martyred in 251 AD during the persecution of Emperor Decius. She kept the Faith though cruelly tortured.

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

 Jesus marveled because of their unbelief

 Are you critical towards others, especially those who may be close to you? The most severe critics are often people very familiar to us, a member of our family, a relative, or neighbor or co-worker we rub shoulders with on a regular basis. Jesus faced a severe testing when he returned to his home town, not simply as the carpenter's son, but now as a rabbi with disciples. It would have been customary for Jesus to go to the synagogue each week during the Sabbath, and when his turn came, to read from the scriptures during the Sabbath service. His hometown folks listened with rapt attention on this occasion because they had heard about the miracles he had performed in other towns. What sign would he do in his hometown?

Look upon your neighbor with the eyes of Christ who comes to heal and restore us
Jesus startled his familiar audience with a seeming rebuke that no prophet or servant of God can receive honor among his own people. The people of Nazareth took offense at Jesus and refused to listen to what he had to say. They despised his preaching because he was a mere workman, a carpenter, and a layman who had no formal training by a scholar or teacher. They also despised him because of his undistinguished family background. How familiarity can breed contempt. Jesus could do no mighty works in their midst because they were closed-minded and unbelieving towards him. If people have come together to hate and to refuse to understand, then they will see no other point of view than their own and they will refuse to love and accept others. How do you treat those who seem disagreeable to you?

 The word "gospel" literally means "good news". Isaiah had prophesied that the Messiah would come in the power of the Holy Spirit to bring freedom to the afflicted who suffered from physical, mental, or spiritual oppression (see Isaiah 61:1-2). Jesus came to set people free - not only from their physical, mental, and spiritual infirmities - but also from the worst affliction of all - the tyranny of slavery to sin, Satan, and the fear of losing one's life. God's power alone can save us from hopelessness, dejection, and emptiness of life. The Gospel of salvation is "good news" for everyone who will receive it. Do you know the joy and freedom of the Gospel?

"Lord Jesus, you are the fulfillment of all our hopes and desires. Your Spirit brings grace, truth, freedom, and abundant life. Set my heart on fire with your love and truth."

Psalm 32:1-2,5,7,11

1 Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered.
2 Blessed is the man to whom the LORD imputes no iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit.
5 I acknowledged my sin to you, and I did not hide my iniquity;  I said, "I will confess my transgressions to the LORD";  then you forgave the guilt of my sin.
6 Therefore let every one who is godly offer prayer to you; at a time of distress, in the rush of great waters, they shall not reach him.
7 You are a hiding place for me, you preserve me from trouble; you surround me with deliverance.

Daily Quote from the early church fathers: Distinguishing God's power and our faith, by Origen of Alexandria (185-254 AD)

"And perhaps, as in the case of metallic substances there exists in some a natural attraction toward some other thing, as in the magnet for iron, and in naphtha for fire, so there is an attraction in such faith toward the divine power according to what Jesus said: 'If you have faith as a grain of mustard seed, you shall say unto this mountain, 'Move to another place,' and it shall be moved' (Matthew 17:20). Matthew and Mark wished to present the all-surpassing value of that divine power as a power that works even in those who do not believe. But they did not deny that grace works even more powerfully among those who have faith. So it seems to me that they accurately said not that the Lord did not do any mighty works because of their unbelief, but that he did not do many there (Mark 6:5). Mark does not flatly say that he could do no mighty work there at all, and stop at that point, but added, 'except that he laid his hands upon a few sick folk and healed them' (Mark 6:5). Thus the power in him overcame even their unbelief." (excerpt from COMMENTARY on MATTHEW 10.19)

  

More Homilies

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