2020년 8월 21일 연중 제20주간 금요일
오늘의 복음 : http://info.catholic.or.kr/missa/default.asp
제1독서
에제키엘 예언서. 37,1-14
그 무렵 1 주님의 손이 나에게 내리셨다.
그분께서 주님의 영으로 나를 데리고 나가시어,
넓은 계곡 한가운데에 내려놓으셨다. 그곳은 뼈로 가득 차 있었다.
2 그분께서는 나를 그 뼈들 사이로 두루 돌아다니게 하셨다.
그 넓은 계곡 바닥에는 뼈가 대단히 많았는데, 그것들은 바싹 말라 있었다.
3 그분께서 나에게 말씀하셨다.
“사람의 아들아, 이 뼈들이 살아날 수 있겠느냐?”
내가 “주 하느님, 당신께서 아십니다.” 하고 대답하자,
4 그분께서 또 나에게 말씀하셨다. “이 뼈들에게 예언하여라.
이렇게 말하여라. ‘너희 마른 뼈들아, 주님의 말을 들어라.
5 주 하느님이 뼈들에게 이렇게 말한다.
나 이제 너희에게 숨을 불어넣어 너희가 살아나게 하겠다.
6 너희에게 힘줄을 놓고 살이 오르게 하며 너희를 살갗으로 씌운 다음,
너희에게 영을 넣어 주어 너희를 살게 하겠다.
그제야 너희는 내가 주님임을 알게 될 것이다.’”
7 그래서 나는 분부받은 대로 예언하였다.
그런데 내가 예언할 때, 무슨 소리가 나고 진동이 일더니,
뼈들이, 뼈와 뼈가 서로 다가가는 것이었다.
8 내가 바라보고 있으니, 힘줄이 생기고 살이 올라오며
그 위로 살갗이 덮였다.
그러나 그들에게 숨은 아직 없었다.
9 그분께서 다시 나에게 말씀하셨다.
“숨에게 예언하여라. 사람의 아들아, 예언하여라.
숨에게 말하여라. ‘주 하느님이 이렇게 말한다.
너 숨아, 사방에서 와 이 학살된 이들 위로 불어서, 그들이 살아나게 하여라.’”
10 그분께서 분부하신 대로 내가 예언하니, 숨이 그들 안으로 들어갔다.
그러자 그들이 살아나서 제 발로 일어서는데, 엄청나게 큰 군대였다.
11 그때에 그분께서 나에게 말씀하셨다.
“사람의 아들아, 이 뼈들은 온 이스라엘 집안이다.
그들은 ‘우리 뼈들은 마르고 우리 희망은 사라졌으니,
우리는 끝났다.’고 말한다.
12 그러므로 예언하여라. 그들에게 말하여라.
‘주 하느님이 이렇게 말한다. 나 이제 너희 무덤을 열겠다.
그리고 내 백성아, 너희를 그 무덤에서 끌어내어 이스라엘 땅으로 데려가겠다.
13 내 백성아, 내가 이렇게 너희 무덤을 열고, 그 무덤에서 너희를 끌어 올리면,
그제야 너희는 내가 주님임을 알게 될 것이다.
14 내가 너희 안에 내 영을 넣어 주어 너희를 살린 다음,
너희 땅으로 데려다 놓겠다.
그제야 너희는,
나 주님은 말하고 그대로 실천한다는 사실을 알게 될 것이다.
복음
마태오 22,34-40
그때에 34 예수님께서 사두가이들의 말문을 막아 버리셨다는 소식을 듣고
바리사이들이 한데 모였다.
35 그들 가운데 율법 교사 한 사람이 예수님을 시험하려고 물었다.
36 “스승님, 율법에서 가장 큰 계명은 무엇입니까?”
37 예수님께서 그에게 말씀하셨다.
“‘네 마음을 다하고 네 목숨을 다하고 네 정신을 다하여
주 너의 하느님을 사랑해야 한다.’
38 이것이 가장 크고 첫째가는 계명이다.
39 둘째도 이와 같다. ‘네 이웃을 너 자신처럼 사랑해야 한다.’는 것이다.
40 온 율법과 예언서의 정신이 이 두 계명에 달려 있다.”
August 21, 2020
Friday of the Twentieth Week in Ordinary Time
Daily Mass : http://www.catholictv.com/shows/daily-mass
Reading 1
The hand of the LORD came upon me,
and led me out in the Spirit of the LORD
and set me in the center of the plain,
which was now filled with bones.
He made me walk among the bones in every direction
so that I saw how many they were on the surface of the plain.
How dry they were!
He asked me:
Son of man, can these bones come to life?
I answered, “Lord GOD, you alone know that.”
Then he said to me:
Prophesy over these bones, and say to them:
Dry bones, hear the word of the LORD!
Thus says the Lord GOD to these bones:
See! I will bring spirit into you, that you may come to life.
I will put sinews upon you, make flesh grow over you,
cover you with skin, and put spirit in you
so that you may come to life and know that I am the LORD.
I prophesied as I had been told,
and even as I was prophesying I heard a noise;
it was a rattling as the bones came together, bone joining bone.
I saw the sinews and the flesh come upon them,
and the skin cover them, but there was no spirit in them.
Then the LORD said to me:
Prophesy to the spirit, prophesy, son of man,
and say to the spirit: Thus says the Lord GOD:
From the four winds come, O spirit,
and breathe into these slain that they may come to life.
I prophesied as he told me, and the spirit came into them;
they came alive and stood upright, a vast army.
Then he said to me:
Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel.
They have been saying,
“Our bones are dried up,
our hope is lost, and we are cut off.”
Therefore, prophesy and say to them: Thus says the Lord GOD:
O my people, I will open your graves
and have you rise from them,
and bring you back to the land of Israel.
Then you shall know that I am the LORD,
when I open your graves and have you rise from them,
O my people!
I will put my spirit in you that you may live,
and I will settle you upon your land;
thus you shall know that I am the LORD.
I have promised, and I will do it, says the LORD.
Responsorial Psalm
R. (1) Give thanks to the Lord; his love is everlasting.
Let the redeemed of the LORD say,
those whom he has redeemed from the hand of the foe
And gathered from the lands,
from the east and the west, from the north and the south.
R. Give thanks to the Lord; his love is everlasting.
They went astray in the desert wilderness;
the way to an inhabited city they did not find.
Hungry and thirsty,
their life was wasting away within them.
R. Give thanks to the Lord; his love is everlasting.
They cried to the LORD in their distress;
from their straits he rescued them.
And he led them by a direct way
to reach an inhabited city.
R. Give thanks to the Lord; his love is everlasting.
Let them give thanks to the LORD for his mercy
and his wondrous deeds to the children of men,
Because he satisfied the longing soul
and filled the hungry soul with good things.
R. Give thanks to the Lord; his love is everlasting.
Gospel
When the Pharisees heard that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees,
they gathered together, and one of them,
a scholar of the law, tested him by asking,
“Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?”
He said to him,
“You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart,
with all your soul, and with all your mind.
This is the greatest and the first commandment.
The second is like it:
You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
The whole law and the prophets depend on these two commandments.”
http://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/daily.html
I think that the meaning of the parable is clear in saying that the justice of God is a generosity which goes beyond what is just and especially surpasses our little ideas of what justice is or should be --- and that is certainly true. God's love is nothing but generosity; He is always looking for a way to be good to us and creating possibilities where there are none visible to us.
But that can cause a major problem for us when we see innocent children starving, abused, or suffering from cancer. How can we speak of the love and generosity of God if we can find such cases in our world, and not as rare events?
There is a response to that question, but it has its own problem. That response is that we simply have to trust God, absolutely and in every situation; we have to practice the cardinal virtue of hope. And the related problem is that such an answer seems too simple, that God must be held accountable for an illogical and absurd world (to use the term of the existentialist philosophers), one in which the innocent and the powerless die and the evil prosper.
In the end it all comes down to one simple fact: God is God and we are not. If all His actions, every way that He interacts with us, could be explained logically and be beyond reproach He would be only human. God, by His very nature, is beyond our understanding and is only truly satisfying to us as God, if He surpasses us and is so different than our flawed humanity that He is and always will be mystery. Any other God, no matter how wise, loving, or attractive, is simply not big enough to answer our longing or to deserve our complete and constant adherence.
Jesus shows us here only one aspect of that God that we believe in, and even in that generous love He is wrapped in mystery.
http://www.presentationministries.com/obob/obob.asp
HOPE EVEN NOW
“They have been saying, ‘Our bones are dried up, our hope is lost.’ ” —Ezekiel 37:11
In the last generation, much of the world has engaged in an unprecedented bloodbath through chemical and surgical abortions, starvation, “ethnic cleansing,” and many other atrocities, displaying a blatant disregard for human life. Some have commented that, if God does not destroy us, He will have to apologize to Sodom and Gomorrah. Is there hope for our culture?
There is hope because:
• Jesus has already definitively conquered the evil one. He now waits for His enemies to be placed beneath His feet (Heb 10:12-13).
• The Holy Spirit could prophesy new life into our culture, even if it were destroyed (Ez 37:4ff).
• God’s “mercy triumphs over judgment” (Jas 2:13).
• Some of those victimized by the culture of death have accepted the miracle of forgiving and loving their enemies. There is great hope in the miracle of forgiveness.
• Some of the countless suffering people in our society have united their sufferings with the Passion and death of Jesus. Redemptive suffering can be a prelude to risen life.
We have hope, for Christ is within us (Col 1:27), and “this hope will not leave us disappointed, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit Who has been given to us” (Rm 5:5). Face reality and dreadful circumstances, then “rejoice in hope, be patient under trial, persevere in prayer” (Rm 12:12).
Prayer: Father, make me realistic and extremely joyful.
Promise: “He satisfied the longing soul and filled the hungry soul with good things.” —Ps 107:9
Praise: “To restore all things to Christ, in order that Christ may be all in all.” Pope St. Pius X launched his pontificate with this motto. By all accounts, he accomplished his mission, as he renewed appreciation of the liturgy and the Eucharist.
http://dailyscripture.servantsoftheword.org/readings/
What is the purpose of God's law and commandments? The Pharisees prided themselves in the knowledge of the law of Moses and the ritual requirements of the law. They made it a life-time practice to study the 613 precepts of the Torah - the books of the Old Testament containing the Law of Moses - along with the numerous rabbinic commentaries on the law. The religious authorities tested Jesus to see if he correctly understood the law as they did. Jesus startled them with his profound simplicity and mastery of the law of God and its purpose.
God's love rules all
Jesus summarized the whole of the law in two great commandments found in Deuteronomy 6:5 - "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might" - and Leviticus 19:18 - "you shall love your neighbor as yourself". God's love directs all that he does - His love is holy, just, and pure because it seeks only what is good, beneficial, and life-giving - rather than what is destructive, evil, or deadly. That is why he commands us to love - to accept and to give only what is good, lovely, just, and pure and to reject whatever is contrary.
God puts us first in his thoughts
God is love and everything he does flows from his love for us (1 John 3:1, 4:7-8, 16). God puts us first in his thoughts and concerns - do we put him first in our thoughts? God loved us first (1 John 4:19) and our love for him is a response to his exceeding goodness and kindness towards us. The love of God comes first and the love of neighbor is firmly grounded in the love of God. The more we know of God's love, truth, and goodness, the more we love what he loves and reject whatever is hateful and contrary to his will. God commands us to love him first above all else - his love orients and directs our thoughts, intentions, and actions to what is wholly good and pleasing to him. He wants us to love him personally, wholeheartedly, and without any reservation or compromise.
The nature of love - giving to others for their sake
What is the nature of love? Love is the gift of giving oneself for the good of others - it is wholly other oriented and directed to the welfare and benefit of others. Love which is rooted in pleasing myself is self-centered and possessive - it is a selfish love that takes from others rather than gives to others. It is a stunted and disordered love which leads to many hurtful and sinful desires - such as jealousy, greed, envy, and lust. The root of all sin is disordered love and pride which is fundamentally putting myself above God and my neighbor - it is loving and serving self rather than God and neighbor. True love, which is wholly directed and oriented to what is good rather than evil, is rooted in God's truth and righteousness (moral goodness).
How God loves us
God loves us wholly, completely, and perfectly for our sake - there is no limit, no holding back, no compromising on his part. His love is not subject to changing moods or circumstances. When God gives, he gives generously, abundantly, freely, and without setting conditions to the gift of his love. His love does not waver, but is firm, consistent, and constant. He loves us in our weakness - in our fallen and sinful condition. That is why the Father sent his only begotten Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, to redeem us from slavery to sin and its disordered cravings, desires, passions, and addictions. God the Father always seeks us out to draw us to his throne of mercy and help. God the Father corrects and disciplines us in love to free us from the error of our wrong ways of thinking and choosing what is harmful and evil rather than choosing what is good and wholesome for us. Do you freely accept God's love and do you willingly choose to obey his commandments?
We do not earn God's love - it is freely given
How can we possibly love God above all else and obey his commandments willingly and joyfully, and how can we love our neighbor and willing lay down our life for their sake? Paul the Apostle tells us that "hope does not disappoint us, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit which has been given to us" (Romans 5:5). We do not earn God's love - it is freely given to those who open their heart to God and who freely accept the gift of the Holy Spirit. Ask the Lord Jesus to flood your heart with his love through the gift of the Holy Spirit.
Love grows with faith and hope
What makes our love for God and his commands grow in us? Faith in God and hope in his promises strengthens us in the love of God. They are essential for a good relationship with God, for being united with him. The more we know of God the more we love him and the more we love him the greater we believe and hope in his promises. The Lord Jesus, through the gift of the Holy Spirit, gives us a new freedom to love as he loves. Paul the Apostle writes, "For freedom Christ has set us free... only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh [sinful inclinations], but through love be servants of one another" (Galatians 5:1,13). Do you allow anything to keep you from the love of God and the joy of serving others with a generous heart?
Lord Jesus, your love surpasses all. Flood my heart with your love and increase my faith and hope in your promises. Help me to give myself in generous service to others as you have so generously given yourself to me.
Psalm 146:1-2, 5-10
1 Praise the LORD! Praise the LORD, O my soul!
2 I will praise the LORD as long as I live; I will sing praises to my God while I have being.
5 Happy is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the LORD his God,
6 who made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them; who keeps faith for ever;
7 who executes justice for the oppressed; who gives food to the hungry. The LORD sets the prisoners free;
8 the LORD opens the eyes of the blind. The LORD lifts up those who are bowed down; the LORD loves the righteous.
9 The LORD watches over the sojourners, he upholds the widow and the fatherless; but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.
10 The LORD will reign for ever, your God, O Zion, to all generations. Praise the LORD!
Daily Quote from the Early Church Fathers: Loving God with heart, mind, and soul, by Origen of Alexandria (185-254 AD)
"Worthy is he, confirmed in all his gifts, who exults in the wisdom of God, having a heart full of the love of God, and a soul completely enlightened by the lamp of knowledge and a mind filled with the word of God. It follows then that all such gifts truly come from God. He would understand that all the law and the prophets are in some way a part of the wisdom and knowledge of God. He would understand that all the law and the prophets depend upon and adhere to the principle of the love of the Lord God and of neighbor and that the perfection of piety consists in love." (excerpt from COMMENTARY ON MATTHEW 13)
More Homilies
August 19, 2016 Friday of the Twentieth Week in Ordinary Time
