2020년 9월 30일 연중 제26주간 수요일
오늘의 복음 : http://info.catholic.or.kr/missa/default.asp
제1독서
욥기 9,1-12.14-16
그때에 57 예수님과 제자들이 길을 가는데 어떤 사람이 예수님께, “어디로 가시든지 저는 스승님을 따르겠습니다.” 하고 말하였다.
58 그러자 예수님께서 그에게 말씀하셨다. “여우들도 굴이 있고 하늘의 새들도 보금자리가 있지만, 사람의 아들은 머리를 기댈 곳조차 없다.”
59 예수님께서는 다른 사람에게 “나를 따라라.” 하고 이르셨다. 그러나 그는 “주님, 먼저 집에 가서 아버지의 장사를 지내게 허락해 주십시오.” 하고 말하였다.
60 예수님께서는 그에게, “죽은 이들의 장사는 죽은 이들이 지내도록 내버려 두고, 너는 가서 하느님의 나라를 알려라.” 하고 말씀하셨다.
61 또 다른 사람이 “주님, 저는 주님을 따르겠습니다. 그러나 먼저 가족들에게 작별 인사를 하게 허락해 주십시오.” 하고 말하였다.
62 예수님께서 그에게 이르셨다. “쟁기에 손을 대고 뒤를 돌아보는 자는 하느님 나라에 합당하지 않다.”
복음
루카 9,57-62
그때에 예수님과 제자들이 57 길을 가는데 어떤 사람이 예수님께,
“어디로 가시든지 저는 스승님을 따르겠습니다.” 하고 말하였다.
58 그러자 예수님께서 그에게 말씀하셨다.
“여우들도 굴이 있고 하늘의 새들도 보금자리가 있지만,
사람의 아들은 머리를 기댈 곳조차 없다.”
59 예수님께서는 다른 사람에게 “나를 따라라.” 하고 이르셨다.
그러나 그는 “주님, 먼저 집에 가서
아버지의 장사를 지내게 허락해 주십시오.” 하고 말하였다.
60 예수님께서는 그에게, “죽은 이들의 장사는 죽은 이들이 지내도록 내버려 두고,
너는 가서 하느님의 나라를 알려라.” 하고 말씀하셨다.
61 또 다른 사람이 “주님, 저는 주님을 따르겠습니다.
그러나 먼저 가족들에게 작별 인사를 하게 허락해 주십시오.” 하고 말하였다.
62 예수님께서 그에게 이르셨다.
“쟁기에 손을 대고 뒤를 돌아보는 자는 하느님 나라에 합당하지 않다.”
September 30, 2020
Memorial of St. Jerome, Priest and Doctor of the Church
Daily Mass : http://www.catholictv.com/shows/daily-mass
Reading 1
Jb 9:1-12, 14-16
Job answered his friends and said:
I know well that it is so;
but how can a man be justified before God?
Should one wish to contend with him,
he could not answer him once in a thousand times.
God is wise in heart and mighty in strength;
who has withstood him and remained unscathed?
He removes the mountains before they know it;
he overturns them in his anger.
He shakes the earth out of its place,
and the pillars beneath it tremble.
He commands the sun, and it rises not;
he seals up the stars.
He alone stretches out the heavens
and treads upon the crests of the sea.
He made the Bear and Orion,
the Pleiades and the constellations of the south;
He does great things past finding out,
marvelous things beyond reckoning.
Should he come near me, I see him not;
should he pass by, I am not aware of him;
Should he seize me forcibly, who can say him nay?
Who can say to him, “What are you doing?”
How much less shall I give him any answer,
or choose out arguments against him!
Even though I were right, I could not answer him,
but should rather beg for what was due me.
If I appealed to him and he answered my call,
I could not believe that he would hearken to my words.
Responsorial Psalm
Ps 88:10bc-11, 12-13, 14-15
R. (3) Let my prayer come before you, Lord.
Daily I call upon you, O LORD;
to you I stretch out my hands.
Will you work wonders for the dead?
Will the shades arise to give you thanks?
R. Let my prayer come before you, Lord.
Do they declare your mercy in the grave,
your faithfulness among those who have perished?
Are your wonders made known in the darkness,
or your justice in the land of oblivion?
R. Let my prayer come before you, Lord.
But I, O LORD, cry out to you;
with my morning prayer I wait upon you.
Why, O LORD, do you reject me;
why hide from me your face?
R. Let my prayer come before you, Lord.
Gospel
Lk 9:57-62
As Jesus and his disciples were proceeding
on their journey, someone said to him,
“I will follow you wherever you go.”
Jesus answered him,
“Foxes have dens and birds of the sky have nests,
but the Son of Man has nowhere to rest his head.”
And to another he said, “Follow me.”
But he replied, “Lord, let me go first and bury my father.”
But he answered him, “Let the dead bury their dead.
But you, go and proclaim the Kingdom of God.”
And another said, “I will follow you, Lord,
but first let me say farewell to my family at home.”
Jesus answered him, “No one who sets a hand to the plow
and looks to what was left behind is fit for the Kingdom of God.”
http://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/daily.html
This is a story that my spiritual director told me back in 1968.
A very wealthy man adopted a young boy and raised him as his son, with love, discipline, generosity, firmness, vision – everything you could hope for from a father. And one day the son left, as sons are wont to do, to lead his life in a distant city. Then one day he realized how blessed he was and how little thanks he had ever given to his father.
He called his father and poured out his heart, and the theme of his words was simple: “How can I ever thank you enough for what you have given me, what you have done for me, what you have made me?”
And the father answered. “You have just done that, but if you wish to do more, just be the person I hoped you would become. There is nothing that you can give me beyond that, for I am far wealthier than you can ever realize, but there is a poor man living next to you. Take care of him as lovingly and as wisely as you can, and if you need anything whatsoever in order to do that, just let me know and it is yours.”
This is what Jesus is talking about in today's Gospel and explains why Paul reaches the conclusion that he does.
http://www.presentationministries.com/obob/obob.asp
“HOW GREAT THOU ART”
“Should one wish to contend with Him, he could not answer Him once in a thousand times.” —Job 9:3
God is beyond the powers of human expression. “He removes the mountains before they know it; He overturns them in His anger. He shakes the earth out of its place, and the pillars beneath it tremble” (Jb 9:5-6). “He alone stretches out the heavens and treads upon the crests of the sea” (Jb 9:8). “He does great things past finding out, marvelous things beyond reckoning” (Jb 9:10). “Should He seize me forcibly, who can say Him nay? Who can say to Him, ‘What are You doing?’ ” (Jb 9:12)
The truth that “the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom” echoes throughout the Scriptures (e.g. see Ps 111:10). We feel amazement, awe, and wonder at the presence of the almighty God. “It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God” (Heb 10:31). “How great Thou art!”
When we have a more realistic awareness of Him, everything comes into right perspective. We realize our privilege to be in His kingdom. We recognize that the greatest honor possible for a human being is to praise and serve God. We feel blessed to suffer (Rm 8:17), even to die for Him. We almost faint to think we receive the all-holy God into our bodies in Holy Communion. When we have the fear of the Lord, we disdain a minimalistic, mediocre Christianity and abandon ourselves to a life of joyful, sacrificial commitment to the Lord.
Prayer: Jesus, why did You ever pay any attention to me? Thank You, Lord, for loving me.
Promise: “Jesus answered him, ‘Whoever puts his hand to the plow but keeps looking back is unfit for the reign of God.’ ” —Lk 9:62
Praise: St. Jerome is the Church’s greatest biblical scholar. Jerome wrote, “The reading of Holy Scriptures should follow upon prayer, and prayer in turn should follow reading.”
http://dailyscripture.servantsoftheword.org/readings/
Are you ready to follow the Lord Jesus wherever he may lead you? With the call the Lord gives the grace to respond and the strength to follow all the way to the end. Why does Jesus issue a challenge with the call? Jesus was utterly honest in telling people what it would cost to follow him. When a would-be disciple approached Jesus and said he was ready to follow, Jesus told him it would require sacrifice - the sacrifice of certain creaturely comforts. Jesus appealed to this man's heart and told him to detach himself from whatever might hold him back. Spiritual detachment is a necessary step for following the Lord. It frees us to give ourselves without reserve to the Lord and his service. While many of us may not need to give up the comfort of our own home and bed to follow Jesus, we, nonetheless, must be willing to part with anything that might stand in the way of doing God's will.
Don't let anything hold you back from following the Lord Jesus
Another would-be disciple said he would follow as soon as he had buried his father. What he meant by this expression was that he felt the need to return to his home to take care of his father through old age until he died. The third had no obligation to return home, but simply wanted to go back and say good-bye. Jesus surprised these would-be disciples with the stark truth that nothing should hinder us from following the Lord. Was Jesus being harsh and rude to his would-be followers? Not really. We are free to decide whether we will take the path which Jesus offers. But if we choose to go, then the Lord wants us to count the cost and choose for it freely.
Don't miss the good path God has set for you - it will lead to joy and freedom
What does the story of a plowman have to do with the journey? A plowman who looked back while plowing his field caused the line or furrow he cut into the soil to become crooked. One crooked line easily leads to another until the whole field is a mess. The plowman had to look straight ahead in order to keep the plow from going off course. Likewise, if we look back on what we have freely left behind to follow the Lord - whether that be some distraction, attachment, or sinful habit which leads us away from doing God's will - our path will likely diverge and we'll miss what God has for us.
Will you say "yes" to the Lord's call for your life?
The Gospel does not record the response from these three would-be disciples. We are only left with the question which Jesus intends for us as well. Are you ready to take the path which the Lord Jesus offers? His grace is sufficient and his love is strong. There is nothing greater we can do with our lives than to place them at the service of the Lord and Master of the universe. We cannot outmatch God in his generosity. Jesus promises that those who are willing to part with what is most dear to them for his sake "will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life" (Matthew 19:29). The Lord Jesus offers us a kingdom of lasting peace, unending joy, surpassing love, enduring friendship, and abundant life. Is there anything holding you back from pursuing the Lord and his will for you life?
Take, O Lord, and receive my entire liberty, my memory, my understanding, and my whole will. All that I am and all that I possess you have given me. I surrender it all to you to be disposed of according to your will. Give me only your love and your grace - with these I will be rich enough and will desire nothing more. (Prayer of Ignatius Loyola, 1491-1556)
Psalm 88:2,9b-14
2 Let my prayer come before you, incline your ear to my cry!
9 Every day I call upon you, O LORD; I spread out my hands to you.
10 Do you work wonders for the dead? Do the shades rise up to praise you? [Selah]
11 Is your steadfast love declared in the grave, or your faithfulness in Abaddon?
12 Are your wonders known in the darkness, or your saving help in the land of forgetfulness?
13 But I, O LORD, cry to you; in the morning my prayer comes before you.
14 O LORD, why do you cast me off? Why do you hide your face from me?
15 Afflicted and close to death from my youth up, I suffer your terrors; I am helpless.
Daily Quote from the Early Church Fathers: Put to death what is earthly in you, by Origen of Alexandria (185-254 AD)
"The statement 'Let the dead bury their dead' implies spiritually: Waste no more time on dead things. You are to 'put to death therefore what is earthly in you: immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire and covetousness, which is idolatry' (Colossians 3:5). These things therefore are dead. Cast them away from you. Cut them off as you would cut off gangrenous flesh to prevent the contamination of the whole body, so that you may not hear it said, 'Leave the dead [spiritually dead] to bury their dead' (Matthew 8:22). But to some it seems abnormal and contradictory that the Savior does not allow the disciple to bury his father. It seems inhumane. But Jesus does not in fact forbid people from burying the dead, but rather he puts before this the preaching of the kingdom of heaven, which makes people alive (Luke 9:60). As for burying the body, there were many people who could have done this." (excerpt from Fragment 161)
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