February 11, 2021 Thursday of the Fifth Week in Ordinary Time

2021년 2월 11일 연중 제5주간 목요일  

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

제1독서
창세기.2,18-25
8 주 하느님께서 말씀하셨다.
“사람이 혼자 있는 것이 좋지 않으니, 그에게 알맞은 협력자를 만들어 주겠다.”
19 그래서 주 하느님께서는
흙으로 들의 온갖 짐승과 하늘의 온갖 새를 빚으신 다음,
사람에게 데려가시어 그가 그것들을 무엇이라 부르는지 보셨다.
사람이 생물 하나하나를 부르는 그대로 그 이름이 되었다.
20 이렇게 사람은 모든 집짐승과 하늘의 새와 모든 들짐승에게
이름을 붙여 주었다.
그러나 그는 사람인 자기에게 알맞은 협력자를 찾지 못하였다.
21 그래서 주 하느님께서는 사람 위로 깊은 잠이 쏟아지게 하시어
그를 잠들게 하신 다음,
그의 갈빗대 하나를 빼내시고 그 자리를 살로 메우셨다.
22 주 하느님께서 사람에게서 빼내신 갈빗대로 여자를 지으시고,
그를 사람에게 데려오시자, 23 사람이 이렇게 부르짖었다.
“이야말로 내 뼈에서 나온 뼈요 내 살에서 나온 살이로구나!
남자에게서 나왔으니 여자라 불리리라.”
24 그러므로 남자는 아버지와 어머니를 떠나 아내와 결합하여,
둘이 한 몸이 된다.
25 사람과 그 아내는 둘 다 알몸이면서도 부끄러워하지 않았다.

 

복음
마르코.7,24-30
 그때에 24 예수님께서 티로 지역으로 가셨다.

그리고 어떤 집으로 들어가셨는데,
아무에게도 알려지기를 원하지 않으셨으나 결국 숨어 계실 수가 없었다.
25 더러운 영이 들린 딸을 둔 어떤 부인이 곧바로 예수님의 소문을 듣고 와서,
그분 발 앞에 엎드렸다.
26 그 부인은 이교도로서 시리아 페니키아 출신이었는데,
자기 딸에게서 마귀를 쫓아내 주십사고 그분께 청하였다.
27 예수님께서는 그 여자에게, “먼저 자녀들을 배불리 먹여야 한다.
자녀들의 빵을 집어 강아지들에게 던져 주는 것은 옳지 않다.” 하고 말씀하셨다.
28 그러자 그 여자가, “주님, 그러나 상 아래에 있는 강아지들도
자식들이 떨어뜨린 부스러기는 먹습니다.” 하고 응답하였다.
29 이에 예수님께서 그 여자에게 말씀하셨다.
“네가 그렇게 말하니, 가 보아라. 마귀가 이미 네 딸에게서 나갔다.”
30 그 여자가 집에 가서 보니,
아이는 침상에 누워 있고 마귀는 나가고 없었다.

February 11, 2021 

Thursday of the Fifth 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

Gn 2:18-25

The LORD God said: 
“It is not good for the man to be alone.
I will make a suitable partner for him.”
So the LORD God formed out of the ground
various wild animals and various birds of the air,
and he brought them to the man to see what he would call them;
whatever the man called each of them would be its name.
The man gave names to all the cattle,
all the birds of the air, and all the wild animals;
but none proved to be the suitable partner for the man.

So the LORD God cast a deep sleep on the man,
and while he was asleep, he took out one of his ribs
and closed up its place with flesh.
The LORD God then built up into a woman
the rib that he had taken from the man.
When he brought her to the man, the man said:

“This one, at last, is bone of my bones
and flesh of my flesh;
this one shall be called ‘woman,’
for out of ‘her man’ this one has been taken.”

That is why a man leaves his father and mother
and clings to his wife,
and the two of them become one flesh.

The man and his wife were both naked, yet they felt no shame.

 

Responsorial Psalm

Ps 128:1-2, 3, 4-5

R. (see 1a) Blessed are those who fear the Lord.
Blessed are you who fear the LORD,
who walk in his ways!
For you shall eat the fruit of your handiwork;
blessed shall you be, and favored. 
R. Blessed are those who fear the Lord.
Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine
in the recesses of your home;
Your children like olive plants
around your table. 
R. Blessed are those who fear the Lord.
Behold, thus is the man blessed
who fears the LORD.
The LORD bless you from Zion:
may you see the prosperity of Jerusalem
all the days of your life.
R. Blessed are those who fear the Lord.

 

Gospel

Mk 7:24-30

Jesus went to the district of Tyre.
He entered a house and wanted no one to know about it,
but he could not escape notice.
Soon a woman whose daughter had an unclean spirit heard about him.
She came and fell at his feet.
The woman was a Greek, a Syrophoenician by birth,
and she begged him to drive the demon out of her daughter.
He said to her, “Let the children be fed first.
For it is not right to take the food of the children
and throw it to the dogs.”
She replied and said to him,
“Lord, even the dogs under the table eat the children’s scraps.”
Then he said to her, “For saying this, you may go.
The demon has gone out of your daughter.”
When the woman went home, she found the child lying in bed
and the demon gone.

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

 Though he is well-known, I have never made my way around to reading any works by G.K. Chesterton. However, I have heard that he masterfully explores the paradoxes alive in the Christian faith. I think of Jesus being both shepherd and the Lamb of God, for example. These titles seem to contradict one another and yet speak to a deeper truth.

Today's readings uncover two truths about us that also seem to me (at first) as though they do not belong together: that we are jointly called to be collaborators of God in creation, but also to be humble. The first seems to raise us up in importance; the second, to bring us down. In the second chapter of Genesis (First Reading) we hear how God uses Adam to create Eve as God took out one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh. The Lord God then built up into a woman the rib that he had taken from the man. Just as with Adam, God invites us to share with him in the ongoing work of creation. God has created all things, as Genesis teaches us, and yet he invites us to help him manifest what he has created in unique ways. While a mother and father are integral to the creation of a new human life, they could not achieve this themselves. They create in collaboration with God. While Beethoven wrote his 9th symphony with its rich 4th movement (containing the well-known Ode to Joy), he did not create sound, notes or melody on his own. Rather, he discovered a way to uniquely manifest these elements that God had already created into a beautiful symphony. Creating with God is lofty work!

Yet, today's reading from Mark reminds us to be humble. As the Gentile woman fell at Jesus' feet begging his help, she did so with the humility of likening herself to a dog seeking but the scraps from the table. This humility, this faith, saves her child from the unclean spirit. As we collaborate with God in the ongoing work of creation, we must do so humbly. And why? Because as Moses did not himself reach the promised land, his collaboration with God was in service of a vision that was God's and that was far bigger than him. Likewise, in the words of John Henry Newman, [God] has committed some work to me which He has not committed to another. I have my mission. I may never know it in this life, but I shall be told it in the next...

So I ask myself, am I being a collaborator of God today? Am I being an instrument of his ongoing work of creation? Am I doing so with humility? This is important work to which we are called, and we must go about it humbly.

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

 

V.I.P.

God “brought them to the man to see what he would call them.” —Genesis 2:19

God, Who can do all things, obviously doesn’t need our help. Nevertheless, He lets us be involved in His awesome works. For example, when God created the animals, birds, and even the first woman, He could have done it all Himself. Instead “He brought them to the man to see what he would call them; whatever the man called each of them would be its name” (Gn 2:19).
For the Jewish people, naming was not an insignificant task but one of giving someone or something its identity. Therefore, by having Adam name the animals, birds, and the first woman, God let Adam be a co-creator. The Lord also gives us other exceptional opportunities. For example, the Syro-Phoenician woman was given the power to move up the time for Jesus’ ministry to the Gentiles (Mk 7:27ff). The Lord has even given us the power to hasten His Second Coming (2 Pt 3:12). The Lord has chosen to make us not spectators but co-creators and participants in His glorious plan of salvation (see Heb 11:40).
Therefore, what we do and when we do it makes a difference. We have been given opportunities to further God’s work or to hinder it. Our lives are very important. By His grace, we must be responsible. “Do not continue in ignorance, but try to discern the will of the Lord” (Eph 5:17).

Prayer:  Father, “what is man that You should be mindful of him?” (Ps 8:5)

Promise:  “When she got home, she found the child lying in bed and the demon gone.” —Mk 7:30

Praise:  “Our Lady of Lourdes, as you looked down with love and mercy upon St. Bernadette as she prayed her rosary in the grotto, look down now, we beseech you, with love and mercy upon us.”

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

 Do you ever feel "put-off" by the Lord? This passage describes the only occasion in which Jesus ministered outside of Jewish territory. (Tyre and Sidon were fifty miles north of Israel and still exist today in modern Lebanon.) A Gentile woman - an outsider who was not a member of the chosen people - puts Jesus on the spot by pleading with him to show mercy to her daughter who was tormented with an evil spirit. At first Jesus seemed to pay no attention to her, and this made his disciples feel embarrassed. Jesus very likely did this not to put the woman off, but rather to test her sincerity and to awaken faith in her.

The Lord shows mercy to those who seek him
What did Jesus mean by the expression "throwing bread to the dogs"? The Jews often spoke of the Gentiles with arrogance and insolence as "unclean dogs" since the Gentiles were excluded from God's covenant and favor with Israel. For the Greeks the "dog" was a symbol of dishonor and was used to describe a shameless and audacious woman. Matthew's Gospel records the expression do not give dogs what is holy (Matthew 7:6). Jesus, no doubt, spoke with a smile rather than with an insult because this woman immediately responds with wit and faith - "even the dogs eat the crumbs".

Love conquers with persistent trust and faith
Jesus praises a Gentile woman for her persistent faith and for her affectionate love. She made the misery of her child her own and she was willing to suffer rebuff in order to obtain healing for her loved one. She also had indomitable persistence. Her faith grew in contact with the person of Jesus. She began with a request and she ended on her knees in worshipful prayer to the living God. No one who ever sought Jesus with faith - whether Jew or Gentile - was refused his help. Do you seek Jesus with expectant faith?

Lord Jesus, your love and mercy knows no bounds. May I trust you always and never doubt your loving care and mercy. Increase my faith in your saving help and deliver me from all evil and harm.

Psalm 106:3-4, 35-37, 40

3 Blessed are they who observe justice, who do righteousness at all times!
4 Remember me, O LORD, when you show favor to your people; help me when you deliver them;
34 They did not destroy the peoples, as the LORD commanded them,
35 but they mingled with the nations and learned to do as they did.
36 They served their idols, which became a snare to them.
37 They sacrificed their sons and their daughters to the demons;
40 Then the anger of the LORD was kindled against his people, and he abhorred his heritage

Daily Quote from the Early Church Fathers: Great was the power of her faith, and for our learning, by John Chrysostom (347-407 AD)

"See her humility as well as her faith! For he had called the Jews 'children,' but she was not satisfied with this. She even called them 'masters,' so far was she from grieving at the praises of others. She said, 'Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters' table.' Behold the woman's wisdom! She did not venture so much as to say a word against anyone else. She was not stung to see others praised, nor was she indignant to be reproached. Behold her constancy. When he answered, 'It is not fair to take the children's bread and throw it to the dogs,' she said, 'Yes, Lord.' He called them 'children'- but she called them 'masters.' He used the name of a dog, but she described the action of the dog. Do you see this woman's humility? Then compare her humility with the proud language of the Jews: 'We are Abraham's seed and were never in bondage to any man'(John 8:33). 'We are born of God' (John 8:41). But not so this woman. Rather, she calls herself a dog and them masters. So for this reason she became a child. For what does Christ then say? 'O woman, great is your faith.'
"So we might surmise that this is the reason he put her off, in order that he might proclaim aloud this saying and that he might crown the woman: 'Be it done for you as you desire.' This means 'Your faith, indeed, is able to effect even greater things than these. Nevertheless be it unto you even as you wish.' This voice was at one with the voice that said, 'Let the heaven be,' and it was (Genesis 1:1). 'And her daughter was made whole from that very hour.' Do you see how this woman, too, contributed not a little to the healing of her daughter? For note that Christ did not say, 'Let your little daughter be made whole,' but 'Great is your faith, be it done for you as you desire.' These words were not uttered at random, nor were they flattering words, but great was the power of her faith, and for our learning.
He left the certain test and demonstration, however, to the issue of events. Her daughter accordingly was immediately healed." (excerpt from COMMENTARY ON MATTHEW, Homily 52.3)

 

 

More Homilies

 February 14, 2019