August 1, 2021 Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

202년 8월 55일 연중 제18주일 

 

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

제1독서

<내가 하늘에서 너희에게 양식을 비처럼 내려 주리라.>

탈출기. 16,2-4.12-15
그 무렵 2 이스라엘 자손들의 온 공동체가 광야에서 모세와 아론에게 불평하였다.
3 이들에게 이스라엘 자손들이 말하였다.
“아, 우리가 고기 냄비 곁에 앉아 빵을 배불리 먹던 그때,
이집트 땅에서 주님의 손에 죽었더라면!
그런데 당신들은 이 무리를 모조리 굶겨 죽이려고,
우리를 이 광야로 끌고 왔소?”
4 주님께서 모세에게 말씀하셨다.
“이제 내가 하늘에서 너희에게 양식을 비처럼 내려 줄 터이니,
백성은 날마다 나가서 그날 먹을 만큼 모아들이게 하여라.
이렇게 하여 나는 이 백성이
나의 지시를 따르는지 따르지 않는지 시험해 보겠다.
12 나는 이스라엘 자손들이 불평하는 소리를 들었다. 그들에게 이렇게 일러라.
‘너희가 저녁 어스름에는 고기를 먹고, 아침에는 양식을 배불리 먹을 것이다.
그러면 너희는 내가 주 너희 하느님임을 알게 될 것이다.’”
13 그날 저녁에 메추라기 떼가 날아와 진영을 덮었다.
그리고 아침에는 진영 둘레에 이슬이 내렸다.
14 이슬이 걷힌 뒤에 보니,
잘기가 땅에 내린 서리처럼 잔 알갱이들이 광야 위에 깔려 있는 것이었다.
15 이것을 보고 이스라엘 자손들은 그것이 무엇인지 몰라,
“이게 무엇이냐?” 하고 서로 물었다.
모세가 그들에게 말하였다.
“이것은 주님께서 너희에게 먹으라고 주신 양식이다.”

 

 

 

제2독서

<여러분은 하느님의 모습에 따라 창조된 새 인간을 입어야 합니다.>

에페소서. 4,17.20-24
형제 여러분, 17 나는 주님 안에서 분명하게 말합니다.
여러분은 더 이상 헛된 마음을 가지고 살아가는
다른 민족들처럼 살아가지 마십시오.
20 여러분은 그리스도를 그렇게 배우지 않았습니다.
21 여러분은 예수님 안에 있는 진리대로,
그분에 관하여 듣고 또 가르침을 받았을 줄 압니다.
22 곧 지난날의 생활 방식에 젖어
사람을 속이는 욕망으로 멸망해 가는 옛 인간을 벗어 버리고,
23 여러분의 영과 마음이 새로워져,
24 진리의 의로움과 거룩함 속에서
하느님의 모습에 따라 창조된 새 인간을 입어야 한다는 것입니다.

 

 

 

복음

<나에게 오는 사람은 결코 배고프지 않을 것이며 나를 믿는 사람은 결코 목마르지 않을 것이다.>

요한. 6,24-35
 그때에 24 군중은 예수님도 계시지 않고 제자들도 없는 것을 알고서,

배들에 나누어 타고 예수님을 찾아 카파르나움으로 갔다.
25 그들은 호수 건너편에서 예수님을 찾아내고,
“라삐, 언제 이곳에 오셨습니까?” 하고 물었다.
26 예수님께서 그들에게 대답하셨다.
“내가 진실로 진실로 너희에게 말한다.
너희가 나를 찾는 것은 표징을 보았기 때문이 아니라
빵을 배불리 먹었기 때문이다.
27 너희는 썩어 없어질 양식을 얻으려고 힘쓰지 말고,
길이 남아 영원한 생명을 누리게 하는 양식을 얻으려고 힘써라.
그 양식은 사람의 아들이 너희에게 줄 것이다.
하느님 아버지께서 사람의 아들을 인정하셨기 때문이다.”
28 그들이 “하느님의 일을 하려면 저희가 무엇을 해야 합니까?” 하고 묻자,
29 예수님께서 그들에게 대답하셨다.
“하느님의 일은 그분께서 보내신 이를 너희가 믿는 것이다.”
30 그들이 다시 물었다.
“그러면 무슨 표징을 일으키시어 저희가 보고 선생님을 믿게 하시겠습니까?
무슨 일을 하시렵니까?
31 ‘그분께서는 하늘에서 그들에게 빵을 내리시어 먹게 하셨다.’는 성경 말씀대로,
우리 조상들은 광야에서 만나를 먹었습니다.”
32 예수님께서 그들에게 이르셨다.
“내가 진실로 진실로 너희에게 말한다.
하늘에서 너희에게 빵을 내려 준 이는 모세가 아니다.
하늘에서 너희에게 참된 빵을 내려 주시는 분은 내 아버지시다.
33 하느님의 빵은 하늘에서 내려와 세상에 생명을 주는 빵이다.”
34 그들이 예수님께, “선생님, 그 빵을 늘 저희에게 주십시오.” 하자,
35 예수님께서 그들에게 이르셨다. “내가 생명의 빵이다.
나에게 오는 사람은 결코 배고프지 않을 것이며,
나를 믿는 사람은 결코 목마르지 않을 것이다.”

 

August 1, 2021

 

Eighteenth Sunday 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
Ex 16:2-4, 12-15
The whole Israelite community grumbled against Moses and Aaron. 
The Israelites said to them,
“Would that we had died at the LORD’s hand in the land of Egypt ,
as we sat by our fleshpots and ate our fill of bread! 
But you had to lead us into this desert
to make the whole community die of famine!”

Then the LORD said to Moses,
“I will now rain down bread from heaven for you. 
Each day the people are to go out and gather their daily portion;
thus will I test them,
to see whether they follow my instructions or not.

“I have heard the grumbling of the Israelites. 
Tell them: In the evening twilight you shall eat flesh,
and in the morning you shall have your fill of bread,
so that you may know that I, the LORD, am your God.”

In the evening quail came up and covered the camp. 
In the morning a dew lay all about the camp,
and when the dew evaporated, there on the surface of the desert
were fine flakes like hoarfrost on the ground. 
On seeing it, the Israelites asked one　 another, “What is this?”
for they did not know what it was. 
But Moses told them,
“This is the bread that the LORD has given you to eat.”

Responsorial Psalm
Ps 78:3-4, 23-24, 25, 54
R. (24b) The Lord gave them bread from heaven.
What we have heard and know,
and what our fathers have declared to us,
We will declare to the generation to come
the glorious deeds of the LORD and his strength
and the wonders that he wrought.
R. The Lord gave them bread from heaven.
He commanded the skies above
and opened the doors of heaven;
he rained manna upon them for food
and gave them heavenly bread.
R. The Lord gave them bread from heaven.
Man ate the bread of angels,
food he sent them in abundance.
And he brought them to his holy land,
to the mountains his right hand had won.
R. The Lord gave them bread from heaven.

Reading II
Eph 4:17, 20-24

Brothers and sisters:
I declare and testify in the Lord
that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do,
in the futility of their minds;
that is not how you learned Christ,
assuming that you have heard of him and were taught in him,
as truth is in Jesus,
that you should put away the old self of your former way of life,
corrupted through deceitful desires,
and be renewed in the spirit of your minds,
and put on the new self,
created in God’s way in righteousness and holiness of truth.

Gospel
Jn 6:24-35
When the crowd saw that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there,
they themselves got into boats
and came to Capernaum looking for Jesus. 
And when they found him across the sea they said to him,
“Rabbi, when did you get here?” 
Jesus answered them and said,
“Amen, amen, I say to you,
you are looking for me not because you saw signs
but because you ate the loaves and were filled. 
Do not work for food that perishes
but for the food that endures for eternal life,
which the Son of Man will give you. 
For on him the Father, God, has set his seal.” 
So they said to him,
“What can we do to accomplish the works of God?” 
Jesus answered and said to them,
“This is the work of God, that you believe in the one　 he sent.” 
So they said to him,
“What sign can you do, that we may see and believe in you? 
What can you do? 
Our ancestors ate manna in the desert, as it is written:
He gave them bread from heaven to eat.”
So Jesus said to them,
“Amen, amen, I say to you,
it was not Moses who gave the bread from heaven;
my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. 
For the bread of God is that which comes down from heaven
and gives life to the world.”

So they said to him,
“Sir, give us this bread always.” 
Jesus said to them,
“I am the bread of life;
whoever comes to me will never hunger,
and whoever believes in me will never thirst.”

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

 Psalm response: The Lord gave them bread from heaven.

Paul is fairly clear in what he says in today’s passage from his letter to the Ephesians: he is concerned about their spiritual progress, and he outlines just exactly what the situation is not only for a convert but for everyone who wishes to grow into a full human being, and particularly for Christians.

He describes baseline human beings, the kind we find in every culture, at every age, and with every stage of refinement.  These people live only on the level of the material – what they can sense, what they believe is logical – but in fact these “material” humans have no serious thought as to who or what they are or are called to be, no ambition to reach higher than wealth, status, and power – and that often with complete disregard for what it costs them or those around them.  They are, like the smallest children, highly self-centered even when they serve their communities, since for them this service is a cheap way to gain status and respect without really involving them with the “little people.”  Paul says that they have “empty minds” and live moved by “illusion and desire.”

These are the people who either believe the news in a superficial manner or who think that the whole thing is a conspiracy.  For them advertising is simply another form of news, informing them of what is newest, best, and cheapest and gives them the highest status; all of this is pandering to our material side, the conviction that one’s current position is always correct and that one is thus absolutely free to do what he or she thinks is best – or maybe rather what they simply feel like doing.  That imperious and insidious call to immediate satisfaction of whatever urge one has only too often leads to violence and casual, dehumanizing sex.  I could name products and television shows which promote this vision of “modern” and “up-to-date” humanity and indulge their cravings, but each culture has its own. 

The material people, even the wealthier and better educated, are manipulated by the world at its most material and the flesh at its most insistent.  And they are themselves the ones who lead the dance of manipulation.

Paul calls his Ephesians to consider the alternative and what it will do for those who seize it: a “new life in Christ.”  He tells them that in order to discover what that is, those who seek for more than what this world, this flesh, offer, they must set aside the old ways, the dependence on that world which reveals itself to be untrustworthy and fails to truly satisfy.  For him this world’s values and the activities that flow from them are only a dead weight that smothers and blocks our progress toward God because we limit ourselves by choosing them. 

We must find rebirth in the “new man created in God’s image,” and that is Christ himself.  In him and through him we will discover that holiness which I would call the purity of transparency, an openness of desire and act, a life with a humble, patient, and true love at the center – and that love is Christ himself.  Jesus says, at the end of today’s Gospel reading,  “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me will never hunger, and whoever believes in me will never thirst.” 

What do I personally feel the Spirit calling me to, here in what Paul is saying? 

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

 

MODIFIED PAGANISM

“You must no longer live as the pagans do.” —Ephesians 4:17

Paul started the Ephesian church by leading twelve men to Christ and to new life in the Holy Spirit (Acts 19:5-7). A few years later, Paul observed that the Ephesians had lost their early love for Christ (cf Rv 2:4). Paul likely could tell this because the lifestyle of the Ephesian Christians had become merely modified paganism. Paul maintained that when the Ephesians “learned Christ” (Eph 4:20), they should have learned a new lifestyle by laying aside their former way of life (Eph 4:22) and acquiring “a fresh, spiritual way of thinking” (Eph 4:23). Paul assumed that commitment to Christ entailed a radical change of lifestyle.

Many Christians today can relate to the Ephesians. It’s common for Christians to buy the same things, watch the same programs, have the same recreation, and make the same investments as “good” non-believers. Many Christians avoid the grosser aspects of a pagan lifestyle. Nevertheless, their lifestyle is more appropriately described as “modified pagan” rather than “radically Christian.” We must repent, be crucified to the world (Gal 6:14), and count “all else rubbish so that Christ may be [our] Wealth” (Phil 3:8).

Prayer:  Father, may my lifestyle make no sense apart from Jesus’ lordship and divinity.

Promise:  “You should not be working for perishable food but for food that remains unto life eternal, food which the Son of Man will give you.” —Jn 6:27

Praise:  Risen Jesus, I earnestly want to follow You. “I believe that I shall see the bounty of the Lord in the land of the living” (Ps 27:13).

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

 Is there anything in this life that can truly satisfy our deepest hunger and longing? Many sought Jesus out because he offered them something no one else could give - bread from heaven from the very hand of God himself. When Jesus had performed the miracle of multiplying five loaves of bread and two fish to provide a refreshing and satisfying meal for more than 5000 people (see John 6:1-15), they wanted to make him their king - no doubt because they wanted more. When Jesus withdrew from the crowd and quietly returned to Capernaum to be with his twelve disciples, they ran to seek him there (John 6:24-25). Jesus met them with a probing question - are you looking for physical food that perishes or food that gives eternal life?

Jesus offers us the bread of heaven which produces spiritual life in us
Do you hunger for the bread of life? The Jews had always regarded the manna in the wilderness as the bread of God (Psalm 78:24, Exodus 16:15). There was a strong Rabbinic belief that when the Messiah came he would give manna from heaven. This was the supreme work of Moses. Now the Jewish leaders were demanding that Jesus produce manna from heaven as proof to his claim to be the Messiah. Jesus responds by telling them that it was not Moses who gave the manna, but God. And the manna given to Moses and the people was not the real bread from heaven, but only a symbol of the bread to come.

Jesus makes the claim which only God can make: I am the bread of life. The bread which Jesus offers is none else than the very life of God. This is the true bread which can truly satisfy the hunger in our hearts. The manna from heaven prefigured the superabundance of the unique bread of the Eucharist or Lord's Supper which Jesus gave to his disciples on the eve of his sacrifice. The manna in the wilderness sustained the Israelites on their journey to the Promised Land. It could not produce eternal life for the Israelites.

Only Jesus can satisfy our deepest hunger for everlasting truth, life and love
Jesus' question to the crowd, and to each one of us as well, echoes the words of the prophet Isaiah: "Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy" (Isaiah 55:2)? There are two fundamental types of hunger - physical and spiritual. Only the Lord Jesus can satisfy the deepest hunger in our heart - the hunger for everlasting truth, life, and love. Jesus alone can satisfy our hunger for truth - because in him alone is the Truth which is found in God. Jesus alone can satisfy our hunger for life - because he alone can give us abundant life - the supernatural life of God which transforms us now and lasts forever. Jesus alone can satisfy our deepest hunger for love - the love of God that knows no end, that never fails nor forsakes us, that outlasts sin and death. Jesus alone can satisfy the eternal hunger of our heart, mind, and spirit.

Doing the works of God
Jesus spoke about the works of God and what we must do to be doing the works of God, namely to believe in God's Son whom he has sent into the world. The Lord Jesus offers a new relationship with God which issues in a new kind of life - a life of sacrificial love, selfless service, and the forgiveness of others which corresponds to God's mercy, goodness and loving kindness; a life of holiness, purity, and truth which corresponds to God's holiness; and a life of obedience and trust which corresponds to God's offer of abundant life, peace, and happiness. This is the work which Jesus directs us to and enables us to perform in the power of the Holy Spirit. Do you hunger for the bread which comes down from heaven and thirst for the words of everlasting life?

Lord Jesus, you are the true Bread of Heaven. Only you alone can truly satisfy the deepest longing and hunger of my heart. Nourish me with the bread of life that I may be truly satisfied in you alone as the giver of life.

Psalm 78:3-4,23-25,54

3 things that we have heard and known, that our fathers have told us.
4 We will not hide them from their children, but tell to the coming generation the glorious deeds of the LORD, and his might, and the wonders which he has wrought.
23 Yet he commanded the skies above, and opened the doors of heaven;
24 and he rained down upon them manna to eat, and gave them the grain of heaven.
25 Man ate of the bread of the angels; he sent them food in abundance.
54 And he brought them to his holy land, to the mountain which his right hand had won.

Daily Quote from the Early Church Fathers: God is our landlord, by Augustine of Hippo, 354-430 A.D.

"Our wish, you see, is to attain to eternal life. We wish to reach the place where nobody dies, but if possible we do not want to get there via death. We would like to be whisked away there while we are still alive and see our bodies changed, while we are alive, into that spiritual form into which they are to be changed when we rise again. Who wouldn't like that? Isn't it what everybody wants? But while that is what you want, you are told, Quit. Remember what you have sung in the psalm: 'A lodger am I on earth.' If you are a lodger, you are staying in someone else's house; if you are staying in someone else's house, you quit when the landlord bids you. And the landlord is bound to tell you to quit sooner or later, and he has not guaranteed you a long stay. After all, he did not sign a contract with you. Seeing that you are lodging with him for nothing, you quit when he tells you to. And this, too, has to be put up with, and for this, too, patience is very necessary." (excerpt from Sermon 359A,8)

 

 

More Homilies

 

August 5, 2018 Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time