February 23, 2020 Tuesday of the First Week of Lent
2021년 2월 23일 사순 제1주간 화요일
오늘의 복음 : http://info.catholic.or.kr/missa/default.asp
제1독서
이사야서. 55,10-11
주님께서 이렇게 말씀하신다.
10 “비와 눈은 하늘에서 내려와 그리로 돌아가지 않고
오히려 땅을 적시어 기름지게 하고 싹이 돋아나게 하여
씨 뿌리는 사람에게 씨앗을 주고 먹는 이에게 양식을 준다.
11 이처럼 내 입에서 나가는 나의 말도 나에게 헛되이 돌아오지 않고
반드시 내가 뜻하는 바를 이루며 내가 내린 사명을 완수하고야 만다.”
복음
마태오. 6,7-15
그때에 예수님께서 제자들에게 말씀하셨다.
7 “너희는 기도할 때에 다른 민족 사람들처럼 빈말을 되풀이하지 마라.
그들은 말을 많이 해야 들어 주시는 줄로 생각한다.
8 그러니 그들을 닮지 마라.
너희 아버지께서는 너희가 청하기도 전에 무엇이 필요한지 알고 계신다.
9 그러므로 너희는 이렇게 기도하여라.
‘하늘에 계신 저희 아버지, 아버지의 이름을 거룩히 드러내시며
10 아버지의 나라가 오게 하시며
아버지의 뜻이 하늘에서와 같이 땅에서도 이루어지게 하소서.
11 오늘 저희에게 일용할 양식을 주시고
12 저희에게 잘못한 이를 저희도 용서하였듯이 저희 잘못을 용서하시고
13 저희를 유혹에 빠지지 않게 하시고 저희를 악에서 구하소서.’
14 너희가 다른 사람들의 허물을 용서하면,
하늘의 너희 아버지께서도 너희를 용서하실 것이다.
15 그러나 너희가 다른 사람들을 용서하지 않으면,
아버지께서도 너희의 허물을 용서하지 않으실 것이다.”
February 23, 2020
Tuesday of the First Week of Lent
Daily Mass : http://www.catholictv.com/shows/daily-mass
Reading 1
Is 55:10-11
Just as from the heavens
the rain and snow come down
And do not return there
till they have watered the earth,
making it fertile and fruitful,
Giving seed to the one who sows
and bread to the one who eats,
So shall my word be
that goes forth from my mouth;
It shall not return to me void,
but shall do my will,
achieving the end for which I sent it.
Responsorial Psalm
Ps 34:4-5, 6-7, 16-17, 18-19
Glorify the LORD with me,
let us together extol his name.
I sought the LORD, and he answered me
and delivered me from all my fears.
R. From all their distress God rescues the just.
Look to him that you may be radiant with joy,
and your faces may not blush with shame.
When the poor one called out, the LORD heard,
and from all his distress he saved him.
R. From all their distress God rescues the just.
The LORD has eyes for the just,
and ears for their cry.
The LORD confronts the evildoers,
to destroy remembrance of them from the earth.
R. From all their distress God rescues the just.
When the just cry out, the LORD hears them,
and from all their distress he rescues them.
The LORD is close to the brokenhearted;
and those who are crushed in spirit he saves.
R. From all their distress God rescues the just.
Gospel
Mt 6:7-15
"In praying, do not babble like the pagans,
who think that they will be heard because of their many words.
Do not be like them.
Your Father knows what you need before you ask him.
"This is how you are to pray:
Our Father who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name,
thy Kingdom come,
thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread;
and forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us;
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
"If you forgive men their transgressions,
your heavenly Father will forgive you.
But if you do not forgive men,
neither will your Father forgive your transgressions."
http://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/daily.html
When we hear the word of God, and we let it soak into the driest parts of our soul, we will feel God as near to us as our beating heart. The word of God is purposeful; It travels from the pages of each passage to our heart and then to the depth of our soul. It is there where it bears the fruit for which it was intended to bring forth. There is power, comfort, and nourishment in the word of God. Our words can sometimes get us into trouble; our words can set us apart or bring us together because our words also affect others. God is part of us, and we are part of God, so yes, our words have power, our words can comfort, and our words can nourish others. We must then be mindful of the seeds our words plant in the souls of others.
Have we spent time blessing others with our words? Have we raised the spirit of someone feeling down just with our words? Have we verbalized forgiveness to someone needing it, including ourselves? Or have we spent time holding others down with our words? What do our words sound like or mean when we pray? When did we last take the time to digest each line of the Lord’s prayer and relish the meaning of each word? Do our words return to us void or reach far beyond and achieve their purpose? How do I use my words? How has the word of God engaged and mobilized me?
The nourishing and relentless seed of life, which is God's word, becomes even more potent during the time of Lent because it is the time when we feel a particular type of barrenness. We might even find ourselves looking for signs of life or reminders that we are still fertile ground for God’s work as we search for ways to serve others during Lent.
It helps to know we are not separated from God ---- O, how painful that would be? We don’t even need to babble on in mindless prayers because when our words come from our heart, God already knows what we seek; God already holds our words dearly and closely. Even a few words from us become a powerful prayer. God is near when our words are a cry for help. God is near when our spirit is crushed and our heart is broken. God is near when our words are filled with gratitude or even disappointment. Our desire for joy is in line with God’s desire for us as well. During this first week of Lent, may our words be in line with God’s love, and may the word of God nourish our thirsty souls. We could find nourishment in the Lord’s prayer even more than ever as we call to our God to help us, forgive us, sustain us, and give us this day.
Lord God, we have been looking in the wrong places for sustenance, and then we found your word. We are satisfied now, and we rest in your eternal word.
Have a blessed Lent, my friends.
http://www.presentationministries.com/obob/obob.asp
THE ULTIMATE PRAYER BOOK
“This is how you are to pray.” —Matthew 6:9
When we pray the “Our Father,” we are praying part of the Bible (Mt 6:9-13). Consider extending this and make praying the Bible one of your principal Lenten practices. Pray it word for word as far as possible. Just change the words slightly to put them in the form of a prayer. For example, you can pray the end of today’s first reading: “Father, may Your word that goes forth from Your mouth not return to You void but do Your will, achieving the end for which You sent it” (see Is 55:11). Also, try to personalize the prayer. For example, in the above prayer, you may pray: “Father, may Your word to me concerning repentance from unforgiveness not return to You void.”
Sometimes you may not pray the Bible word for word, but it will inspire you to pray for intentions and pray in ways you would have never thought of otherwise. Furthermore, when you pray the Bible, you will be challenged to repent. God’s ways are often not our ways (Is 55:8). We will have to deny ourselves, not do our will, and do God’s will to pray the Bible. Finally, when we pray the Bible, we will see our prayers answered, for we will not be praying in our name but in Jesus’ name (Jn 14:14). Pray the Bible.
Prayer: Father, this Lent, may the Bible become my prayer book.
Promise: “The Lord is close to the brokenhearted; and those who are crushed in spirit He saves.” ––Ps 34:19
Praise: St. Polycarp was instructed directly by the Apostle John. Polycarp, in turn, instructed St. Irenaeus of Lyon. Lord, thank You for our apostolic faith!
http://dailyscripture.servantsoftheword.org/readings/
Do you believe that God's word has power to change and transform your life today? Isaiah says that God's word is like the rain and melting snow which makes the barren ground spring to life and become abundantly fertile (Isaiah 55:10-11). God's word has power to penetrate our dry barren hearts and make them springs of new life. If we let God's word take root in our heart it will transform us into the likeness of God himself and empower us to walk in his way of love and holiness.
Let God's word guide and shape the way you judge and act
God wants his word to guide and shape the way we think, act, and pray. Ambrose (339-397 AD), an early church father and bishop of Milan, wrote that the reason we should devote time for reading Scripture is to hear Christ speak to us. "Are you not occupied with Christ? Why do you not talk with him? By reading the Scriptures, we listen to Christ."
We can approach God our Father with confidence
We can approach God confidently because he is waiting with arms wide open to receive his prodigal sons and daughters. That is why Jesus gave his disciples the perfect prayer that dares to call God, Our Father. This prayer teaches us how to ask God for the things we really need, the things that matter not only for the present but for eternity as well. We can approach God our Father with confidence and boldness because the Lord Jesus has opened the way to heaven for us through his death and resurrection.
When we ask God for help, he fortunately does not give us what we deserve. Instead, God responds with grace, mercy, and loving-kindness. He is good and forgiving towards us, and he expects us to treat our neighbor the same. God has poured his love into our hearts through the gift of the Holy Spirit who has been given to us (Romans 5:5). And that love is like a refining fire - it purifies and burns away all prejudice, hatred, resentment, vengeance, and bitterness until there is nothing left but goodness and forgiveness towards those who cause us grief or harm.
The Lord's Pray teaches us how to pray
Consider what John Cassian (360-435 AD), an early church father who lived for several years with the monks in Bethlehem and Egypt before founding a monastery in southern Gaul, wrote about the Lord's Prayer and the necessity of forgiving one another from the heart:
"The mercy of God is beyond description. While he is offering us a model prayer he is teaching us a way of life whereby we can be pleasing in his sight. But that is not all. In this same prayer he gives us an easy method for attracting an indulgent and merciful judgment on our lives. He gives us the possibility of ourselves mitigating the sentence hanging over us and of compelling him to pardon us. What else could he do in the face of our generosity when we ask him to forgive us as we have forgiven our neighbor? If we are faithful in this prayer, each of us will ask forgiveness for our own failings after we have forgiven the sins of those who have sinned against us, not only those who have sinned against our Master. There is, in fact, in some of us a very bad habit. We treat our sins against God, however appalling, with gentle indulgence - but when by contrast it is a matter of sins against us ourselves, albeit very tiny ones, we exact reparation with ruthless severity. Anyone who has not forgiven from the bottom of the heart the brother or sister who has done him wrong will only obtain from this prayer his own condemnation, rather than any mercy."
Do you treat others as you think they deserve to be treated, or do you treat them as the Lord has treated you - with mercy, steadfast love, and kindness?
Father in heaven, you have given me a mind to know you, a will to serve you, and a heart to love you. Give me today the grace and strength to embrace your holy will and fill my heart and mind with your truth and love that all my intentions and actions may be pleasing to you. Help me to be kind and forgiving towards my neighbor as you have been towards me.
Psalm 34:4-7, 16-19
4 I sought the LORD, and he answered me, and delivered me from all my fears.
5 Look to him, and be radiant; so your faces shall never be ashamed.
6 This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles.
7 The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him, and delivers them.
16 The face of the LORD is against evildoers, to cut off the remembrance of them from the earth.
17 When the righteous cry for help, the LORD hears, and delivers them out of all their troubles.
18 The LORD is near to the brokenhearted, and saves the crushed in spirit.
19 Many are the afflictions of the righteous; but the LORD delivers him out of them all.
Daily Quote from the Early Church Fathers: Pardon your brother and sister, by Augustine, Bishop of Hippo, 354-430 A.D.
"Pardon, that you may be pardoned. In doing this, nothing is required of the body. It is the will that acts. You will experience no physical pain - you will have nothing less in your home. Now in truth, my brothers and sisters, you see what an evil it is that those who have been commanded to love even their enemy do not pardon a penitent brother or sister." (quote from Sermon 210,10)
More Homilies
March 3, 2020 Tuesday of the First Week of Lent
