21st WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME
Psalter: Week 4 / (Green)
Ps 139:7-8, 9-10, 11-12ab
You have searched me and you know me, Lord.
1st Reading: 1 Thes 2:9-13
Remember our labor and toil; when we preached the gospel, we worked day and night, so as not to be a burden to you. You are witnesses, with God, that we were holy, just and blameless toward all of you who now believe. We warned each of you, as a father warns his children; we encouraged you, and urged you to adopt a way of life worthy of God, who calls you to share his own glory and kingdom. This is why we never cease giving thanks to God for, on receiving our message, you accepted it, not as human teaching, but as the word of God. That is what it really is, and, as such, it is at work in you who believe.
Gospel: Mt 23:27-32
Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, beautiful in appearance; but, inside, there are only dead bones and uncleanness. In the same way, you appear religious to others, but you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness within. Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You build tombs for the prophets, and decorate the monuments of the righteous. You say: Had we lived in the time of our ancestors, we would not have joined them in shedding the blood of the prophets. So, you, yourselves, confess to be the descendants of those who murdered the prophets.
And now, finish off what your ancestors began!
REFLECTION:
In today’s Gospel text we continue to read Jesus’ denunciations against the scribes and Pharisees. Their hypocrisy is the one big stumbling block which is preventing them from accepting Jesus’ teaching and thereby enter the kingdom of heaven. There is a disturbing incongruity between their external appearance and their interior life. On the outside they “appear religious …but are full of wickedness within.”
When reading this passage there could arise in us a strong temptation toward self-righteousness. We could develop a holier-than-thou attitude. Arrogantly we could look down on the Scribes and Pharisees and quietly enjoy seeing them receive the humiliation they deserve. Perhaps unconsciously we could be thinking of the people we dislike, those whom we consider to be undeserving of the love and mercy of God, and wish that they too be castigated and punished by the Lord.
It would be best that we place ourselves into the shoes of the Scribes and Pharisees. Admit it or not, we are sometimes no better than them. Because we are oftentimes guilty of hypocrisy and inconsistency, let us allow ourselves to be addressed by Jesus as he utters the denunciations. Let us allow him to awaken our consciences, admit our faults and make a firm resolve to change for the better.
Daily Reflection
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Biblical Texts are taken from Christian Community Bible, Catholic Pastoral Edition (57th Edition) The New English Translation for the ROMAN MISSAL
With permission from the EPISCOPAL COMMISION ON LITURGY of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines
Readings and Reflections
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