28TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME
St. Teresa of Avila, virgin & doctor
Psalter: Week 4 / (White)
Ps 113:1b-2, 3-4, 5a & 6-7
Blessed be the name of the Lord forever.
1st Reading: Gal 4:22-24, 26-27, 31—5:1
It says, that Abraham had two sons, one by a slave woman, the other by the free woman, his wife. The son of the slave woman was born in the ordinary way; but the son of the free woman was born in fulfillment of God’s promise. Here we have an allegory and the figures of two Covenants. The first is the one from Mount Sinai, represented through Hagar: her children have slavery for their lot.
But the Jerusalem above, who is our mother, is free. And Scripture says of her: Rejoice, barren woman without children, break forth in shouts of joy, you who do not know the pains of childbirth, for many shall be the children of the forsaken mother, more than of the married woman.
Brethren, we are not children of the slave woman, but of the free woman.
Christ freed us, to make us really free. So remain firm, and do not submit, again, to the yoke of slavery.
Gospel: Lk 11:29-32
As the crowd increased, Jesus spoke the following words: “People of the present time are troubled people. They ask for a sign, but no sign will be given to them except the sign of Jonah. As Jonah became a sign for the people of Nineveh, so will the Son of Man be a sign for this generation. The Queen of the South will rise up on Judgment Day with the people of these times and accuse them, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and here, there is greater than Solomon. The people of Nineveh will rise up on Judgment Day with the people of these times and accuse them, for Jonah’s preaching made them turn from their sins, and here, there is greater than Jonah.“
Reflections
They ask for a sign, but no sign will be given to them
People are eager and curious to see signs and wonders from Jesus. They want proofs before any real commitment to following Jesus. Jesus refers them to the sign of Jonah. Jonah‘s being taken in the belly of a whale is a metaphor of inward journey, a necessary step to personal conversion. Jesus, like Jonah, is a call to repentance and radical conversion. And Jesus implies that many of his listeners are not ready or willing to hear that call. They want cheap grace and not arduous task of inner change. In fact, they don‘t need any signs; Jesus has been giving them an abundance of signs through his teaching and healing work. God doesn‘t accept superficial adherence to him. If adherence to him rests on the need for signs of wonder and power, then one‘s faith is shallow. True faith requires conversion. Following Jesus is a radical change of mind and heart.
Daily Reflection 2018
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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
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