Daily Reflection

February 12, 2017 Sunday

6TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
Psalter: Week 2 / (Green)

Ps 119:1-2, 4-5, 17-18, 33-34
Blessed are they who follow the law of the Lord!

1^st Reading: Sir 15:15-20

If you wish, you can keep the commandments and it is in your power to remain faithful.
He has set fire and water before you; you stretch out your hand to whichever you prefer.
Life and death are set before man: which ever a man prefers will be given him.
How magnificent is the wisdom of the Lord! He is powerful and all-seeing.
His eyes are on those who fear him. He knows all the works of man.
He has commanded no one to be godless and has given no one permission to sin.

2^nd Reading: 1 Cor 2:6-10

In fact, we do speak of wisdom to the mature in faith, although it is not a wisdom of this world or of its rulers, who are doomed to perish. We teach the mystery, and secret plan, of divine wisdom, which God destined from the beginning, to bring us to glory.

No ruler of this world ever knew this; otherwise, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. But as Scripture says: Eye has not seen, ear has not heard, nor has it dawned on the mind, what God has prepared for those who love him. God has revealed it to us, through his Spirit, because the Spirit probes everything, even the depth of God.

Gospel: Mt 5:17-37

Jesus said to his disciples: “Do not think that I have come to annul the law and the prophets. I have not come to annul them, but to fulfill them. I tell you this: as long as heaven and earth last, not the smallest letter or dot in the law will change, until all is fulfilled.

“So then, whoever breaks the least important of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, will be the least in the kingdom of heaven. On the other hand, whoever obeys them, and teaches others to do the same, will be great in the kingdom of heaven.

“I tell you, if your sense of right and wrong is not keener than that of the Lawyers and the Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.

“You have heard, that it was said to our people in the past: Do not commit murder; anyone who murders will have to face trial. But now, I tell you: whoever gets angry with a brother or sister will have to face trial. Whoever insults a brother or sister is liable, to be brought before the council. Whoever calls a brother or sister “Fool!“ is liable, of being thrown into the fire of hell. So, if you are about to offer your gift at the altar, and you remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there, in front of the altar; go at once, and make peace with your brother, and then come back and offer your gift to God.

“Don’t forget this: be reconciled with your opponent quickly when you are together on the way to court. Otherwise he will turn you over to the judge, who will hand you over to the police, who will put you in jail. There, you will stay, until you have paid the last penny.

“You have heard that it was said: Do not commit adultery. But I tell you this: anyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent, has already committed adultery with her in his heart.

“So, if your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and throw it away! It is much better for you to lose a part of your body, than to have your whole body thrown into hell. If your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away! It is better for you to lose a part of your body, than to have your whole body thrown into hell.

“It was also said: Anyone who divorces his wife, must give her a written notice of divorce. But what I tell you is this: if a man divorces his wife, except in the case of unlawful union, he causes her to commit adultery. And the man who marries a divorced woman commits adultery.

“You have also heard that people were told in the past: Do not break your oath; an oath sworn to the Lord must be kept. But I tell you this: do not take oaths. Do not swear by the heavens, for they are God’s throne; nor by the earth, because it is his foot stool; nor by Jerusalem, because it is the city of the great king. Do not even swear by your head, because you cannot make a single hair white or black. Let your ‘Yes’ mean ‘Yes’ and your ‘No’ mean ‘No.’ anything else you say comes from the evil one.“

REFLECTION:

Read: God has placed life and death before us; it is up to us to choose wisely. Those who choose wisely will receive what God has prepared for them from eternity. Through his discourse, Jesus invites his listeners to observe the law in its essence and spirit, and thus become worthy entrants to the Kingdom.

Reflect: “Spirit probes everything, even the depths of God.“ The Spirit knows our innermost being, with its desires and intentions. We cannot fool God by our external observance of the commandments. So let us keep our intentions pure and weed out anything that makes our observance of law less than wholesome.

Pray: Recite a prayer to the Holy Spirit for the cleansing and renewal of heart.

Act: Do an honest examination of conscience today.

Daily Gospel ® is a product Claretian Publications, a division of Claretian Communications Foundation, Inc. (CCFI) which is a pastoral endeavor of the Claretian Missionaries in the Philippines that brings the Word of God to people from all walks of life. CCFI aims to promote integral evangelization and renewed spirituality that is geared towards empowerment and total liberation in response to the needs and challenges of the Church today.

CCFI is a member of Claret Publishing Group, a consortium of the publishing houses of the Claretian Missionaries all over the world: Bangalore, Barcelona, Buenos Aires, Chennai, Colombo, Dar es Salaam, Lagos, Madrid, Macao, Manila, Owerry, São Paolo, Varsaw , Yaoundé.

Biblical Texts are taken from Christian Community Bible, Catholic Pastoral Edition (57^th 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

DAILY GOSPEL ® 2017
Readings and Reflections
Copyright © 2O16
Claretian Communications Foundation, Inc.
U.P. P.O. Box 4, Diliman,
1101 Quezon City, Philippines
Tel.: (63-2) 921-3984
Fax: (6352) 921-7429
Email: ccfi@claretianpublicationscom
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Web: www.claretianph.com

February 11, 2017 Saturday

5TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME
Psalter: Week 1 / (Green)
Our Lady of Lourdes / Memorial of Blessed Virgin Mary

Ps 90:2, 3-4abc, 5-6, 12-13
In every age, O Lord, you have been our refuge.

1^st Reading: Gen 3:9-24

Yahweh God called the man saying to him, “Where are you?“ He said, “I heard your voice in the garden and I was afraid because I was naked, so I hid.“ God said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree I ordered you not to eat?“ The man answered, “The woman you put with me gave me fruit from the tree and I ate it.“ God said to the woman, “What have you done?“ The woman said, “The serpent deceived me and I ate.“

Yahweh God said to the serpent, “Since you have done that, be cursed among all the cattle and wild beasts! You will crawl on your belly and eat dust all the days of your life. I will make you enemies, you and the woman, your offspring and her offspring. He will crush your head and you will strike his heel.“

To the woman, God said, “I will increase your suffering in childbearing, and you will give birth to your children in pain. You will be dependent on your husband and he will lord it over you.”

To the man, He said, “Because you have listened to your wife, and have eaten from the tree of which I forbade you to eat, cursed be the soil because of you! In suffering you will provide food for yourself from it, all the days of your life. It will produce thorn and thistle for you and you will eat the plants of the field. With sweat on your face you will eat your bread, until you return to clay, since it was from clay that you were taken, for you are dust and to dust you shall return.“

The man called his wife by the name of Eve, because she was the mother of all the living. Yahweh God made garments of skin for the man and his wife, and with these he clothed them.

Then Yahweh God said, “Man has now become like one of us, making himself judge of good and evil. Let him not stretch out his hand to take and eat from the tree of Life as well, and live forever.“ So God cast him from the garden of Eden to till the soil from which he had been made. And after having driven the man out, God posted cherubim and a flaming sword that kept turning at the east of the garden of Eden to guard the way to the tree of Life.

Gospel: Mk 8:1-10

Soon afterward, Jesus was in the midst of another large crowd, that obviously had nothing to eat. So he called his disciples and said to them, “I feel sorry for these people, because they have been with me for three days and now have nothing to eat. If I send them to their homes hungry, they will faint on the way; some of them have come a long way.”

His disciples replied, “Where, in a deserted place like this, could we get enough bread to feed these people?” He asked them, “How many loaves have you?” And they answered, “Seven.”

Then he ordered the crowd to sit down on the ground. Taking the seven loaves and giving thanks, he broke them, and handed them to his disciples to distribute. And they distributed them among the people. They also had some small fish. So Jesus said a blessing, and asked that these be shared as well.

The people ate and were satisfied, and they picked up the broken pieces left over, seven baskets full. Now those who had eaten were about four thousand in number. Jesus sent them away, and immediately got into the boat with his disciples, and went to the region of Dalmanutha.

REFLECTION:

“Eva gives way to the Ave Maria“

“The woman said ‘The serpent deceived me and I ate.’“ This was the defense of Eve when Yahweh spoke to Adam and Eve. Then God pronounced his judgment against the Serpent! To Adam and Eve, God makes known to them the painful consequences of their “original sin.“ Yet even as Yahweh banishes Adam and Eve from paradise, the Good News is announced “I will make you enemies, you and the woman, your offspring and her offspring. He will crush your head and you will strike his heel.“ (Gen 3:15)

From eternity the serpent would seek out that prophesied woman who would bear the offspring that would crush his head! The serpent or the dragon (see Rev. 12) would do all in his power to search and destroy that Woman who would be his nemesis! But the serpent was doomed from eternity!

When our Lady of Lourdes appeared to Bernadette she introduced herself as THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION! She was the woman, sinless from the womb! Through this favored daughter, the Creator would offer to mankind the grace to reverse the mistake of EVA. Through the obedient handmaid whom the Archangel Gabriel addressed “AVE MARIA“ the prophecy of Gen 3:15 would be fulfilled! In a marvelous twist the serpent that beguiled Eva would be overcome by the Woman! Oh how wonderful to celebrate the beautiful postscript to the “Paradise Lost“ with the feast of Our Lady of Lourdes! Joyfully we pray: “O AVE MARIA, blessed is the fruit of thy womb, JESUS! AMEN!“

Daily Reflection

Biblical Texts are taken from Christian Community Bible, Catholic Pastoral Edition (57^th 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

February 10, 2017 Friday

5th WEEK IN Ordinary TIME
Psalter: Week 1 / (White)
Scholastica, virgin

Ps 32:1-2, 5, 6, 7
Blessed are those whose sins are forgiven.

1^st Reading: Gen 3:1-8

Now the serpent was the most crafty of all the wild creatures that Yahweh God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say: You must not eat from any tree in the garden?“ The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat the fruit of the trees in the garden, but of the fruit of the tree that is in the middle of the garden God said: You must not eat, and you must not touch it or you will die.“ The serpent said to the woman, “You will not die, but God knows that the day you eat it, your eyes will be opened and you will be like gods, knowing good and evil.“

The woman saw that the fruit was good to eat, and pleasant to the eyes, and ideal for gaining knowledge. She took its fruit and ate it and gave some to her husband who was with her. He ate it. Then their eyes were opened and both of them knew they were naked. So they sewed leaves of a fig tree together and made themselves loincloths.

They heard the voice of Yahweh God walking in the garden, in the cool of the day, and they, the man and his wife, hid from Yahweh God among the trees of the garden.

Gospel: Mk 7:31-37

Again, Jesus set out: from the country of Tyre he passed through Sidon and, skirting the sea of Galilee, he came to the territory of Decapolis. There, a deaf man, who also had difficulty in speaking, was brought to him. They asked Jesus to lay his hand upon him.

Jesus took him apart from the crowd, put his fingers into the man’s ears, and touched his tongue with spittle. Then, looking up to heaven, he said with a deep sigh, “Ephphata!“ that is, “Be opened!“

And immediately, his ears were opened, his tongue was loosened, and he began to speak clearly. Jesus ordered them not to tell anyone about it; but the more he insisted, the more they proclaimed it. The people were completely astonished and said, “He has done all things well; he makes the deaf hear and the dumb speak.“

REFLECTION:

“God’s gift of freedom“

Man stands superior to all of God’s creations because man alone has reason. Man’s “likeness“ to God is particularly manifested in the precious gift “FREEDOM“ given to man. Man alone knows the will of God. Man alone has the conscience–a knowledge of the order set by God, Creator–and the freedom to obey or disobey God’s will. And man clearly knows that there are consequences to disobedience! Adam and Eve knew the Divine command and the consequence of disobedience.

There is great beauty in the freedom God gave to man. But there was equally great danger in it as well! Through this primordial trial of man God wanted to know whether man would exercise his freedom well in choosing to follow God’s command or also in freedom choose to disobey. Alas, Adam and Eve failed the test!

So often too, like Adam and Eve, we use our gift of freedom in the wrong way. We choose to disobey God’s will. Our conscience shout to us telling us “Do not do evil! Do good!“ Immediately, our conscience accuses us of sin when we have not followed its promptings. Like Adam and Eve, who immediately saw that they were naked, we, too, know in the depths of our being when we have sinned! Before God we cannot hide; before God, like Adam and Eve, we stand naked!

We are reminded today to be attentive to our conscience, that place in our depths where God speaks to us and reveals to us His Divine will. We know that we are subject to temptations always, and so we must always pray “Father, lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen.“

Daily Reflection

Biblical Texts are taken from Christian Community Bible, Catholic Pastoral Edition (57^th 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

February 9, 2017 Thursday

5th WEEK IN Ordinary TIME
Psalter: Week 1 / (Green)

Ps 128:1-2, 3, 4-5
Blessed are those who fear the Lord.

1^st Reading: Gen 2:18-25

Yahweh God said, “It is not good for man to be alone; I will give him a helper who will be like him.“ Then Yahweh God formed from the earth all the beasts of the field and all the birds of the air and brought them to man to see what he would call them; and whatever man called every living creature, that was its name.

So man gave names to all the cattle, the birds of the air and to every beast of the field. But he did not find among them a helper like himself. Then Yahweh God caused a deep sleep to come over man and he fell asleep. He took one of his ribs and filled its place with flesh. The rib which Yahweh God had taken from man he formed into a woman and brought her to the man. The man then said, “Now this is bone of my bone and flesh of my flesh. She shall be called woman because she was taken from man.“ That is why man leaves his father and mother and is attached to his wife, and with her becomes one flesh. Both the man and his wife were naked and were not ashamed.

Gospel: Mk 7:24-30

When Jesus left that place, he went to the border of the Tyrian country. There, he entered a house, and did not want anyone to know he was there; but he could not remain hidden. A woman, whose small daughter had an evil spirit, heard of him, and came and fell at his feet. Now this woman was a pagan, a Syrophoenician by birth, and she begged him to drive the demon out of her daughter.

Jesus told her, “Let the children be fed first, for it is not right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the puppies.“ But she replied, “Sir, even the puppies under the table eat the crumbs from the children’s bread.“ Then Jesus said to her, “You may go your way; because of such a response, the demon has gone out of your daughter.“ And when the woman went home, she found her child lying in bed, and the demon gone.

REFLECTION:

“Human sexuality, gift of the Creator“

St. John Paul II at the beginning of his pontificate developed a very beautiful catechesis on human sexuality known as the “Theology of the Body.“ He plumbed the deep significance of the creation of Adam and Eve as recorded in Genesis 2, our reading of today. This particular section he refers to as the “original innocence“ of man.

Being human is either being man or woman. Human sexuality is a given not a choice one makes. Moreover, there exists a natural attraction of the sexes–man is naturally attracted to woman and woman is naturally attracted to man. But though man and woman are sexually different they are, however, equal in dignity! Such is the order of creation from the beginning! And man and woman found joy in their sexual difference and sexual complementarity a sis conveyed by the verse “Both the man and his wife were naked and were not ashamed.“ Human sexual relationship is beautiful; it is part of the good in God’s creation.

It is when man tries to defy this order set by God from the beginning that mars the beauty of human sexuality! There is much evil when one tampers with one’s sexual identity. No good can come out of a same sex union! And surely there is much evil in sexual relationship outside of marriage as decreed by the Creator!

Daily Reflection

Daily Gospel ® is a product Claretian Publications, a division of Claretian Communications Foundation, Inc. (CCFI) which is a pastoral endeavor of the Claretian Missionaries in the Philippines that brings the Word of God to people from all walks of life. CCFI aims to promote integral evangelization and renewed spirituality that is geared towards empowerment and total liberation in response to the needs and challenges of the Church today.

CCFI is a member of Claret Publishing Group, a consortium of the publishing houses of the Claretian Missionaries all over the world: Bangalore, Barcelona, Buenos Aires, Chennai, Colombo, Dar es Salaam, Lagos, Madrid, Macao, Manila, Owerry, São Paolo, Varsaw , Yaoundé.

Biblical Texts are taken from Christian Community Bible, Catholic Pastoral Edition (57^th 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

DAILY GOSPEL ® 2017
Readings and Reflections
Copyright © 2O16
Claretian Communications Foundation, Inc.
U.P. P.O. Box 4, Diliman,
1101 Quezon City, Philippines
Tel.: (63-2) 921-3984
Fax: (6352) 921-7429
Email: ccfi@claretianpublicationscom
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Web: www.claretianph.com

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