Daily Reflection | Gospel Reading | RVA

27TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME
Psalter: Week 2 / (Green)

Ps 86:3-4, 5-6, 9-10
Lord, you are merciful and gracious.

1^st Reading: Jon 4:1-11

But Jonah was greatly displeased at this, and he was indignant. He prayed to Yahweh and said, ”O Yahweh, is this not what I said when I was yet in my own country? This is why I fled to Tarshish. I knew that you are a gracious and merciful God, slow to anger and full of love, and you relent from imposing terrible punishment. I beseech you now, Yahweh, to take my life, for now it is better for me to die than to live.” But Yahweh replied, ”What right have you to be angry?”

Jonah then left the city. He went to a place east of it, built himself a shelter and sat under its shade to wait and see what would happen to Nineveh. Then Yahweh God provided a castor-oil plant and made it grow up over Jonah to give shade over his head and to ease his discomfort. Jonah was very happy about the plant.

But the next day, at dawn, God sent a worm which attacked the plant and made it wither. When the sun rose, God sent a scorching east wind; the sun blazed down upon Jonah‘s head, and he grew faint. His death wish returned and he said, ”It is better for me to die than to live.”

Then God asked Jonah, ”Do you have a right to be angry about the castor-oil plant?” Jonah answered, ”I am right to be angry enough to wish to die.”

Yahweh said, ”You are concerned about a plant which cost you no labor to make it grow. Overnight it sprang up, and overnight it perished. But Nineveh has more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot distinguish right from left and they have many cattle as well. Should I not be concerned for such a great city?”

Gospel: Lk 11:1-4

One day, Jesus was praying in a certain place; and when he had finished, one of his disciples said to him, ”Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.” And Jesus said to them, ”When you pray, say this: Father, may your name be held holy, may your kingdom come; give us, each day, the kind of bread we need, and forgive us our sins; for we also forgive all who do us wrong; and do not bring us to the test.”

REFLECTION:

”Lord teach us to pray” was the humble request of one of His disciples as he saw Jesus in deep prayer. The disciple must have difficulties in praying or as we call must be suffering dryness in prayer. He wanted to pray as Jesus prayed. Jesus taught him His prayer. What did Jesus teach his disciple? I am sure among others are the following:

First, these lines which we used to sing when we were minor seminarians; ”Prayer is the key to heaven. But, prayer without faith is like a boat without an oar. Have faith when you speak to the master...” Faith is needed in prayer but not just any kind of faith. A young boy was trapped in a burning house. The father called his son; ”My son jump from the window.” The son answered,” I can‘t see you.” The thick smoke covered his sight. The father strongly persuaded the son to jump. The son jumped and fell into the arms of his father. He jumped because he trusted his father. Prayer needs this quality of faith, a complete trust in God.

During the Roman period, after a successful conquest or victory of the Roman soldiers they have to formally report to the emperor seated on his throne. In their full colorful uniform and at the cheers of the crowd they walk toward the throne. One time, a young boy ran across the marching crowd. The guard stopped him and told the boy, ”you are dishonoring the emperor” but the boy answered loudly, ”to you he is the emperor, to me he is my father.” The boy succeeded to the throne. Every time a person prays, he must never forget that God is Father to him and that he is son of God.

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

27TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME
Psalter: Week 2 / (Green)

Ps 130:1b-2, 3-4ab, 7-8
If you, O Lord, mark iniquities, who can stand?

1^st Reading: Jon 3:1-10

The word of Yahweh came to Jonah a second time: ”Go to Nineveh, the great city, and announce to them the message I give you.”

In obedience to the word of Yahweh, Jonah went to Nineveh. It was a very large city, and it took three days just to cross it. So Jonah walked a single day‘s journey and began proclaiming, ”Forty days more and Nineveh will be destroyed.”

The people of the city believed God. They declared a fast, and all of them, from the greatest to the least, put on sackcloth.

Upon hearing the news, the king of Nineveh got up from his throne, took off his royal robe, put on sackcloth and sat down in ashes. He issued a proclamation throughout Nineveh: ”By the decree of the king and his nobles, no people or beasts, herd or flock, will taste anything; neither will they eat nor drink. But let people and beasts be covered with sackcloth. Let everyone call aloud to God, turn from his evil ways and violence. Who knows? God may yet relent, turn from his fierce anger and spare us.”

When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he had compassion and did not carry out the destruction he had threatened upon them.

Gospel: Lk 10:38-42

As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he entered a village, and a woman called Martha welcomed him to her house. She had a sister named Mary, who sat down at the Lord‘s feet to listen to his words. Martha, meanwhile, was busy with all the serving, and finally she said, ”Lord, don‘t you care that my sister has left me to do all the work? Tell her to help me!”

But the Lord answered, ”Martha, Martha, you worry and are troubled about many things, whereas only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen the better part, and it will not be taken away from her.”

REFLECTION:

The family of the two sisters, Mary and Martha, is very close to Jesus. Their house in Bethany is the resting place of Jesus every time He goes to Jerusalem and in His return from Jerusalem. They had their brother Lazarus whom Jesus wept over when he died. They were intimate friends of Jesus. Mary and Martha, though they were sisters and living together are different from each other. Some identifies Martha as the icon of work and Mary as icon of prayer. Others say that Martha represents the active life and Mary represents the contemplative life as far as vocation is concerned in the spiritual realm or journey. Others would even say that their lives are too different from each other.

Both Mary and Martha would like to serve Jesus the best in their own particular ways. Their way of serving Jesus reminds me of a question once asked to me in a retreat for high school graduating students: Which is better? action or prayer? A good discussion came out of this question which even resulted to debate. One says action is good. In fact claims that work is prayer. Another says that prayer is good. Prayer is a communion with God. Nothing else is more important than being exclusively with God. All their realizations are good and right. However, St. James says: ”Prayer without action is nothing and work without prayer is nothing but a simple activity” (cf Jas. 2:14-20). Jesus exhorted: ”Away from me can do nothing. With me you can do everything” (Jn. 15:6). The services done by Martha and Mary are complementary. St. Gregory commented that Martha complained against Mary to teach her to work too not only pray. She was asking help because she wanted to finish serving so that she could now pray (talk and to listen to Jesus). This gospel narrative reminds all that a person of God is both active and contemplative.

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

27TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME
Psalter: Week 2 / (Green/Red/White)
St. Denis, bishop & martyr, & Companions, martyrs / St. John Leonardi, priest

Jon 2:3, 4, 5, 8
You will rescue my life from the pit, O Lord.

1^st Reading: Jon 1:1–2:1-2, 11

The word of Yahweh came to Jonah, son of Amittai, “Go to Nineveh, the great city, and preach against it, because I have known its wickedness.” But Jonah decided to flee from Yahweh and go to Tarshish. He went down to Joppa, found a ship bound for Tarshish, and paid the fare. Then he boarded it and went into the hold of the ship, journeying with them to Tarshish, far away from Yahweh.

Yahweh stirred up a storm wind on the sea, so there was a sea tempest, which threatened to destroy the ship. The sailors took fright, and each cried out to his own god. To lighten the ship, they threw its cargo into the sea.

Meanwhile Jonah had gone into the hold of the ship, where he lay fast asleep. The captain came upon him and said, “How can you sleep? Get up and call on your god. Perhaps he will be mindful of us and will not allow us to die here.”

The sailors said to each other, “Let us cast lots to find out who is responsible for this disaster.” So they did, and the lot fell on Jonah.

They questioned him, “So you are responsible for this evil that has come upon us? Tell us where you are from. What is your country, your nationality?” And Jonah told them his story, “I am a Hebrew and I worship Yahweh, God of heaven who made the sea and the land….”

As they knew that he was fleeing from Yahweh, the sailors were seized with great fear and said to him, “What a terrible thing have you done!” “What shall we do with you now, to make the sea calm down?” The sea was growing more and more agitated.

He said to them, “Pick me up and throw me into the sea. It will quiet down, for I know it is because of me that this storm has come.”

The sailors, however, still did their best to row back to land. But they could not, for the sea had grown much rougher than before. Then they called on Yahweh, “O Yahweh, do not let us perish for taking this man’s life. Do not hold us guilty of shedding innocent blood. For you, Yahweh, have done this as you have thought right.” They took Jonah and threw him overboard, and the raging sea grew calm again. At this the men were seized with great fear of Yahweh. They offered a sacrifice to Yahweh and made vows to him.

Yahweh provided a large fish which swallowed Jonah. He remained in the belly of the fish for three days and three nights.

From the belly of the fish Jonah prayed to Yahweh, his God: Then Yahweh gave his command to the fish, and it belched out Jonah onto dry land.

Gospel: Lk 10:25-37

Then a teacher of the law came and began putting Jesus to the test. And he said, ”Master, what shall I do to receive eternal life?” Jesus re plied, ”What is written in the law? How do you understand it?” The man answered, ”It is written: You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength and with all your mind. And you shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Jesus replied, ”What a good answer! Do this and you shall live.” The man wanted to justify his question, so he asked, ”Who is my neighbor?”

Jesus then said, ”There was a man going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him, beat him and went off, leaving him half-dead.

It happened that a priest was going along that road and saw the man, but passed by on the other side. Likewise a Levite saw the man, and passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan also was going that way; and when he came upon the man, he was moved with compassion. He went over to him, and cleaned his wounds with oil and wine, and wrapped them in bandages. Then he put him on his own mount, and brought him to an inn, where he took care of him.

The next day, he had to set off; but he gave two silver coins to the innkeeper, and said, ‘Take care of him, and whatever you spend on him, I will repay when I return.‘”

Jesus then asked, ”Which of these three, do you think, made himself neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?” The teacher of the law answered, ”The one who had mercy on him.” And Jesus said, ”Then go and do the same.”

REFLECTION:

What happened to Jonah in the first reading, reminds me of the prophet Jeremiah. He was called by God: ”I chose before I gave you life and before you were born I selected you to be a prophet to the nations (Jer. 1:5). Jeremiah was refusing the Lord: ”I do not know how to speak: I am too young” (Jer.1:6). The Lord did not accept Jeremiah‘s reason. The Lord said to him: ”Do not say you are too young… I send you and tell them everything I command you” Jer.1:7). Jonah was running away from the Lord because he did not want to go to Nineveh and to preach to the Ninevites as the Lord has asked him. He wanted to escape to Tarshish. However, the Lord did something to pursue his plan. A turbulent storm prohibited him to pursue his plan. For the safety of everyone on the boat, he was thrown into the sea. The Lord however, sent a large fish and swallowed him. After three days the fish spewed Jonah on the shore of Nineveh. There he preached as the Lord planned. The people repented and adored the Lord.

It is far from the mind of God to be vindictive. He allows evil things to happen not as a punishment but as means to realize His plan. Take note, God‘s plan is different from ours. But it is best for us. What happened to Jonah simply showed that God has the plan and is determined to pursue it until it is done. To fulfill it, He calls each one to be his collaborator. Each one has his own calling, a vocation, a task to perform. That call makes each one a unique person, an irreplaceable one, a precious treasure. No matter how little we can do and give. It will always count.

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

27TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
Psalter: Week 2 / (Green)

Ps 80:9, 12, 13-14, 15-16, 19-20
The vineyard of the Lord is the house of Israel.

1^st Reading: Is 5:1-7

Let me sing for my beloved my lovesong about his vineyard.

My beloved had a vineyard on a fertile hillside. He dug it up, cleared the stones, and planted the choicest vines. He built there a watchtower and hewed out a wine press as well. Then he looked for a crop of good grapes, but it yielded only wild grapes. Now, inhabitants of Jerusalem and people of Judah, judge between me and my vineyard. What more was there to do that I have not done for my vineyard? Good grapes was the yield I expected. Why did it yield only sour grapes? Now I will let you know what I am going to do with my vineyard: I will remove its hedge and it will be burned; I will break down its wall and it will be trampled on. I will make it a wasteland, I will neither prune nor hoe it, and briers and thorns will grow there. I command the clouds, as well, not to send rain on it. The vineyard of Yahweh Sabaoth is the people of Israel; and the people of Judah are his pleasant vine. He looked for justice, but found bloodshed; He looked for righteousness but heard cries of distress.

2^nd Reading: Phil 4:6-9

Do not be anxious about anything. In everything, resort to prayer and supplication, together, with thanksgiving, and bring your requests before God. Then, the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

Finally, brothers and sisters, fill your minds with whatever is truthful, holy, just, pure, lovely and noble. Be mindful of whatever deserves praise and admiration. Put into practice what you have learned from me, what I passed on to you, what you heard from me or saw me doing, and the God of peace will be with you.

Gospel: Mt 21:33-43

Listen to another example: There was a landowner who planted a vineyard. He put a fence around it, dug a hole for the wine press, built a watchtower, leased the vineyard to tenants, and then, went to a distant country. When harvest time came, the landowner sent his servants to the tenants to collect his share of the harvest. But the tenants seized his servants, beat one, killed another, and stoned a third.

Again, the owner sent more servants; but they were treated in the same way.

Finally, he sent his son, thinking, ‘They will respect my son.‘ But when the tenants saw the son, they thought, ‘This is the one who is to inherit the vineyard. Let us kill him, and his inheritance will be ours.‘ So they seized him, threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.

Now, what will the owner of the vineyard do with the tenants when he comes?” They said to him, ”He will bring those evil men to an evil end, and lease the vineyard to others, who will pay him in due time.”

And Jesus replied, ”Have you never read what the Scriptures say? The stone which the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. This was the Lord‘s doing, and we marvel at it. Therefore I say to you: the kingdom of heaven will be taken from you, and given to a people who will produce its fruit.

REFLECTION:

Read: Both the first and the third readings speak of the ingratitude of the people of God towards Him who has brought them into being and provides for them on a daily basis. The second reading invites us to fill our minds with noble virtues so that we bear good fruits and remain in peace with God.

Reflect: How disheartening it is to receive ingratitude and hate in return for doing good? It has been the fate of many good men and women who pledged their lives in service of others. However, many of them continued to do good despite negative treatment because their hearts were filled with whatever is truthful, holy, just, pure, lovely, and noble, and they had the peace of God. How do we compare with them?

Pray: Pray for the peace of God to reign in your heart.

Act: Do an act of good without expecting gratitude or favors.

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