Daily Reflection

September 5, 2017 Tuesday

22nd WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME
Psalter: Week 1 / (Green/White)
St. Teresa of Calcutta, religious

Ps 27:1, 4, 13-14
I believe that I shall see the good things of the Lord in the land of the living.

1^st Reading: 1 Thes 5:1-6, 9-11

You do not need anyone to write to you about the delay, and the appointed time for these events. You know, that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. When people feel secure, and at peace, the disaster will suddenly come upon them, as the birth pangs of a woman in labor, and they will not escape.

But you, beloved, are not in darkness; so that day will not surprise you like a thief. All of you are citizens of the light and the day; we do not belong to night and darkness. Let us not, therefore, sleep as others do, but remain alert and sober.

For God has not willed us to be condemned, but to win salvation, through Christ Jesus, our Lord. He died for us, so that, we might enter into life, with him, whether we are still awake or already asleep. Therefore, encourage one another and build up one another, as you are doing now.

Gospel: Lk 4:31-37

Jesus went down to Capernaum, a town of Galilee, and began teaching the people at the Sabbath meetings. They were astonished at the way he taught them, for his word was spoken with authority.

In the synagogue, there was a man possessed by an evil spirit, who shouted in a loud voice, “What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I recognize you: you are the Holy One of God.“ Then Jesus said to him sharply, “Be silent and leave this man!“ The evil spirit then threw the man down in front of them, and came out of him without doing him harm.

Amazement seized all these people, and they said to one another, “What does this mean? He commands the evil spirits with authority and power. He orders, and you see how they come out!“ And news about Jesus spread throughout the surrounding area.

REFLECTION:

The Gospel presents Jesus as someone possessing incredible powers that when he talked people were held totally spellbound. In addition, people were completely amazed at his power over evil spirits. He authoritatively commanded the spirit, “Be quiet and come out of the man!“ And the evil spirit obeyed. His words have the power to conquer anything or anyone who wishes to thwart the expansion of the kingdom of God.

All of us have “demons“ that need to be tamed or driven out of our hearts and minds. We should not be scared or discouraged by our lack of success in confounding them. We just have to run to Jesus who has the power to silence and to drive them away especially through the Sacrament of Penance or Reconciliation and other sacraments. All we have to do is to place ourselves under the authority of the Lord.

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
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September 4, 2017 Monday

22nd WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME
Psalter: Week 1 / (Green)

Ps 96:1 & 3, 4-5, 11-12, 13
The Lord comes to judge the earth.

1^st Reading: 1 Thes 4:13-18

Brothers and sisters, we want you not to be mistaken about those who are already asleep, lest you grieve as do those who have no hope. We believe that Jesus died and rose; it will be the same for those who have died in Jesus. God will bring them together, with Jesus, and for his sake.

By the same word of the Lord, we assert this: those of us who are to be alive at the Lord‘s coming, will not go ahead of those who are already asleep. When the command by the archangel‘s voice is given, the Lord, himself, will come down from heaven, while the divine trumpet call is sounding. Then, those who have died in the Lord, will rise first; as for us who are still alive, we will be brought along with them, in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the celestial world. And we will be with the Lord forever.

So then, comfort one another with these words.

Gospel: Lk 4:16-30

When Jesus came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, he entered the synagogue on the Sabbath, as he usually did. He stood up to read, and they handed him the book of the prophet Isaiah.

Jesus then unrolled the scroll and found the place where it is written: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me. He has anointed me, to bring good news to the poor; to proclaim liberty to captives; and new sight to the blind; to free the oppressed; and to announce the Lord‘s year of mercy.“

Jesus then rolled up the scroll, gave it to the attendant and sat down; and the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. Then he said to them, “Today, these prophetic words come true, even as you listen.“

All agreed with him, and were lost in wonder, while he spoke of the grace of God. Nevertheless they asked, “Who is this but Joseph‘s Son?“ So he said, “Doubtless you will quote me the saying: Doctor, heal yourself! Do here, in your town, what they say you did in Capernaum.“

Jesus added, “No prophet is honored in his own country. Truly, I say to you, there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the heavens withheld rain for three years and six months and a great famine came over the whole land. Yet, Elijah was not sent to any of them, but to a widow of Zarephath, in the country of Sidon. There were also many lepers in Israel in the time of Elisha, the prophet; and no one was healed except Naaman, the Syrian.“

On hearing these words, the whole assembly became indignant. They rose up and brought him out of the town, to the edge of the hill on which Nazareth is built, intending to throw him down the cliff. But he passed through their midst and went his way.

REFLECTION:

After doing mission in surrounding villages Jesus comes home to Nazareth. He has done many miracles there and his town-mates were expecting to see some of the spectacular things they heard he was performing. However, they were not prepared to accept his own declaration that the prophecy of Isaiah about the expected Messiah was being “fulfilled in their hearing.“ They rejected him outright because thought they knew him too well. Their biases and prejudices prevented them from recognizing God‘s presence in their midst. Our biases impede us from recognizing the presence and the activity of God in them.

In the same Gospel, Jesus gives two examples of pagans being rewarded with miracles because of their great faith and obedience to the words of God‘s messengers. In spite of the fact that God demanded of them something unreasonable they believed and obeyed and were rewarded. The widow of Zarepath believed in the words of Elijah and obeyed. She could have argued that there was no guarantee the oil and meal would not run out. Naaman the Syrian leper, at first, tried to reason out that bathing in the River Jordan to cleanse him of leprosy did not make sense because the rivers of Syria were more hygienic. But when he obeyed the word of God delivered through his appointed messenger, the miracle happened. We sometimes ask why miracles happen infrequently in our lives. It might help to ask ourselves if we have been totally obedient to what God asks us to do – especially when we find it unreasonable, impractical and illogical.

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

September 3, 2017 Sunday

22nd SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
Psalter: Week 1 / (Green)

Ps 63:2, 3-4, 5-6, 8-9
My soul is thirsting for you, O Lord my God.

1st Reading: Jer 20:7-9

Yahweh, you have seduced me and I let myself be seduced.
You have taken me by force and prevailed.
I have become a laughingstock all day long;
they all make fun of me, for every time I speak
I have to shout, “Violence! Devastation!“
Yahweh‘s word has brought me insult and derision all day long.
So I decided to forget about him and speak no more in his name.
But his word in my heart becomes like a fire burning
deep within my bones.
I try so hard to hold it in, but I cannot do it.

2^nd Reading: Rom 12: 1-2

I beg you, dearly beloved, by the mercy of God, to give yourselves, as a living and holy sacrifice, pleasing to God; that is the kind of worship for you, as sensible people. Don‘t let yourselves be shaped by the world where you live, but, rather, be transformed, through the renewal of your mind. You must discern the will of God: what is good, what pleases, what is perfect.

Gospel: Mt 16:21-27

From that day, Jesus began to make it clear to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem; that he would suffer many things from the Jewish authorities, the chief priests and the teachers of the law; and that he would be killed and be raised on the third day.

Then Peter took him aside and began to reproach him, “Never, Lord! No, this must never happen to you!“ But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are an obstacle in my path. You are thinking not as God does, but as people do.“

Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If you want to follow me, deny yourself. Take up your cross and follow me. For whoever chooses to save his life will lose it, but the one who loses his life, for my sake, will find it. What will one gain by winning the whole world, if he destroys his soul? Or what can a person give, in exchange for his life?

Know, that the Son of Man will come, in the glory of his Father with the holy angels, and he will reward each one according to his deeds.

REFLECTION:

Read: Jeremiah expresses his existential inability to reject God‘s call. Paul invites Romans to surrender to God‘s will and be transformed by it. Peter is rebuked for his human ways of thinking. Disciples are asked to vacate the self to follow Christ.

Reflect: Why does Jesus call Peter Satan? Satan‘s task is to hinder God‘s ways. To hinder someone, one has to block the path. That is what Peter does. He stands in front of Jesus, blocking his path and trying to get Jesus to change his mind. In other words, Peter plays Satan. Jesus reminds him that the place of a disciple is not in front of the Master, but behind him. Where do you stand in relation to Christ–in front, behind, or beside him?

Pray: Lord, teach me to renounce my will and embrace yours on a daily basis.

Act: Make a list of renunciations you need to make to follow Jesus radically.

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

September 1, 2017 Friday

21st WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME
Psalter: Week 4 / (Green)

Ps 97:1 & 2b, 5-6, 10, 11-12
Rejoice in the Lord, you just!

1^st Reading: 1 Thes 4:1-8

For the rest, brothers, we ask you, in the name of Jesus, the Lord, and we urge you, to live in a way that pleases God, just as you have learned from us. This you do, but try to do still more. You know the instructions we gave you on behalf of the Lord Jesus: the will of God for you is to become holy and not to have unlawful sex.

Let each of you behave toward his wife as a holy and respectful husband, rather than being led by lust, as are pagans, who do not know God. In this matter, let no one offend or wrong a brother. The Lord will do justice in all these things, as we have warned and shown you. God has called us to live, not in impurity but in holiness, and those who do not heed this instruction disobey, not a human, but God, himself, who gives you his Holy Spirit.

Gospel: Mt 25:1-13

This story throws light on what will happen in the kingdom of heaven: Ten bridesmaids went out with their lamps to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish, and five were sensible.

The careless bridesmaids took their lamps as they were, and did not take extra oil. But those who were sensible, took flasks of oil with their lamps. As the bridegroom delayed, they all grew drowsy and fell asleep.

But at midnight, a cry rang out, ‘The bridegroom is here, come out and meet him!‘ All the maidens woke up at once, and trimmed their lamps. Then the foolish ones said to the sensible ones, ‘Give us some oil, for our lamps are going out.‘ The sensible ones answered, ‘There may not be enough for us and for you. You had better go to those who sell, and buy some for yourselves.‘

When the bridegroom came, the foolish maidens were out buying oil, but those who were ready went with him into the wedding feast, and the doors were shut.

Later the other bridesmaids arrived and called out, ‘Lord, Lord, open to us!‘ But he answered, ‘Truly I do not know you.‘

So stay awake, for you do not know the day nor the hour.

REFLECTION:

During the time of Jesus a wedding was a very important community event. It was a celebration that usually lasted a few days, the climax of which was the arrival of the groom at the bride‘s house where a group of bridesmaids joyfully welcomed him. There were times when the groom mischievously delayed his arrival to catch them by surprise.

Jesus made use of this image to admonish people about the need for constant vigilance and to be always ready for his coming at the end of time. Some people will be caught off guard because they never take it seriously. In the Gospel, the bridegroom‘s delay gives the foolish bridesmaids the occasion to do something but they fail to take the opportunity. They give in to complacency, wasting their time, talents, gifts and opportunities given them by the Lord. As a result they lose the chance to enter the eternal banquet in the kingdom.

The oil which lighted the lamps of the bridesmaids is sometimes taken to be symbolic of the acts of kindness, love and mercy that believers accomplish as a manifestation of their active and dynamic faith. It is likewise accepted as symbolic of the virtues that a believer develops and lives by. This parable can be read along the Parable of the Last Judgment (Mat 25:31-46) where all will be judged according to the good deeds that we did or failed to do.

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

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