Daily Reflection | Gospel Reading | RVA

5th WEEK IN Ordinary TIME
Psalter: Week 1 / (Green/White)
Jerome Emiliani, priest / St. Josephine Bakhita, virgin

Ps 104:1-2a, 27-28, 29bc-30
O bless the Lord, my soul!

1^st Reading: Gen 2:4b-9, 15-17

These are the successive steps in the creation of the heavens and the earth. On the day that Yahweh God made the earth and the heavens, there was not yet on the earth any shrub of the fields, nor had any plant yet sprung up, for Yahweh God had not made it rain on the earth, and there was no man to till the earth, but a mist went up from the earth and watered the surface of the earth.

Then Yahweh God formed man, dust drawn from the clay, and breathed into his nostrils a breath of life and man became alive with breath. God planted a garden in Eden in the east and there he placed man whom he had created. Yahweh God caused to grow from the ground every kind of tree that is pleasing to see and good to eat, also the tree of Life in the middle of the garden and the tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.

Yahweh God took man and placed him in the garden of Eden to till it and take care of it. Then Yahweh God
gave an order to man saying, “You
may eat of every tree in the garden,
but of the tree of the Knowledge of
Good and Evil, you will not eat, for on
the day you eat of it, you will die.“

Gospel: Mk 7:14-23

Jesus then called the people to him again and said to them, “Listen to me, all of you, and try to understand. Nothing that enters a person from the outside can make that person unclean. It is what comes from within that makes a person unclean. Let everyone who has ears listen.“

When Jesus got home and was away from the crowd, his disciples asked him about this saying, and he replied, “So even you are dull? Do you not see that whatever comes from outside cannot make a person unclean, since it enters not the heart but the stomach, and is finally passed out?“

Thus Jesus declared that all foods are clean.

And he went on, “What comes out of a person is what defiles him, for evil designs come out of the heart: theft, murder, adultery, jealousy, greed, maliciousness, deceit, indecency, slander, pride and folly. All these evil things come from within and make a person unclean.“

REFLECTION:

“Spark of the divine in man“

The creation of man is the apex of the creation account. The second account of the creation of man in Genesis 2 underlines on the one hand man’s “creatureliness,“ that man is dust; on the other hand man has an awesome dignity–the breath of life in man is from God! There is something “divine“ in all men! Man alone has a “soul!“ There is in each person a “spark of the divine“ not present in other creatures! God has, in creating man, shared His own life with lowly man!

Unfortunately, the painful story of man is that many times man has marred the “shadow of the divine“ in man. The many inhumanities committed against the weak and vulnerable, women and children, offends the God who has his image in each and every human person. Any inhumanity is a disrespect to God who imprinted His image in every person!

The Sudanese Saint Josephine Bakhita, whose memorial we celebrate today, is a statement of our Faith against the brutal history of slavery and any inhumanity! But this Saint became a Saint not because she suffered so much but because when she received the Faith she would be able to pray and forgive all who had made her suffer. Though wounded in her “creatureliness“ she was able to make the “spark of the divine“ in her to rise and mirror the face of our God who forgives!

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

1^st Reading: Gen 1:20–2:4a

In the beginning, when God began to create the heavens and the earth, the earth had no form and was void; darkness was over the deep and the spirit of God hovered over the waters. God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light. God saw that the light was good and he separated the light from the darkness. God called the light ‘Day’ and the darkness ‘Night’. There was evening and there was morning: the first day.

God said, “Let there be a firm ceiling between the waters and let it separate waters from waters.” So God made the ceiling and separated the waters below it from the waters above it. And so it was. God called the firm ceiling ‘Sky’. There was evening and there was morning: the second day.

God said, “Let the waters below the sky be gathered together in one place and let dry land appear.” And so it was. God called the dry land ‘Earth’, and the waters gathered together he called ‘Seas’. God saw that it was good.

God said,
 “Let the earth produce vegetation, seed-bearing plants, fruit trees bearing fruit with seed, each according to its kind, upon the earth.” And so it was. The earth produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their kind and trees producing fruit which has seed, according to their kind. God saw that it was good. There was evening and there was morning: the third day.

God said, “Let there be lights in the ceiling of the sky to separate day from night and to serve as signs for the seasons, days and years; and let these lights in the sky shine above the earth.” And so it was. God therefore made two great lights, the greater light to govern the day and the smaller light to govern the night; and God made the stars as well. God placed them in the ceiling of the sky to give light on the earth and to separate the light from the darkness. God saw that it was good. There was evening and there was morning: the fourth day.

God said, “Let the water teem with an abundance of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth under the ceiling of the sky.” God created the great monsters of the sea and all living animals, those that teem in the waters, according to their kind, and every winged bird, according to its kind. God saw that it was good. God blessed them saying, “Be fruitful and increase in number, fill the waters of the sea, and let the birds increase on the earth.” There was evening and there was morning: the fifth day.

God said, “Let the earth produce living animals according to their kind: cattle, creatures that move along the ground, wild animals according to their kind.” So it was. God created the wild animals according to their kind, and everything that creeps along the ground according to its kind. God saw that it was good.

God said, “Let us make man in our image, to our likeness. Let them rule over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, over the cattle, over the wild animals, and over all creeping things that crawl along the ground.” So God created man in his image; in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number, fill the earth and subdue it, rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the sky, over every living creature that moves on the ground.”

God said, “I have given you every seed-bearing plant which is on the face of all the earth, and every tree that bears fruit with seed. It will be for your food. To every wild animal, to every bird of the sky, to everything that creeps along the ground, to everything that has the breath of life, I give every green plant for food.” So it was.

God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. There was evening and there was morning: the sixth day.

That was the way the sky and earth were created and all their vast array. By the seventh day the work God had done was completed, and he rested on the seventh day from all the work he had done. And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on that day he rested from all the work he had done in his creation. These are the successive steps in the creation of the heavens and the earth.

Gospel: Mk 7:1-13

One day, the Pharisees gathered around Jesus, and with them were some teachers of the law who had just come from Jerusalem.

They noticed that some of his disciples were eating their meal with unclean hands, that is, without washing them. Now the Pharisees, and in fact all the Jews, never eat without washing their hands, for they follow the tradition received from their ancestors. Nor do they eat anything, when they come from the market, without first washing themselves. And there are many other traditions they observe; for example, the ritual washing of cups, pots and plates. So the Pharisees and the teachers of the law asked him, “Why do your disciples not follow the tradition of the elders, but eat with unclean hands?“ Jesus answered, “You shallow people! How well Isaiah prophesied of you when he wrote: This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me. The worship they offer me is worthless, for what they teach are only human rules. You even put aside the commandment of God to hold fast to human tradition.“ And Jesus commented, “You have a fine way of disregarding the commandments of God in order to enforce your own traditions! For example, Moses said: Do your duty to your father and your mother, and: Whoever curses his father or his mother is to be put to death. But according to you, someone could say to his father or mother, ‘I already declared Corban (which means “offered to God“) what you could have expected from me.’ In this case, you no longer require him to do anything for his father or mother; and so you nullify the word of God through the tradition you have handed on. And you do many other things like that.“

REFLECTION:

“Stewards of God’s Creation“

God kept the best of His creation for last! Only on the 6^th day, as the book of Genesis reveals, did God create man. When the setting has been arranged man is created. And God gives all created reality to the care of the one created after the image and likeness of God. Of all creatures man alone is the image of God. Man alone has the gift of reason and is given the authority, the responsibility over creation. Man is God’s STEWARD or care taker over creation. God had put his trust and confidence in man.

 Unfortunately, we have not always been responsible STEWARDS of creation. We have been domineering over creation. Pope Francis in “Laudato si“ laments that in the last 200 years man has tended to simply treat all of created reality as objects to be used with a disregard for the unique order of nature God had designed for all of creation. The disruption of the rich biodiversity of our planet has caused the extinction of various species. Pope Francis reminds us that we must remember that when we harm creation we are bound to suffer dire consequences! Indiscriminate logging, for instance, not only affects our watersheds and the loss of habitat for various creatures. The loss of our watersheds leads to flooding. In the end we all suffer the consequences of a “battered mother earth!“

We ought to be more sensitive for our environment! We ought to ensure that we do not endanger the so many good God has created in the world. Pope Francis calls us in “Laudato si“ to cut down on our consummeristic habits and learn to “reduce, reuse, recycle!“ Do you really need a “new bag?“ or a “new shirt?“ Hold on to that piece of paper! You might still use its back page!

Daily Reflection

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

THE WORD

Gen 1,20-24 / Mk 6.53-56

After making the crossing, [Jesus and his disciples] came to land at Gennesaret and tied up there. As they were leaving the boat, people immediately recognized him. They scurried about the surrounding country and began to bring in the sick on mats to wherever they heard he was. Whatever villages or towns or countryside he entered, they laid the sick in the marketplaces and begged him that they might touch only the tassel on his cloak; and as many as touched it were healed.

IN OTHER WORDS
The gospel reminds me of Pope Benedict Vl’s reference to a shrine as a “privileged place” of healing and conversion. Saint Jude Shrine in Manila is very popular among pilgrims because devotion to the saint has generated stories of healing miracles.

As Rector in this Shrine for almost a decade, l’ve heard a number of pilgrims say that coming to Saint Jude has always been an experience of intense encounter with something sacred, like being touched by some “holiness” in the devotion. This l understood as a special character of a shrine or any place of worship, as a precious place of evangelization and encounter.

This view about healing miracles and other spiritual gifts relates to a similar attractive character of Jesus as a miracle worker, or as a divine healer in particular. For a good number of sick people, by just touching the tassel of His cloak was enough, and the many who did so were healed. Such attraction to Jesus as divine healer commenced a privileged encounter through which people were eventually led to faith and conversion.

The Church as the sacrament of God’s presence among people should never lose such attraction. Her mission should at all times be in keeping with such attraction. Meaning, people from all walks of life should keep coming to the Church because they feel the attraction of some holiness, of some encounter with the Divine. The Church continues to grow in such attraction because God never runs out of himala (miracles) and tuwa (joy) for people touched by His holy presence. Worth pondering then is: As a follower of the Lord, in what way does my life attract people to the faith and to a life of conversion‘?     
•    Fr. Roland U.Aquino, SVD (CTManila)  

The Word in other words 2017

An annual project of Logos Publications, The WORD in Other Words Bible Diary contains daily scripture readings and reflections written by priest, brothers, and sisters of the three congregations founded by St. Arnold Janssen (the SVD, SSpS, and SSpSAP). It hopes to serve as a daily companion to readers who continually seek the correlation of the Word of God and human experience.

	Production : Fr. Carlos Maria de Guzman, Jr., SVD and Staff of Logos Publications
	Cover Design : Malou E. Domingo
	Liturgical Calendar : Fr. Atilano Corcuera, SVD
	Production Consultant : Fr. Gerardo del Pinado, SVD
	Scriptural Texts : New American Bible and Daily Roman Missal
	Cover artwork based on photos by Fr. Bar Fabella, SVD
	Published by : Logos Publications, Inc. 1916 Oroquieta St., Sta. Cruz, Manila
	Email Address: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
	Telephone : +63 2 711 1323
	Fax : +63 2 732 273
	Copyright © 2016 Society of the Divine Word

 

THE WORD

FIRST READING: Is 58: 7-10

ls it not sharing your bread with the hungry,
bringing the afflicted and the homeless into your house;
Clothing the naked when you see them,
and not turning your back on your own flesh?
Then your light shall break forth like the dawn,
and your wound shall quickly be healed;
Your vindication shall go before you,
and the glory of the LORD shall be your rear guard.
Then you shall call, and the LORD will answer,
you shall cry for help, and he will say: “Here I am!”
If you remove the yoke from among you,
the accusing finger, and malicious speech;
If you lavish your food on the hungry
and satisfy the afflicted;
Then your light shall rise in the darkness,
and your gloom shall become like midday;

SECOND READING: 1 Cor 2: 1-5

When I came to you, brothers, proclaiming the mystery of God, I did not come with sublimity of words or of wisdom. For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you; except Jesus Christ, and him crucified. I came to you in weakness and fear and much trembling, and my message and my proclamation were not with persuasive (words of - wisdom, but with a demonstration of spirit and power, so that your faith might rest not on human wisdom but on the power of God.

GOSPEL: Mt 5: 13-16

Jesus said to his disciples: “You are the salt of the earth. But if salt loses its taste, with what can it be seasoned? It is no longer good for anything but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot. You are the light of the world. A city set on a mountain cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and then put it under a bushel basket; it is set on a lampstand, where it gives light to all in the house. Just so, your light must shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your heavenly Father.”   

IN OTHER WORDS

Justice, according to the Greek philosopher Plato, is minding one’s business. The Chinese sage, Confucius, calls it the rectification of names, so that the prince  is to act as a prince, the minister as a minister, the father as a father, and the son is to act as a son. A teacher who does not teach does not deserve the name ‘teacher’, nor does the student who does not study deserve to be called a student. If salt is to be salt, it should salty.  And a lamp is not truly a lamp unless it is lighted and its light spreads through space and brightens the environment.

What is a human being if he or she is not humane? If one does not treat another as one wants oneself to be treated? What is so human about a person who steals from the poor in order to enrich oneself, who lives by corrupt practices in the guise and clout of position of leadership in government? What does it profit a man/woman to become and famous at the expense of his/her fellow men and Women? So the prophet Isaiah enjoins us to share our bread with the hungry, welcome the homeless t; our home, clothe the naked in our midst, and not turn our back on our relatives. This is our current pope, Francis, calls mercy. Mercy is another word for that light that shines in the darkness, that renews the face of the earth, that makes everything new.

Our model here is no other than Jesus, the light of the world, whose words and deeds bring solace to all and heal the broken hearts. To follow this light is to radically change everything that We touch and make all things good! This is not at all imposible. Nothing is impossible with God, if only we ourselves share in that light and be light ourselves

•    Bro. Romy Abulad, SVD (CTManila)

The Word in other words 2017

The Word in other words 2017

An annual project of Logos Publications, The WORD in Other Words Bible Diary contains daily scripture readings and reflections written by priest, brothers, and sisters of the three congregations founded by St. Arnold Janssen (the SVD, SSpS, and SSpSAP). It hopes to serve as a daily companion to readers who continually seek the correlation of the Word of God and human experience.

	Production : Fr. Carlos Maria de Guzman, Jr., SVD and Staff of Logos Publications
	Cover Design : Malou E. Domingo
	Liturgical Calendar : Fr. Atilano Corcuera, SVD
	Production Consultant : Fr. Gerardo del Pinado, SVD
	Scriptural Texts : New American Bible and Daily Roman Missal
	Cover artwork based on photos by Fr. Bar Fabella, SVD
	Published by : Logos Publications, Inc. 1916 Oroquieta St., Sta. Cruz, Manila
	Email Address: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
	Telephone : +63 2 711 1323
	Fax : +63 2 732 273
	Copyright © 2016 Society of the Divine Word