OCTOBER 9
655 SAINT JOHN LEONARDI, PRIEST
CCC Cross Reference:
2 Cor 4:6 298, 2583; 2 Cor 4:7 1420
Ps 96:2 2143
Lk 5:8 208
From the Common of Pastors, p. 1817, or the Common of Holy Men and Women: For Those Who Work for the Underprivileged, p. 1880,
OR
FIRST READING
2 Corinthians 4:1-2, 5-7
Brothers and sisters:
Since we have this ministry through the mercy shown us,
we are not discouraged.
Rather, we have renounced shameful, hidden things;
not acting deceitfully or falsifying the word of God,
but by the open declaration of the truth
we commend ourselves to everyone's conscience in the sight of God.
For we do not preach ourselves but Jesus Christ as Lord,
and ourselves as your slaves for the sake of Jesus.
For God who said, Let light shine out of darkness,
has shone in our hearts to bring to light
the knowledge of the glory of God on the face of Jesus Christ.
But we hold this treasure in earthen vessels,
that the surpassing power may be of God and not from us.
RESPONSORIAL PSALM
Psalm 96:1-2. 2-3, 7-8, 10
R. (3) Proclaim God's marvelous deeds to all the nations.
Sing to the LORD a new song;
sing to the LORD, all you lands.
Sing to the LORD; bless his name.
R. Proclaim God's marvelous deeds to all the nations.
Announce his salvation, day after day.
Tell his glory among the nations;
among all peoples, his wondrous deeds.
R. Proclaim God's marvelous deeds to all the nations.
Give to the LORD, you families of nations,
give to the LORD glory and praise;
give to the LORD the glory due his name!
R. Proclaim God's marvelous deeds to all the nations.
Say among the nations: The LORD is king.
He has made the world firm, not to be moved;
he governs the peoples with equity.
R. Proclaim God's marvelous deeds to all the nations.
GOSPEL
Luke 5:1-11
While the crowd was pressing in on Jesus and listening to the word of God,
he was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret.
He saw two boats there alongside the lake;
the fishermen had disembarked and were washing their nets.
Getting into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon,
he asked him to put out a short distance from the shore.
Then he sat down and taught the crowds from the boat.
After he had finished speaking, he said to Simon,
"Put out into deep water and lower your nets for a catch."
Simon said in reply,
"Master, we have worked hard all night and have caught nothing,
but at your command I will lower the nets."
When they had done this, they caught a great number of fish
and their nets were tearing.
They signaled to their partners in the other boat
to come to help them.
They came and filled both boats
so that they were in danger of sinking.
When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at the knees of Jesus and said,
"Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man."
For astonishment at the catch of fish they had made seized him
and all those with him,
and likewise James and John, the sons of Zebedee,
who were partners of Simon.
Jesus said to Simon, "Do not be afraid;
from now on you will be catching men."
When they brought their boats to the shore,
they left everything and followed him.
Back to Memorial Bench
Thursday, October 8, 2009
OCTOBER 9 SAINT DENIS
OCTOBER 9
654 SAINT DENIS, BISHOP AND MARTYR, AND HIS COMPANIONS, MARTYRS
CCC Cross Reference:
2 Cor 6:4 859
Mt 5:13-16 782, 2821; Mt 5:14 1243; Mt 5:16 326
From the Common of Martyrs, p. 1794,
OR
FIRST READING
2 Corinthians 6:4-10
Brothers and sisters:
In everything we commend ourselves as ministers of God,
through much endurance, in afflictions, hardships, constraints,
beatings, imprisonments, riots, labors, vigils, fasts;
by purity, knowledge, patience, kindness,
in the Holy Spirit, in unfeigned love, in truthful speech,
in the power of God;
with weapons of righteousness at the right and at the left;
through glory and dishonor, insult and praise.
We are treated as deceivers and yet are truthful;
as unrecognized and yet acknowledged;
as dying and behold we live;
as chastised and yet not put to death;
as sorrowful yet always rejoicing;
as poor yet enriching many;
as having nothing and yet possessing all things.
RESPONSORIAL PSALM
Psalm 126:1bc-2ab, 2cd-3, 4-5, 6
R. (5) Those who sow in tears shall reap rejoicing.
When the LORD brought back the captives of Zion,
we were like men dreaming.
Then our mouth was filled with laughter,
and our tongue with rejoicing.
R. Those who sow in tears shall reap rejoicing.
Then they said among the nations,
"The LORD has done great things for them."
The LORD has done great things for us;
we are glad indeed.
R. Those who sow in tears shall reap rejoicing.
Restore our fortunes, O LORD,
like the torrents in the southern desert.
Those who sow in tears
shall reap rejoicing.
R. Those who sow in tears shall reap rejoicing.
Although they go forth weeping,
carrying the seed to be sown,
They shall come back rejoicing,
carrying their sheaves.
R. Those who sow in tears shall reap rejoicing.
GOSPEL
Matthew 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."
Back to Memorial Bench
654 SAINT DENIS, BISHOP AND MARTYR, AND HIS COMPANIONS, MARTYRS
CCC Cross Reference:
2 Cor 6:4 859
Mt 5:13-16 782, 2821; Mt 5:14 1243; Mt 5:16 326
From the Common of Martyrs, p. 1794,
OR
FIRST READING
2 Corinthians 6:4-10
Brothers and sisters:
In everything we commend ourselves as ministers of God,
through much endurance, in afflictions, hardships, constraints,
beatings, imprisonments, riots, labors, vigils, fasts;
by purity, knowledge, patience, kindness,
in the Holy Spirit, in unfeigned love, in truthful speech,
in the power of God;
with weapons of righteousness at the right and at the left;
through glory and dishonor, insult and praise.
We are treated as deceivers and yet are truthful;
as unrecognized and yet acknowledged;
as dying and behold we live;
as chastised and yet not put to death;
as sorrowful yet always rejoicing;
as poor yet enriching many;
as having nothing and yet possessing all things.
RESPONSORIAL PSALM
Psalm 126:1bc-2ab, 2cd-3, 4-5, 6
R. (5) Those who sow in tears shall reap rejoicing.
When the LORD brought back the captives of Zion,
we were like men dreaming.
Then our mouth was filled with laughter,
and our tongue with rejoicing.
R. Those who sow in tears shall reap rejoicing.
Then they said among the nations,
"The LORD has done great things for them."
The LORD has done great things for us;
we are glad indeed.
R. Those who sow in tears shall reap rejoicing.
Restore our fortunes, O LORD,
like the torrents in the southern desert.
Those who sow in tears
shall reap rejoicing.
R. Those who sow in tears shall reap rejoicing.
Although they go forth weeping,
carrying the seed to be sown,
They shall come back rejoicing,
carrying their sheaves.
R. Those who sow in tears shall reap rejoicing.
GOSPEL
Matthew 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."
Back to Memorial Bench
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
OCTOBER 7 OUR LADY OF THE ROSARY
OCTOBER 7
653 OUR LADY OF THE ROSARY MEMORIAL
CCC Cross Reference:
Acts 1:14 726, 1310, 2617, 2623, 2673
Lk 1:46-55 722, 2619, 2675; Lk 1:46-49 2097; Lk 1:48 148, 971, 2676, 2676; Lk 1:49 273, 2599, 2807, 2827; Lk 1:50 2465; Lk 1:54-55 706; Lk 1:55 422
Lk 1:26-38 497, 706, 723, 2571; Lk 1:26-27 488; Lk 1:26 332; Lk 1:28-37 494; Lk 1:2null8 490, 491; Lk 1:31 430, 2812; Lk 1:32-33 709; Lk 1:32 559; Lk 1:34 484, 497, 505; Lk 1:35 437, 484, 486, 697; Lk 1:37-38 494; Lk 1:37 148, 269, 273, 276; Lk 1:38 64, 148, 510, 2617, 2677, 2827, 2856
From the Common of the Blessed Virgin Mary, p. 1763,
OR
FIRST READING
Acts 1:12-14
After Jesus had been taken up into heaven,
the Apostles returned to Jerusalem
from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem,
a Sabbath day's journey away.
When they entered the city
they went to the upper room where they were staying,
Peter and John and James and Andrew,
Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew,
James son of Alphaeus, Simon the Zealot,
and Judas son of James.
All these devoted themselves with one accord to prayer,
together with some women,
and Mary the mother of Jesus, and his brothers.
RESPONSORIAL PSALM
Luke 1:46-47, 48-49, 50-51, 52-53, 54-55
R. (49) The Almighty has done great things for me, and holy is his Name.
or:
R. O Blessed Virgin Mary, you carried the Son of the eternal Father.
"My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,
my spirit rejoices in God my Savior."
R. The Almighty has done great things for me, and holy is his Name.
or:
R. O Blessed Virgin Mary, you carried the Son of the eternal Father.
"For he has looked upon his lowly servant.
From this day all generations will call me blessed:
the Almighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his Name."
R. The Almighty has done great things for me, and holy is his Name.
or:
R. O Blessed Virgin Mary, you carried the Son of the eternal Father.
"He has mercy on those who fear him in every generation.
He has shown the strength of his arm,
he has scattered the proud in their conceit."
R. The Almighty has done great things for me, and holy is his Name.
or:
R. O Blessed Virgin Mary, you carried the Son of the eternal Father.
"He has cast down the mighty from their thrones,
and has lifted up the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things,
and the rich he has sent away empty."
R. The Almighty has done great things for me, and holy is his Name.
or:
R. O Blessed Virgin Mary, you carried the Son of the eternal Father.
"He has come to the help of his servant Israel
for he has remembered his promise of mercy,
the promise he made to our fathers,
to Abraham and his children forever."
R. The Almighty has done great things for me, and holy is his Name.
or:
R. O Blessed Virgin Mary, you carried the Son of the eternal Father.
GOSPEL
Luke 1:26-38
The angel Gabriel was sent from God
to a town of Galilee called Nazareth,
to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph,
of the house of David,
and the virgin's name was Mary.
And coming to her, he said,
"Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you."
But she was greatly troubled at what was said
and pondered what sort of greeting this might be.
Then the angel said to her,
"Do not be afraid, Mary,
for you have found favor with God.
Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son,
and you shall name him Jesus.
He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High,
and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father,
and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever,
and of his Kingdom there will be no end."
But Mary said to the angel,
"How can this be,
since I have no relations with a man?"
And the angel said to her in reply,
"The Holy Spirit will come upon you,
and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.
Therefore the child to be born
will be called holy, the Son of God.
And behold, Elizabeth, your relative,
has also conceived a son in her old age,
and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren;
for nothing will be impossible for God."
Mary said, "Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord.
May it be done to me according to your word."
Then the angel departed from her.
Back to Memorial Bench
653 OUR LADY OF THE ROSARY MEMORIAL
CCC Cross Reference:
Acts 1:14 726, 1310, 2617, 2623, 2673
Lk 1:46-55 722, 2619, 2675; Lk 1:46-49 2097; Lk 1:48 148, 971, 2676, 2676; Lk 1:49 273, 2599, 2807, 2827; Lk 1:50 2465; Lk 1:54-55 706; Lk 1:55 422
Lk 1:26-38 497, 706, 723, 2571; Lk 1:26-27 488; Lk 1:26 332; Lk 1:28-37 494; Lk 1:2null8 490, 491; Lk 1:31 430, 2812; Lk 1:32-33 709; Lk 1:32 559; Lk 1:34 484, 497, 505; Lk 1:35 437, 484, 486, 697; Lk 1:37-38 494; Lk 1:37 148, 269, 273, 276; Lk 1:38 64, 148, 510, 2617, 2677, 2827, 2856
From the Common of the Blessed Virgin Mary, p. 1763,
OR
FIRST READING
Acts 1:12-14
After Jesus had been taken up into heaven,
the Apostles returned to Jerusalem
from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem,
a Sabbath day's journey away.
When they entered the city
they went to the upper room where they were staying,
Peter and John and James and Andrew,
Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew,
James son of Alphaeus, Simon the Zealot,
and Judas son of James.
All these devoted themselves with one accord to prayer,
together with some women,
and Mary the mother of Jesus, and his brothers.
RESPONSORIAL PSALM
Luke 1:46-47, 48-49, 50-51, 52-53, 54-55
R. (49) The Almighty has done great things for me, and holy is his Name.
or:
R. O Blessed Virgin Mary, you carried the Son of the eternal Father.
"My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,
my spirit rejoices in God my Savior."
R. The Almighty has done great things for me, and holy is his Name.
or:
R. O Blessed Virgin Mary, you carried the Son of the eternal Father.
"For he has looked upon his lowly servant.
From this day all generations will call me blessed:
the Almighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his Name."
R. The Almighty has done great things for me, and holy is his Name.
or:
R. O Blessed Virgin Mary, you carried the Son of the eternal Father.
"He has mercy on those who fear him in every generation.
He has shown the strength of his arm,
he has scattered the proud in their conceit."
R. The Almighty has done great things for me, and holy is his Name.
or:
R. O Blessed Virgin Mary, you carried the Son of the eternal Father.
"He has cast down the mighty from their thrones,
and has lifted up the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things,
and the rich he has sent away empty."
R. The Almighty has done great things for me, and holy is his Name.
or:
R. O Blessed Virgin Mary, you carried the Son of the eternal Father.
"He has come to the help of his servant Israel
for he has remembered his promise of mercy,
the promise he made to our fathers,
to Abraham and his children forever."
R. The Almighty has done great things for me, and holy is his Name.
or:
R. O Blessed Virgin Mary, you carried the Son of the eternal Father.
GOSPEL
Luke 1:26-38
The angel Gabriel was sent from God
to a town of Galilee called Nazareth,
to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph,
of the house of David,
and the virgin's name was Mary.
And coming to her, he said,
"Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you."
But she was greatly troubled at what was said
and pondered what sort of greeting this might be.
Then the angel said to her,
"Do not be afraid, Mary,
for you have found favor with God.
Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son,
and you shall name him Jesus.
He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High,
and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father,
and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever,
and of his Kingdom there will be no end."
But Mary said to the angel,
"How can this be,
since I have no relations with a man?"
And the angel said to her in reply,
"The Holy Spirit will come upon you,
and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.
Therefore the child to be born
will be called holy, the Son of God.
And behold, Elizabeth, your relative,
has also conceived a son in her old age,
and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren;
for nothing will be impossible for God."
Mary said, "Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord.
May it be done to me according to your word."
Then the angel departed from her.
Back to Memorial Bench
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
OCTOBER 6 SAINT BRUNO
OCTOBER 6
652 SAINT BRUNO, PRIEST
CCC Cross Reference:
Phil 3:8-11 428; Phil 3:8 133; Phil 3:10-11 989, 1006; Phil 3:10 648
Lk 9:58 544
From the Common of Pastors, p. 1817, or the Common of Holy Men and Women: For Religious, p. 1880,
OR
FIRST READING
Philippians 3:8-14
Brothers and sisters:
I consider everything as a loss
because of the supreme good of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.
For his sake I have accepted the loss of all things
and I consider them so much rubbish,
that I may gain Christ and be found in him,
not having any righteousness of my own based on the law
but that which comes through faith in Christ,
the righteousness from God,
depending on faith to know him and the power of his resurrection
and the sharing of his sufferings by being conformed to his death,
if somehow I may attain the resurrection from the dead.
It is not that I have already taken hold of it
or have already attained perfect maturity,
but I continue my pursuit in hope that I may possess it,
since I have indeed been taken possession of by Christ Jesus.
Brothers and sisters, I for my part
do not consider myself to have taken possession.
Just one thing: forgetting what lies behind
but straining forward to what lies ahead,
I continue my pursuit toward the goal,
the prize of God's upward calling, in Christ Jesus.
RESPONSORIAL PSALM
Psalm 1:1-2. 3. 4 and 6
R. (40:5a) Blessed are they who hope in the Lord.
or:
R. (2a) Blessed are they who delight in the law of the Lord.
or:
R. (92:13-14) The just will flourish like the palm tree in the garden of the Lord.
Blessed the man who follows not
the counsel of the wicked
Nor walks in the way of sinners,
nor sits in the company of the insolent,
But delights in the law of the LORD
and meditates on his law day and night.
R. Blessed are they who hope in the Lord.
or:
R. Blessed are they who delight in the law of the Lord.
or:
R. The just will flourish like the palm tree in the garden of the Lord.
He is like a tree
planted near running water,
That yields its fruit in due season,
and whose leaves never fade.
Whatever he does, prospers.
R. Blessed are they who hope in the Lord.
or:
R. Blessed are they who delight in the law of the Lord.
or:
R. The just will flourish like the palm tree in the garden of the Lord.
Not so, the wicked, not so;
they are like chaff which the wind drives away.
For the LORD watches over the way of the just,
but the way of the wicked vanishes.
R. Blessed are they who hope in the Lord.
or:
R. Blessed are they who delight in the law of the Lord.
or:
R. The just will flourish like the palm tree in the garden of the Lord.
GOSPEL
Luke 9:57-62
As Jesus and his disciples were proceeding
on their journey
someone said to him, "I will follow you wherever you go."
Jesus answered him,
"Foxes have dens and birds of the sky have nests,
but the Son of Man has nowhere to rest his head."
And to another he said, "Follow me."
But he replied, "Lord, let me go first and bury my father."
But he answered him, "Let the dead bury their dead.
But you, go and proclaim the Kingdom of God."
And another said, "I will follow you, Lord,
but first let me say farewell to my family at home."
He said, "No one who sets a hand to the plow
and looks to what was left behind is fit for the Kingdom of God."
Back to Memorial Bench
652 SAINT BRUNO, PRIEST
CCC Cross Reference:
Phil 3:8-11 428; Phil 3:8 133; Phil 3:10-11 989, 1006; Phil 3:10 648
Lk 9:58 544
From the Common of Pastors, p. 1817, or the Common of Holy Men and Women: For Religious, p. 1880,
OR
FIRST READING
Philippians 3:8-14
Brothers and sisters:
I consider everything as a loss
because of the supreme good of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.
For his sake I have accepted the loss of all things
and I consider them so much rubbish,
that I may gain Christ and be found in him,
not having any righteousness of my own based on the law
but that which comes through faith in Christ,
the righteousness from God,
depending on faith to know him and the power of his resurrection
and the sharing of his sufferings by being conformed to his death,
if somehow I may attain the resurrection from the dead.
It is not that I have already taken hold of it
or have already attained perfect maturity,
but I continue my pursuit in hope that I may possess it,
since I have indeed been taken possession of by Christ Jesus.
Brothers and sisters, I for my part
do not consider myself to have taken possession.
Just one thing: forgetting what lies behind
but straining forward to what lies ahead,
I continue my pursuit toward the goal,
the prize of God's upward calling, in Christ Jesus.
RESPONSORIAL PSALM
Psalm 1:1-2. 3. 4 and 6
R. (40:5a) Blessed are they who hope in the Lord.
or:
R. (2a) Blessed are they who delight in the law of the Lord.
or:
R. (92:13-14) The just will flourish like the palm tree in the garden of the Lord.
Blessed the man who follows not
the counsel of the wicked
Nor walks in the way of sinners,
nor sits in the company of the insolent,
But delights in the law of the LORD
and meditates on his law day and night.
R. Blessed are they who hope in the Lord.
or:
R. Blessed are they who delight in the law of the Lord.
or:
R. The just will flourish like the palm tree in the garden of the Lord.
He is like a tree
planted near running water,
That yields its fruit in due season,
and whose leaves never fade.
Whatever he does, prospers.
R. Blessed are they who hope in the Lord.
or:
R. Blessed are they who delight in the law of the Lord.
or:
R. The just will flourish like the palm tree in the garden of the Lord.
Not so, the wicked, not so;
they are like chaff which the wind drives away.
For the LORD watches over the way of the just,
but the way of the wicked vanishes.
R. Blessed are they who hope in the Lord.
or:
R. Blessed are they who delight in the law of the Lord.
or:
R. The just will flourish like the palm tree in the garden of the Lord.
GOSPEL
Luke 9:57-62
As Jesus and his disciples were proceeding
on their journey
someone said to him, "I will follow you wherever you go."
Jesus answered him,
"Foxes have dens and birds of the sky have nests,
but the Son of Man has nowhere to rest his head."
And to another he said, "Follow me."
But he replied, "Lord, let me go first and bury my father."
But he answered him, "Let the dead bury their dead.
But you, go and proclaim the Kingdom of God."
And another said, "I will follow you, Lord,
but first let me say farewell to my family at home."
He said, "No one who sets a hand to the plow
and looks to what was left behind is fit for the Kingdom of God."
Back to Memorial Bench
Sunday, October 4, 2009
Twenty-seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time
140B Twenty-seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time
Catechism Links
CCC 1602-1617, 1643-1651, 2331-2336: conjugal fidelity
CCC 2331-2336: divorce
CCC 1832: fidelity, a fruit of Spirit
CCC 2044, 2147, 2156, 2223, 2787: the fidelity of the baptized
CCC Cross Reference:
Gn 2:18-25 1605; Gn 2:18 371, 1652; Gn 2:19-20 371, 2417; Gn 2:22 369, 1607; Gn 2:23 371; Gn 2:24 372, 1627, 1644, 2335
Heb 2:9 624, 629; Heb 2:10 609
Mk 10:8 1627; Mk 10:9 1639, 2364, 2382; Mk 10:11-12 1650; Mk 10:11 2380; Mk 10:14 343, 1261; Mk 10:16 699
Back to Servant of the Word ‘09
Back to SOW II '12
Back to SOW II '15
Back to SOW II '18
Back to SOW II '21
Reading 1:
Gn 2:18-24
The LORD God said: "It is not good for the man to be alone.
I will make a suitable partner for him."
So the LORD God formed out of the ground
various wild animals and various birds of the air,
and he brought them to the man to see what he would call them;
whatever the man called each of them would be its name.
The man gave names to all the cattle,
all the birds of the air, and all wild animals;
but none proved to be the suitable partner for the man.
So the LORD God cast a deep sleep on the man,
and while he was asleep,
he took out one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh.
The LORD God then built up into a woman the rib
that he had taken from the man.
When he brought her to the man, the man said:
"This one, at last, is bone of my bones
and flesh of my flesh;
this one shall be called 'woman, '
for out of 'her man’ this one has been taken."
That is why a man leaves his father and mother
and clings to his wife,
and the two of them become one flesh.
Responsorial Psalm:
Ps 128:1-2, 3, 4-5, 6
R. (cf. 5) May the Lord bless us all the days of our lives.
Blessed are you who fear the LORD,
who walk in his ways!
For you shall eat the fruit of your handiwork;
blessed shall you be, and favored.
R. May the Lord bless us all the days of our lives.
Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine
in the recesses of your home;
your children like olive plants
around your table.
R. May the Lord bless us all the days of our lives.
Behold, thus is the man blessed
who fears the LORD.
The LORD bless you from Zion:
may you see the prosperity of Jerusalem
all the days of your life.
R. May the Lord bless us all the days of our lives.
May you see your children's children.
Peace be upon Israel!
R. May the Lord bless us all the days of our lives.
Reading II:
Heb 2:9-11
Brothers and sisters:
He "for a little while" was made "lower than the angels, "
that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.
For it was fitting that he,
for whom and through whom all things exist,
in bringing many children to glory,
should make the leader to their salvation perfect through suffering.
He who consecrates and those who are being consecrated
all have one origin.
Therefore, he is not ashamed to call them “brothers.”
Gospel
A Longer Form:
Mk 10:2-16 or
The Pharisees approached Jesus and asked,
"Is it lawful for a husband to divorce his wife?"
They were testing him.
He said to them in reply, "What did Moses command you?"
They replied,
"Moses permitted a husband to write a bill of divorce
and dismiss her."
But Jesus told them,
"Because of the hardness of your hearts
he wrote you this commandment.
But from the beginning of creation, God made them male and female.
For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother
and be joined to his wife,
and the two shall become one flesh.
So they are no longer two but one flesh.
Therefore what God has joined together,
no human being must separate."
In the house the disciples again questioned Jesus about this.
He said to them,
"Whoever divorces his wife and marries another
commits adultery against her;
and if she divorces her husband and marries another,
she commits adultery."
And people were bringing children to him that he might touch them,
but the disciples rebuked them.
When Jesus saw this he became indignant and said to them,
"Let the children come to me;
do not prevent them, for the kingdom of God belongs to
such as these.
Amen, I say to you,
whoever does not accept the kingdom of God like a child
will not enter it."
Then he embraced them and blessed them,
placing his hands on them.
OR
B Shorter Form:
Mk 10:2-12
The Pharisees approached Jesus and asked,
"Is it lawful for a husband to divorce his wife?"
They were testing him.
He said to them in reply, "What did Moses command you?"
They replied,
"Moses permitted a husband to write a bill of divorce
and dismiss her."
But Jesus told them,
"Because of the hardness of your hearts
he wrote you this commandment.
But from the beginning of creation, God made them male and female.
For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother
and be joined to his wife,
and the two shall become one flesh.
So they are no longer two but one flesh.
Therefore what God has joined together,
no human being must separate."
In the house the disciples again questioned Jesus about this.
He said to them,
"Whoever divorces his wife and marries another
commits adultery against her;
and if she divorces her husband and marries another,
she commits adultery."
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
First reading Genesis 2:18-24
The Lord God said, ‘It is not good that the man should be alone. I will make him a helpmate.’ So from the soil the Lord God fashioned all the wild beasts and all the birds of heaven. These he brought to the man to see what he would call them; each one was to bear the name the man would give it. The man gave names to all the cattle, all the birds of heaven and all the wild beasts. But no helpmate suitable for man was found for him. So the Lord God made the man fall into a deep sleep. And while he slept, he took one of his ribs and enclosed it in flesh. The Lord God built the rib he had taken from the man into a woman, and brought her to the man. The man exclaimed:
‘This at last is bone from my bones,
and flesh from my flesh!
This is to be called woman,
for this was taken from man.’
This is why a man leaves his father and mother and joins himself to his wife, and they become one body.
Responsorial Psalm:
Psalm 127(128):1-5
Second reading Hebrews 2:9-11
We see in Jesus one who was for a short while made lower than the angels and is now crowned with glory and splendour because he submitted to death; by God’s grace he had to experience death for all mankind.
As it was his purpose to bring a great many of his sons into glory, it was appropriate that God, for whom everything exists and through whom everything exists, should make perfect, through suffering, the leader who would take them to their salvation. For the one who sanctifies, and the ones who are sanctified, are of the same stock; that is why he openly calls them brothers.
Gospel Mark 10:2-16
Some Pharisees approached Jesus and asked, ‘Is it against the law for a man to divorce his wife?’ They were testing him. He answered them, ‘What did Moses command you?’ ‘Moses allowed us’ they said ‘to draw up a writ of dismissal and so to divorce.’ Then Jesus said to them, ‘It was because you were so unteachable that he wrote this commandment for you. But from the beginning of creation God made them male and female. This is why a man must leave father and mother, and the two become one body. They are no longer two, therefore, but one body. So then, what God has united, man must not divide.’ Back in the house the disciples questioned him again about this, and he said to them, ‘The man who divorces his wife and marries another is guilty of adultery against her. And if a woman divorces her husband and marries another she is guilty of adultery too.’
People were bringing little children to him, for him to touch them. The disciples turned them away, but when Jesus saw this he was indignant and said to them, ‘Let the little children come to me; do not stop them; for it is to such as these that the kingdom of God belongs. I tell you solemnly, anyone who does not welcome the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.’ Then he put his arms round them, laid his hands on them and gave them his blessing.
Alternative gospel Mark 10:2-12
Some Pharisees approached Jesus and asked, ‘Is it against the law for a man to divorce his wife?’ They were testing him. He answered them, ‘What did Moses command you?’ ‘Moses allowed us’ they said ‘to draw up a writ of dismissal and so to divorce.’ Then Jesus said to them, ‘It was because you were so unteachable that he wrote this commandment for you. But from the beginning of creation God made them male and female. This is why a man must leave father and mother, and the two become one body. They are no longer two, therefore, but one body. So then, what God has united, man must not divide.’ Back in the house the disciples questioned him again about this, and he said to them, ‘The man who divorces his wife and marries another is guilty of adultery against her. And if a woman divorces her husband and marries another she is guilty of adultery too.’
Readings and Commentary from the Navarre Bible
27th Sunday in Ordinary Time
From: Genesis 2:7ab, 15b, 18-24
The Creation of Adam
--------------------------------
[7ab] then the Lord God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; [15b] and put him in the garden of Eden to till it and keep it.
The Creation of Eve
-----------------------------
[18] Then the Lord God said, "It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him." [19] So out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field and every bird of the air, and brought them to the man to see what he would call them; and whatever the man called every living creature, that was its name. [20] The man gave names to all, cattle, and to the birds of the air, and to every beast of the field; but for the man there was not found a helper fit for him. [21] So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and while he slept took one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh; [22] and the rib which the Lord God had taken from the man he made into a woman and brought her to the man. [23] Then the man said, "This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man." [24] Therefore a man leaves his father and his mother and cleaves to his wife, and they become one flesh.
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Commentary:
2:7. As far as his body is concerned, man belongs to the earth. To affirm this, the sacred writer must have been always conscious of the fact that when a person dies, his/her body will turn into dust, as Genesis 3:19 will in due course tell us. Or it may be that this sort of account (a special one like the literary genre of all these chapters) is based on the similarity between the word "adam", which means man in general, and "adamah", which means "reddish soil"; and given that the words look alike, the sacred writer may have drawn the conclusion that there is in fact a connection between the two very things (unsophisticated etymology goes in for this sort of thing). But the fact that man belongs to the earth is not his most characteristic feature: as the author sees it, animals too are made up of the stuff of the earth. What makes man different is the fact that he receives his life from God. Life is depicted here in terms of breathing, because only living animals: breathe. The fact that God infuses life into man in this way means that although man on account of his corporeal nature is material, his existence as a living being comes directly from God, that is, it is animated by a vital principle --the soul or the spirit--which does not derive from the earth. This principle of life received from God also endows man's body with its own dignity and puts it on a higher level than that of animals.
God is portrayed as a potter who models man's body in clay; this means that man is supposed to live in accordance with a source of life that is higher than that deriving from matter The image of God as a potter shows that man (all of him) is in God's hands just like clay in a potter's hands; he should not resist or oppose God's will (cf Is 29:16; Jer 18:6; Rom 9:20-21).
2:18-24. God continues to take care of man, his creature. The sacred writer conveys this by means of a human metaphor, depicting God as a potter who realizes his creation is not yet perfect. The creation of the human being is not yet over: he needs to be able to live in a full and deep union with another of his kind. The animals were also created by God, but they cannot provide complete companionship. So God creates woman, giving her the same body as man. From now on it is possible for the human being to communicate. The creation of woman, therefore, marks the climax of God's love for the human being he created.
This passage also shows us man's interiority: he is aware of his own aloneness. Although here loneliness is more a possibility and a fear rather than a real situation, we are being told that it is through awareness of being alone that man can appreciate the benefit of communion with others.
2:19-20. Like man, animals are created out of matter, but they are not said to have received from God the breath of life. Only man is given the breath of life, and this is what makes him essentially different from animals: man has a form of life given him directly by God; that is to say, he is animated by a spiritual principle which enables him to converse with God and to have real communion with other human beings. We call this "soul" or "spirit". It makes man more akin to God than to animals, even though the human body is made from the earth and belongs to the earth just as an animal's body does (cf. the notes on 1:26 and 2:7).
"The unity of soul and body is so profound that one has to consider the soul to be the 'form' of the body (cf. Council of Vienne, "Fidei Catholicae"): that is, it is because of its spiritual soul that the body made of matter becomes a living, human body; spirit and matter, in man, are not two natures united, but rather their union forms a single nature" ("Catechism of the Catholic Church", 365).
2:21-22. This sleep is a kind of death; it is as if God suspended the life he gave man, in order to re-shape him so that he can begin to live again in another way --by being two, man and woman, and no longer alone. By describing the creation of woman as coming from one of Adam's ribs, the sacred writer is saying that, contrary to people's thinking at the time, man and woman have the same nature and the same dignity, for both have come from the same piece of clay that God shaped and made into a living being. The Bible is also explaining the mutual attraction man and woman have for one another.
2.23 When man--now in the sense of the male human being--recognizes woman as a person who is his equal, someone who has the same nature as himself, he discovers in her the fit "helper" God wanted him to have. Now indeed the creation of the human being is complete, having become "man becomes the image of God not so much in the moment of solitude as in the moment of communion" (Bl. John Paul II, General Audience, 4 November 1979).
The first man's acclaim for the first woman shows the capacity both have to associate intimately in marriage. Man's attitude to woman as it comes across here is that of husband to wife. "In his wife he sees the fulfillment of God's intention: 'It not good that the man should he alone; will make him a helper fit for him,' and he makes his own the cry of Adam, the first husband: 'This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh.' Authentic conjugal love presupposes and requires that a man have a profound respect for the equal dignity of his wife: 'You are not her master,' writes St Ambrose ("Hexaemeron", 5, 7, 19) 'but her husband; she was not given to you to be your slave, but your wife [...]. Reciprocate her attentiveness to you and be grateful to her for her love"' (Bl. John Paul II, "Familiaris Consortio", 25).
2:24. These words are a comment by the sacred writer in which, having told the story of the creation of woman, he depicts the institution of marriage as something established by God at the time when human life began. As Bl. John Paul II explains, "this conjugal communion sinks its roots in the natural complementarity that exists between man and woman, and is nurtured through the personal willingness of the spouses to share their entire life-project, what they have and what they are: for this reason such communion is the fruit and the sign of a profoundly human need" ("Farniliaris Consortio", 19).
By joining in marriage, man and woman form a family. Even the earliest translations of the Bible (Greek and Aramaic), interpreted this passage as meaning "the two will become one flesh", thereby indicating that marriage as willed by God was monogamous. Jesus also referred to this passage about the origin of man to teach the indissolubility of marriage, drawing the conclusion that "what God has joined together, let no man put asunder" (Mt 19:5 and par.) The Church teaches the same: "The intimate partnership of life and the love which constitutes the married state has been established by the Creator and endowed by him with its own proper laws: it is rooted in the contract of its partners, that is, in their irrevocable personal consent. It is an institution confirmed by the divine law and receiving its stability, even in the eyes of society, from the human act by which the partners mutually surrender themselves to each other; for the good of the partners, of the children, and of society this sacred bond no longer depends on human decision alone. For God himself is the author of marriage and has endowed it with various benefits and with various ends in view" (Vatican II, "Gaudium Et Spes", 48,).
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From: Hebrews 2:9-11
Jesus, Man's Brother, was Crowned with Glory and Honor Above the Angel
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[9] But we see Jesus, who for a little while was made lower than the angels, crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for every one.
[10] For it was fitting that he, for whom and by whom all things exist, in bringing many sons to glory should make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through suffering. [11] For he who sanctifies and those who are sanctified have all one origin. That is why he is not ashamed to call them brethren.
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Commentary:
9. The words "who for a little while was made lower than the angels" refer to Jesus in the crisis of his Passion and Death, when he freely humbled himself and lowered himself to suffer punishment and death -- sufferings to which angels are not subject.
"For a little while" is a translation of the Greek word which the New Vulgate renders as "paulo minus" (a little less than), and which also occurs in Hebrews 2:7 in the quotation from Psalm 8. The RSV translation in both instances is "for a little while".
Every human creature, including Christ as man, can be seen in some sense as lower than the angels. This inferiority basically has to do with the fact that human knowledge is inferior to that of angels because it is dependent on sense experience, and also because angels cannot experience suffering and death. "The angels cannot suffer and are immortal by nature, so that when Christ deigned to submit to his passion and death he made himself lower than them, not because he lost his sublimity or in any way was diminished, but because he took on our weakness. He made himself lower than the angels, not as far as his divinity or his soul were concerned but only in respect of his body" ("Commentary on Heb.", 2, 2).
Christ's self-abasement is a permanent example to us to strive to respond to his love. St John Chrysostom suggests that we draw from it this practical lesson: "If he whom the angels worship consented, out of love for us, to become for a time lower than them, you for your part should endure everything out of love for him" ("Hom. on Heb.", 4).
One result of Christ's passion was his exaltation and glorification. Because Christ attained victory on the Cross, to the benefit of all mankind, the Cross is the only route to heaven: "The holy cross is shining upon us", the Church says. "In the cross is victory, in the cross is power. By the cross every sin is overcome" ("Liturgy of the Hours", Exaltation of the Cross, Morning Prayer, Ant. 3). But virtue of Christ's passion, the Cross is no longer an ignominious scaffold; it is a glorious throne. Tradition attributes to St Andrew the Apostle these words in praise of the cross on which he was going to die: "O goodly Cross, glorified by the limbs of our Lord, O Cross so long desired, so ardently loved, so tirelessly sought and now offered to me: take me to my Master so that he who redeemed me through thee, may welcome me through thee" ("Ex Passione S. Andreae", Reading).
Through his death, Christ has been crowned with glory and honor; moreover he has died on our behalf. His death and glorification are the cause and model of our salvation and glorification. Sacrifice, atonement and merit are indissolubly linked to the redemptive work of Christ and constitute a "grace of God", that is, a gratuitous gift from God. St Thomas Aquinas explains that "the passion of Christ is here alluded to in three ways. Firstly, its cause is referred to, for the text says 'by the grace of God'; then, its usefulness, when it says 'for every one'; thirdly, its outcome, when it says 'might taste"' ("Commentary on Heb.", 2, 3): Jesus did indeed, by the will of the Father, experience or "taste" death. His death is described as being like a bitter drink which he chose to take in sips, as if savoring it. The "cup" or chalice of the agony in the garden comes immediately to mind (cf. Mt 26:39; Mk 14:26; Lk 22:42; In 18:11; cf. also Mt 20:22f and Mk 10:38f).
Christian tradition has seen these words about "tasting death" as underlining that Christ underwent a most severe passion voluntarily, accepting it to atone for all the sins of mankind. These words also show that he accepted death without ceasing to be Lord of life: "This expression", St John Chrysostom states, "is very precise. It does not say 'that by the grace of God he might die', for the Lord once he tasted death delayed there only for a moment and immediately rose [...]. All men fear death; therefore, to enable us to take death in our stride, he tasted death even though it was not necessary for him to do so" ("Hom. on Heb.", 4).
10. After pointing to the results of Christ's death, the text stresses how appropriate it was that he should be abased in this way: he had to make himself in every way like his brethren in order to help them.
God the Father, who is the beginning and end of all things, desired to bring men to glory by means of his Son. Christ was to be the author of their salvation and therefore it was fitting that he should be made perfect through suffering. The Father made his Son "perfect" in the sense that by becoming man and therefore being able to suffer and die, he was fully equipped to be mankind's representative. "God has acted in a manner in keeping with his kindness towards us: he has clothed his first-born in a glory greater than that of all mankind and made him outstanding as a champion. Suffering is, therefore, a way to attain perfection and a source of salvation" ("Hom. on Heb.", 4). By perfectly obeying his Father, offering his life and especially his passion and death, Christ offers a perfect and superabundant sacrifice for the forgiveness of the sins of mankind and makes full atonement to the Father. As a reward for his obedience, Christ, as man, is made Head of the Church and King of the universe. It is in that sense that he is made "perfect" by the Father.
Ever since the Redemption, human suffering has become a way to perfection: it acts as expiation for personal sins, it spurs man to assert his spiritual and transcendental dimension, it makes for solidarity with others and links man to Christ's sacrifice. "Suffering must serve for conversion, that is, for the rebuilding of goodness in the subject, who can recognize the divine mercy in this call to repentance [...] . But in order to perceive the true answer to the 'why' of suffering, we must look to the revelation of divine love, the ultimate source of the meaning of everything that exists [...]. Christ causes us to enter into the mystery and to discover the 'why' of suffering, as far as we are capable of grasping the sublimity of divine love" (Bl. John Paul II, "Salvifici Doloris", 12-13).
11. To accomplish the salvation of men Christ needed to be one of them – to share, with them, a human nature. This is why Christ is the only "true sanctifier", that is, the priest who performs rites and sacrifices, taking things stained by sin and making them pure and pleasing to God, that is, holy. Our Lord said something similar in the Gospel: "For their sake I consecrate myself, that they also may be consecrated in truth" (In 17:19).
"Have all one origin". Various interpretations have been given to these words. Most have to do with the parallelism between the first man and Christ (cf. Acts 17:26; Rom 5:15-19), seeing this "origin" as Adam -- in which case the text would mean that Christ and other men are children of Adam. A more usual interpretation sees the "one" origin as being God, thus stressing that Christ's holy humanity and the humanity of men both stem from the one Creator and derive from the first man. In either case, Christ and the rest of men can rightly be called "brethren". "As to his divine generation he has no brethren or co-heirs, the onlybegotten Son of the Father, while we mortals are the work of his hands. But if we consider his birth as man, he not only calls many by the name of brethren, but treats them as such, since he admits them to share with him the glory of his paternal inheritance" ("St Pius V Catechism", I, 3, 10).
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From: Mark 10:2-16
The Indissolubility of Marriage
-------------------------------------------
[2] And Pharisees came up and in order to test Him asked, "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?" [3] He answered them, "What did Moses command you?" [4] They said, "Moses allowed a man to write a certificate of divorce, and to put her away." [5] But Jesus said to them, "For your hardness of heart he wrote this commandment. [6] But from the beginning of creation, 'God made them male and female.'; [7] 'For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, [8] and the two shall become one.' So they are no longer two but one. [9] What therefore God has joined together, let not man put asunder."
[10] And in the house the disciples asked Him about this matter. [11] And He said to them, "Whoever divorces his wife and marries another, commits adultery against her; [12] and if she divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery."
Jesus and the Children
---------------------------------
[13] And they were bringing children to Him, that He might touch them; and the disciples rebuked them. [14] But when Jesus saw it He was indignant, and said to them, "Let the children come to Me, do not hinder them; for to such belongs the Kingdom of God. [15] Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the Kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it." [16] And He took them in His arms and blessed them, laying His hands upon them.
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Commentary:
1-12. This kind of scene occurs often in the Gospel. The malice of the Pharisees contrasts with the simplicity of the crowd, who listen attentively to Jesus' teaching. The Pharisees' question aimed at tricking Jesus into going against the Law of Moses. But Jesus Christ, Messiah and Son of God, has perfect understanding of that Law. Moses had permitted divorce because of the hardness of that ancient people: women had an ignominious position in those primitive tribes (they were regarded almost as animals or slaves); Moses, therefore, protected women's dignity against these abuses by devising the certificate of divorce; this was a real social advance. It was a document by which the husband repudiated his wife and she obtained freedom. Jesus restores to its original purity the dignity of man and woman in marriage, as instituted by God at the beginning of creation. "A man leaves his father and his mother and cleaves to his wife, and they become one flesh" (Genesis 2:24): in this way God established from the very beginning the unity and indissolubility of marriage. The Church's Magisterium, the only authorized interpreter of the Gospel and of the natural law, has constantly guarded and defended this teaching and has proclaimed it solemnly in countless documents (Council of Florence, "Pro Armeniis"; Council of Trent, "De Sacram. Matr."; Pius XI, "Casti Connubii"; Vatican II, "Gaudium Et Spes", 48; etc.).
Here is a good summary of this doctrine: "The indissolubility of marriage is not a caprice of the Church nor is it merely a positive ecclesiastical law. It is a precept of natural law, of divine law, and responds perfectly to our nature and to the supernatural order of grace" (St. J. Escriva, "Conversations", 97). Cf. note on Matthew 5:31-32.
5-9. When a Christian realizes that this teaching applies to everyone at all times, he should not be afraid of people reacting against it: "It is a fundamental duty of the Church to reaffirm strongly [...] the doctrine of the indissolubility of marriage. To all those who, in our times, consider it too difficult, or indeed impossible, to be bound to one person for the whole of life, and to those caught up in a culture that rejects the indissolubility of marriage and openly mocks the commitment of spouses to fidelity, it is necessary to reaffirm the good news of the definitive nature of that conjugal love that has in Christ its foundation and strength (cf. Ephesians 5:25).
"Being rooted in the personal and total self-giving of the couple, and being required by the good of the children, the indissolubility of marriage finds its ultimate truth in the plan that God has manifested in His revelation: He wills and He communicates the indissolubility of marriage as a fruit, a sign and a requirement of the absolutely faithful love that God has for man and that the Lord Jesus has for the Church.
"Christ renews the first plan that the Creator inscribed in the hearts of man and woman, and in the celebration of the sacrament of matrimony offers 'a new heart': thus the couples are not only able to overcome 'hardness of heart' (Matthew 19: 8), but also and above all they are able to share the full and definitive love of Christ, the new and eternal Covenant made flesh. Just as the Lord Jesus is the 'faithful witness' (Revelation 3:14), the 'yes' of the promises of God (cf. 2 Corinthians 1:20) and thus the supreme realization of the unconditional faithfulness with which God loves His people, so Christian couples are called to participate truly in the irrevocable indissolubility that binds Christ to the Church, His bride, loved by Him to the end (cf. John 13:1).
"To bear witness to the inestimable value of the indissolubility and fidelity of marriage is one of the most precious and most urgent tasks of Christian couples in our time" (Bl. John Paul II, "Familiaris Consortio", 20).
13-16. This Gospel account has an attractive freshness and vividness about it which may be connected with St. Peter, from whom St. Mark would have taken the story. It is one of the few occasions when the Gospels tell us that Christ became angry. What provoked His anger was the disciples' intolerance: they felt that these people bringing children to Jesus were a nuisance: it meant a waste of His time; Christ had more serious things to do than be involved with little children. The disciples were well-intentioned; it was just that they were applying the wrong criteria. What Jesus had told them quite recently had not registered: "Whoever receives one such child in My name receives Me; and whoever receives Me, receives not Me but Him who sent Me" (Mark 9:37).
Our Lord also stresses that a Christian has to become like a child to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. "To be little you have to believe as children believe, to love as children love, to abandon yourself as children do..., to pray as children pray" (St. J. Escriva, "Holy Rosary", Prologue).
Our Lord's words express simply and graphically the key doctrine of man's divine sonship: God is our Father and we are His sons and daughters, His children; the whole of religion is summed up in the relationship of a son with His good Father. This awareness of God as Father involves a sense of dependence on our Father in Heaven and trusting abandonment to His loving providence--in the way a child trusts its father or mother; the humility of recognizing that we can do nothing by ourselves; simplicity and sincerity, which make us straightforward and honest in our dealings with God and man.
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Source: "The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries". Biblical text from theRevised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.
Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and by Scepter Publishers in the United States. We encourage readers to purchase The Navarre Bible for personal study. See Scepter Publishers for details.
Catechism Links
CCC 1602-1617, 1643-1651, 2331-2336: conjugal fidelity
CCC 2331-2336: divorce
CCC 1832: fidelity, a fruit of Spirit
CCC 2044, 2147, 2156, 2223, 2787: the fidelity of the baptized
CCC Cross Reference:
Gn 2:18-25 1605; Gn 2:18 371, 1652; Gn 2:19-20 371, 2417; Gn 2:22 369, 1607; Gn 2:23 371; Gn 2:24 372, 1627, 1644, 2335
Heb 2:9 624, 629; Heb 2:10 609
Mk 10:8 1627; Mk 10:9 1639, 2364, 2382; Mk 10:11-12 1650; Mk 10:11 2380; Mk 10:14 343, 1261; Mk 10:16 699
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Back to SOW II '24 Not the homily I gave.
Reading 1:
Gn 2:18-24
The LORD God said: "It is not good for the man to be alone.
I will make a suitable partner for him."
So the LORD God formed out of the ground
various wild animals and various birds of the air,
and he brought them to the man to see what he would call them;
whatever the man called each of them would be its name.
The man gave names to all the cattle,
all the birds of the air, and all wild animals;
but none proved to be the suitable partner for the man.
So the LORD God cast a deep sleep on the man,
and while he was asleep,
he took out one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh.
The LORD God then built up into a woman the rib
that he had taken from the man.
When he brought her to the man, the man said:
"This one, at last, is bone of my bones
and flesh of my flesh;
this one shall be called 'woman, '
for out of 'her man’ this one has been taken."
That is why a man leaves his father and mother
and clings to his wife,
and the two of them become one flesh.
Responsorial Psalm:
Ps 128:1-2, 3, 4-5, 6
R. (cf. 5) May the Lord bless us all the days of our lives.
Blessed are you who fear the LORD,
who walk in his ways!
For you shall eat the fruit of your handiwork;
blessed shall you be, and favored.
R. May the Lord bless us all the days of our lives.
Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine
in the recesses of your home;
your children like olive plants
around your table.
R. May the Lord bless us all the days of our lives.
Behold, thus is the man blessed
who fears the LORD.
The LORD bless you from Zion:
may you see the prosperity of Jerusalem
all the days of your life.
R. May the Lord bless us all the days of our lives.
May you see your children's children.
Peace be upon Israel!
R. May the Lord bless us all the days of our lives.
Reading II:
Heb 2:9-11
Brothers and sisters:
He "for a little while" was made "lower than the angels, "
that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.
For it was fitting that he,
for whom and through whom all things exist,
in bringing many children to glory,
should make the leader to their salvation perfect through suffering.
He who consecrates and those who are being consecrated
all have one origin.
Therefore, he is not ashamed to call them “brothers.”
Gospel
A Longer Form:
Mk 10:2-16 or
The Pharisees approached Jesus and asked,
"Is it lawful for a husband to divorce his wife?"
They were testing him.
He said to them in reply, "What did Moses command you?"
They replied,
"Moses permitted a husband to write a bill of divorce
and dismiss her."
But Jesus told them,
"Because of the hardness of your hearts
he wrote you this commandment.
But from the beginning of creation, God made them male and female.
For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother
and be joined to his wife,
and the two shall become one flesh.
So they are no longer two but one flesh.
Therefore what God has joined together,
no human being must separate."
In the house the disciples again questioned Jesus about this.
He said to them,
"Whoever divorces his wife and marries another
commits adultery against her;
and if she divorces her husband and marries another,
she commits adultery."
And people were bringing children to him that he might touch them,
but the disciples rebuked them.
When Jesus saw this he became indignant and said to them,
"Let the children come to me;
do not prevent them, for the kingdom of God belongs to
such as these.
Amen, I say to you,
whoever does not accept the kingdom of God like a child
will not enter it."
Then he embraced them and blessed them,
placing his hands on them.
OR
B Shorter Form:
Mk 10:2-12
The Pharisees approached Jesus and asked,
"Is it lawful for a husband to divorce his wife?"
They were testing him.
He said to them in reply, "What did Moses command you?"
They replied,
"Moses permitted a husband to write a bill of divorce
and dismiss her."
But Jesus told them,
"Because of the hardness of your hearts
he wrote you this commandment.
But from the beginning of creation, God made them male and female.
For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother
and be joined to his wife,
and the two shall become one flesh.
So they are no longer two but one flesh.
Therefore what God has joined together,
no human being must separate."
In the house the disciples again questioned Jesus about this.
He said to them,
"Whoever divorces his wife and marries another
commits adultery against her;
and if she divorces her husband and marries another,
she commits adultery."
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
First reading Genesis 2:18-24
The Lord God said, ‘It is not good that the man should be alone. I will make him a helpmate.’ So from the soil the Lord God fashioned all the wild beasts and all the birds of heaven. These he brought to the man to see what he would call them; each one was to bear the name the man would give it. The man gave names to all the cattle, all the birds of heaven and all the wild beasts. But no helpmate suitable for man was found for him. So the Lord God made the man fall into a deep sleep. And while he slept, he took one of his ribs and enclosed it in flesh. The Lord God built the rib he had taken from the man into a woman, and brought her to the man. The man exclaimed:
‘This at last is bone from my bones,
and flesh from my flesh!
This is to be called woman,
for this was taken from man.’
This is why a man leaves his father and mother and joins himself to his wife, and they become one body.
Responsorial Psalm:
Psalm 127(128):1-5
May the Lord bless us all the days of our life.
O blessed are those who fear the Lord
and walk in his ways!
By the labour of your hands you shall eat.
You will be happy and prosper.
May the Lord bless us all the days of our life.
Your wife like a fruitful vine
in the heart of your house;
your children like shoots of the olive,
around your table.
May the Lord bless us all the days of our life.
Indeed thus shall be blessed
the man who fears the Lord.
May the Lord bless you from Zion
all the days of your life!
May you see your children’s children
in a happy Jerusalem!
On Israel, peace!
May the Lord bless us all the days of our life.
Second reading Hebrews 2:9-11
We see in Jesus one who was for a short while made lower than the angels and is now crowned with glory and splendour because he submitted to death; by God’s grace he had to experience death for all mankind.
As it was his purpose to bring a great many of his sons into glory, it was appropriate that God, for whom everything exists and through whom everything exists, should make perfect, through suffering, the leader who would take them to their salvation. For the one who sanctifies, and the ones who are sanctified, are of the same stock; that is why he openly calls them brothers.
Gospel Mark 10:2-16
Some Pharisees approached Jesus and asked, ‘Is it against the law for a man to divorce his wife?’ They were testing him. He answered them, ‘What did Moses command you?’ ‘Moses allowed us’ they said ‘to draw up a writ of dismissal and so to divorce.’ Then Jesus said to them, ‘It was because you were so unteachable that he wrote this commandment for you. But from the beginning of creation God made them male and female. This is why a man must leave father and mother, and the two become one body. They are no longer two, therefore, but one body. So then, what God has united, man must not divide.’ Back in the house the disciples questioned him again about this, and he said to them, ‘The man who divorces his wife and marries another is guilty of adultery against her. And if a woman divorces her husband and marries another she is guilty of adultery too.’
People were bringing little children to him, for him to touch them. The disciples turned them away, but when Jesus saw this he was indignant and said to them, ‘Let the little children come to me; do not stop them; for it is to such as these that the kingdom of God belongs. I tell you solemnly, anyone who does not welcome the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.’ Then he put his arms round them, laid his hands on them and gave them his blessing.
Alternative gospel Mark 10:2-12
Some Pharisees approached Jesus and asked, ‘Is it against the law for a man to divorce his wife?’ They were testing him. He answered them, ‘What did Moses command you?’ ‘Moses allowed us’ they said ‘to draw up a writ of dismissal and so to divorce.’ Then Jesus said to them, ‘It was because you were so unteachable that he wrote this commandment for you. But from the beginning of creation God made them male and female. This is why a man must leave father and mother, and the two become one body. They are no longer two, therefore, but one body. So then, what God has united, man must not divide.’ Back in the house the disciples questioned him again about this, and he said to them, ‘The man who divorces his wife and marries another is guilty of adultery against her. And if a woman divorces her husband and marries another she is guilty of adultery too.’
Readings and Commentary from the Navarre Bible
27th Sunday in Ordinary Time
From: Genesis 2:7ab, 15b, 18-24
The Creation of Adam
--------------------------------
[7ab] then the Lord God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; [15b] and put him in the garden of Eden to till it and keep it.
The Creation of Eve
-----------------------------
[18] Then the Lord God said, "It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him." [19] So out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field and every bird of the air, and brought them to the man to see what he would call them; and whatever the man called every living creature, that was its name. [20] The man gave names to all, cattle, and to the birds of the air, and to every beast of the field; but for the man there was not found a helper fit for him. [21] So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and while he slept took one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh; [22] and the rib which the Lord God had taken from the man he made into a woman and brought her to the man. [23] Then the man said, "This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man." [24] Therefore a man leaves his father and his mother and cleaves to his wife, and they become one flesh.
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Commentary:
2:7. As far as his body is concerned, man belongs to the earth. To affirm this, the sacred writer must have been always conscious of the fact that when a person dies, his/her body will turn into dust, as Genesis 3:19 will in due course tell us. Or it may be that this sort of account (a special one like the literary genre of all these chapters) is based on the similarity between the word "adam", which means man in general, and "adamah", which means "reddish soil"; and given that the words look alike, the sacred writer may have drawn the conclusion that there is in fact a connection between the two very things (unsophisticated etymology goes in for this sort of thing). But the fact that man belongs to the earth is not his most characteristic feature: as the author sees it, animals too are made up of the stuff of the earth. What makes man different is the fact that he receives his life from God. Life is depicted here in terms of breathing, because only living animals: breathe. The fact that God infuses life into man in this way means that although man on account of his corporeal nature is material, his existence as a living being comes directly from God, that is, it is animated by a vital principle --the soul or the spirit--which does not derive from the earth. This principle of life received from God also endows man's body with its own dignity and puts it on a higher level than that of animals.
God is portrayed as a potter who models man's body in clay; this means that man is supposed to live in accordance with a source of life that is higher than that deriving from matter The image of God as a potter shows that man (all of him) is in God's hands just like clay in a potter's hands; he should not resist or oppose God's will (cf Is 29:16; Jer 18:6; Rom 9:20-21).
2:18-24. God continues to take care of man, his creature. The sacred writer conveys this by means of a human metaphor, depicting God as a potter who realizes his creation is not yet perfect. The creation of the human being is not yet over: he needs to be able to live in a full and deep union with another of his kind. The animals were also created by God, but they cannot provide complete companionship. So God creates woman, giving her the same body as man. From now on it is possible for the human being to communicate. The creation of woman, therefore, marks the climax of God's love for the human being he created.
This passage also shows us man's interiority: he is aware of his own aloneness. Although here loneliness is more a possibility and a fear rather than a real situation, we are being told that it is through awareness of being alone that man can appreciate the benefit of communion with others.
2:19-20. Like man, animals are created out of matter, but they are not said to have received from God the breath of life. Only man is given the breath of life, and this is what makes him essentially different from animals: man has a form of life given him directly by God; that is to say, he is animated by a spiritual principle which enables him to converse with God and to have real communion with other human beings. We call this "soul" or "spirit". It makes man more akin to God than to animals, even though the human body is made from the earth and belongs to the earth just as an animal's body does (cf. the notes on 1:26 and 2:7).
"The unity of soul and body is so profound that one has to consider the soul to be the 'form' of the body (cf. Council of Vienne, "Fidei Catholicae"): that is, it is because of its spiritual soul that the body made of matter becomes a living, human body; spirit and matter, in man, are not two natures united, but rather their union forms a single nature" ("Catechism of the Catholic Church", 365).
2:21-22. This sleep is a kind of death; it is as if God suspended the life he gave man, in order to re-shape him so that he can begin to live again in another way --by being two, man and woman, and no longer alone. By describing the creation of woman as coming from one of Adam's ribs, the sacred writer is saying that, contrary to people's thinking at the time, man and woman have the same nature and the same dignity, for both have come from the same piece of clay that God shaped and made into a living being. The Bible is also explaining the mutual attraction man and woman have for one another.
2.23 When man--now in the sense of the male human being--recognizes woman as a person who is his equal, someone who has the same nature as himself, he discovers in her the fit "helper" God wanted him to have. Now indeed the creation of the human being is complete, having become "man becomes the image of God not so much in the moment of solitude as in the moment of communion" (Bl. John Paul II, General Audience, 4 November 1979).
The first man's acclaim for the first woman shows the capacity both have to associate intimately in marriage. Man's attitude to woman as it comes across here is that of husband to wife. "In his wife he sees the fulfillment of God's intention: 'It not good that the man should he alone; will make him a helper fit for him,' and he makes his own the cry of Adam, the first husband: 'This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh.' Authentic conjugal love presupposes and requires that a man have a profound respect for the equal dignity of his wife: 'You are not her master,' writes St Ambrose ("Hexaemeron", 5, 7, 19) 'but her husband; she was not given to you to be your slave, but your wife [...]. Reciprocate her attentiveness to you and be grateful to her for her love"' (Bl. John Paul II, "Familiaris Consortio", 25).
2:24. These words are a comment by the sacred writer in which, having told the story of the creation of woman, he depicts the institution of marriage as something established by God at the time when human life began. As Bl. John Paul II explains, "this conjugal communion sinks its roots in the natural complementarity that exists between man and woman, and is nurtured through the personal willingness of the spouses to share their entire life-project, what they have and what they are: for this reason such communion is the fruit and the sign of a profoundly human need" ("Farniliaris Consortio", 19).
By joining in marriage, man and woman form a family. Even the earliest translations of the Bible (Greek and Aramaic), interpreted this passage as meaning "the two will become one flesh", thereby indicating that marriage as willed by God was monogamous. Jesus also referred to this passage about the origin of man to teach the indissolubility of marriage, drawing the conclusion that "what God has joined together, let no man put asunder" (Mt 19:5 and par.) The Church teaches the same: "The intimate partnership of life and the love which constitutes the married state has been established by the Creator and endowed by him with its own proper laws: it is rooted in the contract of its partners, that is, in their irrevocable personal consent. It is an institution confirmed by the divine law and receiving its stability, even in the eyes of society, from the human act by which the partners mutually surrender themselves to each other; for the good of the partners, of the children, and of society this sacred bond no longer depends on human decision alone. For God himself is the author of marriage and has endowed it with various benefits and with various ends in view" (Vatican II, "Gaudium Et Spes", 48,).
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From: Hebrews 2:9-11
Jesus, Man's Brother, was Crowned with Glory and Honor Above the Angel
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[9] But we see Jesus, who for a little while was made lower than the angels, crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for every one.
[10] For it was fitting that he, for whom and by whom all things exist, in bringing many sons to glory should make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through suffering. [11] For he who sanctifies and those who are sanctified have all one origin. That is why he is not ashamed to call them brethren.
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Commentary:
9. The words "who for a little while was made lower than the angels" refer to Jesus in the crisis of his Passion and Death, when he freely humbled himself and lowered himself to suffer punishment and death -- sufferings to which angels are not subject.
"For a little while" is a translation of the Greek word which the New Vulgate renders as "paulo minus" (a little less than), and which also occurs in Hebrews 2:7 in the quotation from Psalm 8. The RSV translation in both instances is "for a little while".
Every human creature, including Christ as man, can be seen in some sense as lower than the angels. This inferiority basically has to do with the fact that human knowledge is inferior to that of angels because it is dependent on sense experience, and also because angels cannot experience suffering and death. "The angels cannot suffer and are immortal by nature, so that when Christ deigned to submit to his passion and death he made himself lower than them, not because he lost his sublimity or in any way was diminished, but because he took on our weakness. He made himself lower than the angels, not as far as his divinity or his soul were concerned but only in respect of his body" ("Commentary on Heb.", 2, 2).
Christ's self-abasement is a permanent example to us to strive to respond to his love. St John Chrysostom suggests that we draw from it this practical lesson: "If he whom the angels worship consented, out of love for us, to become for a time lower than them, you for your part should endure everything out of love for him" ("Hom. on Heb.", 4).
One result of Christ's passion was his exaltation and glorification. Because Christ attained victory on the Cross, to the benefit of all mankind, the Cross is the only route to heaven: "The holy cross is shining upon us", the Church says. "In the cross is victory, in the cross is power. By the cross every sin is overcome" ("Liturgy of the Hours", Exaltation of the Cross, Morning Prayer, Ant. 3). But virtue of Christ's passion, the Cross is no longer an ignominious scaffold; it is a glorious throne. Tradition attributes to St Andrew the Apostle these words in praise of the cross on which he was going to die: "O goodly Cross, glorified by the limbs of our Lord, O Cross so long desired, so ardently loved, so tirelessly sought and now offered to me: take me to my Master so that he who redeemed me through thee, may welcome me through thee" ("Ex Passione S. Andreae", Reading).
Through his death, Christ has been crowned with glory and honor; moreover he has died on our behalf. His death and glorification are the cause and model of our salvation and glorification. Sacrifice, atonement and merit are indissolubly linked to the redemptive work of Christ and constitute a "grace of God", that is, a gratuitous gift from God. St Thomas Aquinas explains that "the passion of Christ is here alluded to in three ways. Firstly, its cause is referred to, for the text says 'by the grace of God'; then, its usefulness, when it says 'for every one'; thirdly, its outcome, when it says 'might taste"' ("Commentary on Heb.", 2, 3): Jesus did indeed, by the will of the Father, experience or "taste" death. His death is described as being like a bitter drink which he chose to take in sips, as if savoring it. The "cup" or chalice of the agony in the garden comes immediately to mind (cf. Mt 26:39; Mk 14:26; Lk 22:42; In 18:11; cf. also Mt 20:22f and Mk 10:38f).
Christian tradition has seen these words about "tasting death" as underlining that Christ underwent a most severe passion voluntarily, accepting it to atone for all the sins of mankind. These words also show that he accepted death without ceasing to be Lord of life: "This expression", St John Chrysostom states, "is very precise. It does not say 'that by the grace of God he might die', for the Lord once he tasted death delayed there only for a moment and immediately rose [...]. All men fear death; therefore, to enable us to take death in our stride, he tasted death even though it was not necessary for him to do so" ("Hom. on Heb.", 4).
10. After pointing to the results of Christ's death, the text stresses how appropriate it was that he should be abased in this way: he had to make himself in every way like his brethren in order to help them.
God the Father, who is the beginning and end of all things, desired to bring men to glory by means of his Son. Christ was to be the author of their salvation and therefore it was fitting that he should be made perfect through suffering. The Father made his Son "perfect" in the sense that by becoming man and therefore being able to suffer and die, he was fully equipped to be mankind's representative. "God has acted in a manner in keeping with his kindness towards us: he has clothed his first-born in a glory greater than that of all mankind and made him outstanding as a champion. Suffering is, therefore, a way to attain perfection and a source of salvation" ("Hom. on Heb.", 4). By perfectly obeying his Father, offering his life and especially his passion and death, Christ offers a perfect and superabundant sacrifice for the forgiveness of the sins of mankind and makes full atonement to the Father. As a reward for his obedience, Christ, as man, is made Head of the Church and King of the universe. It is in that sense that he is made "perfect" by the Father.
Ever since the Redemption, human suffering has become a way to perfection: it acts as expiation for personal sins, it spurs man to assert his spiritual and transcendental dimension, it makes for solidarity with others and links man to Christ's sacrifice. "Suffering must serve for conversion, that is, for the rebuilding of goodness in the subject, who can recognize the divine mercy in this call to repentance [...] . But in order to perceive the true answer to the 'why' of suffering, we must look to the revelation of divine love, the ultimate source of the meaning of everything that exists [...]. Christ causes us to enter into the mystery and to discover the 'why' of suffering, as far as we are capable of grasping the sublimity of divine love" (Bl. John Paul II, "Salvifici Doloris", 12-13).
11. To accomplish the salvation of men Christ needed to be one of them – to share, with them, a human nature. This is why Christ is the only "true sanctifier", that is, the priest who performs rites and sacrifices, taking things stained by sin and making them pure and pleasing to God, that is, holy. Our Lord said something similar in the Gospel: "For their sake I consecrate myself, that they also may be consecrated in truth" (In 17:19).
"Have all one origin". Various interpretations have been given to these words. Most have to do with the parallelism between the first man and Christ (cf. Acts 17:26; Rom 5:15-19), seeing this "origin" as Adam -- in which case the text would mean that Christ and other men are children of Adam. A more usual interpretation sees the "one" origin as being God, thus stressing that Christ's holy humanity and the humanity of men both stem from the one Creator and derive from the first man. In either case, Christ and the rest of men can rightly be called "brethren". "As to his divine generation he has no brethren or co-heirs, the onlybegotten Son of the Father, while we mortals are the work of his hands. But if we consider his birth as man, he not only calls many by the name of brethren, but treats them as such, since he admits them to share with him the glory of his paternal inheritance" ("St Pius V Catechism", I, 3, 10).
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From: Mark 10:2-16
The Indissolubility of Marriage
-------------------------------------------
[2] And Pharisees came up and in order to test Him asked, "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?" [3] He answered them, "What did Moses command you?" [4] They said, "Moses allowed a man to write a certificate of divorce, and to put her away." [5] But Jesus said to them, "For your hardness of heart he wrote this commandment. [6] But from the beginning of creation, 'God made them male and female.'; [7] 'For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, [8] and the two shall become one.' So they are no longer two but one. [9] What therefore God has joined together, let not man put asunder."
[10] And in the house the disciples asked Him about this matter. [11] And He said to them, "Whoever divorces his wife and marries another, commits adultery against her; [12] and if she divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery."
Jesus and the Children
---------------------------------
[13] And they were bringing children to Him, that He might touch them; and the disciples rebuked them. [14] But when Jesus saw it He was indignant, and said to them, "Let the children come to Me, do not hinder them; for to such belongs the Kingdom of God. [15] Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the Kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it." [16] And He took them in His arms and blessed them, laying His hands upon them.
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Commentary:
1-12. This kind of scene occurs often in the Gospel. The malice of the Pharisees contrasts with the simplicity of the crowd, who listen attentively to Jesus' teaching. The Pharisees' question aimed at tricking Jesus into going against the Law of Moses. But Jesus Christ, Messiah and Son of God, has perfect understanding of that Law. Moses had permitted divorce because of the hardness of that ancient people: women had an ignominious position in those primitive tribes (they were regarded almost as animals or slaves); Moses, therefore, protected women's dignity against these abuses by devising the certificate of divorce; this was a real social advance. It was a document by which the husband repudiated his wife and she obtained freedom. Jesus restores to its original purity the dignity of man and woman in marriage, as instituted by God at the beginning of creation. "A man leaves his father and his mother and cleaves to his wife, and they become one flesh" (Genesis 2:24): in this way God established from the very beginning the unity and indissolubility of marriage. The Church's Magisterium, the only authorized interpreter of the Gospel and of the natural law, has constantly guarded and defended this teaching and has proclaimed it solemnly in countless documents (Council of Florence, "Pro Armeniis"; Council of Trent, "De Sacram. Matr."; Pius XI, "Casti Connubii"; Vatican II, "Gaudium Et Spes", 48; etc.).
Here is a good summary of this doctrine: "The indissolubility of marriage is not a caprice of the Church nor is it merely a positive ecclesiastical law. It is a precept of natural law, of divine law, and responds perfectly to our nature and to the supernatural order of grace" (St. J. Escriva, "Conversations", 97). Cf. note on Matthew 5:31-32.
5-9. When a Christian realizes that this teaching applies to everyone at all times, he should not be afraid of people reacting against it: "It is a fundamental duty of the Church to reaffirm strongly [...] the doctrine of the indissolubility of marriage. To all those who, in our times, consider it too difficult, or indeed impossible, to be bound to one person for the whole of life, and to those caught up in a culture that rejects the indissolubility of marriage and openly mocks the commitment of spouses to fidelity, it is necessary to reaffirm the good news of the definitive nature of that conjugal love that has in Christ its foundation and strength (cf. Ephesians 5:25).
"Being rooted in the personal and total self-giving of the couple, and being required by the good of the children, the indissolubility of marriage finds its ultimate truth in the plan that God has manifested in His revelation: He wills and He communicates the indissolubility of marriage as a fruit, a sign and a requirement of the absolutely faithful love that God has for man and that the Lord Jesus has for the Church.
"Christ renews the first plan that the Creator inscribed in the hearts of man and woman, and in the celebration of the sacrament of matrimony offers 'a new heart': thus the couples are not only able to overcome 'hardness of heart' (Matthew 19: 8), but also and above all they are able to share the full and definitive love of Christ, the new and eternal Covenant made flesh. Just as the Lord Jesus is the 'faithful witness' (Revelation 3:14), the 'yes' of the promises of God (cf. 2 Corinthians 1:20) and thus the supreme realization of the unconditional faithfulness with which God loves His people, so Christian couples are called to participate truly in the irrevocable indissolubility that binds Christ to the Church, His bride, loved by Him to the end (cf. John 13:1).
"To bear witness to the inestimable value of the indissolubility and fidelity of marriage is one of the most precious and most urgent tasks of Christian couples in our time" (Bl. John Paul II, "Familiaris Consortio", 20).
13-16. This Gospel account has an attractive freshness and vividness about it which may be connected with St. Peter, from whom St. Mark would have taken the story. It is one of the few occasions when the Gospels tell us that Christ became angry. What provoked His anger was the disciples' intolerance: they felt that these people bringing children to Jesus were a nuisance: it meant a waste of His time; Christ had more serious things to do than be involved with little children. The disciples were well-intentioned; it was just that they were applying the wrong criteria. What Jesus had told them quite recently had not registered: "Whoever receives one such child in My name receives Me; and whoever receives Me, receives not Me but Him who sent Me" (Mark 9:37).
Our Lord also stresses that a Christian has to become like a child to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. "To be little you have to believe as children believe, to love as children love, to abandon yourself as children do..., to pray as children pray" (St. J. Escriva, "Holy Rosary", Prologue).
Our Lord's words express simply and graphically the key doctrine of man's divine sonship: God is our Father and we are His sons and daughters, His children; the whole of religion is summed up in the relationship of a son with His good Father. This awareness of God as Father involves a sense of dependence on our Father in Heaven and trusting abandonment to His loving providence--in the way a child trusts its father or mother; the humility of recognizing that we can do nothing by ourselves; simplicity and sincerity, which make us straightforward and honest in our dealings with God and man.
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Source: "The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries". Biblical text from theRevised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.
Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and by Scepter Publishers in the United States. We encourage readers to purchase The Navarre Bible for personal study. See Scepter Publishers for details.
Thursday, October 1, 2009
OCTOBER 2 THE GUARDIAN ANGELS
OCTOBER 2
CCC Cross Reference:
Ex 23:20-23 332
Ps 91:10-13 336
Mt 18:3-4 526; Mt 18:3 2785; Mt 18:10 329, 336
650 THE GUARDIAN ANGELS MEMORIAL
FIRST READING
Exodus 23:20-23
Thus says the LORD:
"See, I am sending an angel before you,
to guard you on the way and bring you to the place I have prepared.
Be attentive to him and heed his voice.
Do not rebel against him, for he will not forgive your sin.
My authority resides in him.
If you heed his voice and carry out all I tell you,
I will be an enemy to your enemies and a foe to your foes.
"My angel will go before you and bring you to the
Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites,
Canaanites, Hivites, and Jebusites;
and I will wipe them out."
RESPONSORIAL PSALM
Psalm 91:1-2, 3-4ab, 4c-6, 10-11
R. (11) The Lord has put angels in charge of you, to guard you in all your ways.
You who dwell in the shelter of the Most High,
who abide in the shadow of the Almighty,
Say to the LORD, "My refuge and my fortress,
my God, in whom I trust."
R. The Lord has put angels in charge of you, to guard you in all your ways.
For he will rescue you from the snare of the fowler,
from the destroying pestilence.
With his pinions he will cover you,
and under his wings you shall take refuge.
R. The Lord has put angels in charge of you, to guard you in all your ways.
His faithfulness is a buckler and a shield.
You shall not fear the terror of the night
nor the arrow that flies by day;
Nor the pestilence that roams in darkness,
nor the devastating plague at noon.
R. The Lord has put angels in charge of you, to guard you in all your ways.
No evil shall befall you,
nor shall affliction come near your tent,
For to his angels he has given command about you,
that they guard you in all your ways.
R. The Lord has put angels in charge of you, to guard you in all your ways.
GOSPEL
Matthew 18:1-5, 10
The disciples approached Jesus and said,
"Who is the greatest in the Kingdom of heaven?"
He called a child over, placed it in their midst, and said,
"Amen, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children,
you will not enter the Kingdom of heaven.
Whoever humbles himself like this child
is the greatest in the Kingdom of heaven.
And whoever receives one child such as this in my name receives me.
"See that you do not despise one of these little ones,
for I say to you that their angels in heaven
always look upon the face of my heavenly Father."
Back to Memorial Bench
Gospel from the Jerusalem Bible
Readings and Commentary from Navarre
From: Exodus 23:20-23a
(Nehemiah 2:1-8 from the Proper of Seasons may be used.)
Warnings and promises
-----------------------------------
[20] "Behold, I send an angel before you, to guard you on the way and to bring you to the place which I have prepared. [21] Give heed to him and hearken to his voice, do not rebel against him, for he will not pardon your transgression; for my name is in him.
[22] But if you hearken attentively to his voice and do all that I say, then I will be an enemy to your enemies and an adversary to your adversaries.
[23] "When my angel goes before you, and brings you in to the Amorites, and the Hittites, and the Perizzites, and the Canaanites, the Hivites, and the Jebu- sites, and I [will] blot them out.
*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:
23:20-33. As an appendix and conclusion to the Code of the Covenant, the sa- cred writer put together these various warnings or promises. Strictly speaking, this is not a formal epilogue of the type usually attached to the end of codes of laws (cf. Lev 26 for the Code of the Holiness, and Deut 28 for the Deuteronomic Code) because it contains no blessings or curses, and makes no specific reference to the preceding laws. It is more a collection of instructions based on the fact that God is close to his people; it is designed to fortify Israel's hope and encourage it to be faithful.
"I send an angel before you" (v. 20). The word "angel", according to St Augustine, refers to his office, not his nature. "If you enquire as to his nature, I will tell you that he is a spirit; if you ask what it is he does, I will tell you that he is an angel" (Enarrationes in Psalmos, 103, 1, 15). The expression "angel of the Lord" is equivalent to the presence of God himself or his direct intervention (cf. 3:2; 14: 19 and also Gen 16:7; 22:11, 14). However, when Scripture speaks of an "angel" or "my angel" (cf. Ex 33:2; Num 20:16) it seems to refer rather to those spiritual beings who are attentive to the Lord's commands and are faithful doers of his word (cf. Ps 103:20). The role assigned to them is that of guarding the people in the name of the Lord, just as they protected Lot (cf. Gen 19) or Hagar and her son (cf. Gal 21:17). On the basis of this biblical teaching, the Church holds that angels continue to lend men the same mysterious and powerful help. "Each member of the faithful has at his side an angel as a protector and shepherd to lead him towards life" (St Basil, Adversus Eunomium, 3,1; cf. Catechism of the Catholic Church, 334-336).
Whereas he sends an angel to the Israelites, he sends two scourges against their enemies -- terror (v. 27) and a plague of hornets (v. 28). As usual when the Bible tells us this, it does not mean that God is wicked, but rather that, since he is the only Supreme Being, all blessings and all misfortunes are attributable to him. Furthermore, it is very much in the style of Semitic literature to make a play of contrasts -- the misfortunes of enemies are a way of showing how well one is being treated oneself.
*********************************************************************************************
From: Matthew 18:1-5, 10
The "Little Ones" and the Kingdom. The Lost Sheep
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
[1] At that time, the disciples came to Jesus, saying, "Who is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven?" [2] And calling to Him a child, He put him in the midst of them, [3] and said, "Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven. [4] Whoever humbles himself like this child, he is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven.
[5] "Whoever receives one such child in My name receives Me.
[10] "See that you do not despise one of these little ones; for I tell you that in Heaven their angels always behold the face of My Father who is in Heaven.
*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:
1-35. The teachings of Jesus recorded in chapter 18 of St. Matthew are often called the "discourse on the Church" or "ecclesiastical discourse" because they are a series of instructions on the way in which His Church is to be administered.
The first passage (Matthew 18:1-5), addressed to leaders, that is, the future hierarchy of the Church, warns them against natural tendencies to pride and ambition: even though they have positions of government, they must act with humility. In verses 6-10 Jesus emphasizes the fatherly care which pastors of the Church should have for the "little ones" -- a term which covers everyone in need of special care for whatever reason (because they are recent converts, or are not well grounded in Church teaching, or are not yet adults, etc.)... God takes special care of the weak and will punish those who harm them.
Our Lord shows similar concern for those who are experiencing spiritual difficulties. Every effort, even an heroic effort, must be made to seek out the "lost sheep" (verses 12-14). If the Church in general and each Christian in particular should be concerned to spread the Gospel, all the more reason for them to try and see that those who already embraced the faith do not go astray...
Thus, the whole of Chapter 18, the "discourse of the Church", is a survey of the future history of the Church during its earthly stage, and a series of practical rules for conduct for Christians -- a kind of complement to the Sermon on the Mount, (Chapters 5-7), which is a "magna carta" for the new Kingdom established by Christ.
1-6. Clearly the disciples still suffer from human ambition: they want to occupy key positions when Jesus comes to establish the Kingdom on earth (cf. Acts 1: 6). To correct their pride, our Lord shows them a child and tells them that if they want to enter the Kingdom of Heaven, they must decide to be like children: children are incapable of hating anyone and are totally innocent of vice, particularly of pride, the worst vice of all. They are simple and full of trust.
Humility is one of the main pillars of the Christian life. "If you ask me", St. Augustine says, "what is the essential thing in the religion and discipline of Jesus Christ, I shall reply: first humility, second humility and third humility" ("Letter 118").
3-4. Applying these words to our Lord's virtues, Fray Luis de Granada makes the point that humility is superior to virginity: "If you cannot imitate the virginity of the humble, then imitate the humility of the virgin. Virginity is praiseworthy, but humility is more necessary. The former is recommended to us, the latter is an obligation for us; to the former we are invited, to the latter we are obliged [...]. And so we see that the former is celebrated as voluntary sacrifice, the latter required as an obligatory sacrifice. Lastly, you can be saved without virginity, but not without humility" ("Summa De La Vida Cristiana", Book 3, Part 2, Chapter 10).
5. Receiving a child in Jesus' name is the same as receiving Jesus Himself. Because children reflect the innocence, purity, simplicity and tenderness of our Lord, "In children and in the sick a soul in love sees Him" (St. J. Escriva, "The Way", 419).
10. Jesus warns that giving scandal to little children is a very serious matter, for they have angels who guard them, who will plead a case before God against those who led them to commit sin.
In this context He speaks of children having guardian angels. However, everyone, adult or child, has a guardian angel. "By God's providence angels have been entrusted with the office of guarding the human race and of accompanying every human being so as to preserve him from any serious dangers [...]. Our Heavenly Father has placed over each of us an angel under whose protection and vigilance we are" ("St. Pius V Catechism", IV, 9, 4).
This means that we should have a trusting relationship with our guardian angel. "Have confidence in your guardian Angel. Treat him as a lifelong friend -- that is what he is -- and he will render you a thousand services in the ordinary affairs of each day" (St. J. Escriva, "The Way" 562).
*********************************************************************************************
Source: "The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries". Biblical text from the Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.
Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and by Scepter Publishers in the United States. We encourage readers to purchase The Navarre Bible for personal study. See Scepter Publishers for details.
CCC Cross Reference:
Ex 23:20-23 332
Ps 91:10-13 336
Mt 18:3-4 526; Mt 18:3 2785; Mt 18:10 329, 336
650 THE GUARDIAN ANGELS MEMORIAL
FIRST READING
Exodus 23:20-23
Thus says the LORD:
"See, I am sending an angel before you,
to guard you on the way and bring you to the place I have prepared.
Be attentive to him and heed his voice.
Do not rebel against him, for he will not forgive your sin.
My authority resides in him.
If you heed his voice and carry out all I tell you,
I will be an enemy to your enemies and a foe to your foes.
"My angel will go before you and bring you to the
Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites,
Canaanites, Hivites, and Jebusites;
and I will wipe them out."
RESPONSORIAL PSALM
Psalm 91:1-2, 3-4ab, 4c-6, 10-11
R. (11) The Lord has put angels in charge of you, to guard you in all your ways.
You who dwell in the shelter of the Most High,
who abide in the shadow of the Almighty,
Say to the LORD, "My refuge and my fortress,
my God, in whom I trust."
R. The Lord has put angels in charge of you, to guard you in all your ways.
For he will rescue you from the snare of the fowler,
from the destroying pestilence.
With his pinions he will cover you,
and under his wings you shall take refuge.
R. The Lord has put angels in charge of you, to guard you in all your ways.
His faithfulness is a buckler and a shield.
You shall not fear the terror of the night
nor the arrow that flies by day;
Nor the pestilence that roams in darkness,
nor the devastating plague at noon.
R. The Lord has put angels in charge of you, to guard you in all your ways.
No evil shall befall you,
nor shall affliction come near your tent,
For to his angels he has given command about you,
that they guard you in all your ways.
R. The Lord has put angels in charge of you, to guard you in all your ways.
GOSPEL
Matthew 18:1-5, 10
The disciples approached Jesus and said,
"Who is the greatest in the Kingdom of heaven?"
He called a child over, placed it in their midst, and said,
"Amen, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children,
you will not enter the Kingdom of heaven.
Whoever humbles himself like this child
is the greatest in the Kingdom of heaven.
And whoever receives one child such as this in my name receives me.
"See that you do not despise one of these little ones,
for I say to you that their angels in heaven
always look upon the face of my heavenly Father."
Back to Memorial Bench
Gospel from the Jerusalem Bible
Gospel: Matthew 18:1-5,10
|
|---|
The disciples came to Jesus and said, ‘Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?’ So he called a little child to him and set the child in front of them. Then he said, ‘I tell you solemnly, unless you change and become like little children you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. And so, the one who makes himself as little as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
‘Anyone who welcomes a little child like this in my name welcomes me. See that you never despise any of these little ones, for I tell you that their angels in heaven are continually in the presence of my Father in heaven.’
Readings and Commentary from Navarre
From: Exodus 23:20-23a
(Nehemiah 2:1-8 from the Proper of Seasons may be used.)
Warnings and promises
-----------------------------------
[20] "Behold, I send an angel before you, to guard you on the way and to bring you to the place which I have prepared. [21] Give heed to him and hearken to his voice, do not rebel against him, for he will not pardon your transgression; for my name is in him.
[22] But if you hearken attentively to his voice and do all that I say, then I will be an enemy to your enemies and an adversary to your adversaries.
[23] "When my angel goes before you, and brings you in to the Amorites, and the Hittites, and the Perizzites, and the Canaanites, the Hivites, and the Jebu- sites, and I [will] blot them out.
*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:
23:20-33. As an appendix and conclusion to the Code of the Covenant, the sa- cred writer put together these various warnings or promises. Strictly speaking, this is not a formal epilogue of the type usually attached to the end of codes of laws (cf. Lev 26 for the Code of the Holiness, and Deut 28 for the Deuteronomic Code) because it contains no blessings or curses, and makes no specific reference to the preceding laws. It is more a collection of instructions based on the fact that God is close to his people; it is designed to fortify Israel's hope and encourage it to be faithful.
"I send an angel before you" (v. 20). The word "angel", according to St Augustine, refers to his office, not his nature. "If you enquire as to his nature, I will tell you that he is a spirit; if you ask what it is he does, I will tell you that he is an angel" (Enarrationes in Psalmos, 103, 1, 15). The expression "angel of the Lord" is equivalent to the presence of God himself or his direct intervention (cf. 3:2; 14: 19 and also Gen 16:7; 22:11, 14). However, when Scripture speaks of an "angel" or "my angel" (cf. Ex 33:2; Num 20:16) it seems to refer rather to those spiritual beings who are attentive to the Lord's commands and are faithful doers of his word (cf. Ps 103:20). The role assigned to them is that of guarding the people in the name of the Lord, just as they protected Lot (cf. Gen 19) or Hagar and her son (cf. Gal 21:17). On the basis of this biblical teaching, the Church holds that angels continue to lend men the same mysterious and powerful help. "Each member of the faithful has at his side an angel as a protector and shepherd to lead him towards life" (St Basil, Adversus Eunomium, 3,1; cf. Catechism of the Catholic Church, 334-336).
Whereas he sends an angel to the Israelites, he sends two scourges against their enemies -- terror (v. 27) and a plague of hornets (v. 28). As usual when the Bible tells us this, it does not mean that God is wicked, but rather that, since he is the only Supreme Being, all blessings and all misfortunes are attributable to him. Furthermore, it is very much in the style of Semitic literature to make a play of contrasts -- the misfortunes of enemies are a way of showing how well one is being treated oneself.
*********************************************************************************************
From: Matthew 18:1-5, 10
The "Little Ones" and the Kingdom. The Lost Sheep
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
[1] At that time, the disciples came to Jesus, saying, "Who is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven?" [2] And calling to Him a child, He put him in the midst of them, [3] and said, "Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven. [4] Whoever humbles himself like this child, he is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven.
[5] "Whoever receives one such child in My name receives Me.
[10] "See that you do not despise one of these little ones; for I tell you that in Heaven their angels always behold the face of My Father who is in Heaven.
*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:
1-35. The teachings of Jesus recorded in chapter 18 of St. Matthew are often called the "discourse on the Church" or "ecclesiastical discourse" because they are a series of instructions on the way in which His Church is to be administered.
The first passage (Matthew 18:1-5), addressed to leaders, that is, the future hierarchy of the Church, warns them against natural tendencies to pride and ambition: even though they have positions of government, they must act with humility. In verses 6-10 Jesus emphasizes the fatherly care which pastors of the Church should have for the "little ones" -- a term which covers everyone in need of special care for whatever reason (because they are recent converts, or are not well grounded in Church teaching, or are not yet adults, etc.)... God takes special care of the weak and will punish those who harm them.
Our Lord shows similar concern for those who are experiencing spiritual difficulties. Every effort, even an heroic effort, must be made to seek out the "lost sheep" (verses 12-14). If the Church in general and each Christian in particular should be concerned to spread the Gospel, all the more reason for them to try and see that those who already embraced the faith do not go astray...
Thus, the whole of Chapter 18, the "discourse of the Church", is a survey of the future history of the Church during its earthly stage, and a series of practical rules for conduct for Christians -- a kind of complement to the Sermon on the Mount, (Chapters 5-7), which is a "magna carta" for the new Kingdom established by Christ.
1-6. Clearly the disciples still suffer from human ambition: they want to occupy key positions when Jesus comes to establish the Kingdom on earth (cf. Acts 1: 6). To correct their pride, our Lord shows them a child and tells them that if they want to enter the Kingdom of Heaven, they must decide to be like children: children are incapable of hating anyone and are totally innocent of vice, particularly of pride, the worst vice of all. They are simple and full of trust.
Humility is one of the main pillars of the Christian life. "If you ask me", St. Augustine says, "what is the essential thing in the religion and discipline of Jesus Christ, I shall reply: first humility, second humility and third humility" ("Letter 118").
3-4. Applying these words to our Lord's virtues, Fray Luis de Granada makes the point that humility is superior to virginity: "If you cannot imitate the virginity of the humble, then imitate the humility of the virgin. Virginity is praiseworthy, but humility is more necessary. The former is recommended to us, the latter is an obligation for us; to the former we are invited, to the latter we are obliged [...]. And so we see that the former is celebrated as voluntary sacrifice, the latter required as an obligatory sacrifice. Lastly, you can be saved without virginity, but not without humility" ("Summa De La Vida Cristiana", Book 3, Part 2, Chapter 10).
5. Receiving a child in Jesus' name is the same as receiving Jesus Himself. Because children reflect the innocence, purity, simplicity and tenderness of our Lord, "In children and in the sick a soul in love sees Him" (St. J. Escriva, "The Way", 419).
10. Jesus warns that giving scandal to little children is a very serious matter, for they have angels who guard them, who will plead a case before God against those who led them to commit sin.
In this context He speaks of children having guardian angels. However, everyone, adult or child, has a guardian angel. "By God's providence angels have been entrusted with the office of guarding the human race and of accompanying every human being so as to preserve him from any serious dangers [...]. Our Heavenly Father has placed over each of us an angel under whose protection and vigilance we are" ("St. Pius V Catechism", IV, 9, 4).
This means that we should have a trusting relationship with our guardian angel. "Have confidence in your guardian Angel. Treat him as a lifelong friend -- that is what he is -- and he will render you a thousand services in the ordinary affairs of each day" (St. J. Escriva, "The Way" 562).
*********************************************************************************************
Source: "The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries". Biblical text from the Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.
Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and by Scepter Publishers in the United States. We encourage readers to purchase The Navarre Bible for personal study. See Scepter Publishers for details.
Memorial of the Guardian Angels
459/650 Memorial of the Guardian Angels
Back to Servant of the Word ‘09
Reading 1:
Bar 1:15-22
During the Babylonian captivity, the exiles prayed:
“Justice is with the Lord, our God;
and we today are flushed with shame,
we men of Judah and citizens of Jerusalem,
that we, with our kings and rulers
and priests and prophets, and with our ancestors,
have sinned in the Lord’s sight and disobeyed him.
We have neither heeded the voice of the Lord, our God,
nor followed the precepts which the Lord set before us.
From the time the Lord led our ancestors out of the land of Egypt
until the present day,
we have been disobedient to the Lord, our God,
and only too ready to disregard his voice.
And the evils and the curse that the Lord enjoined upon Moses, his servant,
at the time he led our ancestors forth from the land of Egypt
to give us the land flowing with milk and honey,
cling to us even today.
For we did not heed the voice of the Lord, our God,
in all the words of the prophets whom he sent us,
but each one of us went off
after the devices of his own wicked heart,
served other gods,
and did evil in the sight of the Lord, our God.”
Responsorial Psalm:
Ps 79:1b-2, 3-5, 8, 9
R. (9) For the glory of your name, O Lord, deliver us.
O God, the nations have come into your inheritance;
they have defiled your holy temple,
they have laid Jerusalem in ruins.
They have given the corpses of your servants
as food to the birds of heaven,
the flesh of your faithful ones to the beasts of the earth.
R. For the glory of your name, O Lord, deliver us.
They have poured out their blood like water
round about Jerusalem,
and there is no one to bury them.
We have become the reproach of our neighbors,
the scorn and derision of those around us.
O LORD, how long? Will you be angry forever?
Will your jealousy burn like fire?
R. For the glory of your name, O Lord, deliver us.
Remember not against us the iniquities of the past;
may your compassion quickly come to us,
for we are brought very low.
R. For the glory of your name, O Lord, deliver us.
Help us, O God our savior,
because of the glory of your name;
Deliver us and pardon our sins
for your name’s sake.
R. For the glory of your name, O Lord, deliver us.
Gospel:
Mt 18:1-5, 10
The disciples approached Jesus and said,
“Who is the greatest in the Kingdom of heaven?”
He called a child over, placed it in their midst, and said,
“Amen, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children,
you will not enter the Kingdom of heaven.
Whoever humbles himself like this child
is the greatest in the Kingdom of heaven.
And whoever receives one child such as this in my name receives me.
“See that you do not despise one of these little ones,
for I say to you that their angels in heaven
always look upon the face of my heavenly Father.”
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
First reading Baruch 1:15-22
Integrity belongs to the Lord our God; to us the look of shame we wear today, to us, the people of Judah and the citizens of Jerusalem, to our kings and princes, our priests, our prophets, as to our ancestors, because we have sinned in the sight of the Lord, have disobeyed him, and have not listened to the voice of the Lord our God telling us to follow the commandments which the Lord had ordained for us. From the day when the Lord brought our ancestors out of the land of Egypt until today we have been disobedient to the Lord our God, we have been disloyal, refusing to listen to his voice. And so the disasters, and the curse which the Lord pronounced through his servant Moses the day he brought our fathers out of Egypt to give us a land where milk and honey flow, have seized on us, disasters we experience today. Despite all the words of those prophets whom he sent us, we have not listened to the voice of the Lord our God, but, each following the dictates of his evil heart, we have taken to serving alien gods, and doing what is displeasing to the Lord our God.
Psalm or canticle: Psalm 78:1-5,8-9
Gospel Matthew 18:1-5,10
The disciples came to Jesus and said, ‘Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?’ So he called a little child to him and set the child in front of them. Then he said, ‘I tell you solemnly, unless you change and become like little children you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. And so, the one who makes himself as little as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
‘Anyone who welcomes a little child like this in my name welcomes me. ‘See that you never despise any of these little ones, for I tell you that their angels in heaven are continually in the presence of my Father in heaven.’
Back to Servant of the Word ‘09
Reading 1:
Bar 1:15-22
During the Babylonian captivity, the exiles prayed:
“Justice is with the Lord, our God;
and we today are flushed with shame,
we men of Judah and citizens of Jerusalem,
that we, with our kings and rulers
and priests and prophets, and with our ancestors,
have sinned in the Lord’s sight and disobeyed him.
We have neither heeded the voice of the Lord, our God,
nor followed the precepts which the Lord set before us.
From the time the Lord led our ancestors out of the land of Egypt
until the present day,
we have been disobedient to the Lord, our God,
and only too ready to disregard his voice.
And the evils and the curse that the Lord enjoined upon Moses, his servant,
at the time he led our ancestors forth from the land of Egypt
to give us the land flowing with milk and honey,
cling to us even today.
For we did not heed the voice of the Lord, our God,
in all the words of the prophets whom he sent us,
but each one of us went off
after the devices of his own wicked heart,
served other gods,
and did evil in the sight of the Lord, our God.”
Responsorial Psalm:
Ps 79:1b-2, 3-5, 8, 9
R. (9) For the glory of your name, O Lord, deliver us.
O God, the nations have come into your inheritance;
they have defiled your holy temple,
they have laid Jerusalem in ruins.
They have given the corpses of your servants
as food to the birds of heaven,
the flesh of your faithful ones to the beasts of the earth.
R. For the glory of your name, O Lord, deliver us.
They have poured out their blood like water
round about Jerusalem,
and there is no one to bury them.
We have become the reproach of our neighbors,
the scorn and derision of those around us.
O LORD, how long? Will you be angry forever?
Will your jealousy burn like fire?
R. For the glory of your name, O Lord, deliver us.
Remember not against us the iniquities of the past;
may your compassion quickly come to us,
for we are brought very low.
R. For the glory of your name, O Lord, deliver us.
Help us, O God our savior,
because of the glory of your name;
Deliver us and pardon our sins
for your name’s sake.
R. For the glory of your name, O Lord, deliver us.
Gospel:
Mt 18:1-5, 10
The disciples approached Jesus and said,
“Who is the greatest in the Kingdom of heaven?”
He called a child over, placed it in their midst, and said,
“Amen, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children,
you will not enter the Kingdom of heaven.
Whoever humbles himself like this child
is the greatest in the Kingdom of heaven.
And whoever receives one child such as this in my name receives me.
“See that you do not despise one of these little ones,
for I say to you that their angels in heaven
always look upon the face of my heavenly Father.”
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
First reading Baruch 1:15-22
Integrity belongs to the Lord our God; to us the look of shame we wear today, to us, the people of Judah and the citizens of Jerusalem, to our kings and princes, our priests, our prophets, as to our ancestors, because we have sinned in the sight of the Lord, have disobeyed him, and have not listened to the voice of the Lord our God telling us to follow the commandments which the Lord had ordained for us. From the day when the Lord brought our ancestors out of the land of Egypt until today we have been disobedient to the Lord our God, we have been disloyal, refusing to listen to his voice. And so the disasters, and the curse which the Lord pronounced through his servant Moses the day he brought our fathers out of Egypt to give us a land where milk and honey flow, have seized on us, disasters we experience today. Despite all the words of those prophets whom he sent us, we have not listened to the voice of the Lord our God, but, each following the dictates of his evil heart, we have taken to serving alien gods, and doing what is displeasing to the Lord our God.
Psalm or canticle: Psalm 78:1-5,8-9
Gospel Matthew 18:1-5,10
The disciples came to Jesus and said, ‘Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?’ So he called a little child to him and set the child in front of them. Then he said, ‘I tell you solemnly, unless you change and become like little children you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. And so, the one who makes himself as little as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
‘Anyone who welcomes a little child like this in my name welcomes me. ‘See that you never despise any of these little ones, for I tell you that their angels in heaven are continually in the presence of my Father in heaven.’
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