Tag: lectio divina

“Is it lawful to cure on the sabbath or not?” | Friday of the Thirtieth Week in Ordinary Time

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke (Lk 14:1-6)

On a sabbath Jesus went to dine at the home of one of the leading Pharisees, and the people there were observing him carefully. In front of him there was a man suffering from dropsy. Jesus spoke to the scholars of the law and Pharisees in reply, asking, “Is it lawful to cure on the sabbath or not?” But they kept silent; so he took the man and, after he had healed him, dismissed him.

After Jesus dismisses the man, he says: “‘Who among you, if your son or ox falls into a cistern, would not immediately pull him out on the sabbath day?’ But they were unable to answer his question.” Luke tells us that Jesus dismisses the man after healing him and only then addresses the Pharisees. On his way and free of his illness, the man who suffered no longer suffers, but the Pharisees and scholars of the law are unable to answer, silenced in the hypocrisy they are bound by. The answer to the question Jesus asks them is in the affirmative. But they are unable to affirm what they know is true. Jesus heals the suffering man and invites the Pharisees to be healed in the truth of his mercy.

Father in heaven, help me understand today’s Gospel. In the darkness that sin casts over me, I am not far off from the scholars of the law and the Pharisees when I place strict observance over mercy or remain silent when I hear your voice. Help me live in your truth, in truth itself in the person of Jesus your Son. “I speak the truth in Christ,” Saint Paul writes. “I do not lie.” Let me do the same. Give me the grace of Christ’s healing presence in the Eucharist, and dismiss me today with a heart to love you and hands to serve you in knowing your truth and doing your will.

From the responsorial psalm: “My sheep hear my voice, says the Lord; I know them, and they follow me.”

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

“The will of the one who sent me. . . ” The Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed (All Souls)

A reading from the holy Gospel according to John (Jn 6:37-40)

Jesus said to the crowds: “Everything that the Father gives me will come to me, and I will not reject anyone who comes to me, because I came down from heaven not to do my own will but the will of the one who sent me.”

In today’s Gospel, Jesus speaks to the crowd about the will of the Father and what the will of the Father is. Jesus goes on to say it is “that I should not lose anything of what he gave me, but that I should raise it on the last day. For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in him may have eternal life, and I shall raise him on the last day.” Just as Jesus does the will of the Father, in coming to Jesus we go to the gift the Father has given us in his Son to make his will our own.

Father in heaven, help me learn your will and do my part in accomplishing it. Your Son’s perfect obedience in his life, death, and resurrection brings salvation to all who believe in him. At your right hand, may your Son intercede for all the faithful departed, who lived lives of holiness through obedience to your word. Grant me the grace to recognize all of the good gifts you give me every day, and let me come to you day by day better prepared for your gift of eternal life.

From the Gospel acclamation: “Come, you who are blessed by my Father;
inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.”

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Solemnity of All Saints

From the Gospel acclamation: “Blessed are you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth; you have revealed to little ones the mysteries of the Kingdom.” Lord, thank you for your kingdom; in it, let me grow more and more in love of its mysteries.

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Matthew (Mt 5:1-12a)

When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain, and after he had sat down, his disciples came to him. He began to teach them, saying: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven. Blessed are they who mourn, for they will be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the land. Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be satisfied. Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. Blessed are the clean of heart, for they will see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you and utter every kind of evil against you falsely because of me. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be great in heaven.”

In today’s Gospel, Jesus looks out over the crowd and in his Sermon on the Mount teaches the disciples and the crowd—in fact, every one of us—the Beatitudes. Every one of the eight beatitudes presents different facts of the Kingdom of God and guide us toward living a blessed life according to God’s will. The poor in spirit recognize in humility their reliance on God; those who mourn receive God’s comfort; the meek in their gentleness will inherit the earth. Jesus includes in the Beatitudes the blessings and the blessedness of the merciful, the pure, the peacemakers, and those who are persecuted. Through Christ, all of us are called to be holy men and women of the Beatitudes, bringing forth the Kingdom of God here and now and preparing ourselves as children of God to one day see him face to face.

Father in heaven, in today’s celebration of the Communion of the Saints, I glimpse those in your kingdom whose “hands are sinless, whose heart is clean.” Teach me, Lord, to desire not what is vain but what leads to you in this life and to the kingdom that has not yet been revealed. Give me the grace to take in any one of the Beatitudes and all of them to see how each is integral to the others. Open my heart to see in everyday situations the opportunity to put into practice any one of the Beatitudes—good in itself—and the fullness of all of the Beatitudes in the imitation of Christ. Strengthen me, Lord, to know and do your will.

From the responsorial psalm: “Who can ascend the mountain of the LORD? or who may stand in his holy place? One whose hands are sinless, whose heart is clean, who desires not what is vain. Lord, this is the people that longs to see your face.”

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

“What is the Kingdom of God like?” | Tuesday of the Thirtieth Week in Ordinary Time

From the Gospel acclamation: “Blessed are you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth; you have revealed to little ones the mysteries of the Kingdom.” Lord, thank you for your kingdom; in it, let me grow more and more in love of its mysteries.

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke (Lk 13:18-21)

Jesus said, “What is the Kingdom of God like? To what can I compare it? It is like a mustard seed that a man took and planted in the garden. When it was fully grown, it became a large bush and the birds of the sky dwelt in its branches.”

In today’s Gospel, Jesus makes comparisons to the Kingdom of God in two parables. The tiny mustard seed, no larger than the largest grain of sand, grows large enough for birds to make nests in its branches. Jesus goes on to compare the Kingdom of God to yeast mixed into wheat flour, which leavens a large batch of dough. To whatever degree the Kingdom of God is present now, much more is to come in its fulfillment. As Saint Paul says in the first reading: “I consider that the sufferings of this present time are as nothing compared with the glory to be revealed for us. For creation awaits with eager expectation the revelation of the children of God.”

Father in heaven, help me see your kingdom in the present but also wait for what is to come with eager expectation. The best days experienced on this earth still contain suffering. Yet, the smallest seeds of hope in your kingdom—already here and still to come—sustain me as I wait for what Saint Paul calls “the glory to be revealed for us.” Strengthen me today, Lord, with childlike hope. In the words of the psalmist: “Although they go forth weeping, carrying the seed to be sown, They shall come back rejoicing, carrying their sheaves. The Lord has done marvels for us.” Give me the grace to wait with endurance for what I cannot yet see.

From the Gospel acclamation: “Blessed are you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth; you have revealed to little ones the mysteries of the Kingdom.” Lord, thank you for your kingdom; in it, let me grow more and more in love of its mysteries.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

“You are set free of your infirmity.” | Monday of the Thirtieth Week in Ordinary Time

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke (Lk 13:10-17)

Jesus was teaching in a synagogue on the sabbath. And a woman was there who for eighteen years had been crippled by a spirit; she was bent over, completely incapable of standing erect. When Jesus saw her, he called to her and said, “Woman, you are set free of your infirmity.” He laid his hands on her, and she at once stood up straight and glorified God.

Today’s Gospel could end as the woman stands up straight and glorifies God. It’s a joyful moment that captures the imagination and could stand on its own apart from the rest of the passage. Yet, Luke goes on to convey even more to take to heart, showing us Jesus’ act of mercy in the right place at the right time. Despite witnessing a miracle, the leader of the synagogue criticizes Jesus for healing the woman on the sabbath when there are six other days to cure her. Calling out his hypocrisy, Jesus says to him: “This daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has bound for eighteen years now, ought she not to have been set free on the sabbath day from this bondage?” In his Father’s house and on the sabbath, in his mercy Jesus desires to free her from her illness, from bondage to the flesh. As Saint Paul says in the first reading, “Brothers and sisters, we are not debtors to the flesh, to live according to the flesh.”

Father in heaven, help me live with a spirit of adoption as your child, a joint heir with Christ your Son. On my own, a sinner, I fall into the bondage of sin. That’s no way to live. Let me be led to you again and again, calling you to mind. Give me the grace to recognize how your will moves throughout the day so that I can live according to it, free from fear to worship you and give you glory. Just as Jesus acted freely in the right place at the right time, help me today see where your mercy is needed and be a means of freeing others.

From the Gospel acclamation: “Your word, O Lord, is truth; consecrate us in the truth.” Abba, Father, let me live in your truth!

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

“Which commandment in the law is the greatest?” | Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Matthew (Mt 22:34-40)

When the Pharisees heard that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together, and one of them, a scholar of the law tested him by asking, “Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?”

In today’s Gospel, Jesus responds to a Pharisee, who comes to test him. Having heard that Jesus silenced the Sadducees, he comes to Jesus to contend with him, to measure Jesus’ knowledge of the law against his own overinflated view of himself. In what way did Jesus silence the Sadducees, who did not believe in the resurrection? One can only imagine that Jesus’ reply to the Pharisee silences him as well when he says: “You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and the first commandment. The second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. The whole law and the prophets depend on these two commandments.” In what particular way does Jesus, the same Lord who hears the cry of the poor, invite us to imitate his love and compassion?

Father in heaven, as I consider the words “with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind,” I am overwhelmed with this high calling to love you. Without that kind of love, it is impossible to turn to others and love them as myself. Give me the grace to be compassionate to others as a way to dwell in the freeing love you command me to follow. In turn, help me love you completely so that I know in word and deed what it is to love my neighbor as myself. Here is where trust is vital. As in the responsorial psalm, I ask you to be my strength: “I love you, O LORD, my strength, O LORD, my rock, my fortress, my deliverer.”

From the Gospel acclamation: “Whoever loves me will keep my word, says the Lord, and my Father will love him and we will come to him.”

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Memorial of Saints John de Brébeuf and Isaac Jogues, Priests, and Companions, Martyrs

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke (Lk 11:47-54)

The Lord said: “Therefore, the wisdom of God said, ‘I will send to them prophets and Apostles; some of them they will kill and persecute’ in order that this generation might be charged with the blood of all the prophets shed since the foundation of the world, from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah who died between the altar and the temple building. Yes, I tell you, this generation will be charged with their blood!”

In today’s Gospel, Jesus condemns those who memorialize the prophets their ancestors killed. It is a sweeping, difficult message that takes into account generations of human history, in which, as Saint Paul writes “all have sinned and are deprived of the glory of God.” While a criticism of religious leaders of the time, Jesus also condemns the hypocrisies of the present age, wherever putting on appearances and false displays of piety supersede genuine acts of mercy and love. The building up of what is false can only lead to separation from God since God is truth itself. As Jesus says: “Woe to you, scholars of the law! You have taken away the key of knowledge. You yourselves did not enter and you stopped those trying to enter.” From every person, Jesus calls for transformation of heart and a genuine commitment to hearing and keeping God’s word.

Father in heaven, help me recognize that Jesus your Son condemns only to set people again on a path to integrity and truth. “I am the way and the truth and the life, says the Lord; no one comes to the Father except through me.” Give me the grace today to trust that you are attentive to my prayers and that in your mercy you alone satisfy every need. Help me know the strength of your guidance throughout the day, keep me from the harm of accepting what is false as true, and bring me into the knowledge of your will and the light of your glory.

From the responsorial psalm: “I trust in the LORD; my soul trusts in his word. My soul waits for the LORD more than sentinels wait for the dawn. With the Lord there is mercy, and fullness of redemption.”

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

“The Kingdom of God is at hand for you.” | Feast of Saint Luke, evangelist | 10.18.23

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke (Lk 10:1-9)

Jesus said to the disciples: Into whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace to this household.’ If a peaceful person lives there, your peace will rest on him; but if not, it will return to you. Stay in the same house and eat and drink what is offered to you, for the laborer deserves payment. Do not move about from one house to another. Whatever town you enter and they welcome you, eat what is set before you, cure the sick in it and say to them, ‘The Kingdom of God is at hand for you.'”

In today’s Gospel, Jesus commissions seventy-two disciples, sending them out ahead of him to do urgently what he himself will do: proclaim the Kingdom of God. His words are not meant only for those disciples at that time in history but also for every Christian who hears and responds to the Lord. In a world full of brokenness and division, Jesus commands those who follow him to be a means of peace and healing while proclaiming God’s kingdom. To take on such a task, the disciples are to depend on God for a roof over their head and a meal placed before them. Like lambs among wolves, the disciples are to rely on God’s guidance and provision, and the power to bring God’s work to fruition. Then, as today, the Kingdom of God is at hand!

Father in heaven, give me the grace I need to be steadfast every day in proclaiming your kingdom. Saint Paul describes the resistance he met in preaching and his isolation and exposure to mortal danger. Whatever I do in your name today, Lord, help me remember his complete reliance on you. As he writes in his letter to Timothy, “But the Lord stood by me and gave me strength, so that through me the proclamation might be completed and all the Gentiles might hear it.” Stand by me today, Lord, as you give me every opportunity to love and serve others according to your will.

From the Gospel acclamation: “I chose you from the world, to go and bear fruit that will last, says the Lord.” Saint Luke, pray for us!

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

“Everything will be clean for you.” | Memorial of Saint Ignatius of Antioch, Bishop and Martyr

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke (Lk 11:37-41)

The Lord said to the Pharisee, “Oh you Pharisees! Although you cleanse the outside of the cup and the dish, inside you are filled with plunder and evil. You fools! Did not the maker of the outside also make the inside? But as to what is within, give alms, and behold, everything will be clean for you.”

The words of Jesus from today’s Gospel are directed to a Pharisee who invited him to dine at his home. As a guest, Jesus pours insult on the head of his host, and it is understandable that the Pharisee would have been offended. As the Son of God, Jesus directs the Pharisee to true freedom in worship of the creator. By noting that Jesus did not observe the prescribed washing before a meal, the Pharisee follows the Jewish tradition of ritual purification. Yet, here is Jesus, the invisible God made visible in his presence, who is inviolably holy, the source of holiness. Jesus redirects the gaze of the Pharisee toward what is pure and free of every form of evil. What Saint Paul says in the first reading encapsulates not only Jesus’ encounter with the Pharisee but also all of us who forget the glory of our immortal God: “They exchanged the truth of God for a lie and revered and worshiped the creature rather than the creator, who is blessed forever.”

Father in heaven, Lord of all, call me to you so that I can live in the freedom of the creator. I get caught up daily in the tangible things of this world, good in themselves, but often forgetting the source from which they are made manifest. “But as to what is within,” Jesus says, “give alms, and behold, everything will be clean for you.” Help me find you today in every good gift you give me that I can sense but also through the unseen work of the Holy Spirit, who makes manifest your presence in my inmost being every minute of the day. Give me the grace to distinguish between the creature and the creator, to recognize that you alone are freedom at its source.

From the Gospel acclamation: “The word of God is living and effective, able to discern reflections and thoughts of the heart.” Lord, teach me your ways!

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

“Something greater than Solomon here.” | Monday of the Twenty-eighth Week in Ordinary Time

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke (Lk 11:29-32)

While still more people gathered in the crowd, Jesus said to them, “This generation is an evil generation; it seeks a sign, but no sign will be given it, except the sign of Jonah. Just as Jonah became a sign to the Ninevites, so will the Son of Man be to this generation.”

As today’s Gospel picks up where the Gospel reading for Saturday left off, the crowd continues to surround Jesus. As he speaks to the people, he refers to two great prophets and his fulfillment of them as the Messiah. The crowd would have known about Solomon and Jonah and shared stories about them for generations. Jesus says of Solomon’s wisdom: “there is something greater than Solomon here.” Similarly, he refers to Jonah among the Ninevites in his call for repentance: “and there is something greater than Jonah here.” Just as Jonah’s experience was a sign to the people of Nineveh, Jesus’ death and resurrection would become a sign to the people of his generation, both a sign and the signified. He is present today in his living word and present body and blood, soul and divinity, in the Eucharist.

Father in heaven, help me fully appreciate the significance of Jesus your Son. While the prophets pointed to you, they lived and died as signs of your mercy and your coming kingdom. Jesus pointed to you and continues to point to you; even more, he is the living sign, the Word incarnate, present to me in this moment through his death and resurrection. Give me the grace to distinguish between human wisdom and divine guidance. As far as human wisdom can ascend, in the life of the Trinity there is something greater than Solomon. As Saint Paul says, help me remember my call and my end in the person of Christ: “Through him we have received the grace of apostleship, to bring about the obedience of faith, for the sake of his name, among all the Gentiles, among whom are you also, who are called to belong to Jesus Christ.”

From the responsorial psalm: “The LORD has made his salvation known: in the sight of the nations he has revealed his justice. He has remembered his kindness and his faithfulness toward the house of Israel. The Lord has made known his salvation.”

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eAaVQ82g2C4