Tag: riches

Memorial of Saint Jerome, Priest and Doctor of the Church

From the responsorial psalm: “Hear, O LORD, a just suit; attend to my outcry; hearken to my prayer from lips without deceit. Incline your ear to me and hear my word.”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke (Lk 9:46-50)

An argument arose among the disciples about which of them was the greatest. Jesus realized the intention of their hearts and took a child and placed it by his side and said to them, “Whoever receives this child in my name receives me, and whoever receives me receives the one who sent me. For the one who is least among all of you is the one who is the greatest.”

Although beset by a host of tragedies and evildoing from Satan, Job remains faithful to the Lord as he hears from a messenger all that he has lost, including possessions and sons and daughters. “The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away,” Job says, “blessed be the name of the LORD!” The disciples vie for a place of honor as his followers, but Jesus recognizes the deception that pride leads them into. By placing a child in their midst, Jesus shows the disciples that humility matters and that accolades and honors don’t. The least among you is the greatest.

God, help me understand my place within my family and my community. Give me the grace to discern how to receive Jesus in the people you place before me. The least, the poorest, the heartbroken—help me see them and at the same time see Christ in them. Help me put aside the pursuit of honor so I can more readily hear and respond to your will in bringing forth your kingdom. Saint Jerome, 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.

“Do not prevent him.” | Twenty-sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time

From the responsorial psalm: “The law of the LORD is perfect, refreshing the soul; the decree of the LORD is trustworthy, giving wisdom to the simple. The precepts of the Lord give joy to the heart.”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Mark (Mk 9:38-43, 45, 47-48)

At that time, John said to Jesus, “Teacher, we saw someone driving out demons in your name, and we tried to prevent him because he does not follow us.” Jesus replied, “Do not prevent him. There is no one who performs a mighty deed in my name who can at the same time speak ill of me. For whoever is not against us is for us. Anyone who gives you a cup of water to drink because you belong to Christ, amen, I say to you, will surely not lose his reward.”

The second reading from Saint James describes the natural consequences of storing up earthly treasures—material comforts, luxury and pleasure, and attachment to silver and gold—all of which corrode or fall to dust. In the first reading, a young man tells Moses that others besides him are prophesying in the camp. “Would that the LORD might bestow his spirit on them all!” Moses tells him. In the Gospel, the beloved disciple John tells Jesus that others are driving out demons in his name. Jesus tells him: “Anyone who gives you a cup of water to drink because you belong to Christ, amen, I say to you, will surely not lose his reward.” Those who try to make the treasures of the world increase see them divide and decrease, but those who share God’s love for the sake of his glory see that treasure multiply without end.

God, help me not be subject to the foolishness and enslavement of envy. Help me stand firm in refusing the enticements of the world and its riches. Let me receive joyfully and with gratitude the cup of water you give me to drink. The life Jesus invites me to enter into means choosing to turn away from things that draw me in and instead focus on what endures, what gives joy to the heart—and that is fear of the Lord, or humble acknowledgment of my dependence on you for all of your good gifts. Let me remember from Proverbs where to go to find the treasure that endures: “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.”

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.