Tag: scribes

Monday of the Twenty-second Week in Ordinary Time

From the responsorial psalm: “How I love your law, O LORD! It is my meditation all the day. Lord, I love your commands.”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke (LK 4:16-30)

They also asked, “Is this not the son of Joseph?” He said to them, “Surely you will quote me this proverb, ‘Physician, cure yourself,’ and say, ‘Do here in your native place the things that we heard were done in Capernaum.’” And he said, “Amen, I say to you, no prophet is accepted in his own native place.”

As Jesus returns to his hometown of Nazareth, the people who watched him grow up under the care of Mary and Joseph hear him read the passage from Isaiah: The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring glad tidings to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord. After Jesus tells them that this passage is fulfilled in their hearing, they question in amazement where he gets, as they say, “the gracious words that came from his mouth.” Then, citing examples from the Old Testament, he tells his fellow townspeople that the message of salvation is for all, not just the Israelites. The people become furious and drive him out of the town and attempt to throw him off a cliff. Taking place at the beginning of Jesus’ public ministry, this foreshadows the rejection he would face in proclaiming the Gospel as God’s own Son.

God, help me hear the Gospel acclamation and reflect on it in two ways: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,” it reads, and “he has sent me to bring glad tidings to the poor.” These are the words Jesus chose to read to his own people. The Spirit of the Lord is the Holy Spirit, the love between you and your Son. Saint Paul says something similar in his letter to the Corinthians: “with a demonstration of spirit and power, so that your faith might rest not on human wisdom but on the power of God.” It is also the same Spirit upon your Son, the same Spirit of power that Paul demonstrated, you also give to me through baptism and the sacraments. When I stand before others today—even ones who know me well in my ordinariness—help me through your supernatural grace step aside to allow myself to be a means of your mercy and joy. Glory to you, Lord!

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.

“Hear me, all of you, and understand.” | Twenty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time

From the responsorial psalm: “Whoever walks blamelessly and does justice; who thinks the truth in his heart and slanders not with his tongue. The one who does justice will live in the presence of the Lord.”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Mark (Mk 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23)

Jesus responded, “Well did Isaiah prophesy about you hypocrites, as it is written: This people honors me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me; in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines human precepts. You disregard God’s commandment but cling to human tradition.”

Clinging to human tradition, we disregard God’s commandment. Mark shows us how Jesus responds to the Pharisees and scribes, who criticize the disciples for not washing their hands before a meal. “Unclean,” is their contention. Mark goes on to tell us how all Jews carefully wash their hands to keep with tradition, along with many other traditional practices of keeping clean. Addressing defilement, Jesus emphasizes the importance of inner purity over external rituals. “Hear me, all of you, and understand,” Jesus says to the crowd. “Nothing that enters one from outside can defile that person; but the things that come out from within are what defile.” Saint James puts it this way: “to care for orphans and widows in their affliction and to keep oneself unstained by the world” is the way to remain pure and undefiled before God.

God, help me discern where empty ritual is and dispense with it. External, observable practices can become a trap under the guise of reverence for tradition rather than participation in the Body of Christ. In the real presence of the Eucharist—the body and blood of your Son—teach me to remain in your love. “This people honors me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me,” Jesus says. “In vain do they worship me.” The sins and evil intentions that Jesus names arise out of the heart. Lead me to purity of heart, Lord, and keep me in your truth, the Word made flesh in Jesus Christ your Son.

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 the Passion of Saint John the Baptist

From the responsorial psalm: “Every day will I bless you, and I will praise your name forever and ever. Great is the LORD and highly to be praised; his greatness is unsearchable. I will praise your name for ever, Lord.”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Mark (Mk 6:17-29)

Herod was the one who had John the Baptist arrested and bound in prison on account of Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip, whom he had married. John had said to Herod, “It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.” Herodias harbored a grudge against him and wanted to kill him but was unable to do so. Herod feared John, knowing him to be a righteous and holy man, and kept him in custody. When he heard him speak he was very much perplexed, yet he liked to listen to him.

Reluctant to execute John, Herodias looked for an opportunity to have him killed. During a banquet celebrating Herod’s birthday, Herodias’s daughter, also known as Salome, danced for Herod and the guests. At this, Herod promised to grant her any wish, even up to half of his kingdom, and she got what Herodias prompted her to ask for—the head of John the Baptist on a platter. John spoke out boldly against King Herod’s immorality and was brutally executed, also foreshadowing Jesus’ rejection, passion, and death for the sake of bearing witness to the truth. For the sake of proclaiming truth through the Gospel, how far does the Lord call us to go?

God, help me be recognize the true cost of discipleship in picking up my cross and confronting the Evil One as I face the spiritual battles the world presents. Guide me in my choices, not to serve immoral ends but to remain in your grace and to trust the judgment of others to your justice and mercy. Although he knew John was a holy and righteous man, Herod chose to please his wife and guests and have him killed. Help me see, Lord, your gifts of truth and goodness shining through the darkness and penetrating the gray areas where human judgment is prone to fail. “God is faithful,” Saint Paul says, “and by him you were called to fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.” Saint John the Baptist, 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.

Memorial of Saint Augustine, Bishop and Doctor of the Church

From the responsorial psalm: “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. Blessed are those who fear the Lord.”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Matthew (Mt 23:27-32)

Jesus said, “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites. You are like whitewashed tombs, which appear beautiful on the outside, but inside are full of dead men’s bones and every kind of filth. Even so, on the outside you appear righteous, but inside you are filled with hypocrisy and evildoing.”

Jesus continues to denounce the scribes and the Pharisees with a series of woes, expressing grief over self-obsessed religious leaders who are guilty of hypocrisy and murderous intentions. Like the scribes and Pharisees, God made all of us in his image, pure and beautiful. Yet, sin corrupts and death destroys that image, producing “dead men’s bones and every kind of filth.” Jesus calls the scribes and Pharisees—and all who hear him—away from false displays of virtue and toward conversion, back to the beauty and goodness by which God first formed us in the image of love. As Saint Augustine said, “Inasmuch as love grows in you, so in you beauty grows. For love is the beauty of the soul.”

God, the harsh words that Jesus directed to the scribes and Pharisees are not isolated in time and space but are for all people across the ages. Guide me away from false piety and show me Jesus your Son, present in the scriptures, in the real presence of the sacraments, and in the Body of Christ, the Church. That is where genuine relationship is, in the truth of the person of Christ. For the sake of your glory, Lord, open my eyes to my own shortcomings and make clear to me today how to turn to you more and more. Saint Augustine, 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.

Memorial of Saint Monica

From the responsorial psalm: “Before the Lord, for he comes; for he comes to rule the earth. He shall rule the world with justice and the peoples with his constancy. The Lord comes to judge the earth.”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Matthew (Mt 23:23-26)

Jesus said: “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites. You pay tithes of mint and dill and cummin, and have neglected the weightier things of the law: judgment and mercy and fidelity. But these you should have done, without neglecting the others. Blind guides, who strain out the gnat and swallow the camel! “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites. You cleanse the outside of cup and dish, but inside they are full of plunder and self-indulgence. Blind Pharisee, cleanse first the inside of the cup, so that the outside also may be clean.”

Jesus criticizes the Pharisees for their handling of Mosaic law, the way they overemphasize unimportant aspects of it while neglecting more important matters. Judgment, mercy, and fidelity have greater weight than tithing. Inner purity and repentance matter; external appearances do not. And out of love, Jesus rebukes them for their misguided words and actions. Turning to God and living in his truth allows us to let go of the blindness of seeking external validation before others. Christ then has room to fill that space in a way that Paul describes in the first reading: “May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who has loved us and given us everlasting encouragement and good hope through his grace, encourage your hearts and strengthen them in every good deed and word.”

God, help strengthen in me the desire for the greater things that Christ calls me to: right judgment, mercy, fidelity, repentance, hope, goodness, and purity. Show me through the opportunities you place before me how to put aside self-regard and instead put to use love and mercy in what I say and do. You loved me first, Lord, and heaven and earth are yours. “The Lord comes,” the psalmist says, “to judge the earth.” Let me leave judgment to you, Lord, so I am free to love you and do as you will. Saint Monica, 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.

“You lock the Kingdom of heaven before men.” | Monday of the Twenty-first Week in Ordinary Time

From the responsorial psalm: “Sing to the LORD a new song; sing to the LORD, all you lands. Sing to the LORD; bless his name. Proclaim God’s marvelous deeds to all the nations.”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Matthew (Mt 23:13-22)

Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples: “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites. You lock the Kingdom of heaven before men. You do not enter yourselves, nor do you allow entrance to those trying to enter. Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites. You traverse sea and land to make one convert, and when that happens you make him a child of Gehenna twice as much as yourselves.”

What Jesus says to the crowds and to his disciples, he says to everybody. Through their authority, the scribes and Pharisees have prevented people from entering the kingdom of heaven. In putting up obstacles, they open up paths to other spiritual realities and fail to find God’s presence. Where God is present, that is the path to follow, the way to the kingdom, whether here or in heaven. “You blind ones,” Jesus says to the scribes and Pharisees, “which is greater, the gift, or the altar that makes the gift sacred?” Paul’s letter describes an attitude of love and thanksgiving, which opens the doors to the kingdom of heaven. What opportunities does God present to us today to open the doors to his kingdom?

God, help make me worthy of your calling to “bring to fulfillment every good purpose and every effort of faith.” There are times when it is hard to get past the barriers that present themselves during the day, whether self-imposed or beyond my control. I want to gain admittance to your kingdom, here on earth and in the life of the world to come. Help me desire this more and more, Lord, for the sake of your glory. I have nothing to give you that you haven’t given me first, the giver of all good gifts. With my effort of faith, take from me all I do have, and in your mercy break it and bless it as I seek to enter your kingdom.

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 is easier, to say . . .” | Thursday of the Thirteenth Week 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 judgments of the Lord are true, and all of them are just.”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Matthew (Mt 9:1-8)

Jesus knew what they were thinking, and said, “Why do you harbor evil thoughts? Which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Rise and walk’? But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—he then said to the paralytic, “Rise, pick up your stretcher, and go home.” He rose and went home. When the crowds saw this they were struck with awe and glorified God who had given such authority to men.

As Jesus encounters a paralyzed man on a stretcher, he sees the faith of those who bring the man to him. The words, “Courage, child, your sins are forgiven” trigger some of the scribes, who believe he is blaspheming. Jesus’ response to them makes clear that as the Son of God he heals physical and spiritual illnesses. “Which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Rise and walk’?” As the miracle of the man’s healing takes place, Jesus reveals his compassion and divine authority, inviting all of us to have faith in him as the Son of God who came to restore us to the Father.

From the collect for today’s Mass, celebrating our nation’s birth: “Father of all nations and ages, we recall the day when our country claimed its place among the family of nations; for what has been achieved we give you thanks, for the work that still remains we ask your help, and as you have called us from many peoples to be one nation, grant that, under your providence, our country may share your blessings with all the peoples of the earth. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. Amen.”

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.

“Follow me.” | Saturday of the First Week in Ordinary Time

“The Call of St Matthew” flickr photo by Lawrence OP https://flickr.com/photos/paullew/29832494395 shared under a Creative Commons (BY-NC-ND) license

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Mark (Mk 2:13-17)

Some scribes who were Pharisees saw that Jesus was eating with sinners and tax collectors and said to his disciples, “Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?” Jesus heard this and said to them, “Those who are well do not need a physician, but the sick do. I did not come to call the righteous but sinners.”

About the people who follow Jesus, Mark tells us: “many tax collectors and sinners sat with Jesus and his disciples.” On seeing Levi, a tax collector commonly identified as the evangelist Matthew, Jesus invites him to come dine with him with the other disciples. Teaching those who accept his invitation—”Follow me.”—Jesus teaches and heals. Whether they respond, Jesus’ answer to the Pharisees is a quiet, insistent invitation for all people to receive forgiveness and healing from the Divine Physician.

God, just as Samuel anointed Saul to lead and free the Israelites, you sent Jesus Christ your Son to liberate your people from the bondage of sin. “Follow me,” Jesus says. Let that invitation to conversion remain in my heart and mind when I know I need his help but especially when I fail to come to that realization. With a contrite heart, give me the grace to receive healing from the Divine Physician, whose mercy and forgiveness frees me to live in the light of his salvation. Grasp me by the hand, Lord; let me hear your call and know how to respond when I hear you say, “Follow me.”

From the responsorial psalm: “The Lord sent me to bring glad tidings to the poor and to proclaim liberty to captives.” Saint Hilary of Poitiers, 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.

“We have never seen anything like this.” | Friday of the First Week in Ordinary Time

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Mark (Mk 2:1-12)

Jesus immediately knew in his mind what they were thinking to themselves, so he said, “Why are you thinking such things in your hearts? Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Rise, pick up your mat and walk’? But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority to forgive sins on earth”–he said to the paralytic, “I say to you, rise, pick up your mat, and go home.” He rose, picked up his mat at once, and went away in the sight of everyone. They were all astounded and glorified God, saying, “We have never seen anything like this.”

In Mark’s account of the paralytic being lowered through the roof, faith is central in understanding the actions of the friends who brought the paralytic to Jesus. Whether by the paralytic’s prompting or by the insistence of his friends, the man is brought before Jesus because of their faith. As Jesus heals the man, the necessity of faith is evident to all onlookers who come to see Jesus, including the scribes who accuse Jesus of blasphemy in saying to the man, “Child, your sins are forgiven.” As the man picks up his mat and goes home, the people are astounded and glorify God. In his words and actions, Jesus gives glory to his Father; in picking up his mat and walking home, the paralytic is living proof of Jesus’ authority, both to heal and to forgive sins. The people who witness this are amazed, and themselves begin to recognize that in returning home, Jesus demonstrates that he is not only the ordinary son of Joseph and Mary but one whose extraordinary power is from God alone.

God, help me witness you at work in the world today and give me an opportunity to be a witness to those whose lives I touch. I can see it play out so that neither of these happens. For this reason, I ask in faith for your divine assistance; where belief is lacking, help my unbelief. If only it were easy to draw comparisons between the paralytic and the rigidity of my own brokenness and hold that thought. But, Lord, I tend to forget you during the day, so I ask for your aid when even easy comparisons fail to come to mind. In Capernaum, so many came to hear Jesus your Son that there was no room for them. “And he preached the word to them,” Mark says. Help me to hear your word today, take it in, and give glory to you in witnessing to my faith.

From the responsorial psalm: “A great prophet has arisen in our midst and God has visited his people.” Lord, visit me today; heal me and make me whole.

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.

“It is wonderful in our eyes.” | Twenty-seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Matthew (Mt 21:33-43)

Jesus said to them, “Did you never read in the Scriptures: The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; by the Lord has this been done, and it is wonderful in our eyes?”

Jesus speaks to the chief priests and elders about the kingdom of God through a parable about a landowner and his vineyard. The landowner is the Lord, and the tenants caring for the vineyard are the spiritual leaders of Israel. The servants the landowner sends are holy people and prophets sent by God to bear spiritual fruit and do God’s will. During harvest, when the landowner sends servants to obtain the produce of the harvest, the tenants beat, kill, and stone them. Others are sent, treated the same way. Finally, the landowner sends his son, whom the landowner believes they will respect. On seeing the son, the tenants say, foreshadowing Jesus’ passion and death: “This is the heir. Come, let us kill him and acquire his inheritance.” Jesus asks what the landowner will do when he returns. Today and at the Second Coming, how will we be found caring for the Lord’s vineyard—all of his gifts and his Church?

God, help me take in the richness in all of today’s readings. As in the first reading and responsorial psalm, the vineyard represents your kingdom on earth. We, your servants on earth are here to care for it. But often in my corner of the vineyard, rather than a crop of grapes, wild grapes grow. Parts of it lie in ruin, overgrown with thorns and briers. A sinner, I forget and cut myself off from you. Yet, as with the psalmist, I ask for your grace to bear good fruit: “Once again, O LORD of hosts, look down from heaven, and see; take care of this vine.” Lord, help me care for your gifts, the kingdom you have given me to nurture. It is, after all, yours: “by the Lord has this been done, and it is wonderful in our eyes.”

From the second reading: “whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.” Lord, grant me your peace; remain in me to produce lasting fruit.

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.