teaching authority – lectiodiv.com

“No food . . . no money in their belts.” | Thursday of the Fourth Week in Ordinary Time

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Mark (Mk 6:7-13)

So they went off and preached repentance. The Twelve drove out many demons, and they anointed with oil many who were sick and cured them.

Mark tells us in these two short sentences what the Twelve do in response to Jesus’ instructions. He tells them to take nothing with them—”no food, no sack, no money in their belts.” In simple terms, he tells them that whatever house they enter, to remain in peace there until they leave; if they are unwelcome or encounter those who fail to listen, they are to leave and shake the dust from their feet “in testimony against them.” In giving the Twelve authority over unclean spirits, Jesus consecrates them in both words and actions, in preaching repentance and in healing the sick. Mark notes that they drove out many demons and cured many who were sick. Despite their lack of resources for the mission, the Twelve hear and respond powerfully to the call of Jesus.

God, thank you for the mission of the Twelve, those who first received the authority Jesus gave them to preach and expel demons. The divine power Jesus gave them relied on no material dependence or advantage. Help me today be grateful for the early Church and her transmission of the Gospel throughout the ages to the present day. Give me the grace, Lord, to let go of the attachments that I have come to depend on, that keep me from hearing and responding to your call. In your name, I ask for this.

From the responsorial psalm: “‘In your hand are power and might; it is yours to give grandeur and strength to all.'” Lord, you are exalted over all.”

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 John Bosco, Priest

Free Catholic Prayer Guide

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Mark (MK 6:1-6)

Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his native place and among his own kin and in his own house.” So he was not able to perform any mighty deed there, apart from curing a few sick people by laying his hands on them. He was amazed at their lack of faith.

Coming to his native place with his disciples, Jesus is recognized by people he would have known since he was born. They know him as the carpenter, the son of Mary. Yet, as they hear him teach in the synagogue, they are astonished and begin to question from what source his wisdom comes. They are, Mark tells us, offended by this. Knowing the hardness of their hearts, Jesus responds to their lack of faith in words and in action, amazed and unable to perform mighty deeds among them. The words of Jesus from yesterday’s Gospel on the necessity of faith—”Daughter, your faith has saved you.”—stand in striking contrast to that of his own townspeople and relatives. Throughout his ministry, Jesus goes on to demonstrate in teaching and healing the divine source of his wisdom.

God, help me be persistent in dispelling my disbelief and increasing my faith. Unchanging, you see my belief waver day by day; ever merciful, you see me look to you when I return with renewed faith. Help my unbelief, Lord. From Saint Padre Pio’s “Prayer After Communion,” I ask for the grace to remember these words throughout the day: “Stay with me, Lord, if You wish me to be faithful to You.”

From the responsorial psalm: “Then I acknowledged my sin to you, my guilt I covered not. I said, “I confess my faults to the LORD,” and you took away the guilt of my sin. Lord, forgive the wrong I have done.” Saint John Bosco, 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 be afraid; just have faith.” | Tuesday of the Fourth Week in Ordinary Time

Free Catholic Prayer Guide

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Mark (Mk 5:21-43)

When they arrived at the house of the synagogue official, he caught sight of a commotion, people weeping and wailing loudly. So he went in and said to them, “Why this commotion and weeping? The child is not dead but asleep.”

When Jesus again crosses to the other side of the sea, he is immediately surrounded by a large crowd. Jairus, a synagogue leader, pleads with Jesus to heal his dying daughter. As Jesus follows Jairus, a woman approaches him who has had hemorrhages for twelve years. When she touches his cloak, she is healed immediately. On arriving at Jairus’s house, Jesus hears that the girl has already died, but he encourages Jairus not to be afraid to have faith. Inside the house, Jesus takes the girl’s hand and says to her, “Little girl, I say to you, arise!” Immediately, the girl rises and walks, leaving everyone astounded. Mark tells us that the mother and father of the little girl were present in the room with Jesus. What fear and anguish they must have felt; yet, in that moment, Jesus asks for one vital thing—their faith.

God, help me recall the words of Jesus throughout the day: “The child is not dead but asleep.” How many times today will faith in you, not my own will, be necessary? “Do not be afraid; just have faith.” How many times through lack of faith will I deem something lost, of no account—dead? Give me the grace to know that you, the God of the living, have power over life and death and that despite what I might believe, your will has a heartbeat every second of the day. On being ridiculed, Jesus drove people out of the house for their lack of faith. Keep me in your care, Lord; accept the little faith I have. As you asked that the girl be given something to eat, give me the grace to receive and take in your word.

From the responsorial psalm: “Have mercy on me, O Lord, for to you I call all the day. Gladden the soul of your servant, for to you, O Lord, I lift up my soul. Listen, Lord, and answer 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.

“Legion is my name. There are many of us.” | Monday of the Fourth Week in Ordinary Time

Free Catholic Prayer Guide

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Mark (Mk 5:1-20)

When [Jesus] got out of the boat, at once a man from the tombs who had an unclean spirit met him. The man had been dwelling among the tombs, and no one could restrain him any longer, even with a chain. In fact, he had frequently been bound with shackles and chains, but the chains had been pulled apart by him and the shackles smashed, and no one was strong enough to subdue him. Night and day among the tombs and on the hillsides he was always crying out and bruising himself with stones.

Harming himself and a frightening threat to others, a possessed man lives among the tombs, in the shadow of death. On seeing Jesus, the man prostrates himself before him and loudly cries out, “What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I adjure you by God, do not torment me!” Jesus says to him, “Unclean spirit, come out of the man!” Jesus allows the Legion of unclean spirits to be driven into a herd of swine, and they rush down a steep bank into the sea where they drown. Seeing the man clothed and sane, the people of the town beg Jesus to leave the area. As Jesus begins to depart by boat, the man pleads to remain with Jesus; instead, he tells him, “Go home to your family and announce to them all that the Lord in his pity has done for you.” The man obeys Jesus and goes off to proclaim what he has done for him.

God, help me understand the Gospel passage for what it is but also see how it relates to me. Help me grow in love of the sacraments, especially the Eucharist and Reconciliation, in whose light demons cannot dwell. I want to push the possessed man out of my mind, push away the ugliness of demonic possession. Yet, aren’t there times in my own life when I have made of myself a horde of trouble for others and dwelled in sin and darkness, unable to find an exit? Let me see in myself the possessed man bound with shackles so that I can see more clearly the divine, sovereign power of Jesus to drive out evil and scatter every shadow that occludes you. Let me hear the gentle command of Jesus to go and announce your dominion over all—”all that the Lord in his pity has done for you.”

From the responsorial psalm: “But you, O LORD, are my shield; my glory, you lift up my head! When I call out to the LORD, he answers me from his holy mountain. Lord, rise up and save 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.

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“Quiet! Come out of him!” | Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Free Catholic Prayer Guide

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Mark (Mk 1:21-28)

In their synagogue was a man with an unclean spirit; he cried out, “What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God!” Jesus rebuked him and said, “Quiet! Come out of him!” The unclean spirit convulsed him and with a loud cry came out of him. All were amazed and asked one another, “What is this? A new teaching with authority. He commands even the unclean spirits and they obey him.” His fame spread everywhere throughout the whole region of Galilee.

Mark tells us in the Gospel about Jesus’ teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum. As he teaches, a man possessed by an unclean spirit cries out to him, recognizing him as the Holy One of God. Jesus exorcises the unclean spirit as the people present witness his power and authority over evil spirits. In teaching and in his power over evil, Jesus reveals his role as the Son of God, as Savior of us all. This is Jesus, son of Joseph and Mary but also Son of David, who they begin to see demonstrating his divine authority over sin and death. As his fame spreads, this hearkens back to the words of the LORD to Moses and the Israelites: “I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their kin, and will put my words into his mouth.”

God, thank you for the teaching and healing ministry of Jesus that continues today in the liturgy and sacraments of the Church. In the synagogue, Jesus astonished people with his teaching and amazed them with “a new teaching with authority” under which unclean spirits are subject to his commands. The unclean spirit identifies Jesus not only as the Holy one of God but also the hometown son of Joseph and Mary. He is both. Lord, help me recognize in Jesus an advocate who intercedes for me, familiar with all of the struggles of earthly existence, yet one capable with a divine word of expelling all that separates me from you.

From the responsorial psalm: “Come, let us bow down in worship; let us kneel before the LORD who made us. For he is our God, and we are the people he shepherds, the flock he guides. If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.”

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.

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