Twenty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time

 

Lectionary: 125

Reading I

Dt 4:1-2, 6-8

 

Moses said to the people:

“Now, Israel, hear the statutes and decrees

which I am teaching you to observe,

that you may live, and may enter in and take possession of the land

which the LORD, the God of your fathers, is giving you.

In your observance of the commandments of the LORD, your God,

which I enjoin upon you,

you shall not add to what I command you nor subtract from it.

Observe them carefully,

for thus will you give evidence

of your wisdom and intelligence to the nations,

who will hear of all these statutes and say,

‘This great nation is truly a wise and intelligent people.’

For what great nation is there

that has gods so close to it as the LORD, our God, is to us

whenever we call upon him?

Or what great nation has statutes and decrees

that are as just as this whole law

which I am setting before you today?”

 

 

 

 

Responsorial Psalm

Ps 15:2-3, 3-4, 4-5

 

R. (1a)    The one who does justice will live in the presence of the Lord.

Whoever walks blamelessly and does justice;

    who thinks the truth in his heart

    and slanders not with his tongue.

R. The one who does justice will live in the presence of the Lord.

Who harms not his fellow man,

    nor takes up a reproach against his neighbor;

by whom the reprobate is despised,

    while he honors those who fear the LORD.

R. The one who does justice will live in the presence of the Lord.

Who lends not his money at usury

    and accepts no bribe against the innocent.

Whoever does these things

    shall never be disturbed.

R. The one who does justice will live in the presence of the Lord.

 

Reading II

Jas 1:17-18, 21b-22, 27

 

Dearest brothers and sisters:

All good giving and every perfect gift is from above,

coming down from the Father of lights,

with whom there is no alteration or shadow caused by change.

He willed to give us birth by the word of truth

that we may be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.

 

Humbly welcome the word that has been planted in you

and is able to save your souls.

 

Be doers of the word and not hearers only, deluding yourselves.

 

Religion that is pure and undefiled before God and the Father is this:

to care for orphans and widows in their affliction

and to keep oneself unstained by the world.

Alleluia

Jas 1:18

 

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

The Father willed to give us birth by the word of truth

that we may be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

 

 

Gospel

Mk 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23

 

When the Pharisees with some scribes who had come from Jerusalem

gathered around Jesus,

they observed that some of his disciples ate their meals

with unclean, that is, unwashed, hands.

—For the Pharisees and, in fact, all Jews,

do not eat without carefully washing their hands,

keeping the tradition of the elders.

And on coming from the marketplace

they do not eat without purifying themselves.

And there are many other things that they have traditionally observed,

the purification of cups and jugs and kettles and beds. —

So the Pharisees and scribes questioned him,

“Why do your disciples not follow the tradition of the elders

but instead eat a meal with unclean hands?”

He 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.”

 

He summoned the crowd again and said to them,

“Hear me, all of you, and understand.

Nothing that enters one from outside can defile that person;

but the things that come out from within are what defile.

 

“From within people, from their hearts,

come evil thoughts, unchastity, theft, murder,

adultery, greed, malice, deceit,

licentiousness, envy, blasphemy, arrogance, folly.

All these evils come from within and they defile.”

 

MY BROTHERS AND SISTERS,

 

The Word of God is perfect, and it is also eternal with God. Jesus Christ is proclaimed as The Word becoming flesh in The Gospel of John. In essence this means that all that God has revealed is manifested through Jesus Christ. Us being God’s children means that we are part of The Word and that Jesus Christ dwells within us. To follow The Word means that we will be living our lives the way that God intended us to live and that we will be in communion with Him as a result. Communion with God means a right relationship filled with satisfaction, joy, and love. An absence of this will mean a lack of fulfillment and a constant pursuit of things originating from this world that will leave us empty and wanting. Sacred Scripture and Divine Revelation can be viewed as instruction; all that we need to bring about serenity.

 

Preparation is the key to success. Without it we can easily become surprised and overwhelmed by even the smallest of situations that present themselves. Unexpected things bring about unexpected results which then create anxiety; wreaking havoc upon any given situation. God does not want this to happen to us. Instead He wants us to be fully prepared for all things that we might encounter in our lives. Before the Israelites crossed over the River Jordan into the promised land, they were given final instructions by God through Moses. They were reminded to heed all the words and revelations that they were given previously and apply all of them to their lives. They were also given a warning: if The Word of God was followed then nothing would go wrong. The Israelites would be safe and protected if they were walking with God. They would be revered and admired throughout the world. If they abandoned God, then they too would be abandoned as a result of their own actions. The covenant that God had established with them would remain intact if they listened. God would never break it. We too are given that promise. If we act on the words given to us by God, then we will remain in relationship with Him and the bond established between Him and us can never be broken.

 

Instructions can only be beneficial if they are followed. Imagine picking up a box from the store that contained a piece of furniture that needed to be assembled. Inside the box there were no instructions. How far could an average person go before they were completely lost? The only way to have what is inside the box match the picture of the completed product on the outside of the box is to follow the instructions step by step. Therefore, we are reminded through The Apostle James to “be doers of the word and not hearers only.” Nothing is gained from hearing something and not reacting to it. We can all have the best intentions regarding our faith-life, but these mean nothing if we do not react to what is being told to us. What has been freely given to us then has to be applied to all aspects of our lives. We cannot ignore what is being said or just pretend to react to it. It is impossible to benefit from a loving relationship with God if we do not listen to what is being said. What God has given us needs to be treated with the value that it has: priceless because its origin is from God Himself. With that understanding should come a reaction to what is being said that fits the importance of it. In essence the words that we read should be treated as God: “It the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” The two cannot be separated.

 

Jesus Christ was the full revelation of God. All that was said and written before led up to Him. He is the apex of everything before and after. To follow the word means that we follow Jesus which then leads us to the Father. To be led and to follow means that we are on a journey. This takes action. There must be adjustments and changes made along the way. It is impossible to remain stagnant if we are on a journey and are reacting to what is happening. Faith requires action. Action leads to reactions which in turn bring about results. With God the only actions and reactions possible are positive ones. The negative is forced out. The only way that it returns is through an invitation from us that then enables us to turn away from God. When we are following God there is only one direction: forward. Forward equals progress and positive change. When we cease to follow God then we are either stagnated or are going in reverse.

 

The Pharisees and Scribes loved to follow rules, but they did not follow instructions well. Instructions include, at the conclusion, a complete product which can be displayed. This is part of the goal of instructions: to bring about a complete product. The Pharisees and Scribes forgot about the defined goal and only focused on the instructions. The instructions were treated with more importance than the result. They followed what was being said out of rigid obligation with no focus on the love or joy that was to be produced as a result of adherence to what was being said. Their hearts were hardened. The Word was before them, but they were missing one ingredient: the love that came with the instructions; the love that could come as a result of following what was being told them. Things were done out of fear and obedience without an expectation of the results that would be produced. They were slaves to The Law instead of being slaves to God.

 

We need to constantly remind ourselves that we were created out of love to love and be loved. Love is the key ingredient that brings us closer to God and His creation. Through love we are transformed and are joined with Him. When we put love first, just as Jesus Christ did when He laid His life down for us, all that is good will follow. Listening to what God is saying to us then reacting to what is being said will open the floodgates of His love onto us. This indeed is the final goal: to bring us back into loving relationship, to be healed by that relationship, and to finally be loved and to love forever. What a marvelous plan that is. The instructions are before us. Let us follow them with the final goal constantly in mind.

 

Deacon Tom

 

 

 

Twenty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time

Lectionary: 122

Reading I

Jos 24:1-2a, 15-17, 18b

Joshua gathered together all the tribes of Israel at Shechem,
summoning their elders, their leaders,
their judges, and their officers. 
When they stood in ranks before God,
Joshua addressed all the people:
“If it does not please you to serve the LORD,
decide today whom you will serve,
the gods your fathers served beyond the River
or the gods of the Amorites in whose country you are now dwelling. 
As for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.”

But the people answered,
“Far be it from us to forsake the LORD
for the service of other gods. 
For it was the LORD, our God,
who brought us and our fathers up out of the land of Egypt,
out of a state of slavery. 
He performed those great miracles before our very eyes
and protected us along our entire journey
and among the peoples through whom we passed. 
Therefore we also will serve the LORD, for he is our God.”

 

Responsorial Psalm

Ps 34:2-3, 16-17, 18-19, 20-21

R. (9a)  Taste and see the goodness of the Lord.
I will bless the LORD at all times;
       his praise shall be ever in my mouth.
Let my soul glory in the LORD;
       the lowly will hear me and be glad.
R. Taste and see the goodness of the Lord.
The LORD has eyes for the just,
       and ears for their cry.
The LORD confronts the evildoers,
       to destroy remembrance of them from the earth.
R. Taste and see the goodness of the Lord.
When the just cry out, the LORD hears them,
       and from all their distress he rescues them.
The LORD is close to the brokenhearted;
       and those who are crushed in spirit he saves.
R. Taste and see the goodness of the Lord.
Many are the troubles of the just one,
       but out of them all the LORD delivers him;
he watches over all his bones;
      not one of them shall be broken.
R. Taste and see the goodness of the Lord.

Reading II

Eph 5:21-32 or 5:2a, 25-32

Brothers and sisters:
Be subordinate to one another out of reverence for Christ. 
Wives should be subordinate to their husbands as to the Lord.
For the husband is head of his wife
just as Christ is head of the church,
he himself the savior of the body. 
As the church is subordinate to Christ,
so wives should be subordinate to their husbands in everything.
Husbands, love your wives,
even as Christ loved the church
and handed himself over for her to sanctify her,
cleansing her by the bath of water with the word,
that he might present to himself the church in splendor,
without spot or wrinkle or any such thing,
that she might be holy and without blemish. 
So also husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. 
He who loves his wife loves himself. 
For no one hates his own flesh
but rather nourishes and cherishes it, 
even as Christ does the church,
because we are members of his body.
    For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother
        and be joined to his wife,
    and the two shall become one flesh.
This is a great mystery,
but I speak in reference to Christ and the church.

 

Alleluia

Jn 6:63c, 68c

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Your words, Lord, are Spirit and life;
you have the words of everlasting life.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

 

 

 

Gospel

Jn 6:60-69

Many of Jesus’ disciples who were listening said,
“This saying is hard; who can accept it?”
Since Jesus knew that his disciples were murmuring about this,
he said to them, “Does this shock you?
What if you were to see the Son of Man ascending
to where he was before? 
It is the spirit that gives life,
while the flesh is of no avail.
The words I have spoken to you are Spirit and life.
But there are some of you who do not believe.”
Jesus knew from the beginning the ones who would not believe
and the one who would betray him. 
And he said,
“For this reason I have told you that no one can come to me
unless it is granted him by my Father.”

As a result of this,
many of his disciples returned to their former way of life
and no longer accompanied him.
Jesus then said to the Twelve, “Do you also want to leave?” 
Simon Peter answered him, “Master, to whom shall we go? 
You have the words of eternal life. 
We have come to believe
and are convinced that you are the Holy One of God.”

 

MY BROTHERS AND SISTERS,

Just as Joshua presented the Israelites with a choice regarding whom they were to serve, we have also been presented with the same choice. It can be viewed as a sort of challenge; a test regarding how important our relationship with God actually is. It is formulated in a way to make us think about the relationship and how we as Christians are to approach God in our daily lives. How much time do we spend thinking about Him? How much time do we spend in conversation with Him? How much importance is given to Him when we are making decisions? These questions should be asked daily and should make up what is known as an examination of conscious. Where we find ourselves lacking is where we can then concentrate a greater effort until these areas are strengthened. Constant maintenance is the key to a more fulfilling life and one that is guided by God and not by us. The Israelites answered in the affirmative when they were asked if they would follow God. Even though this was the case it was not long after the death of Joshua that they disobeyed Him and started to drift away. With that they suffered. We too must always be aware of the consequences if we too follow suite and drift away from God.

There is good in everyone. It is impossible not to be in possession of good because we were all created out of love by God. It is what we do with that good which will be the key indicator of how it will benefit us or not. All of us are in constant danger of it being buried under a pile of dirt and debris as a result of us choosing bad things instead of things that originated from God. Every day will be filled with choices which will impact our experiences and our relationship with Him. The more we choose God then the easier the choices will be to make with the positive results becoming more evident. Old habits that brought us bad results can be broken and replaced with good ones that will benefit us throughout our lives.

Putting God first means that we have surrendered our will back to Him. We are no longer in control. This action takes strength and courage yet provides almost immediate relief. These characteristics are hallmarks of being a Christian. They also go directly against the expectations of society. When we put God first we put ourselves last regarding not only Him but also the needs and wants of all of our brothers and sisters. Acting on earthly desires is replaced with a selflessness that enables us to be free from the control of the temptation. When all those within the community conduct themselves in such a way then there is harmony and joy. The Apostle Paul presents this in His letter today. Being subordinate to one another puts Jesus Christ above everyone and everything. With no ulterior motives there becomes a shared existence with Jesus as the predominant force. Those who struggle against this manner of living immediately become noticed and either their actions are corrected as a result or they slowly detach themselves from the community thus also from God. It is a voluntary action of dismissal that involves an independent choice revealed through actions. The consequences are self-created and must be corrected if one is to remain. At the center of this is always love and it is through love that the right choice are realized. There is no need to lord over one another or force any action.

In the Gospel Reading today Jesus just challenged His followers, revealing that in order to receive eternal life they would have to eat His flesh and drink His blood; a foreshadowing of the Eucharist. There were many who could not accept what He said and walked away. There were no miracles and no divine revelation that could bring them back. They were presented with a truth that they could not understand nor accept. In reaction to this they abandoned Him. This is a struggle that epitomizes the war between the flesh and the spirit. There are truths that are grounded in spirituality and go against everything that we have seen and heard in the physical world. God’s ways are not our ways. God’s thoughts are not our thoughts. When doubt creeps in it usually has its roots in the physical where, possibly unbeknownst to us at the time, we just might be trying to seize back our will. Who are we to deny something that is coming from God? The evidence of God is around us. He has been at work in our lives and we ourselves are the most powerful evidence of this yet we can so readily step forward to deny ourselves and the work He has done. Just like His followers before, no miracles or revelation will be enough to change our minds. We have seized our will back; attempting to be gods ourselves instead of His children.

Jesus presents us with a choice that we will always have. We can accept Him and journey towards the Father guided by The Love of God or we can deny Him and just walk away. The reality is there nothing forcing us to accept what He is offering. He really has nothing to prove and really doesn’t benefit depending on what choice we make. He is kind of in the ultimate position where the choice we make either benefits us completely or destroys us completely. What He is doing is making an offer to us: He has the truth and He wants to give it to us because He loves us completely. This truth is for us. To take it means that we have joined ourselves to Him and we have the ability to be completely transformed as a result. The only struggle present is the one we might encounter because there is always the allure of not putting Him first. I can safely say that most, if not all of us, have experienced a time in our lives where He wasn’t first. With that in mind, the choice really isn’t a struggle at all….Is it?

 

Deacon Tom

 

 

 

Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Mass during the Day

Lectionary: 622

Reading I

Rv 11:19a; 12:1-6a, 10ab

God’s temple in heaven was opened,
and the ark of his covenant could be seen in the temple.

A great sign appeared in the sky, a woman clothed with the sun,
with the moon under her feet,
and on her head a crown of twelve stars.
She was with child and wailed aloud in pain as she labored to give birth.
Then another sign appeared in the sky;
it was a huge red dragon, with seven heads and ten horns,
and on its heads were seven diadems.
Its tail swept away a third of the stars in the sky
and hurled them down to the earth.
Then the dragon stood before the woman about to give birth,
to devour her child when she gave birth.
She gave birth to a son, a male child,
destined to rule all the nations with an iron rod.
Her child was caught up to God and his throne.
The woman herself fled into the desert
where she had a place prepared by God.

Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say:
    “Now have salvation and power come,
        and the Kingdom of our God
        and the authority of his Anointed One.”

Responsorial Psalm

45:10, 11, 12, 16

R.    (10bc)  The queen stands at your right hand, arrayed in gold.
The queen takes her place at your right hand in gold of Ophir.
R.    The queen stands at your right hand, arrayed in gold.
Hear, O daughter, and see; turn your ear,
    forget your people and your father’s house.
R.    The queen stands at your right hand, arrayed in gold.
So shall the king desire your beauty;
    for he is your lord.
R.    The queen stands at your right hand, arrayed in gold.
They are borne in with gladness and joy;
    they enter the palace of the king.
R.    The queen stands at your right hand, arrayed in gold.

Reading II

1 Cor 15:20-27

Brothers and sisters:
Christ has been raised from the dead,
the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.
For since death came through man,
the resurrection of the dead came also through man.
For just as in Adam all die,
so too in Christ shall all be brought to life,
but each one in proper order:
Christ the firstfruits;
then, at his coming, those who belong to Christ;
then comes the end,
when he hands over the Kingdom to his God and Father,
when he has destroyed every sovereignty
and every authority and power.
For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet.
The last enemy to be destroyed is death,
for “he subjected everything under his feet.”

 

Alleluia

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Mary is taken up to heaven;
a chorus of angels exults.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel

Lk 1:39-56

Mary set out
and traveled to the hill country in haste
to a town of Judah,
where she entered the house of Zechariah
and greeted Elizabeth.
When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting,
the infant leaped in her womb,
and Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit,
cried out in a loud voice and said,
“Blessed are you among women,
and blessed is the fruit of your womb.
And how does this happen to me,
that the mother of my Lord should come to me?
For at the moment the sound of your greeting reached my ears,
the infant in my womb leaped for joy.
Blessed are you who believed
that what was spoken to you by the Lord
would be fulfilled.”

And Mary said:

    “My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord;
        my spirit rejoices in God my Savior
        for he has looked with favor on 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.
    He has mercy on those who fear him
        in every generation.
    He has shown the strength of his arm,
        and has scattered the proud in their conceit.
    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.
    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.”

Mary remained with her about three months
and then returned to her home.

MY BROTHERS AND SISTERS,

How we experience God is based on our relationship with Him. As Sacred Scripture says, “To know God is to love God.” If we do not love God with our whole heart, soul, mind, and body then we are truly lacking in a deep, meaningful relationship with Him. We are constantly invited into the Trinitarian relationship and are offered all of the benefits that come from it. These can come in the form of The Fruit of The Holy Spirit (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control) and The Seven Gifts of The Holy Spirit (wisdom, knowledge, understanding, piety, good counsel, fortitude, and fear of The Lord). It is also good to study the relationships of Jesus with those whom He was closest to so as to strive to enter into these relationships also with the same devotion and love. Being created in His image means that we are afforded the opportunity to feel what He feels and experience things the way He experiences them. Jesus’ relationship with His mother is an intimacy between a mother and son that surpasses our understanding but is also one that we can benefit from and experience for we are His children and Mary extends the love they share to all of us.

 

Mary, among other titles, is known as “The Theotokos.” This is a Greek word meaning, “God Vessel.” She is recognized as such because she gave birth to Jesus Christ. Mary’s cousin, Elizabeth, proclaimed this through Divine Revelation. Moved to words by The Holy Spirit she said, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. And how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?” It is through The Gospel of Luke that we are given instruction on how to approach Mary and what reverence we should bestow upon her. It is through Mary that the Love of God can be realized all the more and how the tenderness of a mother’s love can be witnessed in its perfection.

 

From Mary’s conception we are witnesses to the perfectness of God. The Church teaches us and Sacred Scripture proclaim that Mary was born without Original Sin: unblemished and undefiled. She had to be since she was the one bearing the infant Jesus into the world. Through God everything is made perfect. Even us in our imperfections brought upon by our thoughts and actions cannot counter the work of God within us once we let Him in. The Angel Gabriel said, “Hail, favored one! The Lord is with you.” Being with God is an indication that the relationship she has with Him is perfect just as it was with Enoch and Elijah before. Being greeted with reverence and respect raises the receiver to a position above the greeter. One of a higher class does not extend such a greeting to a person of a lower class. Thus Mary, in her position, is raised up higher than the angels. As Elizabeth did to Mary, moved by The Holy Spirit, we are expected to do the same. When this is done we become benefactors of one who has a unique relationship with The Son of God and can intercede on our behalf to Him. The more prayers the better and who would refuse the prayers of the Mother of God; one who Jesus himself could not deny her request:

 

“They have no wine.”

And Jesus said to her, “Woman, how does your concern affect me? My hour has not yet come.”

His mother said to the servers, “Do whatever he tells you…”

 

I think we all know the rest of the story. The Fourth Commandment rings true: Honor Your Mother and Father.

 

Today we celebrate The Assumption of Mary. Mary, being without Original Sin and in a perfect relationship with God was assumed, full body and soul, into heaven upon her death. It is there where she remains with her Son, Jesus Christ, and is given a special place within The Spiritual Realm and also in all of God’s creation. Our lives and the lives of all in the universe are intertwined as witnessed by The Apostle John in his vision:

 

“A great sign appeared in the sky, a woman clothed with the sun,
with the moon under her feet,
and on her head a crown of twelve stars.”

 

“… She gave birth to a son, a male child,
destined to rule all the nations with an iron rod.
Her child was caught up to God and his throne.”

 

Clothed with the sun and the moon at her feet; bedecked with twelve stars to represent The Twelve Tribes of Israel, The Apostles, The Seraphim, The Twelve Favors, amongst other things giving us a clear way of how we should approach and interact with Mary. The fact that she was taken up by God in the manner of Enoch and Elijah solidifies her place in our dogma and our faith-life. She can be our comforter, consoler, and greatest intercessor. She is part of our salvation story and adds another way that we can enter into a relationship with God. Jesus had a mother and, as all mothers do, Mary had and continues to have an impact on her son.

 

God used a comparison of His love for us as to the love a mother has for her child:

 

“Can a mother forget her infant,

Be without tenderness for the child of her womb?

Even if she should forget,

I will never forget you.”

 

Compare that to the love between Mary and Jesus. By extension, compare that to the love Mary has for us being God’s Children. God will never forget us. Jesus will never forget us. Mary will never forget us. The love that God has for us is revealed through His love for His Son and the love Mary has for us all. There is no greater power and force when this love is realized and celebrated.

 

Deacon Tom