Archive for August 29, 2020

Twenty-Second Sunday in Ordinary Time

Posted: August 29, 2020 by CatholicJules in Sunday Reflections
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For Your Life: Scott Hahn Reflects on the Twenty-Second Sunday in Ordinary Time

Readings:

Jeremiah 20:7–9
Psalm 63:2–6, 8–9
Romans 12:1–2
Matthew 16:21–27

Today’s First Reading catches the prophet Jeremiah in a moment of weakness. His intimate lamentation contains some of the strongest language of doubt found in the Bible. Following God’s call, he feels abandoned. Preaching His Word has brought him only derision and reproach.

But God does not deceive—and Jeremiah knows this. God tests the just (see Jeremiah 20:11–12), and disciplines His children through their sufferings and trials (see Hebrews 12:5–7).

What Jeremiah learns, Jesus states explicitly in today’s Gospel. To follow Him is to take up a cross, to deny yourself—your priorities, preferences, and comforts. It is to be willing to give it all up, even life itself, for the sake of His gospel. As Paul says in today’s Epistle, we have to join ourselves to the passion of Christ, to offer our bodies—our whole beings—as living sacrifices to God.

By His Cross, Jesus has shown us what Israel’s sacrifices of animals were meant to teach: we owe to God all that we have.
God’s kindness is a greater good than life itself, as we sing in today’s Psalm. The only thanks we can offer is our spiritual worship—to give our lives to the service of His will (see Hebrews 10:3–11; Psalm 50:14, 23).

Peter doesn’t yet get this in today’s Gospel. As it was for Jeremiah, the cross is a stumbling block for Peter (see 1 Corinthians 1:23). This too is our natural temptation—to refuse to believe that our sufferings play a necessary part in God’s plan.

That’s how people think, Jesus tells us today. But we are called to the renewal of our minds—to think as God thinks, to will what He wills.

In the Mass, we once again offer ourselves as perfect and pleasing sacrifices of praise (see Hebrews 13:15). We bless Him as we live, confident that we will find our lives in losing them, that with the riches of His banquet, our souls will be satisfied.

On Today’s Gospel

Posted: August 29, 2020 by CatholicJules in Personal Thoughts & Reflections
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We may have all felt invincible at one point in our lives till we realise just how how frail the human condition is. We are susceptible to sickness from viruses, diseases even certain kinds of foods. Even when we are strong and healthy, we are vulnerable to natural disasters and accidents! So even if we have all that we could ever dream of now, everything can stripped from us in an instance. The only constant we have in our lives is the love of God our Father for us His faithful who are strive to live in His truth and in His love to be found in our Lord Jesus Christ.

St John the Baptist lived a virtuous life and in the truth of the Lord our God. He was undeterred in speaking out the truth for the conversion of souls. For this he will always be remembered for his heroic faith lived in life as in death. Therefore we know without doubt that he is fully alive with Christ in Heaven praying for us. It is Herod and the Herods of the world who by refusing the truth and choosing to live in sin are the ones who have lost their heads. Amen

St John the Baptist pray for us…

First reading

1 Corinthians 1:26-31 ·
God chose what is foolish by human reckoning, to shame the wiseTake yourselves for instance, brothers, at the time when you were called: how many of you were wise in the ordinary sense of the word, how many were influential people, or came from noble families? No, it was to shame the wise that God chose what is foolish by human reckoning, and to shame what is strong that he chose what is weak by human reckoning; those whom the world thinks common and contemptible are the ones that God has chosen – those who are nothing at all to show up those who are everything. The human race has nothing to boast about to God, but you, God has made members of Christ Jesus and by God’s doing he has become our wisdom, and our virtue, and our holiness, and our freedom. As scripture says: if anyone wants to boast, let him boast about the Lord.

Gospel

Mark 6:17-29
The beheading of John the BaptistHerod sent to have John arrested, and had him chained up in prison because of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife whom he had married. For John had told Herod, ‘It is against the law for you to have your brother’s wife.’ As for Herodias, she was furious with him and wanted to kill him; but she was not able to, because Herod was afraid of John, knowing him to be a good and holy man, and gave him his protection. When he had heard him speak he was greatly perplexed, and yet he liked to listen to him.
An opportunity came on Herod’s birthday when he gave a banquet for the nobles of his court, for his army officers and for the leading figures in Galilee. When the daughter of this same Herodias came in and danced, she delighted Herod and his guests; so the king said to the girl, ‘Ask me anything you like and I will give it you.’ And he swore her an oath, ‘I will give you anything you ask, even half my kingdom.’ She went out and said to her mother, ‘What shall I ask for?’ She replied, ‘The head of John the Baptist.’ The girl hurried straight back to the king and made her request, ‘I want you to give me John the Baptist’s head, here and now, on a dish.’ The king was deeply distressed but, thinking of the oaths he had sworn and of his guests, he was reluctant to break his word to her. So the king at once sent one of the bodyguard with orders to bring John’s head. The man went off and beheaded him in prison; then he brought the head on a dish and gave it to the girl, and the girl gave it to her mother. When John’s disciples heard about this, they came and took his body and laid it in a tomb.