Today is the Feast day of Saint Anthony and over the years I have prayed for the intercession of this great Saint not so much for help in finding lost items but the grace to be eloquent in sharing the Gospel as he was. Here are a few of my reflections of this Saint…
- He truly loved Jesus with all his heart, mind, soul and strength.
- His eloquence came from this fact, for through his deep love for Him, He expressed it in his writings, his homilies and always when he simply spoke with those who would gather around him to hear him speak.
- He loved the poor with same love he had for Jesus and perhaps saw His Saviour in their eyes. He fed the poor with bread as well as the bread of life!
- He was never known to tire in sharing the joy of the Gospel even when he was ailing.
Today I chose the feria readings instead of the memorial to show the contrast of a life lived with and in God and one with God absent.
Ahab lived a godless life, he married a godless woman and they lived only for themselves. With Ahab’s insatiable greed an innocent man was murdered for his land and we will hear more of the evil wrongdoings later of Jezebel in the later chapters.
In today’s Gospel it is not about us being doormats to be trampled upon by others but the emphasis is of us being merciful and loving and going beyond what we can or would normally do. In other words we should love with a supernatural love which can only come from Christ Jesus our Lord whom we profess to love. In the Gospel of the memorial we are being sent as lambs among wolves. To proclaim that the Kingdom of God is near to all who will believe in Jesus; and that they will have eternal life through Him! Amen
Saint Antony of Padua Pray for us…..
Readings for the Memorial – Isaiah 61:1-3, Gospel Luke 10:1-9
First reading
1 Kings 21:1-16 ·
Ahab covets Naboth’s vineyard and Jezebel has him killed
Naboth of Jezreel had a vineyard close by the palace of Ahab king of Samaria, and Ahab said to Naboth, ‘Give me your vineyard to be my vegetable garden, since it adjoins my house; I will give you a better vineyard for it or, if you prefer, I will give you its worth in money.’ But Naboth answered Ahab, ‘The Lord forbid that I should give you the inheritance of my ancestors!’
Ahab went home gloomy and out of temper at the words of Naboth of Jezreel, ‘I will not give you the inheritance of my fathers.’ He lay down on his bed and turned his face away and refused to eat. His wife Jezebel came to him. ‘Why are you so dispirited’ she said ‘that you will not eat?’ He said, ‘I have been speaking to Naboth of Jezreel; I said: “Give me your vineyard either for money or, if you prefer, for another vineyard in exchange.” But he said, “I will not give you my vineyard.”’ Then his wife Jezebel said, ‘You make a fine king of Israel, and no mistake! Get up and eat; cheer up, and you will feel better; I will get you the vineyard of Naboth of Jezreel myself.’
So she wrote letters in Ahab’s name and sealed them with his seal, sending them to the elders and nobles who lived where Naboth lived. In the letters she wrote, ‘Proclaim a fast, and put Naboth in the forefront of the people. Confront him with a couple of scoundrels who will accuse him like this, “You have cursed God and the king.” Then take him outside and stone him to death.’
The men of Naboth’s town, the elders and nobles who lived in his town, did what Jezebel ordered, what was written in the letters she had sent them. They proclaimed a fast and put Naboth in the forefront of the people. Then the two scoundrels came and stood in front of him and made their accusation, ‘Naboth has cursed God and the king.’ They led him outside the town and stoned him to death. They then sent word to Jezebel, ‘Naboth has been stoned to death.’ When Jezebel heard that Naboth had been stoned to death, she said to Ahab, ‘Get up! Take possession of the vineyard which Naboth of Jezreel would not give you for money, for Naboth is no longer alive, he is dead.’ When Ahab heard that Naboth was dead, he got up to go down to the vineyard of Naboth of Jezreel and take possession of it.
Gospel
Matthew 5:38-42
Offer the wicked man no resistance
Jesus said to his disciples: ‘You have learnt how it was said: Eye for eye and tooth for tooth. But I say this to you: offer the wicked man no resistance. On the contrary, if anyone hits you on the right cheek, offer him the other as well; if a man takes you to law and would have your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. And if anyone orders you to go one mile, go two miles with him. Give to anyone who asks, and if anyone wants to borrow, do not turn away.’
CatholicJules.net 