I am awestruck that it is the Persian king who pays for the rebuilding of the temple and declares by his own lips the Lord God Almighty, King of Kings, Lord of Lords.
Do we have that form of reverence for the Lord our God, such that at every Eucharist we rejoice, as we say, we are going to the Lord’s house to worship Him, to adore Him? And sanctified my Him, we shall glorify Him by the way we live our lives. Only then shall we be truly one in Holy Communion with Him.
We acknowledge that God our Heavenly Father is Father to us all. And through His Son and the Holy Spirit, we are one body in Him. We are His family, because we are obedient to His Word and Will for us, and it is evident in our words and deeds for His Glory. Amen.
Saint Pius of Pietrelcina (Padre Pio), Priest
Pray for us…
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First reading
Ezra 6:7-8,12,14-20
Darius king of Persia pays for the rebuilding of the Temple of God
King Darius wrote to the satrap of Transeuphrates and his colleagues: ‘Leave the high commissioner of Judah and the elders of the Jews to work on this Temple of God; they are to rebuild this Temple of God on its ancient site. This, I decree, is how you must assist the elders of the Jews in the reconstruction of this Temple of God: the expenses of these people are to be paid, promptly and without fail, from the royal revenue – that is, from the tribute of Transeuphrates. May the God who causes his name to live there overthrow any king or people who dares to defy this and destroy the Temple of God in Jerusalem! I, Darius, have issued this decree. Let it be obeyed to the letter!’
The elders of the Jews prospered with their building, inspired by Haggai the prophet and Zechariah son of Iddo. They finished the building in accordance with the order of the God of Israel and the order of Cyrus and of Darius. This Temple was finished on the twenty-third day of the month of Adar; it was the sixth year of the reign of King Darius. The Israelites – the priests, the Levites and the remainder of the exiles – joyfully dedicated this Temple of God; for the dedication of this Temple of God they offered one hundred bulls, two hundred rams, four hundred lambs and, as a sacrifice for sin for the whole of Israel, twelve he-goats, corresponding to the number of the tribes of Israel. Then they installed the priests according to their orders in the service of the Temple of God in Jerusalem, as is written in the Book of Moses.
The exiles celebrated the Passover on the fourteenth day of the first month. The Levites, as one man, had purified themselves; all were pure, so they sacrificed the passover for all the exiles, for their brothers the priests and for themselves.
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Gospel
Luke 8:19-21
‘My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God’
The mother and the brothers of Jesus came looking for him, but they could not get to him because of the crowd. He was told, ‘Your mother and brothers are standing outside and want to see you.’ But he said in answer, ‘My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and put it into practice.’
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