Thursday - February 09, 2017
For God says: Pray wholeheartedly. . . though you may feel nothing, though you may see nothing . . . for in dryness and in barrenness, in sickness and in weakness, then is your prayer most pleasing to Me.
~~St. Julian of Norwich
TODAY'S READINGS
Thursday of the Fifth Week in Ordinary Time
"It is not good for the man to be alone.
I will make a suitable partner for him."
So the LORD God formed out of the ground
various wild animals and various birds of the air,
and he brought them to the man to see what he would call them;
whatever the man called each of them would be its name.
The man gave names to all the cattle,
all the birds of the air, and all the wild animals;
but none proved to be the suitable partner for the man.
So the LORD God cast a deep sleep on the man,
and while he was asleep, he took out one of his ribs
and closed up its place with flesh.
The LORD God then built up into a woman
the rib that he had taken from the man.
When he brought her to the man, the man said:
"This one, at last, is bone of my bones
and flesh of my flesh;
this one shall be called 'woman,'
for out of 'her man' this one has been taken."
That is why a man leaves his father and mother
and clings to his wife,
and the two of them become one flesh.
The man and his wife were both naked, yet they felt no shame.
Blessed are you who fear the LORD,
who walk in his ways!
For you shall eat the fruit of your handiwork;
blessed shall you be, and favored.
R. Blessed are those who fear the Lord.
Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine
in the recesses of your home;
Your children like olive plants
around your table.
R. Blessed are those who fear the Lord.
Behold, thus is the man blessed
who fears the LORD.
The LORD bless you from Zion:
may you see the prosperity of Jerusalem
all the days of your life.
R. Blessed are those who fear the Lord.
Humbly welcome the word that has been planted in you
and is able to save your souls.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
He entered a house and wanted no one to know about it,
but he could not escape notice.
Soon a woman whose daughter had an unclean spirit heard about him.
She came and fell at his feet.
The woman was a Greek, a Syrophoenician by birth,
and she begged him to drive the demon out of her daughter.
He said to her, "Let the children be fed first.
For it is not right to take the food of the children
and throw it to the dogs."
She replied and said to him,
"Lord, even the dogs under the table eat the children's scraps."
Then he said to her, "For saying this, you may go.
The demon has gone out of your daughter."
When the woman went home, she found the child lying in bed
and the demon gone.
February 9, 2017
Thursday of the Fifth Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 332
Reading 1GN 2:18-25
The LORD God said:"It is not good for the man to be alone.
I will make a suitable partner for him."
So the LORD God formed out of the ground
various wild animals and various birds of the air,
and he brought them to the man to see what he would call them;
whatever the man called each of them would be its name.
The man gave names to all the cattle,
all the birds of the air, and all the wild animals;
but none proved to be the suitable partner for the man.
So the LORD God cast a deep sleep on the man,
and while he was asleep, he took out one of his ribs
and closed up its place with flesh.
The LORD God then built up into a woman
the rib that he had taken from the man.
When he brought her to the man, the man said:
"This one, at last, is bone of my bones
and flesh of my flesh;
this one shall be called 'woman,'
for out of 'her man' this one has been taken."
That is why a man leaves his father and mother
and clings to his wife,
and the two of them become one flesh.
The man and his wife were both naked, yet they felt no shame.
Responsorial PsalmPS 128:1-2, 3, 4-5
R. (see 1a) Blessed are those who fear the Lord.Blessed are you who fear the LORD,
who walk in his ways!
For you shall eat the fruit of your handiwork;
blessed shall you be, and favored.
R. Blessed are those who fear the Lord.
Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine
in the recesses of your home;
Your children like olive plants
around your table.
R. Blessed are those who fear the Lord.
Behold, thus is the man blessed
who fears the LORD.
The LORD bless you from Zion:
may you see the prosperity of Jerusalem
all the days of your life.
R. Blessed are those who fear the Lord.
AlleluiaJAS 1:21BC
R. Alleluia, alleluia.Humbly welcome the word that has been planted in you
and is able to save your souls.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
GospelMK 7:24-30
Jesus went to the district of Tyre.He entered a house and wanted no one to know about it,
but he could not escape notice.
Soon a woman whose daughter had an unclean spirit heard about him.
She came and fell at his feet.
The woman was a Greek, a Syrophoenician by birth,
and she begged him to drive the demon out of her daughter.
He said to her, "Let the children be fed first.
For it is not right to take the food of the children
and throw it to the dogs."
She replied and said to him,
"Lord, even the dogs under the table eat the children's scraps."
Then he said to her, "For saying this, you may go.
The demon has gone out of your daughter."
When the woman went home, she found the child lying in bed
and the demon gone.
******************************
Humility and Faith: Foundation and Cathedral
Introductory Prayer: Lord, I come before you today to learn the lessons of faith that you want to teach me. I want to learn to be patient when you test my faith. I know you want only to make it grow and bear more fruit in my life. In this prayer I desire to trust and love you as you deserve to be loved by me.
Petition: Lord, make my faith vibrant and persevering.
1. Seek Ye Higher Gifts: Our Lord is close to us in our sufferings. In this Gospel, a daughter suffered from a demonic possession, and her mother suffered with her. What most strikes us about this passage, however, is that Our Lord initially adds to the mother’s suffering by rebuking her. It seems so out of character, so foreign to the one who is “meek and humble of heart,” so unlike the gentle Jesus who is ever-sensitive to the needs of others. Yet Our Lord was about to confer upon her the greatest gift that could befall any human being: the gift of salvation represented by the healing of her daughter. Because the gift was so great, the vessel that was to contain it needed to be prepared.
2. Feelings, Nothing More Than Feelings: It is important to remember two principles about our feelings. First, we are not to treat them as if they were the infallible compass of our spiritual lives. Second, their lack of support does not mean that Our Lord is abandoning us. We can easily forget these two principles and blindly follow our feelings, persuasions and seductions. We can wrongly confuse feelings with faith. This believing woman beautifully shows the attitude we must maintain. Her example of humility in the face of Jesus’ seemingly hostile rebuke truly astounds us. No rebellion, no complaints, no resentments, no pity party. She remains determinedly fixed on Christ. She maintains a spirit of humility and faith in him who has the power to deliver her daughter from the devil. Am I capable of persisting in my prayer even when it seems Our Lord is turning a deaf ear?
3. A Cathedral of Faith for All to See: If only we could learn from her example! With such a firm foundation to build on, Jesus draws out of her an even greater faith — as large as a cathedral for the entire world to see. We need to ponder and contemplate the mysterious and wise ways of Our Lord when we suffer from his rebukes. We must hold fast to humility, mindful that we are creatures always loved by Christ, our Good Shepherd. He promised he would not leave us orphans. Why then such little faith?
Conversation with Christ: Lord, let me not confuse faith with feelings. Let me not confuse trust with mere sentiment. Never let me reduce my relationship with you to feelings, no matter how pleasurable or worthy I think they may be at that moment. Help me to remain humble in my dispositions and firm in my convictions, seeking only to trust, love and please you.
Resolution: When I experience pleasant, worthy or helpful feelings, I will thank and praise God, and I will channel these feelings toward what is more relevant: living out the deeper virtue of faith.
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God Bless You.....
KONKANI PRAYER GROUP - Abu Dhabi
"Go into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone" Mark 16:15
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