Friday - June 09, 2017
The fruits of charity are joy, peace, and mercy; charity demands beneficence and fraternal correction; it is benevolence; it fosters reciprocity and remains disinterested and generous; it is friendship and communion: Love is itself the fulfillment of all our works. There is the goal; that is why we run: we run toward it, and once we reach it, in it we shall find rest.
–St. Augustine
TODAY'S READINGS
June 9, 2017
Friday of the Ninth Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 357
Reading 1TB 11:5-17
Anna sat watching the road by which her son was to come.When she saw him coming, she exclaimed to his father,
"Tobit, your son is coming, and the man who traveled with him!"
Raphael said to Tobiah before he reached his father:
"I am certain that his eyes will be opened.
Smear the fish gall on them.
This medicine will make the cataracts shrink and peel off from his eyes;
then your father will again be able to see the light of day."
Then Anna ran up to her son, threw her arms around him,
and said to him,
"Now that I have seen you again, son, I am ready to die!"
And she sobbed aloud.
Tobit got up and stumbled out through the courtyard gate.
Tobiah went up to him with the fish gall in his hand,
and holding him firmly, blew into his eyes.
"Courage, father," he said.
Next he smeared the medicine on his eyes, and it made them smart.
Then, beginning at the corners of Tobit's eyes,
Tobiah used both hands to peel off the cataracts.
When Tobit saw his son, he threw his arms around him and wept.
He exclaimed, "I can see you, son, the light of my eyes!"
Then he said:
"Blessed be God,
and praised be his great name,
and blessed be all his holy angels.
May his holy name be praised
throughout all the ages,
Because it was he who scourged me,
and it is he who has had mercy on me.
Behold, I now see my son Tobiah!"
Then Tobit went back in, rejoicing and praising God with full voice
for everything that had happened.
Tobiah told his father that
the Lord God had granted him a successful journey;
that he had brought back the money;
and that he had married Raguel's daughter Sarah,
who would arrive shortly,
for she was approaching the gate of Nineveh.
Tobit and Anna rejoiced
and went out to the gate of Nineveh
to meet their daughter-in-law.
When the people of Nineveh saw Tobit walking along briskly,
with no one leading him by the hand, they were amazed.
Before them all Tobit proclaimed
how God had mercifully restored sight to his eyes.
When Tobit reached Sarah, the wife of his son Tobiah,
he greeted her: "Welcome, my daughter!
Blessed be your God for bringing you to us, daughter!
Blessed is your father, and blessed is my son Tobiah,
and blessed are you, daughter!
Welcome to your home with blessing and joy.
Come in, daughter!"
That day there was joy for all the Jews who lived in Nineveh.
Responsorial PsalmPS 146:1B-2, 6C-7, 8-9A, 9BC-10
R. (1b) Praise the Lord, my soul!or:
R. Alleluia.
Praise the LORD, O my soul;
I will praise the LORD all my life;
I will sing praise to my God while I live.
R. Praise the Lord, my soul!
or:
R. Alleluia.
The LORD keeps faith forever,
secures justice for the oppressed,
gives food to the hungry.
The LORD sets captives free.
R. Praise the Lord, my soul!
or:
R. Alleluia.
The LORD gives sight to the blind.
The LORD raises up those who are bowed down;
the LORD loves the just.
The LORD protects strangers.
R. Praise the Lord, my soul!
or:
R. Alleluia.
The fatherless and the widow he sustains,
but the way of the wicked he thwarts
The LORD shall reign forever,
your God, O Zion, through all generations! Alleluia.
R. Praise the Lord, my soul!
or:
R. Alleluia.
AlleluiaJN 14:23
R. Alleluia, alleluia.Whoever loves me will keep my word,
and my Father will love him
and we will come to him.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
GospelMK 12:35-37
As Jesus was teaching in the temple area he said,"How do the scribes claim that the Christ is the son of David?
David himself, inspired by the Holy Spirit, said:
The Lord said to my lord,
'Sit at my right hand
until I place your enemies under your feet.'
David himself calls him 'lord';
so how is he his son?"
The great crowd heard this with delight.
******************************
A Good Homily
Introductory Prayer: Lord Jesus, I believe that you have created and redeemed me. I believe that you have called me to prayer today. I trust that you will teach me to pray and relish what is right and true, good and beautiful. I love you, Lord, for in you is all perfection, goodness, and love.
Petition: Lord Jesus, make my heart more like yours.
1. Speaking for All to Hear: Imagine Jesus teaching in the Temple area, surrounded by hundreds of spiritually hungry men and women. In the background and at a distance stand the scribes: cold stares, squinting eyes, full of distrust, fear and scheming. He raises his voice, enough for even those in the back to hear. He is speaking to everyone. What are their dispositions? Most of the crowd does more than hearing; they listen intently. They believe that God will speak to them through Jesus, speak to their needs and hearts, and give them the love, truth, and inspiration they need. Others listen but superficially. Their motives are curiosity, entertainment, and vanity – something to talk about. The scribes don’t listen, except for what might serve their plotting. Jesus still tries to reach them then and reach me now. Am I open?
2. A Mysterious Identity: Lord and Son - The scribes oppose Jesus for many reasons: jealousy, ignorance, pride…. But the greatest reason is that he acts as though he were the Messiah, even God himself. How close they are to the truth! Using their own Scriptures, he points to this truth: somehow the Messiah will be both son and Lord. His rebuttal of their objections is another effort of his heart to reach out. He invites them to rise to the level of faith. Reminiscent of his words to his mother – “Did you not know that I must be about my Father’s work” (Luke 2:49) – Jesus is a son of man by birth, but by origin and mission he is the Lord, the Son of the Most High. Do I overcome my pride and ignorance with faith, allowing God to work at his level, far beyond my comprehension?
3. Hearing with Delight: Prayer is a difficult and challenging art; indeed, it is much more than an art. We try to focus, reflect and enter into dialogue with someone we neither see nor hear with our senses. And worst of all, we don’t usually feel anything: “I get nothing out of it!” While prayer is not about feelings, but rather loving, it is nonetheless an experience that should move us in some way to change. Listening to Jesus brought “delight” to the crowds. A neat and convincing argument! The wonderment of discovering truth! The joy and satisfaction of seeing their champion score a victorious blow! Whatever the occasion, our experience of Christ in prayer can at times produce delight, but only to the degree that we share or conform our thoughts, desires and loves to his. The scribes found no delight, for they shared not his heart and mind. Where is my delight?
Conversation with Christ: Dear Jesus, open my heart to your words. Help me to believe even if it hurts or demands that I change my ideas. Raise me up above my prejudices and insecurities. Show me what to change in my life. I want to do it to love you more fully and to delight more deeply in your friendship and love.
Resolution: I will choose and develop a love for one spiritual value, virtue or good. I will look for it in Christ, reflect on its beauty, and ask him to grant it to me.
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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