Tuesday of the Second Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 312
Reading I
1 Samuel 16:1-13
The LORD said to Samuel:
“How long will you grieve for Saul,
whom I have rejected as king of Israel?
Fill your horn with oil, and be on your way.
I am sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem,
for I have chosen my king from among his sons.”
But Samuel replied:
“How can I go?
Saul will hear of it and kill me.”
To this the LORD answered:
“Take a heifer along and say,
‘I have come to sacrifice to the LORD.’
Invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I myself will tell you what to do;
you are to anoint for me the one I point out to you.”
Samuel did as the LORD had commanded him.
When he entered Bethlehem,
the elders of the city came trembling to meet him and inquired,
“Is your visit peaceful, O seer?”
He replied:
“Yes! I have come to sacrifice to the LORD.
So cleanse yourselves and join me today for the banquet.”
He also had Jesse and his sons cleanse themselves
and invited them to the sacrifice.
As they came, he looked at Eliab and thought,
“Surely the LORD’s anointed is here before him.”
But the LORD said to Samuel:
“Do not judge from his appearance or from his lofty stature,
because I have rejected him.
Not as man sees does God see,
because he sees the appearance
but the LORD looks into the heart.”
Then Jesse called Abinadab and presented him before Samuel,
who said, “The LORD has not chosen him.”
Next Jesse presented Shammah, but Samuel said,
“The LORD has not chosen this one either.”
In the same way Jesse presented seven sons before Samuel,
but Samuel said to Jesse,
“The LORD has not chosen any one of these.”
Then Samuel asked Jesse,
“Are these all the sons you have?”
Jesse replied,
“There is still the youngest, who is tending the sheep.”
Samuel said to Jesse,
“Send for him;
we will not begin the sacrificial banquet until he arrives here.”
Jesse sent and had the young man brought to them.
He was ruddy, a youth handsome to behold
and making a splendid appearance.
The LORD said,
“There–anoint him, for this is he!”
Then Samuel, with the horn of oil in hand,
anointed him in the midst of his brothers;
and from that day on, the Spirit of the LORD rushed upon David.
When Samuel took his leave, he went to Ramah.
Responsorial Psalm
89:20, 21-22, 27-28
R. (21a) I have found David, my servant.
Once you spoke in a vision,
and to your faithful ones you said:
“On a champion I have placed a crown;
over the people I have set a youth.”
R. I have found David, my servant.
“I have found David, my servant;
with my holy oil I have anointed him,
That my hand may be always with him,
and that my arm may make him strong.”
R. I have found David, my servant.
“He shall say of me, ‘You are my father,
my God, the Rock, my savior.’
And I will make him the first-born,
highest of the kings of the earth.”
R. I have found David, my servant.
Alleluia
See Ephesians 1:17-18
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
May the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ
enlighten the eyes of our hearts,
that we may know what is the hope
that belongs to our call.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
Mark 2:23-28
As Jesus was passing through a field of grain on the sabbath,
his disciples began to make a path while picking the heads of grain.
At this the Pharisees said to him,
“Look, why are they doing what is unlawful on the sabbath?”
He said to them,
“Have you never read what David did
when he was in need and he and his companions were hungry?
How he went into the house of God when Abiathar was high priest
and ate the bread of offering that only the priests could lawfully eat,
and shared it with his companions?”
Then he said to them,
“The sabbath was made for man, not man for the sabbath.
That is why the Son of Man is lord even of the sabbath.”
Reflection 1
Catholic Daily Reflections
Keeping Holy the Sabbath
As Jesus was passing through a field of grain on the sabbath, his disciples began to make a path while picking the heads of grain. At this the Pharisees said to him, “Look, why are they doing what is unlawful on the sabbath?” Mark 2:23–24
The Pharisees were greatly concerned about many things that were distortions of the law of God. The Third Commandment calls us to “Keep holy the Sabbath Day.” Furthermore, we read in Exodus 20:8–10 that we are not to do any work on the Sabbath but are to use that day for rest. From this Commandment, the Pharisees developed extensive commentary on what was permitted and what was forbidden to do on the Sabbath. They determined that picking the heads of grain was one of the forbidden actions.
In many countries today, the Sabbath rest has all but disappeared. Sadly, Sunday is rarely set aside any longer for a day of worship and rest with family and friends. For that reason, this hypercritical condemnation of the disciples by the Pharisees is hard to relate to. The deeper spiritual issue seems to be the hyper “nitpicky” approach taken by the Pharisees. They were not so much concerned about honoring God on the Sabbath as they were interested in being judgmental and condemning. And though it may be rare today to find people overly scrupulous and nitpicky about the Sabbath rest, it’s often easy to find ourselves becoming nitpicky about many other things in life.
Consider your family and those who are closest to you. Are there things they do and habits they have formed that leave you constantly criticizing them? Sometimes we criticize others for actions that are clearly contrary to the laws of God. At different times, we criticize others on account of some exaggeration of fact on our part. Though it is important to speak charitably against violations of the external law of God, we must be very careful not to set ourselves up as the judge and jury of others, especially when our criticism is based on a distortion of the truth or an exaggeration of something minor. In other words, we must be careful not to become nitpicky ourselves.
Reflect, today, upon any tendency you have in your relationships with those closest to you toward being excessive and distorted in your criticism. Do you find yourself obsessing over the apparent minor faults of others on a regular basis? Try to step back from criticism today and renew, instead, your practice of mercy toward all. If you do, you may actually discover that your judgments of others do not fully reflect the truth of God’s law.
Reflection 2
One Bread, One Body
THE SPIRIT OF LEADERSHIP
“Samuel, with the horn of oil in hand, anointed him in the midst of his brothers; and from that day on, the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon David.” —1 Samuel 16:13
The Lord told Samuel to end his pity-party and go raise up a new leader for God’s people (1 Sm 16:1). We also need to raise up new Christian leaders.
Samuel replied to the Lord: “How can I go? Saul will hear of it and kill me” (1 Sm 16:2). When we focus on the Holy Spirit and leadership, we will be a threat to the devil, and we too will be in danger.
The Lord promised Samuel: “I Myself will tell you what to do” (1 Sm 16:3). When we obey the Lord, “the God of peace will quickly crush Satan under” our feet (Rm 16:19-20).
The Lord told Samuel to anoint not those who appeared to be leaders but the one chosen by the Lord (1 Sm 16:7). Likewise, the Lord chooses as leaders today “the world’s lowborn and despised, those who count for nothing, to reduce to nothing those who were something” (1 Cor 1:28).
Don’t waste your time worrying and complaining. Spend your time praying for the Holy Spirit to be stirred into flame (2 Tm 1:6) in the lives of simple, grassroots leaders. No matter what Satan does to discourage or intimidate you, keep obeying the Lord and keep inviting people to receive the fullness of the Spirit in their lives. By continually praying for as many leaders as possible to receive the Spirit, you will join the Spirit in renewing the face of the earth (Ps 104:30). Come, Holy Spirit!
Prayer: Father, give us several new Pentecosts and new leaders in Christ.
Promise: “The Son of Man is Lord even of the sabbath.” —Mk 2:28
Praise: Josephine spends an hour daily in Eucharistic Adoration before leaving for work.
Reflection 3
Shared from God's Word
“For the Lord does not see as mortals see; they look on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.” Throughout the history of salvation, divine causality is different from human perception. In the First Reading, David, the youngest son of Jesse, is chosen by God to be the King of Israel. In the Gospel, Jesus teaches us that the core of authentic human life is love. According to Paul, the person who loves fulfils the law. Legalism is incompatible with the values of Jesus. When the Pharisees pointed out that it was unlawful to pluck heads of grain and eat on a Sabbath, Jesus gives them a new interpretation that the Sabbath is made to meet the needs of people and should not enslave human life.
Prayers
My merciful Judge, give me a heart of compassion and mercy toward all. Remove from my heart all judgmentalness and criticalness. I leave all judgment to You, dear Lord, and seek only to be an instrument of Your love and mercy. Jesus, I trust in You.
Lord Jesus, may I give you fitting honor in the way I live my life and in the way I treat my neighbor. May I honor the Lord's Day as a day holy to you. And may I always treat others with the same mercy and kindness which you have shown to me. Free me from a critical and intolerant spirit that I may always seek the good of my neighbor.
Daily Reflections on Divine Mercy
Reflection 16: Total Abandonment to God
Fall down before God. Prostrate yourself before Him. If you can, do it literally. If it would be a distraction to others then do it interiorly. Fall down prostrate before God and beg Him to show you His Divine Mercy and His most holy Will. There are many times in life when a simple prayer or two are not enough. What we need is to totally abandon ourselves before God. Of course this is what we must do every day all day. But in order to carry this interior disposition of total abandonment to God, we need concrete moments when we make this our absolute and complete act of surrender (See Diary #9).
Reflect, today, upon how deeply you pray. Do you only offer a few prayers here or there? Or do you take time each week to make an act of complete abandonment and surrender to God? Do you intentionally lay your life before our Great God in total love and trust? If you are not sure, then make sure you do so today.
Lord, I abandon myself into Your hands and trust in Your perfect goodness and Mercy. I prostrate myself before Your Divine Majesty and surrender to Your loving care. Jesus, I am totally Yours. Jesus, I trust in You.
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