Tuesday of the Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 372
Reading 1
2 Kings 19:9B-11, 14-21, 31-35A, 36
Sennacherib, king of Assyria, sent envoys to Hezekiah
with this message:
“Thus shall you say to Hezekiah, king of Judah:
‘Do not let your God on whom you rely deceive you
by saying that Jerusalem will not be handed over
to the king of Assyria.
You have heard what the kings of Assyria have done
to all other countries: they doomed them!
Will you, then, be saved?’”Hezekiah took the letter from the hand of the messengers and read it;
then he went up to the temple of the LORD,
and spreading it out before him,
he prayed in the LORD’s presence:
“O LORD, God of Israel, enthroned upon the cherubim!
You alone are God over all the kingdoms of the earth.
You have made the heavens and the earth.
Incline your ear, O LORD, and listen!
Open your eyes, O LORD, and see!
Hear the words of Sennacherib which he sent to taunt the living God.
Truly, O LORD, the kings of Assyria have laid waste the nations
and their lands, and cast their gods into the fire;
they destroyed them because they were not gods,
but the work of human hands, wood and stone.
Therefore, O LORD, our God, save us from the power of this man,
that all the kingdoms of the earth may know
that you alone, O LORD, are God.”Then Isaiah, son of Amoz, sent this message to Hezekiah:
“Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel,
in answer to your prayer for help against Sennacherib, king of Assyria:
I have listened!
This is the word the LORD has spoken concerning him:“‘She despises you, laughs you to scorn,
the virgin daughter Zion!
Behind you she wags her head,
daughter Jerusalem.“‘For out of Jerusalem shall come a remnant,
and from Mount Zion, survivors.
The zeal of the LORD of hosts shall do this.’“Therefore, thus says the LORD concerning the king of Assyria:
‘He shall not reach this city, nor shoot an arrow at it,
nor come before it with a shield,
nor cast up siege-works against it.
He shall return by the same way he came,
without entering the city, says the LORD.
I will shield and save this city for my own sake,
and for the sake of my servant David.’”That night the angel of the LORD went forth and struck down
one hundred and eighty-five thousand men in the Assyrian camp.
So Sennacherib, the king of Assyria, broke camp,
and went back home to Nineveh.
Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 48:2-3AB, 3CD-4, 10-11
R. (see 9d) God upholds his city for ever.
Great is the LORD and wholly to be praised
in the city of our God.
His holy mountain, fairest of heights,
is the joy of all the earth.
R. God upholds his city for ever.
Mount Zion, “the recesses of the North,”
is the city of the great King.
God is with her castles;
renowned is he as a stronghold.
R. God upholds his city for ever.
O God, we ponder your mercy
within your temple.
As your name, O God, so also your praise
reaches to the ends of the earth.
Of justice your right hand is full.
R. God upholds his city for ever.
Alleluia
John 8:12
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
I am the light of the world, says the Lord;
whoever follows me will have the light of life.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
Matthew 7:6, 12-14
Jesus said to his disciples:
“Do not give what is holy to dogs, or throw your pearls before swine,
lest they trample them underfoot, and turn and tear you to pieces.“Do to others whatever you would have them do to you.
This is the Law and the Prophets.“Enter through the narrow gate;
for the gate is wide and the road broad that leads to destruction,
and those who enter through it are many.
How narrow the gate and constricted the road that leads to life.
And those who find it are few.”
Reflection 1
Catholic Daily Reflections
The Narrow Gate
“Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the road broad that leads to destruction, and those who enter through it are many. How narrow the gate and constricted the road that leads to life. And those who find it are few.” Matthew 7:13–14
Is fear helpful? That depends. It depends upon which form of fear we are speaking of. First, there is a form of fear that is contrary to faith. It’s a fear that leads us to doubt and even despair. It’s a fear that results from the attack of the evil one and others who may sin against us. This form of fear is unhealthy and must be overcome through a faith that turns to our Lord with the utmost confidence and hope.
But there is also a holy fear that is most useful and one of the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit. Recall the Proverb that says, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom…” (Proverbs 9:10). At a minimal level, this holy fear makes you aware of your sins and the consequences of those sins, especially serious sin. And this holy fear leads you to fear the punishment that results from sin, leading you to avoid serious sin. But the ideal form of “fear of the Lord” we must strive for is “filial fear,” which is the holy fear of a son or daughter of God. This fear is one that is grounded in a profound love of God and leaves you so filled with a wonder and awe of the glory, goodness and majesty of God that you are filled with a desire to please Him and give Him great glory with your life. Thus, this “fear” leads you to a desire to avoid even the smallest of sin, because, in your love of God, you not only want to avoid offending Him, you also want to honor Him to the greatest extent possible.
The Scripture passage above should lead us to, at a minimum, a fear of not entering the gate to the “road that leads to life.” It is useful to consider Jesus’ teaching in a very straightforward way. Jesus essentially says that it is quite easy to walk through the gate that is “wide” and down the road that is “broad” in this life. In other words, it’s exceptionally easy to embrace a life of sin and head toward “destruction.” Jesus further says that those who walk through this wide gate and down this broad road are “many.” This fact should be the cause of our honest daily examination. If this broad road is so easy, then we should honestly admit that we can easily find ourselves walking it.
The “narrow gate” and the “constricted” road are found and walked by only a “few,” according to Jesus’ words. Again, we should take notice of this and take it seriously. Jesus would not say this if it were not true. Therefore, if the gift of the fear of the Lord is alive in your life, and if you truly are a son or daughter of God, then you will daily strive to be one of those “few” who find this narrow way to holiness. And, ideally, you will do so out of your love for God and your desire to give Him the greatest glory you can.
Reflect, today, upon this challenging teaching of our Lord. Take Him at His word and evaluate your life in light of this teaching. What are you doing in life to be certain that you are one of those few who have begun to walk through this narrow gate? Does your love for God leave you with such a wonder and awe of the greatness of God that your deepest desire is to not only please Him but to glorify Him fully with your actions? Strive to enter the narrow gate and the constricted road and do not turn back. Though this requires much determination, sacrifice and love, the goal and end of the road are worth it.
Reflection 2
One Bread, One Body
“I BELIEVE IN ONE GOD, THE FATHER ALMIGHTY”
“O Lord, God of Israel, enthroned upon the cherubim! You alone are God over all the kingdoms of the earth.” —2 Kings 19:15
God is all-powerful, and He shows it. He “made the heavens and the earth” (2 Kgs 19:15). He sent an angel to strike “down one hundred and eighty-five thousand men” who were about to destroy the Israelites (2 Kgs 19:35). God also died on the cross in perfect love and took away the sins of all people who have lived or ever will live. In this way, God made it possible for everyone to have a new nature, to become His child and share in His divine nature (2 Pt 1:4). God ultimately displayed His omnipotence by rising from the dead and promising to raise all those who live for Him. God continues to show His infinite power by turning bread and wine into His Body and Blood, healing the sick, driving out demons, and doing far “more than we ask or imagine” (Eph 3:20). He will finally return in awesome glory, end the world, judge everyone who has ever lived, let those who rejected His love go to hell, and take His disciples to heaven to be happy forever. These are unimaginable displays of power.
The Church teaches: “Nothing is more apt to confirm our faith and hope than holding it fixed in our minds that nothing is impossible with God. Once our reason has grasped the idea of God’s almighty power, it will easily and without any hesitation admit everything that [the Creed] will afterwards propose for us to believe — even if they be great and marvellous things, far above the ordinary laws of nature” (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 274). Believe in God’s infinite power. Rejoice and be free forever.
Prayer: Father, make me bold and peaceful because of my faith in Your power and love.
Promise: “Treat others the way you would have them treat you: this sums up the law and the prophets.” —Mt 7:12
Praise: Joyce prays the rosary every day to stop abortion.
Reflection 3
Shared from God's Word
The golden rule that Jesus proposes in the Gospel is a commonly accepted norm. However, it is difficult to live it because we are inclined to focus on ‘I-centred’ philosophy which caters first to self as the as the primary reason for serving, respecting and loving others. God’s way is the ‘give’ way — be sensitive to the needs and feelings of others. It calls us to place others first and put ourselves in their shoes as opposed to the temptation of self-serving. Living the golden rule requires a conscious and sincere effort on our part. By modelling our lives on the golden rule, we are disposed to live the way Jesus wants us to live, making possible our entry to Heaven through the narrow gate.
Prayers
My most magnificent Lord, You and You alone are worthy of all glory, honor and praise. May everything I do in life lead to Your glory and may I avoid everything that harms my relationship with You. I love You, dear Lord. Help me to love You and glorify You with all my heart. Jesus, I trust in You.
Let me love you, my Lord and my God, and see myself as I really am - a pilgrim in this world, a Christian called to respect and love all whose lives I touch, those in authority over me or those under my authority, my friends and my enemies. Help me to conquer anger with gentleness, greed by generosity, apathy by fervor. Help me to forget myself and reach out towards others. (Prayer attributed to Clement XI of Rome)
Daily Reflections on Divine Mercy
Reflection 176: Combating the Sin of the World
When God looks at the world, what does He see? Most certainly He sees the beauty of His creation, the perfect order of His design and the presence of His sons and daughters. But He also sees the horror of the multitude of sins. Even the slightest sin or imperfection cannot escape His sight. Imagine trying to take in the sins of the world with one glance. But in His perfect Mercy He allows Himself to be consoled by those humble and holy souls who are specially chosen by Him. Yes, all people are chosen, but certain souls respond to the heights of holiness more than others, and in so doing, combat the evils of our world in a powerful way. This is one of the unique callings of those living in the cloistered religious life, hidden from the world with a single focus on interior conversion. We may not see the benefit to such holy souls, but God does and His wrath is turned into Mercy, especially on account of these and all holy souls (See Diary #926).
Reflect upon the fact that you are one of these chosen souls. You may not be called to the hidden life of a cloister, but you are called to achieve great sanctity. As God sees the holiness of your life, His justice is satisfied and His Mercy flows forth. Though the things you say, the thoughts you have and the prayers you pray may never be known by another, God who sees all things sees your heart and the holiness that you achieve in life. This holiness will do more than all the words and actions you could ever accomplish on your own. You are a chosen soul. Fulfill that mission and you will become a powerful instrument of the Mercy of God.
Lord, I thank You for choosing me for holiness. I accept this calling and seek to serve You with my whole heart. My life is Yours, dear Lord, do with me what You Will. Jesus, I trust in You.
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