Wednesday of the Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 373
Reading 1
2 Kings 22:8-13; 23:1-3
The high priest Hilkiah informed the scribe Shaphan,
"I have found the book of the law in the temple of the LORD."
Hilkiah gave the book to Shaphan, who read it.
Then the scribe Shaphan went to the king and reported,
"Your servants have smelted down the metals available in the temple
and have consigned them to the master workmen
in the temple of the LORD."
The scribe Shaphan also informed the king
that the priest Hilkiah had given him a book,
and then read it aloud to the king.
When the king heard the contents of the book of the law,
he tore his garments and issued this command to Hilkiah the priest,
Ahikam, son of Shaphan,
Achbor, son of Micaiah, the scribe Shaphan,
and the king's servant Asaiah:
"Go, consult the LORD for me, for the people, for all Judah,
about the stipulations of this book that has been found,
for the anger of the LORD has been set furiously ablaze against us,
because our fathers did not obey the stipulations of this book,
nor fulfill our written obligations."
The king then had all the elders of Judah
and of Jerusalem summoned together before him.
The king went up to the temple of the LORD with all the men of Judah
and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem:
priests, prophets, and all the people, small and great.
He had the entire contents of the book of the covenant
that had been found in the temple of the LORD, read out to them.
Standing by the column, the king made a covenant before the LORD
that they would follow him
and observe his ordinances, statutes and decrees
with their whole hearts and souls,
thus reviving the terms of the covenant
which were written in this book.
And all the people stood as participants in the covenant.
Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 119:33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 40
R. (33a) Teach me the way of your decrees, O Lord.
Instruct me, O LORD, in the way of your statutes,
that I may exactly observe them.
R. Teach me the way of your decrees, O Lord.
Give me discernment, that I may observe your law
and keep it with all my heart.
R. Teach me the way of your decrees, O Lord.
Lead me in the path of your commands,
for in it I delight.
R. Teach me the way of your decrees, O Lord.
Incline my heart to your decrees
and not to gain.
R. Teach me the way of your decrees, O Lord.
Turn away my eyes from seeing what is vain:
by your way give me life.
R. Teach me the way of your decrees, O Lord.
Behold, I long for your precepts;
in your justice give me life.
R. Teach me the way of your decrees, O Lord.
Alleluia
John 15:4a, 5b
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Remain in me, as I remain in you, says the Lord;
whoever remains in me will bear much fruit.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
Matthew 7:15-20
Jesus said to his disciples:
"Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing,
but underneath are ravenous wolves.
By their fruits you will know them.
Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles?
Just so, every good tree bears good fruit,
and a rotten tree bears bad fruit.
A good tree cannot bear bad fruit,
nor can a rotten tree bear good fruit.
Every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down
and thrown into the fire.
So by their fruits you will know them.”
Reflection 1
Catholic Daily Reflections
Good Fruit—Bad Fruit
“Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? Just so, every good tree bears good fruit, and a rotten tree bears bad fruit.” Matthew 7:16–17
“So by their fruits you will know them.” This is how our Gospel passage for today concludes. It offers us an exceptionally practical way by which you can discern the working of God in your own life and in the life of others.
When you look at your own life, what good fruit, born for the upbuilding of the Kingdom of God, do you see? Some people may find little to no fruit born, either for good or bad. Such complacency is, in and of itself, bad fruit. Other people may see an abundance of fruit, thus producing many consequences in this world. They influence the lives of many, and their public actions make a true difference. Sometimes for good…and other times for evil.
When discerning the actions of God in our world, we must first be very objective. The evil one is always very deceptive and regularly presents his bad fruit as good. For example, the legalization of abortion is often presented by many within our world as a “right to choose” or a “health service.” But the intentional death of any unborn child is clearly “bad fruit” from a “rotten tree.” There are even many so-called “humanitarian groups” or very wealthy “philanthropists” who present their work as “good fruit,” when it is anything but good. And on the contrary, there are many who work hard to bring forth a greater respect for life from the moment of conception to natural death, or strive to uphold the sacredness of marriage as God designed it, or work to promote the freedom to worship in accord with the will of God, but are labeled by the secular world as prejudiced, bigoted, fearmongers and even hateful. But their work, done very sacrificially, truly does bear good fruit for the Kingdom of God.
How about your own life? When you examine your actions and the fruit born of those actions, from where does that fruit originate? Does it come from a false sense of compassion, a misguided “charity,” and a fear of being criticized for standing for the truth? Or does it come from a deep love of God, an awareness of the truth God has revealed to us, and through a courageous proclamation of the pure Gospel?
Good fruit, born from the heart of the Father in Heaven, will always mirror the truths of our faith. A false sense of compassion, false accusations, persecutions and the like will flow from the rotten trees in our world. We must work diligently to be those good trees that bear the good fruit coming from God. This requires a radical commitment to do what is right in the face of the evil all around us.
Reflect, today, upon these images Jesus presents. Do you see clearly both the good and bad fruit around you? Is your life helping to foster the lies of the evil one or the truth and love of God? Look at the fruit your life bears, as well as the fruit within our world, in an objective way, comparing it to the clear and unambiguous teachings of Jesus. Seek out that good fruit with all your heart and do all you can to bring it forth, no matter the cost, and you will not only save your soul, you will also help feed others with the good fruit of Heaven.
Reflection 2
One Bread, One Body
LOOK WHAT I FOUND!
“I have found the book of the law in the Temple of the Lord.” —2 Kings 22:8
How many Christians have a family Bible which hasn’t been opened for years sitting on a coffee table? How many Catholics have a Holy Bible somewhere in the house, but have no idea where it is? How many Bibles are given as gifts to people, but then are never opened, never read, and serve merely to collect dust and cobwebs?
King Josiah commissioned repairs to be made to the Temple, which had been neglected for a long time (2 Kgs 22:3ff). While performing the repairs, the high priest found “the book of the law” (2 Kgs 22:8), the Torah, the first five books of the Old Testament. The Old Testament Scriptures were to be readily available in the synagogues and the Temple (see e.g. Lk 4:17), but perhaps had not been opened since the death of the previous good king, Hezekiah. It’s possible that the Torah had not been opened for eighty-five years! (see 2 Chr 32:33—34:8ff)
Today, open a Bible. Spend at least fifteen minutes reading the Word of God. Resolve to read it and heed it each day of the rest of your life (Acts 17:11). Take back the Word of God from the clutches of the dust. Devour it (Jer 15:6) and let it be the joy of your heart.
Prayer: Father, “lead me in the path of Your commands, for in it I delight” (Ps 119:35).
Promise: “Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.” —Mt 7:19
Praise: Simon, an agnostic, went to Linda’s church in hopes of getting a date with her. To his surprise, the pastor’s preaching touched him so deeply that he became a Christian. He also married Linda.
Reflection 3
The Servants of the Word
You Will Know Them by Their Fruits
What do grapes, thorns, figs, and thistles have to teach us about the kingdom of God? The imagery used by Jesus would have been very familiar to his audience. A certain thorn bush had berries which resembled grapes. And a certain thistle had a flower, which at least from a distance, resembled the fig. Isn't it the same today? What we "hear" might have a resemblance of the truth, but, in fact, when you inspect it closely, it's actually false. False prophets or teachers abound today as much as they did in biblical times.
A sound mind accepts what is truly good and right and rejects what is false and wrong
What's the test of a true or false teacher? Jesus connects soundness with good fruit. Something is sound when it is free from defect, decay, or disease and is healthy. Good fruit is the result of sound living - living according to moral truth and upright character. The prophet Isaiah warned against the dangers of falsehood:Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness (Isaiah 5:20). The fruits of falsehood produce an easy religion which takes the iron out of religion, the cross out of Christianity, and any teaching which eliminates the hard sayings of Jesus, and which push the judgments of God into the background and makes us think lightly of sin.
How do we avoid falsehood in our personal lives? By being true - true to God, his word, and his grace. And that takes character! Those who are true to God know that their strength lies not in themselves but in God who supplies what we need. The fruit of a disciple is marked by faith, hope and love, justice, prudence, fortitude and temperance. Do you seek to cultivate good fruit in your life and reject whatever produces bad fruit?
Prayers
My Lord of all truthfulness, You and You alone define the good and evil in our world. Your truth reveals the good fruit that is born to nourish the growth of Your glorious Kingdom. Give me courage and clarity of mind and heart so that I may continually do all that You call me to do so as to bring the good fruit of the Kingdom to all in need. Jesus, I trust in You.
Lord Jesus, may I bear good fruit for your sake and reject whatever will produce evil fruit. Help me grow in faith, hope, love, sound judgment, justice, courage, and self control.
Daily Reflections on Divine Mercy
Reflection 177: Holy Obedience
One of the greatest safeguards against doing our own will rather than God’s is holy obedience. Those in religious life are blessed to live this in a literal and external way, allowing the external practice to be interiorized so as to become certain that they are living the Will of God. But obedience must be lived in every life, not only religious. Obedience is achieved in many ways. It’s achieved in family life when we submit our will to the preferences of others, subjecting ourselves in a form of obedience so as to foster love and unity. It’s achieved in a profound way when we submit our will to the voice and teaching of our Church. We will never go wrong by living holy obedience to that which the Lord speaks through His Church. When we live this obedience, the Will of God will not be imposed upon us from outside; rather, we will hear Him speak first in our heart and then it will be confirmed exteriorly (See Diary #932-933).
Do you hear God calling you, gently and subtly, to submit to the preference of another? You ought not submit to those things that are contrary to the Will of God, but there are numerous opportunities each day to die to yourself and “obediently” embrace the will of another. If you can do this always in regard to the Will of God spoken through His Church, you will see the gates of Mercy opened and your humble submission will bring you great holiness.
Lord, it is so very hard at times to let go of my own will and to embrace the will of another. Help me to see these small acts as acts of true love and holy submission to You. May I allow You to mold my will into Yours as I act in holy obedience, especially when this requires great sacrifice. I also choose Your Will as it is revealed through Your Church and always submit to that revelation over my own ideas. Jesus, I trust in You.
No comments:
Post a Comment