Wednesday of the Twenty-seventh Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 463
Reading 1
Galatians 2:1-2, 7-14
Brothers and sisters:
After fourteen years I again went up to Jerusalem with Barnabas,
taking Titus along also.
I went up in accord with a revelation,
and I presented to them the Gospel that I preach to the Gentiles–
but privately to those of repute–
so that I might not be running, or have run, in vain.
On the contrary,
when they saw that I had been entrusted with the Gospel to the uncircumcised,
just as Peter to the circumcised,
for the one who worked in Peter for an apostolate to the circumcised
worked also in me for the Gentiles,
and when they recognized the grace bestowed upon me,
James and Cephas and John,
who were reputed to be pillars,
gave me and Barnabas their right hands in partnership,
that we should go to the Gentiles
and they to the circumcised.
Only, we were to be mindful of the poor,
which is the very thing I was eager to do.
And when Cephas came to Antioch,
I opposed him to his face because he clearly was wrong.
For, until some people came from James,
he used to eat with the Gentiles;
but when they came, he began to draw back and separated himself,
because he was afraid of the circumcised.
And the rest of the Jews acted hypocritically along with him,
with the result that even Barnabas
was carried away by their hypocrisy.
But when I saw that they were not on the right road
in line with the truth of the Gospel,
I said to Cephas in front of all,
"If you, though a Jew,
are living like a Gentile and not like a Jew,
how can you compel the Gentiles to live like Jews?"
Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 117:1bc, 2
R. Go out to all the world, and tell the Good News.
Praise the LORD, all you nations,
glorify him, all you peoples!
R. Go out to all the world, and tell the Good News.
For steadfast is his kindness toward us,
and the fidelity of the LORD endures forever.
R. Go out to all the world, and tell the Good News.
Alleluia
Romans 8:15bc
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
You have received a spirit of adoption as sons
through which we cry: Abba! Father!
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
Luke 11:1-4
Jesus was praying in a certain place, and when he had finished,
one of his disciples said to him,
"Lord, teach us to pray just as John taught his disciples."
He said to them, "When you pray, say:
Father, hallowed be your name,
your Kingdom come.
Give us each day our daily bread
and forgive us our sins
for we ourselves forgive everyone in debt to us,
and do not subject us to the final test.”
Reflection 1
Catholic Daily Reflections
The Perfect Prayer
Jesus was praying in a certain place, and when he had finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray just as John taught his disciples.” Luke 11:1
What a great prayer for us to pray also, “Lord, teach us to pray…” Jesus’ response to this disciple was to present him with the “Our Father” prayer. Of this prayer, Saint Andre Bessette said, “When you say the Our Father, God’s ear is next to your lips.” The great mystical Doctor of the Church Saint Teresa of Ávila gave this advice while praying the Lord’s Prayer: “Much more is accomplished by a single word of the Our Father said, now and then, from our heart, than by the whole prayer repeated many times in haste and without attention.” And Saint Thérèse of Lisieux said that the “Our Father” prayer was one of the prayers she prayed when she felt so spiritually barren that she could not summon up a single worthwhile thought.
At the Holy Mass, when the priest invites the people of God to pray the “Our Father,” he says, in part, that this prayer is one that “…we dare to say.” This is an interesting statement which especially reveals the childlike boldness we are called to have as we pray this prayer sincerely from the heart. It is exceptionally bold to call God our “Father.”
Chapter 11 of My Catholic Worship, which offers a teaching on this perfect prayer, states the following about this boldness:
Each Christian is to see the Father as my Father. We must see ourselves as God’s children and approach Him with the confidence of a child. A child with a loving parent is not afraid of that parent. Rather, children have the greatest trust that their parents love them no matter what. Even when they sin, children know they are still loved. This must be our fundamental starting point for all prayer. We must start with an understanding that God loves us no matter what. With this understanding of God, we will have all the confidence we need to call on Him.
Since many of us are very familiar with this ideal prayer taught to us by our Lord Himself, there is a temptation to pray this prayer in a somewhat rote way. We can easily fail to say it from the depths of our hearts, making each word our own, offered with the utmost confidence to our loving Father in Heaven.
How do you pray the Lord’s Prayer? Do you pray it out of habit, failing to fully comprehend and mean the words you pray? Most likely this is the case for many.
Reflect, today, upon this most holy prayer given to us by the Son of God Himself. He is the author of this perfect prayer, so we should use it as the foundation of all of our prayer. Try to follow the advice of Saint Teresa of Ávila quoted above. Take each word of that prayer and pray it slowly, intentionally and with love. Begin by acknowledging God as your Father. Ponder the infinite care He has for you as a perfect father would. See Him in a real, intimate, and personal way. This perfect prayer begins by acknowledging Who God is and then continues with seven perfect petitions. After praying the introduction to this prayer, pick one of the seven petitions to meditate upon so that the richness of this prayer will have a transformative effect upon your soul.
Reflection 2
One Bread, One Body
SUBMISSION IS A “SURE THING”
“I went prompted by a revelation, and I laid out for their scrutiny the gospel as I present it.” —Galatians 2:2
The Lord commands every Christian to be submissive to God-given authority (Eph 5:21). Wives are to be prime examples of this submission. They are to teach all Christians the peace, joy, freedom, and disciplines of submission (see Eph 5:22).
Submission is not a man-made idea but a gift of God. Thus, God revealed to St. Paul to submit his ministry and preaching to the authority of the leaders of the Jerusalem church (Gal 2:1-2). In Paul’s submission, he received affirmation from the Jerusalem leaders and also “the handclasp of fellowship” (Gal 2:9). Submission leads to affirmation and community. In effect, submission leads to peace and love.
Submission has such good effects not primarily because of the excellence of the people in authority. For example, Cephas, that is, St. Peter, one of the Jerusalem leaders, blundered greatly in Antioch through his duplicity in his relations with Jewish and Gentile Christians (Gal 2:11ff). Submission works because God makes it work even when those in authority don’t work out very well.
Submission is a “sure thing” because God backs up His plans. Be submissive and rejoice.
Prayer: Father, free me from co-dependency and for submission.
Promise: “Give us each day our daily bread. Forgive us our sins for we too forgive all who do us wrong.” —Lk 11:3-4
Praise: St. Denis and two companions were beheaded for their faith during a persecution of Christians in Paris. Their bodies were thrown into the Seine River and later drawn out of the water by fellow Christians. Praise You, Lord, for immersing and burying our old nature in the waters of Baptism, and drawing us into new life and resurrection with Jesus! St. Denis, pray for us.
Reflection 3
Shared from God's Word
“Prayer is the oxygen to our life of faith,” says Pope Francis. Jesus used to spend quality time with his Father in solitude. His involvement with the people was based on his time of withdrawal to be with the Father. His work of healing and preaching was a spontaneous outcome of his deep moments of intense prayer to his Abba in Heaven. He could easily strike a balance between involvement (lokanta) and withdrawal (ekanta)? He did not need any external force to motivate him to go for his personal encounter with the Father. It had become his conviction. This is seen in his spontaneous outbursts of prayer outside formal prayer times. Do I long for a time for prayer? Am I growing in intimacy with the Lord?
Prayers
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us, and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Jesus, I trust in You.
Father in heaven, you have given me a mind to know you, a will to serve you, and a heart to love you. Give me today the grace and strength to embrace your holy will and fill my heart with your love that all my intentions and actions may be pleasing to you. Help me to be kind and forgiving towards my neighbor as you have been towards me.
Daily Reflections on Divine Mercy
Reflection 282: Suffering, Persecution, Abuse and Disgrace
This heading may not seem immediately attractive to you. Who would want to endure these things? But we ought to remember that Jesus endured them all to the greatest degree. Was Jesus happy? Was His soul at peace? Most certainly. This reveals to us that these crosses in life cannot ultimately do us harm if we are immersed in the presence of God. Remember Jesus agonizing in the Garden, or the mockery He endured, or the rejection that many directed at Him, yet in all of this He remained in a peaceful repose. Nothing in this world can steal us away from a profound peace if we remain immersed in the presence of God. All the suffering, persecution, abuse and disgrace in the world cannot ultimately have victory over a soul given to God (See Diary #1394).
Reflect upon that which has the effect of stealing your peace away. If you were perfect, this would not happen. That may be hard to accept but it’s true. We easily point to this or that as the source of our unrest when the source is always within. It’s either a sin we have clung to, such as anger, or a sin of omission, such as a lack of trust. Whatever your experience is, do not get caught up on your sin. Simply turn your eyes to our merciful Lord and know that He can keep you in His peace through anything if you let Him.
Lord, I invite You to take control of all my inner thoughts, feelings and emotions. Bring stillness and peace to my heart as I continue through this life filled with struggle. When I experience the harshness of others, help me to use that as an opportunity for greater trust in Your Mercy. I know that in all things I can remain wrapped in Your arms of grace. I give myself to You, dear Lord, please protect me and keep me close to Your Heart. Jesus, I trust in You.
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