power of God

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Tuesday, 25 February 2014 : 7th Week of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Mark 9 : 30-37

After leaving that place, they made their way through Galilee; but Jesus did not want people to know where He was because He was teaching His disciples. And He told them, “The Son of Man will be delivered into the hands of men. They will kill Him, but three days after He has been killed, He will rise.”

The disciples, however, did not understand these words and they were afraid to ask Him what He meant. They came to Capernaum and, once inside the house, Jesus asked them, “What were you discussing on the way?” But they did not answer, because they had been arguing about who was the greatest.

Then He sat down, called the Twelve and said to them, “If someone wants to be first, let him be last of all and servant of all.” Then He took a little child, placed him in their midst, and putting His arms around him He said to them, “Whoever welcomes a child such as this in My Name, welcomes Me; and whoever welcomes Me, welcomes not Me but the One who sent Me.”

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Monday, 24 February 2014 : 7th Week of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Mark 9 : 14-29

When they came to the place where they had left the disciples, they saw many people around them and some teachers of the Law arguing with them. When the people saw Jesus, they were astonished and ran to greet Him.

He asked, “What are you arguing about with them?” A man answered Him from the crowd, “Master, I brought my son to You, for He has a spirit, deaf and mute. Whenever the spirit seizes him, it throws him down and he foams at the mouth, grinds his teeth and becomes stiff all over. I asked Your disciples to drive the spirit out, but they could not.”

Jesus replied, “You faithless people! How long must I be with you? How long must I put up with you? Bring him to Me.” And they brought the boy to Him. As soon as the spirit saw Jesus, it shook and convulsed the boy, who fell on the ground and began rolling about, foaming at the mouth.

Then Jesus asked the father, “How long has this been happening to him?” He replied, “From childhood. And it has often thrown him into the fire and into the water to destroy him. If You can do anything, have pity on us and help us.”

Jesus said to him, “Why do you say, ‘If You can?’ All things are possible for one who believes.” Immediately the father of the boy cried out, “I do believe, but help the little faith I have.” Jesus saw that the crowd was increasing rapidly, so He ordered the evil spirit, “Dumb and deaf spirit, I command you : Leave the boy and never enter him again.”

The evil spirit shook and convulsed the boy and with a terrible shriek came out. The boy lay like a corpse and people said, “He is dead.” But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him and the boy stood up.

After Jesus had gone indoors, His disciples asked Him privately, “Why could we not drive out the spirit?” And He answered, “Only prayer can drive out this kind, nothing else.”

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Sunday, 23 February 2014 : 7th Sunday of Ordinary Time (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

1 Corinthians 3 : 16-23

Do you not know that you are God’s Temple, and that God’s Spirit abides within you? If anyone destroys the Temple of God, God will destroy him. God’s Temple is holy, and you are this Temple.

Do not deceive yourselves. If anyone of you considers himself wise in the ways of the world, let him become a fool, so that he may become wise. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God’s eyes. To this, Scripture says : God catches the wise in their own wisdom. It also says : The Lord knows the reasoning of the wise, that it is useless.

Because of this, let no one boast about human beings, for everything belongs to you, Paul, Apollos, Cephas – life, death, the present and the future. Everything is yours, and you, you belong to Christ, and Christ is of God.

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Friday, 21 February 2014 : 6th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Peter Damian, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Bishops)

Psalm 111 : 1-2, 3-4, 5-6

Alleluia! Blessed is the one who fears the Lord, who greatly delights in His commands. His children will be powerful on earth; the upright’s offspring will be blessed.

Wealth and riches are for his family, there his integrity will remain. He is for the righteous a light in darkness, he is kind, merciful and upright.

It will be well with him who lends freely, who leads a life of justice and honesty. For the righteous will never be moved; he will be remembered and loved forever.

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Wednesday, 19 February 2014 : 6th Week of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Mark 8 : 22-26

When they came to Bethsaida, Jesus was asked to touch a blind man who was brought to Him. He took the blind man by the hand and led him outside the village. When He had put spittle on his eyes and laid His hands upon him, He asked, “Can you see anything?”

The man, who was beginning to see, replied, “I see people! They look like trees, but they move around.” Then Jesus laid His hands on his eyes again and the man could see perfectly. His sight was restored and He could see everything clearly.

Then Jesus sent him home, saying, “Do not return to the village.”

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Monday, 17 February 2014 : 6th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of the Seven Holy Founders of the Servite Order (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Saints)

James 1 : 1-11

James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, sends greetings to the twelve tribes scattered among the nations. Consider yourself fortunate, my brothers and sisters, when you meet with every kind of trial, for you know that the testing of your faith makes you steadfast.

Let your steadfastness become perfect with deeds, that you yourselves my be perfect and blameless, without any defect. If any of you is lacking in wisdom, ask God who gives all easily and unconditionally. But ask with faith, not doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave driven and tossed on the sea by the wind.

Such a person should not expect anything from the Lord, since the doubter has two minds and his conduct will always be insecure. Let the believer who is poor boast in been uplifted, and let the rich one boast in being humbled, because he will pass away like the flower of the field.

The sun rises and its heat dries the grass; the flower withers and its beauty vanishes. So, too, will the rich person fade away even in the midst of his pursuits.

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Sunday, 16 February 2014 : 6th Sunday of Ordinary Time (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

1 Corinthians 2 : 6-10

In fact, we do speak of wisdom to the mature in faith, although it is not a wisdom of this world or of its rulers, who are doomed to perish. We teach the mystery and secret plan of divine wisdom, which God destined from the beginning to bring us to Glory.

No ruler of this world ever knew this; otherwise they would not have crucified the Lord of Glory. But as Scripture says: Eye has not seen, ear has not heard, nor has it dawned on the mind what God has prepared for those who love Him.

God has revealed it to us, through His Spirit, because the Spirit probes everything, even the depth of God.

 

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Sunday, 16 February 2014 : 6th Sunday of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Sirach 15 : 16-21

If you wish, you can keep the commandments and it is in your power to remain faithful.

He has set fire and water before you; You stretch out your hand to whichever you prefer. Life and death are set before man : whichever a man prefers will be given him.

How magnificent is the wisdom of the Lord! He is powerful and all-seeing. His eyes are on those who fear Him. He knows all the works of man. He has commanded no one to be Godless and has given no one permission to sin.

 

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Friday, 14 February 2014 : 5th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Cyril, Monk, and St. Methodius, Bishop, Patron Saints of Europe (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Mark 7 : 31-37

Again Jesus set out : from the country of Tyre He passed through Sidon and, skirting the sea of Galilee, He came to the territory of Decapolis. There a deaf man, who also had difficulty in speaking, was brought to Him. They asked Jesus to lay His hand upon him.

Jesus took him apart from the crowd, put His fingers into the man’s ears, and touched his tongue with spittle. Then, looking up to heaven, He groaned and said to him, “Ephphata!” that is, “Be opened!”

And immediately his ears were opened, his tongue was loosened, and he began to speak clearly. Jesus ordered them not to tell anyone about it, but the more He insisted, the more they proclaimed it. The people were completely astonished and said, “He has done all things well; He makes the deaf hear and the dumb speak.”

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Thursday, 13 February 2014 : 5th Week of Ordinary Time (Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

The faith of the Syro-Phoenician woman is an example to us all, an exemplary faith that we should all have. She was adamant in her faith, and unchanging, she persisted even after refusal and supposed rejection from the Lord for her plea. She persisted and her faith in God, in Jesus was truly genuine. She did not turn left or right in seeking the Lord but straight away push at Him and persisted in her faith, and for that she was rewarded.

Contrast this, brethren, with the faith of king Solomon, the son of David, God’s faithful servant and chosen king over Israel. King Solomon was wise, wealthy, and powerful, blessed by God far beyond every other ruler that had ever existed and will ever exist in this world of ours, and yet his faith was not firm and solid, and in his old age in particular, he gave in to the temptations of the world and did things wicked in the eyes of the Lord.

In our faith to the Lord we have to be direct, and we cannot be hesitant or half-hearted, because it is in that moment of hesitation, that a weakness in our hearts can appear, and the devil can utilise that weakness to attack us and make us to fall into sin. If we hesitate or not serious about our faith, then we are inviting trouble, akin to throwing the door of our hearts wide open for the devil to enter and wreck havoc in us.

That is what happened to king Solomon, and to a much lesser extent, to king David his father. David the father of Solomon, as we had heard in the past few weeks was guilty from some sins that he had committed, and yet his faith in God was and remained very strong. He was very passionate in his faith and he did not even hesitate to lead the people in praise to God.

David did let the devil to come into his heart, when he was taken by the beauty of Bathsheba, and when he was tempted by the power and glory he had received from God in the might of his kingdom, that he committed sin before God. But he was quick to repent and reaffirm his faith strongly to the Lord, without question and without much hesitation, if any.

Solomon let himself to succumb deeper into the temptation of Satan. Unlike David, Solomon had been blessed since the start of his reign, and his reign had been largely peaceful, and Solomon himself was blessed with great power, majesty, and wealth, which surpassed any other nations of his time and ever since. It was easy for Solomon to become lax and forget about how he had obtained all those glories in the first place.

Solomon’s downfall came from his many wives and concubines, whom he had taken from the many nations he had conquered and brought as his own. He loved them and certainly took pleasure at them, as was common in any king’s harem at the time. And through that, Satan infiltrated even deeper into Solomon’s heart, and as a result, he refused to listen to the rebuke and chastisement of God, who then resolved to punish Solomon and withdrew the blessings He had given him.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, the contrast between the faith of David, of Solomon, and of the Syro-Phoenician woman is an important lesson for all of us, that we should not take lightly the faith we have in God. A strong faith is a potent and powerful shield to defend ourselves from the influences of the devil, and it will also help us to keep our way to the Lord straight and firm, that we will not fall as Solomon had fallen.

Therefore, brothers and sisters in Christ, let us take this opportunity to reaffirm our faith in the Lord, and continue to trust in Him. Let us also pray that God will continue to strengthen our faith, that we may be well defended in our battles against the forces of evil trying to persuade us to turn our back to the Lord as Solomon had done.

May God keep us straight in His path and show us the way, that we may walk in faith towards Him and be reunited with Him in glory for eternity. Amen.