Invitation
May I hereby call your attention to
the daily reading of the Gospel?
This invitation wants to share with you the joy of the Gospel.
Everyone, no one excepted,
can experience that joy by opening his heart
to the healing effect of God’s word.
Available every day.
Consideration
Today we read the end of the Letter to the Hebrews, “May the God of peace, Who brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of an everlasting covenant, confirm you in all good things.” The liturgy does not miss the opportunity to respond with Psalm 23: “The Lord is my shepherd, nothing do I lack.” And very coincidentally, the word also falls in the Gospel: “He felt compassion for them, for they were like sheep without a shepherd.”
FIRST READING Heb. 13, 15-17,20-21
May the God of peace,
Who brought back the great shepherd of the sheep from the dead,
confirm you in all good things.
From the letter to the Hebrews
Brothers and sisters,
Through Jesus we want to offer God a continual sacrifice of praise,
the praise of lips that praise his name.
Also, never forget to do good and help one another,
for these are the sacrifices that please God.
Obey your leaders and conform to them ;
they are working day and night for your salvation,
for they are aware of their responsibility.
See to it
that they can fulfill their task with satisfaction.
If they were to sigh and complain all the time
it would not be advantageous for you.
May the God of peace,
Who is our Lord Jesus,
the great shepherd of the sheep,
through the blood of an everlasting covenant
has brought back from the dead,
confirm you in all good things.
And may He work out in us what pleases Him
through Jesus Christ.
To Him be the glory to the ages of ages!
Amen.
INTERLUDIUM Ps. 23(22), 1-3a, 3b-4, 5, 6
The Lord is my shepherd, nothing do I lack.
The Lord is my shepherd, nothing do I lack ;
He makes me to graze in green fields.
He brings me to water where I can rest,
He gives me fresh courage.
He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness
for his Name’s sake.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil where Thou art leading me.
Thy rod and thy shepherd’s staff
give me courage and confidence.
Thou dost invite me to thy table
to the annoyance of my adversaries.
With oil Thou anointest my head,
my cup is overflowing.
Prosperity and blessing never leave me
every day of my life.
The house of the Lord shall be my dwelling
for all times to come.
ALLELUIA John 14, 23
Alleluia.
If anyone loves Me ,
he will keep my word ;
my Father will love him
and We shall come to him.
Alleluia.
GOSPEL Mk 6, 30-34
They were like sheep without a shepherd.
From the Holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to
Mark
At that time
the apostles joined Jesus
and reported to Him
about all that they had done and taught.
Thereupon He spoke to them :
“Now come with me by yourself
to a lonely place to be alone
and rest there.”
Because of the numerous people coming and going
they didn’t even have time to eat.
So they left in a boat to a lonely place
to be alone.
But many saw them go and understood where He was going ;
from all the cities people came on foot
and they got there even before they did.
When Jesus went ashore
He saw a large crowd.
He felt compassion for them,
for they were like sheep without a shepherd;
and He began to teach them at length.
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Laudato Si
Encyclical of
POPE FRANCISCUS
On the care of the common home
71. Even though “the wickedness of men had increased” (Gen. 6:5) and God “became sorry” that He had made man on earth (Gen. 6:6) , through Noah, who still remained pure and righteous, God decided to open a way for salvation. Thus, He gave mankind the possibility of a new beginning. It takes a good man for there to be hope! Biblical tradition clearly establishes that this restoration of honour involves the rediscovery of and respect for the rhythm laid down in nature by the Creator’s hand. This is seen, for example, in the law of the Sabbath. On the seventh day, God rested from all his works. God instructed Israel that every seventh day was to be celebrated as a day of rest, a Sabbath. On the other hand, every seventh year was also established as a Sabbath year for Israel and its land , during which they allowed the land to rest completely, did not sow and harvested only what was necessary for survival and hospitality. Finally, after the passage of seven Sabbath years, i.e. forty-nine years, they celebrated the jobel year, the year of universal forgiveness and the year when “everyone is restored to his former possession and returns to his family” (Lev. 25, 10) . The development of this legislation sought to ensure balance and equality in the human being’s relations with others and the land where he lived and worked. But at the same time, there was a recognition that a gift of the land and its fruits belonged to the whole people. Those who cultivated and guarded the land were to share its fruits, especially with the poor, the widows, the orphans and the strangers. “When ye take your harvest from the land, ye must not cut down your field to the brim, nor gather up what has remained. Thou shalt not do a post-reading in thy vineyard, nor gather up the grapes that have fallen off. All this is for the poor and the stranger” (Lev 19:9-10) .
To be continued
The Bible text in this issue is taken from The New Bible Translation,
©Dutch Bible Society 2004/2007.
Considerations from Liturgical suggestions for the weekdays and Sundays
Laudato Si Official English translation