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
The continuation of the Gospel reading points to the possible hardening in unbelief. One can close oneself to God. The first reading contrasts with this: Reversal is always possible. Moses is the great intercessor here and he juxtaposes three motives with God’s wrath.
– Thou hast led the people out of Egypt. Will you now abandon it?
– The Egyptians will make merry and honour thee
(this also occurs elsewhere in the O.T.).
– Finally, he reminds God of His promise and the Covenant.
Conclusion: God always restarts with his people, past and present.
FIRST READING Ex. 32, 7-14
Renounce, Lord, from the calamity with which You threaten your people.
From the Book of Exodus
At that time the Lord spoke to Moses :
“Go down, for the people whom thou hast led out of Egypt
has fallen into sin.
“Already now they have departed
from the way which I had prescribed for them :
They have made an image of bulls ,
they bow down before it,
they offer sacrifices before it and shout :
Israel, this is the God who led you out of Egypt.”
Also, the Lord spoke to Moses :
“I see now how obstinate this people is.
“Let Me pass,
then I can destroy them in my burning wrath.
“But of you I will make a great nation.”
Moses sought to appease the Lord his God and asked:
“Why Lord, let thy wrath rage against the people
whom Thou hast led out of Egypt with great power and strong hand ?
“Why let the Egyptians sneer :
He has let them go
with the evil purpose of making them perish in the mountains
and to wipe them from the earth ?
“Yet let not your wrath rage against them any longer.
“Abandon the calamity with which Thou threatenest Thy people.
“Remember thy servants Abraham, Isaac and Israel,
to whom thou hast promised under oath :
I will make thy posterity numerous as stars in the sky ,
and all the land of which I have spoken,
I will give your descendants possession of it forever.
“It shall be their inheritance forever.”
Then the Lord renounced
from the calamity with which He had threatened his people.
RESPONSORIAL Ps. 106(105), 19-20, 21-22, 23
Do not forget me, Lord, who is well pleased with your people.
They made a holy calf at Horeb
and threw themselves down before a casting of gold.
Their glory they exchanged for an idol,
the image of a grass-eating ox.
They had forgotten that God had saved them,
who had shown his power in Egypt;
who had performed miracles at Cham
and at the Red Sea amazing things.
He was already thinking of letting them go
when Moses, his friend, intervened.
He pleaded with them not to be destroyed
and turned God’s wrath away from them.
VERSE FOR THE GOSPEL Mt. 4,17
Repent, says the Lord,
for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
GOSPEL John 5, 31-47
Moses, on whom you have put your hope, it is he who charges you.
From the holy gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to John
At that time Jesus spoke to the Jews :
“If I testify about Myself ,
then my testimony has no value.
“There is another who testifies about Me ,
and I know
that the testimony He bears about Me is credible.
“You sent an envoy to John
and this one has testified for the truth.
“Though I do not need the testimony of any man ,
but I say this
that ye may be saved.
“He was the lamp, kindled to lighten,
and for a short time ye rejoiced in his light.
“The testimony, however, which I possess
is more valuable than that of John :
For it is the very works
that the Father has given Me to accomplish
and which I also accomplish,
which testify of Me that I am sent by the Father.
“Also the Father Himself who sent Me
has borne witness concerning Me.
“His voice hast thou never heard nor seen his form,
and his word ye have not abiding in you
because ye believe not the One Whom He sent.
“Ye search the scriptures
thinking you will find eternal life in them,
but these very ones testify about Me.
“And yet you will not come to Me
to find life.
“I do not seek to be honored by men,
but I know
that in your hearts ye have no love to God.
“I have come in the name of my Father
and yet ye accept Me not.
“If another comes in his own name
you will accept him.
“But how can ye believe
if ye seek honor from one another,
but seek not the glory that comes from the only God?
“Think not that I will accuse thee to the Father.
“There is already one who accuses you :
Moses, on whom ye have put your hope.
“For if you believed Moses
you would also believe Me,
for it is about Me that he has written.
“If you do not believe what he wrote
how will you believe what I speak?”
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Laudato Si
Encyclic of
POPE FRANCIS
On the care of the common home
118. This situation leads us to a permanent schizophrenia, which goes from a technocratic rapture, which does not assign other beings any value of their own, to a reaction of denying any special value to the human being. But one cannot discount humanity. There will be no new relationship with nature without a new human being. There is no ecology without an adequate anthropology. When the human person is considered only as one more being like others, arising from the play of chance or a physical determinism, “(the) conscience of human beings is in danger of diminishing the consciousness of responsibility”. A skewed anthropocentrism should not necessarily precede a “biocentrism”, because that would introduce a new imbalance that not only fails to solve problems, but adds others. One cannot demand a commitment from human beings to the world if one does not at the same time recognise and value their special faculties of knowledge, will, freedom and responsibility.
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