Invitation
May I hereby draw your attention to
the daily reading of the Gospel?
This invitation wants to share with you the joy of the Gospel.
Everyone, no one except,
can experience this joy by opening his heart
to the healing effect of God’s word.
Available every day
CONSIDERATION
This famous scene (cf. the icon of Rublov) is a culmination of the promise of progeny. “In one year I will return to you; then Sarah, your wife, will have a son”. The religious significance of this story (as also of the sequel) is very deep. Abraham’s relationship with God is intimate. Abraham is loyal and full of reverence, but can still prorogue remarks (Gn 18). There is a dialectic of autonomy and obedience that will resonate throughout Israel’s religion.
FIRST READING Gen 18:1-15
Is there anything too difficult for God?
When I return to you, Sarah will have a son.
From the Book of Genesis
Once the Lord appeared to Abraham at the oak of Mamre,
while he was sitting in the heat of the day
at the entrance to his tent,
Abraham lifted his eyes
and suddenly saw three men standing before him.
Immediately he ran to them from the entrance of his tent;
he bowed deeply and said :
“Be so kind, Lord, as not to pass thy servant.
“I will have water brought to you;
wash your feet and rest here under the tree.
“I will get you bread
to strengthen you for your journey;
You have not come to your servant in vain.
They said, “Very gladly.”
Abraham hurriedly went into the tent to Sara and said :
“Take three measures of fine flour,
knead it and bake cakes of it.”
Then Abraham went to the flock,
picked out a nice tender calf
and gave it to his servant
to prepare it quickly.
Then he brought them cheese and milk,
and the calf that he had prepared,
and set all this before them.
While they were eating, he stood with them under the tree.
Then they asked him :
“Where is Sarah, your wife?”
Abraham answered :
“There, in the tent.”
Then the visitor said :
“In a year’s time I will come back to you ;
then Sarah, your wife, will have a son.”
Sarah was listening at the entrance to the tent, behind him.
Now Abraham and Sarah were old and aged,
and Sarah was no longer in the way of women.
Therefore Sarah had to laugh at herself,
for she thought :
Shall I still enjoy love then,
now that I am withered and my lord too is old?
But the Lord said to Abraham :
“Why does Sarah laugh and wonder?
Will I really have a child at my age?
“Is there anything too difficult for God?
“In a year’s time, at this very moment,
I will come back to you,
and Sarah will have a son.”
Then Sara said :
“I did not laugh,”
For she had become afraid.
But he said :
“Yes, you have laughed!”
INTERLUDIUM Lk. 1, 46-47, 48-49, 50, 53, 54-55
The Lord cares for his servant Israel,
remembering His tender mercies.
Now my soul exalts the Lord,
my spirit is delighted for God, my redeemer.
His choice was his simple handmaiden:
From now on every generation will praise me.
Wonderful is the work he has done for me,
the Mighty One, great is His Name!
He is merciful for ever and ever
to everyone who acknowledges Him.
He gives abundance to the needy
but the rich go with empty hands.
He cares for His servant Israel,
remembering his tender mercies.
As He promised the fathers
for Abraham and his family forever.
ALLELUIA 1 John 2, 5
Alleluia.
He that keepeth the word of the Lord
in him truly is the love of God perfect.
Alleluia.
GOSPEL Mt 8:5-17
Many shall come from the East and the West
and sit down with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven.
From the Holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to
Matthew
When Jesus had arrived in Capernaum,
a centurion came to Him
who cried out for help with the words :
“Lord!
My servant lies paralyzed in my house and suffers terrible pain.”
He spoke to him :
“I will come and heal him.”
But the centurion replied :
“Lord, I am not worthy that Thou shouldst come under my roof ;
but a single word from You is enough
to cure my servant.
“For though I am myself a subordinate,
I have men under me;
and to one I say, go and he goes;
and to another I say, “Come, and he comes;
and to my servant I say, “Do this, and he will do it.
When Jesus heard this He stood amazed
and said to those who followed Him :
“Verily, I say unto you :
With no one in Israel have I found so great a faith.
“I say to you,
that many shall come from the east and from the west
and sit down with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven ;
but the children of the kingdom
shall be cast out into darkness ;
there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
And to the centurion Jesus spoke :
“Go :
as you have believed, so be it done unto you.”
And at that very moment, the servant became healthy.
When Jesus had come to the house of Peter
He found his mother-in-law lying in bed with a fever.
He touched her hand and she became free of fever;
she got up and served Him.
When evening had fallen, many possessed people were brought to him;
He cast out spirits with one word, and healed the sick,
that the words of the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled:
He has taken away our weaknesses
and carried our diseases.
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Laudato Si
Encyclic of
POPE FRANCIS
On Care of the Common Home
217. “The external deserts in the world are growing, because the internal deserts have become so vast”. For this reason, the ecological crisis is also a summons to profound interior conversion. It must be said that some committed and prayerful Christians, with the excuse of realism and pragmatism, tend to ridicule expressions of concern for the environment. Others are passive; they choose not to change their habits and thus become inconsistent. So what they all need is an “ecological conversion”, whereby the effects of their encounter with Jesus Christ become evident in their relationship with the world around them. Living our vocation to be protectors of God’s handiwork is essential to a life of virtue; it is not an optional or a secondary aspect of our Christian experience.
To be continued
The Bible text in this edition is taken from De Nieuwe Bijbelvertaling,
©Nederlands Bijbelgenootschap 2004/2007.
Recitals from Liturgical suggestions for the week days and Sundays
Laudato Si Official English translation
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