Padre Pio. Born 25 May 1887. Visible mystical signs performed
on him on 20 Sept 1918. Beatified in 1999 and canonized on 16 June 2002.
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 that joy by opening their hearts
to the healing power of God’s word.
Available every day.
Considerations
In today’s reading, the apostle sings the praises of the Lord’s glory and exhorts us to live up to God’s most important commandment: To love. He who loves bears witness to God, for He is Love. He is the only King, the King of kings. Paul and the early Christians lived in a time when earthly emperors and kings were deified and addressed and worshipped with the highest titles and superlatives. Against this pagan cult, Paul resists: Only God is Ruler. No earthly power, no ideology, no idol is so exalted that we must submit to it unconditionally. Today’s response psalm ties in nicely with this: “Truly, the Lord is God, Creator, and Master”. Do we step unconcerned before His face.
FIRST READING I Tim. 6, 13-16
Keep this commandment immaculate and undefiled
until the appearance of our Lord Jesus Christ.
From the holy apostle Paul’s first letter to Timothy
Dear one,
I commend you before the face of God who quickeneth all things to life,
and of Christ Jesus
who made the good confession before Pontius Pilate :
Keep this commandment immaculate and undefiled
until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ
whom God will make us behold in due time,
He, the Blessed One,
the only Ruler,
the great King and Supreme Lord
who alone possesses immortality and dwells in unapproachable light.
No man has seen Him or can see Him.
To Him be honour and eternal power!
Amen.
INTERLUDIUM
Enter unconcerned before God’s Face.
Rejoice before the Lord, all nations,
serve the Lord with joy.
Enter unconcerned before His Face ;
verily, the Lord is God.
He is the Creator and Master,
we are his flock, his people.
Pass through his gates with song,
enter his court with song.
Bless His Name and honour Him,
He is good to us.
Endless is His mercy,
faithful from generation to generation.
ALLELUIA John 10, 27
Alleluia.
My sheep listen to my voice, says the Lord ;
and I know them and they follow Me.
Alleluia.
GOSPEL Lk. 8, 4-15
The seed in the good earth are those who keep the word they heard
in a good and noble heart and bring forth fruit by
their steadfastness.
From the holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to
Luke
In those days
when a great crowd gathered
and from the cities, people flocked to Jesus,
He spoke in a parable :
“The sower went out to sow his seed.
“And in sowing, a portion fell on the road ;
it was trampled and the birds of the air ate it up.
“Another portion fell on the rocky ground ;
it shot up but dried out because it had no moisture.
“Yet another portion fell among the thistles,
but at the same time, the thistles shot up and suffocated it.
“Yet another portion fell on the good ground ;
it shot up and brought forth a hundredfold fruit.”
And in a loud voice, He added :
“He who has ears to hear, he listens.”
His disciples asked Him what this parable meant.
He replied :
“To you, it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of God,
but the rest receive them in parables
because they see not and hear not understand.
“Well, the meaning of the parable is this :
The seed is the word of God.
“Those on the way, are those who have listened.
“But then the devil comes and snatches the word from their hearts,
lest they be saved by believing.
“Those on the rock are those
who receive the word with joy when they hear it,
but they have no root ;
they believe for a moment,
but at the time of trial, they fall away.
“Those who fell among the thistles are those
who did listen,
but who gradually through the care,
the riches and pleasures of life
become stifled and fail to mature.
“The seed in the good earth are those
who keep the word they heard in a good and noble heart
and bring forth fruit by their constancy.”
________________________________________________________
Laudato Si
Encyclic by
POPE FRANCIS
On caring for the common home
54. It is remarkable how weak international political responses have been. The failure of global summits on the environment makes it plain that our politics are subject to technology and finance. There are too many special interests, and economic interests easily end up trumping the common good and manipulating information so that their own plans will not be affected. The Aparecida Document urges that “the interests of economic groups which irrationally demolish sources of life should not prevail in dealing with natural resources”. The alliance between the economy and technology ends up sidelining anything unrelated to its immediate interests. Consequently, the most one can expect is superficial rhetoric, sporadic acts of philanthropy, and perfunctory expressions of concern for the environment, whereas any genuine attempt by groups within society to introduce change is viewed as a nuisance based on romantic illusions or an obstacle to be circumvented.
To be continued
The Bible text in this issue is taken from The New Translation of the Bible,
©Dutch Bible Society 2004/2007.
Considerations from Liturgical suggestions for weekdays and Sundays
Laudato Si Official English translation
_____________________________________________________________________________