Saint Pontian became pope in 231. Saint priest Hippolytus was antipope.
Together they were exiled to Sardinia in 235
through the Roman emperor Maximus Thrax.
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 excepted,
can experience that joy by opening their hearts
to the healing power of God’s word.
Available every day
Consideration
The reading has a strong imagery: Ezekiel has to eat a scroll. It contains the sad content of his preaching: doom. Therefore, he is asked to listen and not be unruly because his task is heavy and he will go to a people who do not listen and are unruly. ‘Now go ye to the people of Israel and convey to them his words’.
FIRST READING Ez. 2.8-3.4
I ate the scroll and it became in my mouth like honey, so sweet.
From the Prophet Ezekiel
Thus speaks the Lord :
“Thou, child of man, thou must listen to what I say unto thee ;
thou must not be rebellious, like that rebellious people.
“Open your mouth and eat what I give you.”
I looked and I saw a hand,
which was stretched out to me,
and in that hand a scroll.
He rolled it out in front of me ;
it was written on the front and on the back :
Lamentations, lamentations and cries of woe, these were written on it.
Then the Lord said to me :
“Son of man, what is set before you, eat it.
“Eat this scroll and then go
and speak to the people of Israel.”
I opened my mouth
And He gave me that scroll to eat.
And the Lord said to me :
“Son of man, fill your belly
and satiate your insides with this scroll that I give you.”
I ate the scroll and it became in my mouth like honey, so sweet.
Then the Lord said to me :
“And now, child of man ,
now go thou to the people of Israel
and convey to them my words!”
INTERLUDIUM Ps 119(118), 14, 24, 72, 103, 111, 131
How deliciously do thy promises taste to me !
My joy I find in what You ordain,
that is my richest possession.
I take Thy ordinances to heart,
they give me good counsel.
The law from Thy mouth is worth more to me
than treasures of silver and gold.
How deliciously your promises taste to me,
like honey they are in my mouth.
My inheritance is always what You ordain,
that is the joy of my heart.
I open my mouth panting,
so I yearn for Thy commandment.
ALLELUIA Ps. 145(144), 13cd
Alleluia.
True is God in all his words
And holy in all He does.
Alleluia.
GOSPEL Mt 18, 1-5.10.12-14
From the holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Matthew
At that time, the disciples addressed to Jesus the question :
“Who indeed is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”
He called a little child,
put it in their midst and said :
“Verily, I say unto you :
if ye become not again as the little children ,
ye shall certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.
“Whoever therefore considers himself small like this child ,
is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
“And whoever in My Name takes up such a child
takes up Me.
“Beware of despising any of these little ones ,
for I say to you :
they have angels in heaven
and they behold continually
the face of My Father who is in heaven.
“What do you think?
“When a man has a hundred sheep
and one of them goes astray,
shall he not leave
leave the ninety-nine alone in the mountains
To go in search of the stray one ?
“And shall he succeed in finding it, verily I say to you,
he shall rejoice more over that one
than over the ninety-nine who were not lost.
“Likewise, your heavenly Father does not want
that any of these little ones should be lost.”
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Encyclic of
POPE FRANCIS
On brotherhood and social friendship
4. He was not fighting a dialectical battle to impose a doctrine, but rather
communicated the love of God. He had understood that “God is love; whoever abides in
love abides in God, and God abides in him” (1 Jn 4:16). In this
way, he was a fruitful father who gave birth to the dream of a fraternal
society, because “only a man who agrees to approach
approach other people in their own movement, not in order to keep them in
his own, but to help them be more themselves, truly becomes
becomes a father”.
In that world full of watchtowers and defensive walls
the cities experienced bloody wars between powerful families, while
the miserable areas of the outcast peripheries grew. There
Francis received within himself true peace, freed himself from every
desire to rule over the other, he became one of the least and
sought to live in harmony with all. To him we owe the
motivation for these pages.
To be continued
Every day at 1 am
The Bible text in this edition is taken from The New Bible Translation,
©Dutch Bible Society 2004/2007.
Considerations from Liturgical suggestions for weekdays
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