Franciscan Catholic priest. Born 8 Jan. 1894
Died 14 Aug 1941 in Auschwitz
Invitation
May I hereby draw your attention to
the daily reading of the Gospel?
This invitation is 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 announces the complete destruction of Jerusalem in a vision of war. It must be terrible for a prophet to announce such a thing. Orders like ‘defile the temple’ and ‘fill the courts with corpses’ are unthinkable for a Jew. This vision ties in with the vision of the day before yesterday and goes even further. The glory of the Lord, enthroned on the cherubim in the temple, leaves the temple and goes away. God is not bound to the temple. The gospel does give a special response: ‘Where two or three are united in my Name, there am I in their midst’. This remains so even for us in any form of darkness or exile.
FIRST READING Ez. 9, 1-7; 10, 18-22
Draw a mark on the foreheads of those
who sigh and wail over all the abominations
committed in Jerusalem.
From the Prophet Ezekiel
The Lord cried out with a loud voice
and it rang in my ears :
“Enter, ye who are to punish the city,
each with his murder weapon in his hand!”
There came six men
from the side of the Upper Gate, which is on the north side,
each with his weapon of destruction in his hand.
There was one man among them, dressed in linen,
who carried writing implements on his belt.
They approached
and drew up beside the bronze altar.
The glory of the God of Israel, however
had raised itself from the Kerub, on which it stood
and had gone to the threshold of the house.
The Lord called the linen-clad man,
who carried the writing utensil on his belt.
And He said to him :
“Go in the middle of the city, in the middle of Jerusalem ,
and mark the foreheads
of those who sigh and wail over all the abominations
that are committed in the city.”
And to the others the Lord said
– and it rang in my ears – :
“Go through the city, after him, and strike ,
without sparing anyone, without pity.
“Old men, young men, girls, infants, women :
ye must kill and put them to death.
“Only those who bear the mark ,
you must not touch.
“At my sanctuary thou must begin.”
So they began with the men, the elders,
who were in front of the temple.
Still the Lord said to them :
“Just cleanse the temple and fill the courts with corpses.
“And now forward!
“Go and strike the city!”
Then the glory of the Lord went
away again from the threshold of the house
and she stood above the Kerubs.
The Kerubs raised their wings,
rose before my eyes from the ground and went away,
and the cogs went with them.
At the entrance to the eastern gate of the house of the Lord
they stopped.
And above them was the glory of the God of Israel.
They were the same creatures ,
which I had seen under the God of Israel at the river, the Kebar,
and I now understood that they were Kerubs.
Each of them had four faces ;
each had four wings
and under their wings they had something
that resembled a human hand.
And as for the appearance of their faces :
they were the same faces
that I had seen by the river, the Kebar.
They looked just the same ; they were themselves.
They went straight ahead, as everyone’s countenance stood.
INTERLUDIUM Ps. 113(112), 1-2, 3-4, 5-6
The glory of the Lord rules the heavens.
Glorified, servants of the Lord,
glorify the Name of the Lord.
The Name of the Lord be praised,
today and for ever.
From dawn to dusk
every one must worship that Name.
For above the nations the Lord enthrones,
His Glory rules the heavens.
Who is like the Lord our God,
seated high above the stars?
Who overlooks from on high
The firmament and the earth.
ALLELUIA Mt 4:4b
Alleluia.
Not from bread alone does man live,
but from all that proceeds from the mouth of God.
Alleluia.
GOSPEL Mt 18,15-20
When thy brother that sinned listens to thee,
then thou hast won thy brother.
From the holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Matthew
At that time Jesus said to his disciples :
“When your brother has sinned ,
reprimand him in private.
“Does he listen to thee ,
then thou hast won thy brother.
“But if he does not listen ,
then call in one or two more persons
so that everything rests on the testimony of two or three witnesses.
“If he will not listen to them ,
then submit it to the church.
“If he will not listen to the church either ,
then consider him a pagan or a tax collector.
“Verily , I say unto you :
whatever thou shalt bind on earth
shall also be bound in heaven,
and what ye shall dissolve on earth
shall also be dissolved in heaven.”
Likewise I say to you :
when two of you united on earth ask anything
-may it be what it will-
they shall obtain it from My Father who is in heaven.
“For where two or three are united in my Name ,
there I am in their midst.”
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Fratelli tutti
Encyclical of
POPE FRANCISCUS
On brotherhood and social friendship
5. Issues related to fraternity and social friendship
have always been part of my concerns. In recent years, I have referred to them several times and in different places. In this encyclical
I have collected many of those contributions and wanted to place them in a broader context of
reflection. While writing Laudato si’, I found a
source of inspiration in my brother Bartholomew, the Orthodox
patriarch who very powerfully put forward the concern for creation
put forward, I have felt particularly stimulated in this case by
the Grand Imam Ahmad Al-Tayyeb, whom I met in Abu Dhabi to
recalling that God “created all human beings with equal
rights, equal duties and equal dignity and has called them
to live together as brothers and sisters among themselves”.
This was not a mere diplomatic gesture, but a reflection arrived at through
dialogue, and a shared commitment. This encyclical collects and develops major themes that are set out in that document, which we signed together, are set out. And in it I have also included in my words numerous documents and letters that I have received from very many people and groups from
all over the world.
To be continued
Every day at 1 am
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
Fratelli tutti official English translation