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 from the Ephesians letter falls into two parts: Ye were dead… now art thou alive, raised to life, saved. Here the unmistakable similarity to the letter to the Romans is striking. How were you raised to life? Not by your own achievements. To the grace of God alone, to faith in his mercy alone, you owe your salvation. Not to yourself. It is God’s gift.
FIRST READING Eph. 2, 1-10
God has raised us up together with Christ Jesus and seated us in heaven.
From the holy apostle Paul’s letter to the Christians of Ephesus,
Brothers and sisters,
Ye were dead because of your errors and your sins
in which thou didst formerly live according to the god of this world,
the ruler of the power of the air,
the spirit that is still at work among the unruly.
Besides, all of us too, without exception
used to belong to them,
when we let sinful lusts control our lives
and did
what our selfishness and our evil inclinations wanted from us.
Out of ourselves, we were an object of Gos wrath,
as much as the others.
But God, who is rich in mercy,
because of the great love with which he loved us,
raised us to life with Christ
though we were dead because of our sins;
to his grace you owe your salvation.
He raised us up together with Him
and seated in the heavens, in Christ Jesus,
to make the approaching Eternities
the exceeding riches of his grace
through His goodness towards us in Christ Jesus.
Yes, to that grace you owe your salvation, through faith;
not to yourselves : it is God’s gift ;
not to your achievements, no one may harbour faith.
God’s work is us,
created in Christ Jesus
to realise in our lives the good deeds
which God has already prepared for us.
INTERLUDIUM Ps. 100(99), 2, 3, 4, 5
We are the Lord’s flock, his people.
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,
enters 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 cf. Acts 16, 14b
Alleluia.
Make our hearts receptive, Lord,
and that we turn to the word of your Son.
Alleluia.
GOSPEL Lk. 12, 13-21
No possession can secure your life.
All your provisions, for whom are they ?
From the holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to
Luke
At that time, someone from the people said to Jesus :
‘Master, tell my brother that he shares the inheritance with me.’
But Jesus answered him :
‘Man, who has appointed Me judge or divider over you?’
And He spoke to him :
‘Beware and guard against all greed !
‘For no possession, – though so abundant –
can secure your life.’
He told them the following parable :
‘The land of a rich man had yielded a great harvest.
‘Therefore this one deliberated to himself :
What should I do?
‘I have no room to store my harvest.
‘And he said :
This is what I am going to do :
I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones :
In them I will then store all my wealth of corn.
‘Then I will say to myself :
Man, you have a great wealth lying, for long years ;
rest now,
eat and drink and enjoy it !
‘But God spoke to him :
Fool !
‘This very night they will come to claim your life from you ;
and all those provisions you have made,
for whom are they then?
‘So it goes with one who amasses treasures for himself ,
but is not rich with God.’
________________________________________________________
Fratelli tutti
Encyclical of
POPE FRANCISCUS
On brotherhood and social friendship
73. The parable then makes us focus our gaze clearly on
those who pass by at a distance. This dangerous, more or less
innocent indifference of passing by without stopping, the
fruit of contempt or a sad distraction, turns the characters
of the priest and the Levite a no less sad reflection of the
distance that isolates from reality. There are very many ways of passing at
distance beyond, which are complementary to each other. One is to withdraw into
oneself, not taking an interest in the other, being indifferent.
Another could be merely watching from the outside. As for this
latter way of passing by from a distance, there is in some countries
and in certain sectors of them a contempt for the poor and their
culture. People live looking outwards, as if a project imported from there
would try to take their place. Thus one can justify the
indifference of some, because those who might touch their hearts with
their requests, simply do not exist. They
are outside their horizon of interest.
To be continued
Every day at 1 am
The Bible text in this issue is taken from The New Bible Translation,
©Dutch Bible Society 2004/2007.
Considerations from Liturgical suggestions for weekdays and Sundays
Fratelli tutti Official English translation
_____________________________________________________________________________