Wednesday in the 11th week of the year

 

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
In loving, God is perfect. He makes the sun rise over bad and good. He loves without question. Reciprocity is not a condition for God to love. In that perspective, Jesus calls for love for the enemy. After all, we too can grow in perfect love and thus become children of the Father. For Paul, the churches of Macedonia are an edifying example in terms of love. Even in tribulation and poverty, they showed solidarity with the church in Jerusalem. Paul encourages the Corinthians to follow that example. After all, in concrete devotion to others, love shows its authenticity. Jesus himself preceded us in this. He became poor while He was rich in order to make us rich through His poverty. Therefore: The Lord I will praise all my life (Ps 146:2)

FIRST READING         2 Cor. 9, 6-11

God loves a cheerful giver.

From the holy apostle Paul’s second letter to the Christians of Corinth

Brothers and sisters,

Remember: he who sows sparingly will reap sparingly;
he who sows bountifully will reap bountifully.
Let each one carry out what he has decided in his heart
carry out, without pain and without compulsion,
for God loves a cheerful giver.
And God has power to shower you with all gifts
so that you, always provided with all that you need in every way,
still have plenty left over for every good work.
Thus it is also written :
“He has given abundantly to the poor,
his mercy shall ever remain.”

He the sower provides seed and food to eat
will also provide seed for you and multiply it
and cause the harvest of thy meekness to flourish.
Thus thou wilt be enriched in every way
and thou canst practice all kinds of generosity.
And this in turn is, through our mediation
cause of thanksgiving to God.

INTERLUDIUM    Ps 112(111), 1-2, 3-4, 9

Happy the man who is in awe of God.
or : Alleluia.

Happy the man who is in awe of God,
who finds joy in his commandments.
His offspring will be mighty in the land,
blessed shall be the generation of the pious.

Prosperity and wealth adorn his house,
he will never lose his righteousness.
He is to the pious a light in the night,
beneficent, merciful, righteous.

With mildness he distributes to the poor,
he will never lose his righteousness,
his power and prestige ever increasing.

ALLELUIA        John 14, 5

Alleluia.
I am the way, the truth, and the life, says the Lord ;
no one comes to the Father except through Me.
Alleluia.

GOSPEL             Mt 6:1-6. 16-18
Your Father who sees in secret will repay you.

From the holy gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to
Matthew

At that time, Jesus said to his disciples :
“Remember :
do not practice your righteousness before the eyes of men ,
in order to attract attention;
otherwise you will have no reward
with your Father who is in heaven.
“When therefore ye give alms ,
trumpet it not before thee
as the hypocrites do in the synagogue and in the streets,
that they may be praised by men.
“Verily, I say to you :
They have already received their reward.
“When ye give alms
then let not thy left hand know what thy right does
that thy alms may remain in secret ;
and your Father who sees in secret
shall repay it unto thee.
“When ye pray ,
do not behave like the hypocrites
who like to stand in the synagogues
and stand on the corners of the streets praying
in order to be noticed by the people.
“Verily, I say unto you :
They have already received their reward!
“But when ye pray ,
go into thy inner chamber,
shut the door behind thee,
and pray to your Father, who is in secret;
and thy Father, who seeth in secret, shall repay it unto thee.
“When ye fast ,
put not a gloomy face like the hypocrites ;
they tighten their faces
to show people that they are fasting.
“Verily, I say unto you :
They have already received their reward.
“But if ye fast ,
anoint thy head and wash thy face
so as not to show men that ye are fasting,
but fast for your Father who is in secret
and your Father, who sees in secret, will repay you.”

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Laudato Si

Encyclical of

POPE FRANCISCUS

On caring for the common home

25. Climate change is a global problem with serious
implications for the environment, society, the economy, distribution and
politics, and represent one of the most important current challenges facing
humanity. The most severe effects are likely to affect developing countries in the coming
affect developing countries in the coming decades. Many poor people live in places
affected by phenomena related to warming
and their livelihoods depend heavily on natural
reserves and traditional agriculture, fishing and forestry. They have
no other available economic means and other resources that would
allow them to adapt to climatic effects or
cope with disasters, and they have little access to social
services and insurance. For example, climate change causes
migrations of animals and plants that are not always able to adapt
and this in turn affects the means of production of the poorest, who
however, are obliged to leave in great uncertainty about the
future of their lives and of their children. Tragic is the increase in
migrants fleeing the misery exacerbated by the destruction of the
environment, who are not recognised in international conventions as
left behind without any legal protection. Unfortunately, there is a
general indifference to these tragedies, which are still
taking place in different parts of the world. The lack of reactions
towards these tragedies of our brothers and sisters is a sign
of the loss of that sense of responsibility for our
fellow human beings on which every civilised society is based.

To be continued
Every day at 1 am