Wednesday in the twenty-third week

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 the third chapter of the Colossians letter, we read some applications to the Christian walk of life. Paul urges the Christian community to walk radically in the footsteps of Jesus, now that they are clothed with the new man. This means living a new life, turning away from immoral lifestyles and living as a limb of the body of Christ. The old robes are now discarded: We clothe ourselves with the new man. Only Christ matters now. He is all in all.

FIRST READING Col 3:1-11
Ye have died with Christ ;
so put a radical end to immoral practices.

Brothers and sisters,

If therefore ye have been raised to life with Christ
seek what is above,
where Christ sits at the right hand of God.
Seek the heavenly, not the earthly.
For thou hast died
and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.
Christ is thy life,
and when He appears
you too will appear with Him in glory.
So puts a radical end to immoral practices,
fornication, immorality, passion, covetousness
and the greed equivalent to idolatry.
These things call down God’s wrath.
You too have indulged in this at the time
and lived in these sins.
But now you must say goodbye to all this.
Away with wrath, wrath, malice,
slander and shameful language!
And lie no more to one another.
Ye have put off the old man with his behaviour
and clothed thyself with the new man,
who is on the way to true understanding,
renewing himself in the image of his Creator.
Then there is no more Greek or Jew;
circumcised or uncircumcised,
barbarian or Skyth,
slave or free man.
There is only Christ,
all in all.

INTERLUDIUM             Ps. 145(144), 2-3, 10-11, 12-13ab

The Lord is concerned for every man.

You I want to praise every day,
glorifying Your Name forever.
The Lord is great and worthy of all praise,
his greatness is unfathomable.

Your works shall praise You, Lord,
thy pious shall praise thee.
They praise the glory of Your rule,
thy power they proclaim.

They make Your power known to men,
the splendour of thy kingdom.
Your kingdom is a kingdom for all ages,
your rule is for every generation.

ALLELUIA           Ps. 130(129),5

Alleluia.
In the Lord I put my hope,
on his word I trust.
Alleluia.

At that time Jesus lifted up his eyes,
looked at his disciples and spoke:
“Blessed are you who are poor ,
for to you belongs the kingdom of God.
Blessed who are now hungry ,
for you shall be filled.
Blessed who weep now ,
for ye shall laugh.
Blessed are you
when for the Son of Man’s sake men hate thee,
when they cast you out and taunt you
and banish your name from society as something detestable.
When that day comes, leap for joy,
for great is your reward in heaven.
In the same way, their forefathers treated the prophets.
But woe to you, rich ones,
for you have already received what comforts you.
Woe to you who are now satiated,
for ye shall hunger.
Woe unto thee that laugh now,
for thou shalt complain and weep.
Woe unto thee, when all men speak of thee with praise,
for their forefathers did the same to the false prophets.”

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Laudato Si

Encyclical of

POPE FRANCISCUS

On caring for the common home

109. The technocratic paradigm tends to exercise its own power
exercise on the economy and politics. The economy is focused on any
technological development with an eye on revenue without paying attention
paying attention to any negative consequences for humans. Money
stifles the real economy. People have not learnt the lesson of the global financial
crisis and very slowly is learning that of the degradation of the
environment. It is claimed in some circles that the current economy and
technology will solve all environmental problems, just as it is claimed that
the problems of world hunger and misery will be easily
be solved with market growth. It is not a matter of
economic theories, which perhaps no one dares to defend today,
but it is the presupposition of the actual development of the
economy. Those who do not say it in as many words, support it
actual, when they do not seem to care about a proper
level of production, better distribution of wealth, responsible
care for the environment or the rights of future generations. With their
attitude, they confirm that the objective of maximising
profits is sufficient. However, the market alone does not guarantee integral
human development and social cohesion. In the meantime
we have seen a “wasteful and consumer-oriented overshooting
development, which stands in unacceptable contrast to ongoing
situations of degrading human misery”, while failing to quickly remove
develop economic institutions and social programmes that will
enable the poorest to have regular access
to basic resources. One does not sufficiently realise what the deepest
causes of the current imbalance, which also
has to do with the focus, purposes, significance and social
context of technological and economic growth.

To be continued
Every day at 1 am