First Spanish martyr under Emperor Diocletian. Died in 304.
Invitation
May I draw your attention to
the daily reading of the Gospel?
This invitation is intended to share with you the joy
of the Gospel. Everyone, without exception,
can experience that joy by opening their heart
to the healing power of God’s word.
Available every day.
Reflection
David’s success irritates Saul: ‘from that moment on, he looked at David with envy’. The tragedy brings Jonathan to the fore. The reconciliation he brings about will prove to be short-lived. Is this not the case in many places in this world? Does it not apply to many people we know? In every human community, in our community or in our families, at work or in club life, in our Church or in layers of society at large: how often do we go from conflict to reconciliation to new conflict? Healing the world of its demons begins in small circles, with us, on our doorsteps. By recognising and appreciating the good in every human being. It is an important condition for growing into a true (faith) community.
FIRST READING I Sam. 18:6-9 ;19:1-7
My father Saul wants to kill you.
From the First Book of Samuel
When David returned in those days
from his victory over the Philistine,
the women from all the towns of Israel
went out to meet King Saul, singing and dancing,
with tambourines, songs of joy and triangles.
The dancing women raised a chorus and sang:
“Saul has struck down thousands,
but David tens of thousands!”
Saul was very displeased
and greatly annoyed by these words; he said:
“They give David tens of thousands, and me thousands;
only the kingship is lacking!”
From that moment on, Saul looked at David with envy!”
He told his son Jonathan and all his courtiers
that he wanted to kill David.
Jonathan then informed
David, whom he was particularly fond of:
“My father Saul wants to kill you.
Be on your guard tomorrow morning;
find a hiding place and keep yourself concealed.
I will then leave the city
and stand near you with my father.
I will speak to my father about you,
and I will let you know what I hear.”
Jonathan pleaded for David before his father Saul
and said to him:
“Let the king not harm his servant David.
“He has done nothing wrong to you.
“On the contrary, what he has done
has been very beneficial to you.
“He has risked his life;
he has defeated the Philistines,
and the Lord has given Israel a great victory.
“You saw it and rejoiced over it.
“Why then should you sin
against innocent blood and kill David without cause?”
Saul listened to Jonathan and swore:
“As the Lord lives, David shall not be killed!”
Then Jonathan called David
and told him everything that had been said.
He brought David to Saul,
and David served Saul again as before.
INTERLUDIUM Ps. 56(55), 2-3, 9-10, 11, 12-13
I trust in the Lord without fear.
Be merciful, God, now that people trample me,
constantly harass and harm me.
My enemies torment me constantly,
attacking me with all their might.
You know my whole wandering life,
You have collected all my tears in Your jar.
But my enemy retreats when I call upon You,
yes, I know, God will not forsake me!
In the Lord and His promise,
in the Lord I trust without fear;
how then could any man harm me?
What I have promised You, God, I will accomplish,
I bring You the sacrifice of my praise.
For through You I have escaped death,
You keep my feet from stumbling.
Therefore I can continue before God’s face
in the light that illuminates all living beings.
ALLELUIA Ps . 119(118), 27
Alleluia.
Lead me in the way of your commandments, Lord,
and I will remember your deeds.
Alleluia
GOSPEL Mk. 3, 7-12
The unclean spirits cried out, “You are the Son of God.”
But He forbade them to reveal Him.
From the Holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Mark
At that time, Jesus went away with his disciples
towards the lake,
but a large crowd from Galilee followed Him.
Many people also came from Judea, Jerusalem, and Idumea,
from Transjordan,
and from the region around Tyre and Sidon,
because they had heard about all He was doing.
He instructed His disciples
to have a small boat ready for Him,
as a precaution against the crowd pressing in on Him.
For He had already healed many,
so that all who were suffering from ailments
pressed upon Him to touch Him.
Even the unclean spirits,
when they saw Him,
fell down before Him and cried out,
“You are the Son of God.”
But He strictly forbade them to make Him known.
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Laudato Si
Encyclical of
POPE FRANCIS
On Care for Our Common Home
5. Saint John Paul II devoted considerable attention to this theme.
In his first encyclical, he noted that “man often seems to perceive
no other meaning in his natural environment than that which serves
the purposes of use and consumption.” He then called for a global
ecological conversion. At the same time, however, he noted that there
is little commitment to “guaranteeing the moral conditions for a credible
human ecology.” The destruction of the human environment is something
that is happening at an alarming rate.
The destruction of the human environment is something very serious,
not only because God has entrusted the world to human beings,
but because human life itself is a gift that must be protected against
various forms of decay. Every effort to care for and improve the
world requires a profound change in “lifestyles, production and
consumption models, and the established power structures that
now govern societies”. Authentic human development has a moral
character and presupposes full respect for the human person,
but it must also pay attention to the world of nature and “take
into account the world of nature”.
Therefore, humanity’s ability to change reality must develop
on the basis of God’s original gift of things.
To be continued
Every day at 1 am
The Bible text in this edition is taken fromThe New Bible Translation,
©British and American Bible Society 2004/2007.
Reflections from Liturgical suggestions for weekdays and Sundays
Laudato Si Official British and American Bible Society translation
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