Invitation
May I draw your attention to:
the daily reading of the Gospel?
This invitation aims 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
Consideration
The readings run more parallel than one might think. Twice we find a woman accused of adultery. Twice we encounter hypocritical judges.
Twice there is a redeeming saviour for the woman.
Jesus does not take sin lightly. But He is merciful towards sinners, and above all denounces the hypocritical judges, just as Daniel did.
We must take heed of this story, which teaches us not to judge. All too easily we identify with the sinful woman who receives mercy, just as we long for forgiveness. Are we not sometimes the accusers ourselves?
FIRST READING Dan. 13, 1-9, 15-17, 19-30, 33-62
Although I have not done what they maliciously accuse me of, I must still die.
From the Prophet Daniel
Long ago, there lived in Babylon a man named Joakim.
He had a wife named Susanna, the daughter of Helkiah;
she was exceptionally beautiful and devout.
Because her parents were righteous people,
they had raised their daughter according to the law of Moses.
Joachim was very rich and owned a garden adjacent to his house;
the Jews gathered at his house,
for he was the most distinguished man among them.
Now in that year two elders of the people
had been appointed as judges;
to them applied what the Lord had said:
‘Wickedness began in Babylon,
among the elders who were judges and pretended to
govern the people.
They were constantly in Joakim’s house,
where everyone with legal cases turned to them.
When the people had left at midday,
Susanna went for a walk in her husband’s garden.
The two elders watched her daily,
whenever she went to relax,
and a passionate desire for her arose within them.
They twisted the voice of their conscience,
turned their eyes away from heaven and did not think of the threat
of just punishment.
Whilst they waited for a suitable day,
Susanna, accompanied by two maidservants,
as was her custom, into the park once more.
And because it was hot, she wished to take a bath;
for there was no one there but the two elders,
who had hidden themselves and were spying on her.
So Susanna said to the maidservants:
“Go and fetch oil and ointment, and shut the gate of the park,
then I shall take a bath.”
As soon as the maids had left,
the two elders emerged and walked towards her
and said:
“Susanna, the gate of the park is closed
and there is no one to see us;
we are burning with desire for you:
therefore, for our sake, have intercourse with us,
otherwise we will testify against you,
that a young man was with you,
and that you therefore sent the maids away.”
Susanna sighed deeply and said:
“I am threatened on all sides:
for if I do it, death awaits me;
if I do not, I shall not escape your hand.
“But I would rather fall innocent into your hands
than sin against the Lord.”
Thereupon Susanna began to cry out loudly,
but the two elders shouted at her,
and one of them ran to the gate of the park and opened it.
When those who were in the house
heard the shouting in the park,
they rushed out through the side entrance to see
what had happened to Susanna.
When the elders told their story,
the servants were greatly perplexed,
for never before had anything like this been said of Susanna.
When the people gathered again the next day
at her husband Joakim’s house,
the elders set about carrying out their wicked plan
to put Susanna to death.
Before the assembled people they commanded:
“Bring Susanna, the daughter of Chelkia,
the wife of Joakim.”
They sent for her.
She appeared, accompanied by her parents,
her children and all her relatives.
Her relatives and all who saw her wept.
Whilst the two elders stood before the people
and laid their hands upon her head,
Susanna looked up to heaven weeping,
for in her heart she continued to trust in the Lord.
Then the elders declared:
“Whilst we were walking alone in the park,
she came in with two maidservants,
locked the gate and sent the girls away.
“Thereupon a young man came up to her,
who had been hiding, and lay down with her.
“When we noticed the crime from a corner of the park,
we rushed towards them;
and saw that they were having sexual intercourse.
“We could not lay hold of him,
for he was stronger than us,
he opened the gate and made his escape;
but we seized her
and asked her who that young man was;
but she would not tell us. This we testify.”
The assembly believed them,
since they were elders of the people and judges,
and sentenced Susanna to death.
After Susanna had been sentenced to death,
she cried out in a loud voice:
“Eternal God, who knows the hidden things
and knows everything before it happens,
Thou knowest that these elders;
have borne false witness against me;
and though I have not done
what they maliciously charge me with,
I must nevertheless die.”
The Lord heard her prayer.
As she was led away to be put to death,
God inspired a young man named Daniel with a holy resolve.
This young man cried out in a loud voice:
“I am innocent of her blood!”
Whereupon the people turned to him and asked:
“What do you mean by that?”
He stood in their midst and said:
“Have you lost your minds, sons of Israel?
“Are you condemning a daughter of Israel
without further investigation or knowledge of the facts?
“Return to the court, for these men here
have given false testimony against her.”
Thereupon all the people hurried back to the court.
There the elders said to Daniel:
“Take your seat among us and tell us your intentions,
for God has granted you the authority of old age.”
Then Daniel said to them:
“Separate them from one another,
and I will examine them.”
So they were separated from one another.
Daniel then summoned one of the two elders and said:
“You have grown old in anger,
but now you shall receive punishment for all the sins you have committed
by passing unjust judgements:
you have condemned the innocent and acquitted the guilty
in contravention of the Lord’s commandment:
Do not put to death anyone who is innocent and in the right,
“Now then, if you caught her in the act,
tell me, under what sort of tree did you see them together?”
He replied: “Under a mastic tree.”
Daniel retorted: “That splendid lie will cost you your head!
“For God’s angel has already received a command from God
to cut you in two.”
After Daniel had had him led away,
he summoned the other and said to him:
“You are a descendant of Canaan and not of Judah!
Beauty has seduced you,
and passion has turned your head.
“This is how you treat the daughters of Israel;
and out of fear they yielded to you,
but a daughter of Judah
would not submit to your wickedness.
“Now then: Under what sort of tree
did you catch her?”
He replied: “Under a holm oak.”
Daniel continued:
“You too have forfeited your life by that splendid lie!
“For God’s angel is already standing ready
to cut you in two with the sword
and to destroy you both.”
At this, the whole assembly burst into loud cheers
and they praised God, who saves those who trust in Him.
And now that Daniel had proved with their own words
that the two elders had given false testimony,
the people turned against them;
and in accordance with the law of Moses,
they carried out upon the elders the punishment;
which, in their malice, they had devised against their neighbour:;
they were put to death.
Thus, on that day, an innocent man was saved from death.
INTERLUDIUM Ps. (23), 22 1-3a, 3b-4, 5, 6
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I fear no evil, for You are with me.
The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want;
He leads me beside still waters;
He restores my soul;
He guides my steps along the right paths;
for the sake of His Name.
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I fear no evil, for You are with me.
Your rod and Your staff
give me courage and confidence.
You invite me to Your table
to the annoyance of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
Goodness and mercy shall follow me
all the days of my life.
I shall dwell in the house of the Lord
forever.
VERSES BEFORE THE GOSPEL Ezekiel 33, 11
I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked,
says the Lord,
but rather that he should turn from his ways and live.
GOSPEL John 8, 1-11
Let him among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.
From the Holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to John
At that time, Jesus went to the Mount of Olives.
Early in the morning He appeared again in the temple,
and all the people came to Him.
He sat down and taught them.
Then the scribes and Pharisees brought to Him a woman
who had been caught in the act of adultery.
They placed her in the middle and said to Him:
‘Teacher, this woman
has been caught in the very act of committing adultery.
Now Moses commanded us in the Law
to stone such women.
But You,
what do You say?
They meant this as a trap,
hoping to find some charge against Him.
But Jesus bent down
and wrote with His finger on the ground.
When they kept asking Him questions,
He stood up and said to them:
‘Let the one among you who is without sin,
be the first to throw a stone at her.’
Again He bent down and wrote on the ground.
When they heard this,
they went away one by one,
the elders first,
until Jesus was left alone with the woman,
who had remained standing there.
Then Jesus stood up and said to her:
Woman, where are they?
Has no one condemned you?
She replied:
No one, Lord.
Then Jesus said to her:
Neither do I condemn you;
go and sin no more.
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Laudato Si
Encyclical of
Pope Francis
On Care for Our Common Home
The wisdom of the biblical stories
65. Without revisiting the entire theology of creation here,
we ask ourselves what the great biblical stories tell us about
the relationship between humanity and the world. The first account of the
work of creation in the Book of Genesis contains God’s plan for the creation
of humanity. After the creation of man and woman, it is said that
“God saw all that he had made, and it was very good” (Gen.
1:31). The Bible teaches that every human being is created out of love, created
in the image and likeness of God (cf. Gen. 1:26). These words show us the immense dignity of every human being, who is not a thing, but a person. He is capable of knowing himself, of possessing himself, and of freely giving himself and entering into contact with other persons”.
Saint John Paul II recalled how the very
special love that the Creator has for every human being “confer upon him an infinite dignity”.
Those who are committed to the defence of
human dignity can find in the Christian faith the deepest reasons for that commitment.
What a marvellous certainty it is to know that the life of every person is not lost in a
hopeless chaos, in a world governed by pure chance or by
cycles that repeat themselves meaninglessly! The Creator can say to each of us:
“Before I formed you in the womb, I chose you” (Jer. 1:5).
We are received into God’s heart and therefore “each of us is the fruit
of a thought of God. Each of us is wanted, each is loved, each is necessary”.
To be continued
Every day at 1 am
The Bible text in this edition is taken fromThe New Bible Translation,
©Nederlands Bijbelgenootschap 2004/2007.
Reflections from Liturgical Suggestions for Weekdays and Sundays
Laudato Si Official English translation