Memorial of the Guardian Angels
Alternate Proper for the Memorial of Guardian Angels
Readings for the Memorial of Guardian Angels[1][2]
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
Readings and Commentary:[3]
The Gospel for this memorial is proper. First Readings and Psalm Response are from Friday of the Twenty-sixth Week in Ordinary Time (Year I)
Reading 1: Baruch 1:15-22
During the Babylonian captivity, the exiles prayed:
“Justice is with the Lord, our God;
and we today are flushed with shame,
we men of Judah and citizens of Jerusalem,
that we, with our kings and rulers
and priests and prophets, and with our ancestors,
have sinned in the Lord’s sight and disobeyed him.
We have neither heeded the voice of the Lord, our God,
nor followed the precepts which the Lord set before us.
From the time the Lord led our ancestors out of the land of Egypt
until the present day,
we have been disobedient to the Lord, our God,
and only too ready to disregard his voice.
And the evils and the curse that the Lord enjoined upon Moses, his servant,
at the time he led our ancestors forth from the land of Egypt
to give us the land flowing with milk and honey,
cling to us even today.
For we did not heed the voice of the Lord, our God,
in all the words of the prophets whom he sent us,
but each one of us went off
after the devices of his own wicked heart,
served other gods,
and did evil in the sight of the Lord, our God.”
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Bar 1:15-22
The author of the Book of Baruch is thought to be a secretary of the Prophet Jeremiah. As such the book was written after the Babylonian exile so what we hear today, rather than being a prayer written during that exile is actually a reflective prayer (of penitence and atonement) used, according to scholars, leading up to the feast of Booths. (Note, the first line in today’s reading is not scriptural but rather inserted in the Missal as a “sense line” – a summary of the introduction.)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 79:1b-2, 3-5, 8, 9
R. (9) For the glory of your name, O Lord, deliver us.
O God, the nations have come into your inheritance;
they have defiled your holy temple,
they have laid Jerusalem in ruins.
They have given the corpses of your servants
as food to the birds of heaven,
the flesh of your faithful ones to the beasts of the earth.
R. For the glory of your name, O Lord, deliver us.
They have poured out their blood like water
round about Jerusalem,
and there is no one to bury them.
We have become the reproach of our neighbors,
the scorn and derision of those around us.
O LORD, how long? Will you be angry forever?
Will your jealousy burn like fire?
R. For the glory of your name, O Lord, deliver us.
Remember not against us the iniquities of the past;
may your compassion quickly come to us,
for we are brought very low.
R. For the glory of your name, O Lord, deliver us.
Help us, O God our savior,
because of the glory of your name;
Deliver us and pardon our sins
for your name’s sake.
R. For the glory of your name, O Lord, deliver us.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Ps 79:1b-2, 3-5, 8, 9
Psalm 79 picks up the penitential note from Baruch. It is a communal lament in which the assembly reflects upon the punishment endured because they have sinned against God and disregarded his law. Following this admission, there is a plea for mercy and a promise of atonement.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gospel: Matthew 18:1-5, 10
The disciples approached Jesus and said,
“Who is the greatest in the Kingdom of heaven?”
He called a child over, placed it in their midst, and said,
“Amen, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children,
you will not enter the Kingdom of heaven.
Whoever humbles himself like this child
is the greatest in the Kingdom of heaven.
And whoever receives one child such as this in my name receives me.
“See that you do not despise one of these little ones,
for I say to you that their angels in heaven
always look upon the face of my heavenly Father.”
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Mt 18:1-5, 10
This Gospel passage is used on the Feast of the Guardian Angels each year. The event is also recorded in St. Luke’s Gospel at Luke 9:46-50. The major difference is that here, in St. Matthew’s Gospel the Lord speaks directly of the Guardian Angels who protect and watch over the children in the presence of the Heavenly Father as opposed to going on to another saying of Jesus. The emphasis in this passage changes from a treatise on humility to one which emphasizes God’s care for those who are most helpless, His children.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Reflection:
Angel of God, my Guardian dear,
to whom His love commits me here,
ever this day be at my side,
to light and guard,
to rule and guide.
Amen.
Today as the Church celebrates the Memorial of Guardian Angels we hear this simple children’s prayer with which we teach our children not to fear, that God is with them always in the person of the guardian angels. We hear Jesus in the Gospel today tell his disciples that the Lord so protects them as he says;
“See that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you that
their angels in heaven always look upon the face of my heavenly Father.”
In the history of the Church, our belief in these spirits (as St. Jerome called them) has evolved. St. Thomas Aquinas published a whole section in his great work, the Summa Theologica. While the belief and study of angels has waned in recent years as we have become more rational and less mystic (one might call that trend a loss of innocence) the current teaching document of the Catholic Church still teaches our belief (although not as an article of faith):
335 In her liturgy, the Church joins with the angels to adore the thrice-holy
God. She invokes their assistance (in the funeral liturgy's In Paradisum
deducant te angeli. . .["May the angels lead you into Paradise. . ."]).
Moreover, in the "Cherubic Hymn" of the Byzantine Liturgy, she celebrates the
memory of certain angels more particularly (St. Michael, St. Gabriel, St.
Raphael, and the guardian angels).
Where do we take ourselves with this celebration today? We are forcefully reminded that there is also an evil spirit, Satan, who comes; “From roaming the earth and patrolling it.” If we believe that there is an evil mystical presence can we not have hope that the Lord has maintained his vigilance with his angels. Perhaps today we should remember an adult prayer and let it be our own today;
Dear Angel, in his goodness God gave you to me to guide, protect and enlighten me, and to being me back to the right way when I go astray. Encourage me when I am disheartened, and instruct me when I err in my judgment. Help me to become more Christlike, and so some day to be accepted into the company of Angels and Saints in heaven. Amen.
Pax
[1] ALTRE
[2] The picture is “The Guardian Angel Protecting a Child from the Empire of the Demon” by Domenico Feti, 1615-18
[3] Text of Readings is taken from the New American Bible, Copyright © Libreria Editrice Vaticana, Excerpts from the English translation of The Roman Missal © 1973, International Committee on English in the Liturgy, Inc. All rights reserved.
Alternate Proper for the Memorial of Guardian Angels
Readings for the Memorial of Guardian Angels[1][2]
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
Readings and Commentary:[3]
The Gospel for this memorial is proper. First Readings and Psalm Response are from Friday of the Twenty-sixth Week in Ordinary Time (Year I)
Reading 1: Baruch 1:15-22
During the Babylonian captivity, the exiles prayed:
“Justice is with the Lord, our God;
and we today are flushed with shame,
we men of Judah and citizens of Jerusalem,
that we, with our kings and rulers
and priests and prophets, and with our ancestors,
have sinned in the Lord’s sight and disobeyed him.
We have neither heeded the voice of the Lord, our God,
nor followed the precepts which the Lord set before us.
From the time the Lord led our ancestors out of the land of Egypt
until the present day,
we have been disobedient to the Lord, our God,
and only too ready to disregard his voice.
And the evils and the curse that the Lord enjoined upon Moses, his servant,
at the time he led our ancestors forth from the land of Egypt
to give us the land flowing with milk and honey,
cling to us even today.
For we did not heed the voice of the Lord, our God,
in all the words of the prophets whom he sent us,
but each one of us went off
after the devices of his own wicked heart,
served other gods,
and did evil in the sight of the Lord, our God.”
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Bar 1:15-22
The author of the Book of Baruch is thought to be a secretary of the Prophet Jeremiah. As such the book was written after the Babylonian exile so what we hear today, rather than being a prayer written during that exile is actually a reflective prayer (of penitence and atonement) used, according to scholars, leading up to the feast of Booths. (Note, the first line in today’s reading is not scriptural but rather inserted in the Missal as a “sense line” – a summary of the introduction.)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 79:1b-2, 3-5, 8, 9
R. (9) For the glory of your name, O Lord, deliver us.
O God, the nations have come into your inheritance;
they have defiled your holy temple,
they have laid Jerusalem in ruins.
They have given the corpses of your servants
as food to the birds of heaven,
the flesh of your faithful ones to the beasts of the earth.
R. For the glory of your name, O Lord, deliver us.
They have poured out their blood like water
round about Jerusalem,
and there is no one to bury them.
We have become the reproach of our neighbors,
the scorn and derision of those around us.
O LORD, how long? Will you be angry forever?
Will your jealousy burn like fire?
R. For the glory of your name, O Lord, deliver us.
Remember not against us the iniquities of the past;
may your compassion quickly come to us,
for we are brought very low.
R. For the glory of your name, O Lord, deliver us.
Help us, O God our savior,
because of the glory of your name;
Deliver us and pardon our sins
for your name’s sake.
R. For the glory of your name, O Lord, deliver us.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Ps 79:1b-2, 3-5, 8, 9
Psalm 79 picks up the penitential note from Baruch. It is a communal lament in which the assembly reflects upon the punishment endured because they have sinned against God and disregarded his law. Following this admission, there is a plea for mercy and a promise of atonement.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gospel: Matthew 18:1-5, 10
The disciples approached Jesus and said,
“Who is the greatest in the Kingdom of heaven?”
He called a child over, placed it in their midst, and said,
“Amen, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children,
you will not enter the Kingdom of heaven.
Whoever humbles himself like this child
is the greatest in the Kingdom of heaven.
And whoever receives one child such as this in my name receives me.
“See that you do not despise one of these little ones,
for I say to you that their angels in heaven
always look upon the face of my heavenly Father.”
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Mt 18:1-5, 10
This Gospel passage is used on the Feast of the Guardian Angels each year. The event is also recorded in St. Luke’s Gospel at Luke 9:46-50. The major difference is that here, in St. Matthew’s Gospel the Lord speaks directly of the Guardian Angels who protect and watch over the children in the presence of the Heavenly Father as opposed to going on to another saying of Jesus. The emphasis in this passage changes from a treatise on humility to one which emphasizes God’s care for those who are most helpless, His children.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Reflection:
Angel of God, my Guardian dear,
to whom His love commits me here,
ever this day be at my side,
to light and guard,
to rule and guide.
Amen.
Today as the Church celebrates the Memorial of Guardian Angels we hear this simple children’s prayer with which we teach our children not to fear, that God is with them always in the person of the guardian angels. We hear Jesus in the Gospel today tell his disciples that the Lord so protects them as he says;
“See that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you that
their angels in heaven always look upon the face of my heavenly Father.”
In the history of the Church, our belief in these spirits (as St. Jerome called them) has evolved. St. Thomas Aquinas published a whole section in his great work, the Summa Theologica. While the belief and study of angels has waned in recent years as we have become more rational and less mystic (one might call that trend a loss of innocence) the current teaching document of the Catholic Church still teaches our belief (although not as an article of faith):
335 In her liturgy, the Church joins with the angels to adore the thrice-holy
God. She invokes their assistance (in the funeral liturgy's In Paradisum
deducant te angeli. . .["May the angels lead you into Paradise. . ."]).
Moreover, in the "Cherubic Hymn" of the Byzantine Liturgy, she celebrates the
memory of certain angels more particularly (St. Michael, St. Gabriel, St.
Raphael, and the guardian angels).
Where do we take ourselves with this celebration today? We are forcefully reminded that there is also an evil spirit, Satan, who comes; “From roaming the earth and patrolling it.” If we believe that there is an evil mystical presence can we not have hope that the Lord has maintained his vigilance with his angels. Perhaps today we should remember an adult prayer and let it be our own today;
Dear Angel, in his goodness God gave you to me to guide, protect and enlighten me, and to being me back to the right way when I go astray. Encourage me when I am disheartened, and instruct me when I err in my judgment. Help me to become more Christlike, and so some day to be accepted into the company of Angels and Saints in heaven. Amen.
Pax
[1] ALTRE
[2] The picture is “The Guardian Angel Protecting a Child from the Empire of the Demon” by Domenico Feti, 1615-18
[3] Text of Readings is taken from the New American Bible, Copyright © Libreria Editrice Vaticana, Excerpts from the English translation of The Roman Missal © 1973, International Committee on English in the Liturgy, Inc. All rights reserved.
No comments:
Post a Comment