Monday of the Seventh Week in Ordinary Time
Reading for Monday of the 7th Week in Ordinary Time[1]
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible at Universalis
Commentary:
Reading 1 Sir 1:1-10
Today we begin the Book of Sirach. Written in about 175 B.C., this sacred text’s author, the son of Sirach, writes extensively about the Law and our relationship to it. It is not considered to be part of the Jewish Bible after the first century and is not contained in the protestant cannon either. The church has always considered it sacred and it has been included in the Catholic Cannon since it was first established.
Today we hear how the Wisdom of God is poured out on all God’s creation through the Holy Spirit. Wisdom, the author notes, can only come from God and there is, of course only one God. The wisdom spoken of here is God’s external revelation of himself, present in all His creation.
Responsorial Psalm Ps 93:1ab, 1cd-2, 5
R. The Lord is king; he is robed in majesty.
The external revelation of God mentioned in Sirach is celebrated in this song of praise. The image of God’s throne on high, repeated here reinforces God’s omnipotence.
Gospel Mk 9:14-29
In St. Mark’s Gospel today, the Lord encounters a “situation”. When he comes down the mountain where Peter, James, and John had just witnessed the transfiguration of the Lord, he discovers the rest of the twelve being challenged by scribes and Pharisees because they cannot cast out a “mute spirit”.
Jesus’ reaction seems a bit exasperated. He remarks on the faithlessness of the crowd (including the Scribes and Pharisees) and proceeds to cure the boy. He then explains to the disciples that in such cases, cure can only be effected through prayer.
Reflection:
I have been in northern Michigan with my family for the past two days and have not been able to post to this Blog. I hope those of you who, like me, are addicted to Holy Scripture have kept up with the readings in my absence.
Today we are given, as food for the soul, the beginning of the Book of Sirach and St. Mark’s story of the cure of the boy with the “Mute Spirit”. In the first, Jesus, son of Eleazar, son of Sirach, the inspired author, tells us that wisdom or what God chooses to reveal of his nature, comes only from God himself. The inference is that we cannot discover it by looking for it. Rather it is given to us freely.
This understanding has tremendous importance to us. It means that, as individuals who seek to follow the Lord, we must depend entirely on that gift of faith. It is not always plane to us what God intends and it is not always easy to follow the path we see or believe we see before us.
Our great comfort is that we are not alone in this and further, we were given help that the son of Sirach did not have. He lived and died almost 200 years before God fully revealed himself in Christ, which leads us to the second great comfort. Even those who knew Christ in the flesh battled with their lack of faith.
In today’s Gospel we hear the father of the boy who was ill rebuked by Jesus. He said the Lord; “…But IF you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.” (Emphasis added). The Lord caught that “IF” and sharply replied; “‘IF you can!’ Everything is possible to one who has faith.” Following this exchange is the prayer that should be part of our prayer each day; “I do believe, help my unbelief!”
Today we pray with that ancient father who prayed the Lord could heal his son. He prayed knowing that, like our own, his faith was incomplete. Let us echo his prayer today; “I do believe, help my unbelief!”
Pax
Reading for Monday of the 7th Week in Ordinary Time[1]
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible at Universalis
Commentary:
Reading 1 Sir 1:1-10
Today we begin the Book of Sirach. Written in about 175 B.C., this sacred text’s author, the son of Sirach, writes extensively about the Law and our relationship to it. It is not considered to be part of the Jewish Bible after the first century and is not contained in the protestant cannon either. The church has always considered it sacred and it has been included in the Catholic Cannon since it was first established.
Today we hear how the Wisdom of God is poured out on all God’s creation through the Holy Spirit. Wisdom, the author notes, can only come from God and there is, of course only one God. The wisdom spoken of here is God’s external revelation of himself, present in all His creation.
Responsorial Psalm Ps 93:1ab, 1cd-2, 5
R. The Lord is king; he is robed in majesty.
The external revelation of God mentioned in Sirach is celebrated in this song of praise. The image of God’s throne on high, repeated here reinforces God’s omnipotence.
Gospel Mk 9:14-29
In St. Mark’s Gospel today, the Lord encounters a “situation”. When he comes down the mountain where Peter, James, and John had just witnessed the transfiguration of the Lord, he discovers the rest of the twelve being challenged by scribes and Pharisees because they cannot cast out a “mute spirit”.
Jesus’ reaction seems a bit exasperated. He remarks on the faithlessness of the crowd (including the Scribes and Pharisees) and proceeds to cure the boy. He then explains to the disciples that in such cases, cure can only be effected through prayer.
Reflection:
I have been in northern Michigan with my family for the past two days and have not been able to post to this Blog. I hope those of you who, like me, are addicted to Holy Scripture have kept up with the readings in my absence.
Today we are given, as food for the soul, the beginning of the Book of Sirach and St. Mark’s story of the cure of the boy with the “Mute Spirit”. In the first, Jesus, son of Eleazar, son of Sirach, the inspired author, tells us that wisdom or what God chooses to reveal of his nature, comes only from God himself. The inference is that we cannot discover it by looking for it. Rather it is given to us freely.
This understanding has tremendous importance to us. It means that, as individuals who seek to follow the Lord, we must depend entirely on that gift of faith. It is not always plane to us what God intends and it is not always easy to follow the path we see or believe we see before us.
Our great comfort is that we are not alone in this and further, we were given help that the son of Sirach did not have. He lived and died almost 200 years before God fully revealed himself in Christ, which leads us to the second great comfort. Even those who knew Christ in the flesh battled with their lack of faith.
In today’s Gospel we hear the father of the boy who was ill rebuked by Jesus. He said the Lord; “…But IF you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.” (Emphasis added). The Lord caught that “IF” and sharply replied; “‘IF you can!’ Everything is possible to one who has faith.” Following this exchange is the prayer that should be part of our prayer each day; “I do believe, help my unbelief!”
Today we pray with that ancient father who prayed the Lord could heal his son. He prayed knowing that, like our own, his faith was incomplete. Let us echo his prayer today; “I do believe, help my unbelief!”
Pax
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