Wednesday of the Fifth Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 331



Reading 1 (1 Kgs 10:1-10)

The queen of Sheba, having heard of Solomon's fame,
came to test him with subtle questions.
She arrived in Jerusalem with a very numerous retinue,
and with camels bearing spices,
a large amount of gold, and precious stones.
She came to Solomon and questioned him on every subject
in which she was interested.
King Solomon explained everything she asked about,
and there remained nothing hidden from him
that he could not explain to her.

When the queen of Sheba witnessed Solomon's great wisdom,
the palace he had built, the food at his table,
the seating of his ministers, the attendance and garb of his waiters,
his banquet service,
and the burnt offerings he offered in the temple of the LORD,
she was breathless.
"The report I heard in my country
about your deeds and your wisdom is true," she told the king.
"Though I did not believe the report until I came and saw with my own eyes,
I have discovered that they were not telling me the half.
Your wisdom and prosperity surpass the report I heard.
Blessed are your men, blessed these servants of yours,
who stand before you always and listen to your wisdom.
Blessed be the LORD, your God,
whom it has pleased to place you on the throne of Israel.
In his enduring love for Israel,
the LORD has made you king to carry out judgment and justice."
Then she gave the king one hundred and twenty gold talents,
a very large quantity of spices, and precious stones.
Never again did anyone bring such an abundance of spices
as the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.

Responsorial Psalm (PS 37:5-6, 30-31, 39-40)

R. The mouth of the just murmurs wisdom.

Commit to the LORD your way;
trust in him, and he will act.
He will make justice dawn for you like the light;
bright as the noonday shall be your vindication.
R. The mouth of the just murmurs wisdom.

The mouth of the just man tells of wisdom
and his tongue utters what is right.
The law of his God is in his heart,
and his steps do not falter.
R. The mouth of the just murmurs wisdom.

The salvation of the just is from the LORD;
he is their refuge in time of distress.
And the LORD helps them and delivers them;
he delivers them from the wicked and saves them,
because they take refuge in him.
R. The mouth of the just murmurs wisdom.

Alleluia (See Jn 17:17b, 17a)

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Your word, O Lord, is truth:
consecrate us in the truth.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel (Mk 7:14-23)

Jesus summoned the crowd again and said to them,
“Hear me, all of you, and understand.
Nothing that enters one from outside can defile that person;
but the things that come out from within are what defile.”

When he got home away from the crowd
his disciples questioned him about the parable.
He said to them,
“Are even you likewise without understanding?
Do you not realize that everything
that goes into a person from outside cannot defile,
since it enters not the heart but the stomach
and passes out into the latrine?”
(Thus he declared all foods clean.)
“But what comes out of the man, that is what defiles him.
From within the man, from his heart,
come evil thoughts, unchastity, theft, murder,
adultery, greed, malice, deceit,
licentiousness, envy, blasphemy, arrogance, folly.
All these evils come from within and they defile.”



REFLECTIONS: WORD Today



The Queen of Sheba (First Reading) traveled thousands of kilometers for many weeks from Ethiopia to Jerusalem, in order to listen to the amazing wisdom of Solomon, king of Israel. She gave him many tons of gold and jewels as gifts for this once in a lifetime opportunity.

How fortunate, how BLESSED we are! We are just a few steps from the Bible on the bookshelf where we can listen to the much greater Wisdom of Jesus, King of the Universe - everyday!

When we read the Word of God, it is Jesus who travels deep into our heart where the battle between good and evil rages. Only He has the power to defeat the army of "evil thoughts, immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, wickedness, deceit, self-indulgence, envy, slander, pride and foolishness." (Gospel)

We don't have to pay Jesus a single cent. It is He who gifts us with fabulous faith, wisdom and peace!

Listen to Jesus in the Bible daily, and allow His goodness and mercy to flow out from you to bless your family and the world.

WISDOM SONG


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Thursday of the Fifth Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 332



Reading 1 (1 Kgs 11:4-13)

When Solomon was old his wives had turned his heart to strange gods,
and his heart was not entirely with the LORD, his God,
as the heart of his father David had been.
By adoring Astarte, the goddess of the Sidonians,
and Milcom, the idol of the Ammonites,
Solomon did evil in the sight of the LORD;
he did not follow him unreservedly as his father David had done.
Solomon then built a high place to Chemosh, the idol of Moab,
and to Molech, the idol of the Ammonites,
on the hill opposite Jerusalem.
He did the same for all his foreign wives
who burned incense and sacrificed to their gods.
The LORD, therefore, became angry with Solomon,
because his heart was turned away from the LORD, the God of Israel,
who had appeared to him twice
(for though the LORD had forbidden him
this very act of following strange gods,
Solomon had not obeyed him).

So the LORD said to Solomon: "Since this is what you want,
and you have not kept my covenant and my statutes
which I enjoined on you,
I will deprive you of the kingdom and give it to your servant.
I will not do this during your lifetime, however,
for the sake of your father David;
it is your son whom I will deprive.
Nor will I take away the whole kingdom.
I will leave your son one tribe for the sake of my servant David
and of Jerusalem, which I have chosen."

Responsorial Psalm (PS 106:3-4, 35-36, 37 and 40)

R. Remember us, O Lord, as you favor your people.

Blessed are they who observe what is right,
who do always what is just.
Remember us, O LORD, as you favor your people;
visit us with your saving help.
R. Remember us, O Lord, as you favor your people.

But they mingled with the nations
and learned their works.
They served their idols,
which became a snare for them.
R. Remember us, O Lord, as you favor your people.

They sacrificed their sons
and their daughters to demons.
And the LORD grew angry with his people,
and abhorred his inheritance.
R. Remember us, O Lord, as you favor your people.

Alleluia (Jas 1:21bc)

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Humbly welcome the word that has been planted in you
and is able to save your souls.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel (Mk 7:24-30)

Jesus went to the district of Tyre.
He entered a house and wanted no one to know about it,
but he could not escape notice.
Soon a woman whose daughter had an unclean spirit heard about him.
She came and fell at his feet.
The woman was a Greek, a Syrophoenician by birth,
and she begged him to drive the demon out of her daughter.
He said to her, “Let the children be fed first.
For it is not right to take the food of the children
and throw it to the dogs.”
She replied and said to him,
“Lord, even the dogs under the table eat the children’s scraps.”
Then he said to her, “For saying this, you may go.
The demon has gone out of your daughter.”
When the woman went home, she found the child lying in bed
and the demon gone.



REFLECTIONS: WORD Today



In his old age, King Solomon turned to worshipping the idols of his many foreign wives in order to secure his kingdom and the foreign alliances he made through them. The wisest man in the world became tricky.

Solomon had many wives from foreign countries, arranged marriages to strengthen political alliances, increase his influence abroad and strengthen his kingdom. But God had clearly instructed the people of Israel not to inter-marry with foreigners "because they will surely turn your hearts to their gods." (Deuteronomy 7:3)

Solomon had 700 wives of royal birth (plus 300 concubines). And they did turn his heart away from the Lord. These wives cajoled and convinced Solomon to build shrines for their different gods where they could worship. To make matters worse, Solomon himself joined in worshiping those idols.

Idolatry is the gravest sin against God whose very 1st commandment is "I am the LORD your God; you shall have no other before me."

And so Solomon fell out of God's favor and the fall of his kingdom begins.

In contrast to Solomon's corrupted wisdom is the simple faith of the non-Jewish woman in the Gospel. She asks Jesus to heal her daughter. Jesus tests her by seemingly insulting her for being a pagan. But she swallows her pride and persists to ask in faith. Jesus is impressed and she falls into favor with Jesus and He heals her child.

We too fall into idolatry when we put pride, profit, career, politics and other idols more important than God, adopting ways that contradict what Jesus teaches.

O Lord Jesus, grant me the Wisdom to wait in Faith for Your mercy. Amen.

IDOLATRY - A COMMENTARY BY FR. ROBERT BARRON


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Friday of the Fifth Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 333



Reading 1 (1 kgs 11:29-32; 12:19)

Jeroboam left Jerusalem,
and the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite met him on the road.
The two were alone in the area,
and the prophet was wearing a new cloak.
Ahijah took off his new cloak,
tore it into twelve pieces, and said to Jeroboam:

“Take ten pieces for yourself;
the LORD, the God of Israel, says:
‘I will tear away the kingdom from Solomon’s grasp
and will give you ten of the tribes.
One tribe shall remain to him for the sake of David my servant,
and of Jerusalem,
the city I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel.’”

Israel went into rebellion against David’s house to this day.

Responsorial Psalm (PS 81:10-11ab, 12-13, 14-15)

R. I am the Lord, your God: hear my voice.

"There shall be no strange god among you
nor shall you worship any alien god.
I, the LORD, am your God
who led you forth from the land of Egypt."
R. I am the Lord, your God: hear my voice.

"My people heard not my voice,
and Israel obeyed me not;
So I gave them up to the hardness of their hearts;
they walked according to their own counsels."
R. I am the Lord, your God: hear my voice.

"If only my people would hear me,
and Israel walk in my ways,
Quickly would I humble their enemies;
against their foes I would turn my hand."
R. I am the Lord, your God: hear my voice.

Alleluia (See Acts 16:14b)

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Open our hearts, O Lord,
to listen to the words of your Son.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel (Mk 7:31-37)

Jesus left the district of Tyre
and went by way of Sidon to the Sea of Galilee,
into the district of the Decapolis.
And people brought to him a deaf man who had a speech impediment
and begged him to lay his hand on him.
He took him off by himself away from the crowd.
He put his finger into the man's ears
and, spitting, touched his tongue;
then he looked up to heaven and groaned, and said to him,
"Ephphatha!" (that is, "Be opened!")
And immediately the man's ears were opened,
his speech impediment was removed,
and he spoke plainly.
He ordered them not to tell anyone.
But the more he ordered them not to,
the more they proclaimed it.
They were exceedingly astonished and they said,
"He has done all things well.
He makes the deaf hear and the mute speak."



REFLECTIONS: WORD Today



David, Israel's greatest king, loved God faithfully, even if not perfectly. He united all the 12 tribes of Israel into 1 strong and glorious kingdom. But his son Solomon was unfaithful even with his great God-given wisdom. He led the people to worship many gods.

When Solomon died, civil war split the kingdom once again, leaving only 1 portion (the fused tribes of Judah/Simeon) for the son of Solomon to reign. The nation was divided into the northern kingdom of Israel and the southern kingdom of Judah. They would keep fighting each other until some 400 years later, the whole Promised Land fell into the hands of various foreign powers. David's kingdom was completely gone.

Sin is a sickness that splits a nation, a family, and a personality. The consequence of sin expands far and wide through space and time.

In the Gospel, Jesus, "Son of David" is traveling through the lost tribes of Israel and even territories outside. He is healing the sick, gathering the chosen family, reuniting the nation, and building the worldwide Kingdom of God. He heals a deaf and dumb man so that he could now hear and speak.

If you have been worshiping other gods and now sense trouble in your life and family, come to Jesus quickly before it's too late. Ask for the grace of a listening heart, so that you may once more love and speak with love of the One who is Love.

Lord Jesus, heal our land and our families!

Prayer of St. Francis a.k.a Make Me A Channel of Your Peace (Sung By Angelina, EWTN)


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Monday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 335



Reading 1 (Jas 1:1-11)

James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ,
to the twelve tribes in the dispersion, greetings.

Consider it all joy, my brothers and sisters,
when you encounter various trials,
for you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.
And let perseverance be perfect,
so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.
But if any of you lacks wisdom,
he should ask God who gives to all generously and ungrudgingly,
and he will be given it.
But he should ask in faith, not doubting,
for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea
that is driven and tossed about by the wind.
For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord,
since he is a man of two minds, unstable in all his ways.

The brother in lowly circumstances
should take pride in high standing,
and the rich one in his lowliness,
for he will pass away "like the flower of the field."
For the sun comes up with its scorching heat and dries up the grass,
its flower droops, and the beauty of its appearance vanishes.
So will the rich person fade away in the midst of his pursuits.

Responsorial Psalm (Ps 119:67, 68, 71, 72, 75, 76)

R. Be kind to me, Lord, and I shall live.

Before I was afflicted I went astray,
but now I hold to your promise.
R. Be kind to me, Lord, and I shall live.

You are good and bountiful;
teach me your statutes.
R. Be kind to me, Lord, and I shall live.

It is good for me that I have been afflicted,
that I may learn your statutes.
R. Be kind to me, Lord, and I shall live.

The law of your mouth is to me more precious
than thousands of gold and silver pieces.
R. Be kind to me, Lord, and I shall live.

I know, O LORD, that your ordinances are just,
and in your faithfulness you have afflicted me.
R. Be kind to me, Lord, and I shall live.

Let your kindness comfort me
according to your promise to your servants.
R. Be kind to me, Lord, and I shall live.

Alleluia (Jn 14:6)

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
I am the way and the truth and the life, says the Lord;
no one comes to the Father except through me.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel (Mk 8:11-13)

The Pharisees came forward and began to argue with Jesus,
seeking from him a sign from heaven to test him.
He sighed from the depth of his spirit and said,
"Why does this generation seek a sign?
Amen, I say to you, no sign will be given to this generation."
Then he left them, got into the boat again,
and went off to the other shore.



REFLECTIONS: WORD Today



When the Pharisees demanded a miracle from Jesus to prove His divinity, Jesus sighed deeply. Refusing to perform cheap magic tricks, He left them.

We may not doubt the divinity and of Jesus, but we can have the same demanding, impatient attitude in our petitions. When we give Jesus strict instructions what to do about our problems, we are tying His hands, preventing Him from putting into action the events that His all-seeing Wisdom designed to produce the very best for us.

St. James advises us: "Dear brothers and sisters, when trials of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, lacking nothing." (1st Reading)

Lord Jesus, grant me the wisdom to see that my cross is not an instrument of my destruction but of my salvation.

I WILL RISE - THE WISDOM OF GOD


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Mark 9:37 (NRSVCE)

“Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me.”

A beautiful little girl with Down syndrome, got up from her seat during a papal audience and went toward the Pope. The security guards quickly moved in to take her back to her mother. The Pope stopped everyone and said to the girl, "come sit next to me.” The girl then sat down near him and the Holy Father continued to preach while holding hands with the little girl.



Amen!!!

https://www.facebook.com/uCatholic/posts/2035681776449200

Tuesday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 336



Reading 1 (Jas 1:12-18)

Blessed is he who perseveres in temptation,
for when he has been proven he will receive the crown of life
that he promised to those who love him.
No one experiencing temptation should say,
"I am being tempted by God";
for God is not subject to temptation to evil,
and he himself tempts no one.
Rather, each person is tempted when lured and enticed by his desire.
Then desire conceives and brings forth sin,
and when sin reaches maturity it gives birth to death.

Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers and sisters:
all good giving and every perfect gift is from above,
coming down from the Father of lights,
with whom there is no alteration or shadow caused by change.
He willed to give us birth by the word of truth
that we may be a kind of first fruits of his creatures.

Responsorial Psalm (Ps 94:12-13a, 14-15, 18-19)

R. Blessed the man you instruct, O Lord.

Blessed the man whom you instruct, O LORD,
whom by your law you teach,
Giving him rest from evil days.
R. Blessed the man you instruct, O Lord.

For the LORD will not cast off his people,
nor abandon his inheritance;
But judgment shall again be with justice,
and all the upright of heart shall follow it.
R. Blessed the man you instruct, O Lord.

When I say, "My foot is slipping,"
your mercy, O LORD, sustains me;
When cares abound within me,
your comfort gladdens my soul.
R. Blessed the man you instruct, O Lord.

Alleluia (Jn 14:23)

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Whoever loves me will keep my word, says the Lord;
and my Father will love him
and we will come to him.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel (Mk 8:14-21)

The disciples had forgotten to bring bread,
and they had only one loaf with them in the boat.
Jesus enjoined them, "Watch out,
guard against the leaven of the Pharisees
and the leaven of Herod."
They concluded among themselves that
it was because they had no bread.
When he became aware of this he said to them,
"Why do you conclude that it is because you have no bread?
Do you not yet understand or comprehend?
Are your hearts hardened?
Do you have eyes and not see, ears and not hear?
And do you not remember,
when I broke the five loaves for the five thousand,
how many wicker baskets full of fragments you picked up?"
They answered him, "Twelve."
"When I broke the seven loaves for the four thousand,
how many full baskets of fragments did you pick up?"
They answered him, "Seven."
He said to them, "Do you still not understand?"



REFLECTIONS: WORD Today



The disciples were on a boat with Jesus. They were worried that they only had 1 loaf of bread. They still feared hunger in spite witnessing Jesus twice feed many thousands with only a few loaves.

Jesus warned them, "Beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and Herod."

The Pharisees and Herod were completely opposite. The Pharisees desired God while Herod desired the world. But inside, the same
yeast of self-reliance drove them. They relied on their own power to achieve what they desired.

The Pharisees relied on their own efforts to save themselves by obeying the law of Moses perfectly, disregarding God's grace. Herod of course relied in his political and military power, not God.

Self-reliance leads us to distrust that our Father can give us our daily bread. Distrust then leads us to do sinful things to preserve ourselves. Jesus warns, "whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it." (Luke 9:24)

And St. James (First Reading) reminds us, "My beloved brothers and sisters, all good giving and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights..."

When we forget that it is God in His goodness who does the ultimate work of saving our soul and feeding our body, we become insecure, fearful and sinful. Come to the Holy Mass where God feeds us Bread from Heaven - His very own Son - and be at peace.

SAVE ME


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Tuesday of the First Week of Lent
Lectionary: 225



Reading 1 (Is 55:10-11)

Thus says the LORD:
Just as from the heavens
the rain and snow come down
And do not return there
till they have watered the earth,
making it fertile and fruitful,
Giving seed to the one who sows
and bread to the one who eats,
So shall my word be
that goes forth from my mouth;
It shall not return to me void,
but shall do my will,
achieving the end for which I sent it.

Responsorial Psalm (Ps 34:4-5, 6-7, 16-17, 18-19)

R. From all their distress God rescues the just.

Glorify the LORD with me,
let us together extol his name.
I sought the LORD, and he answered me
and delivered me from all my fears.
R. From all their distress God rescues the just.

Look to him that you may be radiant with joy,
and your faces may not blush with shame.
When the poor one called out, the LORD heard,
and from all his distress he saved him.
R. From all their distress God rescues the just.

The LORD has eyes for the just,
and ears for their cry.
The LORD confronts the evildoers,
to destroy remembrance of them from the earth.
R. From all their distress God rescues the just.

When the just cry out, the LORD hears them,
and from all their distress he rescues them.
The LORD is close to the brokenhearted;
and those who are crushed in spirit he saves.
R. From all their distress God rescues the just.

Verse Before the Gospel (Mt 4:4b)

One does not live on bread alone,
but on every word that comes forth from the mouth of God.

Gospel (Mt 6:7-15)

Jesus said to his disciples:
"In praying, do not babble like the pagans,
who think that they will be heard because of their many words.
Do not be like them.
Your Father knows what you need before you ask him.

"This is how you are to pray:

Our Father who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name,
thy Kingdom come,
thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread;
and forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us;
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.

"If you forgive men their transgressions,
your heavenly Father will forgive you.
But if you do not forgive men,
neither will your Father forgive your transgressions."



REFLECTIONS: WORD Today



In the ancient First Reading, God said that just as rain from heaven waters the earth, causing seed to grow and produce fruit that feed the hungry, "So also will be the word that I speak. It will not fail to do what I plan for it. It will do everything I send it to do."

In the fullness of time, God sent His Word to become Flesh - Jesus Christ, His perfectly obedient Son. The teachings of Jesus is the Water of Life, transforming our lives from a dry, shrunken dessert shrub into a lush, fruit-bearing tree in the Kingdom of God.

In the Gospel, Jesus teaches us the Lord's Prayer, wherein we say, "Your Kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven." By these Words we adopt the attitude of a productive cooperator and co-builder of the Kingdom:

We do not pray to convince God to do our will. We pray to understand the beauty of His, that we may bear fruits that feed a world hungry for God's love.

THE LORD'S PRAYER


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THE PROFESSION OF FAITH
---the Catechism of the Catholic Church, no. 198

Catholic belief is succinctly expressed in the profession of faith or credo called the Nicene Creed:

The Nicene Creed

I believe in one God,
the Father almighty,
maker of heaven and earth,
of all things visible and invisible.

I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ,
the Only Begotten Son of God,
born of the Father before all ages.
God from God, Light from Light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made, consubstantial with the Father;
through him all things were made.
For us men and for our salvation
he came down from heaven,
For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate,
he suffered death and was buried,
and rose again on the third day
in accordance with the Scriptures.
He ascended into heaven
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory
to judge the living and the dead
and his kingdom will have no end.

I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the Lord, the giver of life,
who proceeds from the Father and the Son,
who with the Father and the Son is adored and glorified,
who has spoken through the prophets.

I believe in one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church.
I confess one Baptism for the forgiveness of sins
and I look forward to the resurrection of the dead
and the life of the world to come. Amen.



Source: http://www.usccb.org/beliefs-and-teachings/what-we-believe/

dear goldeneye ... thank you sincerely for the suggestion.

apologies if what i have posted is too deep, i am just merely trying to help those who may not have time to look up daily readings and reflections for the day. we seldom find time to devote to God in this hectic society of ours, too many distractions ... as such whatever i post just requires we to spend a few minutes of our time in communion with Him. I hope you understand that.

as Bro Yeeck has also suggested, perhaps you could also assist us by posting a topic that will encourages interesting and respectful discussion. i am pretty sure whoever follows this topic would be grateful. we all wish to grow in our Catholic faith, and the only way to do that is to share our experiences and stories yes?

Matt 18:20

"... For where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them. ..."

God bless!

Via DoLorosa ...