August 22
Sunday
21st Sunday in Ordinary Time
1st Reading: Is 66:18–21
Now I am going to gather the nations of every tongue, and they will witness my glory, for I will perform a wonderful thing among them. Then I will send some of their survivors to the nations – Tarshish, Put, Lud, Moscheck, Rosh, Tubal, and Javan – to the distant islands where no one has ever heard of me or seen my glory. They will proclaim my glory among the nations. They will bring your kindred from all the nations as an offering to Yahweh on horses, in chariots, in litters, on mules, on camels to my holy mountain in Jerusalem, says Yahweh, just as the Israelites bring oblations in clean vessels to the house of Yahweh. Then I will choose priests and Levites even from them, says Yahweh.
2nd Reading: Heb 12:5–7, 11–13
Do not forget the comforting words that Wisdom addresses to you as children: My son, pay attention when the Lord corrects you and do not be discouraged when he punishes you. For the Lord corrects those he loves and chastises everyone he accepts as a son.
What you endure is in order to correct you. God treats you like sons and what son is not corrected by his father?
All correction is painful at the moment, rather than pleasant; later it brings the fruit of peace, that is, holiness to those who have been trained by it.
Lift up, then, your drooping hands, and strengthen your trembling knees; make level the ways for your feet, so that the lame may not be disabled, but healed.
Gospel: Lk 13:22–30
Jesus went through towns and villages teaching and making his way to Jerusalem. Someone asked him, “Lord, is it true that few people will be saved?”
And Jesus answered, “Do your best to enter by the narrow door, for many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able. When once the master of the house has got up and locked the door, you will stand outside; then you will knock at the door calling: ‘Lord, open to us.’ But he will say to you: ‘I do not know where you come from.’
Then you will say: We ate and drank with you and you taught in our streets! But he will reply: ‘I don’t know where you come from. Away from me all you workers of evil.’
You will weep and grind your teeth when you see Abraham and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, and you yourselves left outside. Others will sit at table in the kingdom of God, people coming from east and west, from north and south. Some who are among the last will be the first, and others who were first will be last!”
REFLECTION
“People will come from the east and the west, from the north and the south and sit down at the feast in the Kingdom of God.”
It is those who do the will of God whom God will save regardless of their race or religion, their gender or color, their wealth or their political philosophy. God’s house, as Teresa of Avila said, ‘has many mansions.’
August 23
Monday
21st Week in Ordinary Time
St. Rose of Lima
1st Reading: 2 Thes 1:1–5, 11–12
From Paul, Sylvanus and Timothy, to the church of the Thessalonians which is in God our Father and in Christ Jesus, the Lord.
May grace and peace be yours from God the Father and Christ Jesus, the Lord.
Brothers and sisters, we should give thanks to God at all times for you. It is fitting to do so, for your faith is growing and your love for one another increasing. We take pride in you among the churches of God because of your endurance and your faith in the midst of persecution and sufferings. In this the just judgment of God may be seen; for you must show yourselves worthy of the kingdom of God for which you are now suffering.
This is why we constantly pray for you; may our God make you worthy of his calling. May he, by his power, fulfill your good purposes and your work prompted by faith. In that way, the name of Jesus our Lord will be glorified through you, and you through him, according to the loving plan of God and of Christ Jesus the Lord.
Gospel: Mt 23:13–22
Jesus said, “Woe to you, teachers of the Law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the door to the kingdom of heaven in people’s faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor do you allow others to do so.
Woe to you, teachers of the Law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You travel by sea and land to win a single convert, yet once he is converted, you turn him twice as fit for hell as yourselves.
Woe to you, blind guides! You say: To swear by the Temple is not binding, but to swear by the treasure of the Temple is. Blind fools! Which is of more worth? The gold in the Temple or the Temple which makes the gold a sacred treasure? You say: To swear by the altar is not binding, but to swear by the offering on the altar is. How blind you are! Which is of more value: the offering on the altar or the altar which makes the offering sacred? Whoever swears by the altar is swearing by the altar and by everything on it. Whoever swears by the Temple is swearing by it and by God who dwells in the Temple. Whoever swears by heaven is swearing by the throne of God and by him who is seated on it.
REFLECTION
“How terrible for you, teachers of the Law and Pharisees! You hypocrites! You lock the door to the Kingdom of heaven in people’s faces, but you yourselves don’t go in, nor do you allow in those who are trying to enter!”
When, in the name of religion, I condemn other people for their sins I put myself in the place of God. Most of all, I condemn myself by my own standards.
August 24
Tuesday
St. Bartholomew, Apostle
1st Reading: Rev 21:9–14
Then one of the seven angels came to me, one of those with the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues. And he said, “Come, I am going to show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.” He took me up in a spiritual vision to a very high mountain and he showed me the holy city Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God. It shines with the glory of God, like a precious jewel with the color of crystal-clear jasper.
Its wall, large and high, has twelve gates; stationed at them are twelve angels. Over the gates are written the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel. Three gates face the east; three gates face the north; three gates face the south and three face the west. The city wall stands on twelve foundation stones on which are written the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
Gospel: Jn 1:45–51
Philip found Nathanael and said to him, “We have found the one that Moses wrote about in the Law, and the prophets as well: he is Jesus, son of Joseph, from Nazareth.”
Nathanael replied, “Can anything good come from Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.” When Jesus saw Nathanael coming, he said of him, “Here comes an Israelite, a true one; there is nothing false in him.” Nathanael asked him, “How do you know me?” And Jesus said to him, “Before Philip called you, you were under the fig tree and I saw you.”
Nathanael answered, “Master, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!” But Jesus replied, “You believe because I said: ‘I saw you under the fig tree.’ But you will see greater things than that.
Truly, I say to you, you will see the heavens opened and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.”
REFLECTION
“‘Can anything good come from Nazareth?’ Nathaniel asked. ”Come and see,’ answered Philip.”
The major temptation of life is to judge something before we even know it. To do that is to cut ourselves off from the surprises God has in mind for us. But if we do that, how shall we ever grow?
August 25
Wednesday
21st Week in Ordinary Time
St. Louis of France
St. Joseph Calasanz
1st Reading: 2 Thes 3:6–10, 16–18
We command you, beloved, to stay away from believers who are living in idleness contrary to the traditions we passed on to you. You know how you ought to follow our example: we worked while we were with you. Day and night we labored and toiled so as not to be a burden to any of you. We had the right to act otherwise, but we wanted to give you an example.
Besides, while we were with you, we said clearly: If anyone is not willing to work, neither should that one eat.
May the Lord of peace give you his peace at all times and in every way. May the Lord be with you all.
I, Paul, write this greeting with my own hand. This is my signature in all my letters. This is how I write.
May the grace of Christ Jesus our Lord be with you.
Gospel: Mt 23:27–32
Jesus said, “Woe to you, teachers of the Law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs beautiful in appearance, but inside there are only dead bones and uncleanness. In the same way you appear as religious to others, but you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness within.
“Woe to you, teachers of the Law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You build tombs for the prophets and decorate the monuments of the righteous. You say: Had we lived in the time of our ancestors, we would not have joined them in the blood of prophets. So, you yourselves confess to be kins of those who murdered the prophets. And now, finish off what your ancestors began!”
REFLECTION
“You are like whitewashed tombs which look fine on the outside but are full of bones and decaying corpses on the inside. In the same way, on the outside you appear good to everybody, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and sins.”
It’s easy to play Christian, to act holy rather than to be holy. But when it comes to making choices between giving alms and not, for instance, being loving and not loving, then we discover what we really are.
August 26
Thursday
21st Week in Ordinary Time
1st Reading: 1 Cor 1:1–9
From Paul, called to be an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and from Sosthenes, our brother, to God’s Church which is in Corinth; to you whom God has sanctified in Christ Jesus and called to be holy, together with those who everywhere call upon the name of our Lord Christ Jesus, their Lord and ours.
Receive grace and peace from God our Father, and Christ Jesus our Lord.
I give thanks constantly to my God for you and for the grace of God given to you in Christ Jesus. For you have been fully enriched in him with words as well as with knowledge, even as the testimony concerning Christ was confirmed in you. You do not lack any spiritual gift and only await the glorious coming of Christ Jesus, our Lord. He will keep you steadfast to the end, and you will be without reproach on the day of the coming of our Lord Jesus. The faithful God will not fail you after calling you to this fellowship with his Son, Christ Jesus, our Lord.
Gospel: Mt 24:42–51
Jesus said to his disciples, “Stay awake, then, for you do not know on what day your Lord will come. Just think about this: if the owner of the house knew that the thief would come by night around a certain hour, he would stay awake to prevent his house to be broken into. So be alert, for the Son of Man will come at the hour you least expect.
“Imagine a capable servant whom his master has put in charge of his household to give them food at the proper time. Fortunate indeed is that servant whom his master will find at work when he comes. Truly, I say to you, his lord will entrust that one with everything he has.
“Not so with the bad servant who thinks: My master is delayed. And he begins ill-treating his fellow servants while eating and drinking with drunkards. But his master will come on the day he does not know and at the hour he least expects. He will dismiss that servant and deal with him as with the hypocrites, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”
REFLECTION
“Who then is a faithful and wise servant? It is the one that his master has placed in charge of the other servants to give them their food at the proper time. How happy that servant is if his master finds him doing this when he comes home.”
Holiness has to do with constancy. To rise to great heights of virtue occasionally only proves what we’re capable of doing always. It is doing the basic acts of virtue day after day–contemplation, justice, and compassion–that defines our real relationship with God.
August 27
Friday
21st Week in Ordinary Time
St. Monica
1st Reading: 1 Cor 1:17–25
For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to proclaim his Gospel. And not with beautiful words! That would be like getting rid of the cross of Christ. The language of the cross remains nonsense for those who are lost. Yet for us who are saved, it is the power of God, as Scripture says: I will destroy the wisdom of the wise and make fail the foresight of the foresighted. Masters of human wisdom, educated people, philosophers, you have no reply! And the wisdom of this world? God let it fail.
At first God spoke the language of wisdom, and the world did not know God through wisdom. Then God thought of saving the believers through the foolishness that we preach.
The Jews ask for miracles and the Greeks for a higher knowledge, while we proclaim a crucified Messiah. For the Jews, what a great scandal! And for the Greeks, what nonsense! But he is Christ, the power of God and the wisdom of God for those called by God among both Jews and Greeks.
In reality, the “foolishness” of God is wiser than humans, and the “weakness” of God is stronger than humans.
Gospel: Mt 25:1–13
Jesus told his disciples this parable: “This story throws light on what will happen in the kingdom of heaven. Ten bridesmaids went out with their lamps to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were careless while the others were sensible. “The careless bridesmaids took their lamps as they were and did not bring extra oil. But those who were sensible, brought with their lamps flasks of oil. As the bridegroom delayed, they all grew drowsy and fell asleep.
“But at midnight, a cry rang out: ‘The bridegroom is here, come out and meet him!’ All the maidens woke up at once and trimmed their lamps. Then the careless ones said to the sensible ones: ‘Give us some oil, for our lamps are going out.’ The sensible ones answered: ‘There may not be enough for both you and us. You had better go to those who sell and buy for yourselves.’ “They were out buying oil when the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went with him to the wedding feast, and the doors were shut. “Later the rest of the bridesmaids arrived and called out: ‘Lord, Lord, open to us.’ But he answered: ‘Truly, I do not know you.’ “So, stay awake, for you do not know the day nor the hour.”
REFLECTION
“The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any extra oil with them, while the wise ones took containers full of oil for their lamps.”
Living a spiritual life requires my having ‘oil in my lamp.’ That means that I must develop spiritual practices that bring me into the presence of God. Then, when hard times come, not only will God be with me but, more importantly, I will be with God.
August 28
Saturday
21st Week in Ordinary Time
St. Augustine
1st Reading: 1 Cor 1:26–31
Brothers and sisters, look and see whom God has called. Few among you can be said to be cultured or wealthy, and few belong to noble families. Yet God has chosen what the world considers foolish, to shame the wise; he has chosen what the world considers weak to shame the strong. God has chosen common and un-important people, making use of what is nothing to nullify the things that are, so that no mortal may boast before God. But, by God’s grace you are in Christ Jesus, who has become our wisdom from God, and who makes us just and holy and free. Scripture says: Let the one who boasts boast of the Lord.
Gospel: Mt 25:14–30
Jesus said to his disciples, “Imagine someone who, before going abroad, summoned his servants to entrust his property to them. He gave five talents of silver to one, then two to another, and one to a third, each one according to his ability; and he went away.
He who received five talents went at once to do business with the money and gained another five. The one who received two did the same and gained another two.But the one with one talent dug a hole and hid his master’s money.
After a long time, the master of those servants returned and asked for a reckoning. The one who received five talents came with another five talents, saying: ‘Lord, you entrusted me with five talents, but see I have gained five more with them.’ The master answered: ‘Very well, good and faithful servant, since you have been faithful in a few things, I will entrust you with much more. Come and share the joy of your master.’
Then the one who had two talents came and said: ‘Lord, you entrusted me with two ta-l-ents; I have two more which I gained with them.’ The master said: ‘Well, good and faithful servant, since you have been faithful in little things, I will entrust you with much more. Come and share the joy of your master.’
Finally, the one who had received one talent came and said: ‘Master, I know that you are an exacting man. You reap what you have not sown and gather what you have not invested. I was afraid, so I hid your money in the ground. Here, take what is yours.’ But his master replied: ‘Wicked and worthless servant, you know that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I have not invested. Then you should have deposited my money in the bank, and you would have given it back to me with interest on my return.
Therefore, take the talent from him, and give it to the one who has ten. For to all those who have, more will be given, and they will have an abundance; but from those who are unproductive, even what they have will be taken from them. As for that useless servant, throw him out into the dark where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’”
REFLECTION
“You should have deposited my money in the bank and I would have received it all back with interest when I returned.”
We are given natural gifts, not only for our own sakes, but to benefit the world around us. To fail to do what we can do to make the world a better place is to fail to do our part in creation.
