January 31
Sunday
4th Sunday in Ordinary Time
1st Reading: Jer 1:4–5, 17–19
A word of Yahweh came to me, “Even before I formed you in the womb I have known you; even before you were born I had set you apart, and appointed you a prophet to the nations!”
But you, get ready for action; stand up and say to them all that I command you. Be not scared of them or I will scare you in their presence!
See, I will make you a fortified city, a pillar of iron with walls of bronze, against all the nations, against the kings and princes of Judah, against the priests and the people of the land. They will fight against you but shall not overcome you, for I am with you to rescue you – it is Yahweh who speaks.”
2nd Reading: 1 Cor 12:31—13:13 (or 1 Cor 13:4–13)
Be that as it may, set your hearts on the most precious gifts, and I will show you a much better way.
If I could speak all the human and angelic tongues, but had no love, I would only be sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. If I had the gift of prophecy, knowing secret things with all kinds of knowledge, and had faith great enough to remove mountains, but had no love, I would be nothing. If I gave everything I had to the poor, and even give up my body to be burned, if I am without love, it would be of no value to me.
Love is patient, kind, without envy. It is not boastful or arrogant. It is not ill-mannered nor does it seek its own interest. Love overcomes anger and forgets offenses. It does not take delight in wrong, but rejoices in truth. Love excuses everything, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
Love will never end. Prophecies may cease, tongues be silent and knowledge disappear. For knowledge grasps something of the truth and prophecy as well. And when what is perfect comes, everything imperfect will pass away. When I was a child I thought and reasoned like a child, but when I grew up, I gave up childish ways. Likewise, at present we see dimly as in a mirror, but then it shall be face to face. Now we know in part, but then I will know as I am known. Now we have faith, hope and love, these three, but the greatest of these is love.
Gospel: Lk 4:21–30
Jesus said to the people of Nazareth, “Today these prophetic words come true even as you listen.”
All agreed with him and were lost in wonder, while he kept on speaking of the grace of God. Nevertheless they asked, “Who is this but Joseph’s son?” So he said, “Doubtless you will quote me the saying: Doctor, heal yourself! Do here in your town what they say you did in Capernaum.”
Jesus added, “No prophet is honored in his own country. Truly, I say to you, there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the heavens withheld rain for three years and six months and a great famine came over the whole land. Yet Elijah was not sent to any of them, but to a widow of Zarephath, in the country of Sidon. There were also many lepers in Israel in the time of Elisha, the prophet, and no one was healed except Naaman, the Syrian.”
On hearing these words, the whole assembly became indignant. They rose up and brought him out of the town, to the edge of the hill on which Nazareth is built, intending to throw him down the cliff. But he passed through their midst and went his way.
Commentary
“While Jesus was praying, the heavens opened.”
When we find the God within us and around us and above us and before us, the heavens open for us, too. Then, we know that we no longer need to be afraid. We know we are no longer alone in life.
February 1
Monday
4th Week in Ordinary Time
1st Reading: 2 S 15:13–14, 30; 16:5–13
A messenger came to report to David that the Israelites were siding with Absalom. Then David said to all his servants who were with him in Jerusalem, “Let us flee, for we cannot resist Absalom.
David himself went up the Mount of Olives, weeping. He was barefooted and had his head covered, and all the people who were with him had their heads covered and wept as they went.
When King David came to Bahurim, a man from the clan of Saul’s family named Shimei, son of Gera, came out cursing him. He threw stones at David and his officers although the king’s men and warriors flanked the king…. Shimei said… “Go away! Go away! You …good-for-nothing! Yahweh has brought down on your head all the blood of the family of Saul. You became king in his place, but God has now placed the kingdom in the hands of your son Absalom. … David said to Abishai and his officers, “If my own son wants to kill me, how much more this Benjaminite! Leave him alone and let him curse me if Yahweh has ordered him to do so. … So David and his men went their way while Shimei, following on the hillside opposite him, continued to curse as he threw stones and flung dust at him.
Gospel: Mk 5:1–20
Jesus and his disciples arrived on the other side of the lake in the region of the Gerasenes. No sooner did Jesus leave the boat than he was met by a man with evil spirits who had come from the tombs. He lived among the tombs and no one could restrain him, even with a chain. He had often been bound with fetters and chains but he would pull the chains apart and smash the fetters, and no one had the strength to control him.
When he saw Jesus from afar, he ran and fell at his feet and cried with a loud voice, “What do you want with me, Jesus, son of the Most High God? For God’s sake I beg you, do not torment me.” He said this because Jesus had commanded, “Come out of the man, evil spirit.”
Now, a great herd of pigs was feeding on the hillside, and the evil spirits begged him, “Send us to the pigs and let us go into them.” So Jesus let them go. The evil spirits came out of the man and went into the pigs, and immediately the herd rushed down the cliff and all were drowned in the lake. The herdsmen fled and reported this so all the people came to see what had happened.
They came to Jesus and saw the man freed of the evil spirits sitting there, clothed and in his right mind, the same man who had been possessed by the legion. They were afraid. And when those who had seen it told what had happened to the man and to the pigs, the people begged Jesus to leave their neighborhood.
When Jesus was getting into the boat, the man who had been possessed begged to stay with him. Jesus would not let him and said, “Go home to your people and tell them how much the Lord has done for you and how he has had mercy on you.” So he went throughout the country of Decapolis telling everyone how much Jesus had done for him. And all the people were astonished.
Commentary
“So they asked Jesus to leave their territory.”
Conversion is both a grace and an obligation. It’s actually very easy to get accustomed to evil. Neither the man with the mental illness nor the people of the town really wanted things to change. They simply wanted to complain about them. But conversion is about really living differently.
February 2
Tuesday
Presentation of the Lord
1st Reading: Mal 3:1–4
Now I am sending my messenger ahead of me to clear the way; then suddenly the Lord for whom you long will enter the sanctuary. The envoy of the covenant which you so greatly desire already comes, says Yahweh of hosts. Who can bear the day of his coming and remain standing when he appears? For he will be like fire in the foundry and like the lye used for bleaching.
He will be as a refiner or a fuller. He will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver. So Yahweh will have priests who will present the offering as it should be. Then Yahweh will accept with pleasure the offering of Judah and Jerusalem, as in former days.
2nd Reading: Heb 2:14–18
And because all those children share one same nature of flesh and blood, Jesus likewise had to share this nature. This is why his death destroyed the one holding the power of death, that is the devil, and freed those who remained in bondage all their lifetime because of the fear of death.
Jesus came to take by the hand not the angels but the human race. So he had to be like his brothers and sisters in every respect, in order to be the High Priest faithful to God and merciful to them, a priest able to ask pardon and atone for their sins. Having been tested through suffering, he is able to help those who are tested.
Gospel: Lk 2:22–32 (or Lk 2:22–40)
When the day came for the purification according to the law of Moses, Joseph and Mary brought the baby up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord, as it is written in the law of the Lord: Every firstborn male shall be consecrated to God. And they offered a sacrifice as ordered in the law of the Lord: a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons.
There lived in Jerusalem at this time a very upright and devout man named Simeon; the Holy Spirit was in him. He looked forward to the time when the Lord would comfort Israel, and he had been assured by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before seeing the Messiah of the Lord. So he was led into the Temple by the Holy Spirit at the time the parents brought the child Jesus, to do for him according to the custom of the Law.
Simeon took the child in his arms and blessed God, saying, “Now, O Lord, you can dismiss your servant in peace, for you have fulfilled your word and my eyes have seen your salvation, which you display for all the people to see.
Here is the light you will reveal to the nations and the glory of your people Israel.”
Commentary
“There was a man named Simeon living in Jerusalem….The Holy Spirit was with him…. Simeon took the child in his arms and gave thanks to God….There was a very old prophet, a widow named Anna….That very same hour she arrived and gave thanks to God and spoke about the child to all who were waiting for God to set Jerusalem free.”
Every one of us is called, is empowered–both women and men–to preach the coming of Jesus to the world. In fact, every one of us is obligated to make the God we know, known to others.
February 3
Wednesday
4th Week in Ordinary Time
St. Blasé
St. Ansgar
1st Reading: 2 S 24:2, 9–17
The king said to Joab and the commanders of the army who were with him, “Go through all the tribes of Israel from Dan to Beersheba and count the people that I may know how many they are.”
Joab gave the total count of the people to the king: eight hundred thousand sword-wielding warriors in Israel and five hundred thousand men in Judah.
But after he had the people counted, David felt remorse and said to Yahweh, “I have sinned greatly in what I have done, but now, O Yahweh, I ask you to forgive my sin for I have acted foolishly.”
The following day, before David awoke, Yahweh’s word had come to the prophet Gad, David’s seer, “Go, and give David this message: I offer you three things and I will let one of them befall you according to your own choice.” So Gad went to David and asked him, “Do you want three years of famine in your land? Or do you want to be pursued for three months by your foes while you flee from them? Or do you want three days’ pestilence in your land? Now, think and decide what answer I shall give him who sent me.”
David answered Gad, “I am greatly troubled. Let me fall into the hands of Yahweh whose mercy is abundant; but let me not fall into human hands.”
So Yahweh sent a pestilence on Israel from morning until the appointed time, causing the death of seventy thousand men from Dan to Beersheba. When the angel stretched forth his hand toward Jerusalem to destroy it, Yahweh would punish no more and said to the angel who was causing destruction among the people, “It is enough, hold back your hand.” The angel of Yahweh was already at the threshing floor of Araunah, the Jebusite.
When David saw the angel striking the people, he spoke to Yahweh and said, “I have sinned and acted wickedly, but these are only the sheep; what have they done? Let your hand strike me and my father’s family.”
Gospel: Mk 6:1–6
Jesus returned to his own country, and his disciples followed him. When the Sabbath came, he began teaching in the synagogue, and most of those who heard him were astonished. They commented, “How did this come to him? What kind of wisdom has been given to him that he also performs such miracles? Who is he but the carpenter, the son of Mary and the brother of James and Joset and Judas and Simon? His sisters, too, are they not here among us?” So they took offense at him.
And Jesus said to them, “Prophets are despised only in their own country, among their relatives and in their own family.” And he could work no miracles there, but only healed a few sick people by laying his hands on them. Jesus himself was astounded at their unbelief. Jesus then went around the villages teaching.
Commentary
“Prophets are respected everywhere but in their own hometown and by their relatives and their family. He was not able to perform any miracles there.”
The healings that happen in our life are as much a part of our readiness to be healed as it is of the holiness of the healer. It is up to us to see goodness, where we find it and to open our hearts to it.
February 4
Thursday
4th Week in Ordinary Time
1st Reading: 1 K 2:1–4, 10–12
When David was about to die, he gave his son Solomon this instruction, “I am about to go the way of all creatures. Be strong and show yourself a man. Keep the commandments of Yahweh your God and walk in his ways. Keep his statutes, his commands, his ordinances and declarations written in the law of Moses, that you may succeed in whatever you do and wherever you go. If you do so, Yahweh will fulfill the promise he made to me: ‘If your sons take care to walk before me faithfully with their whole heart and their whole soul, you shall always have one of your descendants on the throne of Israel.’
Then David rested with his ancestors and was buried in the city of David. David reigned over Israel for forty years: seven years in Hebron and thirty-three years in Jerusalem. So Solomon sat on the throne of David his father and his reign was firmly established.
Gospel: Mk 6:7–13
Jesus called the Twelve to him and began to send them out two by two, giving them authority over evil spirits. And he ordered them to take nothing for the journey except a staff; no food, no bag, no money in their belts. They were to wear sandals and were not to take an extra tunic.
And he added, “In whatever house you are welcomed, stay there until you leave the place. If any place doesn’t receive you and the people refuse to listen to you, leave after shaking the dust off your feet. It will be a testimony against them.”
So they set out to proclaim that this was the time to repent. They drove out many demons and healed many sick people by anointing them.
Commentary
“Don’t take anything on the trip except a walking stick.”
Our task in life is, like Jesus, to go about doing good without demanding great reward for doing it. We are to give our lives without expecting more than our keep. Doing the work of Jesus is our responsibility now.
February 5
Friday
4th Week in Ordinary Time
St. Agatha
1st Reading: Sir 47:2–11
As fat is selected from the peace offering, so David was chosen from among the Israelites.
He played with lions and bears as if they were lambs or young goats.
He was still young when he slew a giant to restore the honor of his people; with a sling he aimed a stone that killed the arrogant Goliath.
He invoked the Lord Most High, who gave him strength to slay a mighty warrior, and so exalt the power of his people.
So they glorified him for his ten thousands and praised him as a blessing from the Lord when he was chosen king.
For he wiped out his enemies on all sides and annihilated his adversaries, the Philistines, crushing their power forever.
In all that he did he gave thanks to the Most High, and showed his love for his Maker by singing with all his heart.
He placed singers accompanied by harps before the altar to make beautiful music; he gave splendor to feasts and even greater mag-nificence to the more solemn occasions, exalting the holy Name of the Lord and having the sanctuary ring with his praises from early morning.
The Lord forgave David’s sins and established his power forever; he made a covenant with him for the benefit of the kings and gave him a glorious throne in Israel.
Gospel: Mk 6:14–29
King Herod also heard about Jesus because his name had become well-known. Some people said, “John the Baptist has been raised from the dead and that is why miraculous powers are at work in him.” Others thought, “He is Eli-jah,” and others, “He is a prophet like the prophets of times past.” When Herod was told of this, he thought: “I had John beheaded, yet he has risen from the dead!”
For this is what had happened. Herod had ordered John to be arrested and had him bound and put in prison because of Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip. Herod had married her and John had told him, “It is not right for you to live with your brother’s wife.” So Herodias held a grudge against John and wanted to kill him, but she could not because Herod respected John. He knew John to be an upright and holy man and kept him safe. And he liked listening to him, although he became very disturbed whenever he heard him.
Herodias had her chance on Herod’s birthday, when he gave a dinner for all the senior government officials, military chiefs and the leaders of Galilee. On that occasion the daughter of Herodias came in and danced; and she delighted Herod and his guests. The king said to the girl, “Ask me for anything you want and I will give it to you.” And he went so far as to say with many oaths, “I will give you anything you ask, even half my kingdom.” She went out to consult her mother, “What shall I ask for?” The mother replied, “The head of John the Baptist.” The girl hurried to the king and made her request: “I want you to give me the head of John the Baptist, here and now, on a dish.”
The king was very displeased, but he would not refuse in front of his guests because of his oaths. So he sent one of the bodyguards with orders to bring John’s head. He went and beheaded John in prison; then he brought the head on a dish and gave it to the girl. And the girl gave it to her mother. When John’s disciples heard of this, they came and took his body and buried it.
Commentary
“When Herod heard about (Jesus’ reputation), he said, “‘He is John the Baptist! I had his head cut off, but he has come back to life.’”
Some things in life cannot be avoided. Then, when all attempts to change them have been exhausted, we must begin to ask ourselves what of God is in this for us.
February 6
Saturday
4th Week in Ordinary Time
St. Paul Mikki and Companions
1st Reading: 1 K 3:4–13
The king used to sacrifice at Gibeon, the great high place; on the altar there he had offered a thousand burnt offerings. It was in Gibeon, during the night, that Yahweh appeared to Solomon in a dream and said, “Ask what you want me to give you.”
Solomon answered, “You have shown your servant David my father a great and steadfast love because he served you faithfully and was righteous and sincere towards you. You have given him proof of your steadfast love in making a son of his sit on his throne this day. And now, O Yahweh my God, you have made your servant king in place of David my father, although I am but a young boy who does not know how to undertake anything. Meantime, your servant is in the midst of your people whom you have chosen – a people so great that they can neither be numbered nor counted.
Give me, therefore, an understanding mind in governing your people that I may discern between good and evil. For who is able to govern this multitude of people of yours?”
Yahweh was pleased that Solomon had made this request. And he told him, “Because you have requested this rather than long life or wealth or even vengeance on your enemies; indeed, because you have asked for yourself understanding to discern what is right, I shall grant you your request. I now give you a wise and discerning mind such as no one has had before you nor anyone after you shall ever have.
“I will also give you what you have not asked for, both wealth and fame; and no king shall be your equal during your lifetime.”
Gospel: Mk 6:30–34
The apostles returned and reported to Jesus all they had done and taught. Then he said to them, “Go off by yourselves to a remote place and have some rest.” For there were so many people coming and going that the apostles had no time even to eat. And they went away in the boat to a secluded area by themselves.
But people saw them leaving and many could guess where they were going. So, from all the towns they hurried there on foot, arriving ahead of them.
As Jesus went ashore he saw a large crowd, and he had compassion on them for they were like sheep without a shepherd. And he began a long teaching session with them.
Commentary
“When Jesus got out of the boat, he saw this large crowd and his heart was filled with pity for them for they were like sheep without a shepherd.”
There is no one on whom someone does not depend. Meeting those needs, responding to those people no matter how tired we are ourselves is the ministry of meaning that makes up a life.
