God's Message For You Today - June 30

Wednesday of the Thirteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading 1

Am 5:14-15, 21-24

Seek good and not evil,

that you may live;

Then truly will the LORD, the God of hosts,

be with you as you claim!

Hate evil and love good,

and let justice prevail at the gate;

Then it may be that the LORD, the God of hosts,

will have pity on the remnant of Joseph.

I hate, I spurn your feasts, says the LORD,

I take no pleasure in your solemnities;

Your cereal offerings I will not accept,

nor consider your stall-fed peace offerings.

Away with your noisy songs!

I will not listen to the melodies of your harps.

But if you would offer me burnt offerings,

then let justice surge like water,

and goodness like an unfailing stream.

Ps 50:7, 8-9, 10-11, 12-13, 16bc-17

Responsorial Psalm

R.    (23b) To the upright I will show the saving power of God.

“Hear, my people, and I will speak;

Israel, I will testify against you;

God, your God, am I.”

R.    To the upright I will show the saving power of God.

“Not for your sacrifices do I rebuke you,

for your burnt offerings are before me always.

I take from your house no bullock,

no goats out of your fold.”

R.    To the upright I will show the saving power of God.

“For mine are all the animals of the forests,

beasts by the thousand on my mountains.

I know all the birds of the air,

and whatever stirs in the plains, belongs to me.”

R.    To the upright I will show the saving power of God.

“If I were hungry, I should not tell you,

for mine are the world and its fullness.

Do I eat the flesh of strong bulls,

or is the blood of goats my drink?”

R.    To the upright I will show the saving power of God.

“Why do you recite my statutes,

and profess my covenant with your mouth,

Though you hate discipline

and cast my words behind you?”

R.    To the upright I will show the saving power of God.

Mt 8:28-34

Gospel

When Jesus came to the territory of the Gadarenes,

two demoniacs who were coming from the tombs met him.

They were so savage that no one could travel by that road.

They cried out, “What have you to do with us, Son of God?

Have you come here to torment us before the appointed time?”

Some distance away a herd of many swine was feeding.

The demons pleaded with him,

“If you drive us out, send us into the herd of swine.”

And he said to them, “Go then!”

They came out and entered the swine,

and the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the sea

where they drowned.

The swineherds ran away,

and when they came to the town they reported everything,

including what had happened to the demoniacs.

Thereupon the whole town came out to meet Jesus,

and when they saw him they begged him to leave their district.

Comment: Fr. Antoni CAROL i Hostench (Sant Cugat del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain)

They begged him to leave their area

Today, we are given to contemplate a sad contrast. “Contrast” because we admire the power and divine majesty of Jesus Christ, whom the demons submit voluntarily to (a signal that the Kingdom of the Heavens has reached us). But, at the same time, we deplore the narrowness and stinginess which the human heart is capable of, when refusing the bearer of Good News: «The whole town went out to meet Jesus; and when they saw him, they begged him to leave their area» (Mt 8:34). And “sad” because «He himself, who is the true light (...) came to his own, and his own did not receive him» (Jn 1:9-11).

More contrast and more confusion when we pay attention to the fact that man is free and this freedom has the “power to halt” God's infinite power. Or we can put it another way: the infinite divine powers reach as far as our “powerful” freedom allows it. And this is so because God mainly loves us with a Father's love. As a Father, we should not be surprised that He is so respectful of our freedom: He does not impose his love upon us, He just proposes it to us.

God, with infinite wisdom and goodness, providentially rules the Universe while respecting our freedom; even when this freedom turns its back on him and does not want to accept his will. Contrary to what it may seem, He does not let the world out of his hands: God always brings everything to a good conclusion, despite all hindrances we can raise against him. In fact, these hindrances are, first of all, turning against us.

However, we can affirm, «in the face of human freedom God has wanted to become “impotent”. And it can be said God pays for the great gift [our freedom] given to a being created in his image and likeness [man]» (John Paul II). God pays!: if we throw him out, He obeys and goes away. He pays, but we lose. On the other hand, we do well when we respond like the Virgin Mary: «I am the Lord's servant. May it be to me as you have said» (Lk 1:38).

God's Message For You Today - June 29

Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul, Apostles
Mass during the Day 

Reading 1
Acts 12:1-11

In those days, King Herod laid hands upon some members of the Church to harm them.

He had James, the brother of John, killed by the sword,

and when he saw that this was pleasing to the Jews

he proceeded to arrest Peter also.

–It was the feast of Unleavened Bread.–

He had him taken into custody and put in prison

under the guard of four squads of four soldiers each.

He intended to bring him before the people after Passover.

Peter thus was being kept in prison,

but prayer by the Church was fervently being made

to God on his behalf.

On the very night before Herod was to bring him to trial,

Peter, secured by double chains,

was sleeping between two soldiers,

while outside the door guards kept watch on the prison.

Suddenly the angel of the Lord stood by him

and a light shone in the cell.

He tapped Peter on the side and awakened him, saying,

“Get up quickly.”

The chains fell from his wrists.

The angel said to him, “Put on your belt and your sandals.”

He did so.

Then he said to him, “Put on your cloak and follow me.”

So he followed him out,

not realizing that what was happening through the angel was real;

he thought he was seeing a vision.

They passed the first guard, then the second,

and came to the iron gate leading out to the city,

which opened for them by itself.

They emerged and made their way down an alley,

and suddenly the angel left him.

Then Peter recovered his senses and said,

“Now I know for certain

 that the Lord sent his angel

 and rescued me from the hand of Herod

 and from all that the Jewish people had been expecting.”

Ps 34:2-3, 4-5, 6-7, 8-9

Responsorial Psalm

R.     (5) The angel of the Lord will rescue those who fear him.

I will bless the LORD at all times;

his praise shall be ever in my mouth.

Let my soul glory in the LORD;

the lowly will hear me and be glad.

R.     The angel of the Lord will rescue those who fear him.

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.     The angel of the Lord will rescue those who fear him.

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.     The angel of the Lord will rescue those who fear him.

The angel of the LORD encamps

around those who fear him, and delivers them.

Taste and see how good the LORD is;

blessed the man who takes refuge in him.

R.     The angel of the Lord will rescue those who fear him.

2 Tm 4:6-8, 17-18

Reading 2

I, Paul, am already being poured out like a libation,

and the time of my departure is at hand.

I have competed well; I have finished the race;

I have kept the faith.

From now on the crown of righteousness awaits me,

which the Lord, the just judge,

will award to me on that day, and not only to me,

but to all who have longed for his appearance.

The Lord stood by me and gave me strength,

so that through me the proclamation might be completed

and all the Gentiles might hear it.

And I was rescued from the lion’s mouth.

The Lord will rescue me from every evil threat

and will bring me safe to his heavenly Kingdom.

To him be glory forever and ever.  Amen.

Mt 16:13-19

Gospel

When Jesus went into the region of Caesarea Philippi

he asked his disciples,

“Who do people say that the Son of Man is?”

They replied, “Some say John the Baptist, others Elijah,

still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”

He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”

Simon Peter said in reply,

“You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

Jesus said to him in reply, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah.

For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father.

And so I say to you, you are Peter,

and upon this rock I will build my Church,

and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it.

I will give you the keys to the Kingdom of heaven.

Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven;

and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”

Comment: Mons. Pere TENA i Garriga Emeritus Auxiliar Bishop of Barcelona (Barcelona, Spain)

You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God

Today, is the day consecrated by the martyrdom of the apostles Peter and Paul! «Peter, our leader in faith; Paul, its fearless preacher who became the teacher of the world» (Preface). Today is a day to be grateful for the Apostolic Faith, which is also our faith, proclaimed by these two pillars of the Church through their preaching. It is the faith overcoming the world, because it believes and announces Jesus Christ as the Son of God: «You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God» (Mt 16:16). Other celebrations of St. Peter and St. Paul commemorate other aspects of their lives, but to day we contemplate the memory of the Apostles «through whom our religious life had its origin» (Collect): through their martyrdom they confirmed their testimony.

Their faith, and strength for martyrdom, did not come from their human capacity. For it was no man of flesh or blood that has revealed Peter who was Jesus, but the revelation of his Father in Heaven (cf. Mt 16:17). And likewise, it was indeed God's grace that made Saul recognize Jesus, the Lord, “as the one he was persecuting”. In both cases, human freedom, necessary for the act of faith, leans on the Holy Spirit's action.

The faith of the apostles is the faith of the, one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church. Since Peter's confession at Caesarea Philippi, «every day, in the Church, Peter goes on saying: ‘You are Christ, the Son of the living God’» (St. Leo the Great). Ever since, till our days, a crowd of Christians of all epochs, ages, cultures, and anything else that may differentiate men has unanimously proclaimed the same victorious faith.

Through Baptism and Confirmation we are paving a path to testimony, that is, a path to martyrdom. It is necessary that we are always attentive to the “laboratory of faith” that the Holy Spirit carries out upon us (John Paul II), and that we implore with humility to be able to experiment the joy of the faith of the Church.

God's Message For You Today - June 28

Liturgic day: Monday 13th in Ordinary Time

Reading 1
Am 2:6-10, 13-16

Thus says the LORD:

For three crimes of Israel, and for four,

I will not revoke my word;

Because they sell the just man for silver,

and the poor man for a pair of sandals.

They trample the heads of the weak

into the dust of the earth,

and force the lowly out of the way.

Son and father go to the same prostitute,

profaning my holy name.

Upon garments taken in pledge

they recline beside any altar;

And the wine of those who have been fined

they drink in the house of their god.

Yet it was I who destroyed the Amorites before them,

who were as tall as the cedars,

and as strong as the oak trees.

I destroyed their fruit above,

and their roots beneath.

It was I who brought you up from the land of Egypt,

and who led you through the desert for forty years,

to occupy the land of the Amorites.

Beware, I will crush you into the ground

as a wagon crushes when laden with sheaves.

Flight shall perish from the swift,

and the strong man shall not retain his strength;

The warrior shall not save his life,

nor the bowman stand his ground;

The swift of foot shall not escape,

nor the horseman save his life.

And the most stouthearted of warriors

shall flee naked on that day, says the LORD.

Ps 50:16bc-17, 18-19, 20-21, 22-23

Responsorial Psalm

R.     (22a) Remember this, you who never think of God.

“Why do you recite my statutes,

and profess my covenant with your mouth,

Though you hate discipline

and cast my words behind you?”

R.     Remember this, you who never think of God.

“When you see a thief, you keep pace with him,

and with adulterers you throw in your lot.

To your mouth you give free rein for evil,

you harness your tongue to deceit.”

R.     Remember this, you who never think of God.

“You sit speaking against your brother;

against your mother’s son you spread rumors.

When you do these things, shall I be deaf to it?

Or do you think that I am like yourself?

I will correct you by drawing them up before your eyes.”

R.     Remember this, you who never think of God.

“Consider this, you who forget God,

lest I rend you and there be no one to rescue you.

He that offers praise as a sacrifice glorifies me;

and to him that goes the right way I will show the salvation of God.”

R.     Remember this, you who never think of God.

Mt 8:18-22

Gospel

When Jesus saw a crowd around him,

he gave orders to cross to the other shore.

A scribe approached and said to him,

“Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.”

Jesus answered him, “Foxes have dens and birds of the sky have nests,

but the Son of Man has nowhere to rest his head.”

Another of his disciples said to him,

“Lord, let me go first and bury my father.”

But Jesus answered him, “Follow me,

and let the dead bury their dead.”

Comment: Fr, Jordi PASCUAL i Bancells (Salt, Girona, Spain)

Follow me

Today, the Gospel presents us —through two personages— a quality the good disciple of Jesus must have: to dispense with all material goods. Before, however, St. Matthew's text points out to a detail I would not like to overlook: «When Jesus saw the crowd press around him...» (Mt 8:18). Crowds gather around the Lord to listen to his words, to be healed of their material and spiritual sicknesses; they are seeking their salvation and a breath of eternal Life amidst a world in conflict.

As at that time, something similar happens in today's world: more or less consciously, we, all, need God's help, to satiate our heart with true spiritual goods, such as a better knowledge of Jesus Christ and a life of friendship and love for Him. Otherwise, we risk tumbling into the trap that fills out our heart with other “gods” giving no meaning to our lives: mobile phones, Internet, tourist holidays to the Bahamas, a frantic work to make more money, a better car than your neighbour or a gym where to excel with the best figure of them all... Right now, this is what is happening to many of us.

In sharp contrast, though, John Paul II's outcry to the youth, full of force and confidence, resounds: «It is possible to be both modern and profoundly faithful to Jesus Christ». It is needed, for this, as the Lord says, our breaking away with what may link us to a much materialized way of life that serves no purpose other than closing the doors to the Holy Spirit.

«The Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head (...) Follow me» (Mt 8:22), says today's Gospel. And St. Gregory the Great reminds us: «Let temporal things be used, while keeping eternal realities in our desire; let earthly things be utilized for our trek, while desiring the eternal ones for the end of our journey». This is a good criterion to examine whether we are properly following Jesus.

God's Message For You Today - June 27

Thirteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Reading 1
1 Kgs 19:16b, 19-21

The LORD said to Elijah:

“You shall anoint Elisha, son of Shaphat of Abelmeholah,

as prophet to succeed you.”

Elijah set out and came upon Elisha, son of Shaphat,

as he was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen;

he was following the twelfth.

Elijah went over to him and threw his cloak over him.

Elisha left the oxen, ran after Elijah, and said,

“Please, let me kiss my father and mother goodbye,

and I will follow you.”

Elijah answered, “Go back!

Have I done anything to you?”

Elisha left him, and taking the yoke of oxen, slaughtered them;

he used the plowing equipment for fuel to boil their flesh,

and gave it to his people to eat.

Then Elisha left and followed Elijah as his attendant.

Ps 16:1-2, 5, 7-8, 9-10, 11

Responsorial Psalm

R.     (cf. 5a) You are my inheritance, O Lord.

Keep me, O God, for in you I take refuge;

I say to the LORD, “My Lord are you.

O LORD, my allotted portion and my cup,

you it is who hold fast my lot.”

R.     You are my inheritance, O Lord.

I bless the LORD who counsels me;

even in the night my heart exhorts me.

I set the LORD ever before me;

with him at my right hand I shall not be disturbed.

R.     You are my inheritance, O Lord.

Therefore my heart is glad and my soul rejoices,

my body, too, abides in confidence

because you will not abandon my soul to the netherworld,

nor will you suffer your faithful one to undergo corruption.

R.     You are my inheritance, O Lord.

You will show me the path to life,

fullness of joys in your presence,

the delights at your right hand forever.

R.     You are my inheritance, O Lord.

Gal 5:1, 13-18

Reading 2

Brothers and sisters:

For freedom Christ set us free;

so stand firm and do not submit again to the yoke of slavery.

For you were called for freedom, brothers and sisters.

But do not use this freedom

as an opportunity for the flesh;

rather, serve one another through love.

For the whole law is fulfilled in one statement,

namely, You shall love your neighbor as yourself.

But if you go on biting and devouring one another,

beware that you are not consumed by one another.

I say, then: live by the Spirit

and you will certainly not gratify the desire of the flesh.

For the flesh has desires against the Spirit,

and the Spirit against the flesh;

these are opposed to each other,

so that you may not do what you want.

But if you are guided by the Spirit, you are not under the law.

Lk 9:51-62

Gospel

When the days for Jesus’ being taken up were fulfilled,

he resolutely determined to journey to Jerusalem,

and he sent messengers ahead of him.

On the way they entered a Samaritan village

to prepare for his reception there,

but they would not welcome him

because the destination of his journey was Jerusalem.

When the disciples James and John saw this they asked,

“Lord, do you want us to call down fire from heaven

to consume them?”

Jesus turned and rebuked them, and they journeyed to another village.

As they were proceeding on their journey someone said to him,

“I will follow you wherever you go.”

Jesus answered him,

“Foxes have dens and birds of the sky have nests,

but the Son of Man has nowhere to rest his head.”

And to another he said, “Follow me.”

But he replied, “Lord, let me go first and bury my father.”

But he answered him, “Let the dead bury their dead.

But you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.”

And another said, “I will follow you, Lord,

but first let me say farewell to my family at home.”

To him Jesus said, “No one who sets a hand to the plow

and looks to what was left behind is fit for the kingdom of God.”

Comment: Fr. José MARTÍNEZ Colín (Culiacán, Mexico)

Follow me

Today, the Gospel invites us to ponder over our following Christ. It does matter to follow him as He expects us to. James and John had not yet learned his message of love and forgiveness: «Lord, do you want us to call down fire from Heaven to reduce them to ashes?» (Lk 9:54). There were others also called by the Lord but they were not yet ready to completely part with their family bonds. To follow Christ and accomplish our mission, we must do it free from any tie: «Whoever (...) looks back is not fit for the Kingdom of God» (Lk 9:62).

At a World Missionary Journey, John Paul II made an appeal to all Catholics to become missionaries of the Gospel of Christ through dialogue and forgiveness. The motto was: «The mission is an announcement of forgiveness». His Holiness said that only our love for God can unite men of every race and culture, by making disappear the painful divisions, the ideological contrasts, the economic inequalities and the violent abuse humans are still subject to. Through evangelization, we believers may help men to recognize one another as brothers.

If we truly feel like brothers, we may start by understanding each other and debating always with respect. His Holiness has emphasized that our determination for an attentive and respectful dialogue is a necessary condition for the true testimony of God's saving love, because who forgives is already opening his heart to his fellowmen and is able to feel love. In the Last Supper the Lord said it too: «A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you (...). By this all men will know that you are my disciples» (Jn 13:34-35).

To evangelize is a task for all of us, although in different ways. For some of us, it will mean going to countries where Christ is still unknown. Others will be supposed to evangelize in their own environment. Let us ask ourselves whether those around us know how to live the fundamental truths of our faith; and whether we are already doing something to remedy this situation. We all can and must support the missionary tasks with our prayer, sacrifice and behaviour, in addition to the testimony of our forgiveness and understanding towards the rest of our fellowmen.

God's Message For You Today - June 26

Saturday of the Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading 1

Lam 2:2, 10-14, 18-19

The Lord has consumed without pity

all the dwellings of Jacob;

He has torn down in his anger

the fortresses of daughter Judah;

He has brought to the ground in dishonor

her king and her princes.

On the ground in silence sit

the old men of daughter Zion;

They strew dust on their heads

and gird themselves with sackcloth;

The maidens of Jerusalem

bow their heads to the ground.

Worn out from weeping are my eyes,

within me all is in ferment;

My gall is poured out on the ground

because of the downfall of the daughter of my people,

As child and infant faint away

in the open spaces of the town.

In vain they ask their mothers,

“Where is the grain?”

As they faint away like the wounded

in the streets of the city,

And breathe their last

in their mothers’ arms.

To what can I liken or compare you,

O daughter Jerusalem?

What example can I show you for your comfort,

virgin daughter Zion?

For great as the sea is your downfall;

who can heal you?

Your prophets had for you

false and specious visions;

They did not lay bare your guilt,

to avert your fate;

They beheld for you in vision

false and misleading portents.

Cry out to the Lord;

moan, O daughter Zion!

Let your tears flow like a torrent

day and night;

Let there be no respite for you,

no repose for your eyes.

Rise up, shrill in the night,

at the beginning of every watch;

Pour out your heart like water

in the presence of the Lord;

Lift up your hands to him

for the lives of your little ones

Who faint from hunger

at the corner of every street.

Ps 74:1b-2, 3-5, 6-7, 20-21

Responsorial Psalm

R.     (19b) Lord, forget not the souls of your poor ones.

Why, O God, have you cast us off forever?

Why does your anger smolder against the sheep of your pasture?

Remember your flock which you built up of old,

the tribe you redeemed as your inheritance,

Mount Zion, where you took up your abode.

R.     Lord, forget not the souls of your poor ones.

Turn your steps toward the utter ruins;

toward all the damage the enemy has done in the sanctuary.

Your foes roar triumphantly in your shrine;

they have set up their tokens of victory.

They are like men coming up with axes to a clump of trees.

R.     Lord, forget not the souls of your poor ones.

With chisel and hammer they hack at all the paneling of the sanctuary.

They set your sanctuary on fire;

the place where your name abides they have razed and profaned.

R.     Lord, forget not the souls of your poor ones.

Look to your covenant,

for the hiding places in the land and the plains are full of violence.

May the humble not retire in confusion;

may the afflicted and the poor praise your name.

R.     Lord, forget not the souls of your poor ones.

Mt 8:5-17

Gospel

When Jesus entered Capernaum,

a centurion approached him and appealed to him, saying,

“Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed, suffering dreadfully.”

He said to him, “I will come and cure him.”

The centurion said in reply,

“Lord, I am not worthy to have you enter under my roof;

only say the word and my servant will be healed.

For I too am a man subject to authority,

with soldiers subject to me.

And I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes;

and to another, ‘Come here,’ and he comes;

and to my slave, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”

When Jesus heard this, he was amazed and said to those following him,

“Amen, I say to you, in no one in Israel have I found such faith.

I say to you, many will come from the east and the west,

and will recline with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob

at the banquet in the Kingdom of heaven,

but the children of the Kingdom

will be driven out into the outer darkness,

where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.”

And Jesus said to the centurion,

“You may go; as you have believed, let it be done for you.”

And at that very hour his servant was healed.

Jesus entered the house of Peter,

and saw his mother-in-law lying in bed with a fever.

He touched her hand, the fever left her,

and she rose and waited on him.

When it was evening, they brought him many

who were possessed by demons,

and he drove out the spirits by a word and cured all the sick,

to fulfill what had been said by Isaiah the prophet:

He took away our infirmities and bore our diseases.

Comment: Fr. Xavier JAUSET i Clivillé (Lleida, Spain)

I am not worthy to have you under my roof. Just give an order and my boy will be healed

Today, the Gospel speaks of the centurion's love, of his faith, confidence and humility. Of his deep concern towards his servant. He is so worried about him, that he humiliates before Jesus to ask his help: «Sir, my servant lies sick at home. He is paralyzed and suffers terribly» (Mt 8:6). This concern for others and, even more, for a servant, prompts Jesus' response: «I will come and heal him» (Mt 8:7), which is in turn followed by a series of acts of faith and confidence. The centurion does not consider himself worthy and, along with that feeling, he expresses his own faith in such a way before Jesus and before all those gathered there, that Jesus has to say: «I tell you, I have not found such faith in Israel» (Mt 8:10).

We may wonder what impels Jesus to make this miracle. We so very often ask God to no avail, though we know He is always listening! So, what happens, then? We may think we ask properly, but are we sure we do it like the centurion did? His prayer is not selfish, but full of love, humility and confidence. St. Peter Crysologus says: «The power of love does not consider possibilities (...). Love does not discern nor ponders; love does not understand reasons. Love is not resignation before impossibility, nor does it get intimidated before difficulties». Is it like that, my prayer?

«I am not worthy to have you under my roof...» (Mt 8:8). It is the centurion's answer. Do you feel this way? Is your faith like this? «Only faith can explain this mystery. Faith is true knowledge, the principles of which are beyond rational demonstration; for faith makes real for us things beyond intellect and reason» (St. Maximus, confessor). If your faith is such, then you are bound to hear too: «‘Go home now. As you believed, so let it be (...)’ And at that moment his servant was healed» (Mt 8:13).

Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God, Master of faith, hope and devoted love, show us how to pray so that we may obtain from the Lord that which is best for us.