The Catholic Calendar for Thursday, September 2, 2004
Thursday of the Twenty-second Week in Ordinary Time

Scripture from today's Liturgy of the Word:
1 Corinthians 3:18-23
Psalm 24:1-6
Luke 5:1-11

A reflection on today's Sacred Scripture:

Depart from Me Lord. . .

How often have we sinned and felt what Peter expresses here? Worse, how often have we sinned and moved forward without hesitation to sin yet again--ignorant of what we do to the Lord in our sinning. This passage demonstrates what Jesus wants from us--recognition of our sin.

Jesus does not chastise, lecture, or harangue Peter after he admits to being a sinful man. He doesn't discuss the issue, nor does he mollify saying, "Oh, no, no, no, not at all, Peter. In fact, quite the contrary." Jesus accepts what Peter says, knowing it to be the truth and He moves on to give Peter the keys of the kingdom.

What Jesus expects from us is a frank admission of our faults and sins. He expects us to say, "Depart from me I am a sinner." And then the last thing He will ever do is to leave us to stew in that sin. Where we fail most profoundly is not in the sinning, but in the refusal to repent and allow Him to come in and heal our grievous wounds.

- JuandelaCruz
(sriddle415 at yahoo dot com)

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posted by joachim at 5:25 AM