Catholic Calendar for Thursday, January 13, 2005
Thursday of the First Week in Ordinary Time
St. Hilary, bishop and doctor of the Church

Scripture from today's Liturgy of the Word:
Hebrews 3:7-14
Psalm 95:6-11
Mark 1:40-45

A reflection on today's Sacred Scripture:

Go show yourself to the priest and offer for your cleansing
what Moses prescribed. (Mark 1:44)

Our reading from Hebrews implies that a person who persists in sin becomes so insensitive to his condition that he sinks ever more deeply into its mire. Ignoring God's calls, His tugs at our conscience, blinds us to His truth and consequently also to His love; for the two are inseparable. Shutting God out, results in our becoming self-willed, selfish and self-righteous; we then justify this behavior through delusions and rationalizations. Man, apart from God can never achieve full humanity; his physical body may continue to function, but his spiritual being will perish, essentially be dead to God. The Hebrews are reminded that we're called to be "partners" with Christ in bringing His salvation into this world by living in His goodness, truth and love.

Our Gospel may puzzle us, for Jesus instructs the man He healed from leprosy (an incurable and grossly disfiguring disease) to remain silent but to show himself the Temple priest and make the proper offering in thanksgiving. It appears that Jesus was not simply trying to attract the crowds to Himself as a miracle worker. His primary concern was to penetrate the hardened hearts of religious officials to see that the compassionate power of God was visiting them in Him, the person of the Messiah. Sadly, He was seen as a threat to their "religion" rather than a blessing to their nation--God's final fulfillment of His law of love.

O Compassionate God,
inspire in us a genuine conversion of heart,
that we may admit to and turn away from our sin
and make your salvation known to the world.
Amen

- Marie Bocko, OCDS
(mlbocko at earthlink dot net)

____________________

These meditations are also available by email subscription
©1986-2005 The Way, The Truth, The Life

posted by joachim at 4:36 AM