The Catholic Calendar for Monday, June 26, 2006
Monday of the Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time

Scripture from today's Liturgy of the Word:
2 Kings 17:5-8, 13-15a, 18
Psalm 60:3, 4-5, 12-13
Matthew 7:1-5

A reflection on today's Sacred Scripture:

It is evident that both of today's readings can be directed toward the people of our times. Our cultures and nations have turned away from God, lost sight of His Son Jesus, and have become obsessed with chasing after wealth and vanity for our own sakes. Worshipping gods of other religions, meddling in spiritism and new age practices, not to mention those idols of materialism, and conveniently forgetting to tend to the needs of our own neighbor have become our passions. In doing all of these empty things, we are bound to experience personal and global destruction on the part of our own condemnation.

God gave us freedom to choose and do good to advance mankind's relationship with Himself. Instead, we have taken "license" to turn away from God in our own personal individualistic endeavors. In our rejection of God, we condemn ourselves and fasten our very salvation to darkness.

Matthew's account of Jesus' teachings appears to take this Old Testament reading further. If we are to come back to God and change the lives of sinful men into witnesses of love, we must tackle our own faults and shortcomings first. We are not to judge others before taking a look at our own thoughts and actions. Before attempting to spread the messages of Christ to others, we should focus on changing ourselves from within. A change will reflect on the outside when we begin to transform interiorly. Without even verbally evangelizing, our Christian way of life will begin to preach the Gospel through action.

- Alicia