The Catholic Calendar for Saturday, June 10, 2006
Saturday of the Ninth Week in Ordinary Time
Scripture from today's Liturgy of the Word:
2 Timothy 4:1-8
Psalm 71:8-9, 14-17, 22
Mark 12:38-44
A reflection on today's Sacred Scripture:
"But she, from her poverty, has contributed all that she had . . ."
St. Therese commented on this in a way. She said that she wanted to return to the Father with absolutely nothing so that He would have to take her in her poverty seeing as she had given away all.
Poverty here refers to the woman's financial affairs, but for us, it often refers to our spiritual affairs. We are very, very poor indeed. We strain to get out a single prayer without distraction or interruption. We think we do well when we manage to make it to Mass, although our worship cannot possibly hold a candle to the wealth we receive at each Mass.
But the point is, no matter how poor we are, so long as we recognize that poverty and give God our two pence, everything we can scrape together, we are blessed. God blesses us in our poverty with His abundance. We decrease and He increases in us. Our two-pence is turned into wealth beyond imagining -- but not for us. The wealth we receive is to be poured out on others until we can return to God in our poverty and offer once again our little bit.
And so the cycle of grace and love continues.
- JuandelaCruz
The Catholic Calendar for Friday, June 9, 2006
Friday of the Ninth Week in Ordinary Time
St. Ephrem, deacon and doctor of the Church
Scripture from today's Liturgy of the Word:
2 Timothy 3:10-17
Psalm 119:157, 160-161, 165-166, 168
Mark 12:35-37
A reflection on today's Scripture . . . .
All who want to live religiously in Christ Jesus will be persecuted
(see 2 Timothy. 3:12)
Today's readings reveal the importance of correctly interpreting Scripture. Jesus humiliates the scribes but delights the people by revealing their error. These prideful men relied on their intellects alone rather than also seeking God's mind and heart through sincere prayer. They taught that the Messiah would descend from David's royal line but they did not see that David's own words called the Messiah, "Lord," a name transcending mere human lineage. Jesus implies that the scribes' spiritual ignorance blinds them to His true identity.
Paul's letter exhorts Timothy not to be intimidated, to faithfully teach Christian dogma despite people's objections and persecution. He reminds the young and perhaps timid preacher that he should expect to always encounter such problems but must strenuously deny false teachings. He refers to his own toil to keep the Faith pure in the knowledge that God will deliver him through all conflicts. Timothy is to steadfastly guide his flock in righteous living.
Problems regarding truth and love are multiplied in our day by a fragmented Christianity with each new sect insisting that they alone have the only correct interpretation of Scripture. Equally insidious is the mass media's influence through music, art, entertainment and news, each advertising pleasure, sex, self-indulgence, affluence, comfort and materialism while covertly or openly ridiculing the spiritual aspect of life. So we have come to worship "self," to greedily embrace a sugarcoated Gospel rather than the naked truth that God's genuine love places demands on us. Our heavenly Father sent Christ to embody -- make visible to us -- the sacrificial, self-giving love that leads humanity to peace, justice and salvation.
God of love and truth, pour Your Spirit upon our selfish, self-seeking hearts. Draw us to Yourself, prompt us to pray and so learn to know and follow Christ, your Son. Amen.
- Marie Bocko, OCDS
(mlbocko at earthlink dot net)
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posted by joachim at 5:40 AM 
20060610
