JULY 01, 2013 : MONDAY OF THE THIRTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME

Monday of the Thirteenth Week in Ordinary Time 
Lectionary: 377

GN 18:16

Reading 1GN 18:16-33

Abraham and the men who had visited him by the Terebinth of Mamre
set out from there and looked down toward Sodom;
Abraham was walking with them, to see them on their way.
The LORD reflected: “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do,
now that he is to become a great and populous nation,
and all the nations of the earth are to find blessing in him?
Indeed, I have singled him out
that he may direct his children and his household after him
to keep the way of the LORD
by doing what is right and just,
so that the LORD may carry into effect for Abraham
the promises he made about him.”
Then the LORD said:
“The outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is so great,
and their sin so grave,
that I must go down and see whether or not their actions
fully correspond to the cry against them that comes to me.
I mean to find out.”

While the two men walked on farther toward Sodom,
the LORD remained standing before Abraham.
Then Abraham drew nearer to him and said:
“Will you sweep away the innocent with the guilty?
Suppose there were fifty innocent people in the city;
would you wipe out the place, rather than spare it
for the sake of the fifty innocent people within it?
Far be it from you to do such a thing,
to make the innocent die with the guilty,
so that the innocent and the guilty would be treated alike!
Should not the judge of all the world act with justice?”
The LORD replied,
“If I find fifty innocent people in the city of Sodom,
I will spare the whole place for their sake.”
Abraham spoke up again:
“See how I am presuming to speak to my Lord,
though I am but dust and ashes!
What if there are five less than fifty innocent people?
Will you destroy the whole city because of those five?”
He answered, “I will not destroy it if I find forty-five there.”
But Abraham persisted, saying, “What if only forty are found there?”
He replied, “I will forbear doing it for the sake of forty.”
Then Abraham said, “Let not my Lord grow impatient if I go on.
What if only thirty are found there?”
He replied, “I will forbear doing it if I can find but thirty there.”
Still Abraham went on,
“Since I have thus dared to speak to my Lord,
what if there are no more than twenty?”
He answered, “I will not destroy it for the sake of the twenty.”
But he still persisted:
“Please, let not my Lord grow angry if I speak up this last time.
What if there are at least ten there?”
He replied, “For the sake of those ten, I will not destroy it.”

The LORD departed as soon as he had finished speaking with Abraham,
and Abraham returned home.

Responsorial PsalmPS 103:1B-2, 3-4, 8-9, 10-11

R. (8a) The Lord is kind and merciful.
Bless the LORD, O my soul;
and all my being, bless his holy name.
Bless the LORD, O my soul,
and forget not all his benefits. 
R. The Lord is kind and merciful.
He pardons all your iniquities,
he heals all your ills.
He redeems your life from destruction,
he crowns you with kindness and compassion.
R. The Lord is kind and merciful.
Merciful and gracious is the LORD,
slow to anger and abounding in kindness.
He will not always chide,
nor does he keep his wrath forever.
R. The Lord is kind and merciful.
Not according to our sins does he deal with us,
nor does he requite us according to our crimes.
For as the heavens are high above the earth,
so surpassing is his kindness toward those who fear him. 
R. The Lord is kind and merciful.

GospelMT 8:18-22

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.”

www.usccb.org

Meditation:  "Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go"

 Have you ever been drafted for a special service assignment away from home? Duty to country, kin, or church may call some of us to leave our familiar surroundings in order to serve elsewhere. When the Lord Jesus announced that the coming of God's kingdom was imminent, he urged his listeners to not only heed his teaching but to follow in his footsteps as well. Jesus had a mission to accomplish and he wanted disciples who would join with him in proclaiming the coming of God's kingdom.

One prospective follower, a scribe who was an expert in the law of God, paid Jesus the highest compliment he knew. He called Jesus “teacher”. Jesus advised this would-be follower: Before you follow me, think what you are about to do and count the cost. A disciple must be willing to part with anything that might stand in the way of following Jesus as Teacher and Master. Another would-be disciple responded by saying that he must first bury his father, that is go back home and take care of his father until he died. This disciple was not yet ready to count the cost of  following Jesus. Jesus appealed to the man’s heart to choose for God's kingdom first and to detach himself from anything that might keep him from following the Lord.

The Lord Jesus calls each one of us personally by name and he invies us to follow him as our Lord, Teacher, and Master. He invites us into a personal relationship of love and friendship, trust and commitment. The love of God frees us from attachments to other things so we can give ourselves freely to God for his glory and for his kingdom. It was love that compelled the Lord Jesus to lay down his life for us. And he calls us in love to give our all for him.

What can keep us from giving our all to God? Fear, self-concern, pre-occupation, and attachment to other things. Even spiritual things can get in the way of having God alone as our Treasure if we put them first. Detachment is a necessary step if we want to make the Lord our Treasure and Joy. It frees us to give ourselves without reserve to the Lord and to his service. There is nothing greater we can do with our lives than to place them at the service of the Lord and Master of the universe. We cannot outgive God in generosity. Jesus promises that those who are willing to part with what is most dear to them for his sake “will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life” (Matthew 19:29). Is there anything holding you back from giving your all to the Lord?

"Take, O Lord, and receive my entire liberty, my memory, my understanding, and my whole will. All that I am and all that I possess you have given me. I surrender it all to you to be disposed of according to your will.  Give me only your love and your grace – with these I will be rich enough and will desire nothing more.” (Prayer of Ignatius Loyola, 1491-1556)

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Determined Discipleship

Monday of the Thirteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Matthew 8:18-22 When Jesus saw a crowd around him, he gave orders to cross to the other side. 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." Introductory Prayer: Lord, I come to you in this meditation ready to do whatever you ask. Left to myself I often take the easy and convenient path, yet I know the way of a Christian is through the narrow gate. In you I find the reason to abandon the easy path for a more perfect mission of love. I’m ready to learn the meaning of your command: “Follow me.” Petition: Lord Jesus, help me to seek true holiness by following after you. 1. Follow His Footsteps: The transition to becoming a disciple is not an easy one. While a disciple generously hands over his own will to the Lord unconditionally, the scribe in today’s passage still seeks his own will, as noble as it may be. A disciple is born from an invitation: “Follow me.” This scribe does not yet have the total freedom of heart that life with Christ demands. Where do I stand? One becomes identified with Christ not through a mere accumulation of doctrine, principles and techniques, but by living a common life with Christ born from union with the Master’s will. May I hear Christ’s voice setting the pace of holiness in my life and inviting me to leave behind my own will for the new life he presents. 2. Choosing the Better Way: Christ does not coldly ignore the scribe, but seeks to attract him to a different way of life, a life of simple poverty. Our Lord’s own self-emptying poverty goes beyond the lot of the poorest of men. What Christ’s poverty shows, however, is not misery. Rather, it compels and attracts, for it is an infallible sign of the richness of God from whom Christ lives and moves. Christ’s living example empowers men to leave their world for something better, nobler and more worthy of the life they have been given. May my example also compel others to find a better way, a holier way. 3. Shunning Shoddy Sophisms: There is an almost ruthless quality to Christ’s response to the sophisms and excuses offered to avoid following him. Detachment from all personal wants and desires is the way to simplicity of heart. Simplicity of heart requires us to be brutally honest with ourselves. What comes first in our life? What is really moving our heart to make the choices we make? Is it God’s will? God’s will for us is never complicated; perhaps it may be difficult, but it is never complicated. Sometimes, under the pretext of doing good, we rationalize not doing what is better. We do not need sophisticated analyses assessing how many obstacles there are to doing God’s will. All we need to clear the path to its perfect fulfillment is a generous heart. Conversation with Christ: Lord, I know you have called me; I ask for your strength to respond with simplicity and fortitude. I have heard your voice and I now answer. Resolution: Today I will live better my vocation in life and, in particular, fulfill some obligation that I normally put off.

www.regnumchristi.org

MONDAY, JULY 1
MATTHEW 8:18-22

(Genesis 18:16-33; Psalm 103)
KEY VERSE: "Follow me, and let the dead bury their dead" (v 22).
READING: For the first time in Matthew's gospel, Jesus referred to himself as the "Son of Man," the lowly servant who was totally dedicated to God's will, and who would be exalted in glory despite grave suffering (Dn 7:13).On one occasion, an eager scribe approached Jesus asking if he could follow him as a disciple. Jesus warned the scribe that it would not be an easy task. Discipleship was a radical call that offered neither security nor comfort. When one of Jesus' disciples asked for permission to go home and bury his father, Jesus' answer appeared to be harsh. Commitment to God's reign superseded all other obligations, even those regarded as having the highest importance. All who would participate in Jesus' glory must share his total devotion to the gospel he announced.
REFLECTING: Am I willing to follow where Jesus leads me today?
PRAYING: Lord Jesus, give me the courage to do what it takes to be your disciple.

Optional Memorial of Junipero Serra, priest

Miguel Joseph Serra was born in 1713 on the Island of Mallorca, Spain. At age of 16, Serra joined the Franciscan Order, taking the name Junipero after a friend of St Francis. In 1749, Padre Serra was sent to the missionary territories of the west of North America. In 1768 he took over missions in the Mexican provinces of Lower and Upper California. A tireless worker, Padre Serra was largely responsible forfounding nine of the twenty-one missions, from San Diego to San Francisco, which at the time were in Alta California of the Las Californias Province in New Spain. Serra converted thousands of Native Americans, and trained many of them in European methods of agriculture, cattle husbandry, and crafts. He was a dedicated missionary and penitent, austere in all areas of his life. Padre Serra died in 1784 and is buried under the sanctuary floor at Mission San Carlos Borromeo. Recognized as �The Father of the California Missions,� a bronze statue of Fr. Serra has been placed in the Statuary Hall of our Nation�s Capitol. Serra was beatified by Pope John Paul II on September 25, 1988, this being the first step towards canonization, or promotion to sainthood, in the Catholic Church. In July 1987, the first miracle attributed to Serra was the cure of a nun suffering from lupus. Blessed Junipero Serra's namesake is the Serra Club, an international Catholic organization whose mission is to foster and affirm vocations to the ordained priesthood and vowed religious life. There are 670 Serra Clubs with more than 23,000 Serra members in 35 countries. www.serraus.org.

Prayer for the Canonization of Blessed Junipero Serra
Heavenly Father, we ask you to look lovingly on the missionary journey of your faithful servant, Blessed Jun�pero Serra. His steadfast efforts in founding nine missions in California and the conversion of thousands of Native Americans have inspired the formation and work of Serra International. This ministry in Father Serra's name is to encourage and affirm vocations to priesthood and vowed religious life. We pray that you bless this holy and courageous Franciscan missionary and grant him the ultimate honor of Sainthood in your heavenly kingdom. We ask this in the name of thy Blessed Trinity and of Mary, Queen of Vocations. Amen.

www.daily-word-of-life.com

July 1
Blessed Junipero Serra
(1713-1784)

In 1776, when the American Revolution was beginning in the east, another part of the future United States was being born in California. That year a gray-robed Franciscan founded Mission San Juan Capistrano, now famous for its annually returning swallows. San Juan was the seventh of nine missions established under the direction of this indomitable Spaniard.

Born on Spain’s island of Mallorca, Serra entered the Franciscan Order, taking the name of St. Francis’ childlike companion, Brother Juniper. Until he was 35, he spent most of his time in the classroom—first as a student of theology and then as a professor. He also became famous for his preaching. Suddenly he gave it all up and followed the yearning that had begun years before when he heard about the missionary work of St. Francis Solanus in South America. Junipero’s desire was to convert native peoples in the New World.

Arriving by ship at Vera Cruz, Mexico, he and a companion walked the 250 miles to Mexico City. On the way Junipero’s left leg became infected by an insect bite and would remain a cross—sometimes life-threatening—for the rest of his life. For 18 years he worked in central Mexico and in the Baja Peninsula. He became president of the missions there.

Enter politics: the threat of a Russian invasion south from Alaska. Charles III of Spain ordered an expedition to beat Russia to the territory. So the last two conquistadors—one military, one spiritual—began their quest. José de Galvez persuaded Junipero to set out with him for present-day Monterey, California. The first mission founded after the 900-mile journey north was San Diego (1769). That year a shortage of food almost canceled the expedition. Vowing to stay with the local people, Junipero and another friar began a novena in preparation for St. Joseph’s day, March 19, the scheduled day of departure. On that day, the relief ship arrived.

Other missions followed: Monterey/Carmel (1770); San Antonio and San Gabriel (1771); San Luís Obispo (1772); San Francisco and San Juan Capistrano (1776); Santa Clara (1777); San Buenaventura (1782). Twelve more were founded after Serra’s death.

Junipero made the long trip to Mexico City to settle great differences with the military commander. He arrived at the point of death. The outcome was substantially what Junipero sought: the famous “Regulation” protecting the Indians and the missions. It was the basis for the first significant legislation in California, a “Bill of Rights” for Native Americans.

Because the Native Americans were living a nonhuman life from the Spanish point of view, the friars were made their legal guardians. The Native Americans were kept at the mission after Baptism lest they be corrupted in their former haunts—a move that has brought cries of “injustice” from some moderns.

Junipero’s missionary life was a long battle with cold and hunger, with unsympathetic military commanders and even with danger of death from non-Christian native peoples. Through it all his unquenchable zeal was fed by prayer each night, often from midnight till dawn. He baptized over 6,000 people and confirmed 5,000. His travels would have circled the globe. He brought the Native Americans not only the gift of faith but also a decent standard of living. He won their love, as witnessed especially by their grief at his death. He is buried at Mission San Carlo Borromeo, Carmel, and was beatified in 1988.

Comment:

The word that best describes Junipero is zeal. It was a spirit that came from his deep prayer and dauntless will. “Always forward, never back” was his motto. His work bore fruit for 50 years after his death as the rest of the missions were founded in a kind of Christian communal living by the Indians. When both Mexican and American greed caused the secularization of the missions, the Chumash people went back to what they had been—God again writing straight with crooked lines.

Quote:

During his homily at Serra’s beatification, Blessed John Paul II said: “Relying on the divine power of the message he proclaimed, Father Serra led the native peoples to Christ. He was well aware of their heroic virtues—as exemplified in the life of St. Kateri Tekakwitha [July 14]—and he sought to further their authentic human development on the basis of their new-found faith as persons created and redeemed by God. He also had to admonish the powerful, in the spirit of our second reading from James, not to abuse and exploit the poor and the weak.”

www.americancatholic.org

LECTIO: MATTHEW 8,18-22

Lectio:  Monday, July 1, 2013 

Ordinary Time

1) Opening prayer

Father,

guide and protector of your people,

grant us an unfailing respect for your name,

and keep us always in your love.

We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,

who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,

on God, for ever and ever. Amen.

2) Gospel Reading - Matthew 8,18-22

When Jesus saw the crowd all about him he gave orders to leave for the other side. One of the scribes then came up and said to him, 'Master, I will follow you wherever you go.' Jesus said, 'Foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of man has nowhere to lay his head.'

Another man, one of the disciples, said to him, 'Lord, let me go and bury my father first.' But Jesus said, 'Follow me, and leave the dead to bury their dead.'

3) Reflection

• From the 10th to the 12th week of ordinary time, we have meditated on chapters 5 to 8 of the Gospel of Matthew. Following the meditation of chapter 8, today’s Gospel presents the conditions of the following of Jesus. Jesus decides to go to the other side of the lake, and a person asks to follow him (Mt 8, 18-22).

• Matthew 8, 18: Jesus orders to go to the other side of the lake. He had accepted and cured all the sick whom people had brought to him (Mt 8, 16). Many people were around him. Seeing that crowd, Jesus decides to go to the other side of the lake. In Mark’s Gospel, from which Matthew takes a great part of his information, the context is diverse. Jesus had just finished the discourse of the parables (Mk 4, 3-34) and said: “Let us go to the other side!” (Mk 4, 35), and, once on the boat from where he had pronounced the discourse (cf. Mk 4, 1-2), the disciples took him to the other side. Jesus was so tired that he went to sleep on a cushion (Mc 4, 38).

• Matthew 8, 19: A doctor of the Law wants to follow Jesus. At the moment in which Jesus decides to cross the lake, a doctor of the law came to him and said: “Master I will follow you wherever you go”. A parallel text in Luke (Lk 9, 57-62) treats the same theme but in a slightly diverse way. According to Luke, Jesus had decided to go to Jerusalem where he would have been condemned and killed. In going toward Jerusalem, he entered the territory of Samaria (Lk 9, 51-52), where three persons ask to follow him (Lk 9, 57.59.61). In Matthew’s Gospel, who writes for the converted Jews, the person who wants to follow Jesus is a doctor of the law. Matthew insists on the fact that an authority of the Jews recognizes the value of Jesus and asks to follow him, to be one of his disciples. In Luke, who writes for the converted pagans, the persons who want to follow Jesus are Samaritans. Luke stresses the ecumenical openness of Jesus who accepts also the non Jews to be his disciples.

• Matthew 8, 20: The response of Jesus to the doctor of the law. The response of Jesus is identical both in Matthew and in Luke, and it is a very demanding response which leaves no doubts: “Foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests but the son of Man has nowhere to lay his head”. Anyone who wants to be a disciple of Jesus has to know what he is doing. He should examine the exigencies and estimate well, before taking a decision (Lk 14, 28-32). “So in the same way none of you can be my disciple without giving up all that he owns”. (Lk 14, 33).

• Matthew 8, 21: A disciple asks to go and bury his father. Immediately, one who was already a disciple asks him permission to go and bury his deceased father: “Lord, let me go and bury my father first”. In other words, he asks Jesus to delay crossing the lake for later after the burial of his father. To bury one’s parents was a sacred duty for the sons (cf. Tb 4, 3-4).

• Matthew 8, 22: The answer of Jesus. Once again the response of Jesus is very demanding. Jesus does not delay his trip over to the other side of the lake and says to the disciple: “Follow me, and leave the dead to bury their dead”. When Elijah called Elisha, he allows him to greet his relatives (1K 19, 20). Jesus is much more demanding. In order to understand all the significance and importance of the response of Jesus it is well to remember that the expression Leave the dead to bury their dead was a popular proverb used by the people to indicate that it is not necessary to spend energies in things which have no future and which have nothing to do with life. Such a proverb should not be taken literally. It is necessary to consider the objective with which it is being used. Thus, in our case, by means of the proverb Jesus stresses the radical exigency of the new life to which he calls and which demands to abandon everything to follow Jesus. It describes the exigencies of following of Jesus. To follow Jesus. Like the rabbi of that time Jesus gathers his disciples . All of them “follow Jesus” To follow was the term which was used to indicate the relationship between the disciple and the master. For the first Christians, to follow Jesus, meant three very important things bound together: a) To imitate the example of the Master: Jesus was the model to be imitated and to recreate in the life of the disciple (Jn 13, 13-15). Living together daily allowed for a constant confrontation. In “Jesus’ School” only one subject was taught: The Kingdom and this Kingdom is recognized in the life and practice of Jesus. b) To participate in the destiny of the Master: Anyone who followed Jesus should commit himself like he to be with him in his privations (Lk 22, 28), including in persecutions (Mt 10, 24-25) and on the Cross (Lk 14, 27). He should be ready to die with him (Jn 11, 16). c) To bear within us the life of Jesus: After Easter, the light of the Resurrection, the following took on a third dimension: "It is no longer I who lives, but Christ lives in me" (Ga 2, 20). It is a question of the mystical dimension of the following, fruit of the action of the Spirit. The Christians tried to follow in their life the path of Jesus who had died in defence of life and rose from the dead thanks to the power of God. (Ph 3, 10-11).

4) Personal questions

• To be a disciple of Jesus. to follow Jesus. How am I living the following of Jesus?

• The foxes have their lairs and the birds of heaven their nests, but the son of man has nowhere to lay his head. How can we live today this exigency of Jesus?

5) Concluding Prayer

Fix your gaze on Yahweh and your face will grow bright,

you will never hang your head in shame.

A pauper calls out and Yahweh hears,

saves him from all his troubles. (Ps 34, 5-6)

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