JUNE 22, 2016 : WEDNESDAY OF THE TWELFTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME

Wednesday of the Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 373

Reading 12 KGS 22:8-13; 23:1-3

The high priest Hilkiah informed the scribe Shaphan,
“I have found the book of the law in the temple of the LORD.”
Hilkiah gave the book to Shaphan, who read it.
Then the scribe Shaphan went to the king and reported,
“Your servants have smelted down the metals available in the temple
and have consigned them to the master workmen
in the temple of the LORD.”
The scribe Shaphan also informed the king
that the priest Hilkiah had given him a book,
and then read it aloud to the king.
When the king heard the contents of the book of the law,
he tore his garments and issued this command to Hilkiah the priest,
Ahikam, son of Shaphan,
Achbor, son of Micaiah, the scribe Shaphan,
and the king’s servant Asaiah:
“Go, consult the LORD for me, for the people, for all Judah,
about the stipulations of this book that has been found,
for the anger of the LORD has been set furiously ablaze against us,
because our fathers did not obey the stipulations of this book,
nor fulfill our written obligations.”

The king then had all the elders of Judah
and of Jerusalem summoned together before him.
The king went up to the temple of the LORD with all the men of Judah
and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem:
priests, prophets, and all the people, small and great.
He had the entire contents of the book of the covenant
that had been found in the temple of the LORD, read out to them.
Standing by the column, the king made a covenant before the LORD
that they would follow him
and observe his ordinances, statutes and decrees
with their whole hearts and souls,
thus reviving the terms of the covenant
which were written in this book.
And all the people stood as participants in the covenant.

Responsorial PsalmPS 119:33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 40

R. (33a) Teach me the way of your decrees, O Lord.
Instruct me, O LORD, in the way of your statutes,
that I may exactly observe them.
R. Teach me the way of your decrees, O Lord.
Give me discernment, that I may observe your law
and keep it with all my heart.
R. Teach me the way of your decrees, O Lord.
Lead me in the path of your commands,
for in it I delight.
R. Teach me the way of your decrees, O Lord.
Incline my heart to your decrees
and not to gain.
R. Teach me the way of your decrees, O Lord.
Turn away my eyes from seeing what is vain:
by your way give me life.
R. Teach me the way of your decrees, O Lord.
Behold, I long for your precepts;
in your justice give me life.
R. Teach me the way of your decrees, O Lord.

AlleluiaJN 15:4A, 5B

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Remain in me, as I remain in you, says the Lord;
whoever remains in me will bear much fruit.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

GospelMT 7:15-20

Jesus said to his disciples:
“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing,
but underneath are ravenous wolves.
By their fruits you will know them.
Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles?
Just so, every good tree bears good fruit,
and a rotten tree bears bad fruit.
A good tree cannot bear bad fruit,
nor can a rotten tree bear good fruit.
Every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down
and thrown into the fire.
So by their fruits you will know them.”

www.usccb.org

Meditation: "You will know them by their fruits"

What do grapes, thorns, figs, and thistles have to teach us about the kingdom of God? The imagery used by Jesus would have been very familiar to his audience. A certain thorn bush had berries which resembled grapes. And a certain thistle had a flower, which at least from a distance, resembled the fig. Isn't it the same today? What we "hear" might have a resemblance of the truth, but, in fact, when you inspect it closely, it's actually false. False prophets or teachers abound today as much as they did in biblical times.

What's the test of a true or false teacher? Jesus connects soundness with good fruit. Something is sound when it is free from defect, decay, or disease and is healthy. Good fruit is the result of sound living - living according to moral truth and upright character. The prophet Isaiah warned against the dangers of falsehood: Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness (Isaiah 5:20). The fruits of falsehood produce an easy religion which takes the iron out of religion, the cross out of Christianity, and any teaching which eliminates the hard sayings of Jesus, and which push the judgments of God into the background and makes us think lightly of sin.

How do we avoid falsehood in our personal lives? By being true - true to God, his word, and his grace. And that takes character! Those who are true to God know that their strength lies not in themselves but in God who supplies what we need. The fruit of a disciple is marked by faith, hope and love, justice, prudence, fortitude and temperance. Do you seek to cultivate good fruit in your life and reject whatever produces bad fruit?

"Lord Jesus, may I bear good fruit for your sake and reject whatever will produce evil fruit. Help me grow in faith, hope, love, sound judgment, justice, courage, and self control."

Daily Quote from the early church fathers: Beware of false prophets, by John Chrysostom, 547-407 A.D.

"Jesus reminded them of what happened to their ancestors who were attracted to false prophets. The same dangers are now faced as those that occurred in earlier days. He reminded them of the experience of their ancestors so that they would not despair at the multitude of troubles that would mount up on this way that is narrow and constricted. He reminded them that it is necessary to walk in a way that goes contrary to the common opinion. One must guard oneself not only against pigs and dogs but those other, more elusive creatures: the wolves. They were going to face inward anxieties as well as outward difficulties, but they are not to despair. 'Therefore do not be thrown into confusion,' Jesus says in effect, 'for nothing will happen that is new or strange. Remember that the ancient adversary is forever introducing deception as if true.'" (excerpt from THE GOSPEL OF MATTHEW, HOMILY 23.6)

www.dailyscripture.net

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 22, MATTHEW 7:15-20
Weekday
(2 Kings 22:8-13, 23:1-3; Psalm 119)

KEY VERSE: "By their fruits you will know them" (v 16).
TO KNOW: Jesus warned the Christian community to be on guard against false teachers, which he compared to ravenous wolves disguised as innocent sheep. Their teachings might appear to be harmless, but the effect was as destructive as rot in a sound tree. The way that true Christians could be distinguished from false was by looking at the fruit they produced. Did they promote a spirit of conflict and discord or of unity and faith? Paul listed the fruits of the Spirit as being love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Gal 5:22-23). Christians who are obedient to Christ and his gospel produced good fruit like that of a healthy tree.
TO LOVE: Which fruit of the Spirit do my labors produce?
TO SERVE: Lord Jesus, give me discernment in judging the true from the false.
​ Optional Memorial of Saint Paulinus of Nola, bishop

Paulinus of Nola was a friend of Saint Augustine, and was mentioned for his holiness by at least six of his contemporary saints. A distinguished lawyer, he held several public offices in the Empire, then retired from public work with his wife, Therasia, first to Bordeaux, where they were baptized, and then to Therasia's estate in Spain. After the death of their only son at the age of only a few weeks, the couple decided to spend the rest of their lives devoted to God. They moved to Nola, gave away most of their estates and dedicated themselves to increasing their holiness and helping the poor. Paulinus was chosen bishop of Nola by popular demand, and governed the diocese for more than 21 years while living in his own home as a monk. His writings contain one of the earliest examples of a Christian wedding song.

Optional Memorial of Saint John Fisher, bishop and martyr

John Fisher studied theology at Cambridge University and gained a reputation for his teaching abilities and became Chancellor of Cambridge. He was made Bishop of Rochester at age 35, and worked to raise the standard of preaching. When in 1527 he was asked to study the problem of Henry VIII's marriage, he became the target of Henry's wrath by opposing the King's divorce proceedings against Catherine, his wife, and steadfastly rejecting Henry's claim to be head of the Church in England. John Fisher spent 14 months in prison without trial before execution for treason. He was martyred in 1535 on Tower Hill, London, England; buried in the churchyard of All Hallows, without rites or a shroud. His head was exhibited on London Bridge for two weeks as an example, then thrown into the River Thames. He was canonized in 1935 by Pope Pius XI.

Optional Memorial of Saint Thomas More, martyr

Thomas More studied at London and Oxford. A lawyer, he was twice married, father of one son and three daughters, and a devoted family man. A friend of King Henry VIII, Thomas was made Lord Chancellor of England, a position of power second only to the king. He opposed the king on the matter of royal divorce, and refused to swear the Oath of Supremacy which declared the king the head of the Church in England. He resigned the Chancellorship, and was imprisoned in the Tower of London. He was beheaded in 1535 for his refusal to bend his religious beliefs to the king's political needs. Thomas More's head was kept in the Roper Vault, Saint Dunstan's church, Canterbury, England, and his body at Saint Peter ad Vincula, Tower of London, England. He was canonized in 1935 by Pope Pius XI.

www.togetherwithgodsword.com

Wednesday 22 June, 2016

Wed 22nd.  SS John Fisher and Thomas More.2 Kings 22:8-13; 23:1-3. Teach me the way of your decrees, O Lord—Ps 118(119):33-37, 40. Matthew 7:15-20.

Readings

A good tree cannot bear bad fruit.

It is easy to see hardship, pain and turmoil as failure in our lives. When life brings us kicking and screaming to the floor time after time, we become angry and resentful, and let cynicism take over our wounded aspirations.

 Today’s Gospel, however, is a call on us to produce fruit. It is easier to allow ourselves to become disheartened or resentful when wounded or attacked than to strive for forgiveness and peace, but how much more bitter is the fruit of hate than the fruit of love! In confusion and uncertainty, how much drier and barren is the fruit of hopelessness than the fruit of faith! 

If we strive to produce the better, sweeter fruit, we shall begin to transform that hardship, loneliness and fear from failure into victory, for ‘by their fruits you will know them.’

www.pray.com.au

MINUTE MEDITATIONS 

A Caress in the Night

In the middle of the night of the many ‘nights’ of so many sins which we commit, there is always that caress of the Lord, which seems to say, ‘This is my glory.’

— from Pope Francis Takes the Bus and Other Unexpected Stories 

June 22
St. Thomas More
(1478-1535)

His belief that no lay ruler has jurisdiction over the Church of Christ cost Thomas More his life.

Beheaded on Tower Hill, London, on July 6, 1535, he steadfastly refused to approve Henry VIII’s divorce and remarriage and establishment of the Church of England.

Described as “a man for all seasons,” More was a literary scholar, eminent lawyer, gentleman, father of four children and chancellor of England. An intensely spiritual man, he would not support the king’s divorce from Catherine of Aragon in order to marry Anne Boleyn. Nor would he acknowledge Henry as supreme head of the Church in England, breaking with Rome and denying the pope as head.

More was committed to the Tower of London to await trial for treason: not swearing to the Act of Succession and the Oath of Supremacy. Upon conviction, More declared he had all the councils of Christendom and not just the council of one realm to support him in the decision of his conscience.

Story:

When the executioner offered to blindfold him, More said that he would do this himself. But after he had stretched his head over the low block—it was merely a log of wood—he made a signal to the man to wait a moment. Then he made his last joke: His beard was lying on the block and he would like to remove it. At least that had committed no treason. The heavy axe went slowly up, hung a moment in the air and fell.

Comment:

Four hundred years later in 1935, Thomas More was canonized a saint of God. Few saints are more relevant to our time. In the year 2000 in fact, Saint John Paul II named him patron of political leaders. The supreme diplomat and counselor, he did not compromise his own moral values in order to please the king, knowing that true allegiance to authority is not blind acceptance of everything that authority wants. King Henry himself realized this and tried desperately to win his chancellor to his side because he knew More was a man whose approval counted, a man whose personal integrity no one questioned. But when Thomas resigned as chancellor, unable to approve the two matters that meant most to Henry, the king had to get rid of Thomas More.

Patron Saint of:

Attorneys
Civil servants
Court clerks
Lawyers
Politicians, public servants

www.americancatholic.org

LECTIO DIVINA: MATTHEW 7,15-20

Lectio Divina: 

 Wednesday, June 22, 2016

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,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

2) GOSPEL READING - MATTHEW 7,15-20

Jesus said to his disciples: 'Beware of false prophets who come to you disguised as sheep but underneath are ravenous wolves.

You will be able to tell them by their fruits. Can people pick grapes from thorns, or figs from thistles? In the same way, a sound tree produces good fruit but a rotten tree bad fruit. A sound tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor a rotten tree bear good fruit.

Any tree that does not produce good fruit is cut down and thrown on the fire. I repeat, you will be able to tell them by their fruits.'

3) REFLECTION

• We are reaching the final recommendations of the Sermon on the Mountain. Comparing the Gospel of Matthew with that of Mark one perceives a great difference in the way in which they present the teaching of Jesus. Matthew insists more on the content of the teaching and organizes it into five great Discourses, of which the first one is the Sermon of the Mountain (Mt 5 to 7). Mark, over fifteen times, says that Jesus taught, but he rarely says what he taught. In spite of this difference, both agree on a point: Jesus taught very much. To teach was what Jesus did the most (Mk 2, 13; 4, 1-2; 6, 34). He used to do it always (Mk 10, 1). Matthew is interested in the content. But does he want to say that Mark does not do it? Depends on what we want to say when we speak about content! To teach is not only a question of communicating a truth in such a way that people learn it by heart. The content is not limited to words, but it is also composed by gestures and consists in the way in which Jesus used to relate himself with persons. The content has never been separated from the person who communicates it. The person, in fact, is the origin of the content. The good content without goodness is like milk spilt on the ground. It does not convince and conversion does not take place.

• The final recommendations and the result of the Sermon on the Mountain in the conscience of the people are the points of the Gospel of today (Mt 7, 15-20) and of tomorrow (Mt 7, 21-29). (The sequence of the Gospel of the days of the week is not always the same as that of the Gospels).

Matthew 7, 13-14: Choose the sure way
Matthew 7, 15-20: The prophet is known by the fruits
Matthew 7, 21-23: Not only speak, but act.
Matthew 7, 24-27: Construct the house on rock.
Matthew 7, 28-29: The new conscience of the people.

• Matthew 7, 15-16ª: Beware of false prophets. In the time of Jesus, there were prophets of all types, persons who announced apocalyptic messages to involve people in different movements of that time: Essen, Pharisee, Zelots, and others (cf. Ac 5, 36-37). When Matthew writes there were also prophets who announced messages diverse from the one proclaimed by the community. The Letters of Paul mention these movements and tendencies (cf. 1 Co 12,3; Gal 1,7-9; 2,11-14;6,12). It must not have been easy for the community to make the discernment of spirits. From here results the importance of the words of Jesus on false prophets. The warning of Jesus is very strong: “Beware of false prophets who come to you disguised as sheep but underneath are ravenous wolves”. The same image is used when Jesus sends the disciples on mission: “I am sending you out as sheep among wolves” (Mt 10, 16 e Lc 10, 3). The opposition between the ravenous wolf and the meek sheep is irreconcilable, unless the wolf is converted and looses its aggressiveness as the Prophet Isaiah suggests (Is 11, 6; 65, 25). What is important here in our text is the gift of discernment. It is not easy to discern the spirits. Sometimes it happens that personal interests or of a group lead the person to proclaim false those prophets who announce the truth and disturb. That happened with Jesus. He was eliminated and put to death, considered a false prophet by the religious authority of that time. Ever so often, the same thing has happened and continues to happen in our Church.

• Matthew 7, 16b-20: The comparison of the tree and of its fruits.To help to discern the spirits, Jesus uses the comparison of the fruit: “You will be able to tell them by their fruits”. A similar criterion had been suggested by the Book of Deuteronomy (Dt 18, 21-22). And Jesus adds: “Can you pick grapes from thorns, or figs from thistles? In the same way a sound tree produces good fruit, but a rotten tree bad fruit. A sound tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor a rotten tree bear good fruit. Any tree that does not produce good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. In the Gospel of John, Jesus completes the comparison: “Every branch in me that bears no fruit, he cuts away. Every branch that does bear fruit, he prunes to make it bear even more. As a branch cannot bear fruit all by itself, unless it remains part of the vine, neither can you unless you remain in me. Those branches will be cut off and thrown into the fire to be burnt” (Jn 15, 2.4.6)

4) PERSONAL QUESTIONS

• False prophets! Do you know any case in which a good and honest person who proclaimed a truth which disturbed was condemned as a false prophet?

• In judging from the fruits of the tree of your personal life, how do you define yourself: as false or as true?

5) CONCLUDING PRAYER

Yahweh, look at my suffering and rescue me,
for I do not forget your Law.
Plead my cause and defend me;
as you promised, give me life. (Ps 119,153-154)

www.ocarm.org