MARCH 01, 2019 : FRIDAY OF THE SEVENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME

Friday of the Seventh Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 345

Reading 1SIR 6:5-17

A kind mouth multiplies friends and appeases enemies,
and gracious lips prompt friendly greetings.
Let your acquaintances be many,
but one in a thousand your confidant.
When you gain a friend, first test him,
and be not too ready to trust him.
For one sort is a friend when it suits him,
but he will not be with you in time of distress.
Another is a friend who becomes an enemy,
and tells of the quarrel to your shame.
Another is a friend, a boon companion,
who will not be with you when sorrow comes.
When things go well, he is your other self,
and lords it over your servants;
But if you are brought low, he turns against you
and avoids meeting you.
Keep away from your enemies;
be on your guard with your friends.
A faithful friend is a sturdy shelter;
he who finds one finds a treasure.
A faithful friend is beyond price,
no sum can balance his worth.
A faithful friend is a life-saving remedy,
such as he who fears God finds;
For he who fears God behaves accordingly,
and his friend will be like himself.

Responsorial PsalmPS 119:12, 16, 18, 27, 34, 35

R. (35a)  Guide me, Lord, in the way of your commands.
Blessed are you, O LORD;
teach me your statutes.
R. Guide me, Lord, in the way of your commands.
In your statutes I will delight;
I will not forget your words.
R. Guide me, Lord, in the way of your commands.
Open my eyes, that I may consider
the wonders of your law. 
R. Guide me, Lord, in the way of your commands.
Make me understand the way of your precepts,
and I will meditate on your wondrous deeds.
R. Guide me, Lord, in the way of your commands.
Give me discernment, that I may observe your law
and keep it with all my heart.
R. Guide me, Lord, in the way of your commands.
Lead me in the path of your commands,
for in it I delight.
R. Guide me, Lord, in the way of your commands.

AlleluiaSEE JN 17:17B, 17A

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Your word, O Lord, is truth;
consecrate us in the truth.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

GospelMK10:1-12

Jesus came into the district of Judea and across the Jordan.
Again crowds gathered around him and, as was his custom,
he again taught them.
The Pharisees approached him and asked,
"Is it lawful for a husband to divorce his wife?"
They were testing him.
He said to them in reply, "What did Moses command you?"
They replied,
"Moses permitted a husband to write a bill of divorce
and dismiss her."
But Jesus told them,
"Because of the hardness of your hearts
he wrote you this commandment.
But from the beginning of creation, God made them male and female.
For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother
and be joined to his wife,
and the two shall become one flesh.
So they are no longer two but one flesh.
Therefore what God has joined together,
no human being must separate."
In the house the disciples again questioned Jesus about this.
He said to them,
“Whoever divorces his wife and marries another
commits adultery against her;
and if she divorces her husband and marries another,
she commits adultery.”

 www.usccb.org

Meditation: What God has joined together

What is God's intention for our state in life, whether married or single? Jesus deals with the issue of divorce by taking his hearers back to the beginning of creation and to God's plan for the human race. In Genesis 2:23-24 we see God's intention and ideal that two people who marry should become so indissolubly one that they are one flesh. That ideal is found in the unbreakable union of Adam and Eve. They were created for each other and for no one else. They are the pattern and symbol for all who were to come.

We belong to God and not to ourselves
Jesus explains that Moses permitted divorce as a concession in view of a lost ideal. Jesus sets the high ideal of the married state before those who are willing to accept his commands. Jesus, likewise sets the high ideal for those who freely renounce marriage for the sake of the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 19:11-12). Both marriage and celibacy are calls from God to live a consecrated life, that is to live as married couples or as singles who belong not to themselves but to God. Our lives are not our own - they belong to God (1 Corinthians 6:19b,20; Romans 14:7-8). 

The Lord Jesus through the gift of the Holy Spirit gives the grace and the power to those who seek to follow his way of holiness in their state of life. His grace and power bring freedom, discipline, and strength to live a life of love, joy, and holiness. Do you seek the Lord and his grace (his strength and power) in your state of life?

"Lord Jesus Christ, your call to holiness extends to all in every state of life. Sanctify our lives - as married couples and as singles - that we may live as men and women who are consecrated to you. Make us leaven in a society that disdains life-long marriage fidelity, chastity, and living single for the Lord".   

Daily Quote from the early church fathers: Mutual servants, equally serving, by Tertullian, 160-225 A.D.

"Where are we to find language adequately to express the happiness of that marriage which the church cements, the oblation confirms, the benediction signs and seals, the angels celebrate, and the Father holds as approved? For all around the earth young people do not rightly and lawfully wed without their parents' consent. What kind of yoke is that of two believers who share one hope, one desire, one discipline, one service? (Ephesians 4:4) They enjoy kinship in spirit and in flesh. They are mutual servants with no discrepancy of interests. Truly they are 'two in one flesh' (Genesis 2:24; Matthew 19:5; Ephesians 5:31). Where the flesh is one, the spirit is one as well. Together they pray, together bow down, together perform their fasts, mutually teaching, mutually entreating, mutually upholding. In the church of God they hold an equal place. (Romans 12:15; 15:6; Galatians 3:28; 1 Corinthians 12:12) They stand equally at the banquet of God, equally in crises, equally facing persecutions, and equally in refreshments. Neither hides anything from the other. Neither neglects the other. Neither is troublesome to the other (Philippians 1:27)." (excerpt from TO HIS WIFE 2.8)

www.dailyscripture.net

FRIDAY, MARCH 1, MARK 10:1-12
Weekday
(Sirach 6:5-17; Psalm 119)

KEY VERSE: "Therefore what God has joined together, no human being must separate" (v 9).
TO KNOW: At the time of Jesus, Rabbis differed in their opinion as to what constituted sufficient grounds for divorce. The scriptures permitted a man to divorce his wife for immoral behavior (Dt 24:1). A woman had no such rights. When some Pharisees questioned Jesus regarding divorce, he gave them the authentic interpretation of the Law by recalling the basic values underlying the scriptures. God's original intent was that a man and woman become "one body" (Gn 2:21-24), a symbol of God's unity with the people. This relationship should not be sundered without sufficient cause or capricious human will. In the letter to the Ephesians, marriage foreshadowed Christ's oneness with his Church (Eph 5:32).
TO LOVE: Am I committed to my vocation as a sign of my fidelity to Christ?
TO SERVE: Lord Jesus, bring your compassionate healing to all who suffer separation and divorce.

WORLD DAY OF PRAYER

 World Day of prayer is a worldwide ecumenical movement of Christian women who come together in prayer on the first Friday of March in more than 170 countries and regions of various races, cultures and traditions. Through the World Day of Prayer, women affirm that prayer and action are inseparable and that both have immeasurable influence in the world. Women around the world are encouraged:
* to become aware of the whole world and no longer live in isolation
* to be enriched by the faith experience of Christians of other countries and cultures
* to take up the burdens of other people and pray with and for them
* to become aware of their talents and use them in the service of society.

www.togetherwithgodsword.com

Friday 1 March 2019

Ecclesiasticus 6:5-17. Psalm 118(119):12, 16, 18, 27, 34-35. Mark 10:1-12

Guide me, Lord, in the way of your commands. 

‘Faithful friends are a sturdy shelter: whoever finds one has found a treasure.’

Today’s reading from Ecclesiasticus, otherwise known as the Wisdom of Sirach, offers insight into the gift of friendship. Some friends stay for a while, or eat at table with you, before leaving ‘in time of trouble.’ The author counsels us to be on guard with our friends until such time as they prove their fidelity.

On a more hopeful note, faithful friends are ‘a treasure’ beyond worth. They offer ‘life-saving medicine’ and neighbourly consolation. Friendship comes as a gift from the Lord, and we who ‘fear the Lord’ will find friends in our days.

The flipside of all this is what we do to become faithful to the friends we have. Praying for our friends and enemies alike helps us deepen our relationships with all sorts of people. Let us bring these relationships to prayer, so that we may make space for friendship.

www.pray.com.au

Saint David of Wales

Saint of the Day for March 1

(d. March 1, 589)

 

Stained glass of Saint David of Wales | All Saints Episcopal Church, San Francisco, CA | photo by AJ Alfieri-Crispin

Saint David of Wales’ Story

David is the patron saint of Wales and perhaps the most famous of British saints. Ironically, we have little reliable information about him.

It is known that he became a priest, engaged in missionary work, and founded many monasteries, including his principal abbey in southwestern Wales. Many stories and legends sprang up about David and his Welsh monks. Their austerity was extreme. They worked in silence without the help of animals to till the soil. Their food was limited to bread, vegetables and water.

In about the year 550, David attended a synod where his eloquence impressed his fellow monks to such a degree that he was elected primate of the region. The episcopal see was moved to Mynyw, where he had his monastery, now called St. David’s. He ruled his diocese until he had reached a very old age. His last words to his monks and subjects were: “Be joyful, brothers and sisters. Keep your faith, and do the little things that you have seen and heard with me.”

Saint David is pictured standing on a mound with a dove on his shoulder. The legend is that once while he was preaching a dove descended to his shoulder and the earth rose to lift him high above the people so that he could be heard. Over 50 churches in South Wales were dedicated to him in pre-Reformation days.

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Reflection

Were we restricted to hard manual labor and a diet of bread, vegetables and water, most of us would find little reason to rejoice. Yet joy is what David urged on his brothers as he lay dying. Perhaps he could say that to them—and to us—because he lived in and nurtured a constant awareness of God’s nearness. For, as someone once said, “Joy is the infallible sign of God’s presence.” May his intercession bless us with the same awareness!

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Saint David of Wales is the Patron Saint of:

Wales

www.franciscanmedia.org

Lectio Divina: Mark 10:1-12

Lectio Divina

Friday, March 1, 2019

Ordinary Time

1) Opening prayer

Father,
keep before us the wisdom and love
You have revealed in Your Son.
Help us to be like Him

in word and deed,
for He lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

2) Gospel Reading - Mark 10:1-12

Jesus came into the district of Judea and across the Jordan. Again crowds gathered around him and, as was his custom, he again taught them. The Pharisees approached him and asked, "Is it lawful for a husband to divorce his wife?" They were testing him. He said to them in reply, "What did Moses command you?" They replied, "Moses permitted a husband to write a bill of divorce and dismiss her." But Jesus told them, "Because of the hardness of your hearts he wrote you this commandment. But from the beginning of creation, God made them male and female. For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh. So they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, no human being must separate." In the house the disciples again questioned Jesus about this. He said to them, "Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery against her; and if she divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery."

3) Reflection

• Yesterday’s Gospel indicated the advice given by Jesus on the relationship between adults and children, between the great and the little ones in society. Today’s Gospel advises us how the relationship between man and woman should be, between wife and husband.

• Mark 10:1-2: the question of the Pharisees: “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?” The question is a malicious one. It wants to put Jesus to the test. This is a sign that Jesus had a different opinion, because if this was not so the Pharisees would not have questioned Him on this matter. They do not ask if it is lawful for the wife to divorce the husband. That was not allowed. This is a clear sign of the strong dominion of men and the marginalization of women in the society of that time.

• Mark 10:3-9: The answer of Jesus: man cannot divorce his wife. Instead of responding, Jesus asks: “What did Moses command you?” The Law permitted a man to draw up a writ of dismissal in cases of divorce. This permission reveals the reigning machismo of the time. Man could divorce his wife, but the woman did not have the same right. Jesus explains that Moses acted that way because they were so hardhearted, but that the intention of God was different when He created the human being. Jesus goes back to the plan of the Creator and denies to man the right to divorce his wife. He takes away the privilege of man regarding his wife and asks for the maximum equality between the two.

• Mark 10:10,12: Equality of man and woman. At home the disciples asked Jesus something on this point. Jesus draws the conclusions and reaffirms the equality of rights and duties between man and woman. The Gospel of Matthew adds a comment of the disciples on this point. They say: “If that is how things are between husband and wife, it is advisable not to marry” (Mt 19:10). Jesus goes to the very depth of the question and says that there are only three cases in which a person is permitted not to get married: “Not everyone can understand it but only those to whom it is granted. In fact there are eunuchs born so from their mother’s womb; there are eunuchs made so by human agency and there are eunuchs who have made themselves so for the sake of the kingdom of Heaven. Let anyone accept this who can. (Mt 19:11-12). The three cases are: “(a) impotence, (b) castration, and (c) for the Kingdom. Not to get married only because man does not want to lose dominion over woman, this is not permitted by the New Law of Love! Matrimony as well as celibacy should be at the service of the Kingdom and not at the service of egoistic or selfish interests. Neither one of these can be a reason to maintain man’s dominion on woman. Jesus changed the relationship man-woman, wife-husband.

4) Personal questions

• Equality in society is always framed in terms of power. Yet, this last week we have read almost every day about service, humility, and welcoming children. Jesus taught us to serve, to be humble, to welcome and care for the children in order to reach the Kingdom of God. It is not for the powerful. Who is closer to the Kingdom?

• In the life of my family and of my community, do we focus on power, or on service and humility as a basis for equality?

• Within community, how important to equality is listening, obedience, and prayer (obsculta, oboedientia, oratio) and what roles and purpose do each of these contribute to equality?

5) Concluding Prayer

Yahweh is tenderness and pity,
slow to anger and rich in faithful love;
His indignation does not last for ever,
nor His resentment remain for all time. (Ps 103:8-9)

www.ocarm.org