First Reading
James 5:1-6
Come now, you rich, weep and wail over your impending miseries.
Your wealth has rotted away, your clothes have become moth-eaten,
your gold and silver have corroded,
and that corrosion will be a testimony against you;
it will devour your flesh like a fire.
You have stored up treasure for the last days.
Behold, the wages you withheld from the workers
who harvested your fields are crying aloud;
and the cries of the harvesters
have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts.
You have lived on earth in luxury and pleasure;
you have fattened your hearts for the day of slaughter.
You have condemned;
you have murdered the righteous one;
he offers you no resistance.
Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 49:14-15ab, 15cd-16, 17-18, 19-20
R. (Matthew 5:3) Blessed are the poor in spirit; the Kingdom of heaven is theirs!
This is the way of those whose trust is folly,
the end of those contented with their lot:
Like sheep they are herded into the nether world;
death is their shepherd and the upright rule over them.
R. Blessed are the poor in spirit; the Kingdom of heaven is theirs!
Quickly their form is consumed;
the nether world is their palace.
But God will redeem me
from the power of the nether world by receiving me.
R. Blessed are the poor in spirit; the Kingdom of heaven is theirs!
Fear not when a man grows rich,
when the wealth of his house becomes great,
For when he dies, he shall take none of it;
his wealth shall not follow him down.
R. Blessed are the poor in spirit; the Kingdom of heaven is theirs!
Though in his lifetime he counted himself blessed,
“They will praise you for doing well for yourself,”
He shall join the circle of his forebears
who shall never more see light.
R. Blessed are the poor in spirit; the Kingdom of heaven is theirs!
Gospel
Mark 9:41-50
Jesus said to his disciples:
“Anyone who gives you a cup of water to drink
because you belong to Christ,
amen, I say to you, will surely not lose his reward.
“Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin,
it would be better for him if a great millstone
were put around his neck
and he were thrown into the sea.
If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off.
It is better for you to enter into life maimed
than with two hands to go into Gehenna,
into the unquenchable fire.
And if your foot causes you to sin, cut if off.
It is better for you to enter into life crippled
than with two feet to be thrown into Gehenna.
And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out.
Better for you to enter into the Kingdom of God with one eye
than with two eyes to be thrown into Gehenna,
where their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.
“Everyone will be salted with fire.
Salt is good, but if salt becomes insipid,
with what will you restore its flavor?
Keep salt in yourselves and you will have peace with one another.”
REFLECTION
SOURCE: One Bread One Body
TITLE: MAIN-LINE
"If your foot is your undoing, cut it off!" –Mark 9:45
Jesus commands us to gouge out an eye or cut off a hand or foot under two circumstances. Jesus does not mean for us to literally maim ourselves, but He emphasizes that we should go to great extremes to resist temptations, especially temptations to sin sexually (Mt 5:28-29) or to oppose another's ministry (Mk 9:39-47).
Most of us are surprised by these emphases because we don't think an impure glance or a negative reaction to another's ministry the worst sins imaginable. However, we must lay aside our ideas and take on Jesus' priorities. We must not even mention or allude to sexual sin. Our "holiness forbids this" (Eph 5:3). In addition, we should never hinder, criticize, or gossip about the ministries of other Christians, even if they are from a different denomination or theological background. We must oppose heresies but always encourage those ministering in the name of Jesus, even if not of our company (Mk 9:38ff). We should be more willing to cut out our tongues and maim our physical bodies than to maim the body of Christ by saying a discouraging word about another Christian ministry.
PRAYER: Father, may I maim my physical body before I would maim the body of Christ.
PROMISE: "God will redeem me from the power of the nether world by receiving me." –Ps 49:16
PRAISE: Theresa's quiet acceptance of her suffering transformed her nursing home.
...the word of the Lord...
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