Lectionary: 381
Reading 1
Amos 8:4-6, 9-12
Hear this, you who trample upon the needy
and destroy the poor of the land!
“When will the new moon be over,” you ask,
“that we may sell our grain,
and the sabbath, that we may display the wheat?”
We will diminish the containers for measuring,
add to the weights,
and fix our scales for cheating!
We will buy the lowly man for silver,
and the poor man for a pair of sandals;
even the refuse of the wheat we will sell!”
On that day, says the Lord GOD,
I will make the sun set at midday
and cover the earth with darkness in broad daylight.
I will turn your feasts into mourning
and all your songs into lamentations.
I will cover the loins of all with sackcloth
and make every head bald.
I will make them mourn as for an only son,
and bring their day to a bitter end.
Yes, days are coming, says the Lord GOD,
when I will send famine upon the land:
Not a famine of bread, or thirst for water,
but for hearing the word of the LORD.
Then shall they wander from sea to sea
and rove from the north to the east
In search of the word of the LORD,
but they shall not find it.
Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 119:2, 10, 20, 30, 40, 131
R. (Matthew 4:4) One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.
Blessed are they who observe his decrees,
who seek him with all their heart.
R. One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.
With all my heart I seek you;
let me not stray from your commands.
R. One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.
My soul is consumed with longing
for your ordinances at all times.
R. One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.
The way of truth I have chosen;
I have set your ordinances before me.
R. One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.
Behold, I long for your precepts;
in your justice give me life.
R. One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.
I gasp with open mouth
in my yearning for your commands.
R. One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.
Gospel
Matthew 9:9-13
As Jesus passed by,
he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the customs post.
He said to him, “Follow me.”
And he got up and followed him.
While he was at table in his house,
many tax collectors and sinners came
and sat with Jesus and his disciples.
The Pharisees saw this and said to his disciples,
“Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?”
He heard this and said,
“Those who are well do not need a physician, but the sick do.
Go and learn the meaning of the words,
I desire mercy, not sacrifice.
I did not come to call the righteous but sinners.”
REFLECTION
SOURCE: One Bread One Body
THEME: VIVE LA DIFFERENCE!
"When will the new moon be over?" –Amos 8:5
Like worshippers in Amos' time, many of today's worshippers think: "When will church be over? Then I can:
• watch the ball games,
• go see a movie,
• tell my neighbor how much I dislike my priest's homilies,
• get something to eat,
• do my own thing, or
• remind God what a sacrifice it is to be at church today."
After we heed the call of Jesus to "go and learn the meaning of the words: 'It is mercy I desire and not sacrifice' " (Mt 9:13), then our worship changes. During Mass, we think: "When church is over, I can:
• tell my family that I love them,
• share Jesus with my neighbors, even with the outcast (Mt 9:10),
• thank and encourage my priest (see Heb 13:17),
• follow Jesus (Mt 9:9),
• show mercy to someone who has hurt me (Mt 9:13), and
• let God know how grateful I am for His mercy to me."
Do you see what Jesus means when He points out the difference between heartfelt mercy and sacrifice?
PRAYER: "Jesus, meek and humble of heart, make my heart like unto Thine."
PROMISE: "Happy are they who observe His decrees, who seek Him with all their heart." –Ps 119:2
PRAISE: St. Elizabeth didn't wait until her husband treated her well to love him. She loved him as he was with all his faults and sinfulness.
Be an inspiration, kindly Share!
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