Lectionary: 389
Reading 1
Isaiah 1:10-17
Hear the word of the LORD,
princes of Sodom!
Listen to the instruction of our God,
people of Gomorrah!
What care I for the number of your sacrifices?
says the LORD.
I have had enough of whole-burnt rams
and fat of fatlings;
In the blood of calves, lambs and goats
I find no pleasure.
When you come in to visit me,
who asks these things of you?
Trample my courts no more!
Bring no more worthless offerings;
your incense is loathsome to me.
New moon and sabbath, calling of assemblies,
octaves with wickedness: these I cannot bear.
Your new moons and festivals I detest;
they weigh me down, I tire of the load.
When you spread out your hands,
I close my eyes to you;
Though you pray the more,
I will not listen.
Your hands are full of blood!
Wash yourselves clean!
Put away your misdeeds from before my eyes;
cease doing evil; learn to do good.
Make justice your aim: redress the wronged,
hear the orphan’s plea, defend the widow.
Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 50:8-9, 16bc-17, 21 and 23
R. (23b) To the upright I will show the saving power of God.
“Not for your sacrifices do I rebuke you,
for your burnt offerings are before me always.
I take from your house no bullock,
no goats out of your fold.”
R. To the upright I will show the saving power of God.
“Why do you recite my statutes,
and profess my covenant with your mouth,
Though you hate discipline
and cast my words behind you?”
R. To the upright I will show the saving power of God.
“When you do these things, shall I be deaf to it?
Or do you think you that I am like yourself?
I will correct you by drawing them up before your eyes.
He that offers praise as a sacrifice glorifies me;
and to him that goes the right way I will show the salvation of God.”
R. To the upright I will show the saving power of God.
Gospel
Matthew 10:34-11:1
Jesus said to his Apostles:
“Do not think that I have come to bring peace upon the earth.
I have come to bring not peace but the sword.
For I have come to set
a man against his father,
a daughter against her mother,
and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law;
and one’s enemies will be those of his household.
“Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me,
and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me;
and whoever does not take up his cross
and follow after me is not worthy of me.
Whoever finds his life will lose it,
and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.
“Whoever receives you receives me,
and whoever receives me receives the one who sent me.
Whoever receives a prophet because he is a prophet
will receive a prophet’s reward,
and whoever receives a righteous man
because he is righteous
will receive a righteous man’s reward.
And whoever gives only a cup of cold water
to one of these little ones to drink
because he is a disciple–
amen, I say to you, he will surely not lose his reward.”
When Jesus finished giving these commands to his Twelve disciples,
he went away from that place to teach and to preach in their towns.
REFLECTION
SOURCE: One Bread One Body
THEME: MAKE THE CUT
"My mission is to spread, not peace, but division." –Matthew 10:34
One church marquee proclaims, "Jesus adds and multiplies; Satan subtracts and divides." That being so, how do we understand today's Gospel? Jesus is the "Prince of Peace" (Is 9:5), so how can He say he won't bring peace?
Satan divides and conquers to just leave us broken, bitter, and alone. Jesus, on the other hand, divides and separates us from all that keeps us from a close, intimate, personal relationship with Him. He wants full communion with us and nothing less. He has come to divide us – to tear us from relationships with people and things that are keeping us from being closer to Him.
Take a few moments to examine your relationships. Are you spending time with certain people who are pulling you away from Christ? Are you spending too much time in front of the TV or wasting too much time with electronic devices or other inanimate objects that keep you from prayer time? Cut those out of your life. Be in full communion with the Prince of Peace.
Jesus wants to mean everything to you. Let Him into your life today in a bigger, more profound way. Make the cut.
PRAYER: Jesus, give me the grace to remove from my life those things that keep me from being close to You.
PROMISE: "He who will not take up his cross and come after Me is not worthy of Me." –Mt 10:38
PRAISE: St. Kateri retained the heart of a child as she grew in the grace and knowledge of her Lord and Savior. Though her decision to be a Christian placed her future status in great risk, she accepted the good news of Jesus with childlike trust.
Be an inspiration, kindly Share.
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