Reading 1 Ez 2:8—3:4
As for you, son of man, obey me when I speak to you:
be not rebellious like this house of rebellion,
but open your mouth and eat what I shall give you.
It was then I saw a hand stretched out to me,
in which was a written scroll which he unrolled before me.
It was covered with writing front and back,
and written on it was:
Lamentation and wailing and woe!
He said to me: Son of man, eat what is before you;
eat this scroll, then go, speak to the house of Israel.
So I opened my mouth and he gave me the scroll to eat.
Son of man, he then said to me,
feed your belly and fill your stomach
with this scroll I am giving you.
I ate it, and it was as sweet as honey in my mouth.
He said: Son of man, go now to the house of Israel,
and speak my words to them.
Responsorial Psalm Ps 119:14, 24, 72, 103, 111, 131
In the way of your decrees I rejoice,
as much as in all riches.
R. How sweet to my taste is your promise!
Yes, your decrees are my delight;
they are my counselors.
R. How sweet to my taste is your promise!
The law of your mouth is to me more precious
than thousands of gold and silver pieces.
R. How sweet to my taste is your promise!
How sweet to my palate are your promises,
sweeter than honey to my mouth!
R. How sweet to my taste is your promise!
Your decrees are my inheritance forever;
the joy of my heart they are.
R. How sweet to my taste is your promise!
I gasp with open mouth,
in my yearning for your commands.
R. How sweet to my taste is your promise!
Alleluia Mt 11:29ab
Take my yoke upon you and learn from me,
for I am meek and humble of heart.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel Mt 18:1-5, 10, 12-14
The disciples approached Jesus and said,“Who is the greatest in the Kingdom of heaven?”
He called a child over, placed it in their midst, and said,
“Amen, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children,
you will not enter the Kingdom of heaven.
Whoever becomes humble like this child
is the greatest in the Kingdom of heaven.
And whoever receives one child such as this in my name receives me.
“See that you do not despise one of these little ones,
for I say to you that their angels in heaven
always look upon the face of my heavenly Father.
What is your opinion?
If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them goes astray,
will he not leave the ninety-nine in the hills
and go in search of the stray?
And if he finds it, amen, I say to you, he rejoices more over it
than over the ninety-nine that did not stray.
In just the same way, it is not the will of your heavenly Father
that one of these little ones be lost.”
THE LIVING BIBLE
"Eat this scroll, then go, speak to the house of Israel." –Ezekiel 3:1
Before we can speak God's Word in power, we must hear, accept, and digest His Word so completely that it becomes part of us. We must eat the scroll of God's Word (Ez 3:2; Rv 10:9). Then we will become letters "written not with ink but by the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of flesh in the heart" (2 Cor 3:3). As we become walking tabernacles by receiving Holy Communion, so we become walking Bibles when we eat the scroll of God's Word. And, as has been often said, we will be the only Bibles many people will ever read. We become walking Bibles by:
- hearing God's Word and doingit (Mt 7:24; Jas 1:22),
- humbly welcoming "the word that has taken root" in us (Jas 1:21),
- meditating on God's law (Word) day and night (Ps 1:2),
- reciting God's Word "by day and by night" (Jos 1:8), and
- sharing God's Word (see Lk 8:16).
The dogmatic constitution from Vatican II, On Divine Revelation, proclaims: "All the clergy must hold fast to the Sacred Scriptures through diligent sacred reading and careful study, especially the priests of Christ and others, such as deacons and catechists who are legitimately active in the ministry of the Word" (25). This can also apply to all of us. Therefore, eat the scroll, devour God's Word, make it the joy and happiness of your heart (Jer 15:16). In Jesus, the Word became flesh (Jn 1:14). In you, flesh can become the Word.
| PRAYER: | Father, may I love Your Word more than money or pleasure (see Ps 119:72). |
| PROMISE: | "How sweet to my palate are Your promises, sweeter than honey to my mouth!" –Ps 119:103 |
| PRAISE: | As a Jewish Christian, St. Teresa speaks to Israel. She experienced Judaism, atheism, Catholicism, and now sainthood. |
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