Reading I Responsorial Psalm GospelPosted on 02/20/2003 7:32:10 AM PST by Salvation
Reading I Responsorial Psalm GospelReading I
Gn 9:1-13
God blessed Noah and his sons and said to them:
"Be fertile and multiply and fill the earth.
Dread fear of you shall come upon all the animals of the earth
and all the birds of the air,
upon all the creatures that move about on the ground
and all the fishes of the sea;
into your power they are delivered.
Every creature that is alive shall be yours to eat;
I give them all to you as I did the green plants.
Only flesh with its lifeblood still in it you shall not eat.
For your own lifeblood, too, I will demand an accounting:
from every animal I will demand it,
and from one man in regard to his fellow man
I will demand an accounting for human life.
If anyone sheds the blood of man,
by man shall his blood be shed;
For in the image of God
has man been made.
Be fertile, then, and multiply;
abound on earth and subdue it."
God said to Noah and to his sons with him:
"See, I am now establishing my covenant with you
and your descendants after you
and with every living creature that was with you:
all the birds, and the various tame and wild animals
that were with you and came out of the ark.
I will establish my covenant with you,
that never again shall all bodily creatures be destroyed
by the waters of a flood;
there shall not be another flood to devastate the earth."
God added:
"This is the sign that I am giving for all ages to come,
of the covenant between me and you
and every living creature with you:
I set my bow in the clouds to serve as a sign
of the covenant between me and the earth."
Responsorial Psalm
Ps 102:16-18, 19-21, 29 and 22-23
R (20b) From heaven the Lord looks down on the earth.
The nations shall revere your name, O Lord,
and all the kings of the earth your glory,
When the Lord has rebuilt Zion
and appeared in his glory;
When he has regarded the prayer of the destitute,
and not despised their prayer.
R From heaven the Lord looks down on the earth.
Let this be written for the generation to come,
and let his future creatures praise the Lord:
"The Lord looked down from his holy height,
from heaven he beheld the earth,
To hear the groaning of the prisoners,
to release those doomed to die."
R From heaven the Lord looks down on the earth.
The children of your servants shall abide,
and their posterity shall continue in your presence,
That the name of the Lord may be declared in Zion,
and his praise, in Jerusalem,
When the peoples gather together,
and the kingdoms, to serve the Lord.
R From heaven the Lord looks down on the earth.
Gospel
Mk 8:27-33
Jesus and his disciples set out
for the villages of Caesarea Philippi.
Along the way he asked his disciples,
"Who do people say that I am?"
They said in reply,
"John the Baptist, others Elijah,
still others one of the prophets."
And he asked them,
"But who do you say that I am?"
Peter said to him in reply,
"You are the Christ."
Then he warned them not to tell anyone about him.
He began to teach them
that the Son of Man must suffer greatly
and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes,
and be killed, and rise after three days.
He spoke this openly.
Then Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him.
At this he turned around and, looking at his disciples,
rebuked Peter and said, "Get behind me, Satan.
You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do."
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| Thursday, February 20, 2003 Meditation Mark 8:27-33 Who do you say that I am? (Mark 8:29)
During a twenty-five-mile journey to the district of Caesarea Philippi, Jesus asked this question of his close friends. The crowds thought he was one of the great prophets like John the Baptist, who challenged Herod’s lifestyle; or Elijah, who had humiliated five hundred false prophets in a single demonstration. But what did the Twelve say about him? It turns out that even they were not very clear either.
Peter knew that Jesus was “the Christ,” but to him, it meant that Jesus had supernatural power, a divine purpose, and a special relationship with God. Of the deeper and more costly answer to this question—an answer that involved the cross—Peter seemed clueless.
How different are God’s ways from ours! He sent his Son not as a fiery prophet or a social activist, but as a suffering servant whose death would atone for all our sins—past, present, and future. Through Jesus, the cross has become the fountain from which every grace and blessing flows: deliverance from sinful patterns; relief from the “shoulds” and “musts” of legalistic observance; wisdom for living in the world; and freedom from the powers of darkness. The instrument of death has now become the way to freedom and life!
Who do you say Jesus is? What does it mean for you to embrace the cross? The two questions go hand in hand, for a crucified Messiah must have crucified followers. Do you take up the inner battle of saying “no” to fallen ways of thinking and acting, so that you can be lifted up into the life of God? Do you ask the Spirit to write the truths of your redemption on your heart every day? Do you fix your eyes on Jesus, the crucified Messiah, in prayer?
Today, let the Spirit lead you to the cross, where your heart can be healed and your mind renewed. Obey the Spirit’s promptings today—perhaps to deeper repentance, to greater patience, or to stronger love. Listen for his still, small voice as he whispers words of encouragement and correction today. Trust that as you obey the Spirit, he will lead you from death to life.
“Thank you, Jesus, for offering your life as a sacrifice for me. Your wondrous expression of love fills my spirit with gratitude and praise.” |
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“God blessed Noah and his sons and said to them: ‘Be fertile and multiply and fill the earth.’ ” —Genesis 9:1
PAPAL PILGRIMAGE TO FATIMA FOR BEATIFICATIONS
VATICAN (CWNews.com) -- Pope John Paul II traveled to the famed Fatima shrine in Portugal on May 12-13, to preside at the beatification of Francesco and Jacinta Marto, two of the three children to whom the Virgin Mary appeared there in 1917.
During his trip, the Pope made newspaper headlines all over the world by disclosing the content of the "third secret" of Fatima: a vision which essentially predicted the attempt on the Pope's life that occurred on Mary 13, 1981-- the feast of Our Lady of Fatima. (For more details on that announcement, see the special CWNews.com Feature story of May 13.)
The Pope was welcomed at the airport in Lisbon by Portuguese President Jorge Sampaio, and by a large delegation of young children dressed in white. After his helicopter ride to Fatima, he was greeted there by tens of thousands of pilgrims who had come to the shrine for the feast and the beatification ceremonies.
When the Popemobile arrived at the Fatima shrine itself, the crowd cheered enthusiastically, and the cheering stopped only when the Holy Father knelt before the statue of the Virgin Mary. After a few minutes of silent prayer, the Pope saluted the crowd, saying: "It is a great joy for me to come to this blessed place." The Pope did not participate in the candlelight procession to the shrine, which is an annual tradition on the eve of the feast. But after an evening's rest, he returned to the shrine for the beatification ceremonies on the morning of May 13.
"The message of Fatima is an appeal to conversion," the Pope said in his homily. "In her motherly solicitude, the Blessed Virgin came here, to Fatima, to ask men not to offend God any more. It was a mother's sorrow that obliged her to speak." The Pope told the massive congregation-- estimated at 600,000-- that the feast of Bl. Francesco and Jacinta Marto would be observed on February 20, the day when Jacinta died in 1920. He also reminded the congregation of the "intense spirituality" of the young seers, and the fervent prayer which led to their "true mystical union with the Lord."
Just prior to the beatification ceremony, the Pope prayed at the graves of the two Fatima seers.
He also met with privately with the third seer, Sister Lucia, who is now a 93-year-old Carmelite nun. Sister Lucia was also present for the beatification, along with the superior of the convent where she lives in Coimbra, Portugal.
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