September 28, 2012

Friday of the Twenty-fifth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading 1 Eccl 3:1-11

There is an appointed time for everything,
and a time for every thing under the heavens.
A time to be born, and a time to die;
a time to plant, and a time to uproot the plant.
A time to kill, and a time to heal;
a time to tear down, and a time to build.
A time to weep, and a time to laugh;
a time to mourn, and a time to dance.
A time to scatter stones, and a time to gather them;
a time to embrace, and a time to be far from embraces.
A time to seek, and a time to lose;
a time to keep, and a time to cast away.
A time to rend, and a time to sew;
a time to be silent, and a time to speak.
A time to love, and a time to hate;
a time of war, and a time of peace.

What advantage has the worker from his toil?
I have considered the task that God has appointed
for the sons of men to be busied about.
He has made everything appropriate to its time,
and has put the timeless into their hearts,
without man's ever discovering,
from beginning to end, the work which God has done.

Responsorial Psalm Ps 144:1b and 2abc, 3-4

R. (1) Blessed be the Lord, my Rock!
Blessed be the LORD, my rock,
my mercy and my fortress,
my stronghold, my deliverer,
My shield, in whom I trust.
R. Blessed be the Lord, my Rock!
LORD, what is man, that you notice him;
the son of man, that you take thought of him?
Man is like a breath;
his days, like a passing shadow.
R. Blessed be the Lord, my Rock!

Gospel Lk 9:18-22

Once when Jesus was praying in solitude,
and the disciples were with him,
he asked them, "Who do the crowds say that I am?"
They said in reply, "John the Baptist; others, Elijah;
still others, 'One of the ancient prophets has arisen.'"
Then he said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"
Peter said in reply, "The Christ of God."
He rebuked them and directed them not to tell this to anyone.

He said, "The Son of Man must suffer greatly
and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes,
and be killed and on the third day be raised."

One Bread, One Body

<< Friday, September 28, 2012 >>

St. Wenceslaus
St. Lawrence Ruiz
& Companions

Ecclesiastes 3:1-11
View Readings

Psalm 144:1-4

Luke 9:18-22

GETTIN' IT ALL TOGETHER

"He has made everything appropriate to its time, and has put the timeless into their hearts." —Ecclesiastes 3:11

In the old covenant, we could be born and only later die (Eccl 3:2). However, in the new covenant, when we believe in Jesus, we die to self (Jn 12:24) and are born again at the same time (see Jn 3:3, 5). Moreover, in Jesus, seeking and losing are not necessarily opposites (see Eccl 3:6). Only when we lose our lives (Lk 9:24) can we seek first God's kingdom (Mt 6:33). Also, love and hate are not always opposites (Eccl 3:8). We hate sin because we love sinners and especially because we love God. Finally, because Jesus is our Peace (Eph 2:14), we have a peace beyond understanding (Phil 4:7). Our peace is not incompatible with war (Eccl 3:8). Rather, we have peace in the midst of a spiritual war (Eph 6:12; Rv 19:14ff).

Because of sin, creation and our human nature are fallen. Our hearts are restless. We struggle with inner conflicts (Jas 4:1). In the old covenant, "all the works of the Most High...come in pairs, the one the opposite of the other" (Sir 33:15). In the new covenant, Jesus has destroyed "the devil's works" (1 Jn 3:8) and has reconciled "everything in His Person, both on earth and in the heavens" (Col 1:20). "All this has been done by God, Who has reconciled us to Himself through Christ and has given us the ministry of reconciliation" (2 Cor 5:18).

Prayer: Jesus, I give my life to You.

Promise: The Son of Man "must first endure many sufferings, be rejected by the elders, the high priests and the scribes, and be put to death, and then be raised up on the third day." —Lk 9:22

Praise: St. Lawrence told his executioners: "I am a Christian. I shall die for God, and for Him I would give many thousands of lives, so do with me what you please."

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