Posted on 02/01/2024 9:08:36 AM PST by annalex
Thursday of week 4 in Ordinary Time ![]() Saint Brigid Catholic Parish, Midland, MI Readings at MassLiturgical Colour: Green. Year: B(II).
David's dying exhortation to SolomonAs David’s life drew to its close he laid this charge on his son Solomon, ‘I am going the way of all the earth. Be strong and show yourself a man. Observe the injunctions of the Lord your God, following his ways and keeping his laws, his commandments, his customs and his decrees, as it stands written in the Law of Moses, that so you may be successful in all you do and undertake, so that the Lord may fulfil the promise he made me, “If your sons are careful how they behave, and walk loyally before me with all their heart and soul, you shall never lack for a man on the throne of Israel.”’ So David slept with his ancestors and was buried in the Citadel of David. David’s reign over Israel lasted forty years: he reigned in Hebron for seven years, and in Jerusalem for thirty-three. Solomon was seated upon the throne of David, and his sovereignty was securely established.
You, Lord, are the ruler of all. May you be blessed, O Lord, the God of Israel, our father, for ever, for ages unending! You, Lord, are the ruler of all. Yours, Lord, are greatness and power, and splendour, triumph, and glory. All is yours, in heaven and on earth. You, Lord, are the ruler of all. Yours, Lord, is the kingdom; you are supreme above all. Both honour and riches come from you. You, Lord, are the ruler of all. You are the ruler of all, from your hand come strength and power; from your hand come greatness and might. You, Lord, are the ruler of all.
Alleluia, alleluia! I call you friends, says the Lord, because I have made known to you everything I have learnt from my Father. Alleluia!
Alleluia, alleluia! The kingdom of God is close at hand: repent and believe the Good News. Alleluia!
'Take nothing with you'Jesus made a tour round the villages, teaching. Then he summoned the Twelve and began to send them out in pairs giving them authority over the unclean spirits. And he instructed them to take nothing for the journey except a staff – no bread, no haversack, no coppers for their purses. They were to wear sandals but, he added, ‘Do not take a spare tunic.’ And he said to them, ‘If you enter a house anywhere, stay there until you leave the district. And if any place does not welcome you and people refuse to listen to you, as you walk away shake off the dust from under your feet as a sign to them.’ So they set off to preach repentance; and they cast out many devils, and anointed many sick people with oil and cured them. Christian Art![]() Each day, The Christian Art website gives a picture and reflection on the Gospel of the day. The readings on this page are from the Jerusalem Bible, which is used at Mass in most of the English-speaking world. The New American Bible readings, which are used at Mass in the United States, are available in the Universalis apps, programs and downloads. |
KEYWORDS: catholic; mk6; ordinarytime; prayer;
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Mark | |||
English: Douay-Rheims | Latin: Vulgata Clementina | Greek NT: Byzantine/Majority Text (2000) | |
Mark 6 | |||
7. | And he called the twelve; and began to send them two and two, and gave them power over unclean spirits. | Et vocavit duodecim : et cœpit eos mittere binos, et dabat illis potestatem spirituum immundorum. | και προσκαλειται τους δωδεκα και ηρξατο αυτους αποστελλειν δυο δυο και εδιδου αυτοις εξουσιαν των πνευματων των ακαθαρτων |
8. | And he commanded them that they should take nothing for the way, but a staff only: no scrip, no bread, nor money in their purse, | Et præcepit eis ne quid tollerent in via, nisi virgam tantum : non peram, non panem, neque in zona æs, | και παρηγγειλεν αυτοις ινα μηδεν αιρωσιν εις οδον ει μη ραβδον μονον μη πηραν μη αρτον μη εις την ζωνην χαλκον |
9. | But to be shod with sandals, and that they should not put on two coats. | sed calceatos sandaliis, et ne induerentur duabus tunicis. | αλλ υποδεδεμενους σανδαλια και μη ενδυσησθε δυο χιτωνας |
10. | And he said to them: Wheresoever you shall enter into an house, there abide till you depart from that place. | Et dicebat eis : Quocumque introieritis in domum, illic manete donec exeatis inde : | και ελεγεν αυτοις οπου εαν εισελθητε εις οικιαν εκει μενετε εως αν εξελθητε εκειθεν |
11. | And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear you; going forth from thence, shake off the dust from your feet for a testimony to them. | et quicumque non receperint vos, nec audierint vos, exeuntes inde, excutite pulverem de pedibus vestris in testimonium illis. | και οσοι αν μη δεξωνται υμας μηδε ακουσωσιν υμων εκπορευομενοι εκειθεν εκτιναξατε τον χουν τον υποκατω των ποδων υμων εις μαρτυριον αυτοις αμην λεγω υμιν ανεκτοτερον εσται σοδομοις η γομορροις εν ημερα κρισεως η τη πολει εκεινη |
12. | And going forth they preached that men should do penance: | Et exeuntes prædicabant ut pœnitentiam agerent : | και εξελθοντες εκηρυσσον ινα μετανοησωσιν |
13. | And they cast out many devils, and anointed with oil many that were sick, and healed them. | et dæmonia multa ejiciebant, et ungebant oleo multos ægros, et sanabant. | και δαιμονια πολλα εξεβαλλον και ηλειφον ελαιω πολλους αρρωστους και εθεραπευον |
(*) In v.11: αμην λεγω υμιν ανεκτοτερον εσται σοδομοις η γομορροις εν ημερα κρισεως η τη πολει εκεινη -- "Verily I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrha in the day of judgment, than for that city" is not in the translations
6:6–13
6. —And he went round about the villages, teaching.
7. And he called unto him the twelve, and began to send them forth by two and two; and gave them power over unclean spirits;
8. And commanded them that they should take nothing for their journey, save a staff only; no scrip, no bread, no money in their purse:
9. But be shod with sandals; and not put on two coats.
10. And he said unto them, In what place soever ye enter into an house, there abide till ye depart from that place.
11. And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear you, when ye depart thence, shake off the dust under your feet for a testimony against them. Verily I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrha in the day of judgment, than for that city.
12. And they went out, and preached that men should repent.
13. And they cast out many devils, and anointed with oil many that were sick, and healed them.
THEOPHYLACT. The Lord not only preached in the cities, but also in villages, that we may learn not to despise little things, nor always to seek for great cities, but to sow the word of the Lord, in abandoned and lowly villages. Wherefore it is said, And he went round about the villages, teaching.
BEDE. (in Marc. 2, 24) Now our kind and merciful Lord and Master did not grudge His servants and their disciples His own virtues, and as He Him self had healed every sickness and every infirmity, so also He gave the same power to His disciples. Wherefore it goes on: And he called unto him the twelve, and began to send them forth by two and two; and gave them power over unclean spirits. Great is the difference between giving and receiving. Whatsoever He does, is done in His own power, as Lord; if they do any thing, they confess their own weakness and the power of the Lord, saying in the name of Jesus, Arise, and walk.
THEOPHYLACT. Again He sends the Apostles two and two that they, might become more active; for, as says the Preacher, Two are better than one. (Eccl. 4:9) But if He had sent more than two, there would not have been a sufficient number to allow of their being sent to many villages.
GREGORY. (Hom. in Evan. 17) Further, the Lord sent the disciples to preach, two and two, because there are two precepts of charity, namely, the love of God, and of our neighbour; and charity cannot be between less than two; by this therefore He implies to us, that he who has not charity towards his neighbour, ought in no way to take upon himself the office of preaching. There follows, And he commanded them, that they should take nothing for their journey, save a staff only; no scrip, no bread, no money in their purse: but be shod with sandals; and not put on two coats.
BEDE. (ubi sup.) For such should be the preacher’s trust in God, that, though he takes no thought for supplying his own wants in this present world, yet he should feel most certain that these will not be left unsatisfied, lest whilst his mind is taken up with temporal things, he should provide less of eternal things to others.
PSEUDO-CHRYSOSTOM. (Vict. Ant. e Cat. in Marc.) The Lord also gives them this command, that they might shew by their mode of life, how far removed they were from the desire of riches.
THEOPHYLACT. Instructing them also by this means not to be fond of receiving gifts, in order too that those, who saw them proclaim poverty, might be reconciled to it, when they saw that the Apostles themselves possessed nothing.
AUGUSTINE. (de Con. Evan. 2, 30.) Or else; according to Matthew (Matt. 10:19), the Lord immediately subjoined, The workman is worthy of his meat, which sufficiently proves why He forbade their carrying or possessing such things; not because they were not necessary, but because He sent them in such a way as to shew, that they were due to them from the faithful, to whom they preached the Gospel. From this it is evident, that the Lord did not mean by this precept that the Evangelists ought to live only on the gifts of those to whom they preach the Gospel, else the Apostle transgressed this precept, when he procured his livelihood, by the labour of his own hands, but He meant that He had given them a power, in virtue of which, they might be assured, these things were due to them. It is also often asked, how it comes that Matthew and Luke have related that the Lord commanded His disciples not to carry even a staff, whilst Mark says, And he commanded them that they should take nothing for their journey, save a staff only. Which question is solved, by supposing that the word ‘staff’ has a meaning in Mark, who says that it ought to be carried, different from that which it bears in Matthew and Luke, who affirm the contrary. For in a concise way one might say, Take none of the necessaries of life with you, nay, not a staff, save a staff only; so that the saying, nay not a staff, may mean, nay not the smallest thing; but that which is added, save a staff only, may mean that, through the power received by them from the Lord, of which a rod is the ensign, nothing, even of those things which they do not carry, will be wanting to them. The Lord therefore said both, but because one Evangelist has not given both, men suppose, that he who has said that the staff, in one sense, should be taken, is contrary to him who again has declared, that, in another sense, it should be left behind: now however that a reason has been given, let no one think so. So also when Matthew declares that shoes are not to be worn on the journey, he forbids anxiety about them, for the reason why men are anxious about carrying them, is that they may not be without them. This is also to be understood of the two coats, that no man should be troubled about having only that with which he is clad, from anxiety lest he should need another, when he could always obtain one from the power given by the Lord. In like manner Mark, by saying that they are to be shod with sandals or soles, warns us that this mode of protecting the feet has a mystical signification, that the foot should neither be covered above nor be naked on the ground, that is, that the Gospel should neither be hid, nor rest upon earthly comforts; and in that He forbids their possessing or taking with them, or more expressly their wearing, two coats, He bids them walk simply, not with duplicity. But whosoever thinks that the Lord could not in the same discourse say some things figuratively, others in a literal sense, let him look into His other discourses, and he shall see, how rash and ignorant is his judgment.
BEDE. (ubi sup.) Again, by the two tunics He seems to me to mean two sets of clothes; not that in places like Scythia, covered with the ice and snow, a man should be content with only one garment, but by coat, I think a suit of clothing is implied, that being clad with one, we should not keep another through anxiety as to what may happen.
PSEUDO-CHRYSOSTOM. (Vict. Ant. e Cat. in Marc.) Or else, Matthew and Luke neither allow shoes nor staff, which is meant to point out the highest perfection. But Mark bids them take a staff and be shod with sandals, which (1 Cor. 7:6) is spoken by permission.
BEDE. (ubi sup.) Again, allegorically; under the figure of a scrip is pointed out the burdens of this world, by bread is meant temporal delights, by money in the purse, the hiding of wisdom; because he who receives the office of a doctor, should neither be weighed down by the burden of worldly affairs, nor be made soft by carnal desires, nor hide the talent of the word committed to him under the ease of an inactive body. It goes on, And he said unto them, In what place soever ye enter into an house, there abide till ye depart from that place. Where He gives a general precept of constancy, that they should look to what is due to the tie of hospitality, adding, that it is inconsistent with the preaching of the kingdom of heaven to run about from house to house.
THEOPHYLACT. That is, lest they should be accused of gluttony in passing from one to another. It goes on, And whoever shall not receive you, &c. This the Lord commanded them, that they might shew that they had walked a long way for their sakes, and to no purpose. Or, because they received nothing from them, not even dust, which they shake off, that it might be a testimony against them, that is, by way of convicting themv.
PSEUDO-CHRYSOSTOM. (Vict. Ant. e Cat. in Marc.) Or else, that it might be a witness of the toil of the way, which they sustained for them; or as if the dust of the sins of the preachers was turned against themselves. It goes on, And they went and preached that men should repent. And they cast out many devils, and anointed with oil many that were sick, and healed them. Mark alone mentions their anointing with oil. James however, in his canonical Epistle, says a thing similar. For oil both refreshes our labours, and gives us light and joy; but again, oil signifies the mercy of the unction of God, the healing of infirmity, and the enlightening of the heart, the whole of which is worked by prayer.
THEOPHYLACT. It also means, the grace of the Holy Ghost, by which we are eased from our labours, and receive light and spiritual joy.
BEDE. (ubi sup.) Wherefore it is evident from the Apostles themselves, that it is an ancient custom of the holy Church that persons possessed or afflicted with any disease whatever, should be anointed with oil consecrated by priestly blessing.
Catena Aurea Mark 6
Brigid was committed to the religious life, and her small oratory at Kildare became a center of religion and learning, and developed into a Cathedral city. She founded two Monastic Institutions, one for men, and the other for women. She appointed St. Conleth as spiritual pastor of them. Brigid also founded a school of art, including metal work and illumination; St. Conleth presided over this school.
She was a friend to St. Patrick, and their friendship was said to be the pillars of the Irish people. There was so great a friendship of charity that they had but one heart and one mind. It was through St. Patrick and St. Brigid that Christ performed many great works. Those who had witnessed them recorded miracles during her lifetime or had some relation to the person who had. Most of her miracles were attributed to women, and if she wished or predicted something to occur, it came to pass. A few examples – on Easter Sunday a leper had come to Brigid to ask for a cow. She asked for a time to rest and would help him later, but he couldn’t wait and said he would go elsewhere for a cow. Brigid then offered to heal him, but the man stubbornly replied that his condition allowed him to acquire more than he would if he was healthy. She replied that was not true, and had one of her maidens wash the man with a blessed mug of water. He was instantly cured and vowed to serve Brigid.
On another occasion Brigid was traveling to see a physician for her headache. His wife was not able to have children that survived, except the two daughters that were deaf and couldn’t speak since their birth. She was traveling with these daughters when the horse suddenly stopped causing St. Brigid to wound her head on a stone. He blood mixed with the water, and she instructed the girl to pour the bloodied water onto her neck in God’s name, causing the girl to be healed. The other sister bowed down, and was instantly healed as well. She told the cured sisters to return home and they would birth as many male children as their mother had lost. From that moment on, anyone who touched that stone that injured St. Brigid was healed.
One of the more commonly told stories of St. Brigid was when she went to the King of Leinster to ask for land to build a convent. She told him the place where she stood was the perfect place for a convent. It was beside a forest, easy to collect wood for fire and berries. There was also a lake nearby for water. He laughed at her and refused to give her any land. Brigid prayed to God and asked him to soften the King’s heart. Then she smiled at the King and said, “Will you give me as much land as my cloak will cover”? The King thought she was joking and agreed, telling her to spread her cloak on the ground. She asked her four friends to hold a corner of the cloak and walk in opposite directions, and they did. The cloak grew immediately and began to cover many acres of land. The King realized that she was blessed by God, fell to the ground and knelt before her and promised her not only land, but money, food, and supplies. He was converted and started to help the poor, and commissioned the construction of her new Convent. Her land produced blueberries for jam in profound abundance, and people from all over Ireland sought it out.
She died at Kildare on February 1. She is buried at Downpatrick with St. Columba and St. Patrick, with whom she is the patron of Ireland.
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