Friday of the Twentieth Week in Ordinary Time Lectionary: 423
Reading 1 Ez 37:1-14 The hand of the LORD came upon me,
and led me out in the Spirit of the LORD
and set me in the center of the plain,
which was now filled with bones.
He made me walk among the bones in every direction
so that I saw how many they were on the surface of the plain.
How dry they were!
He asked me:
Son of man, can these bones come to life?
I answered, "Lord GOD, you alone know that."
Then he said to me:
Prophesy over these bones, and say to them:
Dry bones, hear the word of the LORD!
Thus says the Lord GOD to these bones:
See! I will bring spirit into you, that you may come to life.
I will put sinews upon you, make flesh grow over you,
cover you with skin, and put spirit in you
so that you may come to life and know that I am the LORD.
I prophesied as I had been told,
and even as I was prophesying I heard a noise;
it was a rattling as the bones came together, bone joining bone.
I saw the sinews and the flesh come upon them,
and the skin cover them, but there was no spirit in them.
Then the LORD said to me:
Prophesy to the spirit, prophesy, son of man,
and say to the spirit: Thus says the Lord GOD:
From the four winds come, O spirit,
and breathe into these slain that they may come to life.
I prophesied as he told me, and the spirit came into them;
they came alive and stood upright, a vast army.
Then he said to me:
Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel.
They have been saying,
"Our bones are dried up,
our hope is lost, and we are cut off."
Therefore, prophesy and say to them: Thus says the Lord GOD:
O my people, I will open your graves
and have you rise from them,
and bring you back to the land of Israel.
Then you shall know that I am the LORD,
when I open your graves and have you rise from them,
O my people!
I will put my spirit in you that you may live,
and I will settle you upon your land;
thus you shall know that I am the LORD.
I have promised, and I will do it, says the LORD. Responsorial Psalm Ps 107:2-3, 4-5, 6-7, 8-9 R. (1) Give thanks to the Lord; his love is everlasting.
Let the redeemed of the LORD say,
those whom he has redeemed from the hand of the foe
And gathered from the lands,
from the east and the west, from the north and the south.
R. Give thanks to the Lord; his love is everlasting.
They went astray in the desert wilderness;
the way to an inhabited city they did not find.
Hungry and thirsty,
their life was wasting away within them.
R. Give thanks to the Lord; his love is everlasting.
They cried to the LORD in their distress;
from their straits he rescued them.
And he led them by a direct way
to reach an inhabited city.
R. Give thanks to the Lord; his love is everlasting.
Let them give thanks to the LORD for his mercy
and his wondrous deeds to the children of men,
Because he satisfied the longing soul
and filled the hungry soul with good things.
R. Give thanks to the Lord; his love is everlasting. Alleluia Ps 25:4b, 5a R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Teach me your paths, my God,
guide me in your truth.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel Mt 22:34-40 When the Pharisees heard that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees,
they gathered together, and one of them,
a scholar of the law, tested him by asking,
"Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?"
He said to him,
"You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart,
with all your soul, and with all your mind.
This is the greatest and the first commandment.
The second is like it:
You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
The whole law and the prophets depend on these two commandments." | Daily Meditation: Ezekiel 37:1-14 I will bring spirit into you, that you may come to life. (Ezekiel 37:5) Ezekiel spoke his famous "dry bones" prophecy during a time when the people of Israel were living in exile in Babylon. The Temple had been destroyed, the city of Jerusalem had been razed, and most of the population had been removed. The people felt that their best days were behind them. But Ezekiel prophesied hope and expectation. Through him, God promised to bring his people back to life—and back to their homeland (Ezekiel 37:12, 14). Do you ever feel as if you are living in exile? Though we are part of a worldwide Church, we can often feel as if our Christian values set us apart from the prevailing philosophies of the world. Like some of the Israelites during the exile, we may even be tempted to let the sinful aspects of the world influence how we think and act. Resisting temptation, as well as coping with the ordinary demands of life, can suck the life out of us. Over time, we can begin to feel just like those dry bones. But that's not what God wants for us! Through Baptism, he has brought us to new life. Now the Holy Spirit lives in us, and the Spirit can renew and restore us. We just have to keep asking him for living water! In fact, we can ask for an outpouring of the Spirit every morning in prayer, even before we face the possibility that something or someone will drain us. Then, when we face challenges, we can draw on the reservoir of his grace and receive renewed hope and determination. You have been filled with God's life. That means that you can be a source of life and hope to those around you—especially to those who don't know Christ. That has been God's plan all along—that as we come alive in Christ, we reveal him to others and invite them into his kingdom. God infused the "dry bones" of the Israelites with new life and brought them home. So, too, God wants to infuse his life into his people and lead them out of exile and into a kingdom that has no end! "Come, Spirit of God, and bring me to life!" Psalm 107:2-9
Matthew 22:34-40 | Reflections with Brother Adrian: | In the Holy Scripture we hear today:
""Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?"
He said to him,
"You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart,
with all your soul, and with all your mind.
This is the greatest and the first commandment.
The second is like it:
You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
The whole law and the prophets depend on these two commandments........"_ end quote. | Did you know that you are supposed to love God with all your soul, mind, and all your heart?
Do we? Do you love God with all your soul, mind, and all of your heart?
It can be tough for one who does not believe well, right?
We are so used to loving only ones or things we can touch. How in the world can we love a God we don't seem to see well or hear well, or touch at all?
How can we love Jesus who died over 2,000 years ago?
There are two ways.
First, about the untouchables. I lost my best friend and dad a couple years ago in the pandemic. Still brings tears to my eyes just mentioning it That means I still love someone that is untouchable now. What difference is that from my great grandparents or Jesus Himself?
It boils down to gratitude. That's how. Because God is more than human, He is beyond Human comprehension. He is right there feeling in your heart what you are feeling. Feeling love for Him, making love happen like special acts of great love in His name brings Him so much love and joy. That's all He asks!
Secondly, we can love the ones we can sense, our neighbors, those we encounter, not just your neighborhood people, but people throughout your day, in any place in the world. If you show love to them, you show love to God. God is in people. That is His flock and His body, especially in the baptized souls.
Most of my greatest miracles are when I expect Jesus in a person, especially a priest in the Holy Sacraments. Outside of Mass and Sacraments, priests need to be shown love as humans. Most people ignore priests or don't want to hang out with them. I invite all priests we know on trips, or dinner, or birthday parties. They need a family too.
But show love to a stranger, and it could change the world. I am older now, mid 40's, I dare to say, but I feel like an older man in his 60s or 70s because that's mostly who I hang out with. Therefore, I see most people under those ages, as my own children in the world. Men or women, I see many of them as my sons or daughters. Some complete strangers I feel absolutely no connection with, I try even harder to break the stranger barrier by at least opening a door for them, or smiling, even if they don't say thanks or smile back. A gentleman, just like God.
You see, God is a giver. Sure He can receive, but He loves to give.
And God calls us to give as He gives, mercy, and then sacrifice, and then a sacrifice of mercy.
So can you love the untouchables?
God does. Pray for us men in a cursillo this weekend. |  audio | Random Bible Verse 1
Ephesians 1:3 3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, | If one day you don't receive these, just visit Going4th.com
God Bless You! Peace | | |
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