The Word today, W13B

July 01 - July 06, 2024

Monday 01 July

St Oliver Plunkett, bishop and martyr

Amos 2:6-10, 13-16 Economic prosperity was built on the back of the poor. The prophet does not hesitate to name it as it is. God is a liberator God who wants justice and freedom for his people.

Matthew 8:18-22 The conditions of discipleship are daunting and, yet, the stories are unfinished and open-ended…

Tuesday 02 July

Amos 3:1-8, 4:11-12 Severely, Amos reminds us that everything has its cause and purpose.

Matthew 8:23-27 The storm and the boat symbolize the experience of the church. The prayer of the disciples could easily be ours today.

Wednesday 03 July

St Thomas, apostle

Ephesians 2:19-22 This short reading is rich in resonance: it presents the Christian life as a home coming (something most of us have experienced), a being built into a house of God.

John 20:24-29 It is interesting that this story survives in p o p u l a r m e m o r y a s “ d o u b t i n g Thomas.” And yet, the central point is his tremendous faith and confession: my Lord and my God, the highest confession of Jesus’ identity in the entire Gospel of John.

Thursday 04 July

St Elizabeth of Portugal

Amos 7:10-17 Amos disturbed the powers that be and in response they tried to silence the prophet. The higher clergy collaborate with the king to get at him, but Amos never falters. The silencing of prophets might perhaps have a special resonance for us at this time.

Matthew 9:1-8 The question is a good one: it is apparently much easier to say your sins are forgiven because the effects are unseen!

Friday 05 July

St Antony Mary Zaccaria, priest

Amos 8:4-6, 9-12 Here is a classic prophetic cry. Amos reminds the people that economic prosperity is a passing illusion and won’t last. Rank injustice, a fruit of that false flourishing, will come to the attention of God. Above all, God’s wants justice for all the people.

Matthew 9:9-13 This story is well remembered and with good reason. After the negative reaction of the Pharisees (who seemingly don’t dare to confront Jesus himself), the Lord speaks three sentences, each worth a meditation in itself.

Saturday 06 July

St Maria Goretti, virgin and martyr St Monnine, hermit

Amos 9:11-15 Prophets can seem predominantly negative and certainly Amos had negative things to say. But even these are expressions of God’s faithfulness. In today passage, it is that very faithfulness of God which is the focus: in spite of everything, God will restore his people.

Matthew 9:14-17 The real focus of this little dispute is the sheer novelty of the proclamation of Jesus, a novelty marked by a break in religious practice. Apart from the forty days in the desert, it seems Jesus did not fast and this scandalised some. But old practices were not adequate to celebrate the radically new teaching of Jesus.

References

-United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. (2024bb, June 30). Thirteenth Sunday in ordinary time. USCCB. https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/063024.cfm

-Sunday readings. (n.d.-s). Hearers of the Word. https://www.tarsus.ie/SundayReadings/

The Word today, W12B

June 24 - June 29, 2024

Monday 24 June

The Birthday of John the Baptist

Isaiah 49:1-6 The mention of “forming in the womb”, a prophetic idiom, makes this a suitable reading for the feast, anticipating the Gospel. Ultimately, the reading points beyond John the Baptist to Jesus as the light of the nations.

Acts 13:22-26 It is not possible to tell the story of salvation, or indeed that of Jesus, without mentioning John the Baptist, as we see in this reading. Luke 1:57-66, 80 Our Gospel is devoted mainly to the naming of John the Baptist and the reaction to his birth. We too are invited to “treasure these things in our heart.”

Tuesday 25 June

2 Kings 19:9-11, 14-21, 31-36 The success of the war against Israel encouraged the Assyrians to attack the southern state of Judah. Hezekiah the king prayed and his prayer was heard. No doubt there was more to it, but the Judeans were truly grateful and felt themselves blessed.

Matthew 7:6, 12-14 There are three sentences here. The second two are easy enough to grasp. The first is odd. Dogs was terms used to to refer to Gentiles and so the sentences may reflect Jesus’ attitude in this God: go only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.

Wednesday 26 June

2 Kings 22:8-13; 23:1-3 This story of a old book coming to light —apparently a chance discovery— played a key role in the development of the Bible. The (re-)discovery of the covenant (probably the substance of the book of Deuteronomy) had a huge effect on them all and they committed themselves once again to the covenant with the Lord.

Matthew 7:15-20 Jesus, who grew up in a very small village in the countryside was a good observer of nature and used it in his teaching. There are always false prophets, seers and visionaries, driven by who knows what? Love alone counts.

Thursday 27 June

St Cyril of Alexandria, bishop and doctor

2 Kings 24:8-17 In our history lesson today, we hear of the last days of the kingdom of Judah. Jerusalem was destroyed and the people deported. It would be hard to exaggerate the importance of this moment in the biblical story. It was a true watershed— something like the famine in Irish history. Things would never be the same.

Matthew 7:21-19 Dried riverbeds (wadis) are subject of flash floods. To build there is very obviously foolish.

Friday 28 June

St Irenaeus, bishop and martyr

2 Kings 25:1-12 Our reading today is meant to shock an it does. First of all, there is the brutality of the execution of king’s sons before his very eyes and then the blinding of the king. That horror leads to another: the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple, erected by Solomon. It is the start of the Babylonian Exile, a watershed event for the ancient Israelites, forever held in their hearts and minds.

Matthew 8:1-4 There are three arresting moments in today’s short Gospel. The man’s plea is full of faith: If you want to… Then, Jesus touches him, breaking one of the purity laws about touching the ritually unclean. Finally, the Jesus of Matthew observes the Law, permitting the man’s re-entry into normal society.

Saturday 29 June

Sts Peter and Paul, apostles

Acts 12:1-11 This symbolic tale reminds us that whatever the appearances, God protects his followers.

2 Timothy 4:6-8, 17-18 Not really from Paul, this is a good reflection back on life as an apostle. He is shown as an old man, full of faith.

Matthew 16:13-16 Peter did attain a special role in the early Church, initially at Antioch in Syria. This present story is unique to Matthew and often thought to be a post-Easter commission account. Given the miraculous birth of John the Baptist, this reading is perfect for the feast.

References

-United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. (2024, June 23). Twelfth Sunday in ordinary time. USCCB. https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/062324.cfm

-Sunday readings. (n.d.-s). Hearers of the Word. https://www.tarsus.ie/SundayReadings/

The Word today, W11B

June 17 - June 22, 2024

Monday 17 June

1 Kings 21:1-16 Our reading today tells the first half of a very nasty abuse of power by a king and his wife. The rest of the story will be heard tomorrow, when the culprits get their comeuppance.

Matthew 5:38-42 We are always tempted to meet violence with violence. Jesus’ alternative is radical.

Tuesday 18 June

1 Kings 21:17-29 This reading is the second part of the yesterday’s nasty story. The powerful monarch is reproved by the proclamation of the prophet, who does not mince his words. The king does respond and even repents…nevertheless, the wheels of justice are set in motion.

Matthew 5:43-48 Jesus quotes the usual attitude—love your neighbor, hate your enemy—and then gives a series of penetrating arguments to offer his alternative vision.

Wednesday 19 June

St Romuald, abbot

2 Kings 2:1, 6-14 This reading tells the very famous story of Elijah and his (underused!) chariot. Behind the drama stands a very ordinary question: when a great spiritual leader departs or dies, will anything of his leadership remain? Yes…but it all depends!

Matthew 6:1-6, 16-18 These two paragraphs surround the Lord’s Prayer and represent a Jewish devotional triad: alms, prayer and fasting. Any attraction to showiness in religion is resolutely set aside.

Thursday 20 June

The Irish Martyrs

Ecclesiasticus 48:1-15 The book of Ecclesiasticus was written long after the life and ministry of Elijah – perhaps some six centuries later. The ancient prophet was still admired and treasured. Today we have a poetic, even glowing account of his career.

Matthew 6:7-15 The introduction to the Lord’s Prayer in Matthew is central and helps us understand the prayer and its brevity. In reality, the Lord’s Prayer is not so much a prayer as a form of words but a method or series of steps in prayer.

Friday 21 June

St Aloysius Gonzaga, religious

2 Kings 11:1-4, 9-18, 20 Our story today is complex: a king’s mother tries to do away with all the surviving members of the royal family. It is not uplifting but also not uncommon in imperial families. Nevertheless, you will notice that there is one survivor, a baby, who ensures that David’s line continues. In this way, the writer tries to show that God’s own faithfulness to the house of David cannot be set aside even by unspeakable horror. The Psalm which follows captures the true meaning of this difficult reading.

Matthew 6:19-23 Our gospel is a challenge and at the centre of that challenge we hear the words of Jesus: For where you treasure is, there will your heart be also.

Saturday 22 June

Sts. John Fisher, bishop, and Thomas More, martyrs or St Paulinus of Nola, bishop

2 Chronicles 24:17-25 Today we have once more a difficult story: a king who turns away from God to idols and even has God’s prophet put to death. The clue about the reading is in the Psalm which follows: even though the kings of Judah were sometimes very unfaithful to God, yet, God remained true to his promise to the house of David. There is some good news— Gospel—in God’s continued fidelity.

Matthew 6:24-34 This is a favorite passage from the Sermon on the Mount, prized by people well beyond frontiers of Christianity. The vision is Jesus is not “airy-fairy” detachment, but a costly choice of values and attitudes, grounded in faith in God. We might feel there’s risk of sheer impracticality but this is overcome by the general statement: “You heavenly father knows you need all these things.”

References

-United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. (2024az, June 16). Eleventh Sunday in ordinary time. USCCB. https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/061624.cfm

-Sunday readings. (n.d.-s). Hearers of the Word. https://www.tarsus.ie/SundayReadings/