June 6, 2015

June 6

June 6, 2015:  Saturday, 9th week, Ordinary Time
  • 'Angel' pin: "I am Raphael, one of the seven angels..." (1st reading)



  • 'Coin' button: Poor widow put in two small coins, her livelihood (gospel)


  • Green shirt: Ordinary Time season


Listen



 Pope Francis
Become artisans of peace (Sarajevo homily):  Peace is God’s dream and plan, but it meets opposition.   War means people in refugee camps, forced displacement, destroyed houses and factories, and shattered lives.  War never again!  Jesus' words resound: “Blessed are the peacemakers,” not, “Blessed are the preachers of peace.”  Crafting peace is skilled work requiring passion, patience, experience, and tenacity.  Blessed are those who sow peace by their daily actions, their attitudes and acts of kindness, fraternity, dialogue, mercy...  God sows peace, always, everywhere; in the fullness of time, he sowed in the world his Son, that we might have peace!  Peacemaking is work to be advanced daily.
“The effect of righteousness will be peace”.  Opus justitiae pax:  peace is a work of justice, justice lived out.  The ultimate fulfilment of justice is love.  When we love, things change, because we change!  Those I considered my enemy have my face, heart, soul, and Father.  Justice is doing to them what I'd want them to do to me.  “Put on... compassion, kindness, lowliness, meekness and patience, forbearance,...  forgiving each other as the Lord has forgiven you.”  That's necessary to become artisans of peace in our daily lives.  But it doesn't all depend on us!  Peace is God's gift; his Spirit can imprint these attitudes in us and make us instruments of peace.  Lord, give us a simple heart, patience, and grace to be merciful and work for justice and peace.
Read
  • Tb 12:1, 5-15, 20  Raphael:  God's works are to be declared, made known, and praised.  Do good, and evil will not find its way to you.  Prayer and fasting are good, almsgiving with righteousness even better.  Almsgiving saves you from death, expiates sin, and gives you a full life.  I presented your prayers to God.  I was sent to put you to the test, and God commissioned me to heal you and Sarah.  I am Raphael, one of the seven angels....  Praise God.
  • Tb 13:2, 6efgh, 7-8  "Blessed be God, who lives for ever," scourges then has mercy, casts down then raises up.  Consider what he's done for you.
  • Mk 12:38-44  Jesus:  “Beware of the scribes, who go around in robes who accept seats of honor and recite long prayers while devouring widows' houses.”   He observed how the rich put large sums into the treasury while a poor widow put in two small coins.  “This poor widow put in more than all the others; they contributed from their surplus, but she contributed all she had, her livelihood.”
Reflect

  • Creighton:  You’ll love giving, even more if you don’t tell anybody about it....
  • One Bread One Body:  "Your practical act of faith":  Angel Raphael told Tobit and Tobiah that almsgiving saves you from death and expiates sin.  We shouldn't give alms in place of faith but as an act of faith.  What's a great, practical act of faith I can do?
    Widow's Mite/ Christensen

  • Passionist:  Jesus encourages us to pray and fast and stresses we're to do good to others. He censures the Scribes with their long robes who accept honors, while the working poor can't afford fine clothes and are ignored, and praises the poor widow who emptied herself, as Jesus would in the ultimate act of almsgiving. The Scribes were self-centered; Jesus was others-centered.  Almsgiving expresses our gratitude for God's gifts and acknowledges it's not just “me and God”;  I'm a member of a faith community and called to be a generous steward helping those in need.
  • DailyScripture.net:  Jesus warned against desire for prominence (vs. selfless service), desire for recognition (vs. promote others' good through service and love), using one's position for personal gain. Relate to God and others with love, honor, and respect; you'll be freed to give liberally to God and neighbor.  Love spends lavishly.  Jesus praised the poor widow over the rich; real giving is from the heart.  The cost to the giver means more than the amount.  What I have may look small, but if I put it at the Lord's disposal, God can work beyond our imagination.
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