Saturday of the Thirtieth week in Ordinary Time

Today the Church celebrates : St. Quintin, Martyr (3rd century),  St. Wolfgang

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Saint Francis de Sales : “The one who humbles himself will be exalted.”

Letter to the Romans 11:1-2.11-12.25-29.

I ask, then, has God rejected his people? Of course not! For I too am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin. God has not rejected his people whom he foreknew. Do you not know what the scripture says about Elijah, how he pleads with God against Israel? Hence I ask, did they stumble so as to fall? Of course not! But through their transgression salvation has come to the Gentiles, so as to make them jealous. Now if their transgression is enrichment for the world, and if their diminished number is enrichment for the Gentiles, how much more their full number. I do not want you to be unaware of this mystery, brothers, so that you will not become wise (in) your own estimation: a hardening has come upon Israel in part, until the full number of the Gentiles comes in, and thus all Israel will be saved, as it is written: “The deliverer will come out of Zion, he will turn away godlessness from Jacob; and this is my covenant with them when I take away their sins.” In respect to the gospel, they are enemies on your account; but in respect to election, they are beloved because of the patriarchs. For the gifts and the call of God are irrevocable.

Psalms 94(93):12-13.14-15.17-18.

Happy those whom you guide, LORD, whom you teach by your instruction.
You give them rest from evil days, while a pit is being dug for the wicked.
You, LORD, will not forsake your people, nor abandon your very own.
Judgment shall again be just, and all the upright of heart will follow it.
If the LORD were not my help, I would long have been silent in the grave.
When I say, “My foot is slipping,” your love, LORD, holds me up.

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke 14:1.7-11.

On a sabbath he went to dine at the home of one of the leading Pharisees, and the people there were observing him carefully. He told a parable to those who had been invited, noticing how they were choosing the places of honor at the table. When you are invited by someone to a wedding banquet, do not recline at table in the place of honor. A more distinguished guest than you may have been invited by him, and the host who invited both of you may approach you and say, ‘Give your place to this man,’ and then you would proceed with embarrassment to take the lowest place. Rather, when you are invited, go and take the lowest place so that when the host comes to you he may say, ‘My friend, move up to a higher position.’ Then you will enjoy the esteem of your companions at the table. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”

Copyright © Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, USCCB

Commentary of the day :

Saint Francis de Sales (1567-1622), Bishop of Geneva and Doctor of the Church
Conversations 5

“The one who humbles himself will be exalted.”

Humility is not just about self-mistrust but about the entrusting of ourselves to God. Distrusting ourselves and our own strength produces trust in God and, from that trust, generosity of soul is born. The most holy Virgin, Our Lady, gave us an outstanding example of this when she spoke these words: «Behold I am the handmaid of the Lord, let it be done to me according to your word» (Lk 1,38). When she said she was the handmaid of the Lord she was performing the greatest act of humility it is possible to do, and all the more so in that she was contradicting the praise given her by the angel – that she would be mother of God, that the child to be born from her womb would be called Son of the Most High, a greater dignity than any we might imagine – I say, she opposed her lowliness and unworthiness to all these praises and greatness by saying that she was the handmaid of the Lord. Yet note how, no sooner had she rendered her duty to humility, than she practised notable generosity by saying: «May it be to me according to your word».

What she wanted to say was that, it is true I am in no way capable of this grace if one is to consider what I am of myself, but insofar as what is good in me comes from God and what you say to me is his own most holy will, I believe it may happen and will happen. And so, without the least hesitation, she said: «Let it be done to me according to your word».

Friday of the Thirtieth week in Ordinary Time

Today the Church celebrates : St. Marcellus, Martyr (3rd century),  St. Alphonsus Rodriguez

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Catechism of the Catholic Church: The meaning of the Sabbath

Letter to the Romans 9:1-5.

I speak the truth in Christ, I do not lie; my conscience joins with the holy Spirit in bearing me witness that I have great sorrow and constant anguish in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were accursed and separated from Christ for the sake of my brothers, my kin according to the flesh. They are Israelites; theirs the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the worship, and the promises; theirs the patriarchs, and from them, according to the flesh, is the Messiah. God who is over all be blessed forever. Amen.

Psalms 147:12-13.14-15.19-20.

Glorify the LORD, Jerusalem; Zion, offer praise to your God,
Who has strengthened the bars of your gates, blessed your children within you,
Brought peace to your borders, and filled you with finest wheat.
The LORD sends a command to earth; his word runs swiftly!
The LORD also proclaims his word to Jacob, decrees and laws to Israel.
God has not done this for other nations; of such laws they know nothing. Hallelujah!

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke 14:1-6.

On a sabbath he went to dine at the home of one of the leading Pharisees, and the people there were observing him carefully. In front of him there was a man suffering from dropsy. Jesus spoke to the scholars of the law and Pharisees in reply, asking, “Is it lawful to cure on the sabbath or not?” But they kept silent; so he took the man and, after he had healed him, dismissed him. Then he said to them, “Who among you, if your son or ox falls into a cistern, would not immediately pull him out on the sabbath day?” But they were unable to answer his question.

Copyright © Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, USCCB

Commentary of the day :

Catechism of the Catholic Church
§345-349

The meaning of the Sabbath

The sabbath – the end of the work of the six days:
The sacred text says that “on the seventh day God finished his work which he had done”, that the “heavens and the earth were finished”, and that God “rested” on this day and sanctified and blessed it (Gn 2,13). These inspired words are rich in profitable instruction:
In creation God laid a foundation and established laws that remain firm, on which the believer can rely with confidence, for they are the sign and pledge of the unshakeable faithfulness of God’s covenant. For his part man must remain faithful to this foundation, and respect the laws which the Creator has written into it.
Creation was fashioned with a view to the sabbath and therefore for the worship and adoration of God. Worship is inscribed in the order of creation. As the rule of St. Benedict says, nothing should take precedence over “the work of God”, that is, solemn worship. This indicates the right order of human concerns.
The sabbath is at the heart of Israel’s law. To keep the commandments is to correspond to the wisdom and the will of God as expressed in his work of creation.
The eighth day. But for us a new day has dawned: the day of Christ’s Resurrection. The seventh day completes the first creation. The eighth day begins the new creation. Thus, the work of creation culminates in the greater work of redemption. The first creation finds its meaning and its summit in the new creation in Christ, the splendour of which surpasses that of the first creation.