Wednesday of the Nineteenth week in Ordinary Time

Book of Deuteronomy 34:1-12.
Then Moses went up from the plains of Moab to Mount Nebo, the headland of Pisgah which faces Jericho, and the LORD showed him all the land-Gilead, and as far as Dan,
all Naphtali, the land of Ephraim and Manasseh, all the land of Judah as far as the Western Sea,
the Negeb, the circuit of the Jordan with the lowlands at Jericho, city of palms, and as far as Zoar.
The LORD then said to him, “This is the land which I swore to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob that I would give to their descendants. I have let you feast your eyes upon it, but you shall not cross over.”
So there, in the land of Moab, Moses, the servant of the LORD, died as the LORD had said;
and he was buried in the ravine opposite Beth-peor in the land of Moab, but to this day no one knows the place of his burial.
Moses was one hundred and twenty years old when he died, yet his eyes were undimmed and his vigor unabated.
For thirty days the Israelites wept for Moses in the plains of Moab, till they had completed the period of grief and mourning for Moses.
Now Joshua, son of Nun, was filled with the spirit of wisdom, since Moses had laid his hands upon him; and so the Israelites gave him their obedience, thus carrying out the LORD’S command to Moses.
Since then no prophet has arisen in Israel like Moses, whom the LORD knew face to face.
He had no equal in all the signs and wonders the LORD sent him to perform in the land of Egypt against Pharaoh and all his servants and against all his land,
and for the might and the terrifying power that Moses exhibited in the sight of all Israel.

Psalms 66(65):1-3.5.8.16-17.
For the leader. A song; a psalm.
Shout joyfully to God, all you on earth; sing of his glorious name; give him glorious praise.
Say to God: “How awesome your deeds! Before your great strength your enemies cringe.
Come and see the works of God, awesome in the deeds done for us.
Bless our God, you peoples; loudly sound his praise,
Come and hear, all you who fear God, while I recount what has been done for me.
I called to the Lord with my mouth; praise was upon my tongue.

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew 18:15-20.
If your brother sins (against you), go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have won over your brother.
If he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, so that ‘every fact may be established on the testimony of two or three witnesses.’
If he refuses to listen to them, tell the church. If he refuses to listen even to the church, then treat him as you would a Gentile or a tax collector.
Amen, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.
Again, (amen,) I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything for which they are to pray, it shall be granted to them by my heavenly Father.
For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.”

Commentary of the day : Saint Caesarius of Arles
“Whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven”

DAILY GOSPEL

«Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.» John 6,68

Tuesday, 11 August 2009

Tuesday of the Nineteenth week in Ordinary Time

Today the Church celebrates : St. Philomena,  St. Clare, Virgin (1194-1253)

See commentary below or click here
Saint Faustina Kowalska : “Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven”

Book of Deuteronomy 31:1-8.

When Moses had finished speaking these words to all Israel, he said to them, “I am now one hundred and twenty years old and am no longer able to move about freely; besides, the LORD has told me that I shall not cross this Jordan. It is the LORD, your God, who will cross before you; he will destroy these nations before you, that you may supplant them. (It is Joshua who will cross before you, as the LORD promised.) The LORD will deal with them just as he dealt with Sihon and Og, the kings of the Amorites whom he destroyed, and with their country. When, therefore, the LORD delivers them up to you, you must deal with them exactly as I have ordered you. Be brave and steadfast; have no fear or dread of them, for it is the LORD, your God, who marches with you; he will never fail you or forsake you.” Then Moses summoned Joshua and in the presence of all Israel said to him, “Be brave and steadfast, for you must being this people into the land which the LORD swore to their fathers he would give them; you must put them in possession of their heritage. It is the LORD who marches before you; he will be with you and will never fail you or forsake you. So do not fear or be dismayed.”

Deut 32:3-4.7.8.9.12.

For I will sing the LORD’S renown. Oh, proclaim the greatness of our God!
The Rock–how faultless are his deeds, how right all his ways! A faithful God, without deceit, how just and upright he is!
Think back on the days of old, reflect on the years of age upon age. Ask your father and he will inform you, ask your elders and they will tell you:
When the Most High assigned the nations their heritage, when he parceled out the descendants of Adam, He set up the boundaries of the peoples after the number of the sons of God;
While the LORD’S own portion was Jacob, His hereditary share was Israel.
The LORD alone was their leader, no strange god was with him.

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew 18:1-5.10.12-14.

At that time the disciples approached Jesus and said, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” He called a child over, placed it in their midst, and said, “Amen, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And whoever receives one child such as this in my name receives me. See that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you that their angels in heaven always look upon the face of my heavenly Father. What is your opinion? If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them goes astray, will he not leave the ninety-nine in the hills and go in search of the stray? And if he finds it, amen, I say to you, he rejoices more over it than over the ninety-nine that did not stray. In just the same way, it is not the will of your heavenly Father that one of these little ones be lost.

Copyright © Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, USCCB

Commentary of the day :

Saint Faustina Kowalska (1905-1938), religious Sister
Diary, § 244 (©Marians of the Immaculate Conception)

“Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven”

Now a gray, ordinary day has begun. The solemn hours of my perpetual vows have passed, but God’s great grace has remained in my soul. I feel I am all God’s; I feel I am his child; I feel I am wholly God’s property. I experience this in a way that can be physically sensed. I am completely at peace about everything because I know it is my Spouse’s business to look after me. I have forgotten myself completely.

My trust in his most merciful Heart has no limits. I am continuously united with him. It seems to me as though Jesus could not be happy without me, nor I without him. Although I understand that, being God, he is happy in himself and has no need of any creature, still, his goodness compels him to give himself to his creatures – and with a generosity beyond our understanding.

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