Wednesday - February 20, 2019
We must therefore be dead to every desire and interest of self and have in view only the desires and interests of Jesus within us. He is there only to live again for the glory of His Father; He gives Himself in Holy Communion in order to foster this ineffable union and make it closer.
-- St. Peter Julian Eymard
We must therefore be dead to every desire and interest of self and have in view only the desires and interests of Jesus within us. He is there only to live again for the glory of His Father; He gives Himself in Holy Communion in order to foster this ineffable union and make it closer.
-- St. Peter Julian Eymard
February 20 2019
Wednesday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 337
Reading 1GN 8:6-13, 20-22
At the end of forty days Noah opened the hatch he had made in the ark,
and he sent out a raven,
to see if the waters had lessened on the earth.
It flew back and forth until the waters dried off from the earth.
Then he sent out a dove,
to see if the waters had lessened on the earth.
But the dove could find no place to alight and perch,
and it returned to him in the ark,
for there was water all over the earth.
Putting out his hand, he caught the dove
and drew it back to him inside the ark.
He waited seven days more and again sent the dove out from the ark.
In the evening the dove came back to him,
and there in its bill was a plucked-off olive leaf!
So Noah knew that the waters had lessened on the earth.
He waited still another seven days
and then released the dove once more;
and this time it did not come back.
In the six hundred and first year of Noah’s life,
in the first month, on the first day of the month,
the water began to dry up on the earth.
Noah then removed the covering of the ark
and saw that the surface of the ground was drying up.
Noah built an altar to the LORD,
and choosing from every clean animal and every clean bird,
he offered burnt offerings on the altar.
When the LORD smelled the sweet odor, he said to himself:
“Never again will I doom the earth because of man
since the desires of man’s heart are evil from the start;
nor will I ever again strike down all living beings, as I have done.
As long as the earth lasts,
seedtime and harvest,
cold and heat,
Summer and winter,
and day and night
shall not cease.”
and he sent out a raven,
to see if the waters had lessened on the earth.
It flew back and forth until the waters dried off from the earth.
Then he sent out a dove,
to see if the waters had lessened on the earth.
But the dove could find no place to alight and perch,
and it returned to him in the ark,
for there was water all over the earth.
Putting out his hand, he caught the dove
and drew it back to him inside the ark.
He waited seven days more and again sent the dove out from the ark.
In the evening the dove came back to him,
and there in its bill was a plucked-off olive leaf!
So Noah knew that the waters had lessened on the earth.
He waited still another seven days
and then released the dove once more;
and this time it did not come back.
In the six hundred and first year of Noah’s life,
in the first month, on the first day of the month,
the water began to dry up on the earth.
Noah then removed the covering of the ark
and saw that the surface of the ground was drying up.
Noah built an altar to the LORD,
and choosing from every clean animal and every clean bird,
he offered burnt offerings on the altar.
When the LORD smelled the sweet odor, he said to himself:
“Never again will I doom the earth because of man
since the desires of man’s heart are evil from the start;
nor will I ever again strike down all living beings, as I have done.
As long as the earth lasts,
seedtime and harvest,
cold and heat,
Summer and winter,
and day and night
shall not cease.”
Responsorial PsalmPS 116:12-13, 14-15, 18-19
R. (17a) To you, Lord, I will offer a sacrifice of praise.
or:
R. Alleluia.
How shall I make a return to the LORD
for all the good he has done for me?
The cup of salvation I will take up,
and I will call upon the name of the LORD.
R. To you, Lord, I will offer a sacrifice of praise.
or:
R. Alleluia.
My vows to the LORD I will pay
in the presence of all his people.
Precious in the eyes of the LORD
is the death of his faithful ones.
R. To you, Lord, I will offer a sacrifice of praise.
or:
R. Alleluia.
My vows to the LORD I will pay
in the presence of all his people,
In the courts of the house of the LORD,
in your midst, O Jerusalem.
R. To you, Lord, I will offer a sacrifice of praise.
or:
R. Alleluia.
or:
R. Alleluia.
How shall I make a return to the LORD
for all the good he has done for me?
The cup of salvation I will take up,
and I will call upon the name of the LORD.
R. To you, Lord, I will offer a sacrifice of praise.
or:
R. Alleluia.
My vows to the LORD I will pay
in the presence of all his people.
Precious in the eyes of the LORD
is the death of his faithful ones.
R. To you, Lord, I will offer a sacrifice of praise.
or:
R. Alleluia.
My vows to the LORD I will pay
in the presence of all his people,
In the courts of the house of the LORD,
in your midst, O Jerusalem.
R. To you, Lord, I will offer a sacrifice of praise.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Alleluia SEE EPH 1:17-18
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
May the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ
enlighten the eyes of our hearts,
that we may know what is the hope
that belongs to his call.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
May the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ
enlighten the eyes of our hearts,
that we may know what is the hope
that belongs to his call.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
GospelMK 8:22-26
When Jesus and his disciples arrived at Bethsaida,
people brought to him a blind man and begged Jesus to touch him.
He took the blind man by the hand and led him outside the village.
Putting spittle on his eyes he laid his hands on the man and asked,
“Do you see anything?”
Looking up the man replied, “I see people looking like trees and walking.”
Then he laid hands on the man’s eyes a second time and he saw clearly;
his sight was restored and he could see everything distinctly.
Then he sent him home and said, “Do not even go into the village.”
people brought to him a blind man and begged Jesus to touch him.
He took the blind man by the hand and led him outside the village.
Putting spittle on his eyes he laid his hands on the man and asked,
“Do you see anything?”
Looking up the man replied, “I see people looking like trees and walking.”
Then he laid hands on the man’s eyes a second time and he saw clearly;
his sight was restored and he could see everything distinctly.
Then he sent him home and said, “Do not even go into the village.”
******************************
Who is Influencing Your Faith?
In today's Gospel reading, why does Jesus lead the blind man away from the village to heal him? And why did he warn him not to go back into the village?
I think a clue to the answer is in how long it took him to receive his healing. Jesus gave him vision, but he only received it partially; Jesus had to pray for him a second time.
Have you ever "seen" something new, some new insight or answered prayer, which helped you grow in faith, but when you told others about it, their skepticism made you doubt it? We have to protect our minds from anything that hampers our belief in God's love and his compassionate help.
When we share our good news, if it's not accepted, it's better to "leave that village" or at least change the subject. This is not anti-evangelization; we are not failing to be the witnesses that Christ commissioned us to be when we were baptized.
The blind man was probably too easily influenced by the doubts of the people around him. If he had trouble believing that a miracle would actually happen to him, it's no wonder his healing came slowly. Jesus dealt with this by taking him by the hand and giving him private attention. Had Jesus prayed for him in front of the townsfolk, the man might have focused on them and their opinions, rather than on Jesus.
We need to be selective about the people we listen to and spend time with. In the business world, those most likely to succeed are people who make friends with those who are already successful. Psychological studies have shown that by surroundings ourselves with happy, upbeat people, our spirits are uplifted, and that we when we're constantly with people who are depressed and pessimistic, we become like them. In Christianity, spending time with others who are strong in the faith will help us grow in the faith.
For this reason, it's very important that whenever our churches offer parish retreats and other faith-building events, we should make it a top priority to attend -- and stay afterwards for the refreshments to socialize with others. We should also join Small Christian Communities (faith-sharing groups) or Charismatic prayer groups to gain more faith-filled friendships.
When we spend time being influenced by truly Christian people and truly Christ-like attitudes, we open our hearts to the truth, the healings, and the answers to our prayers that we need. As we grow stronger in faith, we become the successful witnesses that Christ commissioned us to be. Then, the time and compassion we give to others will open their hearts for the truth and the miracles that Jesus wants to give to them.
Today's Prayer:
Thank You, my Lord Jesus, for wanting me to see clearly. Grant me the grace to trust Your timing and Your ways. Amen.
------------------------------
God Bless You.....
Rosary Family
The mother of Jesus promised St. Dominic that, “one day through the rosary & the scapular I shall save the world!”
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