Tuesday - February 18, 2020
I travel, work, suffer my weak health, meet
with a thousand difficulties, but all these are nothing, for this world is so
small. To me, space is an imperceptible object, as I am accustomed to dwell in
eternity.
-- St. Frances Xavier Cabrini
TODAY'S READINGS
February 18 2020
Tuesday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 336
Reading 1JAS 1:12-18
Blessed is he who perseveres in temptation,
for when he has been proven he will receive the crown of life
that he promised to those who love him.
No one experiencing temptation should say,
“I am being tempted by God”;
for God is not subject to temptation to evil,
and he himself tempts no one.
Rather, each person is tempted when lured and enticed by his desire.
Then desire conceives and brings forth sin,
and when sin reaches maturity it gives birth to death.
for when he has been proven he will receive the crown of life
that he promised to those who love him.
No one experiencing temptation should say,
“I am being tempted by God”;
for God is not subject to temptation to evil,
and he himself tempts no one.
Rather, each person is tempted when lured and enticed by his desire.
Then desire conceives and brings forth sin,
and when sin reaches maturity it gives birth to death.
Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers and sisters:
all good giving and every perfect gift is from above,
coming down from the Father of lights,
with whom there is no alteration or shadow caused by change.
He willed to give us birth by the word of truth
that we may be a kind of first fruits of his creatures.
all good giving and every perfect gift is from above,
coming down from the Father of lights,
with whom there is no alteration or shadow caused by change.
He willed to give us birth by the word of truth
that we may be a kind of first fruits of his creatures.
Responsorial Psalm94:12-13A, 14-15, 18-19
R. (12a) Blessed the man you instruct, O Lord.
Blessed the man whom you instruct, O LORD,
whom by your law you teach,
Giving him rest from evil days.
R. Blessed the man you instruct, O Lord.
For the LORD will not cast off his people,
nor abandon his inheritance;
But judgment shall again be with justice,
and all the upright of heart shall follow it.
R. Blessed the man you instruct, O Lord.
When I say, “My foot is slipping,”
your mercy, O LORD, sustains me;
When cares abound within me,
your comfort gladdens my soul.
R. Blessed the man you instruct, O Lord.
Blessed the man whom you instruct, O LORD,
whom by your law you teach,
Giving him rest from evil days.
R. Blessed the man you instruct, O Lord.
For the LORD will not cast off his people,
nor abandon his inheritance;
But judgment shall again be with justice,
and all the upright of heart shall follow it.
R. Blessed the man you instruct, O Lord.
When I say, “My foot is slipping,”
your mercy, O LORD, sustains me;
When cares abound within me,
your comfort gladdens my soul.
R. Blessed the man you instruct, O Lord.
AlleluiaJN 14:23
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Whoever loves me will keep my word, says the Lord;
and my Father will love him
and we will come to him.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Whoever loves me will keep my word, says the Lord;
and my Father will love him
and we will come to him.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
GospelMK 8:14-21
The disciples had forgotten to bring bread,
and they had only one loaf with them in the boat.
Jesus enjoined them, “Watch out,
guard against the leaven of the Pharisees
and the leaven of Herod.”
They concluded among themselves that
it was because they had no bread.
When he became aware of this he said to them,
“Why do you conclude that it is because you have no bread?
Do you not yet understand or comprehend?
Are your hearts hardened?
Do you have eyes and not see, ears and not hear?
And do you not remember,
when I broke the five loaves for the five thousand,
how many wicker baskets full of fragments you picked up?”
They answered him, “Twelve.”
“When I broke the seven loaves for the four thousand,
how many full baskets of fragments did you pick up?”
They answered him, “Seven.”
He said to them, “Do you still not understand?”
and they had only one loaf with them in the boat.
Jesus enjoined them, “Watch out,
guard against the leaven of the Pharisees
and the leaven of Herod.”
They concluded among themselves that
it was because they had no bread.
When he became aware of this he said to them,
“Why do you conclude that it is because you have no bread?
Do you not yet understand or comprehend?
Are your hearts hardened?
Do you have eyes and not see, ears and not hear?
And do you not remember,
when I broke the five loaves for the five thousand,
how many wicker baskets full of fragments you picked up?”
They answered him, “Twelve.”
“When I broke the seven loaves for the four thousand,
how many full baskets of fragments did you pick up?”
They answered him, “Seven.”
He said to them, “Do you still not understand?”
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What Don't You Understand?
When we sin, it's usually because we don't understand the goodness of God's commandments or the underlying love in the teachings of the Church.
We sabotage our lives with bad decisions or addictions, setting ourselves up for failure, chasing away the friends that God has given us, etc., because we don't understand the damage that we're doing to ourselves.
We don't want to love everyone unconditionally, because we don't understand how God loves us. We run from suffering and we reject those who cause us difficulties, because we don't realize the value of embracing our crosses.
We live in non-sacramental marriages, because we don't understand what's missing. Or we live in a valid divorce without an annulment, because we don't know the healing and freedom we experience in the process.
We're disinterested in ministry, because we don't understand what it's like to be God's partner. We go home from Mass unchanged, because we don't really understand what's happening in the Eucharist.
We reject Church teachings that we don't like, because we don't understand what the Church is really teaching. But if we research them with a humble heart, we discover just how good and loving they really are. They are based on scriptures and on love!
Understanding is a gift of the Holy Spirit. It's one of the fruits of reading the Word of God. It's the blessing that comes from listening when we pray. It's a harvest yielded from retreats, spiritual seminars, and parish missions. It's a grace shared in good conversation with Christian friends. But true understanding is not achieved unless it's heard in the heart. For that, we have to act upon the truth.
We see the truth and we forget it.
We hear the truth and we remember it.
We DO the truth and finally we understand it.
Are you willing to really understand?
Today's Prayer
How poorly I understand sometimes, Lord! You work wonders in my life, You bless me richly, yet I still doubt Your love for me! Thank You Jesus, for loving me, forgiving me, and offering me more opportunities! Amen.
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God Bless You.....
The mother of Jesus promised St. Dominic that, “one day
through the rosary & the scapular I shall save the world!”
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