MASS READINGS & SAINT QUOTE OF THE DAY : Sunday - January 23, 2022

Sunday - January 23, 2022

"God takes especial delight in the humility of a man who believes that he has not yet begun to do any good."

--St. Philip Neri    

January 23, 2022

THIRD SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
Lectionary: 69

 

Reading 1                                                     Neh 8:2-4a, 5-6, 8-10

 

Ezra the priest brought the law before the assembly,

which consisted of men, women,

and those children old enough to understand.

Standing at one end of the open place that was before the Water Gate,

he read out of the book from daybreak till midday,

in the presence of the men, the women,

and those children old enough to understand;

and all the people listened attentively to the book of the law.

Ezra the scribe stood on a wooden platform

that had been made for the occasion.

He opened the scroll

so that all the people might see it

— for he was standing higher up than any of the people —;

and, as he opened it, all the people rose.

Ezra blessed the LORD, the great God,

and all the people, their hands raised high, answered,

“Amen, amen!”

Then they bowed down and prostrated themselves before the LORD,

their faces to the ground.

Ezra read plainly from the book of the law of God,

interpreting it so that all could understand what was read.

Then Nehemiah, that is, His Excellency, and Ezra the priest-scribe

and the Levites who were instructing the people

said to all the people:

“Today is holy to the LORD your God.

Do not be sad, and do not weep”—

for all the people were weeping as they heard the words of the law.

He said further: “Go, eat rich foods and drink sweet drinks,

and allot portions to those who had nothing prepared;

for today is holy to our LORD.

Do not be saddened this day,

for rejoicing in the LORD must be your strength!”

 

Responsorial Psalm                                              Ps 19:8, 9, 10, 15

 

R. (cf John 6:63c) Your words, Lord, are Spirit and life.

 

The law of the LORD is perfect,

            refreshing the soul;

The decree of the LORD is trustworthy,

            giving wisdom to the simple.

R. Your words, Lord, are Spirit and life.

The precepts of the LORD are right,

            rejoicing the heart;

The command of the LORD is clear,

            enlightening the eye.

R. Your words, Lord, are Spirit and life.

The fear of the LORD is pure,

            enduring forever;

The ordinances of the LORD are true,

            all of them just.

R. Your words, Lord, are Spirit and life.

Let the words of my mouth and the thought of my heart

            find favor before you,

O LORD, my rock and my redeemer.

R. Your words, Lord, are Spirit and life.

 

Reading 2                                                     1 Cor 12:12-30

 

Brothers and sisters:

As a body is one though it has many parts,

and all the parts of the body, though many, are one body,

so also Christ.

For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body,

whether Jews or Greeks, slaves or free persons,

and we were all given to drink of one Spirit.

 

Now the body is not a single part, but many.

If a foot should say,

“Because I am not a hand I do not belong to the body, “

it does not for this reason belong any less to the body.

Or if an ear should say,

“Because I am not an eye I do not belong to the body, “

it does not for this reason belong any less to the body.

If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be?

If the whole body were hearing, where would the sense of smell be?

But as it is, God placed the parts,

each one of them, in the body as he intended.

If they were all one part, where would the body be?

But as it is, there are many parts, yet one body.

The eye cannot say to the hand, “I do not need you, “

nor again the head to the feet, “I do not need you.”

Indeed, the parts of the body that seem to be weaker

are all the more necessary,

and those parts of the body that we consider less honorable

we surround with greater honor,

and our less presentable parts are treated with greater propriety,

whereas our more presentable parts do not need this.

But God has so constructed the body

as to give greater honor to a part that is without it,

so that there may be no division in the body,

but that the parts may have the same concern for one another.

If one part suffers, all the parts suffer with it;

if one part is honored, all the parts share its joy.

 

Now you are Christ’s body, and individually parts of it.

Some people God has designated in the church

to be, first, apostles; second, prophets; third, teachers;

then, mighty deeds;

then gifts of healing, assistance, administration,

and varieties of tongues.

Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers?

Do all work mighty deeds? Do all have gifts of healing?

Do all speak in tongues? Do all interpret?

 

OR:

1 Cor 12:12-14, 27

 

Brothers and sisters:

As a body is one though it has many parts,

and all the parts of the body, though many, are one body,

so also Christ.

For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body,

whether Jews or Greeks, slaves or free persons,

and we were all given to drink of one Spirit.

Now the body is not a single part, but many.

You are Christ’s body, and individually parts of it.

 

Alleluia                                                                      Lk 4:18                      

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

The Lord sent me to bring glad tidings to the poor,

and to proclaim liberty to captives.

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

 

Gospel                                                                       Lk 1:1-4; 4:14-21

 

Since many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the events

that have been fulfilled among us,

just as those who were eyewitnesses from the beginning

and ministers of the word have handed them down to us,

I too have decided,

after investigating everything accurately anew,

to write it down in an orderly sequence for you,

most excellent Theophilus,

so that you may realize the certainty of the teachings

you have received.

 

Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit,

and news of him spread throughout the whole region.

He taught in their synagogues and was praised by all.

 

He came to Nazareth, where he had grown up,

and went according to his custom

into the synagogue on the sabbath day.

He stood up to read and was handed a scroll of the prophet Isaiah.

He unrolled the scroll and found the passage where it was written:

            The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,

                        because he has anointed me

                        to bring glad tidings to the poor.

            He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives

                        and recovery of sight to the blind,

                        to let the oppressed go free,

                        and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord.

Rolling up the scroll, he handed it back to the attendant and sat down,

and the eyes of all in the synagogue looked intently at him.

He said to them,

“Today this Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing.”

 

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THE MINISTRY OF CHRIST TODAY

In this Sunday's Gospel reading, we see Jesus announcing the reality of his ministry: "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set the oppressed free, and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord.... Today this Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing."

 

Did this ministry come to an end when he ascended to heaven and disappeared off the face of the earth?

 

As the reading from Corinthians points out, we are now the Body of Christ on earth.

 

We are all -- every one of us -- important parts of this body! Do not underestimate yourself. God created you and brought you into the Church because you can make a significant difference. No one else can do what you can do, the way you can do it, in the plans that he has for making this world a better place.

 

We Christians are, as a community of believers, the Body of Christ on earth. Every time we receive the Body of Christ in Holy Communion, we receive what we are, and thus we're renewed in the continuation of Christ's ministry. His mission is our mission.

 

By receiving Jesus in the Eucharist, we consume not only Jesus in his full humanity and his full divinity, we also consume his ministry. The Spirit of the Lord comes upon us. Every Mass is a renewal of our vocation to bring good news to the poor, to proclaim liberty to captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set the oppressed free, and to proclaim what is acceptable to the Lord.

 

In other words, every time we receive Jesus in the Eucharist, the scripture passage that he quoted in Luke 4:18-21 is fulfilled again.

 

Sin is anything that prevents this from happening.

 

Whenever the prayers of others are not answered, whenever evil is allowed to prevail, whenever souls suffer because they have not heard the good news of salvation in Jesus, it's because the parts of Christ's earthly body that can do something about it are not doing it. God provides everything that's needed on earth through us! Jesus continues his ministry on earth through us!

 

Today's Prayer

 

Beloved Lord: In the desert You prepare me for my mission. Give me the grace of discovering it and of listening to You in the silence of my intimacy with You. Amen.

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God Bless You.....

The Rosary Family

The mother of Jesus promised St. Dominic that, “one day through the rosary & the scapular I shall save the world!”