GOOD NEWS OF THE DAY : Sunday - November 13, 2022

 

Sunday - November 13, 2022

Help yourself during this troubled period by reading holy books. This reading provides excellent food for the soul and conduces to great progress along the path of perfection. By no means is it inferior to what we obtain through prayer and holy meditation. In prayer and meditation it is ourselves who speak to the Lord, while in holy reading it is God who speaks to us. Before beginning to read, raise your mind to the Lord and implore Him to guide your mind Himself, to speak to your heart and move your will.

¬¬Saint Pio of Pietrelcina

November 13, 2022

Thirty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time

Lectionary: 159

 

Reading I     

                                                                                    Mal 3:19-20a

 

Lo, the day is coming, blazing like an oven,

 when all the proud and all evildoers will be stubble,

 and the day that is coming will set them on fire,

 leaving them neither root nor branch,

 says the LORD of hosts.

 But for you who fear my name, there will arise

 the sun of justice with its healing rays.

 

Responsorial Psalm                                  Ps 98:5-6, 7-8, 9

 

R. (cf. 9)  The Lord comes to rule the earth with justice.

 

Sing praise to the LORD with the harp,

with the harp and melodious song.

With trumpets and the sound of the horn

sing joyfully before the King, the LORD.

R. The Lord comes to rule the earth with justice.

 

Let the sea and what fills it resound,

the world and those who dwell in it;

let the rivers clap their hands,

the mountains shout with them for joy.

R. The Lord comes to rule the earth with justice.

 

Before the LORD, for he comes,

for he comes to rule the earth,

he will rule the world with justice

and the peoples with equity.

R. The Lord comes to rule the earth with justice.

 

Reading II                                                     2 Thes 3:7-12

 

Brothers and sisters:

You know how one must imitate us.

For we did not act in a disorderly way among you,

nor did we eat food received free from anyone.

On the contrary, in toil and drudgery, night and day

we worked, so as not to burden any of you.

Not that we do not have the right.

Rather, we wanted to present ourselves as a model for you,

so that you might imitate us.

In fact, when we were with you,

we instructed you that if anyone was unwilling to work,

neither should that one eat.

We hear that some are conducting themselves among you in a

disorderly way,

by not keeping busy but minding the business of others.

Such people we instruct and urge in the Lord Jesus Christ to work quietly

and to eat their own food.

 

Alleluia                                              Phil 2:8 Lk 21:28     

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Stand erect and raise your heads

because your redemption is at hand.

R. Alleluia

 

Gospel                                                           Lk 21:5-19

 

While some people were speaking about

how the temple was adorned with costly stones and votive offerings,

Jesus said, "All that you see here--

the days will come when there will not be left

a stone upon another stone that will not be thrown down."

 

Then they asked him,

"Teacher, when will this happen?

And what sign will there be when all these things are about to happen?"

He answered,

"See that you not be deceived,

for many will come in my name, saying,

'I am he,' and 'The time has come.'

Do not follow them!

When you hear of wars and insurrections,

do not be terrified; for such things must happen first,

but it will not immediately be the end."

Then he said to them,

"Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.

There will be powerful earthquakes, famines, and plagues

from place to place;

and awesome sights and mighty signs will come from the sky.

 

"Before all this happens, however,

they will seize and persecute you,

they will hand you over to the synagogues and to prisons,

and they will have you led before kings and governors

because of my name.

It will lead to your giving testimony.

Remember, you are not to prepare your defense beforehand,

for I myself shall give you a wisdom in speaking

that all your adversaries will be powerless to resist or refute.

You will even be handed over by parents, brothers, relatives, and friends,

and they will put some of you to death.

You will be hated by all because of my name,

but not a hair on your head will be destroyed.

By your perseverance you will secure your lives."

 

**********************************

 

The Temporary and the Divine

In this Sunday’s Gospel reading, Jesus says that the day will come when not one stone of the temple will be left mortared to another, because it will all be torn down. He’s reminding us that everything here on earth is temporary.

 

Think of what you enjoy here on earth. It’s temporary. What causes you to suffer? It too is temporary. What of this world do you depend on? It’s temporary. What do you admire, trust, save, hope for, spend working hours to achieve and plan relaxation hours for a reward? It’s all temporary — unless we are using it for the Kingdom of God.

 

We know that we’re supposed to focus on the things of God, things that will last for all of eternity, but we’re uncomfortable with the blind faith that this requires. We are like the disciples who looked for God’s vindication against injustices and immorality in the temporal world: wars, earthquakes, plagues and famines. We wish that Jesus would hurry up with his Second Coming and stop all the evils and hardships.

 

In our daily lives, we seek God’s help, but we look for something tangible upon which to base our faith. We want to know the future; we don’t like the insecurity of not knowing what God has planned. We depend on what we can see more than we depend on God whom we cannot see, so we ask God to give us signs.

 

However, the best way to walk forward with God is to raise one foot in air, preparing to take the next step, and — while that foot is still in the air — ask God: “Where do You want me to place my foot next?”

 

This takes balance; if we don’t remain centered in God, we teeter and fall. If God doesn’t show us immediately where to put our foot down to move forward, we can either fall away or fall into his hand.

 

God’s hand is never temporary! God’s hand provides true security based only on his endless, all-powerful, all-knowing love. It doesn’t always feel that way, but his love and protection never fail.

 

Today's Prayer

 

My Lord, may I prepare every day to be Your witness in the most difficult times. May Your Word be always rooted in me to help me be a pleasant temple for your Holy Spirit. Amen. 

 

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!”