My Tuesday Daily Blessings
Be still, quiet your heart and mind, the Lord is here loving you,
talking to you.................
Tuesday of the Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time (Roman Rite Calendar)
*First Reading: 2 Kgs 19:9b-11, 14-21, 31-35a, 36
"Thus shall you say to Hezekiah, king of Judah:
'Do not let your God on whom you rely deceive you by saying that Jerusalem will not be handed over to the king of Assyria.
You have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all other countries: they doomed them!
Will you, then, be saved?'"
Hezekiah took the letter from the hand of the messengers and read it; then he went up to the temple of the LORD, and spreading it out before him, he prayed in the LORD's presence:
"O LORD, God of Israel, enthroned upon the cherubim!
You alone are God over all the kingdoms of the earth.
You have made the heavens and the earth.
Incline your ear, O LORD, and listen!
Open your eyes, O LORD, and see!
Hear the words of Sennacherib which he sent to taunt the living God.
Truly, O LORD, the kings of Assyria have laid waste the nations and their lands, and cast their gods into the fire; they destroyed them because they were not gods, but the work of human hands, wood and stone.
Therefore, O LORD, our God, save us from the power of this man, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you alone, O LORD, are God."
Then Isaiah, son of Amoz, sent this message to Hezekiah:
"Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, in answer to your prayer for help against Sennacherib, king of Assyria:
I have listened!
This is the word the LORD has spoken concerning him:
"'She despises you, laughs you to scorn, the virgin daughter Zion!
Behind you she wags her head, daughter Jerusalem.
"'For out of Jerusalem shall come a remnant, and from Mount Zion, survivors.
The zeal of the LORD of hosts shall do this.'
"Therefore, thus says the LORD concerning the king of Assyria:
'He shall not reach this city, nor shoot an arrow at it, nor come before it with a shield,
nor cast up siege-works against it.
He shall return by the same way he came, without entering the city, says the LORD.
I will shield and save this city for my own sake, and for the sake of my servant David.'"
That night the angel of the LORD went forth and struck down one hundred and eighty-five thousand men in the Assyrian camp.
So Sennacherib, the king of Assyria, broke camp, and went back home to Nineveh.
*Responsorial Psalm: Ps 48:2-3ab, 3cd-4, 10-11
"God upholds his city for ever."
*Gospel Reading: Mt 7:6, 12-14
"Do not give what is holy to dogs, or throw your pearls before swine,
lest they trample them underfoot, and turn and tear you to pieces.
"Do to others whatever you would have them do to you.
This is the Law and the Prophets.
"Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the road broad that leads to destruction, and those who enter through it are many.
How narrow the gate and constricted the road that leads to life.
And those who find it are few."
**Reflection:
Why does Jesus contrast pearls and holiness with dogs and swine? Pearls were of very great value and even considered priceless. The same with holiness because God is all-holy and he invites us to share in his holiness which is very precious and priceless as well. The Talmud, a rabbinic commentary on the Jewish Scriptures, has a proverbial saying for something which is inconguous or out of place: an ear-ring in a swine’s snout. Jesus' expression about "pearls before swine" and "not giving dogs what is holy" is very similar in thought (Matthew 7:6). Jesus’ concern here is not with exclusivity (excluding other people from our love, care, and concern), but with purity – the purity of the faith which has been entrusted to us by an all-holy and all-wise God. The early church referenced this expression with the Eucharist or the Lord’s Table. In the liturgy of the early church, a proclamation was given shortly before communion: Holy things to the holy. The Didache, a first century church manual stated: Let no one eat or drink of your Eucharist except those baptised into the name of the Lord; for, as regards this, the Lord has said, 'Do not give what is holy to dogs.' The Lord Jesus invites us to his table, but we must approach worthily.
Jesus summed up the teaching of the Old Testament law and prophets – So whatever you wish that men would do to you, do so to them (Matthew 7:12) – and in the same breath he raised it to a new level of perfection and fulfillment. The law of love requires more than simply avoiding injury or harm to one's neighbor. Perfect love – a love which is unconditional and which reaches out to all – always seeks the good of others for their sake and gives the best we can offer for their welfare. When we love our neighbors and treat them in the same way we wish to be treated by God and by others, then we fulfill the law and the prophets, namely what God requires of us – loving God with all that we have and are and loving our neighbor as ourselves. How can we love our neighbor selflessly and and show them kindness and concern for their welfare? If we empty our hearts of all unkind and unloving thoughts and sentiments, then there will only be room for kindness, goodness, charity, and mercy. Paul the Apostle reminds us that "God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit which has been given to us" (Romans 5:5). It is the love of God that fuels our unconditional love for others. Are you ready to let the Holy Spirit transform your life with the purifying fire of God's love?
Jesus uses an image (Matthew 7:13-14) which is common in the Old Testament: choosing between two divergent ways or paths – the way that leads to fulfillment and life versus the way that leads to destruction and death. The Book of Psalms begins with an image of a person who has chosen to follow the way of those who are wise and obedient to God's word and who refuse to follow the way of those who think and act contrary to God's law : Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night (Psalm 1:1-2). When a path diverges, such as a fork in the road, each way leads to a different destination. This is especially true when we encounter life’s crossroads where we must make a choice that will affect how we will live our lives. Do the choices you make help you move towards the goal of loving God and obeying his will? The Lord gives us freedom to choose which way we will go. Ask him for the wisdom to know which way will lead to life rather than to death and destruction. See, I have set before you this day life and good, death and evil. ...Therefore choose life that you and your descendants may live (Deuteronmy 3:15-20). Choose this day whom you will serve (Joshua 24:15). Behold I set before you the way of life and the way of death (Jeremiah 21:8). If we allow God's love and wisdom to rule our hearts, then we can trust in his guidance and grace to follow the path of love and holiness.
**Prayer:
Amen.
Sources:
*Lectionary for Mass for Use in the Dioceses of the United States, second typical edition, Copyright © 2001, 1998, 1997, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine; Psalm refrain © 1968, 1981, 1997, International Committee on English in the Liturgy, Inc. All rights reserved. Neither this work nor any part of it may be reproduced, distributed, performed or displayed in any medium, including electronic or digital, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.
**Don Schwager
Author and Writer
Sword of the Spirit and
The Word Among Us
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