Year I

19th Week in Ordinary Time, Monday, Year I

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Moses in today’s First Reading reminds the Israelites as they prepare to enter the Promised Land how privileged they are to have been chosen and blessed by the Lord. Everything in creation belongs to the Lord, yet the People of Israel are a prized possession. In other moments of the Old Testament the Lord has promised to be as a father to Israel, and we know now that in the Lord’s eyes we are far more than a prized possession; we are his cherished sons and daughters.

The Lord is not only perfectly impartial, he is also perfectly compassionate, and Moses invites the Israelites to do the same, reminding them of everything the Lord has done for their ancestors to lead them to this moment. Long before the new Pharaoh enslaved them in Egypt they were a small group invited by their brother Joseph to settle in Egypt, and now, at the threshold of the Promised Land, they are a numerous nation, just as the Lord had promised to the Patriarchs. Through Baptism we form part of the new People of God, a people of faith, hope, and charity spread throughout the world for no other reason than Our Lord’s compassion toward us.

It’s salutary to count your blessings once in a while. Ask the Lord to help you today to see all the blessings he has given you.

Readings: Deuteronomy 10:12–22; Psalm 147:12–15, 19–20; Matthew 17:22–27. See also 19th Week in Ordinary Time, Monday, Year II.

17th Week in Ordinary Time, Wednesday, Year I

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In today’s First Reading the Israelites are so disturbed by the change in Moses’ countenance after conversing with the Lord that he needs to start wearing a veil when dealing with them in day to day affairs. His face now reflects something unearthly, something divine. The face is one of the most expressive parts of the human body: your countenance is like a window into your mood, even your soul. Imagine what transformation had taken place in Moses after encountering the Lord.

Moses spoke with the Lord face to face. He was transformed by having such intimacy with the Lord. The rest of us here on earth would have to wait until the Incarnation to be able to see the Lord face to face in Jesus, but that encounter transforms us too. When we live our faith, something changes in our life, and people notice, especially those who haven’t experienced God in their life. In the Old Testament looking upon the face of the Lord risked death; in the new we give witness to the fact that we have seen the face of God in Jesus Christ.

Lumen Gentium, the constitution of the Second Vatican Council on the Church, says the Church reflects the light of Christ. Let’s all try to reflect the light of Christ in our lives.

Readings: Exodus 34:29–35; Psalm 99:5–7, 9; Matthew 13:44–46.

16th Week in Ordinary Time, Wednesday, Year I

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In today’s First Reading it doesn’t take long for the Israelites to prefer the thought of full stomachs and slavery to hunger pangs and freedom. The Exodus is not just a historical event; it is also the drama of man turning away from sin physically while still feeling its attraction spiritually and psychologically. Egypt in this story represents sin, which is spiritual slavery, no matter how much it seems to satisfy us. The satisfaction of sin is a hollow one. It promises contentment, but only delivers misery.

The Lord has led the Israelites out of the slavery of Egypt (sin) to form them as his people in the desert (conversion and purification). Conversion and purification can be as dry and unsatisfying, humanly speaking, as wandering the desert on an empty stomach, but it reminds us that true spiritual freedom is worth any price, any suffering.

Don’t become discouraged when your thoughts drift back to whatever slavery you’ve left behind. Savor the freedom instead. It’s an acquired taste, but a much more satisfying one.

Readings: Exodus 16:1–5, 9–15; Psalm 78:18–19, 23–28; Matthew 13:1–9. See also 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle A and 16th Week in Ordinary Time, Wednesday, Year II.

13th Week in Ordinary Time, Friday, Year I

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In today’s readings we see the first steps of two connected legacies being assured. In the First Reading Sarah’s death and Abraham’s old age show a generation passing and the need to ensure a legacy of blessings for the generations to come. Abraham paves the way for his son Isaac, the inheritor and custodian of the promises of God, to marry and become a patriarch in his own right. His inheritance is not just material wealth; it is to transmit the faith and promises that the Lord made to Abraham, promises underway: a great nation, and a land to call their own. Isaac himself is the first sign of God fulfilling his promises.

In today’s Gospel Our Lord calls Matthew to be one of his apostles. Our Lord himself would be the one to definitively fulfill the promises made to Abraham: beyond the earthly promised land and simply biological progeny, Our Lord would become a blessing for all nations, gathering them in the Promised Land of Heaven for all eternity. The Apostles would be entrusted with this inheritance, including Matthew, and transmit it to future generations of believers: the Gospel.

Both Abraham and Matthew knew that if they turned back to their past they’d lose all the Lord had given them: Abraham was called out of the land of his birth and his kin in faith and insists that Isaac not return there for any reason. It’s as if doing so would be turning his back on the faith and promises that had taken him so far. Similarly, Matthew turned his back on sin and never looked back.

We are the inheritors of the Gospel too. Let’s transmit it to future generations as our legacy and never look back to the life we lived before we received it.

Readings: Genesis 23:1–4, 19, 24:1–8, 62–67; Psalm 106:1b–5; Matthew 9:9–13. See also St. Matthew, Apostle and Evangelist.

 

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12th Week in Ordinary Time, Wednesday, Year I

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In today’s Gospel the Lord puts us on guard against prophets who seem innocuous, even helpful, but actually have ulterior motives, none of them good. Travelers have lamented getting sick on seemingly delicious wild berries and mushrooms, only to find out that they’re poisonous. It takes knowledge to test a prophet and to avoid disaster. We all know that actions speak louder than words, and it is through actions that we can evaluate whether someone is being good or evil.

This is complicated today by a society that can be very “gray” when it comes to determining moral values. Sometimes saying someone is “bad” is really watering down the fact that their actions are evil. The ancient Greek philosophers formulated a simple moral principle: do good and avoid evil. That bears the test of time: a prophet who does evil is a false prophet, because a true prophet comes from the Lord, who’d never order evil.

All Christians are prophetic to the degree that they give witness to truth and good in their lives. Let’s all take stock today of the fruits of our actions so that we are true prophets and known to be so by our good actions.

Readings: Genesis 15:1–12, 17–18; Psalm 105:1–4, 6–9; Matthew 7:15–20. See also 23rd Week in Ordinary Time, Saturday.

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