2nd Week in Ordinary Time
16th January 2023 (Monday) Readings and Reflection
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Reading of the Day
First Reading: HEBREWS 5. 1-10
1.For every high priest chosen from among men is appointed to act on behalf of men in relation to God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins. 2.He can deal gently with the ignorant and wayward, since he himself is beset with weakness. 3.Because of this he is obligated to offer sacrifice for his own sins just as he does for those of the people. 4.And no one takes this honor for himself, but only when called by God, just as Aaron was. 5.So also Christ did not exalt himself to be made a high priest, but was appointed by him who said to him, “You are my Son, today I have begotten you”; 6.as he says also in another place, “You are a priest forever, after the order of Melchizedek.” 7.In the days of his flesh, Jesusa offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to him who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverence. 8.Although he was a son, he learned obedience through what he suffered. 9.And being made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him, 10.being designated by God a high priest after the order of Melchizedek.
PSALM Psalms 110: 1, 2, 3, 4
Response: You are a priest for ever, in the line of Melchizedek.
Gospel : Mark 2: 18-22
18.Now John’s disciples and the Pharisees were fasting. And people came and said to him, “Why do John’s disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?” 19.And Jesus said to them, “Can the wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them? As long as they have the bridegroom with them, they cannot fast. 20.The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast in that day. 21.No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. If he does, the patch tears away from it, the new from the old, and a worse tear is made. 22.And no one puts new wine into old wineskins. If he does, the wine will burst the skins—and the wine is destroyed, and so are the skins. But new wine is for fresh wineskins.”
Daily Gospel Reflection
The Reflection by Fr. Thumma Mariadas Reddy MSFS{alertWarning}
Main Theme: No patchworks!
Indicative: Our God is not one who is distant from us. He does not remain unconcerned. He does not abandon us when we suffer. He comes to our rescue. He fights evil on our behalf. He suffers for our sake{alertSuccess}
1. Sin affects and infects us. It soils and weakens us. It diminishes our beauty and dignity. It reduces our energies and strength. It makes us sick and unwhole. Therefore, we need cleansing, healing, strengthening, and revitalising.
2. But left to ourselves, we are not strong enough to confront and overcome evil. We need higher support and strength. And God, so sensitive and compassionate incarnates himself and suffers in our place. Unlike the other high priests, he offers no gifts and sacrifices for sins. He offers his own self. He does not offer them for his sake. He offers them for our sake.
3. He became obedient to the extent of death so as to heal the wounds of our disobedience. He made himself weak so as to strengthen us. He accepted to be imperfect so as to make us perfect. Such is the unbounded love and mercy of God.
4. Therefore, we must crave for his presence. We must rejoice in his company. All our focus must be to experience his presence and grow in his intimacy. He is truly the bridegroom and we are his wedding guests.
5. But there are times when we miss him. We do not recognise his presence. We do not nurture his closeness. It is in such times we must put in all our efforts to rekindle our lost love for him and regain the lost joy of his friendship. Religious practices like fasting, et cetera are meant for expressing our longing for him, and our anguish over missing him.
6. Every spiritual activity must ultimately bring us closer to Jesus and express our love for him. They should not be pretensions or external patchwork. They should indicate genuine repentance for our sinfulness. They should spring from a humble and contrite heart.
7. Often our religious activities do not touch and change our hearts and renew our life. It is a clear sign that what Jesus warned in the gospel is happening.That is, we are putting a new patch to the old cloth or pouring the new wine into old wineskins. The old garb and old wineskin of sin must be thrown away. We must put on the new garb of righteousness. We must pour the new wine of the grace of the Spirit into the renewed spirit.
Imperative: All our spiritual practices and religious works will lose their meaning and purpose if they fail to foster our love for the Lord and transform our life for the better{alertSuccess}