5th Week in Ordinary Time
6th February 2023 (Monday) Readings and Reflection
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Reading of the Day
First Reading: Genesis 1:1-19
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. And God said, "Let there be light", and there was light. And God saw that the light was good. And God separated the light from the darkness. God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day. And God said, "Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters." And God made the firmament and separated the waters that were under the firmament from the waters that were above the firmament. And it was so. And God called the firmament Heaven. And there was evening and there was morning, the second day. And God said, "Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear." And it was so. God called the dry land Earth, and the waters that were gathered together he called Seas. And God saw that it was good. And God said, "Let the earth sprout vegetation, plants yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind, on the earth." And it was so. The earth brought forth vegetation, plants yielding seed according to their own kinds, and trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. And there was evening and there was morning, the third day. And God said, "Let there be lights in the firmament of the heavens to separate the day from the night. And let them be for signs and for seasons and for days and years, and let them be lights in the firmament of the heavens to give light upon the earth." And it was so. And God made the two great lights, the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night and the stars. And God set them in the firmament of the heavens to give light on the earth, to rule over the day and over the night- and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good. And there was evening and there was morning, the fourth day.
Psalm 104:1-2a, 5-6, 10 and 12, 24 and 35c, (R. 31b)
R/. May the Lord rejoice in his works!
Gospel : Mark 6:53-56
At that time: When Jesus and his disciples had crossed over, they came to land at Gennesaret and moored to the shore. And when they got out of the boat, the people immediately recognized him and ran about the whole region and began to bring the sick people on their beds to wherever they heard he was. And wherever he came, in villages, cities, or countryside, they laid the sick in the marketplaces, and implored him that they might touch even the fringe of his garment. And as many as touched it were made well.
Daily Gospel Reflection
The Reflection by Fr. Thumma Mariadas Reddy MSFS{alertWarning}
Main Theme: Be Life emerges!
Indicative: God is the creator of everything. This means he is the author of all life. Life is a free gift from God. This calls us to be profoundly grateful to him and live with a sense of dependence on God and surrender to Him{alertSuccess}
1. God created everything and He saw that it was good. He gave it existence, form, order, and beauty. But sin totally ruptured this original harmony and wholeness. Sin brought sickness and unhappiness, bondage, and death. Therefore humanity stood in desperate need of an intervention that restores the original grace.
2. The world needed a Saviour. God wants to send this Saviour through human mediation. To reverse the disrupted order and restore the first beauty to the first creation, a new creation is required. God designs to usher in this new creation through His only Son, Jesus
3. In the gospel, Jesus is seen on this unceasing mission of reversing and destroying the power of sin. While the touch of sin brought sickness and misery, the touch of grace, transmitted by the re-creator brings healing, health, and joy.
4. Sin brings sickness, not necessarily a physical one, but a radical sickness. This disrupts human dignity, beauty, and propensity for good. We need then the power of new creation, to heal us and restore wholeness to us.
5. In the first account of creation, God brings life from emptiness. In the gospel, we see a new account of a new creation or a “re-creation”. Jesus is the author of this new life. He brings forth health and wholeness through the touch of healing.
6. This in fact is the real spirit of creation. And we will be faithful to this spirit of creation when we allow God to create in us a new spirit. This new spirit will make a decisive break from sin and strives ever to live a new life of grace. This transition and renewal need the healing touch of the Lord.
Imperative: All of us need to be re-created and renewed. This is possible only when we seek the author of new life, only when we allow him to touch and heal us{alertSuccess}