5th Week in Ordinary Time
11th February 2023 (Saturday) Readings and Reflection
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Reading of the Day
First Reading: Genesis 3:9-24
The Lord God called to the man and said to him, "Where are you?" And he said, "I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked, and I hid myself." He said, "Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?" The man said, "The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me fruit of the tree, and I ate." Then the Lord God said to the woman, "What is this that you have done?" The woman said, "The serpent deceived me, and I ate." The Lord God said to the serpent, "Because you have done this, cursed are you above all livestock and above all beasts of the field; on your belly you shall go, and dust you shall eat all the days of your life. I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel." To the woman he said, "I will surely multiply your pain in childbearing; in pain you shall bring forth children. Your desire shall be contrary to your husband, but he shall rule over you." And to Adam he said, "Because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you, 'You shall not eat of it', cursed is the ground because of you; in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life; thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you; and you shall eat the plants of the field. By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return." The man called his wife's name Eve, because she was the mother of all living. And the Lord God made for Adam and for his wife garments of skins and clothed them. Then the Lord God said, "Behold, the man has become like one of us in knowing good and evil. Now, lest he reach out his hand and take also of the tree of life and eat, and live for ever-" therefore the Lord God sent him out from the garden of Eden to work the ground from which he was taken. He drove out the man, and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim, and a flaming sword that turned every way to guard the way to the tree of life.
Psalm 90:2, 3-4, 5-6, 12-13 (R. 1)
R/. O Lord, you have been our refuge, from generation to generation.
Gospel : Mark 8:1-10
In those days, when again a great crowd had gathered, and they had nothing to eat, Jesus called his disciples to him and said to them, "I have compassion on the crowd, because they have been with me now three days and have nothing to eat. And if I send them away hungry to their homes, they will faint on the way. And some of them have come from far away." And his disciples answered him, "How can one feed these people with bread here in this desolate place?" And he asked them, "How many loaves do you have?" They said, "Seven." And he directed the crowd to sit down on the ground. And he took the seven loaves, and having given thanks, he broke them and gave them to his disciples to set before the people; and they set them before the crowd. And they had a few small fish. And having blessed them, he said that these also should be set before them. And they ate and were satisfied. And they took up the broken pieces left over, seven baskets full. And there were about four thousand people. And he sent them away. And immediately he got into the boat with his disciples and went to the district of Dalmanutha.
Daily Gospel Reflection
The Reflection by Fr. Thumma Mariadas Reddy MSFS{alertWarning}
Main Theme: Be sensitive and compassionate!
Indicative: As we venerate our sweetest Mother Mary as Our Lady of Lourdes, let us once again focus on her assistance, accompaniment, and guidance to us so as to be faithful to the Lord{alertSuccess}
1. Today on 11 February 1858, we recall the first apparition of the Blessed Virgin Mary at Lourdes, France to a simple village girl Bernadette. She identifies herself as “the Immaculate Conception”. She appears 18 times between 11 February to 16 July.
2. As at every apparition, the Mother urges us to be more turned to God, to follow her Son more closely. Prayer, repentance, and penance are the greatest weapons with which we must continue our battle against the evil one.
3. God created and fashioned us in His likeness, in innocence, and dignity. But sadly we lost this state of grace due to sin. However, God does not want to leave us to our fate of misery. He wants to restore us to our original dignity. He wants to “re-create” us.
4. God designs to do this through a second Eve, the new Eve, and through a second Adam, the new Adam. Jesus is this new Adam, through whom God designs to usher in this new creation. Mary is our new Eve who mediates the new Adam and salvation.
5. The old Eve mediated sin, fall, and death. The new Eve mediates grace, rising, and life. The old Eve became the cause of damnation. The new Eve becomes a sharer in salvation, by being the Mother of the Saviour.
6. In the gospel, we see how Jesus carries on this new creation and salvation. There is the miracle of the multiplication of 7 loaves and a few fish to feed four thousand. It is not just a wonder-work that shows the power of Jesus. But this is a vivid illustration of the salvific act of God. It is a concrete testimony to God’s unfailing compassion and intervention.
7. Like Adam and Eve, we too are in the whirlwind of sin. We are gripped by fears, ashamed of our nakedness of fragility and loss of dignity. We are pressured and assaulted by sin. Sin makes us run away from God and hide ourselves. Thus we are burdened by guilt. We become estranged and powerless.
Imperative: Let us approach Jesus with all our weaknesses and fears, and burdens. He will satisfy, fill and fulfill us. Come to him because he is searching for us, asking, “Where are you?”{alertSuccess}