9th Week in Ordinary Time
05th June 2023 (Monday) Readings and Reflection
Psalter: Week 1
Reading of the Day
First Reading: Tobit 1:3; 2:1-8
I, Tobit, walked in the ways of truth and in righteous deeds all the days of my life, and I performed many acts of mercy for my brothers and my compatriots who went with me into captivity in the land of the Assyrians, to Nineveh. I came back to my house, and my wife Anna and my son Tobias were restored to me. And at our Feast of Pentecost, which is a sacred festival of seven days, a good meal was prepared for me and I reclined to eat. A table was set before me, and an abundance of cooked food was set before me, and I said to my son Tobias, "Child, go about and, bring back any poor person whom you might find among our kindred, from among the captives of Nineveh, who is mindful with all his heart, so that he might eat together with us. Behold, child, I will wait until you return." So Tobias went to seek out any poor person from among our kindred. When he returned he said, "Father!" And I said, "Here I am, child!" And he, replying, said, "Behold, father! One from our nation has been murdered and thrown into the market- place, and now he lies there strangled." So leaping up, I left my meal before I had tasted it and took the body out of the street and set it in one of my rooms until the sun set and I could bury it. And when I returned, I washed myself and began to eat my food in sorrow. And I remembered the word of the prophet, what things Amos spoke against Bethel, saying: "Your feasts shall be turned into mourning, and all your songs into lamentation." And I wept. When the sun had set I went out, dug a grave, and buried him. And my neighbours were mocking me, saying, "Is he no longer afraid? For he was already sought out to be put to death for doing this deed, and he ran away. Now behold! He is back to burying the dead!"
Psalm 11:4, 5 and 7
R/. Blessed the man who fears the Lord
Gospel : Mark 12:1-12
And he began to speak to them in parables. “A man planted a vineyard and put a fence around it and dug a pit for the winepress and built a tower, and leased it to tenants and went into another country. 2 When the season came, he sent a servant to the tenants to get from them some of the fruit of the vineyard. 3 And they took him and beat him and sent him away empty-handed. 4 Again he sent to them another servant, and they struck him on the head and treated him shamefully. 5 And he sent another, and him they killed. And so with many others: some they beat, and some they killed. 6 He had still one other, a beloved son. Finally he sent him to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ 7 But those tenants said to one another, ‘This is the heir. Come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ 8 And they took him and killed him and threw him out of the vineyard. 9 What will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy the tenants and give the vineyard to others. 10 Have you not read this Scripture: “‘The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; 11 this was the Lord's doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes’?” 12 And they were seeking to arrest him but feared the people, for they perceived that he had told the parable against them. So they left him and went away.
Daily Gospel Reflection
The Reflection by Fr. Thumma Mariadas Reddy MSFS{alertWarning}
Main Theme: Walk all the days of life!
Indicative: God is infinitely generous and He selflessly shares with us His love and graces. But sadly men become increasingly greedy and harm each other{alertSuccess}
1. There is a limit to need but never to greed. When need turns into greed, dissatisfaction begins and finally ends up in frustration. This leads to harm and destruction
2. We find a clear contrast between God’s mindset and that of humans. Jesus represents God’s mindset of generosity and the Jewish chief priests, scribes and elders represent the mindset of avarice. God always thinks about what and how to give to others abundantly. But selfish humans greedily desire to grab, misappropriate and hoard what is others’.
3. The vineyard in the gospel stands for our life on earth. With faith and diligence, God wants us to cultivate this field and produce a rich harvest. The fruits of good life and actions are what God expects from us.
4. But many get so much attached to earthly riches. They do not want to part with them. They want to be owners of their life with unbridled freedom. They do not realise our essential role and identity as “stewards” of the gift of vocation and mission given to us.
5. Hence they resent and resist any admonition and accountability. Their stewardship becomes tepid and then wicked. Therefore naturally God will decide to take away the stewardship. The eventual consequence will be severity and judgement.
6. In the light of the first reading, we have another contrast to these negative characters. Tobit stands for a righteous and charitable follower of God. He remains faithful to God. He lives a righteous life abounding in works of charity. He risks even his life and does burials.
Imperative: Where do we stand? Are we like Tobit who is faithful and charitable? Or are we like the Jewish authorities who squander God’s riches?{alertSuccess}