15th Week in Ordinary Time
19th July 2023 (Wednesday) Readings and Reflection
Psalter: Week 3
Reading of the Day
First Reading: Exodus 3:1-6, 9-12
In those days: Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro, the priest of Midian, and he led his flock to the west side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. And the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush. He looked, and behold, the bush was burning, yet it was not consumed. And Moses said, “I will turn aside to see this great sight, why the bush is not burned.” When the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.” Then he said, “Do not come near; take your sandals off your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.” And he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God. The Lord said, “And now, behold, the cry of the people of Israel has come to me, and I have also seen the oppression with which the Egyptians oppress them. Come, I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring my people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.” But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?” He said, “But I will be with you, and this shall be the sign for you, that I have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain.”
Psalm 103:1-2, 3-4, 6-7 (R. 8a)
R/. The Lord is compassionate and gracious.
Alleluia
V/. Alleluia R/. Alleluia
V/. Blessed are you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have revealed to little children the mysteries of the Kingdom.
R/. Alleluia
Gospel : Matthew 11:25-27
At that time Jesus declared, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children; yes, Father, for such was your gracious will. All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.”
Daily Gospel Reflection
Highlight: A Burning Love!
Guidlines: Great things happen through humans. It is not the greatness of them but that of God. He works great things even through simple and small people{alertSuccess}
1. God’s love for us is like the burning bush in the first reading from Exodus 3. 1-6, 9-12. The bush is burning but is not consumed. Similarly, God’s love burns for us eternally but is never exhausted and annihilated.
2. His love is faithful from generation to generation. He is a personal God who enters into personal encounter and covenant. That is why He always reveals Himself as the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.
3. His love is so sensitive because it hears the cries of the suffering Israelites in slavery in Egypt. He sees their oppression by the Egyptians. He chooses Moses to liberate them and lead them out to their promised land.
4. This choice is not on the basis of the merit of Moses. It is rather the gracious will of the Father. This is made manifest in the gospel text. Jesus thanks the Father because He hides the divine mysteries to those intelligent and competent in the sight of the world.
5. But He reveals them to “mere babes”. That is, to the small, insignificant and ignorable people. Thereby it is very clear that vocation is always a gratuitous gift of God. He chooses us. It appears as if we are choosing the way of life.
6. But actually, we only respond to His call. It is again God who helps our response. Often, the response may be very reluctant. It can be due to a sense of personal inadequacy; or, it can also be on account of the enormity of the task entrusted.
7. From the human standpoint, we will fall short. Thus, Moses declines God’s offer to liberate the Israelites from slavery. He protests, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and bring the Israelites out of Egypt”.
8. But God teaches him to see from the divine standpoint. It is not the individual Moses but God Himself who works through him. God assures him: “I will be with you”. Therefore, vocation and mission are never one’s own merit or credit. God’s presence, guidance and power sustain and accomplish a call.
Practice: Human capacities do not become the deciding factors for God’s call. Neither are they the cause for the excellence and effectiveness of the call. Utmost they are supplements and never substitutes{alertSuccess}