20th Week in Ordinary Time
22nd August 2023 (Tuesday) Readings and Reflection
Psalter: Week 4
Reading of the Day
First Reading: Judges 6:11-24a
In those days: The angel of the Lord came and sat under the terebinth at Oprah, which belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, while his son Gideon was beating out wheat in the wine press to hide it from the Midianites. And the angel of the Lord appeared to him and said to him, “The Lord is with you, O mighty man of valour.” And Gideon said to him, “Please, my lord, if the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all his wonderful deeds that our fathers recounted to us, saying, ‘Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt?’ But now the Lord has forsaken us and given us into the hand of Midian.” And the Lord turned to him and said, “Go in this might of yours and save Israel from the hand of the Midian: do not I send you?” And he said to him, “Please, Lord, how can I save Israel? Behold, my clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father’s house.” And the Lord said to him, “But I will be with you, and you shall strike the Midianites as one man.” And he said to him, “If now I have found favour in your eyes, then show me a sign that it is you who speak with me. Please do not depart from here until I come to you and bring out my present and set it before you.” And he said, “I will stay till you return.” So Gideon went into his house and prepared a young goat and unleavened cakes from an ephah of flour. The meat he put in a basket, and the broth he put in a pot, and brought them to him under the terebinth and presented them. And the angel of God said to him, “Take the meat and the unleavened cakes, and put them on this rock, and pour the both over them.” And he did so. Then the angel of the Lord reached out the tip of the staff that was in his hand and touched the meat and the unleavened cakes. And fire sprang up from the rock and consumed the meat and the unleavened cakes. And the angel of the Lord vanished from his sight. Then Gideon perceived that he was the angel of the Lord. And Gideon said, “Alas, O Lord God! For now I have seen the angel of the Lord face to face.” But the Lord said to him, “Peace be to you. Do not fear; you shall not die.” Then Gideon built an altar there to the Lord and called it, The Lord is Peace.
Psalm 85:9, 11-12, 13-14 (R. see 9b)
R/. The Lord speaks of peace for his people.
Alleluia
V/. Alleluia R/. Alleluia
V/. Though Jesus Christ was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich.
R/. Alleluia
Gospel : Matthew 19:23-30
At that time: Jesus said to his disciples, “Truly, I say to you, only with difficulty will a rich person enter the kingdom of heaven. Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.” When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished, saying, “Who then can be saved?” But Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” Then Peter said in reply, “See, we have left everything and followed you. What then will we have?” Jesus said to them, “Truly, I say to you, in the new world, when the Son of Man will sit on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or lands, for my name’s sake, will receive a hundredfold and will inherit eternal life. But many who are first will be last, and the last first.
Daily Gospel Reflection
Highlight: Difficult to enter!
Guidlines: Problems assail us, and sufferings torment us. It is not because God is not with us or does not bother about us. Everything has a purpose and is a process{alertSuccess}
1. In the world, there is so much lust for money and so much trouble to get rich. The reason is that riches are considered the best and surest means of happiness and fulfilment in life. But, today in contrast to such a context, Jesus declares, “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven”.
2. Thereby, Jesus makes clear the inadequate and relative nature of worldly riches. They may help one to ride high in the sight of the world, to get to the top of the world. But, they cannot guarantee entry into the kingdom of God.
3. This does not mean that those who have riches are automatically disqualified from the kingdom. They will be qualified if they are with God if they depend on God and not on their riches. That is why, Jesus says, “For men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible”.
4. The real issue is not whether to have or not to have riches. It is rather whether one is detached from them and follows the Lord. With riches or without riches, one must give priority to God. As St Francis de Sales exhorts, we must see that our heart is not in the riches or riches are not in our heart. Rather, everything must be left to the hand and heart of God.
5. However, such a detached and committed life is certainly hard because it is swimming against the current. The same questions as those of Gideon or Peter will disturb us also: “If the Lord is with us, why then all this has befallen us?” “We have left everything and followed you. What then shall we have?”
6. The fact is He wants to do things through us. He chose Gideon to liberate the Israelites from the Midianites. He chose Peter and others to liberate humanity from the slavery of sin. And along with this mission, He is always with us. And He would reward us a hundredfold here and now and then eternal life.
7. The queenship of Mary that we celebrate today is a beautiful example of leading personally a life of faith and leading others as well to live such a faithful life. As queen, she watches over us benevolently, constantly leading us by hand. Her queenship also assures us that we too share the same glory if we follow the same way of life.
Practice: In a world that is money-crazy and possessed by possessions, to remain untainted by them and to follow the Lord is very hard. But it is not a vain or lone battle. The Lord will be with us and richly recompense us.{alertSuccess}