READINGS FOR march 2, 2014

Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Lectionary: 82

It-Tmien Ħadd matul is-Sena

Messalin A pp. 290

Reading 1       ISaiah 49:14-15

Zion said, “The LORD has forsaken me;  my LORD has forgotten me.”  Can a mother forget her infant, be without tenderness for the child of her womb? Even should she forget, I will never forget you.   This is the Word of The Lord.

1 QARI  - Isaija 49:14 – 15

U Sijon kienet tgħid: 'Ħallieni l-Mulej,' u: 'Sidi nsieni.' Tista' mara tinsa t-tarbija tagħha, u ma tħennx għal bin ġufha? Mqar jekk din tinsa, jien ma ninsiek qatt!    Kelma tal-Mulej.

Responsorial Psalm      PSalm 62:2-3, 6-7, 8-9

R/ (6a) Rest in God alone, my soul.

Only in God is my soul at rest;
from him comes my salvation.
He only is my rock and my salvation,
my stronghold; I shall not be disturbed at all.       R/ 

Only in God be at rest, my soul,
for from him comes my hope.
He only is my rock and my salvation,
my stronghold; I shall not be disturbed.         R/

With God is my safety and my glory,
he is the rock of my strength; my refuge is in God.
Trust in him at all times, O my people!
Pour out your hearts before him.                    R/ 

Salm Responsoriali     Salm 62:2-3, 6-7, 8-9

R/  F'Alla biss il-mistrieħ ta' ruħi:

F'Alla biss il-mistrieħ ta' ruħi:

mingħandu tiġini s-salvazzjoni.

 Hu biss il-blata u s-salvazzjoni tiegħi,

hu l-kenn tiegħi; xejn ma jċaqlaqni.              R/ 

F'Alla biss il-mistrieħ ta' ruħi,

għax mingħandu tiġini t-tama.

Hu biss il-blata u s-salvazzjoni tiegħi,

hu l-kenn tiegħi; xejn ma jċaqlaqni.              R/ 

F'Alla s-salvazzjoni u l-ġieħ tiegħi,

hu l-blata qawwija tiegħi,  u l-kenn tiegħi f'Alla.

 Ittama fih f'kull żmien, o poplu;

iftħu qalbkom quddiemu. Alla hu kenn għalina!           R/ 

Readng 2       1 CORinthians 4:1-5

Brothers and sisters:  Thus should one regard us: as servants of Christ and stewards of the  mysteries of God. Now it is of course required of stewards  that they be found trustworthy.   It does not concern me in the least that I be judged by you or any human tribunal; I do not even pass judgment on myself; I am not conscious of anything against me, but I do not thereby stand acquitted; the one who judges me is the Lord. Therefore do not make any judgment before the appointed time, until the Lord comes, for he will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will manifest the motives of our hearts, and then everyone will receive praise from God.   This is the Word of The Lord.

2 Qari -  1 Korintin 4:1-5

 In-nies għandhom iħarsu lejna bħala ministri ta' Kristu u amministraturi tal- misteri ta' Alla. Issa barra minn dan,  l-amministraturi wieħed jistenniehom li jkunu  fidili.Iżda ngħid għalija, ftit li xejn jimpurtani li nkun iġġudikat minnkom jew minn xi tribunal tal-bnedmin; anqas jiena stess ma niġġudika lili nnifsi. Tassew li jiena stess ma nħoss xejn fuq il-kuxjenza tiegħi; iżda mhux b'daqshekk jien iġġustifikat; hu l-Mulej li jiġġudikani. Għalhekk tiġġudikawx qabel il-waqt sa ma jiġi l-Mulej: hu għad joħroġ għad-dawl dak li hu moħbi fid-dlam, u jikxef  il-fehmiet mistura tal-qlub. U mbagħad kull wieħed jieħu mingħand Alla t-tifħir li jkun jistħoqqlu.   Kelma tal-Mulej.

Gospel     MatThew 6:24-34

Jesus said to his disciples:  “No one can serve two masters. He will either hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon. “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life,  what you will eat or drink,  or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing?  Look at the birds in the sky;  they do not sow or reap, they gather nothing into barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are not you more important than they? Can any of you by worrying add a single moment to your life-span? Why are you anxious about clothes?  Learn from the way the wild flowers grow.  They do not work or spin.   But I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendour was clothed like one of them.  If God so clothes the grass of the field,  which grows today and is thrown into the oven tomorrow, will he not much more provide for you, O you of little faith?  So do not worry and say, ‘What are we to eat?’ or ‘What are we to drink?’or ‘What are we to wear?’  All these things the pagans seek.  Your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness,  and all these things will be given you besides.  Do not worry about tomorrow; tomorrow will take care of itself. Sufficient for a day is its own evil.”    This is the Word of The Lord.

VANGELJU -  Mattew 6:  24 – 34

 "Ħadd ma jista' jaqdi żewġ sidien; għax jew ikun jobgħod lil wieħed u jħobb lill-ieħor, jew jintrabat ma' wieħed u jistmell lill-ieħor. Ma tistgħux taqdu lil Alla u lill-flus. "Għalhekk ngħidilkom: tinkwetawx ruħkom għal ħajjitkom, x'se tieklu jew x'tixorbu, anqas għal ġisimkom x'se tilbsu. Jaqaw il-ħajja m'hijiex aqwa mill-ikel, u l-ġisem aqwa mill-ilbies? Ħarsu lejn   l-għasafar tas-sema; la jiżirgħu u lanqas jaħsdu u lanqas igeddsu fl-imħażen, u madankollu Missierkom li hu fis-smewwiet jitmagħhom! Intom ma tiswewx aktar minnhom? U min minnkom, bl-inkwiet kollu tiegħu, se jseħħlu jtawwal għomru mqar b'jum wieħed biss? U għall-ilbies għalfejn tinkwetaw ruħkom? Ħarsu lejn il-ġilji ta' l-għelieqi, kif jikbru! U la jitħabtu u lanqas jinsġu. Madankollu, ngħidilkom, anqas Salamun, fil-glorja kollha tiegħu, ma kien jilbes bħal wieħed minnhom. Mela jekk Alla jlibbes hekk imqar ħaxixa selvaġġa li llum hawn u għada tinxteħet fil-forn, kemm aktar lilkom, nies ta' fidi ċkejkna! Għalhekk toqogħdux tinkwetaw ruħkom u tgħidu,"X'se nieklu?' jew 'X'se nixorbu?' jew 'X'se nilbsu?', għax dawn huma kollha ħwejjeġ li jfittxuhom il-pagani. Imma Missierkom li hu fis-smewwiet jaf li dan kollu teħtiġuh. Mela fittxu l-ewwel is-Saltna u l-ġustizzja ta' Alla, u dan kollu jingħatalkom ukoll. Mela toqogħdux tħabblu raskom għall-għada, għax il-jum ta' għada jħabbel rasu hu għalih innifsu. Biżżejjed hu għall-jum it-taħbit tal-ġurnata."     Kelma tal-Mulej.

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COMMENTARY:

Just When You Think Life Is for the Birds, Take Heart —

by Fr. Thomas Rosica CSB
CEO Salt and Light Catholic Media Foundation

In next Sunday’s reading from Matthew’s Gospel  Jesus does not deny the reality of human needs, but forbids making them the object of anxious care and, in effect, becoming their slave. Those who truly know God as the heavenly Father revealed by Jesus cannot be concerned about human needs in the same way. While disciples have to take reasonable care of themselves and of those for whom they are responsible, such concerns take second place to dedication to the rule of God and the “righteousness”  for which it calls.

Verse 25 of Sunday’s Gospel indicates two major areas of concern for the human being: sustenance (food and drink) necessary for life, and clothing. Each of the areas is addressed — food (vv. 26-27), clothing (vv. 28-30) — in an argument that rests upon a New Testament logic. If God takes such care of the birds in the air, and ensures their feeding, and sees to it that the lilies of the field are magnificently adorned, how much more then will our heavenly Father take pains to see that the disciples shall not go wanting, since they are more precious in the divine sight than the birds of air and the flowers of the field?    In using this analogy, Jesus is by no means making a moral statement, but rather an imaginative appeal.

Worrywart  -    The great Christian author and apologist C.S. Lewis was a devout Christian, but he admitted that throughout his life he was a great worrier! Commenting on today’s Gospel passage (Matthew 6:25-34), Lewis frequently wrote to his friends saying: “If God wanted us to live like the birds of the air, it would have be nice for him to have given us a constitution that was more like theirs!”     Jesus did not seem to be a person who worried a great deal; he lived his life on the principle of trusting his heavenly Father, and he tried to teach his followers to do the same. The refrain running through today’s Gospel contains the sentiments of “do not worry” (vv. 25, 27, 28, 31 and twice in 34). A better translation of the expression could be, “do not fret” or “do not be preoccupied.” Disciples may have legitimate concerns for material goods, but if those concerns are filled with insecurities and cause new forms of enslavement to wealth, they will inevitably lead people into slavery to two separate masters. We are called to serve God and God alone in the deepest sense in order to experience authentic freedom.

Providential care   -    The three Scripture readings for this Sunday invite us to reflect on God’s providential care of us. When we say ‘Divine Providence,’ we are referring to the name of God, especially God as Father and Creator, which brings all of the dynamics of human existence into meaning. Providence is often expressed only as a design for the universe in which all is ordered and formed as care for lilies and sparrows. Though the term Providence is applied to God only three times in Scripture (Ecclesiastes 5:5; Wisdom 14:3; Judith 9:5), and once to Wisdom (Wisdom 6:17), teaching about Providence is consistently found in both the Old and the New Testaments. God’s will governs all things. God loves all people, desires the salvation of all and God’s paternal Providence extends to all nations. God desires not the death of sinners, but rather that they should repent; for God is above all things a merciful God and a God of much compassion. God rewards us according to our works, our thoughts and our devices. God alone converts evil into good.

You are worth more    -   Jesus taught about God’s provident care for his children and on not being anxious for the future. Can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your life? Jesus invited his disciples then and now to “consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds!” What holds true for food applies also to clothing and other necessities of life (“consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these”).    Those who see reality permeated by the Providence of God gradually grow in wisdom. Serenity, born of time and grace, becomes evident to onlookers and passersby. The terrible beauty of the earth, with its calms and its storms, its gentle breezes and its hurricanes, its new life and its deaths, seems somehow to be within the person who lives by trustingly believing in God’s Providence.

What is worth fearing?     -   Throughout the Old Testament, humans are the main subjects of fear. The reasons for this fear are war, death, enslavement, loss of a wife or child, disaster, or even a particular place. Trust in God brings freedom from fear. Fear also arises in the presence of those who stand in a special relation to God, such as Moses (Exodus 34:30), Joshua (Joshua 4:14), or Samuel (1 Samuel 12:18).    How many times in the Gospels do we hear Jesus telling people to “Fear not!”  Jairus is not to be anxious (Mark 5:36); the disciples receive assurance (Mark 6:50); the three apostles atop Mount Tabor are enabled to look up (Matthew 17:7); the women’s fear gives way to proclamation and resurrection faith (Matthew 28:10); those whom the angels visit in the infancy narratives are told not to fear (Luke 1:13, 30; 2:10); and in a vision, Peter and Paul are both told by the Lord not to fear in a context of discipleship and service (Luke 5:10 and Acts 18:9).

What is worth fearing? Jesus warns his followers about those who can harm the soul. To what does this refer today? To those people or situations who can dehydrate the spirit, crushing it and sapping it of life, killing hopes and dreams, destroying faith and joy. Often those who dehydrate the spirit and kill hope and joy are not “bad” people! In fact, they are often very good people, and yes, even “church” people and ‘religious’ people! We often harm the souls of others through our cynicism, our meanness of spirit and smallness of mind and heart; our lack of faith, hope and joy. How often have we denied Jesus through our own reluctance to talk about him and give witness to him, for fear of excluding others?    It is consoling to know once in a while that all of our trials and tribulations, our pains anxieties are not in vain. The next time we get that fearful feeling that our life is for the birds, let us take heart, and have a bit more courage and confidence in the Father’s care.