Readings for Sunday, July 15th
Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Il-15-il Hadd matul is-Sena 'B'
Missalin B
pp 415
Amos 7:12-15
Amaziah,
priest of Bethel , said to Amos, "Off with
you, visionary, flee to the land
of Judah Bethel Israel
L-Ewwel Qari
Qari mill-Ktieb tal-Profeta Għamos 7, 12-15
F'dak
iż-żmien, Amasja,qassis ta' Betel, qal lil Għamos: "Mur ,
bniedem veġġenti, itlaq lejn l-art ta' Ġuda, u ħobżok kulu hemm, u ħabbar
hemm; u tkomplix iżjed tħabbar ġo Betel,
għaliex Betel santwarju ta' sultan, it-tempju ta' saltna!" Wieġeb imbagħad
Għamos u qal lil Amasja: "Jiena miniex profeta; anqas bin xi profeta; jien
biss ragħaj u niżbor il-ġummajż. Iżda
l-Mulej qabadni minn wara l-merħla; u l-Mulej
qalli: 'Mur ,
ħabbar lill-poplu tiegħi Iżrael'." Il-Kelma tal-Mulej
Responsorial Psalm
PSALM 85:9-10, 11-12, 13-14
R. (8) Lord, let us see your
kindness, and grant us your salvation.
I will hear
what God proclaims;
the LORD
--for he proclaims peace.
Near indeed
is his salvation to those who fear him,
glory
dwelling in our land. R.
Kindness
and truth shall meet;
justice and
peace shall kiss.
Truth shall
spring out of the earth,
and justice
shall look down from heaven. R.
The LORD
himself will give his benefits;
our land
shall yield its increase.
Justice
shall walk before him,
and prepare
the way of his steps. R.
Salm Responsorjali
Salm 84 (85)
R/ Uri lilna, Mulej, it-tjieba tiegħek, u
s-salvazzjoni tiegħek agħtina.
Ħa nisma'
xi jgħid Alla;
il-Mulej,
is-sliem ixandar.
Qrib hi
tassew is-salvazzjoni tiegħu
għal dawk
li jibżgħu minnu,
biex
tgħammar is-sebħ f'artna. R/
It-tjieba u
l-fedelta' jiltaqgħu,
il-ġustizzja
u s-sliem jitbewsu.
Il-fedelta'
mill-art tinbet,
u
l-ġustizzja mis-sema tixref. R/
Il-Mulej
ukoll jagħti l-ġid tiegħu,
u artna
tagħti l-frott tagħha.
Il-ġustizzja quddiemu timxi,
u
s-sliem fuq il-passi tiegħu. R/
Ephesians 1:3-14
Blessed be
the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ
with every
spiritual blessing in the heavens, as he chose us in him, before the foundation
of the world, to be holy and without blemish before him. In love he destined us
for adoption to himself through Jesus Christ, in accord with the favor of his
will, for the praise of the glory of his grace that he granted us in the
beloved. In him we have redemption by his blood, the forgiveness of
transgressions, in accord with the riches of his grace that he lavished upon
us. In all
wisdom and insight, he has made known to us the mystery of his will in accord
with his favor that he set forth in him as a plan for the fullness of times, to
sum up all things in Christ, in heaven and on earth. In him we were also
chosen, destined in accord with the purpose of the One who accomplishes all
things according to the intention of his will, so that we might exist for the
praise of his glory, we who first hoped in Christ. In him you also, who have
heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and have believed in
him, were sealed with the promised holy Spirit, which is the first installment
of our inheritance toward redemption as God's possession, to the praise of his
glory.
It-Tieni Qari
mill-Ittra lill-Efesin 1, 3-14
Imbierek
Alla u Missier Sidna Ġesu'' Kristu, li berikna b'kull xorta ta' barka
spiritwali, fis-smewwiet fi Kristu. Hekk
hu għażilna fih, sa minn minn
Gospel
Mark 6:7-13
Jesus
summoned the Twelve and began to send them out two by two and gave them
authority over unclean spirits. He instructed them to take nothing for the
journey but a walking stick-- no food, no sack, no money in their belts. They
were, however, to wear sandals but not a second tunic. He said to them,
"Wherever you enter a house, stay there until you leave. Whatever
place does not welcome you or listen to you, leave there and shake the dust off
your feet in testimony against them." So they went off and preached
repentance. The Twelve drove out many demons, and they anointed with oil many
who were sick and cured them.
L-Evanġelju
Qari skont San Mark 6, 7-13
F'dak
iż-żmien, Ġesu' sejjaħ ħdejh lit-Tnax,
u beda jibgħathom tnejn tnejn, filwaqt li tahom
is-setgħa
fuq l-ispirti ħżiena. U wissiehom biex ma jieħdu xejn magħhom għat-triq ħlief
ħatar; la ħobż, la ħorġa, anqas flus fi
ħżienhom; imma li jilbsu l-qrieq," u ma jxiddux żewġ ilbiesi. Qalilhom: "Fejn tidħlu f'xi dar, ibqgħu fiha
sa ma titilqu minn minn hemm u farfru t-trab minn
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Jesus Sends Us to Teach and Heal
A reflection b y Fr. Thomas Rosica,
CSB
When the
Gospels relate to us the call extended by Jesus to his young disciples and
apostles, it is always done in a very compassionate way. Jesus looks upon those
whom he calls; he loves them, challenges them and calls them to be something
they could hardly fathom!
Today's
Gospel (Mark 6:7-13) is about the formation of those who will eventually spread
the Gospel to the ends of the earth. Mark sees the teaching and work of the
apostles as an extension of Jesus' teaching and work. In Mark's story, the preparation
for the mission of the Twelve is seen in the call of the first disciples to be
fishers of men (Mark 1:16-20), then of the Twelve set apart to be with Jesus
and to receive authority to preach and expel demons (3:13-19). Now they are
given the specific mission to exercise that authority in word and power as
representatives of Jesus during the time of their formation.
In Mark's
call story, Jesus does not mention any prohibition to visit pagan territory and
to enter Samaritan towns. These differences indicate a certain adaptation to
conditions in and outside of Palestine
Help or hindrance?
One of the
frequent themes of Mark's Gospel is the ignorance of the disciples. When we
read the whole Gospel, we realize that the disciples are as much a hindrance as
a help to Jesus. They do not understand Jesus' words or support him in his
mission. Repeatedly Jesus rebukes them for their inability to see and
comprehend and for their hardness of heart. But when the disciples
misunderstand Jesus and in other ways fail him, they are doing more than simply
trying his patience. They are serving as agents of testing. As ones who
"think the things of humans," rather than the things of God, they
cannot comprehend that the straight and narrow path lying before Jesus must
necessarily end at the cross. And so they act in ways that threaten to lead
Jesus astray.
Many times
we find ourselves asking, "Why did Mark portray the disciples in such a
bad light?" But Mark's earliest readers would have focused not on Mark's
literary strategies but on the events depicted in the narrative. They would
have asked something like this: "What could it mean that the disciples
whom we know as great leaders were so weak and acted so shamefully?" And
the answer to that question would have been obvious: God had opened the eyes of
the disciples, and had transformed them from ones who misunderstood and tested
Jesus into worthy servants, even fearless leaders. There is hope for us! These
famous call stories were remembered by Christians who knew the reality of their
own weakness and failure, yet who also trusted in the presence of the Lord who
triumphed over fear.
In Jesus'
Name
What kind
of authority and power does the Lord want us to exercise on his behalf? Jesus
gave his apostles both the power and the authority to speak and to act in his
name. He commanded them to do the works that he did: to cast out evil spirits,
to heal, and to speak the word of God, the good news of the Gospel, which they
received from Jesus. When Jesus spoke of power and authority he did something
unheard of. He wedded power and authority with love and humility. The
"world" and the "flesh" seek power for selfish gain. Jesus
teaches us to use it for the good of our neighbor. Following Jesus is a risk,
as every new way of life is. Each of us is called to teach as Jesus taught and
to heal boldly and compassionately as he did.
Law, Prophets and Writings
In light of
the first reading from the book of the prophet Amos (7:12-15) I would also like
to offer some reflections on Jesus in relation to the Law, the Prophets, and
the Writings of the Old Testament. On the one hand, Jesus knows the Law
perfectly and observes it with devotion. On the other hand, however, He shows
Himself perfectly free with regard to the Law. He wishes to give the authentic
interpretation of the Law. He goes so far as to declare Himself the new
lawgiver, with an authority equal to that of God. He Himself is the fulfillment
of the Law (Cf. Romans 10:4).
Jesus also
shows that He is the genuine continuation of the prophets in His message and
His life. Like them, He proclaims faith in the "God of Abraham, of Isaac,
and of Jacob" (Matthew 2:32). He defends the rights of God and of the poor
(cf. Matthew 11:20-24). On the other hand, Jesus does not hesitate to declare
Himself greater than all of them. He is superior to them, not only in the
prophetic line, but He is the first, as the origin and source of all prophetic
inspiration.
He is
greater than Jonah and Solomon (Cf. Matthew 12:41-43; Luke 11:31-32). He is
greater than Moses and he is first of all the prophets before John (John 1:15),
Moses (John 6:46) and Abraham (John 8:56-58). And it is important to note that
His primacy is not only temporal, but existential. His "before" is
infinite, because it is eternal: "Abraham, your father, rejoiced to see my
day; he saw it and was glad. [...] Amen, amen, I say to you, before Abraham
came to be, I Am" (John 8:56-58).
Jesus also
presents Himself as a fulfillment of the wisdom literature in the Old
Testament. Jesus fulfills the Law and the Prophets by embodying this awareness
in Himself: He embodies the way and reforms it by the witness He gives
throughout His life, and even in His death. There is a radical change in
values, as if a new creation would emerge from a creation undergoing a major
upheaval.
By His
death, Jesus explains the apparent contradiction of these values in the wisdom
literature, and opens the path which had seemed to become as impasse for
humankind. For those who follow Jesus, and hopefully that is each one of us, we
must walk in his footsteps, enduring all of his misunderstanding, suffering,
and even death, in order to truly be his disciples. The more we probe the
depths of the very Scriptures which he fulfilled with his life, the more we
will become like him.
Extended call
Spend some
time this week reflecting on how the Lord has called you to be a disciple. In
what ways have you felt the personal call of Christ? How does Christ make a
difference in your life? What has his call demanded of you? What experiences or
people in your life have been instrumental in deepening your faith? Is it
possible to be a committed disciple of Jesus, yet still experience weakness and
failure? In what ways can you, as a disciple of Jesus, share in his mission of
teaching and healing today? To whom are you being sent, to teach and to heal?
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