Readings for Sunday, August 27, 2023
Twenty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time
Il-Wieħed u Għoxrin Ħadd taż-Żmien ta’ Matul is-Sena
Reading 1 ISAIAH 22:19-23
Thus says the LORD to Shebna, master of the palace: "I will thrust you from your office and pull you down from your station. On that day I will summon my servant Eliakim, son of Hilkiah; I will clothe him with your robe, and gird him with your sash, and give over to him your authority. He shall be a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and to the house of Judah. I will place the key of the House of David on Eliakim's shoulder; when he opens, no one shall shut, when he shuts, no one shall open. I will fix him like a peg in a sure spot, to be a place of honour for his family."
QARI 1 mill-Ktieb tal-Profeta Isaija 22, 19-23
Dan jgħid il-Mulej lil Sebna, dak li jieħu ħsieb il-palazz tas-sultan: “Inwarrbek minn postok, u nneħħik minn fejn qiegħed. Dakinhar insejjaħ lill-qaddej tiegħi Eljakim, bin Ħilkija, inlibbsu l-libsa tiegħek, u nħażżmu bit-terħa tiegħek, u nagħtih f’idejh il-ħakma tiegħek. U jkun missier għal min jgħammar f’Ġerusalemm, u għad-dar ta’ Ġuda. Inqiegħed muftieħ dar David fuq spallejh. Jiftaħ hu, u ħadd ma jagħlaq; jagħlaq hu, u ħadd ma jiftaħ. U nwaħħlu bħal musmar ma’ ħajt fis-sod, u jkun tron glorjuż għal dar missieru”. Il-Kelma tal-Mulej
Responsorial Psalm PSALM 138:1-2, 2-3, 6, 8
for you have heard the words of my mouth;
in the presence of the angels I will sing your praise;
I will worship at your holy temple.
R. Lord, your love is eternal; do not forsake the work of your hands.
I will give thanks to your name,
because of your kindness and your truth:
When I called, you answered me;
you built up strength within me.
R. Lord, your love is eternal; do not forsake the work of your hands.
The LORD is exalted, yet the lowly he sees,
and the proud he knows from afar.
Your kindness, O LORD, endures forever;
forsake not the work of your hands.
R. Lord, your love is eternal; do not forsake the work of your hands.
SALM RESPONSORJALI Salm 137 (138), 1-2a.2bc-3.6.8bc
R/. (8b): It-tjieba tiegħek, Mulej, tibqa’ għal dejjem
għaliex int smajt kliem fommi.
Quddiem l-allat irrid ngħannilek.
B’wiċċi fl-art ninxteħet
quddiem is-santwarju tiegħek. R/.
Irroddlok ħajr għat-tjieba u l-fedeltà tiegħek,
għax int kabbart ismek u kelmtek fuq kollox.
Meta sejjaħtlek, int weġibtni,
kattarli l-qawwa f’ruħi. R/.
Kbir il-Mulej, imma jieħu ħsieb iż-żgħar;
u, għalkemm fl-għoli, jagħraf mill-bogħod.
Il-Mulej iżomm kelmtu miegħi.
It-tjieba tiegħek, Mulej, tibqa’ għal dejjem. R/.
Reading 2 ROMANS 11:33-36
Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How inscrutable are his judgments and how unsearchable his ways! For who has known the mind of the Lord or who has been his counselor? Or who has given the Lord anything that he may be repaid? For from him and through him and for him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen.
QARI 2 mill-Ittra lir-Rumani 11, 33-36
Ħuti, kemm huma kbar l-għana, l-għerf u l-għaqal ta’ Alla! Kemm tassew ħadd ma jista’ jgħarbel il-ġudizzju tiegħu u jifhem it-triqat tiegħu! Għax min qatt għaraf moħħ il-Mulej? Min qatt kien il-kunsillier tiegħu? Min qatt tah l-ewwel biex jistħoqqlu l-ħlas? Kollox ġej minnu, kollox permezz tiegħu, kollox għalih. Lilu l-glorja għal dejjem ta’ dejjem. Amen!
Gospel MATTHEW 16:13-20
Jesus went into the region of Caesarea Philippi and he asked his disciples, "Who do people say that the Son of Man is?" They replied, "Some say John the Baptist, others Elijah, still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets." He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?" Simon Peter said in reply, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." Jesus said to him in reply, "Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah. For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father. And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven." Then he strictly ordered his disciples to tell no one that he was the Christ.
EVANĠELJU Qari skond San Mattew 16, 13-20
F’dak iż-żmien, meta wasal fl-inħawi ta’ Ċesarija ta’ Filippu, Ġesù staqsa lid-dixxipli tiegħu u qalilhom: “Min jgħidu n-nies li hu Bin il-bniedem?”. U huma weġbuh: “Xi wħud, Ġwanni l-Battista; oħrajn, Elija; u oħrajn, Ġeremija jew wieħed mill-profeti”. “Imma intom min tgħidu li jien?”, staqsiehom. U qabeż Xmun Pietru u qallu: “Inti l-Messija, Bin Alla l-ħaj”. U Ġesù wieġbu u qallu: “Hieni int, Xmun bin Ġona, għax mhux bniedem tad-demm u l-laħam uriek dan, imma Missieri li hu fis-smewwiet. U jiena ngħidlek: Inti Pietru, u fuq din il-blata jiena nibni l-Knisja tiegħi, u s-setgħat tal-infern ma jegħlbuhiex. Jiena nagħtik l-imfietaħ tas-Saltna tas-Smewwiet, u kull ma torbot fuq l-art ikun marbut fis-smewwiet, u kull ma tħoll fuq l-art ikun maħlul fis-smewwiet”. Imbagħad lid-dixxipli tiegħu wissiehom biex ma jitkellmu ma’ ħadd fuq li huwa l-Messija. Il-Kelma tal-Mulej
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Eight-minute Homily by Fr Tony Kadavil
Introduction:
We might call this Sunday “Power Sunday” because the main theme of all three readings is that God is the Source of all authority. God shares His authority with civil rulers elected to serve the people and with the Pope and the other Church leaders for the material and spiritual welfare of His children. Today’s Gospel challenges us to accept the authority of Jesus as our Lord and Savior as St. Peter did at Caesarea Philippi.
Scripture lessons summarized:
The first reading, taken from Isaiah, tells us how God hates unfaithful and selfish officials. He removed the proud “master of the royal palace” from his office, taking from Shebna the power and responsibility of which he had proven unworthy, and gave both to the humble and faithful Eliakim. The robe, the sash, and the keys are the insignia of this office. In today’s Responsorial Psalm (Ps 138), David thanks God for having raised him from lowly origins and given him authority as king over the people of Israel. In the second reading, St. Paul praises God for the depth of His wisdom, knowledge, and correct judgments, asserting that He is the Source of all authority on earth and in Heaven. Today’s Gospel passage shows us how Peter confesses Jesus as his Lord and Savior and how Jesus, in turn, approves Peter’s words and gives him teaching and ruling authority in his Church. Thus, Jesus establishes a “Magisterium” in his Church to serve the spiritual and physical needs of the Church members. By Jesus’ statement, “I will give you the Keys to the Kingdom of Heaven,” he gives Peter and his successors the power to bind and to loose (make laws; exercise authority) in the Church, and the assurance that their decisions will be ratified in Heaven.
Life messages:
1) We need to accept and experience Jesus as our Lord and personal Savior: : First, we should accept Jesus as the Son of God and our personal Savior. This means that we are accepting Jesus as our Good Shepherd, our Divine Savior, and our Redeemer. Next, Jesus should become a living experience for us – as our God protecting us and providing for us in our life’s journey, loving us, forgiving us, helping us, and transforming our lives and outlook. This is made possible by our listening to Jesus through the daily, meditative reading of the Bible, by talking to Jesus through daily, personal, communal and liturgical prayers, by offering our lives on the altar with Jesus whenever we participate in the Holy Mas, by receiving him in Holy Communion, and by leading exemplary lives, as we cooperate with God’s grace. Our personal experience of Jesus will also lead us to praise and thank God in all the events of our lives, both pleasant, and painful, realizing that God’s loving hands are behind everything.
2) We need to surrender our lives to Jesus, our Lord and Savior. That surrender requires that we freely give all areas of our lives to Jesus and radiate to all around us Jesus’ sacrificial agápe love, unconditional forgiveness, overflowing mercy, and committed service. The joy, the love, and the peace that we find in Jesus need to be reflected in the way we live our whole lives. We also surrender our lives to Jesus by rendering humble, loving service to others with the strong conviction that Jesus is present in every person.
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