July 30, 2011 Saturday of the Seventeenth Week in Ordinary Time

[이안드레아]

2011년 7월 30일 연중 제17주간 토요일

제1독서

레위기. 25,1.8-17
1 주님께서 시나이 산에서 모세에게 이르셨다.
8 “너희는 안식년을 일곱 번, 곧 일곱 해를 일곱 번 헤아려라. 그러면 안식년이 일곱 번 지나 마흔아홉 해가 된다. 9 그 일곱째 달 초열흘날 곧 속죄일에 나팔 소리를 크게 울려라. 너희가 사는 온 땅에 나팔 소리를 울려라.
10 너희는 이 오십 년째 해를 거룩한 해로 선언하고, 너희 땅에 사는 모든 주민에게 해방을 선포하여라. 이 해는 너희의 희년이다.
너희는 저마다 제 소유지를 되찾고, 저마다 자기 씨족에게 돌아가야 한다. 11 이 오십 년째 해는 너희의 희년이다. 너희는 씨를 뿌려서도 안 되고, 저절로 자란 곡식을 거두어서도 안 되며, 저절로 열린 포도를 따서도 안 된다.
12 이 해는 희년이다. 그것은 너희에게 거룩한 해다. 너희는 밭에서 그냥 나는 것만을 먹어야 한다.
13 이 희년에 너희는 저마다 제 소유지를 되찾아야 한다. 14 너희가 동족에게 무엇을 팔거나 동족의 손에서 무엇을 살 때, 서로 속여서는 안 된다. 15 너희는 희년에서 몇 해가 지났는지 헤아린 다음 너희 동족에게서 사고, 그는 소출을 거둘 햇수를 헤아린 다음 너희에게 팔아야 한다.
16 그 햇수가 많으면 값을 올리고, 햇수가 적으면 값을 내려야 한다. 그는 소출을 거둘 횟수를 너희에게 파는 것이다.
17 너희는 동족끼리 속여서는 안 된다. 너희는 너희 하느님을 경외해야 한다. 나는 주 너희 하느님이다.”

복음

마태오. 14,1-12
1 그때에 헤로데 영주가 예수님의 소문을 듣고 2 시종들에게, “그 사람은 세례자 요한이다. 그가 죽은 이들 가운데에서 되살아난 것이다. 그러니 그에게서 그런 기적의 힘이 일어나지.” 하고 말하였다.
3 헤로데는 자기 동생 필리포스의 아내 헤로디아의 일로, 요한을 붙잡아 묶어 감옥에 가둔 일이 있었다. 4 요한이 헤로데에게 “그 여자를 차지하는 것은 옳지 않습니다.” 하고 여러 차례 말하였기 때문이다.
5 헤로데는 요한을 죽이려고 하였으나 군중이 두려웠다. 그들이 요한을 예언자로 여기고 있었기 때문이다.
6 그런데 마침 헤로데가 생일을 맞이하자, 헤로디아의 딸이 손님들 앞에서 춤을 추어 그를 즐겁게 해 주었다. 7 그래서 헤로데는 그 소녀에게, 무엇이든 청하는 대로 주겠다고 맹세하며 약속하였다.
8 그러자 소녀는 자기 어머니가 부추기는 대로, “세례자 요한의 머리를 쟁반에 담아 이리 가져다주십시오.” 하고 말하였다.
9 임금은 괴로웠지만, 맹세까지 하였고 또 손님들 앞이어서 그렇게 해 주라고 명령하고, 10 사람을 보내어 감옥에서 요한의 목을 베게 하였다. 11 그리고 그의 머리를 쟁반에 담아다가 소녀에게 주게 하자, 소녀는 그것을 자기 어머니에게 가져갔다.
12 요한의 제자들은 가서 그의 주검을 거두어 장사 지내고, 예수님께 가서 알렸다.

http://www.usccb.org/nab/

July 30, 2011

Saturday of the Seventeenth
Week in Ordinary Time

Reading 1

Lv 25:1, 8-17
The LORD said to Moses on Mount Sinai,
“Seven weeks of years shall you count–seven times seven years–
so that the seven cycles amount to forty-nine years.
Then, on the tenth day of the seventh month, let the trumpet resound;
on this, the Day of Atonement, the trumpet blast shall re-echo
throughout your land.
This fiftieth year you shall make sacred
by proclaiming liberty in the land for all its inhabitants.
It shall be a jubilee for you,
when every one of you shall return to his own property,
every one to his own family estate.
In this fiftieth year, your year of jubilee,
you shall not sow, nor shall you reap the aftergrowth
or pick the grapes from the untrimmed vines.
Since this is the jubilee, which shall be sacred for you,
you may not eat of its produce,
except as taken directly from the field.

“In this year of jubilee, then,
every one of you shall return to his own property.
Therefore, when you sell any land to your neighbor
or buy any from him, do not deal unfairly.
On the basis of the number of years since the last jubilee
shall you purchase the land from your neighbor;
and so also, on the basis of the number of years for crops,
shall he sell it to you.
When the years are many, the price shall be so much the more;
when the years are few, the price shall be so much the less.
For it is really the number of crops that he sells you.
Do not deal unfairly, then; but stand in fear of your God.
I, the LORD, am your God.”

Responsorial Psalm

67:2-3, 5, 7-8

R. (4) O God, let all the nations praise you!
May God have pity on us and bless us;
may he let his face shine upon us.
So may your way be known upon earth;
among all nations, your salvation.
R. O God, let all the nations praise you!
May the nations be glad and exult
because you rule the peoples in equity;
the nations on the earth you guide.
R. O God, let all the nations praise you!
The earth has yielded its fruits;
God, our God, has blessed us.
May God bless us,
and may all the ends of the earth fear him!
R. O God, let all the nations praise you!

Gospel

Mt 14:1-12

Herod the tetrarch heard of the reputation of Jesus
and said to his servants, “This man is John the Baptist.
He has been raised from the dead;
that is why mighty powers are at work in him.”

Now Herod had arrested John, bound him, and put him in prison
on account of Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip,
for John had said to him,
“It is not lawful for you to have her.”
Although he wanted to kill him, he feared the people,
for they regarded him as a prophet.
But at a birthday celebration for Herod,
the daughter of Herodias performed a dance before the guests
and delighted Herod so much
that he swore to give her whatever she might ask for.
Prompted by her mother, she said,
“Give me here on a platter the head of John the Baptist.”
The king was distressed,
but because of his oaths and the guests who were present,
he ordered that it be given, and he had John beheaded in the prison.
His head was brought in on a platter and given to the girl,
who took it to her mother.
His disciples came and took away the corpse
and buried him; and they went and told Jesus.

http://www.staygreat.com/

we shall meet again

Herod had John the Baptist put in
prison and beheaded. Matthew 14:1,10

The famous nurse Edith Cavell
was asked her to set up a medical
clinic in Brussels. When World
War I broke out, her clinic secretly
treated and helped some 200
Allied soldiers to escape.
When the Germans learned this
they arrested her. She admitted
everything, saying, "My job as a
nurse is to save lives, not destroy
them." She was sentenced to be
shot. A chaplain describes her last
moments: "We partook of Holy
Communion together. At the close
of the little service, I began to
repeat the words, 'Abide with me,'
and she joined. Then she smiled
and said, 'We shall meet again.'"
At that point she was shot.

How ready am I to stand up for
what I believe to be right, even if
I know it will cost me dearly?

I have the strength to face all con-
ditions by the power that Christ
gives me? Philippians 4:13

http://www.franciscanretreats.net/

Today’s Gospel recalls the death of St. John the Baptist. John, we remember, confronted King Herod about marrying his brother Philip’s wife. Herod did not take too kindly to the confrontation and inappropriately decided to kill John in a most grotesque way. Herod knew he was wrong as the Gospel indicates: “The King was distressed, but because of his oaths and the guests who were present, he had John beheaded in prison.” Herod didn’t have the courage to say, “Stop! I know I am wrong! Do not harm John.”

Our old friend's denial and rationalization most probably had Herod in their grip. How often that happens to us, too. We know we are doing something wrong but stopping and admitting it will cause us humiliation and disgrace. And that takes courage we do not have. This is a frequent occurrence, far more frequent than many of us realize. If we find ourselves in this mess, let’s pray that God gives us the grace to admit we are acting wrongly and do something positive to correct the wrong.

Lord, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.

http://www.evangeli.net/gospel/gospel.html

«The news about Jesus reached King Herod»

Today, our liturgy proposes us to contemplate an injustice: the beheading of St. John the Baptist; and, at the same time, to discover in God's Word the need of a clear and concrete testimony of our faith to fill out the world with hope.

I invite you to center our consideration in the person of Herod, the tetrarch. In fact, it is a counter-testimony for us, but it will help us to emphasize some interesting aspects, important enough for our testimony of faith amid the world. «The news about Jesus reached King Herod» (Mt 14:1). This assertion underlines an apparently correct, but not too sincere, attitude. It is the same kind of reality we can today find in many persons and, perhaps, even in ourselves. There are many who have heard of Jesus, but, who is He actually?, what kind of personal implication can we find in him?

First of all, we must give the correct answer; Herod's reply is but vague information: «This man is John the Baptist. John has risen from the dead» (Mt 14:2). Most probably you will be missing here Peter's reply to Jesus' question: «He said to them, ‘but who do you say that I am?’ Simon Peter answered, ‘You are the Christ, the Son of the living God’» (Mt 16:15-16). And this assertion does not leave any room for fear or indifference but it rather gives way to a testimony based in the Gospel of hope. This is how His Holiness John Paul II defined it in his apostolic Exhortation The Church in Europe: «Therefore, in union with the whole Church, I invite my brothers and my sisters in faith constantly to be open in trust to Christ and to allow themselves to be renewed by him, proclaiming to all people of good will in the power of peace and love that whoever encounters the Lord comes to know the Truth, discovers the Life, and finds the Way leading to it».

Today, Saturday, let the Mother of God, the Mother of hope, help us to really discover Jesus and to bear witness of him to our brethren.

http://www.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/daily.html

Every fiftieth year was designated a jubilee year when, among other things, property reverted back to its original owners. Slaves were also freed and debts were forgiven. And people did not toil. It was a year of freedom and celebration. People returned home, as homes were returned to people. These jubilee years enabled families to stay together. They allowed people to sell property in times of need without losing it entirely. They allowed people to sell themselves into slavery without losing their freedom for life. It was also a symbol of the lack of actual ownership. Even if we buy land, it is not truly ours because everything really belongs to God. These jubilee years were a reminder of that: lands were reverting to their original human owners, but in honor of the true owner. Property prices fluctuated based on the distance to the jubilee. If one bought land the year after the jubilee, the price was high because it would be 49 years until it reverted back. If one bought land the year before the jubilee, the price was low because the new ‘owner’ would only get one year’s use from the land. And this ownership was really just that – use of a property that really belonged to someone else. And what is life but that, temporary use?

This is my jubilee. I turned 50 on my birthday in April. And in a way I am returning home. My mother had a stroke a few months ago, and so I am spending most evenings caring for her. Although, not in my childhood home but at the therapy center where she is now. But, after many years of being away from home and on my own, I’m back with Mother much of the time now. And I’m realizing more and more how much of life is really just temporary use.

My father died this past year and my husband died the year before, so I’m very much feeling the loss of situations that had felt very solid to me, but turned out to be temporary in those forms. My mom is still around, but our roles have reversed. I very much miss my dad’s practical advice and his sense of humor. When my husband and I bought our big house with its big yard, I was concerned about the yard work. But he told me not to worry because he would always care for the yard and I would never have to. But that situation turned out to be very temporary, and now, in my jubilee year, I’m spending a lot of time with my weed whacker. We don’t really own anything, but we also don’t really ever lose anything either. And we will go home at last.

http://www.rc.net/wcc/readings/

"Herod the tetrarch heard about the fame of Jesus"

Do you ever feel haunted by a past failure or a guilty conscience? King Herod, the most powerful and wealthy man in Judea, had everything he wanted, except a clear conscience and peace with God. Herod had respected and feared John the Baptist as a great prophet and servant of God. John, however did not fear to rebuke Herod for his adulterous relationship with his brother's wife. He ended up in prison because of Herodias' jealousy. Herod, out of impulse and a desire to please his family and friends, had John beheaded. Now his conscience is pricked when he hears that all the people are going to Jesus to hear his message of repentance and to see his mighty works. Herod is now haunted by the thought that the prophet he murdered might now be raised from the dead!

Unfortunately for Herod, he could not rid himself of sin by ridding himself of the man who confronted him with his sin. Herod's power and influence was badly flawed. He could take a strong stand on the wrong things when he knew the right. Such a stand, however, was a sign of weakness and cowardice. Where do you get the strength of will and heart to choose what is right and to reject what is bad? The Lord gives grace and help to the humble, to those who acknowledge their weanesses and their sinfulness, and who look to God for his mercy and pardon, wisdom and strength. His grace and pardon not only frees us from a guilty conscience, it enables us to pursue holiness in every area of our lives, in our thoughts and intentions as well as our words and actions. God's grace enables us to fight fear with faith and to overcome the temptation to compromise good with evil. Do you rely on God's grace and help to choose his way of holiness and to reject whatever would weaken your faith and loyalty to Christ?

"Heavenly Father, form in me the likeness of your Son Jesus that I may imitate him in word and deed. Help me to live the gospel faithfully and give me the strength and courage I need to not shrink back in the face of hardship and temptation."

Psalm 69:1-2, 9-16

1 Save me, O God! For the waters have come up to my neck.
2 I sink in deep mire, where there is no foothold; I have come into deep waters, and the flood sweeps over me.
9 For zeal for your house has consumed me, and the insults of those who insult you have fallen on me.
10 When I humbled my soul with fasting, it became my reproach.
11 When I made sackcloth my clothing, I became a byword to them.
12 I am the talk of those who sit in the gate, and the drunkards make songs about me.
13 But as for me, my prayer is to you, O LORD. At an acceptable time, O God, in the abundance of your steadfast love answer me. With your faithful help
14 rescue me from sinking in the mire; let me be delivered from my enemies and from the deep waters.
15 Let not the flood sweep over me, or the deep swallow me up, or the pit close its mouth over me.
16 Answer me, O LORD, for your steadfast love is good; according to your abundant mercy, turn to me.

http://www.daily-meditations.org/index2.html

These passages from the Law of Moses, given by God on Mount Sinai and recorded in Leviticus, direct the fulfillment of the love of God and love of neighbor, that is, the two great commandments.

This is how it is to be done. On one hand there are the Festivals, Holy Days and Sabbath observances through which the tribe of Israel will worship the Lord. These days of feast or penance engage the tribes of Israel in common prayer and celebration. On the other hand there are the laws governing the ordinary aspects of life, directing that these be observed for holiness and righteousness sake, as well as the good of all. With worship and the law, the people can seek the Lord and do His will.

We can seek the Lord revealed to us in Jesus Christ, and obedient to His law, we are called to love God and our neighbor. Through the Holy Spirit, the people of God can seek the Lord and do His will.

May God bless us, and may all the ends of the earth fear Him!

::: Rev. Stephen H. Gratto

http://www.contemplative.com/weekday_readings.htm

God is reality. God is truth, goodness and beauty. That we exist reflects the absolute reality of God. God's gift of morality guiding our behavior is beyond external law. It is not arbitrary nor dependent upon human judgment or culture's changing scene. Something is immoral not because God forbids it, rather, God forbids it because it is immoral in itself. God's morality is just there. My prayer must bring me into absolute obedience with the clarity and responsiveness of John the Baptist. Better to enter the Kingdom of God maimed than to be cast in hell fire whole.

http://goodnews.ie/calendar.php

Theodore of Heraclea (d. c. 355) said Herod was afraid because he saw that if cutting off the Baptist’s head hadn't silenced him, nothing would. “He was afraid that John, back from the dead, would use even more biting words than before, filling him with terror and exposing his crookedness.” In death John was even more powerful than in life.

But Herod was mistaken. The man coming to his attention was Jesus of Nazareth, not John the Baptist. It is a dangerous thing for anyone to come to the attention of such a person. John’s fate prefigured that of Jesus. If John was put to death, how could Jesus – who was “a prophet without honour in his own country” – be expected to escape a like fate?

Herod’s bloody deed has appalled people throughout the ages. It seems that a truly vile deed can turn the entire world upside down, such is its power of infection. Describing Herod’s evening party, Peter Chrysologus (c. 380 – 450) wrote: “The house changed into an arena, the table changed to a stand at the amphitheatre, the birthday guests turned into spectators, the feast turned into an uproar, the food into carnage, the wine into blood, the birthday into a funeral, sunrise into sunset, the banquet became a bloody murder, and the musical instruments began to play the tragedy of the ages.”

Is evil more powerful than good? In the short term it often seems that it is. But to have faith at all is to believe that good is more powerful than evil. That would appear a very theoretical view if we did not have the life and death of Jesus before our eyes. Jesus is just coming to the attention of Herod. Herod will play his habitual role, but it is Jesus now who will turn the world upside down.

http://www.presentationministries.com/

PARTY LINE

"This fiftieth year you shall make sacred by proclaiming liberty in the land for all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you." 뾎eviticus 25:10

God told the Israelites to have a yearlong party every fiftieth year. This jubilee celebration was not an expression‎ of self-indulgence, but of restoration, justice, peace, and freedom. In the jubilee year, land was restored to its original owner, slaves were freed, and the people celebrated a year of rest and recreation. Although the Israelites had a difficult time consistently celebrating the jubilee year, Jesus promised that He would make every year a jubilee year (Lk 4:19).

In today's Gospel reading, we have another kind of party: Herod's birthday party. This short party of just a day or two started off as an expression‎ of self-indulgence and pride, and then turned into murder. Herod, Herodias, and Salome had John the Baptizer beheaded and brought his head in on a platter (Mt 14:11).

The jubilee year begins with the Day of Atonement (Lv 25:9). We forgive those who have hurt us and ask God to forgive us as we forgive others (Mt 6:12). Which party do you want to attend: Herod's birthday party or the jubilee year? By repentance and forgiveness we come to the jubilee year. If we refuse to repent and forgive, if we harbor a grudge (Mk 6:19), or nurse bitterness (Heb 12:15), we choose Herod's birthday party. Repent, forgive, and choose the Lord's party (Lk 4:18-19).

Prayer: Father, may I never let the sun set on my anger, jealousy, bitterness, resentment, or unforgiveness (Eph 4:26).

Promise: "Do not deal unfairly, then; but stand in fear of your God." 뾎v 25:17

Praise: Loyalty to the Church in both her teaching and authority was a high priority for St. Peter. He fought constantly against paganism and abuses in his time.

http://www.judeop.org/daily_bread.htm

Do not let your hearts be troubled. Have faith in God and faith in me. Just in reading the daily news, we can get overwhelmed by the suffering that occurs in our world: wars, innocents "accidentally" killed by drones, famine, increases in homelessness and poverty. It would be easy to give up, to stop trying to bring about peace and justice, but Jesus says to "have faith in God and faith in me." When our hearts and our bodies become weary, we have someone to turn to, someone who experienced that same fatigue and disappointment but kept his faith in doing the will of his Father. O Comforter, hold us close and strengthen our faith, we pray. PC

http://www.judeop.org/dailyreflections.htm

Seven weeks of years shall you count - seven times seven years - so that the seven cycles amount to forty-nine years. Then, on the tenth day of the seventh month, let the trumpet resound; on this, the Day of Atonement, the trumpet blast shall re-echo throughout your land. This fiftieth year you shall make sacred by proclaiming liberty in the land for all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you......

Real estate agents, property owners, economists and commodities traders, beware! Reading this part of Leviticus could give you a heart attack! There is some dispute as to how the "sabbatical years" and "Jubilee" years were actually observed, but there is no dispute that the institutions themselves existed. Israel appears to have "borrowed" them from earlier civilizations! Returning property to its original owners? Not planting crops for an entire year? Releasing any slaves that might be part of your household? Forgiving all indebtedness? Mind you, all of this without today's data and record keeping! The Day of Atonement, Yom Kippur, is still observed, but the rest of the legislation seems to have disappeared in practice. Yet, all of this was religiously motivated as a means of maintaining an attitude about the sacredness of the land. The land was originally given to the twelve tribes and could not truly be sold. My father's legal practice involved a considerable amount of property law and I learned early how to do a "chain of title" for a piece of real estate. Imagine undoing all the real estate transactions for a fifty year period! Imagine, too, (perhaps with pleasure) not having to pay any taxes for a whole year! It's hard enough now to imagine Sundays when everything was closed!

The whole concept of economic sabbaticals and jubilees seems fanciful to us now. We do, once in awhile, have "tax holidays" during the Christmas shopping season to boost sales! The rest would be beyond us. Perhaps this scripture from Leviticus can help us to realize that we cannot just separate out human economic behavior from faith and morals. There are values greater than money, and human dignity and welfare are among the highest of those values! Economic sabbaticals and Jubilees, no matter how ancient or quaint they may seem to us, have something to say to us if we're willing to listen. AMEN

http://biblereflection.blogspot.com/

The story of the death of John the Baptist is full of human interest.
We can be fascinated by the dramatic story of the dance of Herodias'
daughter and Herod's foolish oath and the request of the girl to have
John the Baptist's head on a platter. The background to the story is
that Herod had married his brother's wife. In doing so, from the
viewpoint of the Jewish law, he committed two crimes. The first was
that he divorced his first wife without good reason. The second was
that he married his sister-in-law, which was a prohibited
relationship. John fearlessly criticized the king for his behavior and
so was thrown into prison. The reasons for Herod's conduct are
complex. Maybe, he disliked John because, at heart, he knew that what
John said was right. We do not like to be told that something we are
doing is wrong, especially if we are trying to deceive ourselves that
what we are doing is all right. Herod knew that John was a holy man
and did not want to execute him, but he was not prepared to admit his
guilt.

John paid the price for speaking the truth without fear. This is
something that we are all called to do, though probably in less
dramatic ways. We should speak up against injustice and wrongdoing
wherever we see it. In this we are imitating not only John the Baptist
but also Jesus himself, who was put to death for speaking the truth;
and we can be sure that Jesus will be with us as we try to be his
ambassadors in a world that is often hostile to Christian values.