Tuesday, September 26, 2006
Memorial, St. Vincent de Paul, priest
September 27, 2006
Memorial, St. Vincent de Paul, priest
Wednesday 25th Week in Ordinary Time - Yr II
PROVERBS 30:5-9
Every word of God is tested; he is a shield to those who take refuge in
him. Add nothing to his words, lest he reprove you, and you will be
exposed as a deceiver. Two things I ask of you, deny them not to me
before I die: Put falsehood and lying far from me, give me neither
poverty nor riches; provide me only with the food I need; Lest, being
full, I deny you, saying, "Who is the Lord?" Or, being in want, I
steal, and profane the name of my God.
LUKE 9:1-6
Jesus summoned the Twelve and gave them power and authority over all
demons and to cure diseases, and he sent them to proclaim the Kingdom
of God and to heal the sick. He said to them, "Take nothing for the
journey, neither walking stick, nor sack, nor food, nor money, and let
no one take a second tunic. Whatever house you enter, stay there and
leave from there. And as for those who do not welcome you, when you
leave that town, shake the dust from your feet in testimony against
them." Then they set out and went from village to village proclaiming
the Good News and curing diseases everywhere.
REFLECTION
The prayer in today's first reading is the only prayer in the Book of
Proverbs. It's a prayer that's quite appropriate for all of us who live
in bondage to materialistic and consumerist values. We find it
difficult, don't we, even to imagine a world devoid of these spurious
benefits.
The author of Proverbs prays that God will give him neither poverty nor
riches. If we enjoy abundance, it's easy enough to relegate God to the
periphery of our consciousness. If we suffer dire need, the pursuit of
daily sustenance leaves little time and energy for the pursuit of
spiritual values. In neither case can we maintain our life-focus on
God, on his life within us, or on his identification with the
marginalized, the oppressed and the poor.
Fr. Mark Link narrates a happening organized by some 175 syndicated
cartoonists in the United States on Thanksgiving Day in 1985. These
cartoonists presented to 90 million readers of about 2,000 newspapers
an identical message: while we feast on plenty, many go hungry.
Fr. Link recalls the Peanuts comic strip, where Linus asks Charlie
Brown if he's going to have a big Thanksgiving dinner. Charlie Brown
replies, "I guess so, but I don't really think that much about food."
Snoopy is listening in on the conversation. He looks down at his empty
dish and remarks to himself, "You think about food a lot when there's
nothing in your dish."
This, of course, is true. And Jesus was quite aware of the people's
material needs when he sent his apostles out on their first missionary
journey. Even though he instructed them to travel unencumbered, taking
with them not even a change of clothes, he also instructed them to
proclaim the reign of God (thus feeding the soul) and to heal the
afflicted (thus recognizing that the body too has its needs).
We have to reach constantly for a balance. As missionaries the Lord
obviously wants us to live a simple life-style and to mediate to others
health of body and spirit.
PRAYER REQUESTS
We pray ...
- for a deep and profound respect for life, especially for the unborn.
- for the safe travel of Lydia and Jaja.
- for the special intentions of the Pe Family.
- for the personal intentions of Claudette.
- for the personal intentions of Teresa and family.
- for the personal intentions of Issa.
- for the speedy recovery of Vivian's Mom.
- In Memoriam: Sara Lim Yap (1921-2006)
- for all the prayer intentions in the MTQ Dailyprayer Diary.
- Wedding Anniversary: Louie & Lourdes Ortiga
- Wedding Anniversary: Dra. Rosalind Sia & Dr. John Lim
- Wedding Anniversary: Gregorio & Lolita Sycip
- for world peace and reconciliation.
Finally, we pray for one another, for those who have asked our
prayers and for those who need our prayers the most.
Have a good day!
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