Friday, June 22, 2012
SATURDAY 11TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME – YEAR II
JUNE 23, 2012
SATURDAY 11TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME – YEAR II
2 Chr 24:17-25 / Mt 6:24-34
2 CHRONICLES 24:17-25
After the death of Jehoiada, the officials of Judah came to pay court to the king, and the king now turned to them for advice. The Judaeans abandoned the house of Yahweh, the God of their ancestors, for the worship of sacred trunks and idols and God's anger fell on Judah and Jerusalem because of their guilt. He sent them prophets to bring them back to Yahweh, but when the prophets spoke, they would not listen. The spirit of God took control of Zechariah, son of Jehoiada the priest. He stood up before the people and said, "God says this: Why are you disobeying the commandments of Yahweh? You cannot prosper. You have abandoned Yahweh and he will abandon you." They then plotted against him and by order of the king stoned him in the court of Yahweh's House. King Joash forgot the kindness of Jehoiada, the father of Zechariah, and killed Jehoiada's son who cried out as he died, "Let Yahweh see and do justice!" When a year had gone by, the Aramaean army made war on Joash. They reached Judah and Jerusalem, and killed all the officials among the people, sending back to the king of Damascus all that they had plundered from them. Though the Aramaean army was small, Yahweh delivered into its power an army of great size for they had abandoned him, the God of their ancestors. The Aramaeans wounded Joash and when they withdrew they left him a very sick man; and his officers, plotting against him to avenge the death of the son of Jehoiada the priest, murdered him in his bed. So he died, and they buried him in the City of David, though not in the tombs of the king.
MATTHEW 6:24-34
No one can serve two masters; for he will either hate one and love the other, or he will be loyal to the first and look down on the second. You cannot at the same time serve God and money. This is why I tell you not to be worried about food and drink for yourself, or about clothes for your body. Is not life more important than food, and is not the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow, they do not harvest and do not store food in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you less worthy than they are? Can any of you add a day to your life by worrying about it? Why are you so worried about your clothes? Look at how the flowers in the fields grow. They do not toil or spin. But I tell you that not even Solomon in all his wealth was clothed like one of these. If God so clothes the grass in the field, which blooms today and is to be burned tomorrow in an oven, how much more will he clothe you? What little faith you have! Do not worry and say: What are we going to eat? What are we going to drink? or: What shall we wear? The pagans busy themselves with such things; but your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. Set your heart first on the kingdom and justice of God, and all these things will also be given to you. Do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
REFLECTION
We know from other parts of the Gospel that Jesus encourages hard work and diligence, and he praises wise planning and astuteness regarding the future. His main point in today's parable, however, is "don't worry." Instead of worrying, he wants us to put our faith in God, to seek first his Kingdom, and to trust in him more. Jesus wants us to work, but not as if God didn't exist or care about us. Jesus also wants us to provide for the future, but not with excessive concern or anxiety.
Wonderful stories are told about saints and how God rewarded their faith and multiplied their resources. But the saints also toiled to the point of exhaustion and prayed when it seemed useless. Another stark point of realism about this parable is its implication about death. A gracious God feeds the birds, but some birds still freeze to death. A caring God clothes the flowers with splendor, but these same flowers also wither and die. So too, while a loving Father knows all our human needs and provides for them, we still experience pain, suffering, and death.
Are these contradictions? Not at all! They are a call to faith, faith in a God who will ultimately give us more than we can see now. They are a call to faith in a God who will in the end restore more than we have ever lost. They are a call to faith in a God who will eventually win the victory for us when He raises us from the dead.
SATURDAY 11TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME – YEAR II
2 Chr 24:17-25 / Mt 6:24-34
2 CHRONICLES 24:17-25
After the death of Jehoiada, the officials of Judah came to pay court to the king, and the king now turned to them for advice. The Judaeans abandoned the house of Yahweh, the God of their ancestors, for the worship of sacred trunks and idols and God's anger fell on Judah and Jerusalem because of their guilt. He sent them prophets to bring them back to Yahweh, but when the prophets spoke, they would not listen. The spirit of God took control of Zechariah, son of Jehoiada the priest. He stood up before the people and said, "God says this: Why are you disobeying the commandments of Yahweh? You cannot prosper. You have abandoned Yahweh and he will abandon you." They then plotted against him and by order of the king stoned him in the court of Yahweh's House. King Joash forgot the kindness of Jehoiada, the father of Zechariah, and killed Jehoiada's son who cried out as he died, "Let Yahweh see and do justice!" When a year had gone by, the Aramaean army made war on Joash. They reached Judah and Jerusalem, and killed all the officials among the people, sending back to the king of Damascus all that they had plundered from them. Though the Aramaean army was small, Yahweh delivered into its power an army of great size for they had abandoned him, the God of their ancestors. The Aramaeans wounded Joash and when they withdrew they left him a very sick man; and his officers, plotting against him to avenge the death of the son of Jehoiada the priest, murdered him in his bed. So he died, and they buried him in the City of David, though not in the tombs of the king.
MATTHEW 6:24-34
No one can serve two masters; for he will either hate one and love the other, or he will be loyal to the first and look down on the second. You cannot at the same time serve God and money. This is why I tell you not to be worried about food and drink for yourself, or about clothes for your body. Is not life more important than food, and is not the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow, they do not harvest and do not store food in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you less worthy than they are? Can any of you add a day to your life by worrying about it? Why are you so worried about your clothes? Look at how the flowers in the fields grow. They do not toil or spin. But I tell you that not even Solomon in all his wealth was clothed like one of these. If God so clothes the grass in the field, which blooms today and is to be burned tomorrow in an oven, how much more will he clothe you? What little faith you have! Do not worry and say: What are we going to eat? What are we going to drink? or: What shall we wear? The pagans busy themselves with such things; but your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. Set your heart first on the kingdom and justice of God, and all these things will also be given to you. Do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
REFLECTION
We know from other parts of the Gospel that Jesus encourages hard work and diligence, and he praises wise planning and astuteness regarding the future. His main point in today's parable, however, is "don't worry." Instead of worrying, he wants us to put our faith in God, to seek first his Kingdom, and to trust in him more. Jesus wants us to work, but not as if God didn't exist or care about us. Jesus also wants us to provide for the future, but not with excessive concern or anxiety.
Wonderful stories are told about saints and how God rewarded their faith and multiplied their resources. But the saints also toiled to the point of exhaustion and prayed when it seemed useless. Another stark point of realism about this parable is its implication about death. A gracious God feeds the birds, but some birds still freeze to death. A caring God clothes the flowers with splendor, but these same flowers also wither and die. So too, while a loving Father knows all our human needs and provides for them, we still experience pain, suffering, and death.
Are these contradictions? Not at all! They are a call to faith, faith in a God who will ultimately give us more than we can see now. They are a call to faith in a God who will in the end restore more than we have ever lost. They are a call to faith in a God who will eventually win the victory for us when He raises us from the dead.
PRAYER REQUESTS
We pray …
… for a deep and profound respect for life, especially for the unborn.
… for the speedy recovery and healing of
- Fr. Ismael Zuloaga, SJ
- Neil Nicholas
- Renan Lacida and Rowena Yap
… for the personal intentions of
- Earl James Gonzalez and family
- Beny Chua
… for all the prayer intentions in the MTQ Dailyprayer Diary.
- Birthday: Cresencio Tan Jao
- Birthday: Alexis Reyes
- Birthday: Lovelene Wendy I. Semanero
… for families who are in need of healing
… 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!
**************************************************
These reflections are distributed free and are for personal use only. Feel free to send the Daily Prayer reflections to your friends, colleagues and relatives; however, if you do, please include the following:
+================================================+
| The Daily Prayer, a service and an apostolate of the
| priests, laity and friends of Mary the Queen Parish
| http://www.marythequeen.org
| Distributed free and for personal use only.
+================================================+
-- We pray …
… for a deep and profound respect for life, especially for the unborn.
… for the speedy recovery and healing of
- Fr. Ismael Zuloaga, SJ
- Neil Nicholas
- Renan Lacida and Rowena Yap
… for the personal intentions of
- Earl James Gonzalez and family
- Beny Chua
… for all the prayer intentions in the MTQ Dailyprayer Diary.
- Birthday: Cresencio Tan Jao
- Birthday: Alexis Reyes
- Birthday: Lovelene Wendy I. Semanero
… for families who are in need of healing
… 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!
**************************************************
These reflections are distributed free and are for personal use only. Feel free to send the Daily Prayer reflections to your friends, colleagues and relatives; however, if you do, please include the following:
+================================================+
| The Daily Prayer, a service and an apostolate of the
| priests, laity and friends of Mary the Queen Parish
| http://www.marythequeen.org
| Distributed free and for personal use only.
+================================================+
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