Thursday, August 06, 2015
FRIDAY, 18th Week in Ordinary Time
August 7, 2015 FRIDAY, 18th Week in Ordinary Time
St. Sixtus II, Pope, and Companions, Martyrs;
St. Cajetan, Priest
Green
Dt 4:32 – 40 / Mt 16:24 - 28
[St. Sixtus II (d. 258), Pope, and four deacons were martyred under Emperor Valerian.]
[St. Cajetan (1480 – 1547) founded the Congregation of Clerks Regular (Theatines) and was a great Catholic reformer.]
Reading: Dt 4:32-40
Ask of the times past. Inquire from the day when God created man on earth. Ask from one end of the world to the other: Has there ever been anything as extraordinary as this? Has anything like this been heard of before? Has there ever been a people who remained alive after hearing as you did the voice of the living God from the midst of the fire?
Never has there been a God who went out to look for a people and take them out from among the other nations by the strength of trials and signs, by wonders and by war, with a firm hand and an outstretched arm. Never has there been any deed as tremendous as those done for you by Yahweh in Egypt, which you saw with your own eyes.
You saw this that you might know that Yahweh is God and that there is no other besides him. He let you hear his voice from heaven that you might fear him; on earth he let you see his blazing fire and from the midst of the fire you heard his word. Because of the love he had for your fathers, he chose their descendants after them, and he himself made you leave Egypt with his great power. He expelled before you peoples more numerous and stronger than you, and he has made you occupy their land: today he has given this to you as an inheritance. Therefore, try to be convinced that Yahweh is the only God of heaven and earth, and that there is no other.
Observe the laws and the commandments that I command you today, and everything will be well with you and your children after you. So you will live long in the land which Yahweh, your God, gives you forever."
Gospel: Mt 16:24 - 28
Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If you want to follow me, deny yourself, take up your cross and follow me. For whoever chooses to save his life will lose it, but the one who loses his life for my sake will find it. What will one gain by winning the whole world if he destroys himself? There is nothing you can give to recover your own self.
Know that the Son of Man will come in the Glory of his Father with the holy angels, and he will reward each one according to his deeds. Truly, I tell you, there are some here who will not die before they see the Son of Man coming as king."
Reflection:
In the first reading from Deuteronomy, Moses reminds the Israelites of the mighty deeds God had done for them, especially in their liberation from slavery in Egypt. Israel's God is the only living and rue God among all the so-called gods of the nations and peoples around them. And this living god had favored, loved and protected them. And Israel is then especially favored in having a covenant with this true God.
In the Gospel reading Our Lord teaches his followers about the true meaning of discipleship and of the following of Christ. A follower and a disciple must be like the Master: "If you want to follow me, deny yourself, take up your cross and follow me."
In his Spiritual Exercises, St. Ignatius puts the following of Christ the leader and King this way: "To all His summons goes forth, and to each one in particular He addressed the words: 'It is my will to conquer the whole world and all my enemies, and his to enter into the glory of my Father. Therefore, whoever wishes to join me in this enterprise must be willing to labour with me, that by following me in suffering, he may follow me in glory.' "
Indeed, this is the paradox of the following of Christ and of the Paschal mystery: "For whoever chooses to save his life will lose it, but the one who loses his life for my sake will find it."
WE PRAY FOR MTQ DAILY PRAYER DIARY INTENTIONS:
BIRTHDAY
FREDERICK BILL UY LIMI (60TH BDAY)
JOHNNY
RONA CHARLENE O. LAO
WEDDING ANNIVERSARY
JOSE RANDULF & MARIA DULCE AVES
REY & VICKY
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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# posted by F O O D F O R T H O U G H T @ 4:08 AM 
