DAILY- HOMILY

September 16, 2018 - 24th SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME

Cycle B. Green.

Is 50: 5 - 9a / Jas 2: 14- 18 / Mk 8: 27- 35

[Bicolandia: Ina, Our Lady of Peñafrancia]

2ND READING: Jas 2: 14- 18

What good is it, my brothers and sisters to profess faith without showing works? If a brother or a sister is in need of clothes or food and one of you says, "May things go well for you; be warm and be satisfied," without attending to their material needs, what good is that? So it is for faith without deeds: it is totally dead.

Say to whoever challenges you, "You have faith and I have good deeds; show me your faith apart from actions and I, for my part, will show you my faith in the way I act."

GOSPEL READING:           Mk 8: 27- 35

Jesus set out with his disciples for the villages around Caesarea Philippi, and on the way he asked them, "Who do people say I am?" And they told him, "Some say you are John the Baptist; others say you are Elijah or one of the prophets.

Then Jesus asked them, "But you, who do you say I am?" Peter answered, "You are the Messiah." And he ordered them not to tell anyone about him.

Jesus then began to teach them that the Son of Man had to suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the Law. He would be killed and after three days rise again. Jesus said all this quite openly, so that Peter took him aside and began to protest strongly. But Jesus turning around, and looking at his disciples, rebuked Peter saying, "Get behind me Satan! You are thinking not as God does but as people do."

Then Jesus called the people and his disciples and said, "If you want to follow me, deny yourself, take up your cross and follow me. For if you choose to save your life, you will lose it; and if you lose your life for my sake and for the sake of the Gospel, you will save it."

REFLECTION

The questions that Jesus posed to his disciples in today's Gospel reading are questions that can be repeated over and over again. The first question, "Who do people say Jesus is?" For millions of people in our own day Jesus is an unknown figure. Of our world's total population of more than seven billion, only about 32% are Christians who recognize Jesus as truly divine. Islam which represents about 23% of the world's population sees Jesus as a prophet, but as not divine.

The second question, "Who do you, my disciples, say that I am?" In the Gospel passage we hear Peter boldly saying that Jesus is the Messiah, the Christ, the anointed One. And the belief of Peter, a belief given by grace, is what we, who are Christians, claim to be also our belief.

We might ask a third question of ourselves, "How do we live the faith we profess? How do we live our faith as believers in Jesus as the Christ, the Anointed One?" The second reading of today's liturgy from the Letter of James gives the answer to that question: We live our faith by the way we love and live as Jesus loved and lived. We live our faith by caring for our needy brothers and sisters. Faith without the works and deeds demanded by faith is not a living faith but a dead faith. Which is why the Church in our time has insisted that action for social justice is an integral element of our faith life.

Something else to ponder: The command that Jesus gave to his apostles at his ascension to go into the world and "make disciples of all nations" (Mt 28:19) is a command for us to consider addressed to each one of us. Perhaps by living our faith as the Letter of James urges we can draw more men and women into Christ's discipleship. Pope Francis would suggest that a faith lived with conviction and joy can be an excellent means of "making" more disciples today..

Have a good day!

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September 17, 2018 – MONDAY, 24th Week in Ordinary Time

St. Robert Bellarmine, Bishop and Doctor of the Church

Memorial. White.

1 Cor 11: 17- 26, 33 / Lk 7: 1 – 10

Of an Italian noble family, St. Robert Bellarmine (1542 - 1621), a Jesuit who became Cardinal-Archbishop of Capua, was a great scholar and theologian, a writer and systematic apologist of the Catholic Counter-Reformation.

 FROM THE 1ST READING:            1 Cor 11: 23- 26

This is the tradition of the Lord that I received and that in my turn I have handed on to you; the Lord Jesus Christ, on the night he was delivered up, took bread and, giving thanks, broke it, saying, "This is my body which is broken for you; do this in memory of me."

In the same manner, taking the cup after the supper, he said, "This cup is the new Covenant in my blood. Whenever you drink it, do it in memory of me." So then whenever you eat of this bread and drink from this cup, you are proclaiming the death of the Lord until he comes.

FROM THE GOSPEL READING:     Lk 7: 2- 10

There was a captain whose servant was very sick and near to death, a man very dear to him. So when he heard about Jesus, he sent some elders of the Jews to persuade him to come and save his servant's life. The elders came to Jesus and begged him earnestly, saying, "He deserves this of you, for he loves our people and even built a synagogue for us."

Jesus went with them. He was not far from the house when the captain sent friends to give him this message, "Sir, do not trouble yourself for I am not worthy to welcome you under my roof. You see I didn't approach you myself. Just give the order and my servant will be healed. For I myself, a junior officer, give orders to my soldiers and I say to this one, 'Go,' and he goes; and to the other, 'Come,' and he comes; and to my servant, 'Do this,' and he does it."

On hearing these words, Jesus was filled with admiration. He turned and said to the people with him, "I say to you, not even in Israel have I found such great faith." The people sent by the captain went back to his house; there they found that the servant was well.

REFLECTION

In the first reading Paul reminds the Corinthians what the Lord's supper which we gather for is all about: it is the proclamation of the Lord's death and triumph. We should offer the Eucharist with the greatest love, gratitude and respect.

In the Gospel reading Jesus marvels at the faith the Roman officer and cures his servant: "Sir, do not trouble yourself for I am not worthy to welcome you under my roof." "I say to you, not even in Israel have I found such great faith."

We recall the Roman officer's faith before we receive Holy Communion, "Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof, but only say the word and my soul shall be healed." We pray, "Lord, strengthen our faith."

Have a good day!

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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: 

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   |  The Daily Prayer, a service and an apostolate of the

   |  priests, laity and friends of Mary the Queen Parish

   |  distributed free and for personal use only.  

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