DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS
The sheep that belong to me listen to my voice, says the Lord,I know them and they follow me. JN 10:27
EZEKIEL 18:25-28
My Beloved, Soul of my soul,
We expect all kinds of concessions made to us; we want justice for ourselves, we want to be treated with equity and respect. We want our voices to be heard. We want to be free. Yet, do we always treat everyone in the same way?
The world is filled with injustices of every kind. The rights of people are constantly ignored. The rich, the powerful, and anyone who can and get away with it constantly steal from the weak and the vulnerable, and the disparity creates an ever-widening chasm.
Today, the prophet Ezekiel reminds all who will listen that no matter how wicked we have been, no matter the gravity of our evil deeds if we repent, You will be merciful. A humble, contrite heart You will not spurn. If on the other hand, we die unrepentant of the evil we have done then no one can save us from Your righteous justice and punishment. It is very consoling to know that You will not withhold mercy, compassion, and forgiveness from the sinner no matter at what hour he or she repents and rejects sin.
PSALM 25:4-9
My Beloved, Soul of my soul,
Thank You for the gift of the Holy Spirit at baptism. Without the promptings of the Helper who is also our teacher and guide, we would find it difficult to walk in Your Way of Light, Life, and Truth.
My Beloved, without You there would be no forgiveness of sins. Every repentant sinner can approach the Throne of Mercy because they are washed clean in Your Blood. God, our Father, forgives us because You paid the price of our redemption.
It is the poor in spirit, the humble of heart, the little ones who are closest to the heart of God. You taught us true humility and obedience, true poverty of spirit, true surrender to the will of God without these it is impossible to enter the Kingdom of heaven.
PHILIPPIANS 2:1-11
My Beloved, Soul of my soul,
Love holds all things together in You for God is love. If we love as You love the world will experience the peace that You came to give. Sadly, any show of genuine kindness, tenderness, empathy, and solidarity is seen as a sign of weakness. The world is growing increasingly crass, ugly, and base. Evil rather than good is encouraged and celebrated.
This beautiful, timeless hymn by St. Paul to Your humility must be the lived experience of every Christian. Only by imitating the Master closely in all things is there hope for the world. The faithful remnant will survive the ugliness and destruction of the age we live in, for love alone can withstand evil. True joy is found when like You, we are prepared to lay down our lives for one another.
You were God, and the Son of God, and yet You gave it all up in total obedience and surrender to Your Father's will. You embraced the human condition in all its weakness and frailty becoming like us in all things save sin. This is why, 'There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among mortals by which we must be saved.’ You are raised high above all and are seated at the right hand of the Father. You are given a name that is above every other,
so that all beings in the heavens,on earth and in the underworld,
should bend the knee at the name of Jesus
and that every tongue should acclaim
Jesus Christ as Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.
MATTHEW 21:28-32
My Beloved, Soul of my soul,
Your parables hit the bullseye every time. In today's Gospel passage You are addressing the chief priests and elders who ought to have been the first to believe and yet You faced the fiercest opposition from them. They hated You with a murderous rage because You threatened the status quo. They lived in a comfortable bubble and were determined to preserve it at any cost. They thought their salvation was guaranteed because of their perceived righteousness before God but You knocked that fallacious notion right out of the park.
This is true of some Catholics/Christians too. Just because we are baptized does not guarantee us a safe passage to the Kingdom of God. It will do each of us good to remember that salvation is guaranteed to no one except to those who are meek and humble of heart. Only when we confess like the publican that we are sinners and unworthy can we hope to receive the grace and mercy of God.
‘I tell you solemnly, tax collectors and prostitutes are making their way into the kingdom of God before you. For John came to you, a pattern of true righteousness, but you did not believe him, and yet the tax collectors and prostitutes did. Even after seeing that, you refused to think better of it and believe in him.’
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