WEDNESDAY OF WEEK 18 IN ORDINARY TIME - 2024

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

A great prophet has appeared among us;
God has visited his people. LK 7:16

JEREMIAH 31:1-7

My Soul's Beloved,

You never abandon Your people, You will never forsake those who are called by Your Name for we are etched in the palms of Your hand but even more importantly, You have made room for us in Your Sacred Heart. We, O Lord, who believe in You, have faith in You, hope in You, and give our lives to You will never be removed. You O Lord our God, are our inheritance because God is good. We deserve nothing, Beloved, except death and hell but You O Lord are good, and kind, merciful and loving, You know O Lord that we are broken, original sin has weakened us and we are frail. We are unable to withstand the wiles of the Enemy and we keep falling into the snare of the tempter but You O Lord are God are near. We have been redeemed by Your Precious Blood. We have been ransomed by the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world and even though we may slip, we may willfully stray, You will pursue us relentlessly and You will tenderly cajole us to return. You will wash away our iniquities, cleanse us from all our sins, You will feed us with Your Flesh, and slake our thirst with Your Blood and we will live.

Thank You, Lord, for being faithful please grant us the grace of being faithful to the end. Without Your help O Lord, we are doomed to perish.

The Lord says this:
They have found pardon in the wilderness,
those who have survived the sword.
Israel is marching to his rest.
The Lord has appeared to him from afar:
I have loved you with an everlasting love,
so I am constant in my affection for you.
I build you once more; you shall be rebuilt,
virgin of Israel.
Adorned once more, and with your tambourines,
you will go out dancing gaily.
You will plant vineyards once more
on the mountains of Samaria
(the planters have done their planting:
they will gather the fruit).
Yes, a day will come when the watchmen shout
on the mountains of Ephraim,
‘Up! Let us go up to Zion,
to the Lord our God!’
For the Lord says this:
Shout with joy for Jacob!
Hail the chief of nations!
Proclaim! Praise! Shout:
‘The Lord has saved his people,
the remnant of Israel!’

RESPONSORIAL PSALM - JEREMIAH 31:10-12,13

The Lord will guard us, as a shepherd guards his flock.

O nations, hear the word of the Lord,

  proclaim it to the far-off coasts.

Say: ‘He who scattered Israel will gather him,

  and guard him as a shepherd guards his flock.’

For the Lord has ransomed Jacob,

  has saved him from an overpowering hand.

They will come and shout for joy on Mount Zion,

  they will stream to the blessings of the Lord.

Then the young girls will rejoice and will dance,

  the men, young and old, will be glad.

I will turn their mourning into joy,

  I will console them, give them gladness for grief.

The Lord will guard us, as a shepherd guards his flock.

MATTHEW 15:21-28

My Soul's Beloved,

My Lord and my God, my Savior and my Redeemer, Bridegroom of my soul, I have been like the Canaanite woman for a long, long time. I have cried out to You day and night and it seemed to me that You had turned away from me and were deliberately deaf to my cries. I thought You had abandoned me and I was bereft for only You, O Lord, could save. Yet, I continued to cling to You. To hold on to the hem of Your cloak, I refused to let go. I pleaded with You night and day. I never gave up even though thick darkness surrounded me and the gloom of dejection pressed all around me filling my soul, my heart, and my spirit.

But You, O Lord, were near all the time although I could not feel Your Presence. You have heard O Lord. You have answered. You have delivered. You have saved. You have healed. You have restored. You have made whole. And You have given in abundance.

Thank You, Lord. Thank You.

Jesus left Gennesaret and withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon. Then out came a Canaanite woman from that district and started shouting, ‘Sir, Son of David, take pity on me. My daughter is tormented by a devil.’ But he answered her not a word. And his disciples went and pleaded with him. ‘Give her what she wants,’ they said ‘because she is shouting after us.’ He said in reply, ‘I was sent only to the lost sheep of the House of Israel.’ But the woman had come up and was kneeling at his feet. ‘Lord,’ she said ‘help me.’ He replied, ‘It is not fair to take the children’s food and throw it to the house-dogs.’ She retorted, ‘Ah yes, sir; but even house-dogs can eat the scraps that fall from their master’s table.’ Then Jesus answered her, ‘Woman, you have great faith. Let your wish be granted.’ And from that moment her daughter was well again.