Readings at Mass - 2 Oct 2020

Use this image of Joseph The Carpenter with child Jesus by Georges de La Tour. The experience of beholding a La Tour is like looking at the sunset; your eyes are glued to the dimming sun. Sit down and quietly gaze and marvel at this masterpiece by someone who went through a similar crisis. Ten years after painting this in 1652, Georges and his family perished in an epidemic in Lunéville France. GUIDED MEDITATION—1—Does it mirror or evoke any feeling of the darkness surrounding you these days? Focus on your breathing and feel your own heart beat; listen.—2—Move your attention towards the candle light. Feel in your eyes the warmth. Look at those dirty fingernails. Ask to be cleansed.—3—Notice too the straight flame unperturbed by Joseph's breath. Imagine the heart of God beating and aflame with divine love for you.—4—Join in! The light source leads the way as you enter the scene. The light is veiled and unveiled. Move close to where the light is unveiled in Jesus' glowing face. Likewise, notice that you are moving away from the cast shadows. Look at that face aglow with a child's smile. Thank him briefly.—5—Now, tell Jesus quietly your heart's desires. Imagine his gaze shifting on you. Jesus says "BE STILL AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD" (Ps 46:10). Use this image as a screen saver.

Readings at Mass - 2 Oct 2020

Here is your Readings at Mass page for 2 Oct 2020: The Holy Guardian Angels.

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Friday 2 October 2020

The Holy Guardian Angels

on Friday of week 26 in Ordinary Time

Liturgical Colour: White.

Readings at Mass

Readings for the feria

Readings for the memorial

These are the readings for the feria

First reading
Job 38:1,12-21,40:3-5

The immeasurable greatness of God

From the heart of the tempest the Lord gave Job his answer. He said:

Have you ever in your life given orders to the morning

or sent the dawn to its post,

telling it to grasp the earth by its edges

and shake the wicked out of it,

when it changes the earth to sealing clay

and dyes it as a man dyes clothes;

stealing the light from wicked men

and breaking the arm raised to strike?

Have you journeyed all the way to the sources of the sea,

or walked where the Abyss is deepest?

Have you been shown the gates of Death

or met the janitors of Shadowland?

Have you an inkling of the extent of the earth?

Tell me all about it if you have!

Which is the way to the home of the light,

and where does darkness live?

You could then show them the way to their proper places,

or put them on the path to where they live!

If you know all this, you must have been born with them,

you must be very old by now!

Job replied to the Lord:

My words have been frivolous: what can I reply?

I had better lay my finger on my lips.

I have spoken once... I will not speak again;

more than once... I will add nothing.

Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 138(139):1-3,7-10,13-14

Lead me, O Lord, in the path of life eternal.

O Lord, you search me and you know me,

you know my resting and my rising,

you discern my purpose from afar.

You mark when I walk or lie down,

all my ways lie open to you.

Lead me, O Lord, in the path of life eternal.

O where can I go from your spirit,

or where can I flee from your face?

If I climb the heavens, you are there.

If I lie in the grave, you are there.

Lead me, O Lord, in the path of life eternal.

If I take the wings of the dawn

and dwell at the sea’s furthest end,

even there your hand would lead me,

your right hand would hold me fast.

Lead me, O Lord, in the path of life eternal.

For it was you who created my being,

knit me together in my mother’s womb.

I thank you for the wonder of my being,

for the wonders of all your creation.

Lead me, O Lord, in the path of life eternal.

Gospel Acclamation	Ps102:21

Alleluia, alleluia!

Give thanks to the Lord, all his hosts,

his servants who do his will.

Alleluia!

The following reading is proper to the memorial, and must be used even if you have otherwise chosen to use the ferial readings.

Gospel
Matthew 18:1-5,10

Anyone who welcomes a little child in my name welcomes me

The disciples came to Jesus and said, ‘Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?’ So he called a little child to him and set the child in front of them. Then he said, ‘I tell you solemnly, unless you change and become like little children you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. And so, the one who makes himself as little as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

‘Anyone who welcomes a little child like this in my name welcomes me. See that you never despise any of these little ones, for I tell you that their angels in heaven are continually in the presence of my Father in heaven.’

These are the readings for the memorial

First reading	Exodus 23:20-23

I myself will send an angel before you

The Lord says this: ‘I myself will send an angel before you to guard you as you go and to bring you to the place that I have prepared. Give him reverence and listen to all that he says. Offer him no defiance; he would not pardon such a fault, for my name is in him. If you listen carefully to his voice and do all that I say, I shall be enemy to your enemies, foe to your foes. My angel will go before you.’

Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 90(91):1-6,10-11

The Lord has commanded his angels to keep you in all your ways.

He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High

and abides in the shade of the Almighty

says to the Lord: ‘My refuge,

my stronghold, my God in whom I trust!’

The Lord has commanded his angels to keep you in all your ways.

It is he who will free you from the snare

of the fowler who seeks to destroy you;

he will conceal you with his pinions

and under his wings you will find refuge.

The Lord has commanded his angels to keep you in all your ways.

You will not fear the terror of the night

nor the arrow that flies by day,

nor the plague that prowls in the darkness

nor the scourge that lays waste at noon.

The Lord has commanded his angels to keep you in all your ways.

Upon you no evil shall fall,

no plague approach where you dwell.

For you has he commanded his angels,

to keep you in all your ways.

The Lord has commanded his angels to keep you in all your ways.

Gospel Acclamation	Ps102:21

Alleluia, alleluia!

Give thanks to the Lord, all his hosts,

his servants who do his will.

Alleluia!

Gospel
Matthew 18:1-5,10

Anyone who welcomes a little child in my name welcomes me

The disciples came to Jesus and said, ‘Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?’ So he called a little child to him and set the child in front of them. Then he said, ‘I tell you solemnly, unless you change and become like little children you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. And so, the one who makes himself as little as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

‘Anyone who welcomes a little child like this in my name welcomes me. See that you never despise any of these little ones, for I tell you that their angels in heaven are continually in the presence of my Father in heaven.’

Copyright © 1996-2020 Universalis Publishing Limited: see www.universalis.com. Scripture readings from the Jerusalem Bible are published and copyright © 1966, 1967 and 1968 by Darton, Longman & Todd, Ltd and Doubleday, a division of Random House, Inc, and used by permission of the publishers. Text of the Psalms: Copyright © 1963, The Grail (England). Used with permission of A.P. Watt Ltd. All rights reserved.

Calendar used: Philippines

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Lectio Divina: The three concentric circles of Divine Reading

I. The first outermost circle–the mind–which is the first place or vessel of the Word. It is said that "Empty vessels make the most sound" so feed your mind with the words of Scripture and let it reverberate–never straining to "study or solve." But, first, it might be good to empty your mind of other concerns. When ready, slowly read and pause to "listen" to the echoes by remembering a word or a phrase from what you read. Be reverent towards the Word of God that is expressed in human words and fashioned in the light of the same Spirit through whom it was written (cf. DV 12).

II. It is not just the mind that is fed by the Word of God. Move to the second inner circle–the mouth, the "door" to our enteric nervous system which is commonly called gut. When we were still in the womb of our mothers both our gut and our brain originated from the same clump of tissue called the neural crest. One section turned into the brain between our ears and another section turned into the "second brain" or one's gut where one half of all our nerve cells are located. One can "think" through the gut. Our capacity for feeling and expressing emotions depend primarily on it and, only secondarily, the brain. There is a Native American proverb which says, “Listen or your tongue will make you deaf.” Like the mind, the mouth needs quieting down too. They are like Siamese twins; when one is sick, the other may also be sick. The reason you do not hear others' feelings or even your own emotions is because your busy tongue has made you deaf.

III. Only after we have quieted down our two brains that we can move into the third innermost circle–the heart. The opening words of the Rule of St Benedict says, “Listen with the ear of the heart.” What does it mean to listen with the ear of the heart? Once, I got a feedback from one of my silent retreatants who thanked me for listening not only to words but to movements of the heart. It dawned on me that it does make a big difference to listen in this way. As always in the Scripture, it is the heart that prays. Deep in the heart, prayer happens. So allow the "ears of your heart"–to do their work. It is a difficult and challenging journey though to listen with the heart if it is not emptied, e.g., of one's own assumptions, prejudices and past hurts. However, this is the most privileged place to receive the Word of Scripture. This innermost place of prayer is what the desert fathers and mothers call “purity of heart” where we come face to face with God. "Even before there is a word on my tongue, behold, O LORD, You know it all" (Ps 139:4). Although God knows already what you might have there in your heart, talk to Him and listen reverently to His words of consolation.