July 29 Monday: (St. Martha) Matthew 14:13-21: 13
Now when Jesus heard this, he withdrew from there in a boat to a lonely place
apart. But when the crowds heard it, they followed him on foot from the towns.
14 As he went ashore, he saw a great throng; and he had compassion on them and
healed their sick. 15 When it was evening, the disciples came to him and said,
“This is a lonely place, and the day is now over; send the crowds away to go
into the villages and buy food for themselves.” 16 Jesus said, “They need not
go away; you give them something to eat.” 17 They said to him, “We have only
five loaves here and two fish.” 18 And he said, “Bring them here to me.” 19
Then he ordered the crowds to sit down on the grass; and taking the five loaves
and the two fish he looked up to heaven, and blessed, and broke and gave the
loaves to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. 20 And they
all ate and were satisfied. And they took up twelve baskets full of the broken
pieces left over. 21 And those who ate were about five thousand men, besides
women and children. (Cfr also MK 6:30-44, LK 9: 10-17, JN 6: 1-14)
The context: Today’s Gospel describes
Jesus’ miraculous feeding of a great multitude. The story is told in all four
Gospels and serves as Jesus’ way of introducing to his hearers a merciful and
providing God. This miraculous feeding was meant to remind people of God’s
provision of manna in the wilderness and to foreshadow the true Heavenly Bread
which Jesus would offer his followers. Moses, Elijah and Elisha had fed people
without the benefit of resources. The present miracle resembles
particularly the one performed by Elisha in 2 Kgs 4:42-44.
Jesus took pity on the growing physical hunger of his
listeners as he preached, and he challenged his apostles to feed them. They
brought him what they had — five loaves of bread and two dried fish. Jesus took
these, said a prayer of blessing, broke them and asked the apostles to
distribute them. Since it was mid-April, springtime in Israel, the people could
sit comfortably on green grass in groups of hundreds and fifties as Jesus
asked. After serving a sumptuous meal, which satisfied everyone’s hunger, the
apostles collected twelve wicker baskets filled with leftover bread and fish
pieces, a vivid demonstration of God’s generosity in giving.
Life message 1) We may not be able to feed the
hungry millions in the world, but today’s Gospel challenges us to do our humble
share in alleviating hunger and poverty in our neighborhood. God will amplify
our little contributions and reward our good will and generosity.
(http://frtonyshomilies.com/) L/19
July 30 Tuesday: (St. Peter Chrysologus, Bishop, Doctor
of the Church) Matthew 14:22-36: 22 Then he made the disciples get
into the boat and go before him to the other side, while he dismissed the
crowds. 23 And after he had dismissed the crowds, he went up on the mountain by
himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone, 24 but the boat by this
time was many furlongs distant from the land, beaten by the waves; for the wind
was against them. 25 And in the fourth watch of the night he came to them,
walking on the sea. 26 But when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they
were terrified, saying, “It is a ghost!” And they cried out for fear. 27 But
immediately he spoke to them, saying, “Take heart, it is I; have no fear.” 28
And Peter answered him, “Lord, if it is you, bid me come to you on the water.”
29 He said, “Come.” So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and
came to Jesus; 30 but when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to
sink he cried out, “Lord, save me.” 31 Jesus immediately reached out his hand
and caught him, saying to him, “O man of little faith, why did you doubt?”
32..36
The context: The event presented by today’s
Gospel is the scene immediately following Jesus’ miraculous feeding of the five
thousand with five loaves of bread and two fish. Sensing the danger of
having the people make him leader of a revolt, Jesus promptly instructed his
apostles to leave the place by boat and, after dispersing the crowd, he
went by himself to the mountain to pray.
A double miracle on the sea: When the apostles in the
boat were several furlongs away from the shore, they faced an unexpected storm
on the sea caused by the hot wind of the desert rushing into the Sea of Galilee
through the gaps in the Golan Heights. Recognizing the danger, Jesus walked on
the stormy waters toward the boat. Jesus calmed the frightened disciples as he
approached the boat, allowed Peter to do a trial walk on water, then saved him
from drowning when he began to get frightened. As soon as Jesus brought Peter
into the boat the storm ceased miraculously. The apostles recognized the
presence of God in their midst and they all worshipped Jesus.
Life messages: 1) Let us approach Jesus with strong
Faith in his ability and availability to calm the storms in our lives and in
the life of the Church. Church history shows us how Jesus saved his Church from
the storms of persecution in the first three centuries, from the storms of
heresies in the fifth and sixth centuries, from the storms of moral degradation
and the Protestant reformation movement in the sixteenth and seventeenth
centuries, and the storms of sex abuse scandals of the clergy in the twentieth
and twenty-first centuries. 2) Let us ask Jesus to protect us when we face
storms of strong temptations, storms of doubts about our religious beliefs, and
storms of fear, anxiety and worries in our personal lives. 3) Experiencing
Jesus’ presence in our lives, let us confess our Faith in him and call out for
his help and protection. (http://frtonyshomilies.com/) L/19
July 31 Wednesday: (St. Ignatius Loyola, Priest) Mt
15:21-28: 21 And Jesus went away from there and withdrew to the
district of Tyre and Sidon. 22 And behold, a Canaanite woman from that region
came out and cried, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David; my daughter is
severely possessed by a demon.” 23 But he did not answer her a word. And his
disciples came and begged him, saying, “Send her away, for she is crying after
us.” 24 He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of
Israel.” 25 But she came and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, help me.” 26 And
he answered, “It is not fair to take the children’s bread and throw it to the
dogs.” 27 She said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from
their masters’ table.” 28 Then Jesus answered her, “O woman, great is your
faith! Be it done for you as you desire.” And her daughter was healed
instantly. (Cfr Mark 7 24-30)
The context: In the Gospel, Jesus
demonstrates that salvation is meant for the Gentiles as well as for the
Jews, by healing the daughter of a Gentile woman as a reward for her
strong, trusting faith expressed by her patient, persistent and persevering
prayer. Here, Jesus shows us that God’s mercy and love are available to
all who call out to Him in Faith.
This is one of the two miracles of healing
Jesus performed for Gentiles. The other is the healing of the centurion’s
servant (Mt 8:10-12). These miracles foreshadow the future preaching of the
Gospel to the whole world. Jesus first ignored both the persistent cry of
the woman and the impatience of his disciples who wanted him to send the
woman away. He then tried to awaken true Faith in the heart of this woman by
first ignoring the request and then by an indirect refusal. We notice that the
woman was refused three times by Jesus before he finally granted her request
the fourth time. Her patient persistence was rewarded, and her plea was
answered. Jesus was completely won over by the depth of her Faith, her
confidence and her wit and hence responded exuberantly, “Woman, great
is your Faith! Let it be done for you as you wish.”
Life messages: 1) We need to persist in prayer
with trustful confidence. Christ himself has told us to keep on asking
him for our needs: “Ask and you shall receive.” Asking with fervor
and perseverance proves that we have “great Faith.” 2) We must realize and
remember that we do not always get exactly what we ask for, but rather what God
knows we actually need, and what is really best for us, at the most
appropriate time we need it. 3) We need to pull down the walls of
separation and share in the universality of God’s love. Today’s Gospel reminds
us that God’s love and mercy are extended to all who call on him in Faith and
trust, no matter who they are. It is therefore fitting that we should
pray that the walls our pride, intolerance and prejudice raise, should
crumble. (http://frtonyshomilies.com/) L/19
August 1 Thursday: (St. Alphonsus Liguori, Bishop, Doctor
of the Church) Mt 16: 13-23: 13 Now when Jesus came into the
district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do men say that the
Son of man is?” 14 And they said, “Some say John the Baptist, others say
Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” 15 He said to them, “But
who do you say that I am?”16 Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son
of the living God.” 17 And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon
Bar-Jona! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who
is in heaven. 18 And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build
my church, and the powers of death shall not prevail against it. 19 I will give
you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be
bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in
heaven.” 20 Then he strictly charged the disciples to tell no one that he was
the Christ. 21 From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go
to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and
scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. 22 And Peter took him
and began to rebuke him, saying, “God forbid, Lord! This shall never happen to
you.” 23 But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a
hindrance to me; for you are not on the side of God, but of men.”
The context: Today’s Gospel passage is the first
of the three times when Jesus foretold his passion, death and Resurrection. The
passage consists of two sections, the Messianic confession of Peter and the
prediction of his own passion by Jesus. Jesus as the Christ, our Lord and
Savior: Today’s Gospel explains the basis of our Faith as the acceptance of
Jesus as the Christ, our Lord and Savior. It also tells us that Christ Jesus
became our Savior by his suffering, death and Resurrection. This famous
profession of Faith by Peter took place at Caesarea Philippi, at present called
Banias, twenty-five miles northeast of the Sea of Galilee. Jesus realized that
if his disciples did not know who he really was, then his entire ministry,
suffering and death would be useless. Hence, he decided to ask a question in
two parts. 1) “What is the public opinion about me?” 2) “What is your personal
opinion?” Their answer to the first question was: “Some say John the
Baptist, others Elijah, still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” Peter
volunteered to answer the second question saying: “You are the Christ
(Messiah), the Son of the living God.” Jesus confirmed Peter’s insight
as a special revelation from God. “No mere man has revealed this to
you, but my Heavenly Father.”
Life message: 1) Let us experience Jesus as our
Lord and Savior and surrender our life to him. We experience Jesus as personal
Savior by listening to him through the daily, meditative reading of the Bible,
by talking to him through daily, personal and family prayers, by frequenting
Holy Mass and offering him our lives on the altar, by being reconciled with him
every night, asking his pardon and forgiveness for our sins and by receiving
the Sacrament of Reconciliation whenever we are in mortal sin. The next step is
the surrender of our lives to Jesus by rendering humble and loving service to
others with the strong conviction that Jesus is present in every person. (http://frtonyshomilies.com/) L/19
August 2 Friday: (St. Eusebius of Vercelli, Bishop; St.
Peter Julian Eymard, Priest)Matthew 16:24-28: 24 Then Jesus told
his disciples, “If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take
up his cross and follow me. 25 For whoever would save his life will lose it,
and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. 26 For what will it profit
a man, if he gains the whole world and forfeits his life? Or what shall a man
give in return for his life? 27 For the Son of man is to come with his angels
in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay every man for what he has
done. 28 Truly, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste
death before they see the Son of man coming in his kingdom.”
The context: After Peter made his famous
declaration of faith in Jesus as God and Messiah, Jesus plainly warned his
disciples about his suffering and death and promised his Resurrection. But
the apostles were unwilling to accept such a fate for their Master. Peter even
took Jesus aside and prayed, “God forbid it.”It was after Peter’s
protest that Jesus declared three conditions of the discipleship which he
expected from his followers. We hear them in today’s Gospel.
Conditions of Christian discipleship: 1) Deny yourself 2)
Take up your cross. 3) Follow Me. Denying oneself means evicting the self, with
its selfish thoughts and desires, from one’s heart. It also means cleansing the
heart of all bad habits and evil tendencies. Finally, it means enthroning
God in one’s cleansed heart and surrendering one’s life to God’s service by
serving others. Carrying the cross means willingly accepting the pain involved
in serving others sacrificially. It also means spending our time, talents,
wealth and health for others until it hurts us. It is our sacrificial sharing
of God’s blessings with others. Carrying one’s cross also means our doing
penance to make reparation for our sins and to grow in self-control. Carrying
one’s cross becomes easier and more meritorious when we accept life’s crosses
as loving gifts given by a loving Father. The comparison of our light crosses
with the heavy crosses given to others should make us grateful. Finally, we
should carry our crosses, praying for Heavenly strength. “Follow Me” means the
disciple should be ever ready to obey as Jesus directs him or her through his
words in the Bible and through the teaching authority he instituted in the
Church.
Life message: We need to love the cross, wear
the cross, and transform the God-given crosses of our life into the instruments
of our salvation by working with the guidance of the Holy Spirit. (http://frtonyshomilies.com/) L/19
August 3 Saturday: Matthew 17: 14-20: 14
And when they came to the crowd, a man came up (Matthew 17:
14-20): 14 And when they came to the crowd, a man came up to him and
kneeling before him said, 15 “Lord, have mercy on my son, for he is an
epileptic and he suffers terribly; for often he falls into the fire, and often
into the water. 16 And I brought him to your disciples, and they could not heal
him.” 17 And Jesus answered, “O faithless and perverse generation, how long am
I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you? Bring him here to me.” 18 And
Jesus rebuked him, and the demon came out of him, and the boy was cured instantly.
19 Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, “Why could we not cast
it out?” 20 He said to them, “Because of your little faith. For truly, I say to
you, if you have faith as a grain of mustard seed, you will say to
this mountain, `Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing
will be impossible to you.”
The context: When Jesus came down from the
mountain of the Transfiguration along with Peter, John and James, the father of
an epileptic son knelt before Jesus and asked Jesus to heal his son. The
father’s complaint was that the other nine disciples of Jesus waiting for their
master to come down from the mountain could not heal the boy.
The healing: After expressing impatience with the crowd and
his apostles for their lack of Faith, Jesus rebuked the demon and cast him out
of the boy. Later when the apostles asked Jesus why they had been unable to do
the same although they had been given the power of exorcism, Jesus pointed out
their lack of Faith. Jesus said further that even a small amount of Faith would
enable them to do great things. Faith moving mountains was a
Jewish phrase meaning that God can remove all difficulties for one who places
his trusting Faith in Him.
Life message: We will be able to solve our
problems and many of the problems of our fellow-human beings if we place our
trusting Faith in God’s power and goodness and ask for His strength in
prayer. (http://frtonyshomilies.com/) L/19