Feb 10 Monday (St. Scholastica, Virgin)
Catholic Online Video:
https://youtu.be/D8DGB94UI3Y?list=PL58g24NgWPIzvBk2IQVES_xC4WTm6-CDI
Mk 6: 53-56: 53 And when they had crossed over, they came to land
at Gennesaret, and moored to the shore. 54 And when they got out of the boat,
immediately the people recognized him, 55 and ran about the whole neighborhood
and began to bring sick people on their pallets to any place where they heard
he was. 56 And wherever he came, in villages, cities, or country, they laid the
sick in the marketplaces, and besought him that they might touch even the
fringe of his garment; and as many as touched it were made well. USCCB
video reflections: https://youtu.be/SC3JYdFlZ9E?list=PLpTzvCOJa7DCtgpPT22G8NClHeoKpWu5Q
The context: Today’s Gospel passage describes
the reaction of the people of Gennesaret when the healing and preaching
miracle-worker, Jesus, unexpectedly landed on their shore. They considered it a
golden opportunity to hear his message and to get all their sick people healed
by bringing them to Jesus with trusting Faith in his Divine power. They were
confident that even touching Jesus’ garment would heal the sick. Actually, they
may have been more interested in using the healer to heal their sick people
than in hearing Jesus’ preaching. Our innate human tendency is to use others to
get something from them. We make use of God when we call Him only when we are
in need or when we are sick or when tragedy strikes us. Some of us make use of
the Church only to get baptized, married and buried. Often, we make use of our
friends to get their company, help and support. Sometimes even grown-up
children make use of their parents’ home for eating and sleeping without
returning anything to their parents, who might rightly expect, but do not ask,
a return, from them.Life message: Instead of making use of God, let us learn to live in His presence, recognize His presence in others in the community, present our needs before Him with expectant faith and gratitude, and promise Him that we will do His will. Fr. Tony (http://frtonyshomilies.com/) L/20
Feb 11 Tuesday: Mark: 7:1-13:
(Our Lady of Lourdes https://www.franciscanmedia.org/our-lady-of-lourdes/ and
& the World Day of the Sick):
It was four years after the proclamation of the dogma of the
Immaculate Conception by Blessed Pius IX (1854) that Mary appeared for the
first time on February 11, 1858, to St. Bernadette Soubirous in the grotto at
Massabielle, in Lourdes, France. Bernadette, a 14-year-old peasant girl was the
oldest daughter among the six children of Francois Soubirous and Louise
Casterot. One day she went to the rocky area to collect firewood with her
sister and a friend. It was when she was left behind by the other two near a
big rock that Bernadette heard a loud noise. As she turned to investigate, she
caught sight of a very beautiful Lady clothed in white with a rosary hanging on
her arm standing in a grotto in the rock wall. The beautiful Lady smiled at her
and summoned her to pray the rosary and they prayed together. Bernadette
received 18 apparitions of our Lady starting in February and ending in July
1858.
On the 18th appearance the Holy Virgin gave the young
visionary the answer to her pastor’s question, “Who are you?” In the local
language Mary said, ‘I am the Immaculate Conception.” During her previous
appearances, the Blessed Virgin Mary had instructed Bernadette to tell people to
pray and do penance. All must pray especially for the conversion of sinners.
Our Lady instructed Bernadette to go and tell her pastor that Mary wished a
chapel to be built on the spot and processions to be made to the grotto. But it
wasn’t until four years later, in 1862, that the Bishop of the diocese declared
the faithful “justified in believing the reality of the apparition”. Pope Pius IX authorized
the local bishop to permit the veneration of the Virgin Mary in Lourdes in
1862. A basilica was built upon the rock of Massabielle by the parish priest in
1865. It was consecrated, and the statue of Our Lady of Lourdes was solemnly
crowned. In 1883 the foundation stone of another church was laid, as the first
was no longer large enough. It was built at the foot of the basilica, was
consecrated in 1901, and was named the Church of the Rosary. Pope Leo XIII
authorized a special office and a Mass, in commemoration of the apparition, and
in 1907 Pius X extended the observance of this feast to the entire Church; it
is now observed on 11 February. Since apparitions are private revelation and not
public revelation, Catholics are
not bound to believe them. However, all recent Popes have visited the Marian
shine. Benedict XV, Pius XI and St. John XXIII went there
as bishops, Pius XII as
papal delegate. He also issued a Lourdes encyclical on the 100th
anniversary of the apparitions in 1958. Pope St. John Paul II visited
Lourdes three times, Pope Benedict XVI completed
a visit there on 15 September 2008 to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the
apparitions, and Pope Francis visited Lourdes in 2015.
Life Messages: The 28th World
Day of the Sick will be observed on February 11th; this
day serves the purpose of reminding the members of the Church of
the healing ministry of the Church. It reminds us of our Christian
obligation to attend to the sick and the suffering around us. 2) This is a
day to show our gratitude to the caregivers, the doctors, the nurses, the
health care workers, the pastoral ministers and all those who strive to restore
the physical and spiritual health of the sick Fr. Tony (http://frtonyshomilies.com/) L/20
USCCB video reflections: https://youtu.be/D6kmSQUdUFs?list=PLpTzvCOJa7DCtgpPT22G8NClHeoKpWu5Q
Feb 12 Wednesday: Mk 7:14-23: 14 And he
called the people to him again, and said to them, “Hear me, all of you,
and understand: 15 there is nothing outside a man which by going into him can
defile him; but the things which come out of a man are what defile him.” 17 And
when he had entered the house, and left the people, his disciples asked him
about the parable. 18 And he said to them, “Then are you also without
understanding? Do you not see that whatever goes into a man from outside cannot
defile him, 19 since it enters, not his heart but his stomach, and so passes
on?” (Thus he declared all foods clean.) 20 And he said, “What comes out of a
man is what defiles a man. 21. From within people, from their hearts, come evil
thoughts, unchastity, theft, murder,22adultery, greed, malice, deceit,
licentiousness, envy, blasphemy, arrogance, folly.23All these evils come
from within and they defile.” All these evil things come from within, and they
defile a man USCCB video reflections: https://youtu.be/fO2Ea6lP9UQ?list=PLpTzvCOJa7DCtgpPT22G8NClHeoKpWu5Q
The context: Today’s Gospel passage continues
Jesus’ explanation to the public of his revolutionary views on the ritual
washing of hands before meals. The Law (Ex 30:17ff) had laid down how priests
should wash before offering sacrifice. Jewish tradition had extended this
to all Jews before every meal in an effort to give meals a religious
significance. Ritual purification was a symbol of the moral purity a
person should have when approaching God. But the Pharisees had focused on the
mere external rite. For Jesus, true religion should not be mere external
observances disconnected from the mind and the intentions.
Jesus’ explanation: Jesus shocked the people by his plain
statement: ” … there is nothing outside a man which by going into him
can defile him; but the things which come out of a man are what defile
him.” In other words, Jesus made the shocking declaration that all the
ritual food laws of the Old Testament about Kosher food were
null and void. For Jesus, those laws were intended to teach the people of the
Old Covenant the importance of offering acceptable sacrifice and worship to God
with a clean conscience and clean mind, with clean thoughts and clean deeds.
Hence, the true source of defilement is a person’s heart and mind because “out
of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, fornication, theft, murder, adultery,
coveting, wickedness, deceit, licentiousness, envy, slander, pride,
foolishness.”
Life message: 1) We need to keep our minds
filled with love, mercy, compassion and forgiveness if we want to practice the
true religion of loving God living in others. Hence, let us ask God to
help us cleanse our minds of evil thoughts and desires and free them from
jealousy, envy and pride. Fr. Tony (http://frtonyshomilies.com/)
L/20
Feb 13 Thursday: Mark 7:24-30: 24
And from there he arose and went away to the region of Tyre and Sidon. And he
entered a house, and would not have any one know it; yet he could not be hid.
25 But immediately a woman, whose little daughter was possessed by an unclean
spirit, heard of him, and came and fell down at his feet. 26 Now the woman was
a Greek, a Syro-Phoenician by birth. And she begged him to cast the demon out
of her daughter. 27 And he said to her, “Let the children first be fed, for it
is not right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.” 28 But she
answered him, “Yes, Lord; yet even the dogs under the table eat the children’s
crumbs.” 29 And he said to her, “For this saying you may go your way; the demon
has left your daughter.” 30 And she went home, and found the child lying in
bed, and the demon gone. USCCB video reflections: https://youtu.be/sHSYHCe_gls?list=PLpTzvCOJa7DCtgpPT22G8NClHeoKpWu5Q
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 the mother’s
strong Faith. Thus, Jesus shows 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 foreshadowed the future preaching of the
Gospel to the whole world. Jesus first ignored both the persistent cry of
the woman and the impatient demand of his disciples that the woman be sent
away. Jesus then tried to awaken true Faith in the heart of this woman by an
indirect refusal. We notice that the woman was refused three times by Jesus
before he granted her request. Finally, the fourth time, her persistence was
rewarded, and her plea was answered. She recognized Jesus as the Messiah (the
Son of David) and expressed her need in clear, simple words. She persisted,
undismayed by obstacles, and she expressed her request in all humility: “Have
mercy on me.” (Navarre Bible commentary). Jesus was completely won
over by the depth of her Faith, her confidence and her wit, and 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 what we need: “Ask and you shall receive.” Asking with
fervor and perseverance proves that we have “great Faith.” We must realize and
remember that we do not always get exactly what we have asked for, but rather
what God knows we need, what He wants for us and what is really best for
us. 2) 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
which we raise by our pride, intolerance and prejudice may crumble Fr.
Tony (http://frtonyshomilies.com/)
L/20
Feb 14 Friday (St. Cyril, Monk and St. Methodius, Bishop)
(https://www.franciscanmedia.org/saints-cyril-and-methodius/ ): Mark
7:31-37: 31 Then he returned from the region of Tyre, and went
through Sidon to the Sea of Galilee, through the region of the Decapolis. 32
And they brought to him a man who was deaf and had an impediment in his speech;
and they besought him to lay his hand upon him. 33 And taking him aside from
the multitude privately, he put his fingers into his ears, and he spat and
touched his tongue; 34 and looking up to heaven, he sighed, and said to him,
“Ephphatha,” that is, “Be opened.” 35 And his ears were opened, his tongue was
released, and he spoke plainly. 36 And he charged them to tell no one; but the
more he charged them, the more zealously they proclaimed it. 37 And they were
astonished beyond measure, saying, “He has done all things well; he even makes
the deaf hear and the dumb speak.” USCCB video reflections: https://youtu.be/fCldukLVE3k?list=PLpTzvCOJa7DCtgpPT22G8NClHeoKpWu5Q
The context: Today’s Gospel describes how Jesus, by
healing a deaf and mute man, fulfilled Isaiah’s Messianic prophecy, “The
eyes of the blind shall be opened and the ears of the deaf unstopped”(Isaiah
35:5). The Gospel invites us to become humble instruments of healing in
Jesus’ hands by giving a voice to the needy and the marginalized in our
society. It also challenges us to let our ears be opened to hear
the word of God, and to let our tongues be loosened to convey the Good News of
God’s love and salvation to others. Through this miracle story, Mark’s
account also reminds us that no one can be a follower of the Lord without
reaching out to the helpless (“preferential option for the poor”).
The miracle is described in seven ritual-like steps: (1)
Jesus leads the man away from the crowd; (2) puts his fingers into the
man’s ears; (3) spits on his own fingers; (4) touches
the man’s tongue with the spittle; (5) looks up to Heaven; (6)
sighs; (7) and speaks the healing command: “Ephphatha”
(“be opened.”). Jesus carries out this elaborate ritual probably
because the dumb man could not hear Jesus’ voice nor express
his needs. Jesus applies a little saliva to the man’s tongue
because people in those days believed that the spittle of holy men had curative
properties. The miracle is about the opening of a person’s ears so that he
will be able to hear the word of God, and the loosening of his tongue so that
he will be able to profess his Faith in Jesus.
Life messages: 1) Jesus desires to give us his
healing touch in order to loosen our tongues so that he may speak to the
spiritually hungry through us. Jesus invites us to give him our
hearts so that, through us, he may touch the lives of people in our day. 2) We
must allow Jesus to heal our spiritual deafness and muteness because
otherwise we may find it hard to speak to God in prayer and harder still
to hear Him speaking to us through the Bible and through the Church.
3) Let us imitate the dumb man in the Gospel by seeking out Jesus,
following him away from the crowd, spending more of our time in getting to
know him intimately through studying the Holy Scriptures and experiencing
him personally in our lives through prayer. The growing awareness
of the healing presence of Jesus in our lives will open our ears and loosen our
tongues. Fr. Tony (http://frtonyshomilies.com/) L/20
Feb 15 Saturday: Mark 8:1-10: 1 In those
days, when again a great crowd had gathered, and they had nothing to eat, he
called his disciples to him, and said to them, 2 “I have compassion on the
crowd, because they have been with me now three days, and have nothing to eat;
3 and if I send them away hungry to their homes, they will faint on the way;
and some of them have come a long way.” 4 And his disciples answered him, “How
can one feed these men with bread here in the desert?” 5 And he asked
them, “How many loaves have you?” They said, “Seven.”6 And he commanded the
crowd to sit down on the ground; and he took the seven loaves, and having given
thanks he broke them and gave them to his disciples to set before the people;
and they set them before the crowd. 7 And they had a few small fish; and having
blessed them, he commanded that these also should be set before them. 8 And
they ate, and were satisfied; and they took up the broken pieces left over,
seven baskets full. 9 And there were about four thousand people.10 And he sent
them away; and immediately he got into the boat with his disciples and went to
the district of Dalmanutha. USCCB video reflections; https://youtu.be/dYYVeeNnwjY?list=PLpTzvCOJa7DCtgpPT22G8NClHeoKpWu5Q
The context: The miraculous feeding described in
today’s Gospel took place on a hill near the Sea of Galilee after Jesus’ return
from the Decapolis. A large crowd remained with Jesus for three days,
participating in his preaching and healing ministry till all the food they had
carried with them was gone.
Jesus felt pity for the hungry multitude and instructed his
Apostles to feed them with what they had, namely, seven loaves of bread and a
few small fish. They brought these to Jesus who said a prayer of thanksgiving
over them and instructed them to distribute the bread and fish to the people.
After the crowd had eaten their fill, the Apostles filled seven baskets with
leftover broken pieces. This passage appears to be a repetition of Mk 6:34-44.
But there are two differences: the first account shows the miracle performed
for the benefit of Jews, the second for Gentiles. In the first account
there are twelve basketfuls of scraps left over, in the second only
seven. The language is ‘Eucharistic’: Jesus “took the loaves and giving
thanks he broke them and handed them to his disciples to distribute.”
Life messages: 1) We need to help Jesus to
feed the hungry today. Jesus invites us to give him our hearts so that he may
touch the lives of people in our day through us, just as he touched the lives
of millions through saintly souls like Francis of Assisi, Fr. Damien, Vincent
de Paul and Mother Teresa. Let us feed the spiritually hungry with words and
deeds of kindness, mercy, and sharing love.
2) We need to be fed by Jesus so that we may feed others.
Jesus continues to feed us in His Church with His own Body and Blood in Holy
Communion and with the word of God through the Holy Bible. Fr. Tony (http://frtonyshomilies.com/)
L/20