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Contemplating today's Gospel

Today's Gospel + homily (in 300 words)

Monday of the Fourteenth Week in Ordinary Time
View 1st Reading and Psalm
1st Reading (Gen 28:10-22a): Jacob departed from Beer-sheba and proceeded toward Haran. When he came upon a certain shrine, as the sun had already set, he stopped there for the night. Taking one of the stones at the shrine, he put it under his head and lay down to sleep at that spot. Then he had a dream: a stairway rested on the ground, with its top reaching to the heavens; and God's messengers were going up and down on it. And there was the Lord standing beside him and saying: «I, the Lord, am the God of your forefather Abraham and the God of Isaac; the land on which you are lying I will give to you and your descendants. These shall be as plentiful as the dust of the earth, and through them you shall spread out east and west, north and south. In you and your descendants all the nations of the earth shall find blessing. Know that I am with you; I will protect you wherever you go, and bring you back to this land. I will never leave you until I have done what I promised you».

When Jacob awoke from his sleep, he exclaimed, «Truly, the Lord is in this spot, although I did not know it!». In solemn wonder he cried out: «How awesome is this shrine! This is nothing else but an abode of God, and that is the gateway to heaven!». Early the next morning Jacob took the stone that he had put under his head, set it up as a memorial stone, and poured oil on top of it. He called the site Bethel, whereas the former name of the town had been Luz. Jacob then made this vow: «If God remains with me, to protect me on this journey I am making and to give me enough bread to eat and clothing to wear, and I come back safe to my father's house, the Lord shall be my God. This stone that I have set up as a memorial stone shall be God's abode».
Responsorial Psalm: 90
R/. In you, my God, I place my trust.
You who dwell in the shelter of the Most High, who abide in the shadow of the Almighty, say to the Lord, «My refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust».

For he will rescue you from the snare of the fowler, from the destroying pestilence. With his pinions he will cover you, and under his wings you shall take refuge.

Because he clings to me, I will deliver him; I will set him on high because he acknowledges my name. He shall call upon me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in distress.
Versicle before the Gospel (2Tim 1:10): Alleluia. Our Savior Jesus Christ has destroyed death and brought life to light through the Gospel. Alleluia.
Gospel text (Mt 9:18-26): While Jesus was speaking, an official came forward, knelt down before him, and said, “My daughter has just died. But come, lay your hand on her, and she will live.” Jesus rose and followed him, and so did his disciples. A woman suffering hemorrhages for twelve years came up behind him and touched the tassel on his cloak. She said to herself, “If only I can touch his cloak, I shall be cured.” Jesus turned around and saw her, and said, “Courage, daughter! Your faith has saved you.” And from that hour the woman was cured. When Jesus arrived at the official’s house and saw the flute players and the crowd who were making a commotion, he said, “Go away! The girl is not dead but sleeping.” And they ridiculed him. When the crowd was put out, he came and took her by the hand, and the little girl arose. And news of this spread throughout all that land.

“Your faith has saved you”

Fr. Antoni CAROL i Hostench (Sant Cugat del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain)

Today, the liturgy of the Word invites us to admire two splendid manifestations of faith. So splendid were they that they deserved to move Jesus Christ's heart, provoking his immediate reaction. Our Lord does not allow himself to be won over in generosity!

“My daughter has just died. But come, lay your hand on her, and she will live” (Mt 9:18). We could almost say that a strong faith such as this can “oblige” God. But, He likes that kind of obligation. The other testimony of faith of today's Gospel is also equally impressive: “If only I can touch his cloak, I shall be cured” (Mt 9:21). Both Jesus' reaction and the end result of this dialogue of faith are quite radical: “Courage, daughter! Your faith has saved you” (Mt 9:22).

We could even affirm that God gladly lets our good faith “manipulate” him. What He does not accept is that we try to tempt him with our mistrust. This was the case with Zechariah, who asked evidence from Gabriel, the archangel: “Then Zechariah said to the angel, “How shall I know this?” (Lk 1:18). The Archangel did not shrink an inch: “And the angel said to him in reply, ‘I am Gabriel, who stand before God... But now you will be speechless and unable to talk until the day these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled at their proper time’” (Lk 1:19-20). And so it was.

It is He who wants to “oblige and commit himself” with our faith: “And I tell you, ask and you will receive; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you” (Lk 11:9). He is our Father and He does not want to refuse anything that is convenient for his children.

But we must entrust our petitions to him with confidence; confidence and naturalness with God requires dealing with Him: to trust somebody we must know him; and to know him we must deal with him. Thus, “faith provokes prayer, and when prayer arises it makes faith strong” (St. Augustine). Let us not forget the praise the Virgin Mary deserved: “Blessed are you who believed that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled” (Lk 1:45).

Thoughts on Today's Gospel

  • “Even if we are lying on the bed of our sins and our body, if Jesus touches us, we will be healed instantly.” (Saint Jerome)

  • “Jesus Christ came to defeat Evil at the root and instances of healing are an anticipation of his triumph, obtained with his death and Resurrection.” (Benedict XVI)

  • “‘Heal the sick!’ (Mt 10:8). The Church has received this charge from the Lord and strives to carry it out by taking care of the sick as well as by accompanying them with her prayer of intercession. She believes in the life-giving presence of Christ, the physician of souls and bodies (...)” (Catechism of the Catholic Church, Nº 1509)

December 25th
The Nativity of the Lord (Christmas): Mass during the Night

Gospel and commentary video

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