Saturday 5 August
Saturday of week 17 in Ordinary Time Dedication of the Basilica of Saint Mary Major First Saturday: Let us entrust ourselves to the Immaculate Heart of Mary First reading - Leviticus 25:1,8-17 “This is to be a jubilee for you... The jubilee is to be a holy thing to you, you will eat what comes from the fields”. Jubilee is Grace. It’s the grace of freedom which God grants to all in the family of God. It’s the grace of freedom from the debts incurred. It’s the grace of freedom from the liabilities which I made during the last seven years. God stands in front of me and takes responsibilities of all the debts. Jubilee is a law made by God so that God can take over the human caprice with this divine magnanimity. The celebration of the Jubilee is a celebration of the liberty. It’s the celebration of the liberty of the sons and daughters of God. “You will declare this fiftieth year sacred and proclaim the liberation of all the inhabitants of the land”. In the Old Testament it recalled the liberation of the people of God from Egypt. In the New Testament it recalls the liberation granted by the Jesus through His sacrifice. This liberation which we gained by His blood must be continued in our life through the celebration of Jubilee. So, Jubilee is the way to extend the liberation we enjoyed from God to all those around us. Let’s reflect: Am I extending the liberation which Jesus gained for me to others around me?
Friday 4 August
Saint John Mary Vianney, Priest Friday of week 17 in Ordinary Time First reading - Ezekiel 3:17-21 “If, however, you warn the upright man not to sin and he abstains from sinning, he shall live, thanks to your warning, and you too will have saved your life”. God is giving us the task of taking care of others. The Word of God must be transmitted to others so that they can keep it. We must transmit the Word of God in His name The Lord says, “Whenever you hear a word from me, warn them in my Name”. So, first we must listen to God to hear what He is saying and then we must transmit to others. Because we all have the vocation of a sentry to the House of Israel. We have the vocation of being a guard of the other. We must take care of the other. By taking care of the other we can also save ourselves. The best way of taking care of the other is being testimony to the Word of God which we listen. Let’s reflect: Am I a sentry to the People of God by being a testimony to the Word of God?
Thursday 3 August
Thursday of week 17 in Ordinary Time First reading - Exodus 40:16-21,34-38 “For the cloud of the Lord rested on the tabernacle by day, and a fire shone within the cloud by night, for all the House of Israel to see. And so it was for every stage of their journey”. A beautiful image of God accompanying the journey of the People of God to the promised land. Moses making the tabernacle according to the directions of the Lord. The Word of God says, “Moses did exactly as the Lord had directed him”. When we do exactly like what the Lord says, we become tabernacles where the glory of God fills. This accompanying of the Lord in our journey is magnificent. The Word of God says that the presence of God was there at every stage of their journey. And the people of God did not have their plans. We read, “At every stage of their journey, whenever the cloud rose from the tabernacle the sons of Israel would resume their march”. So, it was not their plans that guide them. But the presence of the Lord that guided them. “If the cloud did not rise, they waited and would not march until it did”. They waited. The trust in the plan of God. The beauty in waiting is the beauty of trusting in the Lord. Let’s reflect: How much patience I have in waiting to the answer of the Lord?