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BREAKING THE BREAD OF THE WORD A LECTIO DIVINA Approach to the Weekday Liturgy CYCLE 1 ORDINARY TIME: WEEK 19-26 Nineteenth Week in Ordinary Time (n. 73) Twentieth Week in Ordinary Time (n. 74) Twenty-first Week in Ordinary Time (n. 75) Twenty-second Week in Ordinary Time (n. 76) Twenty-third Week in Ordinary Time (n. 77) Twenty-fourth Week in Ordinary Time (n. 78) Twenty-fifth Week in Ordinary Time (n. 79) Twenty-sixth Week in Ordinary Time (n. 80) Prepared by Sr. Mary Margaret Tapang, PDDM *** Text of the Cover Page ends here. *** A Lectio Divina Approach to the Weekday Liturgy: Cycle I BREAKING THE BREAD OF THE WORD (n. 73) ORDINARY SEASON: WEEK 19 MONDAY: NINETEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME “JESUS SAVIOR: His Passion Redeems Us … He Teaches Us to Love and Serve the Lord” BIBLE READINGS Dt 10:12-22 // Mt 17:22-27 I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO A. Gospel Reading (Mt 17:22-27): “They will kill him and he will be raised. The subjects are exempt from the tax.” In the Gospel episode (Mt 17:22-27) we hear that Jesus Master wants to rectify the false adulation that honors him as a political leader, miracle worker, and breadbasket king, and not as the Suffering Servant to redeem the world from sin. The three predictions of the passion that he made on separate occasions are meant to dispel a false Messianic expectation that is based primarily on temporal powers, and not on service to God’s saving will. Today’s Gospel reading contains Jesus’ second prediction of his passion: “The Son of Man is to be handed over to men and they will kill him, and he will be raised on the third day”. His paschal destiny does not involve constraint on his part, but total union with the Father’s saving will. Jesus freely accepts his passion and death to bring about our redemption. He pays the price for our salvation. His paschal sacrifice is sheer grace. For this we are deeply thankful. The following story, circulated on the Internet, gives us an insight into the “grace” aspect of Jesus’ saving sacrifice. There once was a man named George Thomas, a preacher in a small Texas town. One Sunday morning he came to the Church building carrying a rusty, bent, old bird cage, and set it by the pulpit. Eyebrows were raised and, as if in response, the preacher began to speak. "I was walking through town yesterday when I saw a young boy coming toward me swinging this bird cage. On the bottom of the cage were three little wild birds, shivering with cold and fright. I stopped the lad and asked, "What do you have there, son?" "Just some old birds", came the reply. "What are you going to do with them?" I asked. "Take 'em home and have fun with 'em," he answered. "I'm gonna tease 'em and pull out their feathers to make 'em fight. I'm gonna have a real good time." "But you'll get tired of those birds sooner or later. What will you do then?" "Oh, I got some cats," said the little boy. "They like birds. I'll take 'em to them." The preacher was silent for a moment. "How much do you want for those birds, son?" "Huh?” Why, you don't want them birds, mister. They're just plain old field birds. They don't sing. They ain't even pretty!" "How much?" the preacher asked again. The boy sized up the preacher as if he were crazy and said,"$10?" The preacher reached in his pocket and took out a ten dollar bill. He placed it in the boy's hand. In a flash, the boy was gone. The preacher picked up the cage and gently carried it to the end of the alley where there was a tree and a grassy spot. Setting the cage down, he opened the door, and by softly tapping the bars persuaded the birds out, setting them free. Well, that explained the empty bird cage on the pulpit, and then the preacher began to tell this story. One day Satan and Jesus were having a conversation. Satan had just come from the Garden of Eden and he was gloating and boasting. "Yes, sir, I just caught a world full of people down there. Set me a trap, used bait I knew they couldn't resist. Got 'em all!" "What are you going to do with them?" Jesus asked. Satan replied, "Oh, I'm gonna have fun! I'm gonna teach them how to marry and divorce each other, how to hate and abuse each other, how to drink and smoke and curse. I'm gonna teach them how to invent guns and bombs and kill each other. I'm really gonna have fun!" "And what will you do when you are done with them?" Jesus asked. "Oh, I'll kill 'em”, Satan glared proudly. "How much do you want for them?" Jesus asked. "Oh, you don't want those people. They ain't no good. Why, you'll take them and they'll just hate you. They'll spit on you, curse you and kill you. You don't want those people!" "How much?” Jesus asked again. Satan looked at Jesus and sneered, "All your blood, tears and your life”. Jesus said, "DONE!" Then he paid the price. The preacher picked up the cage and walked from the pulpit. B. First Reading (Dt 10:12-22): “Circumcise your hearts. Befriend the alien for you were once aliens yourselves.” In today’s Old Testament reading (Dt 10:12-22), Moses gives another exhortation to the chosen people Israel as they face the Promised Land. He reiterates the great commandment that calls for total commitment to God: “Love and serve the Lord, your God, with all your heart and all your soul”. Israel’s experience of a benevolent God who works marvels on their behalf is a motive for the covenant observance. Indeed, love of God is the centerpiece of Israel’s response to God who has singled them out as his own people. This love response entails a “circumcised heart”, that is, an obedient heart, as well as acts of service: charity to the most needy and vulnerable members of the society. Together with the widows and the orphans, God’s preferential care includes the aliens who have no protection against the trespass of their social rights. The Israelites need to care for the foreigners for they themselves were once “alien” in the land of Egypt, departing from it “as numerous as the stars of the sky”. If the chosen people wish to secure their future in the Promised Land, they need to be faithful to the Lord and keep his commands and statutes. The need to care for vulnerable aliens and to give hospitality to them can be gleaned from the following personal testimony (cf. Erna Kirk, “Home at Last” in Country, June/July 2011, p. 38). When World War II started, my parents were farmers in the Soviet Union. But my father was of German descent, so the government took away their land and livestock, and forced them to leave the country. I was born in Poland in route to Germany. When we arrived in Germany, no one wanted us there, either, because they regarded us as Russians. So my parents began working to find a way to come to America. It took seven years to find a sponsor who would take on a family with four children. In 1954, we arrived on Ellis Island with all our belongings in three suitcases. Even though we spoke no English, we made our way to the hills of Tennessee, where we had arranged to sharecrop some land. We learned the language by watching television. After five years of long, hard hours in endless rows of cotton, we were able to purchase 140 acres with a beautiful frame house. When all the papers were signed, my parents knelt on the ground, kissed it and thanked God for the thousandth time. We were home at last. II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO 1. Do we appreciate the meaning of Christ’s passion and its significance for us? How do we respond to this wonderful grace and great act of love? 2. How do we carry out the exhortation of Moses and the supreme teaching of Jesus about the love of God and compassionate care for our needy neighbors? III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO Lord Jesus, you suffered for us. To redeem us you paid a great price. You suffered the passion and death on the cross to free us from the clutches of sin and death and to give us eternal life. Grant that we may treasure your sacrificial love for us. We give you glory and praise, now and forever. Amen. *** Loving God, how marvelous you are and great are your saving acts for Israel! You brought to fulfillment your saving plan through your Son Jesus Christ, who teaches us how to love and serve you. Help us to live with an obedient heart and teach us how to give preferential care for the most needy and vulnerable of our society. We give you glory and praise, now and forever. Amen. IV. INTERIORIZATION OF THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the CONTEMPLATIO The following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the week.