darkening clouds
west above the lakes
the air is thick with moisture
The Feasts of Saints Peter and Paul
First Reading – Acts 3:1-10
First Reading -
Acts 12:1-11
Responsorial Psalm – Psalm 18(19):2-5
Responsorial Psalm – Psalm 33(34):2-9
Second Reading – Galatians 1:11-20
Second Reading - 2 Timothy 4:6-8,17-18
Gospel Acclamation- John 21:17
Gospel Acclamation – Matthew 16:18
The Gospel According to John 21:15-19
The Gospel According to Matthew 16:13-19
(NJB)
Listen!
What does it mean to be a member of the body of
Christ?
Who is a disciple?
What does it mean to be a student in the school of
faith?
How do you keep to the way?
First Reading – Acts 3:1-10
I Will Give You What I Have: In the Name of
Jesus, Walk!
Once, when Peter and John were going up to the
Temple for the prayers at the ninth hour, it happened that there was a man
being carried past. He was a cripple from birth; and they used to put him down
every day near the Temple entrance called the Beautiful Gate so that he could
beg from the people going in. When this man saw Peter and John on their way
into the Temple he begged from them. Both Peter and John looked straight at him
and said, ‘Look at us.’ He turned to them expectantly, hoping to get something
from them, but Peter said, ‘I have neither silver nor gold, but I will give you
what I have: in the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, walk!’ Peter then took
him by the hand and helped him to stand up. Instantly his feet and ankles
became firm, he jumped up, stood, and began to walk, and he went with them into
the Temple, walking and jumping and praising God. Everyone could see him
walking and praising God, and they recognised him as the man who used to sit
begging at the Beautiful Gate of the Temple. They were all astonished and
unable to explain what had happened to him.
First Reading -
Acts 12:1-11
'Now I Know the Lord Really Did Save Me From
Herod'
King Herod started persecuting certain members
of the Church. He beheaded James the brother of John, and when he saw that this
pleased the Jews he decided to arrest Peter as well. This was during the days
of Unleavened Bread, and he put Peter in prison, assigning four squads of four
soldiers each to guard him in turns. Herod meant to try Peter in public after
the end of Passover week. All the time Peter was under guard the Church prayed
to God for him unremittingly.
On the
night before Herod was to try him, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers,
fastened with double chains, while guards kept watch at the main entrance to
the prison. Then suddenly the angel of the Lord stood there, and the cell was
filled with light. He tapped Peter on the side and woke him. ‘Get up!’ he said
‘Hurry!’ – and the chains fell from his hands. The angel then said, ‘Put on
your belt and sandals.’ After he had done this, the angel next said, ‘Wrap your
cloak round you and follow me.’ Peter followed him, but had no idea that what
the angel did was all happening in reality; he thought he was seeing a vision.
They passed through two guard posts one after the other, and reached the iron
gate leading to the city. This opened of its own accord; they went through it
and had walked the whole length of one street when suddenly the angel left him.
It was only then that Peter came to himself. ‘Now I know it is all true’ he
said. ‘The Lord really did send his angel and has saved me from Herod and from
all that the Jewish people were so certain would happen to me.’
Responsorial
Psalm – Psalm 18(19):2-5
Praise
of God the creator
Alleluia,
Alleluia
Blessed
are you, Lord, in the vault of heaven.
The
skies tell the story of the glory of God,
the firmament proclaims the work of his
hands;
day
pours out the news to day,
night passes to night the knowledge.
Not a
speech, not a word,
not a voice goes unheard.
Their
sound is spread throughout the earth,
their message to all the corners of the
world.
At
the ends of the earth he has set up
a dwelling place for the sun.
Like
a bridegroom leaving his chamber,
it rejoices like an athlete at the race to be
run.
It
appears at the edge of the sky,
runs its course to the sky’s furthest edge.
Nothing
can hide from its heat.
Alleluia
Responsorial
Psalm – Psalm 33(34):2-9
The
Lord, the salvation of the righteous
Those
who seek the Lord lack no blessing.
I
shall bless the Lord for ever:
my mouth will proclaim his praise.
My
soul will glory in the Lord:
let the meek listen and rejoice.
Join
me and proclaim the greatness of the Lord:
together let us exalt his name.
I
sought the Lord and he listened to me:
he rescued me from all my fears.
Look
to him and he will shine upon you,
and you will not be put to shame.
This
poor man called, and the Lord answered him
and saved him from all his many troubles.
The
angel of the Lord will build defences
round those who fear the Lord:
he will come to their rescue.
Taste
and see that the Lord is kind:
happy the man who hopes in him.
Revere
the Lord, his saints:
for those who fear him are never destitute.
The
rich are hungry and in want,
but for those who seek the Lord
there is no lack of good things.
Those
who seek the Lord lack no blessing.
Let
peace be all your quest and aim.
Alleluia,
Alleluia
Come,
children, listen to me:
I shall teach you the fear of the Lord.
Who
is the man who desires life,
who wants to live long to enjoy good things?
Do
not let your tongue speak evil:
let your lips not utter deceit.
Avoid
evil, do good:
seek peace and follow it.
The
eyes of the Lord are on the just
and his ears hear their cries;
but
the face of the Lord is against those who do evil:
he wipes their memory from the earth.
The
just cried out, and the Lord listened
and freed them from all their many troubles.
The
Lord is close to the broken-hearted:
the crushed in spirit he will save.
Many
are the troubles of the just,
but the Lord will free them from all of them.
He
will protect all their bones:
not one will be broken.
Their
own evil destroys sinners:
those who hate the just will be punished.
The
Lord will redeem the souls of his servants:
those who put their hope in him will not be
punished.
Let
peace be all your quest and aim.
Alleluia
Second
Reading – Galatians 1:11-20
God Specially
Chose Me While I Was in My Mother's Womb
The
Good News I preached is not a human message that I was given by men, it is
something I learnt only through a revelation of Jesus Christ. You must have
heard of my career as a practising Jew, how merciless I was in persecuting the
Church of God, how much damage I did to it, how I stood out among other Jews of
my generation, and how enthusiastic I was for the traditions of my ancestors.
Then God, who had specially chosen me while I
was still in my mother’s womb, called me through his grace and chose to reveal
his Son in me, so that I might preach the Good News about him to the pagans. I
did not stop to discuss this with any human being, nor did I go up to Jerusalem
to see those who were already apostles before me, but I went off to Arabia at
once and later went straight back from there to Damascus. Even when after three
years I went up to Jerusalem to visit Cephas and stayed with him for fifteen
days, I did not see any of the other apostles; I only saw James, the brother of
the Lord, and I swear before God that what I have written is the literal truth.
Second Reading - 2 Timothy 4:6-8,17-18
All There Is to Come Now is the Crown of Righteousness
Reserved for Me
My life is already being poured away as a
libation, and the time has come for me to be gone. I have fought the good fight
to the end; I have run the race to the finish; I have kept the faith; all there
is to come now is the crown of righteousness reserved for me, which the Lord,
the righteous judge, will give to me on that Day; and not only to me but to all
those who have longed for his Appearing.
The
Lord stood by me and gave me power, so that through me the whole message might
be proclaimed for all the pagans to hear; and so I was rescued from the lion’s
mouth. The Lord will rescue me from all evil attempts on me, and bring me
safely to his heavenly kingdom. To him be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
Gospel Acclamation- John 21:17
Alleluia, alleluia!
Lord, you know everything: you know I love
you.
Alleluia!
Gospel
Acclamation – Matthew 16:18
Alleluia, alleluia!
You are Peter, and on this rock I will build
my church.
And the gates of the underworld can never hold
out against it.
Alleluia!
The Gospel According to John 21:15-19
Feed My Lambs, Feed My Sheep
Jesus showed himself to his disciples, and after
they had eaten he said to Simon Peter, ‘Simon son of John, do you love me more
than these others do?’ He answered, ‘Yes Lord, you know I love you.’ Jesus said
to him, ‘Feed my lambs.’ A second time he said to him, ‘Simon son of John, do
you love me?’ He replied, ‘Yes, Lord, you know I love you.’ Jesus said to him,
‘Look after my sheep.’ Then he said to him a third time, ‘Simon son of John, do
you love me?’ Peter was upset that he asked him the third time, ‘Do you love
me?’ and said, ‘Lord, you know everything; you know I love you.’ Jesus said to
him, ‘Feed my sheep.
‘I tell you most solemnly, when you were young you
put on your own belt and walked where you liked; but when you grow old you will
stretch out your hands, and somebody else will put a belt round you and take
you where you would rather not go.’
In these words he indicated the kind of death by
which Peter would give glory to God. After this he said, ‘Follow me.’
The Gospel According to Matthew 16:13-19
You Are Peter and on this
Rock I Will Build My Church
When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi
he put this question to his disciples, ‘Who do people say the Son of Man is?’
And they said, ‘Some say he is John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others
Jeremiah or one of the prophets.’ ‘But you,’ he said ‘who do you say I am?’
Then Simon Peter spoke up, ‘You are the Christ,’ he said ‘the Son of the living
God.’ Jesus replied, ‘Simon son of Jonah, you are a happy man! Because it was
not flesh and blood that revealed this to you but my Father in heaven. So I now
say to you: You are Peter and on this rock I will build my Church. And the
gates of the underworld can never hold out against it. I will give you the keys
of the kingdom of heaven: whatever you bind on earth shall be considered bound
in heaven; whatever you loose on earth shall be considered loosed in heaven.’
A Homily - The Thirteenth Sunday in
Ordinary Time (Year C)
The Feasts of Saints Peter and Paul
John,
born in darkness
bore witness to the light
A
faint spark in the deep night
He
saw the light and felt its warmth
While
preaching by the riverside
And
eating honeyed locusts in the wild
John
baptized Jesus, who showed him the way
John
of the desert, adorned in camel’s hair
John
the repentant took the way before him
The
way is not in
stillness or silence, John taught us
The
way is found
through service, Jesus showed us
Humility with grace
John…was
comforted by Sophia
Ruha…washed him in living flame
while Salome danced for her father
demanded his head, and the soldiers
came
John
baptized in the Jordan
he was not perplexed by his fate
having turned toward the divine
he was not tempted to turn away
From the Gospel
According to Mark
First Reading – Zechariah 12:10-11,13:1 ©
Responsorial Psalm - Psalm
62(63):2-6,8-9 ©
Second Reading – Galatians 3:26-29 ©
Gospel Acclamation – John 8:12
Alternative Acclamation – John 10:27
The Gospel According to Luke 9:18-24
©
(NJB)
Listen!
Zechariah is a false prophet, a nationalist, and a jingoistic liar, giving voice to the machinations of men, they are the fantasies of folly and we must abandon them.
God, the creator of the universe, is not a God of wars and battles; God does not intervene in human affairs or conflicts. God does not appoint princes and kings, neither does God show favor to some of God’s children over and against others.
Remember.
God is loving, God is just and God is good, kind, merciful and humble.
It is right to thank God for all the good things that come our way. It is right and good to give thanks, but do not blame God for the hardships we suffer in this life. The good and the bad come to us irrespective of who we are, what we do or have done or who we might become; there is no plan in it because God is no respecter of persons.
There is peace to be had through practice of patience, in the comfort of contemplation, meditation and prayer. Therefore, make your life a constant prayer, praying for the grace which comes from God and brings peace to the spirit. Let that peace bubble-up within you, overflowing like a fountain that may quench another’s thirst.
Be mindful
We are the children of God and God is parent to everyone.
Our faith in God, our faith in the way that Jesus showed us, that trust frees us to transcend our place in the world, it erases the distinctions between rich and poor, between male and female, between the priest and the lay person
We are all in the way, no-one is excluded from it; we are all moving inexorably toward God, the divine source of all being…trust in that, it is God’s plan for creation.
Understand this,
The sheep do not choose the shepherd, the shepherd chooses the sheep; and God is the shepherd in whom all that is--comes to be. There is the one shepherd, one sheepfold, and whether it make sense to us or not, it is to that shepherd we all belong.
Hearken to the voice of the shepherd; do not trouble yourself with how the shepherd speaks to you, in what language, in what text, through your sister or your brother, from the mouth of your neighbor or the stranger.
The divine spirit is speaking to them to, and they are listening (like you) as they are able (or willing), God will speak through them to you, you may hear it if you are willing and able.
Everyone that is, everyone who has ever been or ever will be, everyone without exception is with the scop of God’s care and concern, there is no other way. Do not trouble yourself if you do not understand the journey that another person is on…God is guiding them as God is guiding you.
If you resist, God will be patient; God will wait for you as God waits for everyone, be thankful for this and pray that you may emulate the patience of God.
God is love, and love is patient as love is kind; be kind to one another and to yourself. Have faith, that God will not lose a single one of us. Neither will any one of us lose God, no matter what; God is with us.
Know this.
Jesus lived among us and taught by word and deed; he never wrote a thing. He gave this command: “love one another, as I have loved you.” He told us in the simplest of terms that this is the whole of the law, and the only way to serve God.
He went to his death as an exemplification of this rule; it is the only rule that matters. He spoke in parables, but there was no mystery in them. He spoke plainly, and he spoke true. This was the source power in his teaching…that is how he shook the world.
In the generations that followed after him, the message Jesus delivered became contorted, as it took on the trappings of the false prophet Zechariah whose words we encountered at the beginning of today’s readings.
The story of his life became distorted by myths and tales of power.
It was not enough to tell the truth as Jesus himself told it, they had to make him into a king, the Christ, Kyrios, the anointed one, a prophet like his predecessor John, or the hero Elijah, a mysterious being pre-figured in arcane literature like the Books of Enoch; they cast him as the Son of Man, and exalted figure, and more…he became known as the Son of God, and even as God’s own self, dwelling amongst us in the flesh.
That is the trajectory of the propaganda that dogged the story of Jesus of Nazareth, replacing the real with the fantastic and surreal.
Jesus was a man, he taught us about the good and the just, he instructed us in the demands of humility and love. We should honor the truth he spoke, we should honor him by seeing him for who he truly was; a human being like the rest of us and a role-model for us to emulate.
First Reading – Zechariah 12:10-11,13:1 ©
They Will Look on the One Whom they Have
Pierces
It
is the Lord who speaks: ‘Over the House of David and the citizens of Jerusalem
I will pour out a spirit of kindness and prayer. They will look on the one whom
they have pierced; they will mourn for him as for an only son, and weep for him
as people weep for a first-born child. When that day comes, there will be great
mourning in Judah, like the mourning of Hadad-rimmon in the plain of Megiddo.
When that day comes, a fountain will be opened for the House of David and the
citizens of Jerusalem, for sin and impurity.’
Responsorial Psalm - Psalm 62(63):2-6,8-9 ©
For you my soul is thirsting, O Lord
my God.
O
God, you are my God, for you I long;
for you my soul is thirsting.
My
body pines for you
like a dry, weary land without water.
For you my soul is thirsting, O Lord
my God.
So
I gaze on you in the sanctuary
to see your strength and your glory.
For
your love is better than life,
my lips will speak your praise.
For you my soul is thirsting, O Lord
my God.
So
I will bless you all my life,
in your name I will lift up my hands.
My
soul shall be filled as with a banquet,
my mouth shall praise you with joy.
For you my soul is thirsting, O Lord
my God.
For
you have been my help;
in the shadow of your wings I rejoice.
My
soul clings to you;
your right hand holds me fast.
For you my soul is thirsting, O Lord
my God.
Second Reading – Galatians 3:26-29 ©
All Baptised in Christ, You Have All
Clothed Yourselves in Christ
You
are, all of you, sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. All baptised in
Christ, you have all clothed yourselves in Christ, and there are no more
distinctions between Jew and Greek, slave and free, male and female, but all of
you are one in Christ Jesus. Merely by belonging to Christ you are the
posterity of Abraham, the heirs he was promised.
Gospel Acclamation – John 8:12
Alleluia, alleluia!
I
am the light of the world, says the Lord; anyone who follows me will have the
light of life.
Alleluia!
Alternative Acclamation – John 10:27
Alleluia, alleluia!
The
sheep that belong to me listen to my voice, says the Lord, I know them and they
follow me.
Alleluia!
The Gospel According to Luke 9:18-24
©
'You Are the Christ of
God'
One day when Jesus was praying alone
in the presence of his disciples he put this question to them, ‘Who do the
crowds say I am?’ And they answered, ‘John the Baptist; others Elijah; and
others say one of the ancient prophets come back to life.’ ‘But you,’ he said
‘who do you say I am?’ It was Peter who spoke up. ‘The Christ of God’ he said.
But he gave them strict orders not to tell anyone anything about this.
‘The Son of Man’ he said ‘is
destined to suffer grievously, to be rejected by the elders and chief priests
and scribes and to be put to death, and to be raised up on the third day.’
Then to all he said, ‘If anyone
wants to be a follower of mine, let him renounce himself and take up his cross
every day and follow me. For anyone who wants to save his life will lose it;
but anyone who loses his life for my sake, that man will save it.’