From the REC
TWENTY-THIRD SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME YEAR B
First Reading is 35:4-7 God comes with vindication.
Second Reading Jas 2:1-5 Do not judge by appearance.
Gospel Mk 7:31-37 Jesus heals the deaf man
Living the Gospel – Open to compassion
When Isaiah described the signs by which the Messiah would be recognised, he identified those people who were isolated from society by their physical afflictions.
He portrayed a Messiah who released them from those afflictions and allowed them to re-enter society.
That is what Jesus did time and time again.
In the healing of the deaf and dumb man, Jesus called on all those around him to also be opened – that their hearts may be opened to compassion.
Jesus calls to us through today’s gospel to also be open to compassion and open to the needs of those around us.
Fathers Day
On Fathers’ Day, we remember and honour dads, grandfathers, uncles, and all the men, living and deceased, who tirelessly and selflessly gave of themselves for their families with unconditional love.
It is a good time to also recall the exemplary role-model and patron saint of fathers – St Joseph – foster father of Jesus, husband of Our Lady and patron of the Universal Church.
St Joseph experienced the same difficulties in life we all do, yet he lived an exemplary life and established an ideal that is well-worth emulating for all fathers:
He was:
- a man of compassion and caring.
- a man possessed of unwavering faith in God.
- a man who loved and protected his family. As Saint Matthew describes him in his Gospel, Joseph was a “righteous man” (Matthew 1:19).
Doing God’s will was paramount; Each time God told him to do something, Joseph’s response was immediate and he would carry out the task at hand the way God wanted it done
- after the angel’s message came to him in a dream, he took Mary into his home as his wife;
- upon receiving the angel’s warning, Joseph immediately got up and took his little family, and fled to Egypt in the middle of the night to escape Herod’s jealous wrath,
- later, returned them home to Nazareth.
- Joseph kept the Sabbath and went to the Temple in Jerusalem for the Passover.
- He faithfully and tenderly loved, protected, and provided for the Child Jesus and the Virgin Mary.
St Joseph certainly set the bar high for modern-day fathers, yet, by his very example, Joseph solidly demonstrates that it is quite possible to follow his example to be a righteous man by listening to, trusting in, and obeying God’s word.
Abridged from Carmelite Sisters of the Sacred Heart Las Angeles
REC Coordinator