Mass Readings and Meditations “The Word among Us” Wednesday, 22 January 2014 and Thursday, 23 January 2-13

Mass Readings and Meditations “The Word among Us” Wednesday, 22 January 2014 and Thursday, 23 January 2-13

Mass Readings and Meditations “The Word among Us” Wednesday, 22 January 2014

Meditation: 1 Samuel 17: 32 David said to Saul, “Let no one’s heart fail because of him; your servant will go and fight with this Philistine.” 33 Saul said to David, “You are not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him; for you are just a boy, and he has been a warrior from his youth.”

37 David said, “The Lord, who saved me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, will save me from the hand of this Philistine.” So Saul said to David, “Go, and may the Lord be with you!”

40 Then he took his staff in his hand, and chose five smooth stones from the wadi, and put them in his shepherd’s bag, in the pouch; his sling was in his hand, and he drew near to the Philistine.

41 The Philistine came on and drew near to David, with his shield-bearer in front of him. 42 When the Philistine looked and saw David, he disdained him, for he was only a youth, ruddy and handsome in appearance. 43 The Philistine said to David, “Am I a dog, that you come to me with sticks?” And the Philistine cursed David by his gods. 44 The Philistine said to David, “Come to me, and I will give your flesh to the birds of the air and to the wild animals of the field.” 45 But David said to the Philistine, “You come to me with sword and spear and javelin; but I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. 46 This very day the Lord will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you down and cut off your head; and I will give the dead bodies of the Philistine army this very day to the birds of the air and to the wild animals of the earth, so that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel, 47 and that all this assembly may know that the Lord does not save by sword and spear; for the battle is the Lord’s and he will give you into our hand.”

48 When the Philistine drew nearer to meet David, David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet the Philistine. 49 David put his hand in his bag, took out a stone, slung it, and struck the Philistine on his forehead; the stone sank into his forehead, and he fell face down on the ground.

50 So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone, striking down the Philistine and killing him; there was no sword in David’s hand. 51 Then David ran and stood over the Philistine; he grasped his sword, drew it out of its sheath, and killed him; then he cut off his head with it.

When the Philistines saw that their champion was dead, they fled.

Psalm 144: Prayer for National Deliverance and Security

Of David.

1 Blessed be the Lord, my rock,

    who trains my hands for war, and my fingers for battle;

2 my rock[a] and my fortress,

    my stronghold and my deliverer,

my shield, in whom I take refuge,

    who subdues the peoples[b] under me.

Footnotes:

a. Psalm 144:2 With 18.2 and 2 Sam 22.2: Heb my steadfast love

b. Psalm 144:2 Heb Mss Syr Aquila Jerome: MT my people

9 I will sing a new song to you, O God;

    upon a ten-stringed harp I will play to you,

10 the one who gives victory to kings,

    who rescues his servant David.

Mark 3: The Man with a Withered Hand

1 Again he entered the synagogue, and a man was there who had a withered hand. 2 They watched him to see whether he would cure him on the sabbath, so that they might accuse him. 3 And he said to the man who had the withered hand, “Come forward.” 4 Then he said to them, “Is it lawful to do good or to do harm on the sabbath, to save life or to kill?” But they were silent. 5 He looked around at them with anger; he was grieved at their hardness of heart and said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was restored. 6 The Pharisees went out and immediately conspired with the Herodians against him, how to destroy him.

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Mass Readings and Meditations “The Word among Us” Thursday, 23 January 2014

Meditation: Psalm 56: 2 my enemies trample on me all day long,

    for many fight against me.

O Most High, 3 when I am afraid,

    I put my trust in you.

9 Then my enemies will retreat

    in the day when I call.

    This I know, that[a] God is for me.

10 In God, whose word I praise,

    in the Lord, whose word I praise,

11 in God I trust; I am not afraid.

    What can a mere mortal do to me?

12 My vows to you I must perform, O God;

    I will render thank offerings to you.

13 For you have delivered my soul from death,

    and my feet from falling,

so that I may walk before God

    in the light of life.

Footnotes:

Psalm 56:9 Or because

Saint Vincent, Deacon and Martyr

Are my tears not stored in your vial? (Psalm 56:9)

In a popular joke, a husband explains his secret for dividing up responsibilities with his wife: “I let her make all the little decisions: where we live, how much we spend, how we educate our children. She leaves all the big decisions to me: the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, global warming, the national debt.”

It’s a joke because, of course, husbands and wives need to make those vital “little” decisions together, and one individual has very little influence on the “big” issues. But it’s important to be clear about which responsibilities belong to God and which ones he’s delegated to us.

Sometimes we waste time and energy on things that aren’t our concern or don’t lie within our power. Once we have selected a caterer for a party and have given him a final head count, why worry whether we will run out of food? Why fret about tomorrow’s weather instead of making a back-up plan and getting some sleep?

Today’s Responsorial Psalm gives us an example. We can spend a lot of time keeping track of our tears and grievances. We want to make sure God—and everyone else—knows how much we’ve suffered. But the psalmist gently reminds us that it’s God’s job to keep track of the injustices against us. It’s our job to trust that he will carry forward his good plan in his time.

So when fears and anxieties crop up, place them in your Father’s capable hands. Ask him if there is anything you can do to improve your situation. If something comes to mind, do it, and leave the results to God. And if you tend to worry about things you can’t control, try humorously handing them over to God:

“Whoops! I forgot that I’m not in charge of the weather. Lord, that’s your department. You know how important this picnic is to me. Still, I’ll praise you for your wisdom and welcome you to be with us even if it rains.”

“Did I just try to make my grown-up son want to go to Mass? Again? That’s between him and you, Lord. Thank you for the ways I’ve seen you work in his life so far. I know that every family takes its name from you, Father, so I’ll trust you.”

“O God, help me remember who is in charge. Lord, I trust in you!” Amen!

1 Samuel 18: 6 As they were coming home, when David returned from killing the Philistine, the women came out of all the towns of Israel, singing and dancing, to meet King Saul, with tambourines, with songs of joy, and with musical instruments.[a] 7 And the women sang to one another as they made merry,

“Saul has killed his thousands,

    and David his ten thousands.”

8 Saul was very angry, for this saying displeased him. He said, “They have ascribed to David ten thousands, and to me they have ascribed thousands; what more can he have but the kingdom?” 9 So Saul eyed David from that day on.

Footnotes:

a. 1 Samuel 18:6 Or triangles, or three-stringed instruments 19: Jonathan Intercedes for David

1 Saul spoke with his son Jonathan and with all his servants about killing David. But Saul’s son Jonathan took great delight in David. 2 Jonathan told David, “My father Saul is trying to kill you; therefore be on guard tomorrow morning; stay in a secret place and hide yourself. 3 I will go out and stand beside my father in the field where you are, and I will speak to my father about you; if I learn anything I will tell you.” 4 Jonathan spoke well of David to his father Saul, saying to him, “The king should not sin against his servant David, because he has not sinned against you, and because his deeds have been of good service to you; 5 for he took his life in his hand when he attacked the Philistine, and the Lord brought about a great victory for all Israel. You saw it, and rejoiced; why then will you sin against an innocent person by killing David without cause?” 6 Saul heeded the voice of Jonathan; Saul swore, “As the Lord lives, he shall not be put to death.” 7 So Jonathan called David and related all these things to him. Jonathan then brought David to Saul, and he was in his presence as before.

Mark 3: A Multitude at the Seaside

7 Jesus departed with his disciples to the sea, and a great multitude from Galilee followed him; 8 hearing all that he was doing, they came to him in great numbers from Judea, Jerusalem, Idumea, beyond the Jordan, and the region around Tyre and Sidon. 9 He told his disciples to have a boat ready for him because of the crowd, so that they would not crush him; 10 for he had cured many, so that all who had diseases pressed upon him to touch him. 11 Whenever the unclean spirits saw him, they fell down before him and shouted, “You are the Son of God!” 12 But he sternly ordered them not to make him known.

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