Roman Catholic The Word Among Us Daily Mass Reading & Daily Meditation for Saturday, 25 October 2014

Roman Catholic The Word Among Us Daily Mass Reading & Daily Meditation for Saturday, 25 October 2014
Meditation: Ephesians 4:7-13 But that doesn’t mean you should all look and speak and act the same. Out of the generosity of Christ, each of us is given his own gift. The text for this is,
He climbed the high mountain,
He captured the enemy and seized the booty,
He handed it all out in gifts to the people.
Is it not true that the One who climbed up also climbed down, down to the valley of earth? And the One who climbed down is the One who climbed back up, up to highest heaven. He handed out gifts above and below, filled heaven with his gifts, filled earth with his gifts. He handed out gifts of apostle, prophet, evangelist, and pastor-teacher to train Christ’s followers in skilled servant work, working within Christ’s body, the church, until we’re all moving rhythmically and easily with each other, efficient and graceful in response to God’s Son, fully mature adults, fully developed within and without, fully alive like Christ.
14-16 No prolonged infancies among us, please. We’ll not tolerate babes in the woods, small children who are an easy mark for impostors. God wants us to grow up, to know the whole truth and tell it in love—like Christ in everything. We take our lead from Christ, who is the source of everything we do. He keeps us in step with each other. His very breath and blood flow through us, nourishing us so that we will grow up healthy in God, robust in love.
Common of the Blessed Virgin Mary
He gave some as apostles, others as prophets … evangelists … pastors and teachers. (Ephesians 4:11)
There’s something different about this list of spiritual gifts, don’t you think? Elsewhere in the New Testament, the charisms are generally listed as divinely empowered abilities like healing, wisdom, and generosity. But today’s list identifies the charisms as persons (compare Romans 12:4-8; 1 Corinthians 12:7-11; 1 Peter 4:10-11). In other words, the people are themselves the gifts.
Is this how you look at other people—or yourself? Whether unconsciously or not, we tend to assess people in terms of their abilities and achievements. But in God’s plan, even the most helpless, lowly, off-putting, or seemingly unaccomplished members of society are gifts by virtue of their very existence. Of course, it’s hard to take this view when relationships are wearing or unpleasant. Here, then, are a few suggestions to help us see the gift in every person.
Find something to appreciate. Don’t focus on flaws and failings. Your in-laws—or children’s spouses, nosy neighbors, demanding superiors, or [fill in the blank]—may drive you crazy. Surely, though, there’s something that you can appreciate. If you can’t see it, ask God for his perspective. Even if it’s just one little thing, try to focus on that. And remember: every person, no matter how challenging, is Jesus in disguise.
Consider the positive effects. Do you want to be more patient, compassionate, or courageous? Perhaps these relationships are opportunities to grow in the virtues you seek! Dealing with a demanding friend or family member, for example, can give you a clearer vision of your own weakness and need for the Lord. That’s a blessing! Throw yourself on the Lord and seek his lead about how to relate: when to forbear, weep with those who weep, or speak the truth in love.
Be a gift. You can’t force people to become the gifts that God has designed them to be. But you can decide to make your own sincere gift of self to the Lord and to everyone around you. Your self-giving will build up the body of Christ and may even spark a transformation in the challenging people around you!
“Lord, help me to see each person in my life as your gift. Empower me to be a gift to them.” Amen!
Psalms 122: A Pilgrim Song of David
1-2 When they said, “Let’s go to the house of God,”
    my heart leaped for joy.
And now we’re here, O Jerusalem,
    inside Jerusalem’s walls!
3-5 Jerusalem, well-built city,
    built as a place for worship!
The city to which the tribes ascend,
    all God’s tribes go up to worship,
To give thanks to the name of God—
    this is what it means to be Israel.
Thrones for righteous judgment
    are set there, famous David-thrones.
Luke 13: Unless You Turn to God
1-5 About that time some people came up and told him about the Galileans Pilate had killed while they were at worship, mixing their blood with the blood of the sacrifices on the altar. Jesus responded, “Do you think those murdered Galileans were worse sinners than all other Galileans? Not at all. Unless you turn to God, you, too, will die. And those eighteen in Jerusalem the other day, the ones crushed and killed when the Tower of Siloam collapsed and fell on them, do you think they were worse citizens than all other Jerusalemites? Not at all. Unless you turn to God, you, too, will die.”
6-7 Then he told them a story: “A man had an apple tree planted in his front yard. He came to it expecting to find apples, but there weren’t any. He said to his gardener, ‘What’s going on here? For three years now I’ve come to this tree expecting apples and not one apple have I found. Chop it down! Why waste good ground with it any longer?’
8-9 “The gardener said, ‘Let’s give it another year. I’ll dig around it and fertilize, and maybe it will produce next year; if it doesn’t, then chop it down.’”
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