Sunday
September 14^th

Triumph of the Holy Cross

1^st Reading: Num 21:4b-9:
The people were discouraged by the journey and began to complain against God and Moses, “Why have you brought us out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? There is neither bread nor water here and we are disgusted with this tasteless manna.” Yahweh then sent fiery serpents against them. They bit the people and many of the Israelites died.

Then the people came to Moses and said, “We have sinned, speaking against Yahweh and against you. Plead with Yahweh to take the serpents away.”

Moses pleaded for the people and Yahweh said to him, “Make a fiery serpent and set it on a standard; whoever has been bitten and then looks at it shall live.” So Moses made a bronze serpent and set it on a standard. Whenever a man was bitten, he looked towards the bronze serpent and he lived.

2^nd Reading: Phil 2:6-11:
Though he was in the form of God, he did not regard equality with God as something to be grasped, but emptied himself, taking on the nature of a servant, made in human likeness, and, in his appearance, found, as a man, He humbled himself by being obedient, to death, death on the cross.

That is why God exalted him and gave him the name which outshines all names, so, that, at the name of Jesus all knees should bend in heaven, on earth and among the dead, and all tongues proclaim, that Christ Jesus is the Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Gospel: Jn 3:13-17:
No one has ever gone up to heaven except the one who came from heaven, the Son of Man. As Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, so that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.

Yes, God so loved the world that he gave his only Son that whoever believes in him may not be lost, but may have eternal life. God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world; instead, through him the world is to be saved.

Reflection:
The core stuff of the world is love; each of its component parts bears the pure, creative love of God. And since the world is created through the love of God, it can only be saved or “recreated” through the same love.

But the way God has taken is costly. The price of loving and saving the world is his only Son. Jesus has become the fullest expression of God’s saving love. God’s pure love is made known and felt in many concrete ways through Jesus. There is no other way except by assuming a human form that this love may be communicated to humanity and the whole world.

We need to experience the love of God in Jesus so that we ourselves will know how to love. Jesus is our model for loving others. By experiencing the love of God, we come to know how we can become agents of this love. Love takes possession of us so that God may continue saving and loving the world. This means that we, the people of God, are Christ’s co-worker. It is now through us, by the power of the Spirit, that his saving plan continues.

Monday
September 15th

Our Lady of Sorrows

1^st Reading: 1 Timothy 2:1-8:
Beloved:

First of all, I ask that supplications, prayers, petitions, and thanksgivings be offered for everyone, for kings and for all in authority, that we may lead a quiet and tranquil life in all devotion and dignity. This is good and pleasing to God our savior, who wills everyone to be saved and to come to knowledge of the truth. For there is one God.

There is also one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as ransom for all. This was the testimony at the proper time. For this I was appointed preacher and Apostle (I am speaking the truth, I am not lying), teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth.

It is my wish, then, that in every place the men should pray, lifting up holy hands, without anger or argument.

Gospel: Lk 2:33-35 (or Jn 19:25-27):
His father and mother wondered at what was said about the child. Simeon blessed them, and said to Mary, his mother, “Know this: your son is a sign; a sign established for the falling and rising of many in Israel, a sign of contradiction; and a sword will pierce your own soul, so that, out of many hearts, thoughts may be revealed.”

Reflection:
In the realm of music, a person who has perfect pitch is a person who can recognize and name any note or group of notes with absolute certainty, as if the person had a built–in tuning fork in his or her head. It is a great gift to have perfect pitch, but it is also a great source of frustration and suffering, for then the person having it detects the slightest sound out of tune or false note.

Spiritually speaking, Mary was endowed with perfect pitch, being completely attuned to God. And this is difficult, nay, impossible for us to imagine, let alone understand. But the downside of this was that she suffered acutely when she came in contact with sin, hate, pettiness, pride, etc.

And so, during the public life of Jesus, as she witnessed the mounting opposition of his enemies and could already anticipate how it would all end, in anticipation she suffered the Cross more than we will ever be able to imagine. As Simeon predicted when the child Jesus was presented in the Temple, “and you yourself a sword will pierce” (Lk 2:35). Today we are remembering that Mary, too, was crucified in her own way.

Tuesday
September 16^th

Cornelius and Cyprian

1^st Reading: 1 Timothy 3:1-13:
Beloved, this saying is trustworthy: whoever aspires to the office of bishop desires a noble task. Therefore, a bishop must be irreproachable, married only once, temperate, self-controlled, decent, hospitable, able to teach, not a drunkard, not aggressive, but gentle, not contentious, not a lover of money.

He must manage his own household well, keeping his children under control with perfect dignity; for if a man does not know how to manage his own household, how can he take care of the Church of God?

He should not be a recent convert, so that he may not become conceited and thus incur the Devil’s punishment. He must also have a good reputation among outsiders, so that he may not fall into disgrace, the Devil’s trap.

Similarly, deacons must be dignified, not deceitful, not addicted to drink, not greedy for sordid gain, holding fast to the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience. Moreover, they should be tested first; then, if there is nothing against them, let them serve as deacons.

Women, similarly, should be dignified, not slanderers, but temperate and faithful in everything. Deacons may be married only once and must manage their children and their households well. Thus those who serve well as deacons gain good standing and much confidence in their faith in Christ Jesus.

Gospel: Lk 7:11-17:
A little later, Jesus went to a town called Naim. He was accompanied by his disciples and a great number of people.

As he reached the gate of the town, a dead man was being carried out. He was the only son of his mother, and she was a widow; there followed a large crowd of townspeople. On seeing her, the Lord had pity on her and said, “Don’t cry.”

Then he came up and touched the stretcher, and the men who carried it stopped. Jesus then said, “Young man, I say to you, wake up!” And the dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother.

A holy fear came over them all, and they praised God saying, “A great prophet has appeared among us. God has visited his people.” This news spread throughout Judea and the surrounding places.

Reflection:
It is strange how much our past experiences condition us and attune us to sympathize with people whose present experiences reflect our own past. In the case of Jesus, let us consider just two things: he was an only son and, as far as we can tell, his mother Mary was a widow for many long years.

Well, in today’s gospel reading we see Jesus do something he very rarely does: he takes the initiative of performing a miracle, and not just an ordinary miracle, but nothing less than the raising of a dead man.

Why this special treatment? Here we are left to our own speculations. But we might speculate along the following lines: Jesus sees in this only son and his widowed mother an echo of his own past life situation in Nazareth, when he lived as the only son of his widowed mother. And such a close similarity of situation touches his heart so much that he decides to help the desolate widow and her dead son.

Jesus performed many of his miracles out of sheer compassion. He has not changed. We should appeal to his compassionate heart without any fear of rejection.

Wednesday
September 17^th

Robert Bellarmine

1^st Reading: 1 Tim 3:14-16:
Beloved:

I am writing you, although I hope to visit you soon. But if I should be delayed, you should know how to behave in the household of God, which is the Church of the living God, the pillar and foundation of truth.

Undeniably great is the mystery of devotion, who was manifested in the flesh, vindicated in the spirit, seen by angels, proclaimed to the Gentiles, believed in throughout the world, taken up in glory.

Gospel: Lk 7:31-35:
And Jesus said, “What comparison can I use for the people? What are they like? They are like children sitting in the marketplace, about whom their companions complain, ‘We piped you a tune and you wouldn’t dance; we sang funeral songs and you wouldn’t cry.’

Remember John: he didn’t eat bread or drink wine, and you said, ‘He has an evil spirit.’ Next, came the Son of Man, eating and drinking; and you say, ‘Look, a glutton for food and wine, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.’ But the children of Wisdom always recognize her work.”

Reflection:
Commenting on this gospel reading, Brendan Byrne SJ noted that the words “Wisdom” and “children” represent God’s saving plan and Jesus and John the Baptist, respectively.

Both are considered the first children of the plan of God in the sense that John prepared the way for Jesus and preached a baptism of repentance; and, that Jesus enacted the divine plan of salvation in his ministry of teaching, healing, forgiving and reconciling. They are the first product of God’s saving act.

Picking up on this understanding of being “children of Wisdom”, we share in the status of John and Jesus as its children, or as the children of the reign of justice, love and mercy, in so far as we do not remain silent in the midst of abuse and exploitation of our fellow humans and indiscriminate destruction of the natural world.

We become its children when we lend a voice to the “voiceless” poor of our society and to the “voiceless” creatures of the natural world. Furthermore, we become its children when we actively promote justice, love and peace, whether individually or collectively, in our own family or in the wider community of life.

Thursday
September 18^th

1st Reading: 1 Tim 4:12-16:
Beloved:
Let no one have contempt for your youth, but set an example for those who believe, in speech, conduct, love, faith, and purity. Until I arrive, attend to the reading, exhortation, and teaching. Do not neglect the gift you have, which was conferred on you through the prophetic word with the imposition of hands by the presbyterate.

Be diligent in these matters, be absorbed in them, so that your progress may be evident to everyone. Attend to yourself and to your teaching; persevere in both tasks, for by doing so you will save both yourself and those who listen to you.

Gospel: Lk 7:36-50:
One of the Pharisees asked Jesus to share his meal, so he went to the Pharisee’s house and as usual reclined at the table to eat.

And it happened that a woman of this town, who was known as a sinner, heard that Jesus was in the Pharisee’s house. She brought a precious jar of perfume and stood behind him at his feet, weeping. She wet his feet with tears, she dried them with her hair and kissed his feet and poured the perfume on them. (…)

Then Jesus spoke to the Pharisee and said, (…) “Two people were in debt to the same creditor. One owed him five hundred silver coins, and the other fifty. As they were unable to pay him back, he graciously canceled the debts of both. Now, which of them will love him more?”

Simon answered, “The one, I suppose, who was forgiven more.”

And Jesus said, “You are right.”

And turning toward the woman, he said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? You gave me no water for my feet when I entered your house, but she has washed my feet with her tears and dried them with her hair.

“You didn’t welcome me with a kiss, but she has not stopped kissing my feet since she came in. You provided no oil for my head, but she has poured perfume on my feet. This is why, I tell you, her sins, her many sins, are forgiven, because of her great love. But the one who is forgiven little, has little love.”

Then Jesus said to the woman, “Your sins are forgiven. Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”

Reflection:
Sin ruins human lives; it destroys the natural world. Everything that was made “very good,” anything that relates to the good—it wants to be destroyed.

Sin is the absence of the good; it cannot co-exist with goodness. Sin breaks the relationship with God, and the relation between humans and their fellow human beings and between humans and the natural world. Sin corrupts the human heart. It brings misery, loneliness and fear.

With all these descriptions, we can easily identify its effects and manifestations, its many faces. Forgiveness is sin’s reversal; it undoes what sin has done.

Although in many cases the undoing takes longer time, still forgiveness restores back what has been lost and destroyed. Forgiveness brings about transformation inside the human person and promotes her/his well-being; it effects the flourishing of the natural world through humans.

Forgiveness brings peace; it heals the wounded heart and restores the broken relationship. That is why the sinful woman, having been forgiven her many sins, has poured out her love in gratitude. She was reconnected back to her God and restored to a new “life.”

Friday
September 19^th

Januarius

1^st Reading: 1 Tim 6:2c-12:
Beloved:
Teach and urge these things. Whoever teaches something different and does not agree with the sound words of our Lord Jesus Christ and the religious teaching is conceited, understanding nothing, and has a morbid disposition for arguments and verbal disputes.

From these come envy, rivalry, insults, evil suspicions, and mutual friction among people with corrupted minds, who are deprived of the truth, supposing religion to be a means of gain. Indeed, religion with contentment is a great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, just as we shall not be able to take anything out of it. If we have food and clothing, we shall be content with that.

Those who want to be rich are falling into temptation and into a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires, which plunge them into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is the root of all evils, and some people in their desire for it have strayed from the faith and have pierced themselves with many pains.

But you, man of God, avoid all this. Instead, pursue righteousness, devotion, faith, love, patience, and gentleness. Compete well for the faith. Lay hold of eternal life, to which you were called when you made the noble confession in the presence of many witnesses.

Gospel: Lk 8:1-3:
Jesus walked through towns and countryside, preaching and giving the good news of the kingdom of God. The Twelve followed him, and also some women, who had been healed of evil spirits and diseases: Mary called Magdalene, who had been freed of seven demons; Joanna, wife of Chuza, Herod’s steward; Suzanna; and others, who provided for them out of their own funds.

Reflection:
The gospel passage today might seem to project a diminution of Jesus’ women followers, being possessed by evil spirits and being freed from demons. But the gospel writer does not intend it that way; he is simply saying that among those who were healed, responded generously, and followed Jesus were women (Brendan Byrne).

The passage need not be construed as portraying women with secondary or inferior roles to men. Since the early Christian Church women have played an important role and have significantly impacted the proclamation of the good news. Some even assumed leadership roles. Their role was not limited to domestic services, such as cooking, washing, mending, etc. (Byrne).

Nowadays, we are witness to the ever-growing involvement and invaluable contribution of lay women in different areas of Church ministry. And in some areas, they are leading the way.

The giftedness of women is a vital element in bringing forward the work of the Church in our modern world. The need for their active participation may not be felt in some quarters, but it is a fact that women’s giftedness has already substantially impacted the evangelizing work of the Church and proven itself worthy of the task. Women’s active participation calls for recognition and more encouragement.

Saturday
September 20^th

Andrew Kim Tae-gŏn, Paul Chŏng Ha-sang, and Companions, Martyrs

1^st Reading: 1 Cor 15:35-37, 42-49:
Beloved:
I charge you before God, who gives life to all things, and before Christ Jesus, who gave testimony under Pontius Pilate for the noble confession, to keep the commandment without stain or reproach until the appearance of our Lord Jesus Christ that the blessed and only ruler will make manifest at the proper time, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone has immortality, who dwells in unapproachable light, and whom no human being has seen or can see.

To him be honor and eternal power. Amen.

Gospel: Lk 8:4-15:
As a great crowd gathered, and people came to him from every town, Jesus began teaching them with a story:

“The sower went out to sow the seed. And as he sowed, some of the seed fell along the way, was trodden on, and the birds of the sky ate it up.

“Some seed fell on rocky ground; and no sooner had it come up than it withered, because it had no water. Some seed fell among thorns; the thorns grew up with the seed and choked it. But some seed fell on good soil and grew, producing fruit, a hundred times as much!”

And Jesus cried out, “Listen then, if you have ears to hear!”

The disciples asked him, “What does this story mean?”

And Jesus answered, “To you it has been given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God. But to others it is given in the form of stories, or parables, so that, seeing, they may not perceive; and hearing, they may not understand.”

“Now, this is the point of the parable: The seed is the word of God. Those along the wayside are people who hear it; but immediately, the devil comes and takes the word from their minds, for he doesn’t want them to believe and be saved. Those on the rocky ground are people who receive the word with joy; but they have no root; they believe for a while, and give way in time of trial.

“Among the thorns are people who hear the word, but, as they go their way, they are choked by worries, riches, and the pleasures of life; they bring no fruit to maturity. The good soil, instead, are people who receive the word, and keep it, in a gentle and generous mind, and, persevering patiently, they bear fruit.”

Reflection:
In today’s gospel reading we hear Jesus telling the crowd the parable of the Sower and then explaining this parable privately to his disciples. According to him, there are four categories of people when it comes to listening to God’s word.

The first three categories receive that word but do not bear fruit for various reasons. One of these is given as being “the riches and the pleasures of life.” Now how does this work out in many cases?

In the first place, let us be clear about one thing: there is nothing wrong with being rich or with enjoying life. A lot of people are excellent Christians, while being rich or while enjoying life. However, they will tell you that they have to be extra careful, especially with the use of their time, because when you have a lot of money, you tend to forget that God is more important than your millions, your stocks and bonds and your money investments. Likewise, when you spend a lot of time watching television or playing cards or drinking with your buddies.

These things—all good things—tend to crowd out God from your life, if you let them. So, let us be vigilant in this area of money and pleasure.