REFLECTION FOR TODAY
The way to Heaven is strait and narrow: they who wish to arrive at that place of bliss by walking in the paths of pleasure shall be disappointed; and therefore few reach it, because few are willing to use violence to themselves in resisting temptations.
-- St Alphonsus de Liguori
READINGS FOR TODAY
First Reading: Baruch 1:15-22
(A Confession of Sin)
15 This is the confession you should make: “The Lord our God is righteous, but we are still covered with shame. All of us—the people of Judah, the people of Jerusalem,
16 our kings, our rulers, our priests, our prophets, and our ancestors have been put to shame,
17 because we have sinned against the Lord our God.
The way to Heaven is strait and narrow: they who wish to arrive at that place of bliss by walking in the paths of pleasure shall be disappointed; and therefore few reach it, because few are willing to use violence to themselves in resisting temptations.
-- St Alphonsus de Liguori
READINGS FOR TODAY
First Reading: Baruch 1:15-22
(A Confession of Sin)
15 This is the confession you should make: “The Lord our God is righteous, but we are still covered with shame. All of us—the people of Judah, the people of Jerusalem,
16 our kings, our rulers, our priests, our prophets, and our ancestors have been put to shame,
17 because we have sinned against the Lord our God.
18 and have disobeyed him. We did not listen to him or live according to his commandments.
19 From the day the Lord brought our ancestors out of Egypt until the present day, we have continued to be unfaithful to him, and we have not hesitated to disobey him.
20 Long ago, when the Lord led our ancestors out of Egypt, so that he could give us a rich and fertile land, he pronounced curses against us through his servant Moses. And today we are suffering because of those curses.
21 We refused to obey the word of the Lord our God which he spoke to us through the prophets. Instead, we all did as we pleased and went on our own evil way. We turned to other gods and did things the Lord hates.
Psalms: Psalm 79:1-5, 8-9
(A Prayer for the Nation's Deliverance)
1 O God, the heathen have invaded your land. They have desecrated your holy Temple and left Jerusalem in ruins.
2 They left the bodies of your people for the vultures, the bodies of your servants for wild animals to eat.
3 They shed your people's blood like water; blood flowed like water all through Jerusalem, and no one was left to bury the dead.
4 The surrounding nations insult us; they laugh at us and mock us.
5 Lord, will you be angry with us forever? Will your anger continue to burn like fire?
8 Do not punish us for the sins of our ancestors. Have mercy on us now; we have lost all hope.
9 Help us, O God, and save us; rescue us and forgive our sins for the sake of your own honor.
Gospel: Luke 10:13-16
(The Unbelieving Towns)
13 “How terrible it will be for you, Chorazin! How terrible for you too, Bethsaida! If the miracles which were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, the people there would have long ago sat down, put on sackcloth, and sprinkled ashes on themselves, to show that they had turned from their sins!
14 God will show more mercy on the Judgment Day to Tyre and Sidon than to you.
15 And as for you, Capernaum! Did you want to lift yourself up to heaven? You will be thrown down to hell!”
16 Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever listens to you listens to me; whoever rejects you rejects me; and whoever rejects me rejects the one who sent me.”
19 From the day the Lord brought our ancestors out of Egypt until the present day, we have continued to be unfaithful to him, and we have not hesitated to disobey him.
20 Long ago, when the Lord led our ancestors out of Egypt, so that he could give us a rich and fertile land, he pronounced curses against us through his servant Moses. And today we are suffering because of those curses.
21 We refused to obey the word of the Lord our God which he spoke to us through the prophets. Instead, we all did as we pleased and went on our own evil way. We turned to other gods and did things the Lord hates.
Psalms: Psalm 79:1-5, 8-9
(A Prayer for the Nation's Deliverance)
1 O God, the heathen have invaded your land. They have desecrated your holy Temple and left Jerusalem in ruins.
2 They left the bodies of your people for the vultures, the bodies of your servants for wild animals to eat.
3 They shed your people's blood like water; blood flowed like water all through Jerusalem, and no one was left to bury the dead.
4 The surrounding nations insult us; they laugh at us and mock us.
5 Lord, will you be angry with us forever? Will your anger continue to burn like fire?
8 Do not punish us for the sins of our ancestors. Have mercy on us now; we have lost all hope.
9 Help us, O God, and save us; rescue us and forgive our sins for the sake of your own honor.
Gospel: Luke 10:13-16
(The Unbelieving Towns)
13 “How terrible it will be for you, Chorazin! How terrible for you too, Bethsaida! If the miracles which were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, the people there would have long ago sat down, put on sackcloth, and sprinkled ashes on themselves, to show that they had turned from their sins!
14 God will show more mercy on the Judgment Day to Tyre and Sidon than to you.
15 And as for you, Capernaum! Did you want to lift yourself up to heaven? You will be thrown down to hell!”
16 Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever listens to you listens to me; whoever rejects you rejects me; and whoever rejects me rejects the one who sent me.”
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