REFLECTION AND MEDITATION ON TODAY’S GOSPEL / SEPTEMBER 11, 2020

Saint Luke 6: 39-42: The beam in the eye.

In today’s Gospel «the sermon on the plain» continues, with various recommendations, by way of comparisons:

– a blind man cannot guide the blind: they will both fall into the hole,

– a disciple will not be more than his teacher,

– We do not have to focus so much on the defects of others (a speck or blade in the other’s eye), but on our own (a beam): otherwise, we would be hypocrites.

They are recommendations related to the law of love that Jesus gave us yesterday. He who is taken as a guide must «see» well. The one who wants to go from disciple to teacher, the same. One and the other, if all they see are the defects of others, and not their own, things will go wrong. Seeing the speck in someone else’s eye and not seeing the beam in your own was a very common saying among Jews.

How easily we see the defects of our brothers, and what capacity we have to hide our own! That’s called being hypocritical. That is why it occurs to us to act as guides for others, when those who need guidance are us. And we want to be teachers, when we have not finished learning. And we go into giving advice and correcting others, when we are unable to honestly face our own failures.

Let’s do a little soul-searching today: don’t we tend to ignore our shortcomings, while we are always on the lookout to discover others’? Every time we remember the failures of others – with an immediate desire to comment on them with others – we should reason like this: What do I want so much to be a judge and prosecutor for my brothers? » This is called hypocrisy, one of the defects that Jesus criticized the most. We could use a clean mirror where we can look at ourselves: this mirror is the Word of God, which guides us day after day. To exercise a healthy self-criticism in our life.

Peace and good

Fr. Antonio Majeesh George Kallely, OFM

Publicado en Noticias, REFLEXIÓN Y MEDITACIÓN DEL EVANGELIO | Comentarios desactivados en REFLECTION AND MEDITATION ON TODAY’S GOSPEL / SEPTEMBER 11, 2020

Evangelio y Reflexión del día.

Evangelio según san Lucas (6,20-26)

En aquel tiempo, Jesús, levantando los ojos hacia sus discípulos, les dijo: «Dichosos los pobres, porque vuestro es el reino de Dios. Dichosos los que ahora tenéis hambre, porque quedaréis saciados. Dichosos los que ahora lloráis, porque reiréis. Dichosos vosotros, cuando os odien los hombres, y os excluyan, y os insulten, y proscriban vuestro nombre como infame, por causa del Hijo del hombre. Alegraos ese día y saltad de gozo, porque vuestra recompensa será grande en el cielo. Eso es lo que hacían vuestros padres con los profetas. Pero, ¡ay de vosotros, los ricos!, porque ya tenéis vuestro consuelo. ¡Ay de vosotros, los que ahora estáis saciados!, porque tendréis hambre. ¡Ay de los que ahora reís!, porque haréis duelo y lloraréis. ¡Ay si todo el mundo habla bien de vosotros! Eso es lo que hacían vuestros padres con los falsos profetas.»
Palabra del Señor

Los hombres creían que iban a poder construir su felicidad a base de recetas pero se equivocan. Dios viene a remover las cartas, a darle la vuelta a este mundo. El Reino es una gracia, una recompensa. Lo que se llama «muerte» se convierte en «vida». El pecado se transfigura en perdón y en gracia. Ya no están en primera fila la violencia, la riqueza, el dominio, el prestigio y cosas así. Quedan sustituidos por la paz, la mansedumbre y la pobreza del Reino. Lo que era maldición se torna fuente de felicidad.
El mundo de los hombres se ha venido abajo; nace el mundo de Dios: le tierra ha sufrido una revolución. ¡Porque no hay ninguna felicidad en ser pobres, y jamás los que lloran han pedido seguir llorando! Todo está en contra nuestra, pero son bienaventurados aquellos que comprenden el camino del Resucitado. Ellos se mantienen en pie solamente por su fe en la Palabra que transforma el mundo: como acróbatas, cruzan el abismo, y la Palabra, que es frágil como un hilo a los ojos de los hombres, les permite llegar a la otra orilla.
La bienaventuranza y la salvación son gracia. ¡Qué dicha que Dios mismo nos llame bienaventurados! ¿Tu, te sientes así? o, ¿pesa más en tu vida la malaventuranza?

Paz y bien

Fr. Manuel Díaz Buiza,OFM

Publicado en REFLEXIÓN Y MEDITACIÓN DEL EVANGELIO | Comentarios desactivados en Evangelio y Reflexión del día.

REFLECTION AND MEDITATION OF TODAY’S GOSPEL / SEPTEMBER 8, 2020 / NATIVITY OF VIRGIN MARY

Matthew 1,1-16.18-23: «The creature in her comes from the Holy Spirit»

Today we celebrate the Nativity of the Virgin Mary. In today’s Gospel, Christ Jesus is the center of attention. It has two parts, which would be good to read in their entirety: the genealogical list of Jesus, which goes as far as «Joseph, the husband of Mary, from whom Jesus was born, called Christ,» and the account of how Jesus was born. The list of the ancestors of Jesus, which we also read in Advent (December 17), makes us rejoice that God has truly wanted to incardinate himself in the history of our human race. By taking over the people of Judah and, specifically, the messianic line of the house of David, God has shown that he wants to be «God-with-us» and has assumed our history, sometimes not too glorious because of the names that appear in the genealogy of Jesus. The announcement of the angel to Joseph places us before the mystery of a birth, that of Jesus, whose protagonist is God and his Spirit, but also has the humble and fine collaboration of Joseph and Mary.

The Nativity of the Virgin Mary is like the dawn that precedes the day, nor the Sun that «comes from above», Christ Jesus. The texts of this party ooze joy. Christians see in this birth the beginning of salvation: «The birth of the Virgin Mary was for the world hope and dawn of salvation» (post-communion), «when the Blessed Virgin was born, the world was enlightened» (Lauds antiphon) . If there is a day when a poetic language fits into our prayer, it is precisely today.

Naturally, as in every morning party, the center of our faith continues to be her Son: «Your birth, Virgin Mother of God, announces joy to the whole world: from you was born the sun of justice, Christ, our God» ( antiphon of the Benedictus). That is why we read the genealogy of Christ, in which «the Word became man», in whom we have seen and experienced the fullness of God’s love. We look at Mary with hope because she knew how to be docile to God’s plan and collaborated humbly and joyfully with him: «May it be done to me according to your word.»

As we celebrate this feast, we all hope that it will bring us an increase in grace and peace. In today’s prayer we ask God that «all of us who have received the first fruits of salvation through the motherhood of the Virgin Mary, may we obtain an increase in peace on the feast of her Birth».

Peace and good

Br. Antonio Majeesh George Kallely, OFM

Publicado en REFLEXIÓN Y MEDITACIÓN DEL EVANGELIO | Comentarios desactivados en REFLECTION AND MEDITATION OF TODAY’S GOSPEL / SEPTEMBER 8, 2020 / NATIVITY OF VIRGIN MARY