Catholic Mass Readings and Reflection July 16, 2024
Fifteenth Week of Ordinary Time
16th July 2024 (Tuesday)
Psalter: Week 3
Reading of the Day
Table of Contents
First Reading: Isaiah 7:1-9
In the days of Ahaz the son of Jotham, son of Uzziah, king of Judah, Rezin the king of Syria and Pekah the son of Remaliah the king of Israel came up to Jerusalem to wage war against it, but could not yet mount an attack against it. When the house of David was told, “Syria is in league with Ephraim,” the heart of Ahaz and the heart of his people shook as the trees of the forest shake before the wind. And the Lord said to Isaiah, “Go out to meet Ahaz, you and Shear-jashub your son, at the end of the conduit of the upper pool on the highway to the Washer’s Field. And say to him, ‘Be careful, be quiet, do not fear, and do not let your heart be faint, because of these two smoldering stumps of firebrands, at the fierce anger of Rezin and Syria and the son of Remaliah. Because Syria, with Ephraim and the son of Remaliah, has devised evil against you, saying, “Let us go up against Judah and terrify it, and let us conquer it for ourselves, and set up the son of Tabeel as king in the midst of it,” thus says the Lord God: “It shall not stand, and it shall not come to pass. For the head of Syria is Damascus, and the head of Damascus is Rezin. And within sixty-five years Ephraim will be shattered from being a people. And the head of Ephraim is Samaria, and the head of Samaria is the son of Remaliah. If you are not firm in faith, you will not be firm at all.”
Psalm 48:2-3ab, 3c-4, 5-6, 7-8 (R. see 9cd)
R/. God establishes his city forever.
Gospel Acclamation
V/. Alleluia
R/. Alleluia
V/. Today, harden not your hearts, but listen to the voice of the Lord..
R/. Alleluia.
Gospel : Matthew 11:20-24
At that time: Jesus began to denounce the cities where most of his mighty works had been done, because they did not repent. “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. But I tell you, it will be more bearable on the day of judgment for Tyre and Sidon than for you. And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? You will be brought down to Hades. For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. But I tell you that it will be more tolerable on the day of judgment for the land of Sodom than for you.”
Daily Gospel Reflection
Tuesday – Fifteenth Week of Ordinary Time
Guidelines: The sad thing with many is not that they only do the mistakes and others do not do them. The whole pity is they do not realise, repent and convert themselves
1. We find in the present times a growing religious indifference and mediocrity. Many either do not have faith in God or have a very shallow faith. In the life of many, God does not matter at all. In the case of others, their faith is limited to certain rituals, traditions, and activities. In any case, in truth, this is a godless and faithless culture.
2. This is what is typified in the gospel by the cities of Chorazin, Bethsaida, and Capernaum. Jesus denounces them because they refused to see and accept God’s grace, manifested through mighty miracles. They were full of themselves and refused to turn to God. They were so arrogant that they would not see their iniquities and would not repent.
3. We find a semblance of this in the first reading in the enemies of Judah, like Syria and Ephraim. They have an unholy alliance against the king of Judah to conquer it and establish their own power. The situation of our times is no different from those situations.
4. Like the cities of Chorazin, Bethsaida, and Capernaum, there are many who are full of self-pride and seek self-glory. They are adamant, resistant, unrepentant, and thus unconverted. Like Syria and Ephraim, there are many who constantly plot against others to subjugate them and reign over them.
5. In the face of such evil forces, one is either frightened and disillusioned or negatively influenced and carried away. In such moments, God exhorts us not to lose heart or not to join the evil ways. God Himself assures: “Be careful, be quiet, do not fear, and do not let your heart be faint… If you are not firm in faith, you will not be firm at all”
Practice: Intelligence and competence without humility, fear of God, and repentance will land up in arrogance and self-glory. And that is the doorstep for destruction
