DAILY READINGS & REFLECTION
AUGUST 20, 2024
TUESDAY - MEMORIAL OF SAINT BERNARD, ABBOT AND DOCTOR OF THE CHURCH
FIRST READING
EZEKIEL 28:1-10 OR (SIRACH 15:1-6)
1 The word of the LORD came to me: 2 "Son of man, say to the prince of Tyre, Thus says the Lord GOD: "Because your heart is proud, and you have said, `I am a god, I sit in the seat of the gods, in the heart of the seas,' yet you are but a man, and no god, though you consider yourself as wise as a god 3 you are indeed wiser than Daniel; no secret is hidden from you; 4 by your wisdom and your understanding you have gotten wealth for yourself, and have gathered gold and silver into your treasuries; 5 by your great wisdom in trade you have increased your wealth, and your heart has become proud in your wealth 6 therefore thus says the Lord GOD: "Because you consider yourself as wise as a god, 7 therefore, behold, I will bring strangers upon you, the most terrible of the nations; and they shall draw their swords against the beauty of your wisdom and defile your splendor. 8 They shall thrust you down into the Pit, and you shall die the death of the slain in the heart of the seas. 9 Will you still say, `I am a god,' in the presence of those who slay you, though you are but a man, and no god, in the hands of those who wound you? 10 You shall die the death of the uncircumcised by the hand of foreigners; for I have spoken, says the Lord GOD."
The Word of the Lord
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RESPONSORIAL PSALM
DEUTERONOMY 32:26-28, 30, 35-36 OR (PSALMS 119:9-14)
Response: It is I who deal death and give life.
I would have said, “I will scatter them afar,
I will make the remembrance of them cease from among men,”
had I not feared provocation by the enemy,
lest their adversaries should judge amiss.
R. It is I who deal death and give life.
Lest they should say, “Our hand is triumphant,
the LORD has not wrought all this.”'
“For they are a nation void of counsel,
and there is no understanding in them."
R. It is I who deal death and give life.
"How should one chase a thousand,
and two put ten thousand to flight,
unless their Rock had sold them,
and the LORD had given them up?"
R. It is I who deal death and give life.
Vengeance is mine, and recompense,
for the time when their foot shall slip;
for the day of their calamity is at hand,
and their doom comes swiftly.
R. It is I who deal death and give life.
For the LORD will vindicate his people
and have compassion on his servants,
when he sees that their power is gone,
and there is none remaining, bond or free.
R. It is I who deal death and give life.
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GOSPEL
Who can enter the kingdom of heaven?
MATTHEW 19:23-30 OR (JOHN 17:20-26)
23 And Jesus said to his disciples, "Truly, I say to you, it will be hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. 24 Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God." 25 When the disciples heard this they were greatly astonished, saying, "Who then can be saved?" 26 But Jesus looked at them and said to them, "With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible." 27 Then Peter said in reply, "Behold, we have left everything and followed you. What then shall we have?" 28 Jesus said to them, "Truly, I say to you, in the new world, when the Son of man shall sit on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. 29 And every one who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or lands, for my name's sake, will receive a hundredfold, and inherit eternal life. 30 But many that are first will be last, and the last first.
The Gospel of the Lord
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REFLECTION
DAILY QUOTE FROM THE EARLY CHURCH FATHERS
Who can enter the kingdom of heaven? by John Chrysostom, 347-407 A.D.
"What then did Christ say? 'How difficult it will be for the rich to enter the kingdom of heaven.' He was not criticizing money itself but the wills of those who are taken captive by it. If it will be difficult for the rich, how much more so for the avaricious! For if stinginess with ones own wealth is an impediment to gaining the kingdom, think how much fire is amassed for taking someone else's. But why does he say that it is hard for the rich man to enter the kingdom, to the disciples, who were poor and had nothing? He teaches them not to be ashamed of their poverty and, as it were, gives the reason why he did not allow them to possess anything. After saying it is hard, he also shows them that it is impossible, and not simply impossible but even in an exaggerated way impossible. He shows this from the comparison of the camel and the needle: 'It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven.' Hence Christ demonstrates that there is a significant reward for the wealthy who can practice self-denial. He also said that this had to be the work of God, that he might show that great grace is needed for anyone who is going to achieve it."
(excerpt from THE GOSPEL OF MATTHEW, HOMILY 63.2)
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Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (RSVCE)
The Revised Standard Version of the Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1965, 1966 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.