Tenth Sunday in Ordinary Time Lectionary: 90 Reading 1 1 KGS 17:17-24 Elijah went to Zarephath of Sidon to the house of a widow. The son of the mistress of the house fell sick, and his sickness grew more severe until he stopped breathing. So she said to Elijah, “Why have you done this to me, O man of God? Have you come to me to call attention to my guilt and to kill my son?” Elijah said to her, “Give me your son.” Taking him from her lap, he carried the son to the upper room where he was staying, and put him on his bed. Elijah called out to the LORD: “O LORD, my God, will you afflict even the widow with whom I am staying by killing her son?” Then he stretched himself out upon the child three times and called out to the LORD: “O LORD, my God, let the life breath return to the body of this child.” The LORD heard the prayer of Elijah; the life breath returned to the child’s body and he revived. Taking the child, Elijah brought him down into the house from the upper room and gave him to his mother. Elijah said to her, “See! Your son is alive.” The woman replied to Elijah, “Now indeed I know that you are a man of God. The word of the LORD comes truly from your mouth.” Responsorial Psalm PS 30:2, 4, 5-6, 11, 12, 13 R. (2a) I will praise you, Lord, for you have rescued me. I will extol you, O LORD, for you drew me clear and did not let my enemies rejoice over me. O LORD, you brought me up from the nether world; you preserved me from among those going down into the pit. R. I will praise you, Lord, for you have rescued me. Sing praise to the LORD, you his faithful ones, and give thanks to his holy name. For his anger lasts but a moment; a lifetime, his good will. At nightfall, weeping enters in, but with the dawn, rejoicing. R. I will praise you, Lord, for you have rescued me. Hear, O LORD, and have pity on me; O LORD, be my helper. You changed my mourning into dancing; O LORD, my God, forever will I give you thanks. R. I will praise you, Lord, for you have rescued me. Reading 2 GAL 1:11-19 I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that the gospel preached by me is not of human origin. For I did not receive it from a human being, nor was I taught it, but it came through a revelation of Jesus Christ. For you heard of my former way of life in Judaism, how I persecuted the church of God beyond measure and tried to destroy it, and progressed in Judaism beyond many of my contemporaries among my race, since I was even more a zealot for my ancestral traditions. But when God, who from my mother’s womb had set me apart and called me through his grace, was pleased to reveal his Son to me, so that I might proclaim him to the Gentiles, I did not immediately consult flesh and blood, nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me; rather, I went into Arabia and then returned to Damascus. Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to confer with Cephas and remained with him for fifteen days. But I did not see any other of the apostles, only James the brother of the Lord. Gospel LK 7:11-17 Jesus journeyed to a city called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd accompanied him. As he drew near to the gate of the city, a man who had died was being carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow. A large crowd from the city was with her. When the Lord saw her, he was moved with pity for her and said to her, “Do not weep.” He stepped forward and touched the coffin; at this the bearers halted, and he said, “Young man, I tell you, arise!” The dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother. Fear seized them all, and they glorified God, exclaiming, “A great prophet has arisen in our midst, ” and “God has visited his people.” This report about him spread through the whole of Judea and in all the surrounding region. Questions for Reflection: 1. In the first reading, we see the great compassion the prophet Elijah had for the widow from Zarapeth, with whom he was staying. We also see the power of his prayers of intercession, which resulted in the widow’s son being restored to life. How strong is your confidence and trust in the Lord when you pray for others with serious needs? What are the obstacles that keep you from interceding for others with an expectant faith that the Lord will hear and answer your prayer in some way? What steps can you take to overcome them? 2. The responsorial psalm is a heartfelt psalm of praise and thanksgiving which ends with these words: “You changed my mourning into dancing. O Lord, my God, forever will I give you thanks.” In what areas of your life would you like to give thanks to the Lord for changing your “mourning into dancing”? 3. In the second reading, Paul says that his understanding of the truths of the Gospel did not come about by just personal study or rote acceptance of doctrines, but “through revelation of Jesus Christ.” What about you? In what way is your faith based on an interior revelation that Jesus Christ is who he says he, that is, your Lord and Savior, who died on the Cross for your sins? 4. In the Gospel, Jesus, moved with pity, raises a widow’s son from the dead (as did Elijah in the first reading). Notice the reaction from the crowd of people who witnessed this miraculous event. “Fear seized them all, and they glorified God, exclaiming, ‘A great prophet has arisen in our midst, and ‘God has visited his people.’” What is your reaction when you read the Gospel accounts of Jesus raising various people from the dead? Does it give you great confidence and faith that one day you will be raised from the dead, and you too will glorify God? If not. why not? 5. What is your reaction to these words from the meditation: “God’s heart is moved when he sees you in a difficult situation. In fact, when you can’t rely on your own powers or abilities, he can draw you even closer to his side.” Do you believe theses words apply to you right now? Why or why not? What about the words at the end of the meditation? “Ask your Father to walk with you, put his arm around you, and take care of you.” 6. Take some time now to pray and ask your heavenly Father to deepen your knowledge and experience of his great love for you. Use the prayer at the end of the meditation as a starting point.
Posted on: Sun, 09 Jun 2013 12:56:41 +0000