Catholic Mass Readings and Reflection July 31, 2024
Seventeenth Week of Ordinary Time
31st July 2024 (Wednesday)
Psalter: Week 1
Reading of the Day
First Reading: Jeremiah 15:10, 16-21
Woe is me, my mother, that you bore me, a man of strife and contention to the whole land! I have not lent, nor have I borrowed, yet all of them curse me. Your words were found, and I ate them, and your words became to me a joy and the delight of my heart, for I am called by your name, O Lord, God of hosts. I did not sit in the company of revellers, nor did I rejoice; I sat alone, because your hand was upon me, for you had filled me with indignation. Why is my pain unceasing, my wound incurable, refusing to be healed? Will you be to me like a deceitful brook, like waters that fail? Therefore thus says the Lord: “If you return, I will restore you, and you shall stand before me. If you utter what is precious, and not what is worthless, you shall be as my mouth. They shall turn to you, but you shall not turn to them. And I will make you to this people a fortified wall of bronze; they will fight against you, but they shall not prevail over you, for I am with you to save you and deliver you, declares the Lord. I will deliver you out of the hand of the wicked, and redeem you from the grasp of the ruthless.”
Psalm 59:2-3, 4-5a, 10-11, 17, 18 (R. 17d)
R/. God is my refuge in the day of my distress.
Gospel Acclamation
V/. Alleluia
R/. Alleluia
V/. I have called you friends, says the Lord; for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you.
R/. Alleluia.
Gospel : Matthew 13:44-46
At that time: Jesus said to the crowds, “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it.”
Daily Gospel Reflection
Wednesday – Seventeenth Week of Ordinary Time
Guidelines: In life, many think that knowledge and capacities make one successful. But it is not true. Many have bundles of knowledge and are highly capable but are not really successful
1. Today the word of God teaches us about wisdom. Many have intelligence and competence. But these are not guarantees for wisdom. Wisdom is not a matter of intellect alone. It is not merely a matter of worldly cleverness to tackle the issues. Wisdom is holistic. It affects the whole person and all aspects of life.
2. In this way, wisdom is essentially connected with spirituality and moral integrity. One cannot claim to be wise but fail to be spiritual and moral. In the light of the Bible, wisdom always refers to a God-fearing, righteous person and a virtuous life. In simple words, there is no true wisdom without piety, virtue, and righteousness.
3. This idea of wisdom is amplified in different expressions in today’s readings. In the light of the first reading from Jeremiah, wisdom is understood as the passion for God. It is an unshaken adherence to one’s vocation. It is unswerving loyalty and undaunted commitment to the mission of the Lord.
4. This fidelity is so staunch that it stands “even when all curse us, even when our pain is unceasing, even when our wound is incurable”. This wisdom is persistence “even when God Himself seems to be a deceitful brook”, meaning that He also is away abandoning us.
5. Wisdom is also essentially the power and gift of God that endows one with a clarity of priorities. This enables one to distinguish and discern between the value of different things and to gain what is the right and better option.
6. This is the wisdom seen in the case of the treasure and the pearl in the gospel. Both the man who finds the treasure in the field and the merchant who finds a fine pearl sells all that they have and acquire the treasure and the pearl. It is because they know clearly that they are far more precious than all the rest. It is worth losing all else for the sake of gaining them.
7. This is the same choice that a wise man makes in the light of the first reading. He utters what is precious, and not what is worthless. He delights in the words and company of the Lord, and not the company of the revelers.
8. A wise man confides totally in God’s guidance and power. He believes in God’s assuring words by His own self, “I am with you to save you and deliver you. I will deliver you out of the hand of the wicked, and redeem you from the grasp of the ruthless”.
9. He knows that God makes him a fortified wall of bronze that his foes cannot prevail over. This is the wisdom that turned St Ignatius of Loyola from a soldier of earthly battles into a soldier for Christ on heavenly warfare. He continues his fiery mission through his hallowed congregation of Jesuits.
Practice: Many being self-complacent make wrong choices and actions. Decisions devoid of wisdom are faulty and actions without wisdom are endangering
