DAILY GOSPEL: 06/11/2010
«Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.» John 6,68
Saturday of the Thirty-first week in Ordinary Time
Letter to the Philippians 4:10-19.
I rejoice greatly in the Lord that now at last you revived your concern for me. You were, of course, concerned about me but lacked an opportunity.
Not that I say this because of need, for I have learned, in whatever situation I find myself, to be self-sufficient.
I know indeed how to live in humble circumstances; I know also how to live with abundance. In every circumstance and in all things I have learned the secret of being well fed and of going hungry, of living in abundance and of being in need.
I have the strength for everything through him who empowers me.
Still, it was kind of you to share in my distress.
You Philippians indeed know that at the beginning of the gospel, when I left Macedonia, not a single church shared with me in an account of giving and receiving, except you alone.
For even when I was at Thessalonica you sent me something for my needs, not only once but more than once.
It is not that I am eager for the gift; rather, I am eager for the profit that accrues to your account.
I have received full payment and I abound. I am very well supplied because of what I received from you through Epaphroditus, "a fragrant aroma," an acceptable sacrifice, pleasing to God.
My God will fully supply whatever you need, in accord with his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.
Psalms 112(111):1-2.5-6.8.9.
Hallelujah! Happy are those who fear the LORD, who greatly delight in God's commands.
Their descendants shall be mighty in the land, generation upright and blessed.
All goes well for those gracious in lending, who conduct their affairs with justice.
They shall never be shaken; the just shall be remembered forever.
Their hearts are tranquil, without fear, till at last they look down on their foes.
Lavishly they give to the poor; their prosperity shall endure forever; their horn shall be exalted in honor.
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke 16:9-15.
I tell you, make friends for yourselves with dishonest wealth, so that when it fails, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.
The person who is trustworthy in very small matters is also trustworthy in great ones; and the person who is dishonest in very small matters is also dishonest in great ones.
If, therefore, you are not trustworthy with dishonest wealth, who will trust you with true wealth?
If you are not trustworthy with what belongs to another, who will give you what is yours?
No servant can serve two masters. He will either hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon."
The Pharisees, who loved money, heard all these things and sneered at him.
And he said to them, "You justify yourselves in the sight of others, but God knows your hearts; for what is of human esteem is an abomination in the sight of God.
I rejoice greatly in the Lord that now at last you revived your concern for me. You were, of course, concerned about me but lacked an opportunity.
Not that I say this because of need, for I have learned, in whatever situation I find myself, to be self-sufficient.
I know indeed how to live in humble circumstances; I know also how to live with abundance. In every circumstance and in all things I have learned the secret of being well fed and of going hungry, of living in abundance and of being in need.
I have the strength for everything through him who empowers me.
Still, it was kind of you to share in my distress.
You Philippians indeed know that at the beginning of the gospel, when I left Macedonia, not a single church shared with me in an account of giving and receiving, except you alone.
For even when I was at Thessalonica you sent me something for my needs, not only once but more than once.
It is not that I am eager for the gift; rather, I am eager for the profit that accrues to your account.
I have received full payment and I abound. I am very well supplied because of what I received from you through Epaphroditus, "a fragrant aroma," an acceptable sacrifice, pleasing to God.
My God will fully supply whatever you need, in accord with his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.
Psalms 112(111):1-2.5-6.8.9.
Hallelujah! Happy are those who fear the LORD, who greatly delight in God's commands.
Their descendants shall be mighty in the land, generation upright and blessed.
All goes well for those gracious in lending, who conduct their affairs with justice.
They shall never be shaken; the just shall be remembered forever.
Their hearts are tranquil, without fear, till at last they look down on their foes.
Lavishly they give to the poor; their prosperity shall endure forever; their horn shall be exalted in honor.
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke 16:9-15.
I tell you, make friends for yourselves with dishonest wealth, so that when it fails, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.
The person who is trustworthy in very small matters is also trustworthy in great ones; and the person who is dishonest in very small matters is also dishonest in great ones.
If, therefore, you are not trustworthy with dishonest wealth, who will trust you with true wealth?
If you are not trustworthy with what belongs to another, who will give you what is yours?
No servant can serve two masters. He will either hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon."
The Pharisees, who loved money, heard all these things and sneered at him.
And he said to them, "You justify yourselves in the sight of others, but God knows your hearts; for what is of human esteem is an abomination in the sight of God.
Lc 16,9-15
Saint Gaudentius of Brescia (?-after 406), Bishop
Sermon 18 ; PL 20, 973-975 (copyright Friends of Henry Ashworth)
"Make friends for yourself with dishonest wealth"
These poor people will befriend you by assuring your salvation, for Christ, the giver of eternal rewards, will declare that he himself received the acts of kindness done to them. Not in their own name, then, will these poor folk welcome us, but in the name of him who is refreshed in their persons by the fruit of our faith and obedience. Those who exercised this ministry of love will be received into the eternal dwellings of the kingdom of heaven, for the King will say: «Come, blessed of my Father, take possession of the kingdom prepared for you from the beginning of the world; for I was hungry and you fed me, thirsty and you gave me drink» (Mt 25,34)...
To this the Lord adds: «If you cannot be trusted with another's property, who will give you your own?» Nothing in this world really belongs to us. We who hope for future reward are told to live in this world as strangers and pilgrims, so as to be able to say to the Lord without fear of contradiction: «I am a stranger, a pilgrim like all my ancestors» (Ps 39[38],13).
What believers can regard as their own is that eternal and heavenly possession where «our heart and our treasure» are (Mt 6,21), and where intense longing makes us dwell already through faith, for as Saint Paul teaches: «Our homeland is in heaven» (Phil 3,20).
To this the Lord adds: «If you cannot be trusted with another's property, who will give you your own?» Nothing in this world really belongs to us. We who hope for future reward are told to live in this world as strangers and pilgrims, so as to be able to say to the Lord without fear of contradiction: «I am a stranger, a pilgrim like all my ancestors» (Ps 39[38],13).
What believers can regard as their own is that eternal and heavenly possession where «our heart and our treasure» are (Mt 6,21), and where intense longing makes us dwell already through faith, for as Saint Paul teaches: «Our homeland is in heaven» (Phil 3,20).
St. Leonard († c. 550)
SAINT LEONARD OF NOBLAC
(† c. 550)
(† c. 550)
Leonard, one of the chief personages of the court of Clovis, and for whom this monarch had stood as sponsor in baptism, was so moved by the discourse and example of St. Remigius that he relinquished the world in order to lead a more perfect life.
The Bishop of Rheims having trained Leonard to virtue, he became the apostle of such of the Franks as still remained pagans; but fearing that he might be summoned to the court by his reputation for sanctity, he withdrew secretly to the monastery of Micy, near Orleans, and afterwards to the solitude of Noblac near Limoges.
His charity not allowing him to remain inactive while there was so much good to be done, he undertook the work of comforting prisoners, making them understand that the captivity of sin was more terrible than any mere bodily constraint. He won over a great many of these unfortunate persons, which gained for him many disciples, in whose behalf he founded a new monastery.
St. Leonard died about the year 550.
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