He will Not Contend or Cry Out

 

July 17, 2021, Saturday
Saturday of the Fifteenth Week in Ordinary Time (Green)
CYCLE B - YEAR I
Lectionary: 394

Reading I
Ex 12:37-42

The children of Israel set out from Rameses for Succoth,
about six hundred thousand men on foot,
not counting the little ones.
A crowd of mixed ancestry also went up with them,
besides their livestock, very numerous flocks, and herds.
Since the dough they had brought out of Egypt was not leavened,
they baked it into unleavened loaves.
They had rushed out of Egypt and had no opportunity
even to prepare food for the journey.
The time the children of Israel had stayed in Egypt
was four hundred and thirty years.
At the end of four hundred and thirty years,
all the hosts of the LORD left the land of Egypt on this very date.
This was a night of vigil for the LORD,
as he led them out of the land of Egypt;
so on this same night
all the children of Israel must keep a vigil for the LORD
throughout their generations.

Responsorial Psalm
136:1 and 23-24, 10-12, 13-15

R.    His mercy endures forever. 

or: 

R.    Alleluia.

Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good,
    for his mercy endures forever;
Who remembered us in our abjection,
    for his mercy endures forever;
And freed us from our foes,
    for his mercy endures forever.

R.    His mercy endures forever.

or: 

R.    Alleluia.

Who smote the Egyptians in their first-born,
    for his mercy endures forever;
And brought out Israel from their midst,
    for his mercy endures forever;
With a mighty hand and an outstretched arm,
    for his mercy endures forever.

R.    His mercy endures forever.

or: 

R.    Alleluia.

Who split the Red Sea in twain,
    for his mercy endures forever;
And led Israel through its midst,
    for his mercy endures forever;
But swept Pharaoh and his army into the Red Sea,
    for his mercy endures forever.

R.    His mercy endures forever.    

or: 

R.    Alleluia.

Alleluia
2 Cor 5:19

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ,
and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

GOSPEL
Mt 12:14-21

The Pharisees went out and took counsel against Jesus
to put him to death.
When Jesus realized this, he withdrew from that place.
Many people followed him, and he cured them all,
but he warned them not to make him known.
This was to fulfill what had been spoken through Isaiah the prophet:
Behold, my servant whom I have chosen,
my beloved in whom I delight;
I shall place my Spirit upon him,
and he will proclaim justice to the Gentiles.
He will not contend or cry out,
nor will anyone hear his voice in the streets.
A bruised reed he will not break,
a smoldering wick he will not quench,
until he brings justice to victory.
And in his name the Gentiles will hope.

REFLECTION:

In spite of the Pharisees' desire to destroy him Jesus did not take flight out of fear or fight out of anger. Instead, Jesus focuses on revealing his Father’s love as the truth and the justice he lives by. This he did in a quiet and persistent way and not in a strident one. He is sensitive to and gently fosters all the signs of life in us and especially where we are ready to push out its boundaries.

Jesus is on the side of the weak. His message, demanding though it may be, does not crush people. Justice comes through compassion - like care for the bruised reed - not through the exercise of power and violence. In this way, Jesus is pleasing to his Father. Prayer strengthens the soul and personality, making us ever-more pleasing to God.

PRAYER:

Let me make the words of Isaiah my own! ‘Lord, I am here as your servant. You chose me: I am your beloved and you are well pleased with me. Put your Spirit in me so that I may lovingly bring justice to victory.’