Whoever Listen and Reject (Feast of Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus - B)

OCTOBER 01, 2021, Friday
MEMORIAL OF SAINT THERESE OF THE CHILD JESUS, VIRGIN AND DOCTOR OF THE CHURCH (White)
MISSION DAY FOR RELIGIOUS SISTERS
CYCLE B - YEAR I
Lectionary: 459

Reading I
Bar 1:15-22

During the Babylonian captivity, the exiles prayed:
“Justice is with the Lord, our God;
and we today are flushed with shame,
we men of Judah and citizens of Jerusalem,
that we, with our kings and rulers
and priests and prophets, and with our ancestors,
have sinned in the Lord’s sight and disobeyed him.
We have neither heeded the voice of the Lord, our God,
nor followed the precepts which the Lord set before us.
From the time the Lord led our ancestors out of the land of Egypt
until the present day,
we have been disobedient to the Lord, our God,
and only too ready to disregard his voice.
And the evils and the curse that the Lord enjoined upon Moses, his servant,
at the time he led our ancestors forth from the land of Egypt
to give us the land flowing with milk and honey,
cling to us even today.
For we did not heed the voice of the Lord, our God,
in all the words of the prophets whom he sent us,
but each one of us went off
after the devices of his own wicked heart,
served other gods,
and did evil in the sight of the Lord, our God.”

Responsorial Psalm
79:1b-2, 3-5, 8, 9

R.    (9) For the glory of your name, O Lord, deliver us.

O God, the nations have come into your inheritance;
    they have defiled your holy temple,
    they have laid Jerusalem in ruins.
They have given the corpses of your servants
    as food to the birds of heaven,
    the flesh of your faithful ones to the beasts of the earth.

R.    For the glory of your name, O Lord, deliver us.

They have poured out their blood like water
    round about Jerusalem,
    and there is no one to bury them.
We have become the reproach of our neighbors,
    the scorn and derision of those around us.
O LORD, how long? Will you be angry forever?
    Will your jealousy burn like fire?

R.    For the glory of your name, O Lord, deliver us.

Remember not against us the iniquities of the past;
    may your compassion quickly come to us,
    for we are brought very low.

R.    For the glory of your name, O Lord, deliver us.

Help us, O God our savior,
    because of the glory of your name;
Deliver us and pardon our sins
    for your name’s sake.

R.    For the glory of your name, O Lord, deliver us.

Alleluia
Ps 95:8

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

If today you hear his voice,
harden not your hearts.

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

GOSPEL
Lk 10:13-16

Jesus said to them,
“Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida!
For if the mighty deeds done in your midst
had been done in Tyre and Sidon,
they would long ago have repented,
sitting in sackcloth and ashes.
But it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon
at the judgment than for you.
And as for you, Capernaum, ‘Will you be exalted to heaven?
You will go down to the netherworld.’
Whoever listens to you listens to me.
Whoever rejects you rejects me. 
And whoever rejects me rejects the one who sent me.”

REFLECTION:

Jesus entrusts his mission to the disciples, so that listening to them is like listening to him. He also promises that he will always be faithful to his disciples, that they are united like vine and branches. We are those disciples now, and through the community of his followers, Jesus spreads his gospel message today. Prayer is a time of offering ourselves as listeners to him, so that we have the meaning of the gospel and love of Jesus to share.

PRAYER:

Lord, you have done deeds of power in my life. I did not always recognize them, or use the opportunities. As I end this month, I take confidence in the thought of you looking for the lost sheep, forgiving again and again, loving me as I am in my weakness.