Beheading of John The Baptist (MEMORIAL - C)

AUGUST 29, 2022, MONDAY

MEMORIAL OF THE PASSION OF SAINT JOHN THE BAPTIST, MARTYR (Red)

CYCLE C - YEAR II

Lectionary: 431/634

Reading 1

1 Cor 2:1-5

When I came to you, brothers and sisters,

proclaiming the mystery of God,

I did not come with sublimity of words or of wisdom.

For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you

except Jesus Christ, and him crucified.

I came to you in weakness and fear and much trembling,

and my message and my proclamation

were not with persuasive words of wisdom,

but with a demonstration of spirit and power,

so that your faith might rest not on human wisdom

but on the power of God.

Responsorial Psalm

Ps 119:97, 98, 99, 100, 101, 102

R. (97) Lord, I love your commands.

How I love your law, O LORD!

It is my meditation all the day.

R. Lord, I love your commands.

Your command has made me wiser than my enemies,

for it is ever with me.

R. Lord, I love your commands.

I have more understanding than all my teachers

when your decrees are my meditation.

R. Lord, I love your commands.

I have more discernment than the elders,

because I observe your precepts.

R. Lord, I love your commands.

From every evil way I withhold my feet,

that I may keep your words.

R. Lord, I love your commands.

From your ordinances I turn not away,

for you have instructed me.

R. Lord, I love your commands.

Alleluia

Mt 5:10

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Blessed are those who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness,

for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel

Mk 6:17-29

Herod was the one who had John the Baptist arrested and bound in prison

on account of Herodias,

the wife of his brother Philip, whom he had married.

John had said to Herod,

“It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.”

Herodias harbored a grudge against him

and wanted to kill him but was unable to do so.

Herod feared John, knowing him to be a righteous and holy man,

and kept him in custody.

When he heard him speak he was very much perplexed,

yet he liked to listen to him.

She had an opportunity one day when Herod, on his birthday,

gave a banquet for his courtiers,

his military officers, and the leading men of Galilee.

Herodias’ own daughter came in

and performed a dance that delighted Herod and his guests.

The king said to the girl,

“Ask of me whatever you wish and I will grant it to you.”

He even swore many things to her,

“I will grant you whatever you ask of me,

even to half of my kingdom.”

She went out and said to her mother,

“What shall I ask for?”

She replied, “The head of John the Baptist.”

The girl hurried back to the king’s presence and made her request,

“I want you to give me at once

on a platter the head of John the Baptist.”

The king was deeply distressed,

but because of his oaths and the guests

he did not wish to break his word to her.

So he promptly dispatched an executioner with orders

to bring back his head.

He went off and beheaded him in the prison.

He brought in the head on a platter and gave it to the girl.

The girl in turn gave it to her mother.

When his disciples heard about it,

they came and took his body and laid it in a tomb.

GOSPEL REFLECTION:

John’s death led his disciples to Jesus. When all seemed lost, they risked their lives in a final act of love to reclaim his body, and then “they went and told Jesus”. Let us realise that the darkest hour often heralds the dawn.

Herod’s generous promise was not balanced by wisdom and justice. I pray for people whose lives are out of balance and who have lost sight of their true good. I call to mind those who suffer injustice because of the pride of others and allow God to tell me what I might do, how I might pray.

PRAYER:

Lord, strengthen my weak heart so that I may truly witness to your values.

Beheading Of John The Baptist

FEBRUARY 04, 2022, FRIDAY

Friday of the Fourth Week in Ordinary Time (Green)

CYCLE C - YEAR II

Lectionary: 327

Reading I

Sir 47:2-11

Like the choice fat of the sacred offerings,

            so was David in Israel.

He made sport of lions as though they were kids,

            and of bears, like lambs of the flock.

As a youth he slew the giant

            and wiped out the people’s disgrace,

When his hand let fly the slingstone

            that crushed the pride of Goliath.

Since he called upon the Most High God, 

            who gave strength to his right arm

To defeat the skilled warrior

            and raise up the might of his people,

Therefore the women sang his praises,

            and ascribed to him tens of thousands

            and praised him when they blessed the Lord.

When he assumed the royal crown, he battled

            and subdued the enemy on every side.

He destroyed the hostile Philistines

            and shattered their power till our own day.

With his every deed he offered thanks 

            to God Most High, in words of praise.

With his whole being he loved his Maker

            and daily had his praises sung;

            He set singers before the altar and by their voices

                        he made sweet melodies,

He added beauty to the feasts

            and solemnized the seasons of each year

So that when the Holy Name was praised,

            before daybreak the sanctuary would resound.

The Lord forgave him his sins

            and exalted his strength forever;

He conferred on him the rights of royalty

            and established his throne in Israel.

Responsorial Psalm

18:31, 47 and 50, 51

R.        (see 47b)  Blessed be God my salvation!

God’s way is unerring,

            the promise of the LORD is fire-tried;

            he is a shield to all who take refuge in him.

R.        Blessed be God my salvation!

The LORD live! And blessed be my Rock!

            Extolled be God my savior.

Therefore will I proclaim you, O LORD, among the nations,

            and I will sing praise to your name.

R.        Blessed be God my salvation!

You who gave great victories to your king

            and showed kindness to your anointed,

            to David and his posterity forever.

R.        Blessed be God my salvation!

Alleluia

See Lk 8:15

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Blessed are they who have kept the word with a generous heart,

and yield a harvest through perseverance.

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel

Mk 6:14-29

King Herod heard about Jesus, for his fame had become widespread,

and people were saying,

“John the Baptist has been raised from the dead;

that is why mighty powers are at work in him.”

Others were saying, “He is Elijah”;

still others, “He is a prophet like any of the prophets.”

But when Herod learned of it, he said,

“It is John whom I beheaded. He has been raised up.”

Herod was the one who had John arrested and bound in prison

on account of Herodias, 

the wife of his brother Philip, whom he had married.

John had said to Herod,

“It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.”

Herodias harbored a grudge against him

and wanted to kill him but was unable to do so.

Herod feared John, knowing him to be a righteous and holy man,

and kept him in custody.

When he heard him speak he was very much perplexed,

yet he liked to listen to him.

Herodias had an opportunity one day when Herod, on his birthday,

gave a banquet for his courtiers, his military officers,

and the leading men of Galilee.

His own daughter came in and performed a dance

that delighted Herod and his guests.

The king said to the girl,

“Ask of me whatever you wish and I will grant it to you.” 

He even swore many things to her,

“I will grant you whatever you ask of me,

even to half of my kingdom.”

She went out and said to her mother,

“What shall I ask for?”

Her mother replied, “The head of John the Baptist.”

The girl hurried back to the king’s presence and made her request,

“I want you to give me at once on a platter

the head of John the Baptist.”

The king was deeply distressed,

but because of his oaths and the guests

he did not wish to break his word to her.

So he promptly dispatched an executioner

with orders to bring back his head.

He went off and beheaded him in the prison.

He brought in the head on a platter

and gave it to the girl.

The girl in turn gave it to her mother.

When his disciples heard about it,

they came and took his body and laid it in a tomb.

GOSPEL REFLECTION:

John the Baptist was a channel of grace for King Herod, and the king ‘liked to listen to him’. But the people around Herod, and his own unruly appetites, got in the way. Doesn’t that sound so familiar? Do I get trapped too, and then act out of my lack of freedom?

‘Remember those who are in prison as though you were in prison with them’, says the letter to the Hebrews. The Gospel tells the sordid story of the final hours of John the Baptist, beheaded for a frivolous promise of Herod.

How did those who loved John, including Jesus, feel when they heard why and how he had died? What do they do? How do I react when evil occurs?

PRAYER:

Lord Jesus, you spent your last night before your crucifixion in prison. Bring comfort to the thousands of good people who are languishing behind bars. They are my sisters and brothers. There but for the grace of God I would be too.

Beheading Of John The Baptist

July 31, 2021, Saturday
MEMORIAL OF SAINT IGNATIUS OF LOYOLA, PRIEST (White)
CYCLE B - YEAR I
Lectionary: 406

Reading I
Lv 25:1, 8-17

The LORD said to Moses on Mount Sinai,
“Seven weeks of years shall you count–seven times seven years–
so that the seven cycles amount to forty-nine years.
Then, on the tenth day of the seventh month, let the trumpet resound;
on this, the Day of Atonement, the trumpet blast shall re-echo
throughout your land.
This fiftieth year you shall make sacred
by proclaiming liberty in the land for all its inhabitants.
It shall be a jubilee for you,
when every one of you shall return to his own property,
every one to his own family estate.
In this fiftieth year, your year of jubilee,
you shall not sow, nor shall you reap the aftergrowth
or pick the grapes from the untrimmed vines.
Since this is the jubilee, which shall be sacred for you,
you may not eat of its produce,
except as taken directly from the field.
“In this year of jubilee, then,
every one of you shall return to his own property.
Therefore, when you sell any land to your neighbor
or buy any from him, do not deal unfairly.
On the basis of the number of years since the last jubilee
shall you purchase the land from your neighbor;
and so also, on the basis of the number of years for crops,
shall he sell it to you.
When the years are many, the price shall be so much the more;
when the years are few, the price shall be so much the less.
For it is really the number of crops that he sells you.
Do not deal unfairly, then; but stand in fear of your God.
I, the LORD, am your God.”

Responsorial Psalm
67:2-3, 5, 7-8

R.     (4)  O God, let all the nations praise you!

May God have pity on us and bless us;
    may he let his face shine upon us.
So may your way be known upon earth;
    among all nations, your salvation.

R.    O God, let all the nations praise you!

May the nations be glad and exult
    because you rule the peoples in equity;
    the nations on the earth you guide.

R.    O God, let all the nations praise you!

The earth has yielded its fruits;
    God, our God, has blessed us.
May God bless us,
    and may all the ends of the earth fear him!

R.    O God, let all the nations praise you!

Alleluia
Mt 5:10

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness
for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

GOSPEL
Mt 14:1-12

Herod the tetrarch heard of the reputation of Jesus
and said to his servants, “This man is John the Baptist.
He has been raised from the dead;
that is why mighty powers are at work in him.”
Now Herod had arrested John, bound him, and put him in prison
on account of Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip,
for John had said to him,
“It is not lawful for you to have her.”
Although he wanted to kill him, he feared the people,
for they regarded him as a prophet.
But at a birthday celebration for Herod,
the daughter of Herodias performed a dance before the guests
and delighted Herod so much
that he swore to give her whatever she might ask for.
Prompted by her mother, she said,
“Give me here on a platter the head of John the Baptist.”
The king was distressed, 
but because of his oaths and the guests who were present,
he ordered that it be given, and he had John beheaded in the prison.
His head was brought in on a platter and given to the girl,
who took it to her mother.
His disciples came and took away the corpse
and buried him, and they went and told Jesus.

REFLECTION:

John’s death led his disciples to Jesus. When all seemed lost, they risked their lives in a final act of love to reclaim his body, and then “they went and told Jesus”. Let us realize that the darkest hour often heralds the dawn.

Herod’s generous promise was not balanced by wisdom and justice. I pray for people whose lives are out of balance and who have lost sight of their true good. I call to mind those who suffer injustice because of the pride of others and allow God to tell me what I might do, how I might pray.

PRAYER:

Lord, strengthen my weak heart so that I may truly witness to your values. 

The Death of John The Baptist

February 05, 2021, Friday

Memorial of Saint Agatha, Virgin & Martyr (Red)

CYCLE B - YEAR I

RDGS: HEB 13:1-8/PS 27:1.3.5.8-9

GOSPEL: MK 6:14-29

King Herod heard about Jesus, for his fame had become widespread,

and people were saying,

"John the Baptist has been raised from the dead;

That is why mighty powers are at work in him."

Others were saying, "He is Elijah";

still others, "He is a prophet like any of the prophets."

But when Herod learned of it, he said,

"It is John whom I beheaded. He has been raised up."

Herod was the one who had John arrested and bound in prison

on account of Herodias,

the wife of his brother Philip, whom he had married.

John had said to Herod,

"It is not lawful for you to have your brother's wife."

Herodias harbored a grudge against him

and wanted to kill him but was unable to do so.

Herod feared John, knowing him to be a righteous and holy man,

and kept him in custody.

When he heard him speak he was very much perplexed,

yet he liked to listen to him.

Herodias had an opportunity one day when Herod, on his birthday,

gave a banquet for his courtiers, his military officers,

and the leading men of Galilee.

His own daughter came in and performed a dance

that delighted Herod and his guests.

The king said to the girl,

"Ask of me whatever you wish and I will grant it to you."

He even swore many things to her,

"I will grant you whatever you ask of me,

even to half of my kingdom."

She went out and said to her mother,

"What shall I ask for?"

Her mother replied, "The head of John the Baptist."

The girl hurried back to the king's presence and made her request,

"I want you to give me at once on a platter

the head of John the Baptist."

The king was deeply distressed,

but because of his oaths and the guests

he did not wish to break his word to her.

So he promptly dispatched an executioner

with orders to bring back his head.

He went off and beheaded him in the prison.

He brought in the head on a platter

and gave it to the girl.

The girl in turn gave it to her mother.

When his disciples heard about it,

they came and took his body and laid it in a tomb.

GOSPEL REFLECTION:

John the Baptist was a channel of grace for King Herod, and the king ‘liked to listen to him’. But the people around Herod, and his own unruly appetites, got in the way. Doesn’t that sound so familiar? Do I get trapped too, and then act out of my lack of freedom?

‘Remember those who are in prison as though you were in prison with them’, says the letter to the Hebrews. The Gospel tells the sordid story of the final hours of John the Baptist, beheaded for a frivolous promise of Herod.

How did those who loved John, including Jesus, feel when they heard why and how he had died? What do they do? How do I react when evil occurs?

PRAYER:

Lord Jesus, you spent your last night before your crucifixion in prison. Bring comfort to the thousands of good people who are languishing behind bars. They are my sisters and brothers. There but for the grace of God I would be too.