E l i j a M i s s i o n

Mk 7:14-23

In that time, Jesus called the people to him again and said, ‘Listen to me, all of you, and understand. Nothing that goes into someone from outside can make that person unclean; it is the things that come out of someone that make that person unclean. Anyone who has ears for listening should listen!’ When he had gone into the house, away from the crowd, his disciples questioned him about the parable. He said to them, ‘Even you – don’t you understand? Can’t you see that nothing that goes into someone from outside can make that person unclean, because it goes not into the heart but into the stomach and passes into the sewer? And he went on, ‘It is what comes out of someone that makes that person unclean.

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1 Kgs 8:22- 23,27-30

Then, in the presence of the whole assembly of Israel, Solomon stood facing the altar of Yahweh and, stretching out his hands towards heaven, said, ‘Yahweh, God of Israel, there is no god like you in heaven above or on earth beneath, as loyal to the covenant and faithful in love to your servants as long as they walk wholeheartedly in your way. Yet will God really live with human beings on earth? Why, the heavens, the highest of the heavens, cannot contain you. How much less this temple built by me!

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1 Cor 1:26-31

Reading for the memorial of Saint Agatha

For consider your call, brethren; not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth; but God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise, God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong, God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. Read More

1 Cor 9:16-19,22-23 (Reading from the Novus Ordo)

In fact, preaching the gospel gives me nothing to boast of, for I am under compulsion and I should be in trouble if I failed to do it. If I did it on my own initiative I would deserve a reward; but if I do it under compulsion I am simply accepting a task entrusted to me. What reward do I have, then? That in my preaching I offer the gospel free of charge to avoid using the rights which the gospel allows me. Read More

According to the traditional calendar, today, 3 February, we can choose to celebrate the memorial of Saint Blaise or the first Saturday of the month to make reparation for sins against the Immaculate Heart of Mary. On this occasion, I would like to focus on the so-called “Five First Saturdays Devotion”. Let us therefore listen to the Gospel for this devotion:

Jn 19:25-27

Standing by the cross of Jesus were his mother, and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Mag′dalene. When Jesus saw his mother, and the disciple whom he loved standing near, he said to his mother, “Woman, behold, your son!” Then he said to the disciple, “Behold, your mother!” And from that hour the disciple took her to his own home.

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Lk 2:22-32

When the day came for them to be purified in keeping with the Law of Moses, they took him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord observing what is written in the Law of the Lord: Every first-born male must be consecrated to the Lord and also to offer in sacrifice, in accordance with what is prescribed in the Law of the Lord, a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons. Now in Jerusalem there was a man named Simeon. He was an upright and devout man; he looked forward to the restoration of Israel and the Holy Spirit rested on him. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death until he had set eyes on the Christ of the Lord.

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In the traditional calendar, today is the feast of St Ignatius of Antioch. If anyone prefers a meditation based on the current calendar, it can be found here: http://en.elijamission.net/2022/02/03/

According to Church tradition, St Ignatius of Antioch was a disciple of the Apostles Peter and John. He was later appointed Bishop of Antioch, the capital of Syria. He died a martyr’s death and was venerated as a saint in the Church from the earliest times. He always called himself Theophorus (θεοφόρος), which means “God-bearer”.

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Mk 6:1-6

Jesus went away from there and came to his own country; and his disciples followed him.  And on the sabbath he began to teach in the synagogue; and many who heard him were astonished, saying, “Where did this man get all this? What is the wisdom given to him? What mighty works are wrought by his hands! Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon, and are not his sisters here with us?” And they took offense at him.  And Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor, except in his own country, and among his own kin, and in his own house.”  

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Today we celebrate once again one of the holy virgins who suffered martyrdom at the beginning of the spread of Christianity in the Roman Empire, thus becoming seeds for the growth of the Kingdom of God. It is admirable to see with what faith and determination these young women remained faithful to the Lord, unbowed. Not only should we remember them and imitate their example, but we can concretely ask them to help us to remain faithful to the Lord when we ourselves suffer slander and persecution.

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For those who prefer to read a reflection on the Gospel of the Day in the Novus Ordo, here is the link: en.elijamission.net/2022/01/31

In the traditional calendar, Saint Francis de Sales is commemorated today. He was born on 21 August 1567 in the Savoy region of France. The young man, who belonged to the nobility, was initially destined for a secular career. He studied law at Paris and Padua. At the same time, he studied theology because the Calvinist doctrine of predestination caused him a crisis. After obtaining a doctorate in civil and canon law, he was to become a senator, but despite his father’s opposition, he decided to become a priest.

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