February 7
Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time
First Reading
Job 7:1-4, 6-7
Job spoke, saying:
Is not man’s life on earth a drudgery?
Are not his days those of hirelings?
He is a slave who longs for the shade,
a hireling who waits for his wages.
So I have been assigned months of misery,
and troubled nights have been allotted to me.
If in bed I say, “When shall I arise?”
then the night drags on;
I am filled with restlessness until the dawn.
My days are swifter than a weaver’s shuttle;
they come to an end without hope.
Remember that my life is like the wind;
I shall not see happiness again.
Responsorial Psalm
Psalms 147:1-2, 3-4, 5-6
R. (cf. 3a) Praise the Lord, who heals the brokenhearted.
Praise the LORD, for he is good;
sing praise to our God, for he is gracious;
it is fitting to praise him.
The LORD rebuilds Jerusalem;
the dispersed of Israel he gathers.
R. Praise the Lord, who heals the brokenhearted.
He heals the brokenhearted
and binds up their wounds.
He tells the number of the stars;
he calls each by name.
R. Praise the Lord, who heals the brokenhearted.
Great is our Lord and mighty in power;
to his wisdom there is no limit.
The LORD sustains the lowly;
the wicked he casts to the ground.
R. Praise the Lord, who heals the brokenhearted.
Second Reading
1 Corinthians 9:16-19, 22-23
Brothers and sisters:
If I preach the gospel, this is no reason for me to boast,
for an obligation has been imposed on me,
and woe to me if I do not preach it!
If I do so willingly, I have a recompense,
but if unwillingly, then I have been entrusted with a stewardship.
What then is my recompense?
That, when I preach,
I offer the gospel free of charge
so as not to make full use of my right in the gospel.
Although I am free in regard to all, I have made myself a slave to all so as to win over as many as possible. To the weak I became weak, to win over the weak. I have become all things to all, to save at least some. All this I do for the sake of the gospel, so that I too may have a share in it.
Alleluia
Matthew 8:17
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Christ took away our infirmities
and bore our diseases.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
Mark 1:29-39
On leaving the synagogue Jesus entered the house of Simon and Andrew with James and John. Simon’s mother-in-law lay sick with a fever. They immediately told him about her. He approached, grasped her hand, and helped her up. Then the fever left her and she waited on them.
When it was evening, after sunset, they brought to him all who were ill or possessed by demons. The whole town was gathered at the door. He cured many who were sick with various diseases, and he drove out many demons, not permitting them to speak because they knew him.
Rising very early before dawn, he left and went off to a deserted place, where he prayed. Simon and those who were with him pursued him and on finding him said, “Everyone is looking for you.” He told them, “Let us go on to the nearby villages that I may preach there also. For this purpose have I come.” So he went into their synagogues, preaching and driving out demons throughout the whole of Galilee.
Give a Mass Offering
Prayer for Spiritual Communion
My Jesus, I believe that you are present in the most Blessed Sacrament. I love You above all things and I desire to receive You into my soul. Since I cannot now receive You sacramentally, come at least spiritually into my heart. I embrace You as if You were already there, and unite myself wholly to You. Never permit me to be separated from You. Amen.
“Praise the Lord, who heals the brokenhearted.”
Readings & Reflection
Today’s first reading is from the Book of Job. Job is not a joy-filled man! We hear him announcing that life on earth is a drudgery. He often refers to himself as a slave, one whose master mistreats him. Job goes on to say he is “filled with restlessness until the dawn.” The dawn is the dawn of a new day, when a Messiah will come to save him from his slavery. Light will dispel the darkness of his soul. His slavery symbolically represents sin. The Messiah will save us from that sin which enslaves us. Once set free we are able to carry out the work that Christ has sent us to accomplish.
Paul in his First Letter to the Corinthians is about the work of preaching the Gospel. Paul states “…this is no reason for me to boast, for an obligation has been imposed on me, and woe to me if I do not preach it!” Through our Baptism into Christ Jesus, we have all been given the obligation to represent Christ and to “preach” the gospel. Unlike Job, Paul finds joy in his life. After his conversion, Paul took on Christ’s message with an urgency like no other.
Many find Paul a great inspiration because he was a doubter and expresses his unworthiness to preach the gospel yet is called to do so. He often reminds us, his reader, that the message he delivers is not his own, but belongs to the one who sent him. Let us take joy in the work that our savior entrusts unto us, while we do not take credit for the good that work does but give credit to the author of that work.
Peace,
Fr. John Kurgan
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