June 7
Monday of the Tenth Week in Ordinary Time
Give a Mass Offering
Mass Intentions
7:45 AM – Catherine Covey / Kathleen Crouch
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.
Readings
First Reading
2 Corinthians 1:1-7
Paul, an Apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, to the Church of God that is at Corinth, with all the holy ones throughout Achaia: grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all encouragement, who encourages us in our every affliction, so that we may be able to encourage those who are in any affliction with the encouragement with which we ourselves are encouraged by God. For as Christ’s sufferings overflow to us, so through Christ does our encouragement also overflow. If we are afflicted, it is for your encouragement and salvation; if we are encouraged, it is for your encouragement, which enables you to endure the same sufferings that we suffer. Our hope for you is firm, for we know that as you share in the sufferings, you also share in the encouragement.
Responsorial Psalm
Psalms 34:2-3, 4-5, 6-7, 8-9
R. (9a) Taste and see the goodness of the Lord.
I will bless the LORD at all times;
his praise shall be ever in my mouth.
Let my soul glory in the LORD;
the lowly will hear me and be glad.
R. Taste and see the goodness of the Lord.
Glorify the LORD with me,
let us together extol his name.
I sought the LORD, and he answered me
and delivered me from all my fears.
R. Taste and see the goodness of the Lord.
Look to him that you may be radiant with joy,
and your faces may not blush with shame.
When the poor one called out, the LORD heard,
and from all his distress he saved him.
R. Taste and see the goodness of the Lord.
The angel of the LORD encamps
around those who fear him, and delivers them.
Taste and see how good the LORD is;
blessed the man who takes refuge in him.
R. Taste and see the goodness of the Lord.
Gospel Acclamation
Matthew 5:12a
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Rejoice and be glad;
for your reward will be great in heaven.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
Matthew 5:1-12
When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain, and after he had sat down, his disciples came to him. He began to teach them, saying:
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven. Blessed are they who mourn, for they will be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the land. Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be satisfied. Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. Blessed are the clean of heart, for they will see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you and utter every kind of evil against you falsely because of me. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be great in heaven. Thus they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”
“ Taste and see the goodness of the Lord.”
Reflection
Today’s Gospel of Matthew is the Beatitudes. The Beatitudes instruct us as to how we are to live as Christ has lived. It should be no surprise to us that the Beatitudes are counter cultural. They seem to describe whom many of us would think of as a weak person. Of course, there are those who thought of Jesus as weak as well. They went as far as to taunt him and tell him to lower himself down from his cross if we really was the Son of God. Those who taunted him certainly had a different idea of power as compared to Jesus.
For us, the truly powerful person is the person who freely serves others. Those in positions of power may persecute those who are meek and clean of heart for those qualities, because our society disvalues meekness and sobriety of heart.
In the same vein, society sees those who show any sign of weakness as failures. After all, in society the truly powerful are often rich. Some may even think of them as ruthless. Of course, that is not always the case, but the point remains that Christ showed us a certain path in this life, which the Beatitudes describes. Whomever we are, we should strive to live them to the best of our ability each day!
Peace,
Fr. John
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