November 19
Friday of the Thirty-third Week in Ordinary Time
Give a Mass Offering
Mass Intention
7:45 AM - WilliaM Sovik / Claudia & Joe Kosty
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
1 Maccabees 4:36-37, 52-59
Judas and his brothers said, “Now that our enemies have been crushed, let us go up to purify the sanctuary and rededicate it.” So the whole army assembled, and went up to Mount Zion.
Early in the morning on the twenty-fifth day of the ninth month, that is, the month of Chislev, in the year one hundred and forty-eight, they arose and offered sacrifice according to the law on the new altar of burnt offerings that they had made. On the anniversary of the day on which the Gentiles had defiled it, on that very day it was reconsecrated with songs, harps, flutes, and cymbals. All the people prostrated themselves and adored and praised Heaven, who had given them success.
For eight days they celebrated the dedication of the altar and joyfully offered burnt offerings and sacrifices of deliverance and praise. They ornamented the facade of the temple with gold crowns and shields; they repaired the gates and the priests’ chambers and furnished them with doors. There was great joy among the people now that the disgrace of the Gentiles was removed. Then Judas and his brothers and the entire congregation of Israel decreed that the days of the dedication of the altar should be observed with joy and gladness on the anniversary every year for eight days, from the twenty-fifth day of the month Chislev.
Responsorial Psalm
1 Chronicles 29:10bcd, 11abc, 11d-12a, 12bcd
R. (13b) We praise your glorious name, O mighty God.
“Blessed may you be, O LORD,
God of Israel our father,
from eternity to eternity.”
R. We praise your glorious name, O mighty God.
“Yours, O LORD, are grandeur and power,
majesty, splendor, and glory.
For all in heaven and on earth is yours.”
R. We praise your glorious name, O mighty God.
“Yours, O LORD, is the sovereignty;
you are exalted as head over all.
Riches and honor are from you.”
R. We praise your glorious name, O mighty God.
“You have dominion over all,
In your hand are power and might;
it is yours to give grandeur and strength to all.”
R. We praise your glorious name, O mighty God.
Gospel Acclamation
John 10:27
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
My sheep hear my voice, says the Lord;
I know them, and they follow me.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
Luke 19:45-48
Jesus entered the temple area and proceeded to drive out those who were selling things, saying to them, “It is written, My house shall be a house of prayer, but you have made it a den of thieves.” And every day he was teaching in the temple area. The chief priests, the scribes, and the leaders of the people, meanwhile, were seeking to put him to death, but they could find no way to accomplish their purpose because all the people were hanging on his words.
“We praise your glorious name, O mighty God.”
Reflection
“It is written, My house shall be a house of prayer, but you have made it a den of thieves.” These strong words, spoken by Jesus, should serve to remind us that the house of God, our churches, are sacred spaces that we are to respect. At times, we are all guilty of treating our churches as our own home. Think for a moment about how people used to treat their churches as sacred spaces. I remember, as a child, you were not allowed to speak in church, unless necessary. We acted reverently, we dressed reverently, we arrived on time to the meal that Jesus invited us to, not late as people who were indifferent or un-thankful for the invitation to join Christ at the table of sacrifice.
How do we make a return to Christ for all that he has given us, and all he continues to give us? We thank him by partaking in what he offers all people, his Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity. In order to do this, we must make the Sacrifice of the Mass the central focus of our lives as Catholic Christians. Each of us, and our families, must take time out of our busy secular lives to make time for Christ. If we fail to do this, then we disrespect the one who invites us to his Eucharistic banquet.
Are we prepared to change, if needed, the way we carry ourselves in the presence of the Sacrament? We all, clergy and laity, need occasional reminders that we are indeed in the presence of our Lord and Savior, and we should not take that for granted!
Peace,
Fr. John
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