Monday
21st Week in Ordinary Time
St. Rose of Lima
►1st Reading: 2 Thes 1:1–5, 11–12
From Paul, Sylvanus and Timothy, to the church of the Thessalonians which is in God our Father and in Christ Jesus, the Lord.
May grace and peace be yours from God the Father and Christ Jesus, the Lord.
Brothers and sisters, we should give thanks to God at all times for you. It is fitting to do so, for your faith is growing and your love for one another increasing. We take pride in you among the churches of God because of your endurance and your faith in the midst of persecution and sufferings. In this the just judgment of God may be seen; for you must show yourselves worthy of the kingdom of God for which you are now suffering.
This is why we constantly pray for you; may our God make you worthy of his calling. May he, by his power, fulfill your good purposes and your work prompted by faith. In that way, the name of Jesus our Lord will be glorified through you, and you through him, according to the loving plan of God and of Christ Jesus the Lord.
►Gospel: Mt 23:13–22
Jesus said, “Woe to you, teachers of the Law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the door to the kingdom of heaven in people’s faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor do you allow others to do so.
Woe to you, teachers of the Law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You travel by sea and land to win a single convert, yet once he is converted, you turn him twice as fit for hell as yourselves.
Woe to you, blind guides! You say: To swear by the Temple is not binding, but to swear by the treasure of the Temple is. Blind fools! Which is of more worth? The gold in the Temple or the Temple which makes the gold a sacred treasure? You say: To swear by the altar is not binding, but to swear by the offering on the altar is. How blind you are! Which is of more value: the offering on the altar or the altar which makes the offering sacred? Whoever swears by the altar is swearing by the altar and by everything on it. Whoever swears by the Temple is swearing by it and by God who dwells in the Temple. Whoever swears by heaven is swearing by the throne of God and by him who is seated on it.
REFLECTION
“How terrible for you, teachers of the Law and Pharisees! You hypocrites!
You lock the door to the Kingdom of heaven in people’s faces,
but you yourselves don’t go in, nor do you allow in those who are trying to enter!”
When, in the name of religion,
I condemn other people for their sins
I put myself in the place of God.
Most of all, I condemn myself
by my own standards.
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