God wants interactive, dynamic, relationship with us. Today’s readings show us our part (May 26, 2018)

Key:

What these passages tell us about God

What these passages tell us to do

What these passages tell us to avoid

Commentary

Reading 1 JAS 5:13-20

Beloved:
Is anyone among you suffering? He should pray.
Is anyone in good spirits? He should sing a song of praise.
Is anyone among you sick? He should summon the presbyters of the Church, and they should pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. The prayer of faith will save the sick person, and the Lord will raise him up. If he has committed any sins, he will be forgiven.

Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed.The fervent prayer of a righteous person is very powerful. Elijah was a man like us; yet he prayed earnestly that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain upon the land. Then Elijah prayed again, and the sky gave rain and the earth produced its fruit.

My brothers and sisters, if anyone among you should stray from the truth
and someone bring him back, he should know that whoever brings back a sinner from the error of his waywill save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.

Responsorial Psalm PS 141:1-2, 3 AND 8

R. (2a) Let my prayer come like incense before you.
O LORD, to you I call; hasten to me; hearken to my voice when I call upon you.Let my prayer come like incense before you; the lifting up of my hands, like the evening sacrifice.
R. Let my prayer come like incense before you.
O LORD, set a watch before my mouth, a guard at the door of my lips.
For toward you, O God, my LORD, my eyes are turned; in you I take refuge; strip me not of life.
R. Let my prayer come like incense before you.

Alleluia SEE MT 11:25

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Blessed are you, Father,Lord of heaven and earth;you have revealed to little ones the mysteries of the Kingdom.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel MK 10:13-16

People were bringing children to Jesus that he might touch them, but the disciples rebuked them. When Jesus saw this he became indignant and said to them, "Let the children come to me; do not prevent them, for the Kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Amen, I say to you, whoever does not accept the Kingdom of God like a child will not enter it." Then he embraced the children and blessed them, placing his hands on them.

God wants dynamic, interactive, relationship with us. He therefore calls us:

A.    To pray, in good times and in difficulty.  In good times those prayers take the form of praise and song. In tough circumstances they take the form of petitions and intercessions (first reading, psalm).

B.    To get rid of the things that separate us from Him by confessing our sins. The joy of reconciliation brings us closer to him (first reading). That’s why he gives us the gift of the sacrament of confession. More on that wonderful gift can be found at A good confession is like restarting your computer; Confession also seems to be a lot like composting, and What we can learn about sin from back aches. 

C.    To be in active, interacting, community with fellow believers (first reading). That makes sense; we are His body, His Spirit is within every believer, so we are with Him when we are with our fellow believers. The first reading tells us that our interactions are to be open, active, and mutually beneficial. Take a chance and get involved in something at your parish you haven’t engaged with before. Strike up a conversation with someone at church you don’t know or know well. Pray for specific persons in your parish even if they are not on the prayer list or haven’t asked for prayer; it will draw you closer to them. If you need ideas about who to pray for, pray by name for the greeters, ushers, lectors, cantor, and servers; they are usually listed by name in the bulletin, and include them in your prayers throughout the week.

D.   Spend intimate, open time with Him (psalm, gospel). Find time for a daily mass (or two or three) between Sundays.  Adoration is another way to do this.  Spend time reading, contemplating, and praying over the readings God gives us every day. A new reading can be found every day here. 

E.    If your enthusiasm wanes or your schedule gives you second thoughts about engaging in those things, think about the good things God wants to give us:

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God, infinitely perfect and blessed in himself, in a plan of sheer goodness freely created man to make him share in his own blessed life. For this reason, at every time and in every place, God draws close to man. He calls man to seek him, to know him, to love him with all his strength. He calls together all men, scattered and divided by sin, into the unity of his family, the Church. To accomplish this, when the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son as Redeemer and Saviour. In his Son and through him, he invites men to become, in the Holy Spirit, his adopted children and thus heirs of his blessed life.Catechism of the Catholic Church, Paragraph 1