Daily Liturgy
Saturday October 2
TWENTY-SIXTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME
THE JOY OF LIBERATION
The Guardian Angels
Introduction
In the 2nd century before Christ, a prophet borrowing the name of Baruch makes Jerusalem speak a message of hope and joy to her scattered children in the Diaspora. God will liberate them from their infidelities. Today we hear the closing words of the book of Job.
In the gospel, the disciples, and Jesus with them, rejoice that people have been liberated from the power of evil in the name of Jesus.
Opening Prayer
Lord, our God and Father,
your Son sent out his disciples
to set people free from the demons
that held them captive.
We pray that we too
may become liberated,
free from the blindness and determinism and fears
that obscure our minds and hearts,
free from our infidelities
and our lack of courage to commit ourselves,
free to love and to serve
with him who set us free from sin,
Jesus Christ, our Lord for ever.
Reading 1: Bar 4:5-12, 27-29
Fear not, my people!
Remember, Israel,
You were sold to the nations
not for your destruction;
It was because you angered God
that you were handed over to your foes.
For you provoked your Maker
with sacrifices to demons, to no-gods;
You forsook the Eternal God who nourished you,
and you grieved Jerusalem who fostered you.
She indeed saw coming upon you
the anger of God; and she said:
“Hear, you neighbors of Zion!
God has brought great mourning upon me,
For I have seen the captivity
that the Eternal God has brought
upon my sons and daughters.
With joy I fostered them;
but with mourning and lament I let them go.
Let no one gloat over me, a widow,
bereft of many:
For the sins of my children I am left desolate,
because they turned from the law of God.
Fear not, my children; call out to God!
He who brought this upon you will remember you.
As your hearts have been disposed to stray from God,
turn now ten times the more to seek him;
For he who has brought disaster upon you
will, in saving you, bring you back enduring joy.”
Responsorial Psalm: Ps 69:33-35, 36-37
(34) The Lord listens to the poor.
“See, you lowly ones, and be glad;
you who seek God, may your hearts revive!
For the LORD hears the poor,
and his own who are in bonds he spurns not.
Let the heavens and the earth praise him,
the seas and whatever moves in them!”
R. The Lord listens to the poor.
For God will save Zion
and rebuild the cities of Judah.
They shall dwell in the land and own it,
and the descendants of his servants shall inherit it,
and those who love his name shall inhabit it.
R. The Lord listens to the poor.
Alleluia: Ps 103:21
Alleluia, alleluia.
Bless the LORD, all you angels,
you ministers, who do his will.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel: Mt 18:1-5, 10
The disciples approached Jesus and said,
“Who is the greatest in the Kingdom of heaven?”
He called a child over, placed it in their midst, and said,
“Amen, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children,
you will not enter the Kingdom of heaven.
Whoever humbles himself like this child
is the greatest in the Kingdom of heaven.
And whoever receives one child such as this in my name receives me.
“See that you do not despise one of these little ones,
for I say to you that their angels in heaven
always look upon the face of my heavenly Father.”
Intercessions
– For the Church, that it may not be imprisoned in structures of power and wealth but become more and more a humble and serving Church, we pray:
– For doctors, nurses, healers and scientists who help in bringing the freedom from illness to the sick, we pray:
– For all the good and loving people who bring more joy into the lives of others, we pray:
Prayer over the Gifts
Lord, our God and Father,
you invite us to share the table of your Son
and to become free with him
in these signs of bread and wine.
Bless us in our joys and pains,
in our limitations and assets,
and turn these gifts into sources
of the joy and freedom of your kingdom
that lasts for ever and ever.
Prayer after Communion
Lord, our God and Father,
through the liberating power
of your Son Jesus Christ
make us capable of bringing
your freedom and dignity
to even the least of our brothers and sisters.
Make us aware that we cannot be fully free
as long as anyone of those you love
is not free to be your daughter or son
through our brother, Jesus Christ,
your Son and our Lord for ever.
Blessing
The disciples sent out by Jesus returned full of joy because they had helped people to become freer persons, liberated from evils. May we ourselves become freer too, with the blessing of almighty God, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
Commentary
Israel’s punishment was medicinal, not terminal. That is the clear message of today’s reading from Baruch. When they sacrificed “to no gods” and abandoned the God who had delivered them, Israelites angered and provoked the Lord. But they need not fear. If they will but turn to the Lord in a true spirit of repentance, all will be forgiven and their homeland will be restored.
The disciples in today’s Gospel are overwhelmed by the fact that they can now cast out devils. But Christ reminds them that there are greater things than that; their greatest joy is that their names are inscribed in heaven. Christ then gives thanks for the little people. It is not the learned and wise who are open to the kingdom, but the childlike, those who are humble before the Lord. It is they who are privy to the mysteries of God, shared with the Son by the Father and by the Son with those whom he chooses.
Like the disciples, we too should rejoice, because the truths of God have been shared with us. There were many sterling figures who lived before Christ and yearned for “the day of the Lord.” It was a privilege not given to them. We can be very thoughtless about the great truths that have been shared with us. As Baruch reminds the Israelites, forgiveness can be theirs for the asking. We too are reminded that gratitude to God for his revelation to us is wholly in order.
Points to Ponder
Forgiveness
Spiritual power
Knowledge of God: a gift.