Today, 26th of December, we celebrate
Saint Stephen
Ezekiel 28:1-10
The word of the Lord came to me: Son of man,
say to the prince of Tyre:
Thus says the Lord God:
Because you are haughty of heart,
you say, "A god am I!
I occupy a godly throne
in the heart of the sea!"—
And yet you are a man, and not a god,
however you may think yourself like a god.
Oh yes, you are wiser than Daniel,
there is no secret that is beyond you.
By your wisdom and your intelligence
you have made riches for yourself;
You have put gold and silver
into your treasuries.
By your great wisdom applied to your trading
you have heaped up your riches;
your heart has grown haughty from your riches–
therefore thus says the Lord God:
Because you have thought yourself
to have the mind of a god,
Therefore I will bring against you
foreigners, the most barbarous of nations.
They shall draw their swords
against your beauteous wisdom,
they shall run them through your splendid apparel.
They shall thrust you down to the pit, there to die
a bloodied corpse, in the heart of the sea.
Will you then say, "I am a god!"
when you face your murderers?
No, you are man, not a god,
handed over to those who will slay you.
You shall die the death of the uncircumcised
at the hands of foreigners,
for I have spoken, says the Lord God.
Deuteronomy 32:26-27ab, 27cd-28, 30, 35cd-36ab
R./ It is I who deal death and give life.
"I would have said, 'I will make an end of them
and blot out their name from men's memories,'
Had I not feared the insolence of their enemies,
feared that these foes would mistakenly boast."
R./ It is I who deal death and give life.
"'Our own hand won the victory;
the Lord had nothing to do with it.'"
For they are a people devoid of reason,
having no understanding.
R./ It is I who deal death and give life.
"How could one man rout a thousand,
or two men put ten thousand to flight,
Unless it was because their Rock sold them
and the Lord delivered them up?"
R./ It is I who deal death and give life.
Close at hand is the day of their disaster,
and their doom is rushing upon them!
Surely, the Lord shall do justice for his people;
on his servants he shall have pity.
R./ It is I who deal death and give life.
Matthew 19:23-30
Jesus said to his disciples:
"Amen, I say to you, it will be hard for one who is rich
to enter the Kingdom of heaven.
Again I say to you,
it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle
than for one who is rich to enter the Kingdom of God."
When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished and said,
"Who then can be saved?"
Jesus looked at them and said,
"For men this is impossible,
but for God all things are possible."
Then Peter said to him in reply,
"We have given up everything and followed you.
What will there be for us?"
Jesus said to them, "Amen, I say to you
that you who have followed me, in the new age,
when the Son of Man is seated on his throne of glory,
will yourselves sit on twelve thrones,
judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
And everyone who has given up houses or brothers or sisters
or father or mother or children or lands
for the sake of my name will receive a hundred times more,
and will inherit eternal life.
But many who are first will be last, and the last will be first."
Today’s Gospel reading follows yesterday’s. The disciples were shocked to see Jesus asking the rich young man to leave everything, absolutely everything. And to give it all to the poor before following Him. On top of that, Jesus makes the comparison of the camel and the eye of the needle, leaving the disciples even more astonished. The conclusion for some: riches are from the devil, and rich people are bad news. Not a single one will be saved.
Honestly, I don’t think that’s the right conclusion. What Jesus is telling us is that we need to have our priorities straight. If someone puts money and riches ahead of Jesus and the Kingdom, they’re going to have a tough time with salvation because they’re making the mistake of putting the central value of their life in riches, not in the Kingdom.
The Kingdom is the center of everything for Jesus. And anyone who wants to follow Him has to put everything they are and everything they have at the service of the Kingdom, which is nothing other than the justice and brotherhood of the sons and daughters of God. Are you intelligent? Put your intelligence at the service of your brothers and sisters. Do you have wealth? Put that wealth at the service of your brothers and sisters. And we could continue with all our qualities, all our strengths, everything we possess. As a liberation theologian said many years ago: we have to go over to the poor with weapons and baggage. He meant that it’s not about renouncing what we are and have, but about putting it all at the service of the poorest.
That’s where we’ll find salvation. That’s where we’ll find life, Life with a capital L, the one worth living because it doesn’t end, because it’s forever.
Clinging to money or other things as if salvation were there is a serious mistake. In the short term, it might make us feel secure, but in the end, it’s worthless. Life isn’t found in money or big houses or fancy cars or bank accounts with lots of zeros. Life is found in the fraternal embrace of our brothers and sisters, in love that is always freely given. That’s the life worth living. That’s the life of the Kingdom.»
Fernando Torres, cmfLord, our God,
we hold you to your promise
to those who have left everything
for the sake of your kingdom
and who are willing to follow your Son
wherever he leads them.
Let them be men and women,
poor in the things that count on this earth,
but rich with your love and your grace
and with a wealth of friends
to whom they can bring
ou
Introduction to the First Reading
As God is the Lord of all the earth, so his prophet has the power to prophesy over the nations. Their pride, their wealth, their human wisdom are subject to God and his laws. For God is the Lord of history of all humankind.
Introduction to Gospel Reading
In today's Gospel Peter asks, "What about us, Lord?" and Jesus answers that it is difficult for those who are attached to things to enter the kingdom of heaven. We want to follow him. Have we given up everything for his sake? Where do we stand? What is our situation? Jesus promises eternal life. The poor shall be rich. Those who follow Jesus throughout, even losing their life, will live with God.
– That the Lord may open our eyes to make us put our hearts in the things that matter: love and service and generous sharing, we pray:
– That parents and educators may challenge the young to live for evangelical values, we pray:
– That we may welcome God's grace when it is offered to us and respond readily, also when it makes demands on us, we pray:
God our Father,
with bread and wine, we remember him
who gave himself totally for others,
your Son, Jesus Christ.
Everything was taken away from him
except the certainty that he could count on you.
Make us more aware of the poverty
and emptiness of our hearts
and of the passing value of the things
to which we attach ourselves.
Convert our hearts and set them
on the riches and persons that never devaluate:
you and our neighbor,
justice, truth, and generous love.
We ask this in the name of Jesus, the Lord.
Lord our God,
we are easily satisfied with ourselves
and our own little worlds.
Wake us up and give us the courage
to set out with your Son
on his adventure of hope and love.
Make us ask ourselves,
not what we have done for you,
but what we have not done and not yet given.
By the strength of this Eucharist
help us to follow your Son generously.
Grant this through Christ, our Lord.
"What about us?" We know that the Lord knows us and loves us and that we are in his hands. No worry! May Almighty God bless you, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
