Liturgical Readings for : Wednesday, 28th August, 2024
Wednesday of the Twenty-First Week in Ordinary Time, Cycle B
Memorial of St Augustine, bishop and doctor of the Church
FIRST READING
A reading from the second letter of St Paul to the Thessalonians 3:6-10, 16-18
Do not to let anyone have any food if he refused to do any work.
In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, we urge you, brothers, to keep away from any of the brothers who refuses to work or to live according to the tradition we passed on to you.
You know how you are supposed to imitate us: now we were not idle when we were with you, nor did we ever have our meals at anyone’s table without paying for them; no, we worked night and day, slaving and straining, so as not to be a burden on any of you. This was not because we had no right to be, but in order to make ourselves an example for you to follow.
We gave you a rule when we were with you: not to let anyone have any food if he refused to do any work. May the Lord of peace himself give you peace all the time and in every way. The Lord be with you all.
From me, Paul, these greetings in my own handwriting, which is the mark of genuineness in every letter; this is my own writing. May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, be with you all.
The Word of the Lord Thanks be to God.
Responsorial Psalm Ps 127
Response O blessed are those who fear the Lord.
1. O blessed are those who fear the Lord and walk in his ways!
By the labour of your hands you shall eat. You will be happy and prosper. Response
2. Indeed thus shall be blessed the man who fears the Lord.
May the Lord bless you from Zion all the days of your life! Response
Gospel Acclamation Mt 4:4
Alleluia, alleluia!
Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.
Alleluia !
Or 1 Jn 2: 3
Alleluia, alleluia!
When anyone obeys what Christ has said God’s love comes to perfection in him.
Alleluia !
GOSPEL
The Lord be with you And with your spirit.
A reading from the Gospel according to Matthew 23:27-32 Glory to you, O Lord
You are the sons of those who murdered the prophets!
Jesus said:
‘Alas for you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You who are like whitewashed tombs that look handsome on the outside, but inside are full of dead men’s bones and every kind of corruption. In the same way you appear to people from the outside like good honest men, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.
‘Alas for you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You who build the sepulchres of the prophets and decorate the tombs of holy men, saying, “We would never have joined in shedding the blood of the prophets, had we lived in our fathers’ day“. So! Your own evidence tells against you! You are the sons of those who murdered the prophets! Very well then, finish off the work that your fathers began.
The Gospel of the Lord Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
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Gospel Reflection Wed, 21st Week in Ordinary Time Matthew 23:27-32
It is clear from today’s first reading that Paul was anxious not to be a financial burden on the young church in Thessalonica, ‘We worked night and day, slaving and straining, so as not to be a burden on any of you’. It was Paul’s policy to earn his keep by working at his trade as a tentmaker, so as to be able to preach the gospel free of charge. Paul is also concerned about some members of the church becoming an unnecessary financial burden on the community, when, in reality, they were well capable of working to support themselves. Elsewhere in his letters Paul says to the members of the church to ‘bear one another’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfil the law of Christ’ (Gal 6:2), which is the law of love. We are called to help to carry the burden of others, while not becoming an unnecessary burden on others.
In the gospel reading, Jesus highlights one way people can become a burden on others, namely, when they give the appearance of ‘good honest people’ but, in reality, are full of ‘hypocrisy and lawlessness’. Elsewhere, Jesus uses the image of wolves in sheep’s clothing. We would all find such people burdensome, as we try to discern whether or not to rely on them and believe what they tell us. At the end of the first reading, Paul writes his name in his own handwriting as a ‘mark of genuineness’. The genuine person is never a burden. Their honesty and truthfulness, their transparency and lack of deceit, is burden lifting rather than burden imposing. Jesus was the supremely genuine person; he revealed God’s truth to the full. He offered himself as the one who can lift our burdens, ‘Come to me all you who are weary and are carrying heavy burdens’. He wishes to continue this burden lifting work as risen Lord in and through each one of us.
The Scripture Readings are taken from The Jerusalem Bible, published 1966 by Darton, Longman & Todd Ltd.
