Liturgical Readings for : Saturday, 31st August, 2024
Saturday of the Twenty-First Week in Ordinary Time, Year 2
Optional Memorial of St Aidan of Lindisfarne, bishop and missionary
FIRST READING
A reading from the first letter of St Paul to the Corinthians 1: 26-31
God chose what is weak by human reckoning.
Take yourselves for instance, brothers, at the time when you were called:
how many of you were wise in the ordinary sense of the word,
how many were influential people, or came from noble families?
No, it was to shame the wise that God chose what is foolish by human reckoning, and to shame what is strong that he chose what is weak by human reckoning; those whom the world thinks common and contemptible are the ones that God has chosen – those who are nothing at all to show up those who are everything.
The human race has nothing to boast about to God, but you, God has made members of Christ Jesus and by God’s doing he has become our wisdom, and our virtue, and our holiness, and our freedom.
As scripture says: If anyone wants to boast, let him boast about the Lord.
The Word of the Lord Thanks be to God.
Responsorial Psalm Ps 32
1. They are happy, whose God is the Lord, I the people he has chosen as his own.
From the heavens the Lord looks forth, he sees all the children of men. Response
2. The Lord looks on those who revere him, on those who hope in his love,
to rescue their souls from death, to keep them alive in famine. Response
3. Our soul is waiting for the Lord. The Lord is our help and our shield.
In him do our hearts find joy. We trust in his holy name. Response
Gospel Acclamation Phil 2; 15-16
Alleluia, Alleluia!
You will shine in the world like bright stars because you are offering it the word of life.
Alleluia !
or Jn 13: 34
Alleluia, Alleluia!
I give you a new commandment: love one another just as I have loved you, says the Lord.
Alleluia !
GOSPEL
The Lord be with you. And with your spirit
You have shown you can be faithful in small things, I will trust you with greater;
come and join in your master’s happiness.
Jesus told his disciples this parable:
‘A man on his way abroad summoned his servants and entrusted his property to them. To one he gave five talents, to another two, to a third is one; each in proportion to his ability. Then he set out. The man who had received the five talents promptly went and traded with them and made five more. The man who had received two made two more in the same way. But the man who had received one went off and dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money.
Now a long time after, the master of those servants came back and went through his accounts with them. The man who had received the five talents came forward bringing five more.
“Sir,” he said “you entrusted me with five talents; here are five more that I have made.”
His master said to him, “Well done, good and faithful servant; you have shown you can be faithful in small things, I will trust you with greater; come and join in your master’s happiness”.
Next the man with the two talents came forward.
“Sir,” he said “you entrusted me with two talents; here are two more that I have made.”
His master said to him, “Well done, good and faithful servant; you have shown you can be faithful in small things,
I will trust you with greater; come and join in your master’s happiness”.
Last came forward the man who had the one talent.
“Sir,” said he “I had heard you were a hard man, reaping where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered; so I was afraid, and I went off and hid your talent in the ground. Here it is; it was yours, you have it back.”
But his master answered him, “You wicked and lazy servant! So you knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered? Well then, you should have deposited my money with the bankers, and on my return I would have recovered my capital with interest.
So now, take the talent from him and give it to the man who has the five talents.
For to everyone who has will be given more, and he will have more than enough but from the man who has not, even what he has will be taken away.
And as for this good for nothing servant, throw him out into the dark, where there will be weeping and grinding of teeth,”’
The Gospel of the Lord Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
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Reflection Saturday, Twenty-First Week in Ordinary Time Matthew 25:14–30
What distinguished the third servant in today’s parable from the other two servants was fear, ‘I was afraid, and I went off and hid your talent in the ground’. Fear disabled him and prevented him from responding to the trust that his master had placed in him by giving him a significant sum of money as a gift. In the gospels, fear is often portrayed as the opposite of faith or trust. In the storm at sea, Jesus asked his disciples, ‘Why are you afraid, you of little faith?’ (Mt 8:26). The first letter of John declares, ‘There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear; for fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not reached perfection in love. We love because he first loved us’ (I John 4:19). God has revealed his perfect love for us through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus.
Because we know ourselves to be perfectly loved by God, we can entrust ourselves to God, taking risks on behalf of God, knowing that if we fail God continues to love us. The Lord’s love frees us to live fearlessly and generously. When Peter started walking towards Jesus across the water from the boat, ‘he noticed the strong wind… and became frightened and began to sink’ and Jesus asked him, ‘You of little faith, why did you doubt?’ (Mt 14:30-31). When we forget how much the Lord loves us and focus instead on what seems threatening, we easily find ourselves sinking out of fear. If, however, we keep looking to Jesus, ‘the pioneer and perfecter of our faith’, then we will fearlessly ‘run the race that is set before us’ (Heb 12:1-2). The Spirit of God’s unconditional love has been poured into our hearts and, as Saint Paul says, ‘you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received a spirit of adoption. When we cry out, “Abba! Father!” it is that very Spirit bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God’ (Rom 8:15-16). This Spirit allows us to use our gifts in the service of the Lord without fear.
The Scripture Readings are taken from The Jerusalem Bible, published 1966 by Darton, Longman and Todd Ltd
