Mass Readings for : Monday, 18th November, 2024

Liturgical Readings for : Monday, 18th November, 2024

Monday of the Thirty Third Week in Ordinary Time, Cycle B

Optional memorial of the Dedications of the Basilicas of Ss Peter and Paul, St Peter’s built in 1626, St Paul’s in 1854.

FIRST READING

A reading from the Book of the Apocalypse 1:1-4. 2:1-5
Think where you were before you fell, and repent.

This is the revelation given by God to Jesus Christ so that he could tell his servants about the things which are now to take place very soon; he sent his angel to make it known to his servant John. John has written down everything he saw and swears it is the word of God guaranteed by Jesus Christ. Happy the man who reads this prophecy, and happy those who listen to him, if they treasure all that it says, because the Time is close.

From John, to the seven churches of Asia: grace and peace to you from him who is, who was, and who is to come, from the seven spirits in his presence before his throne.

I heard the Lord saying to me:
‘Write to the angel of the church in Ephesus and say,

“Here is the message of the one who holds the seven stars in his right hand and who lives surrounded by the seven golden lamp-stands:

I know all about you: how hard you work and how much you put up with. I know you cannot stand wicked men,
and how you tested the impostors who called themselves apostles and proved they were liars.
Know, too, that you have patience, and have suffered for my name without growing tired.
Nevertheless, I have this complaint to make; you have less love now than you used to.

Think where you were before you fell; repent, and do as you used to at first, or else, if you will not repent,
I shall come to you and take your lamp-stand from its place.

The Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God.

Responsorial Psalm Ps 1: 1-4, 6 Rv: Apoc 2:7
Response Those who prove victorious I will feed from the tree of life

1. Happy indeed is the man who follows not the counsel of the wicked;
nor lingers in the way of sinners nor sits in the company of scorners,
but whose delight is the law of the Lord and who ponders his law day and night. Response

2. He is like a tree that is planted beside the flowing waters,
that yields its fruit in due season and whose leaves shall never fade;
and all that he does shall prosper. Response

3. Not so are the wicked, not so! For they like winnowed chaff shall be driven away by the wind.
For the Lord guards the way of the just but the way of the wicked leads to doom. Response

Gospel Acclamation Jn 8: 12
Alleluia, Alleluia!
I am the light of the world, says the Lord, anyone who follows me will have the light of life.
Alleluia!

GOSPEL

The Lord be with you And with your spirit.
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke 18:35-43 Glory to you, O Lord
What do you want me to do for you? Let me see again.

As Jesus drew near to Jericho there was a blind man sitting at the side of the road begging. When he heard the crowd going past he asked what it was all about, and they told him that Jesus the Nazarene was passing by. So he called out,
‘Jesus, Son of David, have pity on me’.
The people in front scolded him and told him to keep quiet, but he shouted all the louder,
Son of David, have pity on me‘.
Jesus stopped and ordered them to bring the man to him, and when he came up, asked him,
‘What do you want me to do for you?‘
‘Sir,’ he replied ‘Let me see again.’
Jesus said to him,
‘Receive your sight. Your faith has saved you.‘
And instantly his sight returned and he followed him praising God,
and all the people who saw it gave praise to God for what had happened.

The Gospel of the Lord Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

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Gospel Reflection Monday Thirty Third Week in Ordinary Time Luke 18:35-43

The figure of the blind man in today’s gospel reading is one of those gospel characters who can cast light on our own faith journey. Although he couldn’t see, there was clearly no problem with his hearing or his speaking. When he heard a crowd going past, he asked what it was all about. The question, ‘What is it all about?’ is one of those fundamental questions of meaning that remains with us throughout the course of our faith journey. It is a question we live with and struggle with, rather than one that lends itself to an easy answer. The answer people gave to the blind man’s question was that Jesus of Nazareth was passing by.

The Lord continues to pass us by today. Even if we don’t see him clearly and don’t have a strong sense of his presence, he is continually passing us by. We don’t have to do anything to make Jesus pass us by, to make him present. He is present to us, and it only falls to us to respond to his presence, and, in that regard, the blind man can be our teacher. He called out to Jesus in prayer, even though the people around Jesus insisted in no uncertain terms that he be quiet. Sometimes, we too need to show our faith in the Lord, in the face of pressure to keep quiet, to keep our faith to ourselves. Just as the man was not put off by the crowd’s insistence that he be quiet, neither was Jesus put off. He insisted that the man’s desire for a real communion with him be respected. As Saint Paul reminds us, nothing need come between us and the love of God made visible in Jesus. The personal question Jesus asks the man is addressed to us all, ‘What do you want me to do for you?’ We each have to answer that question for ourselves, but, again, the blind man has something to teach us about how to answer it. Aware of his blindness, he asked Jesus to let him see again, and with his restored sight he followed Jesus on the way. We are always in need of healing for our own blindness, our spiritual blindness, so that we can follow in the way of Jesus more fully.