Twenty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time
22 AUG 2014
Lectionary: 124



Reading 1 JER 20:7-9

You duped me, O LORD, and I let myself be duped;
you were too strong for me, and you triumphed.
All the day I am an object of laughter;
everyone mocks me.

Whenever I speak, I must cry out,
violence and outrage is my message;
the word of the LORD has brought me
derision and reproach all the day.

I say to myself, I will not mention him,
I will speak in his name no more.
But then it becomes like fire burning in my heart,
imprisoned in my bones;
I grow weary holding it in, I cannot endure it.

Responsorial Psalm PS 63:2, 3-4, 5-6, 8-9

R/My soul is thirsting for you, O Lord my God.

O God, you are my God whom I seek;
for you my flesh pines and my soul thirsts
like the earth, parched, lifeless and without water.
R/ My soul is thirsting for you, O Lord my God.

Thus have I gazed toward you in the sanctuary
to see your power and your glory,
For your kindness is a greater good than life;
my lips shall glorify you.
R/ My soul is thirsting for you, O Lord my God.

Thus will I bless you while I live;
lifting up my hands, I will call upon your name.
As with the riches of a banquet shall my soul be satisfied,
and with exultant lips my mouth shall praise you.
R/ My soul is thirsting for you, O Lord my God.

You are my help,
and in the shadow of your wings I shout for joy.
My soul clings fast to you;
your right hand upholds me.
R/ My soul is thirsting for you, O Lord my God.



Reading 2 ROM 12:1-2

I urge you, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God,
to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice,
holy and pleasing to God, your spiritual worship.
Do not conform yourselves to this age
but be transformed by the renewal of your mind,
that you may discern what is the will of God,
what is good and pleasing and perfect.


(Jesus Christ, Heinrich Hoffans, 1894)

Gospel MT 16:21-27

Jesus began to show his disciples
that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer greatly
from the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes,
and be killed and on the third day be raised.
Then Peter took Jesus aside and began to rebuke him,
“God forbid, Lord! No such thing shall ever happen to you.”
He turned and said to Peter,
“Get behind me, Satan! You are an obstacle to me.
You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do.”

Then Jesus said to his disciples,
“Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself,
take up his cross, and follow me.
For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it,
but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.
What profit would there be for one to gain the whole world
and forfeit his life?
Or what can one give in exchange for his life?
For the Son of Man will come with his angels in his Father’s glory,
and then he will repay all according to his conduct.”

Gospel Reading: Matthew 16:21-27

+Last Sunday we heard about Peter’s profession of faith in Jesus as the Messiah, and Jesus’ designation of Peter as the rock upon which he will build his Church (verse 18).

+Jesus immediately follows this with the first of three predictions he will make of his Passion, death and Resurrection (verse 21. See also Matthew 17:22 and 20:17-19)

+Peter, taking his newly defined pre-eminence to heart, proceeds to forcefully contest with Jesus’ in an attempt to deter him from his stated path. In response, Jesus likens Peter’s attempts to Satan’s efforts to tempt him away from his mission (see Matthew 4:1-11)!

+Jesus makes clear that, not only is it necessary for him to embrace his Cross to fulfill what the Father sent him to do, but it is the call of the disciple to take up his own cross every day and follow Jesus (Mt 10:38-39; Luke 14:27; John 12:24-25; Romans 8:17). The cross in that time and place was a well-known instrument of torture and death, and no further details or explanation was needed!

+Jesus concludes by connecting one’s faithfulness in bearing their own cross, to their eternal reward (verses 25-27. See also Matthew 25:31-46; 1 John 2:28; Romans 2:6-8; Revelation 22:12).

QUESTIONS:

*In the 1st Reading, what are some of the sacrifices, great and small, that Jeremiah must make in being God’s prophet? What are some of the sacrifices we make (or may be called to make) in serving the Lord?

*In the 2nd Reading, what does St. Paul mean when he refers to a “spiritual sacrifice”? How does he advise we offer these to God?

*In light of last week’s Gospel, why does Jesus change the direction of his teaching now?

*What kind of Messiah was Peter expecting? Why was Jesus’ response to Peter so strong?

*Putting yourself in the disciple’s time and place, what would your reaction be to Jesus’ statement of verse 21 (see 1 Corinthians 1:18, 22-25)? What is comparable today?

*What does it mean to “deny” one’s self? To take up your cross? To follow Jesus?

*What earthly possession or lifestyle is worth exchanging for eternal life with God (verse 26)?

*What have I given up to follow Jesus—today and every day?

*What picture comes to mind when you think of how Jesus “will repay everyone according to his conduct” (verse 27. See also Matthew 25:31-46)?
(Courtesy of Sunday Scripture Study For Catholics)

Bible Study--22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time--Cycle A
(Courtesy of St. Charles Borromeo Parish, Faith Studies, Picayune, MS)

"You shall as his true disciple, follow him, and with your good will, without grudge, do as he did and take your cross of pain upon your back, and die for the truth with him, and thereby reign with him, crowned in eternal glory." –St. Thomas More, martyr, in a letter to his daughter

(St. Peter, Penitent, Guido Reni, 1600)

Thanks op and God Bless. Hope you have a wonderful Labor Day wekend.

Your welcome, Brother!

Back at you! Have a great Labor Day Holiday as well!

Speaking of Labor Day, our Good Lord was a carpenter, just like St. Joseph. They both knew the dignity and pride of work as well as supporting their family.

And as for me:

How alone Christ must have felt in these moments.   How alone he must feel when we fail to understand as Peter did.

I am ashamed to say that sometime my mind wonders far from the prayer I am saying or during mass... I forget how Present Christ is.. and in that moment I feel far away from the one who loves beyond all.

great point, angelfire!

the Apostles, especially St. Peter, didn't "get it" yet! even after confessing in last week's Gospel that St. Peter recognized Jesus as the Messiah.

this must have pained our Lord greatly.

there's that crucial word in today's Gospel: the Messiah "must" suffer and die and then be raised from the dead. the Apostles just didn't understand it yet.