INTENTIONS OF THE HOLY FATHER FOR
FEBRUARY 2012
INTENTIONS OF THE HOLY FATHER FOR
FEBRUARY 2012
1) General Intention:
1) That all peoples may have access to water and other resources needed for daily life;
2) Mission Intention:
2) That the Lord may sustain the efforts of health workers assisting the sick and elderly in the world's poorest regions.
FIFTH SUNDAY
IN ORDINARY TIME
February 5, 2012
The Lord tells the number of the stars
and calls them by name.
—Psalm 147:4 —
READINGS:
Daily
Bible Readings
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SUNDAY READINGS:
First Reading — Job spoke, saying: I have been assigned months of misery, and troubled nights have been allotted to me (Job 7:1-4, 6-7).
Psalm — Praise the Lord, who heals the brokenhearted (Psalm 147).
Second Reading — I have become all things to all, to save at least some (1 Corinthians 9:16-19, 22-23).
Gospel — Jesus cured many who were sick with various diseases (Mark 1:29-39). All rights reserved.
SCRIPTURE MEDITATION:
SPEAK LIFE
A group of frogs was traveling through the woods looking for a bigger pond when two of them fell into a very deep hole. The other frogs crowded around, and when they saw just how deep the hole was they shook their heads and started calling to the two frogs at the bottom that they were as good as dead. The two frogs ignored the shouting and with all their might kept trying to jump up out of the hole. The other frogs jeered at them and told them to give up as their efforts were useless. Finally, one of the frogs stopped jumping and, panting heavily, fell on his side. He lay still and soon died. The other frog continued to jump as hard as he could. The crowd of frogs yelled at him to stop the pain and just give up and die. He jumped even harder, and finally made it out of the top of the hole. When he got out, the other frogs were astonished and asked him, “Didn’t you hear us?” The frog look puzzled and asked them to repeat what they had just said because he was a bit deaf. He thought they had been shouting encouragement to him! There is power in the tongue. An encouraging word to someone in difficult circumstances can lift them up and help them to make it through another day. Destructive words, on the other hand, can be all it takes to deprive them of hope and life. The power of words is much greater than we may think. Be careful what you say. Speak life to those who cross your path. The person who makes the effort to encourage another is special indeed.
THE GOOD NEWS
Today’s readings begin with a few verses from the book of Job. First, Job complains that his nights drag on endlessly. Then, worse yet, “My days are swifter than a weaver’s shuttle; / they come to an end without hope” (Job 7:6). Not exactly encouraging, these lamentations, not when taken alone.
Most of us have been there, though, and the antidote is the “good news” that Paul found so compelling that “an obligation has been imposed on me, and woe to me if I do not preach it!” (1 Corinthians 9:16). Paul felt driven to announce the gospel to as many people as possible, “to save at least some” (9:22).
This good news is the mystery of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, who lifted Simon Peter’s motherin-law from her sickbed with a mere touch of his hand. “The whole town was gathered at the door. He cured many who were sick with various diseases, and he drove out many demons” (Mark 1:33–34)). Our woes and demons are as real as Job’s, and Jesus is our savior.
FEAST OF FAITH
WHAT IS HAPPENING WITH THE PRAYERS AT MASS?
At Masses today, Catholic parishes in the United States are for the first time in about forty years using a new English translation of all the prayers. These prayers are found in The Roman Missal, the large book that we are accustomed to seeing the priest use at our Eucharistic liturgies. In the early part of this century, the late Blessed Pope John Paul II called for the original Latin Missal (the official prayer book for Mass for the entire Catholic Church worldwide) to be re-translated into the various languages prayed throughout the world. In particular, he and other Church leaders felt that the English translation could be improved. He called for new translations that would be much more like the Latin texts upon which they are based, so that all Catholics throughout the world would become more closely united by praying translations that were closer to the original. The words that we pray at Mass express our beliefs; it is important that the translations capture and express these beliefs clearly. The translation process has come to a culmination now, and today we begin using this new translation at Mass.
TREASURES FROM OUR TRADITION
The story of Job seems at first hearing to be an extension of February’s gloom into the liturgy. The monumental suffering of a good man is so horrific that the laments of the front page of modern newspapers barely measure up. The whole story is not long to tell, but its resolution is of great comfort. We can trace in its plot the stirrings of a belief in an afterlife, and in God’s great power to right every wrong and raise human beings from suffering.
In the Gospel, we see the fulfillment of these longings in the hand of Jesus, grasping an ill woman by the hand and raising her up to vibrant life. Peter’s mother-in-law becomes her best self, attentive to her guests, providing hospitality, the warmth of her laughter, the delights of her kitchen. Last week, at Candlemas, candles were blessed, including baptismal candles for some not yet born. Today is a day to check the fragile flame of your own baptismal candle. Against February’s customary lethargy, its background whines and ailments, the liturgy summons us to life, grasps us by the hand, and sends us to serve in Christ’s name.
READINGS FOR THE WEEKMonday: 1 Kgs 8:1-7, 9-13; Mk 6:53-56
Tuesday: 1 Kgs 8:22-23, 27-30; Mk 7:1-13
Wednesday: 1 Kgs 10:1-10; Mk 7:14-23
Thursday: 1 Kgs 11:4-13; Mk 7:24-30
Friday: 1 Kgs 11:29-32; 12:19; Mk 7:31-37
Saturday: 1 Kgs 12:26-32; 13:33-34; Mk 8:1-10
Sunday: Lv 13:1-2, 44-46; Ps 32; 1 Cor 10:31 — 11:1; Mk 1:40-45
For SAINT OF THE DAY, Go to:
http://www.americancatholic.org/Features/SaintofDay/default.asp
Saint Index => http://www.catholic.org/saints/stindex.php
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