Readings
for
1 September 2002
22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time

Today's First Reading is from The Book of Jeremiah, beginning at the 20th Chapter and the 7th Verse (Jer 20:7-9):

O LORD, thou hast deceived me,
and I was deceived;
thou art stronger than I,
and thou hast prevailed.
I have become a laughingstock all the day;
every one mocks me.

For whenever I speak, I cry out,
I shout, "Violence and destruction!"
For the word of the LORD has become for me
a reproach and derision all day long.

If I say, "I will not mention him,
or speak any more in his name,"
there is in my heart as it were a burning fire
shut up in my bones,
and I am weary with holding it in,
and I cannot.

 Today's Song of Praise is taken from Psalm 63 (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.

Today's Epistle is from the Letter of Paul to the Romans, beginning at the 12th Chapter, and the 1st Verse (Rom 12:1-2):

        I appeal to you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.  Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may prove what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

+ A Reading from the Gospel of Matthew, beginning at the 16th Chapter, and the 21st Verse (Mt 16:21-27):
 
        From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised.  And Peter took him and began to rebuke him, saying, "God forbid, Lord! This shall never happen to you." But he turned and said to Peter, "Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me; for you are not on the side of God, but of men." 

        Then Jesus told his disciples, "If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.  For whoever would save his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.  For what will it profit a man, if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his life?  For the Son of man is to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay every man for what he has done.

Sermon
for
1 September 2002
22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time

        Nobody -- least of all Jesus -- promised us a rose garden in this life.  He does challenge us to take up our crosses and follow Him.

        Even Jeremiah, whose name has given us a term for "A literary work or speech expressing a bitter lament or a righteous prophecy of doom", complains of his lot:  "I have become a laughingstock all the day; every one mocks me. For whenever I speak, I cry out, I shout, 'Violence and destruction!'"

        Paul urges us to scrifice ourselves -- our petty wants and desires -- to the greater glory of God, and to make His will our driving force.  "Do not be conformed to this world..." --  the things of which rust away, and the moth eats them -- but seek the Kingdom of Him who made us.

        "For what will it profit a man, if he gains the whole world and forfeits his life?"  A lesson that many greedy sorts need to learn -- but are prevented from it by the venal and cynical manipulation of our Modern Mass Culture.

        True happiness is not here -- and the saying that "He who wins is the one who dies with the most toys", popular in the 80s and beyond, is utterly false and empty. With the Psalmist, we need to say:

        "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."

         Our prayer, with Paul, should be:  "Not I, but Christ in me . . . .

In the Name of the Father +
And of the Son +
And of the Holy Spirit +
Amen.

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