Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B - Sunday, February 14, 2021
(EPISODE: 278)
Readings for 6th Sunday in Ordinary Time - B
FIRST READING: Lev 13: 1-2, 44-46
Ps 32: 1-2, 5, 11. "I turn to you, Lord, in time of trouble and you fill me with the joy of salvation"
SECOND READING: 1 Cor 10: 31—11: 1
GOSPEL ACCLAMATION (Luke 7: 16). Alleluia, alleluia! A great prophet has appeared among us. God has visited his people.
GOSPEL: Mark 1: 40-45
Image Credit: Shutterstock Licensed. ID: 1193925694. Biblical vector illustration series, Jesus heals the man with leprosy. By rudall30
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Please listen to the audio-recordings of the Mass – (Readings, prayers and homily), for Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B - Sunday, February 14, 2021, by clicking this link here: https://soundcloud.com/user-633212303/faith-hope-and-love-sixth-sunday-of-ordinary-time-year-b-episode-278/s-nSE1vMwBoWr (EPISODE: 278)
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(Prologue – Fr Paul): The Gospel today is a wonderful example of God's great desire to reach out and touch us…… to include and heal us. There is sadly much illness and suffering in the world. We pray that those who are sick, will be healed of their illness and brought out of their suffering…..and in every case may the Lord certainly touch their lives with peace and strength and assure them that God is with them in this difficult journey….
Today's Gospel makes it really clear that God loves us completely and desires that we be healed, freed from the burden of suffering and reunited with our community…… Jesus is the compassion of God…. And Jesus shows us the endless depths of that compassion and love for us…. God loves us so much that Jesus reaches out and touches us…
Because Jesus is God the son, he could simply have said to the leper, 'you are healed' and he would have been…. But the poor man was suffering illness,…. He was isolated from his community….. he was alone…. And Jesus reaches out and touches him to bring him back into the community… and heal his Spirit too……..
Jesus is not just in the midst of suffering… he is to be found abiding within the people who suffer, as well as in the people who reach out to help…… God, whose essential nature is loving and compassionate and deeply involved in our lives and who promises us much more than physical or emotional healing, but a cherished place in God's family forever.
Those he cured would eventually get sick again and eventually all reach the end of their lives... but he was offering them a reassurance of God's ultimate faithfulness to them - peace through the assurance of their membership in God's family that will stay with them in this life and the next
Jesus also shows us God's attitude towards our suffering when Jesus declares "of course I want to heal you!" God's compassion and love for others is the key to everything Jesus says and does. Jesus put people first and at the same time put his heavenly Father first, because the love of God, love of neighbour and love and care of oneself are different aspects of the same one teaching. St Paul in the second reading.. sums up what it's all about in our ministries and service… "Whatever you do at all, do it for the glory of God. ……try to be helpful to everyone at all times, not anxious for my own advantage but for the advantage of everybody else, so that they may be saved." And that is at the heart of what we do… everything for the honour and glory of God….
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Homily – Fr Peter Dillon:
6th Sunday-Ordinary Time-Year B-2021
If you've ever wondered why we hear so little of the Gospel of Mark with the Sunday readings then it could well be that Mark portrait of Jesus is often blunt and shocking. He seems to raise too many questions about the human nature of Jesus and he was seen by the Church Fathers as not focussing sufficiently of the divinity of Christ. However, it is this very insight into the humanity of Jesus touches people more than the high theology of John or the brilliant teachings of Matthew. When reading Mark we can more easily identify with Jesus, immersed in the strengths and weaknesses of humanity, always alive, real and struggling to be authentic. It is really only in more recent time that we have discovered how Mark brings to us the story of a man and his commitment to a broken and fragile humanity.
Today's Gospel is a prime example of the encounter with a fragile human being with its strained exchanges and emotion. As often happens we find ourselves asking questions about the nature and intentions of Jesus, so this cannot be dismissed as yet another example of Jesus doing good works. It shines a light on a man who is capable of feeling as we often do. He seems to be critical, angry, impatient and fearful. He demonstrates strong feelings and emotions. Is this the picture we want to have of 'gentle Jesus meek and mild'?
Is the leper taunting Jesus or is he pleading with him? Is he doubting whether Jesus has the power to cure him or is he questioning whether Jesus wants to cure him? Has the leper been a social outcast for so long that he doubts whether anyone has the will to bother with him? So how does Jesus react to this challenging leper? While the translation says that Jesus had pity on him, the truer translation suggests that Jesus was indignant, saying "Of course I want to. Be cured!" Is it possible that Jesus is showing frustration? Of course, it is possible, because he was human and anger is not a negative emotion. It's only what we do with it that gives it its value. While Jesus responds with a cure, we very often would respond with a rejection or ignoring of the plea.
Mark confronts with aspects of Jesus that makes us want to ask questions about how we categorise Jesus.
Do we think of him as a person who never gets ruffled or blows up? Does his anger show when the people he tries to help, question his good intentions?
Does he ever get tired when people only seem to want him as the 'miracle worker", without accepting his; teaching that no amount of healing is going to exempt people from suffering and brokenness?
Does he get frustrated when people misrepresent him by using him for their own peculiar causes?
Does he ever want to say "enough, I need a break"?
Perhaps these questions say more about us than they do about Jesus yet it is important to allow ourselves to not make Jesus a glossy unreal man removed from the reality of life, because when we seek the answer to these questions we find that we understand the nature of the mind of Christ, which St. Paul urges us to take on. If he does not live and react like us that how can we ever hope to emulate him in our everyday life.
Through Mark's writings, Jesus stretches our capacity for compassion. He challenges our capacity for love and shows us how to overcome our initial inclinations to withdraw from the problem, and find the power to reach out beyond the comfortable to the necessary, from the barrier of common sense, to the mirror dimly the compassion of God.
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References:
HOMILY – FR PETER DILLON
PROLOGUE - Fr Paul W. Kelly
Abbot's Homilies - Benedictine Abbey of Christ in the Desert.. (2009) [online] Benedictine Abbey of Christ in the Desert. Available at: https://christdesert.org/updates/abbots-homilies
Image Credit: Shutterstock Licensed. ID: 1193925694. Biblical vector illustration series, Jesus heals the man with leprosy. By rudall30
Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B (Sunday, February 14, 2021) (EPISODE: 278)
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. (or/ The Lord be with You)
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{{Hi everyone}} welcome everyone, we gather - Ponder with reverence, God's word and sacrament.
My brothers and sisters, we have gathered to celebrate the Holy Eucharist, - so let us pause and reflect upon our sins, so as to rejoice in Gods loving mercy.
Lord Jesus, you came to gather the nations into the peace of God's kingdom: Lord, have mercy// You come in word and in sacrament to strengthen us and make us holy: Christ, have mercy//You will come again in glory with salvation for your people: Lord, have mercy.
May almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us our sins, and bring us to everlasting life. Amen.
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Memorial Acclamation
3. Save us, Saviour of the world, for by your Cross and Resurrection you have set us free.
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PREFACE: Sundays V
EP II
Communion side. pwk: RH
(theme variation: 4 )
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{May God's love, strength, mercy and kindness guide you all this week. }
Go in peace. (glorifying the Lord by your life)
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Archive of homilies and reflections: http://homilycatholic.blogspot.com.au
To contact Fr. Paul, please email: paulwkelly68@gmail.com
To listen to my weekly homily audio podcast, please click this link here.
NB - It is often a week or so Ahead: https://soundcloud.com/user-633212303/tracks
You are welcome to subscribe to Fr Paul's homily mail-out by sending an email to this address: paulkellyreflections+subscribe@googlegroups.com
Further information relating to the audio productions linked to this Blog:
"Faith, Hope and Love - Christian worship and reflection" - Led by Rev Paul Kelly
Prayers and chants — Roman Missal, 3rd edition, © 2010, The International Commission on English in the liturgy. (ICEL)
Scriptures - New Revised Standard Version: © 1989, and 2009 by the NCC-USA. (National Council of Churches of Christ - USA)
"The Psalms" ©1963, 2009, The Grail - Collins publishers.
Prayers of the Faithful - " Together we pray" by Robert Borg'. E.J. Dwyer, Publishers, (1993) . (Sydney Australia).
Sung "Mass In Honour of St. Ralph Sherwin" - By Jeffrey M. Ostrowski. The Gloria, Copyright © 2011 ccwatershed.org.
- "Faith, Hope and Love" theme hymn - in memory of William John Kelly - Inspired by 1 Corinthians 13:1-13. Music by Paul W. Kelly. Arranged and sung, with additional lyrics by Stefan Kelk. 2019.
"Quiet Time." Instrumental Reflection music. Written by Paul W Kelly. 1988, 2007. & This arrangement: Stefan Kelk, 2020.
- "Today I Arise" - For Trisha J Kelly. Original words and music by Paul W. Kelly. Inspired by St Patrick's Prayer. Arranged and sung, with additional lyrics by Stefan Kelk. 2019.
[ Production - KER - 2021]
May God bless and keep you.
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