2ND PETER 1: 2 – 7

Beloved: May grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, that through these you may escape from the corruption that is in the world because of passion, and become partakers of the divine nature. For this very reason make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love.

The Word of the Lord.

RESPONSORIAL PSALM
Psalm 91: 1 – 2, 14 – 15ab, 15c – 16 (R.) 2b

R/. O my God, I trust in you

He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High,
and abides in the shade of the Almighty,
says to the Lord, “My refuge,
my stronghold, my God in whom I trust!” R/.

Since he clings to me in love, I will free him,
protect him, for he knows my name.
When he calls on me, I will answer him;
I will be with him in distress. R/.

I will deliver him, and give him glory.
With length of days I will content him;
I will show him my saving power. R/.

GOSPEL ACCLAMATION 
Revelation 1: 5ac

Alleluia.
Jesus Christ, you are the faithful witness, the first-born of the dead; you have loved us and washed away our sins in your blood.
Alleluia.

GOSPEL              
“They took the beloved son, killed him, and cast him out of the vineyard.”
MARK 12: 1 – 12

At that time: Jesus began to speak to the chief priests and the scribes and the elders in parables. “A man planted a vineyard, and set a hedge around it, and dug a pit for the wine press, and built a tower, and leased it to tenants, and went into another country. When the time came, he sent a servant to the tenants, to get from them some of the fruit of the vineyard. And they took him and beat him, and sent him away empty-handed. Again he sent to them another servant, and they wounded him in the head, and treated him shamefully. And he sent another, and him they killed; and so with many others, some they beat and some they killed.” He had still one other, a beloved son; finally he sent him to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ But those tenants said to one another, ‘This is the heir; come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ And they took him and killed him, and cast him out of the vineyard. “What will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy the tenants, and give the vineyard to others. Have you not read this Scripture: ‘The very stone which the builders rejected has become the head of the corner; this was the Lord’s doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes’?” And they tried to arrest him, but feared the multitude, for they perceived that he had told the parable against them; so they left him and went away.

The Gospel of the Lord.

Muvhuro 3 Chikuni – June;

Zuvaguruguru raCharisi Lwanga nevamwe vake Vafiri vechitendero

Chiverengo chokutanga:
2 Makabhi 7,1-2.9-14

Inzwai chiverengo chinobva mubhuku yechipiri ravaMakabhi
1Vakomana vanomwe, vaiva vakoma novanun’una
vakasungwa pamwechete naamai vavo, vakamanikidzwa namambo Andiyokusi vachitorohwa
netyava netambo, kudya nyama isingabvumirwi
yenguruve. 2 Mumwe wavo akataura akavamirira
achiti, “Chii chaizvo chamunoda kuti tiite, chamuri
kuda kuziva kwatiri? Nokuti isu takatogadzirira
kufa pano kuti tidarike mirawo yamadzibaba edu.”
9Wechipiri paakanga ava kufa akati, “Iwe munhu
ano rushambwa, munhu asina namaturo ese! Muri
kutitamisa muupenyu hwanhasi uhu, asi Mambo
Wedenga rose napasi pose zvapo achatimutsa tova
noupenyu hutsva nokusingaperi nokuti tiri kufira
mitemo yake.”
10 Mushure make wechitatu ndiye akaona nhamo
yokuve chiseko chavo. Pazvakangomukumbirwa,
akabva aburitsa rurimi rwake, akatambanudza
maoko ake nokushinga, 11akataura zvine chiremera
achiti, “Izvi ndakatozvipiwa naiye Wedenga, zvino
pamusana pemitemo yake, ndinozviona samarara uye, ndinotarisira kuti iye ndiye achazvidzosera
kwandiri.” 12Mambo pachake navaaiva navo vakashamiswa nemweya waiva nejaya irori, nokuti
kutambura kwake kwakanga kusiri chinhu kwaari.
13 Pakafawo uyu, vakabata wechina zvakaipa,
vachimuonesa nhamo zvimwechetezvo. 14 Kuzoti
zvino ava kuda kufa akati, “Munhu haangamborega
kusarudza kufa achiita zvokubatiranwa navanhu
pamusana pokukoshesa kwaanoita chitarisiro
chinopiwa naMwari chokuti iye achazomutsa
vachakabvu. Asi kwamuri imi zvokumukazve
hapana!”
Shoko raTenzi.

Rwiyo rwokutsinhira:
Nziyo 124,2-3.4-5.7cd-8. (D – 7)

(D) – Takapunyuka seshiri, pamusungo wavatei veshiri.
Dai pasina kuti TENZI aiva kudivi kwedu
patakamukirwa navanhu,
3 vangadai vakatimedza tiri vapenyu,
pavakativirukira nehasha.
(D) – Takapunyuka seshiri, pamusungo wavatei veshiri.
4 Ipapo mafashamo emvura angadai akatiyeredza,
mapopopo angadai akatitsvaira.
5Mvura ine simba ingadai yakatiti fushe fushe.
(D) – Takapunyuka seshiri, pamusungo wavatei veshiri.
7Takapunyuka seshiri pamusungo wavatei
veshiri, musungo wakadambuka, tikapunyuka.
8Rubatsiro rwedu rwuri muzita raTENZI,
akasika denga napasi.
(D) – Takapunyuka seshiri, pamusungo wavatei veshiri.

Chiverengo chechipiri:
VaRoma 8,31b-39

Inzwai chiverengo chinobva mutsamba yaPauro kuvaRoma
Vehama, 31 Mwari zvaari kudivi kwedu, ndiani
angatirwise? 32Iye asina kuramba noMwanakomana
wake waakatopirira isu tose. Haazotipawo here
zvinhu zvose pamwechete naye?
33 Zvino ndiani angape mhosva vasarudzwi
vaMwari, Mwari zvaari iye anoruramisa. 34Ndiani
angatipe mhosva? NdiJesu Kristu here iye akafa
akamutswa muvafi ari kurudyi rwaMwari, iye
anototireverera?
35Ndiani angatiparadzanise norudo rwaKristu?
Kutambudzika here kana kuti nhamo,
kana kushushwa here kana nzara,
kana kushaya zvokupfeka here kana pfumvu,
kana hondo yebakatwa here? 36 Sokunyorwa kwazvakaitwa,
“Tiri kuurairwemi zuva rose,
tinoonekwa sehwai dzokubaya?”
37Aiwa, muna zvose izvi tiri vakundi vokutopfuuridza
nokuna iye akatida, 38 nokuti ndine chokwadi
chokuti hapana rufu kana upenyu, kana vatumwa
kana vano ukuru ukuru, kana zvinhu zviripo iye
zvino kana zvichauya, kana masimba, 39 kana urefu,
kana kukwira mudenga kana udzike pasi, kana
chimwe zvacho muzvisikwa zvose chinogona
kutiparadzanisa norudo rwaMwari rwuri muna
Kristu Jesu Tenzi wedu.
Shoko raTenzi.

Kupemberera Shoko Rakanaka:
Mateu 5,3

Areruya, Areruya. Vakakomborerwa zvavo
varombo mumweya, nokuti umambo hwedenga
ndohwavo. Areruya.

Shoko Rakanaka: Mateu 5,1-12a

Inzwai Shoko Rakanaka rakanyorwa naMateu
1Jesu akati achiona gurusvusvu ravanhu akakwira
mugomo. Paakagara pasi vadzidzi vake vakauy…
MONDAY, JUNE 3RD 2024.

GOSPEL REFLECTION: Exercising Authority
June 3, 2024

Jesus began to speak to the chief priests, the scribes, and the elders in parables. “A man planted a vineyard, put a hedge around it, dug a wine press, and built a tower. Then he leased it to tenant farmers and left on a journey. At the proper time he sent a servant to the tenants to obtain from them some of the produce of the vineyard. But they seized him, beat him, and sent him away empty-handed.” (Mark 12:1–3)

This was the first of “many” servants the owner of the vineyard sent to the tenants to obtain some of the produce of the vineyard. Some of the servants were mistreated, some beaten and others were killed. In the end, the owner sent his son. The tenants killed him, thinking that they would inherit the vineyard if the son were dead.

The context of this parable is important. Jesus had just entered Jerusalem for the beginning of the first Holy Week, which would ultimately end with His death and resurrection. The day before, Jesus had cleansed the Temple of the money changers. The chief priests, scribes and elders were outraged and began to plot His death. Jesus especially addressed this parable to them.

To understand this parable, you need to understand who represents whom. The religious leaders of Israel were the tenants, the vineyard was the Jewish nation, God the Father was the man who planted the vineyard, the many servants sent to gather the produce were the prophets of old, and Jesus was the Beloved Son Who was killed. The parable concludes by saying that the owner of the vineyard (God the Father) will put the tenants to death and give the vineyard to others. In other words, the scribes, Pharisees, chief priests and elders would soon have their religious authority taken away from them, and it would be given to the Apostles and their successors. This parable, therefore, presents us with a summary of the way the Church was formed.

It’s helpful to note that the religious leaders of the time knew that Jesus addressed this parable to them, but they failed to heed the lesson. Ideally, if they were open to the gift of faith, they would have realized that they were attempting to steal the “vineyard” from God. They were attempting to control and manipulate the Kingdom of Israel, to make it into their own image, and to disregard the will of God Who established it.

This parable is especially important for anyone who exercises some form of holy authority. Parents exercise authority within the home. Bishops and priests exercise authority within the Church. And we all exercise a certain spiritual authority when we seek to fulfill our unique mission in life. The lesson from this parable is simple: don’t abuse your authority. Don’t exercise authority according to your own will; exercise it with humility only in accord with God’s will. Every leader, always and everywhere, must lead according to the mind and will of God. If they fail, they will suffer the consequences.

Reflect, today, upon any way that God has entrusted you with a spiritual duty to fulfill His mission in this world. When a duty of leadership is entrusted to a person, the leader is also entrusted with the spiritual authority to fulfill that duty in accord with the mind and will of God. This requires constant humility so that it is only God’s will that is fulfilled. Seek to exercise all authority in accord with the mind and will of God, and the vineyard entrusted to your care will bear an abundance of good fruit.

PRAYER:
Loving Father, You have chosen to send me, as a tenant of Your Kingdom, to bear good fruit for eternal life. Please help me to always exercise the authority and duty entrusted to me with humility so that I will seek to fulfill Your will and Your will alone. Jesus, I trust in You.