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Catholic Daily Liturgical Guide 09.09.2022

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Catholic Daily Liturgical Guide 09.09.2022

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1ST CORINTHIANS 9: 16 – 19, 22b – 27

Brethren: If I preach the gospel, that gives me no ground for boasting. For necessity is laid upon me. Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel! For if I do this of my own will, I have a reward; but if not of my own will, I am entrusted with a commission. What then is my reward? Just this: that in my preaching I may make the gospel free of charge, not making full use of my right in the gospel. For though I am free from all men, I have made myself a slave to all, that I might win the more. I have become all things to all men, that I might by all means save some. I do it all for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings. Do you not know that in a race all the runners compete, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we are imperishable. Well, I do not run aimlessly, I do not box as one beating the air; but I pommel my body and subdue it, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified.

The Word of the Lord.

RESPONSORIAL PSALM
Psalm 84: 3, 4, 5 — 6, 12 (R.) 2

R/. How lovely is your dwelling place, O Lord of hosts!

My soul is longing and
yearning for the courts of the Lord.
My heart and my flesh cry
out to the living God. R/.

Even the sparrow finds a home,
and the swallow a nest for herself
in which she sets her young, at your altars,
O Lord of hosts, my king and my God. R/.

Blessed are they who dwell in your house,
forever singing your praise.
Blessed is the man whose strength is in you,
whose heart is set on pilgrim ways. R/.

For the Lord God is a sun, a shield;
the Lord will give us his favour and glory.
He will not withhold any good
to those who walk without blame. R/.

ALLELUIA
John 17: 17ba

Alleluia.
Your word, O Lord is truth; sanctify us in the truth.
Alleluia.

GOSPEL
“Can a blind man lead a blind man?”
LUKE 6: 39 – 42

At that time: Jesus told his disciples a parable: “Can a blind man lead a blind man? Will they not both fall into a pit? A disciple is not above his teacher, but every one when he is fully taught will be like his teacher. Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, let me take out the speck that is in your eye,’ when you yourself do not see the log that is in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take out the speck that is in your brother’s eye.”

The Gospel of the Lord.
REFLECTION: Noticing the Sins of Others
September 9, 2022

“Why do you notice the splinter in your brother’s eye, but do not perceive the wooden beam in your own?” (Luke 6:41)

How true this is! How easy it is to see the minor faults of others and, at the same time, fail to see our own more obvious and serious faults. Why is this the case?

First of all, it’s hard to see our own faults because our sin of pride blinds us. Pride keeps us from any honest self-reflection. Pride becomes a mask we wear which presents a false persona. Pride is an ugly sin because it keeps us from the truth. It keeps us from seeing ourselves in the light of truth and, as a result, it keeps us from seeing the log in our own eye.

When we are full of pride, another thing happens. We start to focus in on every small fault of those around us. Interestingly, this Gospel speaks of the tendency to see the “splinter” in your brother’s eye. What does that tell us? It tells us that those who are full of pride are not so much interested in putting down the serious sinner. Rather, they tend to seek out those who have only small sins, “splinters” as sins, and they tend to try and make them seem more serious than they are. Sadly, those steeped in pride feel far more threatened by the saint than by the serious sinner.

Reflect, today, upon whether or not you struggle with being judgmental toward those around you. Especially reflect upon whether or not you tend to be more critical of those striving for holiness. If you do tend to do this, it may reveal that you struggle with pride more than you realize.

PRAYER:
Lord, humble me and help me to be free of all pride. May I also let go of judgmentalness and see others only in the way You want me to see them. Jesus, I trust in You

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