THURSDAY, AUGUST 22ND 2024.

TWENTIETH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME YEAR B.

MEMORIAL OF QUEENSHIP OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY.

FIRST READING     
“A new heart I will give you, and a new spirit I will put within you.”
EZEKIEL 36: 23 – 28

Thus says the Lord: “I will vindicate the holiness of my great name, which has been profaned among the nations, and which you have profaned among them; and the nations will know that I am the Lord, says the Lord GOD, when through you I vindicate my holiness before their eyes. For I will take you from the nations, and gather you from all the countries, and bring you into your own land. I will sprinkle clean water upon you, and you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols I will cleanse you. A new heart I will give you, and a new spirit I will put within you; and I will take out of your flesh the heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to observe my ordinances. You shall dwell in the land which I gave to your fathers; and you shall be my people, and I will be your God.

The Word of the Lord.

RESPONSORIAL PSALM
Psalm 51: 12 – 13, 14 – 15, 18 – 19 (R.) Ezekiel 36: 25.

R/.  I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses.

Create a pure heart for me, O God;
renew a steadfast spirit within me.
Do not cast me away from your presence;
take not your holy spirit from me. R/.

Restore in me the joy of your salvation;
sustain in me a willing spirit.
I will teach transgressors your ways,
that sinners may return to you. R/.

For in sacrifice you take no delight;
burnt offering from me would not please you.
My sacrifice to God, a broken spirit:
a broken and humbled heart, O God, 
you will not spurn. R/.

GOSPEL ACCLAMATION 
Psalm 95: 7d, 8a

Alleluia.
Today, harden not your hearts, but listen to the voice of the Lord.
Alleluia.

GOSPEL
“Invite to the marriage feast as many as you find.’’
MATTHEW 22: 1 – 14

At that time: Again Jesus spoke to the chief priests and the elders of the people in parables, saying, “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a marriage feast for his son, and sent his servants to call those who were invited to the marriage feast; but they would not come. Again he sent other servants, saying, ‘Tell those who are invited, Behold, I have made ready my dinner, my oxen and my fat calves are killed, and everything is ready; come to the marriage feast.’ But they made light of it and went off, one to his farm, another to his business, while the rest seized his servants, treated them shamefully, and killed them. The king was angry, and he sent his troops and destroyed those murderers and burnt their city. “Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding is ready, but those invited were not worthy. Go therefore to the streets, and invite to the marriage feast as many as you find.’ And those servants went out into the streets and gathered all whom they found, both bad and good; so the wedding hall was filled with guests. “But when the king came in to look at the guests, he saw there a man who had no wedding garment; and he said to him, ‘Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding garment?’ And he was speechless. Then the king said to the attendants, ‘Bind him hand and foot, and cast him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and quashing of teeth.’ For many are called, but few are chosen.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

22 Nyamavhuvhu – August Kurangarira Mai Maria, Hosi namai vaJesu – China

Chiverengo chokutanga: Ezekieri 36,23-28
Inzwai chiverengo chinobva mubhuku romuporofita Ezekieri
Izwi raTenzi rakauya kwandiri richiti, 23 “Ndicharatidza kuyera kwezita rangu guru
rakan’oreswa mukati memarudzi, ramakan’oresa
iyemi mukati mavo. Marudzi achaziva kuti ndini
Tenzi, ndizvo zviri kutaura Tenzi Mwari. Ipapo
ndinenge ndazviita nemamuri, ndichiratidza kuye-
ra kwangu ivo vachiona. 24Chiripo ndechichi, cho-
kuti ini ndichakubvisai mumarudzi, ndigokuko-
korodzai kubva munyika dzose, ndigokuuisai
kunyika yenyu.
25Ndichakusasai mvura yakachena muchibva ma-
chenurwa kun’ora kwenyu kwose. Ndichaku-
chenurai kuzvifananidzo zvenyu zvokunamata.
26 Ndichakupai mwoyo mutsva, ndigoisa mamuri
mweya mutsva. Ndichabvisawo mamuri mwoyo
wedombo, ndichikupai mwoyo wenyama. 27 Ndi-
chaisa mweya wangu mamuri, ndigoita kuti mute-
vere mirawo yangu nokuchengeta zvirewo zvangu.
28 Muchagara munyika yandakapa kumadzibaba
enyu, muchava vanhu vangu ini, ndichava Mwari
wenyu.”
Shoko raTenzi.
Rwiyo rwokutsinhira:
Nziyo 51,10-11.12-13.16-17. (D – Ezekieri 36,25)
(D) – Ndichakusasai mvura yakachena
muchibva machenurwa kun’ora
kwenyu kwose.
10 Ndipei mwoyo wakachena, Mwari wangu
muise mandiri mweya kwawo mutsva.
11 Musandidzinge pamuri,
uye musabvise Mweya wenyu mutsvene mandiri.
(D) – Ndichakusasai mvura yakachena
muchibva machenurwa kun’ora
kwenyu kwose.
12 Ndidzorerewo rufaro rworuponeso rwenyu,
mundichengetedze ndiine mwoyo wokuteerera.
13 Ndingatozodzidziswa nzira dzenyu,
vanhu vanokanganisa, vatadzi
vachitozodzokerawo kwamuri.
(D) – Ndichakusasai mvura yakachena
muchibva machenurwa kun’ora
kwenyu kwose.
16 Nokuti hachisi chibayiro chamunofarira imi,
kunyange zvazvo ndaipira mupiro wokupisa,
hamaimbofadzwa nawo,
17 chibayiro changu kunemi Mwari, mwoyo
wakatyoka-tyoka,
mwoyo wakatyoka uye wakatendeuka
hamushore, Mwari.
(D) – Ndichakusasai mvura yakachena
muchibva machenurwa kun’ora
kwenyu kwose.
Kupemberera Shoko Rakanaka: Nziyo 95,7-8

Areruya, Areruya. Dai nhasi
mukangoteererawo zvenyu kuizwi rake.
Musaomese mwoyo yenyu. Areruya.

Shoko Rakanaka: Mateu 22,1-14
Inzwai Shoko Rakanaka rakanyorwa naMateu
1 Jesu akataura kuna vapristi vakuru, navakuru
vakuru vavanhu nomuenzaniso achiti,
2 “Umambo hwedenga hungafananidzwe namambo
akaitira mwanakomana wake mabiko omuchato.
3Akatuma varanda vake kundodaidza avo vakanga
vakokwa kumabiko omuchato; asi havana kuda
kuuya. 4Akatumazve vamwe varanda achiti indo-
taurirai vakakokwa vaya kuti, ‘Onai, ndagadzirira
mabiko angu, ndabaya mombe, ndikabaya zvi-
mhuru zvangu zvakakora. Zvose zvagadzirirwa.
Chiuyai kumabiko omuchato.’ 5 Asi ivo havana
kumboita hanya nazvo, vakabva vatoenda zvavo,
mumwe kupurazi yake, mumwe kushawo yake.
6Vamwewo vakatobata varanda vake, vakavafumura
vakavauraya. 7 Mambo akashatirwa akatumira
masoja ake akaparadza mhondi idzodzo. Akapisa
guta ravo. 8 Akazoti kuvaranda vake, ‘Muchato
wagadzirirwa asi vaya vakakokwa vanga vasina
kukodzera. 9 Saka endai pamharadzano dzemi-
gwagwa mundokoka kumabiko omuchato vose vamunenge makwanisa kuwana.’ 10Varanda vaya
vakafamba nemigwagwa vakakokorodza vose
vavakakwanisa kuwana, vakanaka navakaipa. Sa-
izvozvo zimba romuchato rakazara navakanga
vakokwa.
11Mambo paakauya kuzoona vaeni, akaona imomo
mumwe munhu akanga asina hanzu yomuchato.
12 Akati kwaari, ‘Shamwari, wapinda seiko muno
usina hanzu yomuchato?’ Akabva aomerwa nero-
kutaura. 13 Mambo akati kuna vashandi vake,
‘Musungei maoko namakumbo mumukande muri-
ma rokunze. Ikoko vanhu vachachema nokuru-
manidza mazino.’ 14Nokuti vazhinji vanodaidzwa
asi vashoma ndivo vanosarudzwa.
Shoko Rakanaka raTenzi.

GOSPEL REFLECTION: An Invitation From the Father
Thursday, August 22, 2024

“The Kingdom of heaven may be likened to a king who gave a wedding feast for his son. He dispatched his servants to summon the invited guests to the feast, but they refused to come.” (Matthew 22:2–3)

The king in this parable is God the Father, and the wedding is the marriage between Christ and the Church. The Father invites each one of us to be a member of the Church and to enter into divine union with His Son Jesus, thus entering into the life of the Holy Trinity. But we see right away in the parable that the invited guests “refused to come.” As the parable goes on, the king tried even harder to invite the guests, but they all responded in one of two ways. “Some ignored the invitation and went away…” and “The rest laid hold of his servants, mistreated them, and killed them.” Clearly, this was not the response hoped for by the generous king.

We see in these two responses two levels of rejection of the Gospel that are present in our world today, just as it was at the time of Jesus. The first level of rejection is indifference. Many people are very busy today. We easily become occupied with many things that matter little in the end. Many are consumed by their smartphones, computers and tablets. Many spend countless hours watching television. Others become workaholics, spending most of their time at their occupation and leaving little time for that which is most important, such as family, prayer and service. As a result, it is very easy to become indifferent to the matters of faith and easy to fail to pray every day so as to seek out and fulfill God’s will. This indifference is quite serious.

There is also a rejection of the faith in our world through a growing hostility toward the Church and morality. There are many ways in which the secular world continues to promote a culture that is contrary to the Gospel. And when Christians speak out and oppose these new cultural tendencies, they are condemned and often characterized as being prejudiced or judgmental. Such malice was displayed by the guests in this parable who “laid hold of his servants, mistreated them, and killed them.” Hostility toward the Church, the faith and clear moral principles laid down by God appears to be growing every year. This form of rejection of the Gospel is even more damaging than the simple indifference mentioned above. In this parable for today, Jesus says that in response to those who were indifferent and hostile, the king “sent his troops, destroyed those murderers, and burned their city.”

This parable should not be read in such a way that we look at others and condemn them as if we were the king and had the right to do so. We do not have that right. Only God does. Instead, this parable should be read from the perspective of your own life. Hopefully you are not one of those who are hostile to the Gospel. But perhaps you and many other Christians struggle with the first form of rejection: indifference. We can easily become indifferent in many various ways and on many different levels. The opposite of being indifferent is to care and to care deeply about going to the wedding feast when invited.

Reflect, today, upon the Wedding Feast to which you are invited. You are invited to enter into the glorious celebration of becoming one with the Savior of the World. You are invited to surrender your life to Him without reserve. You are invited to holiness, moral integrity, unwavering fidelity to God, service of others, charity that knows no bounds and so much more. To enter the Wedding Feast of the Lamb is something that must take place every day and every moment of your day for the rest of your life. God is inviting you. Will you say “Yes” with every fiber of your being?

PRAYER:
My inviting Lord, You desire that all people fully accept the invitation You have given to become one with You through spiritual marriage. You call us to the glorious Wedding Feast and eternal rejoicing. May I never be indifferent to Your invitation and always make my response with all my heart. I love You, dear Lord. Help me to love You all the more. Jesus, I trust in You.