November
23, 2015
Monday
of the Thirty-fourth Week in Ordinary Time
Saint
of the Day: Blessed Miguel Pro
Reading
1
1In
the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, King
Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon came and
laid siege to Jerusalem. 2The
Lord handed over to him Jehoiakim, king of Judah, and
some of the vessels of the temple of God; he
carried them off to the land of Shinar, and
placed the vessels in the temple treasury of his god.[1]
3The
king told Ashpenaz, his chief chamberlain, to
bring in some of the children of Israel of royal blood and
of the nobility, 4young men without any defect, handsome,
intelligent and wise, quick
to learn, and prudent in judgment, such
as could take their place in the king’s palace; they
were to be taught the language and literature of the Chaldeans; 5after
three years’ training they were to enter the king’s service.
The
king allotted them a daily portion of food and wine from
the royal table. 6Among
these were men of Judah: Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael,
and Azariah.
8But
Daniel was resolved not to defile himself with
the king’s food or wine; so
he begged the chief chamberlain to spare him this defilement.[2]
9Though
God had given Daniel the favor and sympathy of
the chief chamberlain, 10he nevertheless said to Daniel, “I
am afraid of my lord the king; it
is he who allotted your food and drink. If
he sees that you look wretched by
comparison with the other young men of your age, you
will endanger my life with the king.”
11Then
Daniel said to the steward whom the chief chamberlain had
put in charge of Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael,
and Azariah, 12“Please
test your servants for ten days. Give
us vegetables to eat and water to drink. 13Then
see how we look in comparison with the other young men who
eat from the royal table, and
treat your servants according to what you see.”
14He
acceded to this request, and tested them for ten days; 15after
ten days they looked healthier and better fed than
any of the young men who ate from the royal table.
16So
the steward continued to take away the
food and wine they were to receive, and gave them vegetables. 17To
these four young men God gave knowledge and proficiency in
all literature and science, and
to Daniel the understanding of all visions and dreams.
18At
the end of the time the king had specified for their preparation, the
chief chamberlain brought them before Nebuchadnezzar. 19When
the king had spoken with all of them, none
was found equal to Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael,
and Azariah;
and
so they entered the king’s service.
20In
any question of wisdom or prudence which the king put to them, he
found them ten times better than
all the magicians and enchanters in his kingdom.
Responsorial
Psalm
52“Blessed
are you, O Lord, the God of our fathers, praiseworthy
and exalted above all forever; And
blessed is your holy and glorious name, praiseworthy
and exalted above all for all ages.”
R.
Glory and praise for ever!
53“Blessed
are you in the temple of your holy glory, praiseworthy
and glorious above all forever.”
R.
Glory and praise for ever!
54“Blessed
are you on the throne of your Kingdom, praiseworthy
and exalted above all forever.”
R.
Glory and praise for ever!
55“Blessed
are you who look into the depths from
your throne upon the cherubim,
praiseworthy
and exalted above all forever.”
R.
Glory and praise for ever!
56“Blessed
are you in the firmament of heaven, praiseworthy
and glorious forever.”
R.
Glory and praise for ever!
Alleluia
Matthew 24:42a, 44
R.
Alleluia, alleluia.
Stay
awake!
For
you do not know when the Son of Man will come.
R.
Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
1When
Jesus looked up He saw some wealthy people putting
their offerings into the treasury[3] 2and
He noticed a poor widow putting in two small coins. 3He
said, “I tell you truly, this
poor widow put in more than all the rest; 4for
those others have all made offerings from their surplus wealth, but
she, from her poverty, has offered her whole livelihood.”
Notes on Readings:
[1] Daniel 1:2 - Shinar:
ancient name for Babylonia, a deliberate archaism in this text; compare with Genesis 10:10; 11:2.
[2] Daniel 1:8 - This
defilement: the bread, meat, and wine of the Gentiles, which were unclean (Hosea 9:3); ⇒ Tobit 1:12 http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0839/__PCB.HTM
; Judith 10:5; 12:1-2 because they might have been offered to
idols or prepared over firewood taken from a sacred grove. Only raw vegetables
and water were safe from this danger (Daniel 1:12).
[3] Luke 21:1-4 - The widow
is another example of the poor ones in this gospel whose detachment from
material possessions and dependence on God leads to their blessedness (Luke 6:20). Her simple offering provides a striking contrast to the pride and
pretentiousness of the scribes denounced in the preceding section (Luke 20:45-47). The story is taken from Mark 12:41-44.
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Dear Humanity,
I personally encourage everyone to emulate JESUS' values on LOVE, FAITH, HOPE
and CHARITY, as the humanity has been a failure; which resulted to the more than two (2) years of pandemic and its after-effects on economy, not only here in the Philippines but worldwide.
And the saddest part of it, is that, it affected the POOREST of the POOR to even extremely be more poorer, in exchange of the affluent to be more richer.
Thank you and may GOD bless you and the whole family to have an enjoyed life's journey at home, Church, schools/universities, corporate commitments, public and places of interest.