November 17, 2015
Memorial of Saint Elizabeth of Hungary, Religious
Memorial of Saint Elizabeth of Hungary, Religious
Reading
1
18Eleazar,
one of the foremost scribes, a man of advanced age and noble
appearance, was being forced to open his mouth to eat pork. 19But
preferring a glorious death to a life of defilement, he spat out the
meat, and went forward of his own accord to the instrument of
torture, 20as
men ought to do who have the courage to reject the food which it is
unlawful to taste even for love of life.
21Those
in charge of that unlawful ritual meal took the man aside privately, because of their long acquaintance with him, and urged him to bring
meat of his own providing, such as he could legitimately eat, and to
pretend to be eating some of the meat of the sacrifice prescribed by
the king; 22in
this way he would escape the death penalty, and be treated kindly
because of their old friendship with him.
23But
he made up his mind in a noble manner, worthy of his years, the
dignity of his advanced age, the merited distinction of his gray
hair, and of the admirable life he had lived from childhood; and so
he declared that above all he would be loyal to the holy laws given
by God. He told them to send him at once to the abode of the dead,
explaining:
24"At
our age it would be unbecoming to make such a pretense; many young
men would think the ninety-year-old Eleazar had gone over to an alien
religion. 25Should
I thus dissimulate for the sake of a brief moment of life, they would
be led astray by me, while I would bring shame and dishonor on my old
age.
26Even
if, for the time being, I avoid the punishment of men, I shall never,
whether alive or dead, escape the hands of the Almighty. 27Therefore,
by manfully giving up my life now, I will prove myself worthy of my
old age, 28and
I will leave to the young a noble example of how to die willingly and
generously for the revered and holy laws." He spoke thus, and
went immediately to the instrument of torture.
29Those
who shortly before had been kindly disposed, now became hostile
toward him because what he had said seemed to them utter madness.
30When
he was about to die under the blows, he groaned and said: "The
Lord in his holy knowledge knows full well that, although I could
have escaped death, I am not only enduring terrible pain in my body
from this scourging, but also suffering it with joy in my soul
because of my devotion to him."
31This
is how he died, leaving in his death a model of courage and an
unforgettable example of virtue not only for the young but for the
whole nation.
Responsorial
Psalm
Many
rise up against me!
Many
are saying of me,
“There
is no salvation for him in God.”
R.
The Lord upholds me.
But
you, O LORD, are my shield;
my
glory, you lift up my head!
When
I call out to the LORD,
he
answers me from his holy mountain.
R.
The Lord upholds me.
When
I lie down in sleep,
I
wake again, for the LORD sustains me.
I
fear not the myriads of people
arrayed
against me on every side.
R.
The Lord upholds me.
Alleluia
1 John 4:10B
R.
Alleluia, alleluia.
God
loved us, and sent his Son as expiation for our sins.
R.
Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
2Now
a man there named Zacchaeus, who was a chief tax collector and also a
wealthy man, 3was
seeking to see who Jesus was; but he could not see Him because of the
crowd, for he was short in stature.
4So
he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore tree in order to see Jesus, who
was about to pass that way. 5When
he reached the place, Jesus looked up and said,
“Zacchaeus,
come down quickly, for today I must stay at your house.”
6And
he came down quickly and received him with joy. 7When
they saw this, they began to grumble, saying, “He has gone to stay
at the house of a sinner.”
8But
Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord, “Behold, half of my
possessions, Lord, I shall give to the poor, and if I have extorted
anything from anyone
I
shall repay it four times over.”
9And
Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house because
this man too is a descendant of Abraham.2
10For
the Son of Man has come to seek
and
to save what was lost.”3
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Notes on Readings:
Notes on Readings:
1) Luke
19:1-10 - The story of the tax collector Zacchaeus is unique to this
gospel. While a rich man ((Luke 19:2) , Zacchaeus provides a contrast to the rich man of Luke 18:18-23 who cannot detach himself from his material possessions to become a
follower of Jesus. Zacchaeus, according to Luke, exemplifies the
proper attitude toward wealth: he promises to give half of his
possessions to the poor (Luke 19:8) and consequently is the recipient of salvation (Luke 19:9-10).
2) Luke
19:9 - A descendant of Abraham: literally, "a son of Abraham."
The tax collector Zacchaeus, whose repentance is attested by his
determination to amend his former ways, shows himself to be a true
descendant of Abraham, the true heir to the promises of God in the
Old Testament. Underlying Luke's depiction of Zacchaeus as a
descendant of Abraham, the father of the Jews (Luke 1:73); 16:22-31, is his recognition of the central place occupied by Israel in the
plan of salvation.
3) Luke
19:10 - This verse sums up for Luke his depiction of the role of Jesus
as savior in this gospel.
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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.