Reflections on the Daily Readings 7th June 2021
Monday 7th June
Don’t rule it out
Rules are restrictive, right? Or can they be liberating? The word “rule” comes from the Greek word for “trellis,” and a trellis supports living things so they can grow up and out and bloom. The best rules create space for your priorities, turn your values into practices, and give you the freedom to live intentionally with God at the center. Why not create your own “rule of life” that helps you do that? Many Christians do. Monastic orders, starting with the Benedictines, began this tradition and all follow a rule of life to govern every aspect of life, including prayer, work, and community interaction. Rules of life can also address diet, exercise, recreation, relationships, and mental stimulation. The point is healthy balance. Thankfully, there are no rules to creating a rule of life—it’s up to you and God to decide.
Today's readings: 2 Corinthians 1:1-7; Matthew 5:1-12 “Rejoice and be glad; for your reward will be great in heaven.”
Tuesday 8th June
SOS: Save our seas!
In the beginning, says Genesis 1, God not only created the seas but made the “waters teem with swarms of living creatures.” Today, designated World Oceans Day by the United Nations, we’re reminded that God’s creation is in real danger. As Pope Francis writes in his 2015 encyclical Laudato Si’, these formerly teeming waters are increasingly a graveyard, “due largely to pollution which reaches the sea as the result of deforestation, agricultural monocultures, industrial waste and destructive fishing methods,” all of it “aggravated by the rise in temperature of the oceans.” Visit the Laudato Si’ Movement for ways to make a difference.
Today's readings: 2 Corinthians 1:18-22; Matthew 5:13-16 “Your light must shine before others, that they may see your good deeds.”
Wednesday 9th June
Faith fulfils life
The definition of fulfill is “to put into effect, to convert to reality.” Jesus teaches that the best way to bring the Kingdom into effect is to practice mercy and humility, to hunger and thirst for righteousness, to work at making peace, and to understand that persecution can befall those who preach and live his message. In Jesus, the law of the prophets was not abolished but fulfilled. How do you choose to live your faith in a fulfilling way?
Today's readings: 2 Corinthians 3:4-11; Matthew 5:17-19 “I have come not to abolish but to fulfil.”
Thursday 10th June
Mercy me
It is hard to overstate the centrality of forgiveness within the Christian tradition: both God’s forgiveness when we do wrong and our forgiveness when others hurt us. Forgiveness is so foundational, we have a sacrament for it; it’s in our creed; it’s part of The Lord’s Prayer; Pope Francis declared 2016 the Year of Mercy; and the list goes on. Do you need to forgive or be forgiven, or perhaps both? Now is the acceptable time to seek or extend mercy.
Today's readings: 2 Corinthians 3:15—4:1, 3-6; Matthew 5:20-26 “Leave your gift there at the altar, go first and be reconciled with your brother.”
Friday 11th June
Solemnity of the most sacred heart of Jesus
Promise with all your heart
The devotion to the Sacred Heart, which dates back centuries, includes consecrating oneself to, and benefiting from, the promises of the Sacred Heart. In honor of today’s feast, consider committing to the following: Consecrate all your actions to glorify the Sacred Heart; consecrate all your weakness within the strength of the Sacred Heart; consecrate all your confidence in the faithfulness of the Sacred Heart. Do this and the peace of Christ, who is our peace, will be with you.
Today's readings: Hosea 11:1, 3-4, 8c-9; Ephesians 3:8-12, 14-19; John 19:31-37 “For this reason I kneel before the Father . . . that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith.”
Saturday 12th June
Memorial Of The Immaculate Heart Of The Blessed Virgin Mary
May your heart be on fire with love
Yesterday we celebrated the Sacred Heart of Jesus, and today we commemorate the Immaculate Heart of Mary: two hearts on fire with love and made one in suffering. The Sacred Heart symbolizes the love of God for people, pierced by the thorns of rejection. The Immaculate Heart symbolizes the love of people for God, wounded with a sword of suffering in solidarity with Christ. Remembering that Jesus identified with the struggles of the least of our sisters and brothers, today we can pray for those refugees driven from their homes by violence and poverty and waiting for help at our southern border.
Today's readings: 2 Corinthians 5:14-21; Luke 2:41-51 (364; Gospel 573). “His mother kept all these things in her heart.”
