"Christ calls us to look forward to eternal life."

“And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God,

and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.”

 

＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊     

Genesis 15:1-12, 17-18

After this the word of the Lord

Was spoken to Abram in a vision: "Do not be afraid, Abram, I am your shield; your reward will be very great!"

Abram said, "My Lord, where are your promises? I am still childless and all I have will go to Eliezer of Damascus.

You have given me no children, so a slave of mine will be my heir."

 

Then the word of the Lord was spoken to him again, "Eliezer will not be your heir,

but a child born of you (your own flesh and blood) will be your heir."

Then the Lord brought him outside and said to him, "Look up at the sky and count the stars if you can.

 

Your descendants will be like that."

Abram believed the Lord who, because of this, held him to be an upright man. And he said,

"I am the Lord who brought you from Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land as your possession."

 

Then Abram asked, "My Lord, how am I to know that it shall be mine?" the Lord replied, "

Bring me a three-year-old heifer, a three-year-old goat, a three-year-old ram, a turtle dove and a young pigeon."

Abram brought all these animals, cut them in two, and laid each half facing its other half, but he did not cut the birds in half.

The birds of prey came down upon them, but Abram drove them away.

 

As the sun was going down, a deep sleep came over Abram, and a dreadful darkness took hold of him.

When the sun had set and darkness had fallen, a smoking firepot and a flaming torch passed between the halves of the victims.

On that day the Lord made a Covenant with Abram saying, "

To your descendants I have given this country from the river of Egypt to the Great River, the Euphrates.

 

Ps 105:1-2, 3-4, 6-7, 8-9 The Lord remembers his covenant forever.

 

＊＊＊ Gospel ＊＊＊       Gospel Reflection ：

Matthew 7:15-20

Beware of false prophets: they come to you in sheep's clothing; but inside, they are voracious wolves.

You will recognize them by their fruits. Do you ever pick grapes from thorn bushes; or figs from thistles?

A good tree always produces good fruit. A rotten tree produces bad fruit.

A good tree cannot produce bad fruit; and a rotten tree cannot bear good fruit.

Any tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. So then, you will know them by their fruit.

 

Gospel Reflection ：

"Christ calls us to look forward to eternal life."

Studies have shown that, long before the time of Christ, Aesop's Fables were known to the Jews and influenced their own teaching stories.

Perhaps Jesus is using an image from Aesop's Fables in today's Gospel,

but he adapts it. Aesop cautions that wearing a disguise or disguising one's intention will end badly.

In his fable, the wolf disguised as a sheep does not get to attack the sheep,

as he is mistaken for a sheep by the farmer and killed for food. The wolf in sheep's clothing in Christ's parable is far more dangerous.

 

He is left to attack the sheep and they are devoured. Here the focus is the sheep,

that they remain alert and not be tricked by falsehood. Aesop's fables often end with a moral.

They describe truths of life and warn people about the ways of the world.

Christ's parables do more than this since they look at things from the perspective of God's Kingdom.

They give a message of salvation, preach justice and mercy, and challenge people to change for the better.

Aesop offers practical advice for this life. Christ calls us to look forward to eternal life and to mould our actions accordingly.