" Let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven."

＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊

1 kings 17:7-16

 After a while,

The brook dried up be­cause no rain had fallen in the land.  Then Yahweh spoke to Eli­jah,   “Go to Zarephath of the Sido­nites and stay there. I have given word to a widow there to give you food.”  So Elijah went to Zare­phath. On reaching the gate of the town, he saw a widow gathering sticks. He called to her and said, “Bring me a little water in a vessel that I may drink.”

 As she was going to bring it, he called after her and said, “Bring me also a piece of bread.”   But she answered, “As Yahweh your God lives, I have no bread left but only a handful of flour in a jar and a little oil in a jug. I am just now gathering some sticks so that I may go in and prepare something for myself and my son to eat – and die.”

Elijah then said to her, “Do not be afraid. Go and do as you have said, but first make me a little cake of it and bring it to me; then make some for yourself and your son.   For this is the word of Yahweh, the God of Israel, ‘The jar of meal shall not be emptied nor shall the jug of oil fail, until the day when Yahweh sends rain to the earth.”

 So she went and did as Elijah told her; and she had food for herself, Elijah and her son from that day on.   The jar of flour was not emptied nor did the jug of oil fail, in accordance with what Yahweh had said through Elijah.

 

Ps 4:2-3, 4-5, 7b-8

Lord, let your face shine on us.

 

＊＊＊＊ Gospel ＊＊＊＊   

Matthew 5:13-16

You are the salt of the earth. But if salt has lost its strength, how can it be made salty again? It has become useless. It can only be thrown away and people will trample on it.

 You are the light of the world. A city built on a mountain cannot be hidden.   No one lights a lamp and covers it; instead it is put on a lamp­stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house.  In the same way your light must shine before others, so that they may see the good you do and praise your Father in heaven.

 

  Gospel Reflection：

Being Salt & Light

When food has optimal saltiness, hardly anyone praises the salt. But a bit too much of it or too little of it, all blame is on the salt. Similarly, when the light is optimal, the lamp hardly gets praised; but if it is too much or too little, we are upset and we complain.

The same goes for a true disciple of Christ. When a Christian functions optimally in the world, He is taken for granted and is forgotten; there are many others to claim the credit for the good that happens around. However, when his/her services are lacking or go wrong, the blame falls squarely on him-her.

Perhaps, it is meant to be: to keep doing one’s duty optimally, hardly inviting attention to oneself (a la John the Baptist who was content the Baptist who was content playing second fiddle and letting himself decrease) while flavouring and brightening the life of the world.