St. Blase, bishop & martyr

St. Ansgar, bishop 

＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊

Hebrews 12:4-7, 11-15

Have you already shed your blood

In the struggle against sin?  Do not forget the comforting words that Wisdom addresses to you as children: My son, pay attention when the Lord corrects you and do not be discouraged when he punishes you. For the Lord corrects those he loves and chastises everyone he accepts as a son.  What you endure is in order to correct you.

God treats you like sons and what son is not corrected by his father? All correction is painful at the moment, rather than pleasant; later it brings the fruit of peace, that is, holiness to those who have been trained by it.

Lift up, then, your drooping hands, and strengthen your trembling knees; make level the ways for your feet, so that the lame may not be disabled, but healed.  Strive for peace with all and strive to be holy, for without holiness no one will see the Lord.  See that no one falls from the grace of God, lest a bitter plant spring up and its poison corrupt many among you.

 

Ps 103:1-2, 13-14, 17-18a

 

＊＊＊＊ Gospel ＊＊＊＊

Mark 6:1-6

 Leaving that place, Jesus re­ turned to his own coun­try, and his dis­ciples followed him. When the Sabbath came, he began teaching in the synagogue, and most of those who heard him were as­tonished.

They commen­ted, “How did this come to him? What kind of wisdom has been given to him that he also performs such miracles? Who is he but the carpenter, the son of Mary and the brother of James and Joset and Judas and Simon? His sisters, too, are they not here among us?” So they took offense at him.

 And Jesus said to them, “Prophets are despised only in their own country, among their relatives and in their own family.” And he could work no miracles there, but only healed a few sick people by laying his hands on them. Jesus himself was astounded at their unbelief.

 Jesus then went around the villages teach­ing.

 

 Gospel Reflection：

It is not only the words we speak that is the message. Our person and who we have become is the first thing we communicate. No wonder people despite the eloquent words of the Lord could not move past their knowledge of who Jesus is, and where He came from.

They are stuck on His outward realities rather than on the beauty of the message He delivers. That is why some people take great pains to prepare the external so that they could convince people to believe and place their confidence on them.

Jesus’ external qualifications doesn’t seem to amount much. They would not believe on the basis of His family ties that they know very much. That is why the Word that took on human flesh has to experience the limitation of His being incarnated into human realities.