Catholic Daily Liturgical Guide 14.02.2023

GENESIS 6: 5 – 8; 7: 1 – 5, 10

The LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And the Lord was sorry that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart. So the Lord said, “I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of the ground, man and beast and creeping things and birds of the air, for I am sorry that I have made them.” But Noah found favour in the eyes of the Lord. Then the Lord said to Noah, “Go into the ark, you and all your household, for I have seen that you are righteous before me in this generation. Take with you seven pairs of all clean animals, the male and his mate; and a pair of the animals that are not clean, the male and his mate; and seven pairs of the birds of the air also, male and female, to keep their kind alive upon the face of all the earth. For in seven days I will send rain upon the earth forty days and forty nights; and every living thing that I have made I will blot out from the face of the ground.” And Noah did all that the Lord had commanded him. And after seven days the waters of the flood came upon the earth.

The Word of the Lord.

RESPONSORIAL PSALM
Psalm 29: 1a, 2, 3ac – 4, 3b, 9c – 10 (R.) 11b

R/. The Lord will bless his people with peace.

Ascribe to the Lord, you heavenly powers,
ascribe to the Lord the glory of his name;
bow down before the Lord,
majestic in holiness. R/.

The voice of the LORD upon the waters,
the Lord on the immensity of waters
the voice of the Lord full of power;
the voice of the Lord full of splendour. R/

The God of glory thunders;
in his temple they all cry, “Glory!”
The Lord sat enthroned above the flood;
the Lord sits as king forever. R/.

ALLELUIA
John 14: 23

Alleluia.
If a man loves me, he will keep my word, says the Lord; and my Father will love him, and we will come to him.
Alleluia.

GOSPEL
“Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of Herod.”
MARK 8: 14 – 21

At that time: The disciples had forgotten to bring bread; and they has only one loaf with them in the boat. And Jesus cautioned them, saying. “Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod. “And they discussed it with one another, saying, “We have no bread. “And being aware of it. Jesus said to them, “Why do you discuss the fact that you have no bread? Do you not yet perceive or understand? Are your hearts hardened? Having eyes do you not see, and having ears do you not hear? And do you not remember? When I broke the five loaves, for the five thousand, how many basket full of broken pieces did you take up?” They said to him, “Twelve” “And the seven for the four thousand how many baskets full of broken pieces did you take up?” And they said to him, “And he said to them, “Do you not yet understand?”

The Gospel of the Lord.

GOSPEL REFLECTION: Comprehending the Mysteries of Heaven
February 14, 2023

“Do you not yet understand or comprehend? Are your hearts hardened? Do you have eyes and not see, ears and not hear?” (Mark 8:17–18)

How would you answer these questions that Jesus posed to His disciples if He had posed them to you? It takes humility to admit that you do not yet understand or comprehend, that your heart is in fact hardened, and that you fail to see and hear all that God has revealed. Of course there are various levels to these struggles, so hopefully you do not struggle with them to a grave degree. But if you can humbly confess that you do struggle with these to a certain extent, then that humility and honesty will gain you much grace.

Jesus posed these questions to His disciples within the larger context of a discussion about the leaven of the Pharisees and Herod. He knew that the “leaven” of these leaders was like a yeast that corrupted others. Their dishonesty, pride, desire for honors and the like had a seriously negative affect upon the faith of others. So by posing these questions above, Jesus challenged His disciples to see this evil leaven and to reject it.

Seeds of doubt and confusion are all around us. It seems these days that almost everything the secular world promotes is in some way contrary to the Kingdom of God. And yet, just like the disciples’ inability to see the evil leaven of the Pharisees and Herod, we also frequently fail to see the evil leaven within our society. Instead, we allow the many errors to confuse us and lead us down the path of secularism.

One thing this should teach us is that just because someone has some form of authority or power within society does not mean that they are a truthful and holy leader. And though it’s never our place to judge the heart of another, we absolutely must have “ears to hear” and “eyes to see” the many errors that are held up within our world as good. We must constantly seek to “understand and comprehend” the laws of God and use them as a guide against the lies within the world. One important way to make sure we do this well is to make sure that our hearts never become hardened to the truth.

Reflect, today, upon these questions of our Lord and examine them especially within the broader context of society as a whole. Consider the false “leaven” taught by our world and by so many in positions of authority. Reject these errors and recommit yourself to the full embrace of the holy mysteries of Heaven so that those truths and those truths alone become your daily guide.

PRAYER:
My glorious Lord, I thank You for being the Lord of all Truth. Help me to daily turn my eyes and ears to that Truth so that I will be able to see the evil leaven all around me. Give me wisdom and the gift of discernment, dear Lord, so that I will be able to immerse myself into the mysteries of Your holy life. Jesus, I trust in You.