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22 May 2024 - Wednesday of week 7 in Ordinary Time - Readings

or Saint Rita of Cascia 
or Saint Joachina de Vedruna de Mas, Married, Religious 

Liturgical Colour: Green. Year: B(II)
Readings at Mass
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First reading
James 4:13-17

You have no idea what your life will be like. Instead, you should say: If the Lord wills it.

Beloved: Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we shall go into such and such a town, spend a year there doing business, and make a profit”– you have no idea what your life will be like tomorrow. You are a puff of smoke that appears briefly and then disappears. Instead, you should say, “If the Lord wills it, we shall live to do this or that.” But now you are boasting in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil. So for one who knows the right thing to do and does not do it, it is a sin.

Commentary

James 4:13-17 offers a sobering reminder about the dangers of presumptuous planning and the importance of humility before God. Here are five key points from this passage:

  1. Warning Against Presumptuous Planning (James 4:13): James cautions those who make confident future plans without considering God's role, reflecting an overconfidence in their control over their lives.

  2. The Uncertainty and Brevity of Life (James 4:14): He emphasizes that life is unpredictable and fleeting, comparing it to a mist that appears briefly and then vanishes, highlighting human frailty.

  3. Dependence on God’s Will (James 4:15): Believers are advised to acknowledge God’s sovereignty by saying, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that,” promoting humility and reliance on God.

  4. Condemnation of Arrogant Boasting (James 4:16): James condemns boasting about future plans without considering God’s will, labeling such arrogance as evil due to its prideful and self-reliant nature.

  5. The Sin of Omission (James 4:17): He concludes by stating that knowing the right thing to do and failing to do it is sin, urging believers to act righteously and align their actions with God’s will.

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Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 49:2-3, 6-7, 8-10, 11

Blessed are the poor in spirit; the Kingdom of heaven is theirs!

Hear this, all you people;
    hearken, all who dwell in the world,
Of lowly birth or high degree,
    rich and poor alike.

Blessed are the poor in spirit; the Kingdom of heaven is theirs!

Why should I fear in evil days
    when my wicked ensnarers ring me round?
They trust in their wealth;
    the abundance of their riches is their boast.

Blessed are the poor in spirit; the Kingdom of heaven is theirs!

Yet in no way can a man redeem himself,
    or pay his own ransom to God;
Too high is the price to redeem one’s life; he would never have enough
    to remain alive always and not see destruction.

Blessed are the poor in spirit; the Kingdom of heaven is theirs!

For he can see that wise men die,
    and likewise the senseless and the stupid pass away,
    leaving to others their wealth.

Blessed are the poor in spirit; the Kingdom of heaven is theirs!
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Gospel Acclamation
John 14:6

Alleluia, alleluia.
I am the way and the truth and the life, says the Lord;
no one comes to the Father except through me.
Alleluia, alleluia.

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Gospel
Mark 9:38-40

Whoever is not against us is for us.

John said to Jesus, “Teacher, we saw someone driving out demons in your name, and we tried to prevent him because he does not follow us.” Jesus replied, “Do not prevent him. There is no one who performs a mighty deed in my name who can at the same time speak ill of me. For whoever is not against us is for us.”

Commentary

This little incident must be read in the light of a similar incident in Numbers 11.28. Moses had appointed seventy elders and the spirit came down on them. Then it was reported to him that others were also prophesying, but he refused to stop them. Are both Moses and Jesus saying that the Spirit of God may be at work outside the regular boundaries of Church structures? We should surely be alert to the presence of the Spirit wherever the work of the Spirit is being done, even though it is beyond the official boundaries of the Church. Whether it is the work of the Spirit or not must then be judged in the wider context of Christian values. The Spirit may be manifested in many unexpected circumstances and people. We should be prepared to recognize it, cautiously perhaps but readily.
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