17th Sunday in Ordinary Time <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Liturgical Colour: Green.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Readings at Mass<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Entrance Antiphon
Cf. Ps 67: 6-7, 36<\/p>\n\n\n\n
God is in his holy place,
God who unites those who dwell in his house;
he himself gives might and strength to his people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Collect<\/p>\n\n\n\n
O God, protector of those who hope in you,
without whom nothing has firm foundation, nothing is holy,
bestow in abundance your mercy upon us
and grant that, with you as our ruler and guide,
we may use the good things that pass
in such a way as to hold fast even now
to those that ever endure.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
First reading
2 Kings 4:42-44 \u00b7
They will eat, and have some left over<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A man came from Baal-shalishah, bringing Elisha, the man of God, bread from the first-fruits, twenty barley loaves and fresh grain in the ear.\u2019 \u2018Give it to the people to eat\u2019, Elisha said. But his servant replied, \u2018How can I serve this to a hundred men?\u2019 \u2018Give it to the people to eat\u2019 he insisted \u2018for the Lord says this, \u201cThey will eat and have some left over.\u201d\u2019 He served them; they ate and had some left over, as the Lord had said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 144(145):10-11,15-18<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The hand of the Lord feeds us; he answers all our needs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
All your creatures shall thank you, O Lord,
and your friends shall repeat their blessing.
They shall speak of the glory of your reign
and declare your might, O God.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The hand of the Lord feeds us; he answers all our needs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The eyes of all creatures look to you
and you give them their food in due time.
You open wide your hand,
grant the desires of all who live.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The hand of the Lord feeds us; he answers all our needs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Lord is just in all his ways
and loving in all his deeds.
He is close to all who call him,
who call on him from their hearts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The hand of the Lord feeds us; he answers all our needs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Second reading
Ephesians 4:1-6 \u00b7
One Body, one Spirit, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I, the prisoner in the Lord, implore you to lead a life worthy of your vocation. Bear with one another charitably, in complete selflessness, gentleness and patience. Do all you can to preserve the unity of the Spirit by the peace that binds you together. There is one Body, one Spirit, just as you were all called into one and the same hope when you were called. There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and one God who is Father of all, over all, through all and within all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Gospel Acclamation
Luke 7:16<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Alleluia, alleluia!
A great prophet has appeared among us;
God has visited his people.
Alleluia!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Gospel
John 6:1-15
The feeding of the five thousand<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jesus went off to the other side of the Sea of Galilee \u2013 or of Tiberias \u2013 and a large crowd followed him, impressed by the signs he gave by curing the sick. Jesus climbed the hillside, and sat down there with his disciples. It was shortly before the Jewish feast of Passover.
Looking up, Jesus saw the crowds approaching and said to Philip, \u2018Where can we buy some bread for these people to eat?\u2019 He only said this to test Philip; he himself knew exactly what he was going to do. Philip answered, \u2018Two hundred denarii would only buy enough to give them a small piece each.\u2019 One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter\u2019s brother, said, \u2018There is a small boy here with five barley loaves and two fish; but what is that between so many?\u2019 Jesus said to them, \u2018Make the people sit down.\u2019 There was plenty of grass there, and as many as five thousand men sat down. Then Jesus took the loaves, gave thanks, and gave them out to all who were sitting ready; he then did the same with the fish, giving out as much as was wanted. When they had eaten enough he said to the disciples, \u2018Pick up the pieces left over, so that nothing gets wasted.\u2019 So they picked them up, and filled twelve hampers with scraps left over from the meal of five barley loaves. The people, seeing this sign that he had given, said, \u2018This really is the prophet who is to come into the world.\u2019 Jesus, who could see they were about to come and take him by force and make him king, escaped back to the hills by himself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Prayer over the Offerings<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Accept, O Lord, we pray, the offerings
which we bring from the abundance of your gifts,
that through the powerful working of your grace
these most sacred mysteries may sanctify our present way of life
and lead us to eternal gladness.
Through Christ our Lord.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Communion Antiphon
Ps 102: 2<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Bless the Lord, O my soul,
and never forget all his benefits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Or:
Mt 5: 7-8<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.
Blessed are the clean of heart, for they shall see God.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Prayer after Communion<\/p>\n\n\n\n
We have consumed, O Lord, this divine Sacrament,
the perpetual memorial of the Passion of your Son;
grant, we pray, that this gift,
which he himself gave us with love beyond all telling,
may profit us for salvation.
Through Christ our Lord.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For practical reasons, the readings at Mass are relatively short while the First Readings in the Office of Readings are longer. Here, for your private study, are passages from the Office of Readings that contain the readings you have just heard at Mass.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
2 Kings 4:38-44,6:1-7
Elisha\u2019s miracle before the brotherhood of prophets<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Elisha went back to Gilgal while there was famine in the country. As the brotherhood of prophets were sitting with him, he said to his servant, \u2018Put the large pot on the fire and cook some soup for the brotherhood\u2019. One of them went into the fields to gather herbs and came on some wild vine off which he gathered enough gourds to fill his lap. On his return, he cut them up into the pot of soup; they did not know what they were.
They then poured the soup out for the men to eat, but they had no sooner tasted the soup than they cried, \u2018Man of God, there is death in the pot!\u2019 And they could not eat it.
\u2018Bring some meal then,\u2019 Elisha said. This he threw into the pot, and said, \u2018Pour out for these men, and let them eat\u2019. And there was nothing harmful in the pot.
A man came from Baal-shalishah, bringing the man of God bread from the first-fruits, twenty barley loaves and fresh grain in the ear. \u2018Give it to the people to eat\u2019, Elisha said.
But his servant replied, \u2018How can I serve this to a hundred men?\u2019
\u2018Give it to the people to eat,\u2019 he insisted, \u2018for the Lord says this, \u201cThey will eat and have some left over\u201d.\u2019 He served them; they ate and had some left over, as the Lord had said.
The brotherhood of prophets said to Elisha, \u2018Look, the place where we live side by side with you is too confined for us. Let us go to the Jordan, then, and each of us cut a beam there, and we will make our living quarters there.\u2019
He replied, \u2018Go\u2019.
\u2018Be good enough to go with your servants,\u2019 one of them said.
\u2018I will go\u2019 he answered, and went with them.
On reaching the Jordan they cut down timber. But, as one of them was felling his beam, the iron axe-head fell into the water.
\u2018Alas, my lord,\u2019 he exclaimed, \u2018and it was a borrowed one too!\u2019
\u2018Where did it fall?\u2019 the man of God asked; and he showed him the spot.
Then, cutting a stick, Elisha threw it in at that point and made the iron axe-head float. \u2018Lift it out,\u2019 he said; and the man stretched out his hand and took it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ephesians 4:1-24<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I, the prisoner in the Lord, implore you to lead a life worthy of your vocation. Bear with one another charitably, in complete selflessness, gentleness and patience. Do all you can to preserve the unity of the Spirit by the peace that binds you together. There is one Body, one Spirit, just as you were all called into one and the same hope when you were called. There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and one God who is Father of all, over all, through all and within all.
Each one of us, however, has been given his own share of grace, given as Christ allotted it. It was said that he would:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When he ascended to the height, he captured prisoners,
he gave gifts to men.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When it says, \u2018he ascended\u2019, what can it mean if not that he descended right down to the lower regions of the earth? The one who rose higher than all the heavens to fill all things is none other than the one who descended. And to some, his gift was that they should be apostles; to some, prophets; to some, evangelists; to some, pastors and teachers; so that the saints together make a unity in the work of service, building up the body of Christ. In this way we are all to come to unity in our faith and in our knowledge of the Son of God, until we become the perfect Man, fully mature with the fullness of Christ himself.
Then we shall not be children any longer, or tossed one way and another and carried along by every wind of doctrine, at the mercy of all the tricks men play and their cleverness in practising deceit. If we live by the truth and in love, we shall grow in all ways into Christ, who is the head by whom the whole body is fitted and joined together, every joint adding its own strength, for each separate part to work according to its function. So the body grows until it has built itself up, in love.
In particular, I want to urge you in the name of the Lord, not to go on living the aimless kind of life that pagans live. Intellectually they are in the dark, and they are estranged from the life of God, without knowledge because they have shut their hearts to it. Their sense of right and wrong once dulled, they have abandoned themselves to sexuality and eagerly pursue a career of indecency of every kind. Now that is hardly the way you have learnt from Christ, unless you failed to hear him properly when you were taught what the truth is in Jesus. You must give up your old way of life; you must put aside your old self, which gets corrupted by following illusory desires. Your mind must be renewed by a spiritual revolution so that you can put on the new self that has been created in God\u2019s way, in the goodness and holiness of the truth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Copyright \u00a9 1996-2021 Universalis Publishing Limited: see www.universalis.com. Scripture readings from the Jerusalem Bible are published and copyright \u00a9 1966, 1967 and 1968 by Darton, Longman & Todd, Ltd and Doubleday, a division of Random House, Inc, and used by permission of the publishers. Text of the Psalms: Copyright \u00a9 1963, The Grail (England). Used with permission of A.P. Watt Ltd. All rights reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
17th Sunday in Ordinary Time Liturgical Colour: Green. Readings at Mass Entrance AntiphonCf. Ps 67: 6-7, 36 God is in his holy place,God who unites those who dwell in his house;he himself gives might and strength to his people. Collect O God, protector of those who hope in you,without whom nothing has firm foundation, nothing […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thomaspatrick.org.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2096"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thomaspatrick.org.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thomaspatrick.org.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thomaspatrick.org.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thomaspatrick.org.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2096"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/thomaspatrick.org.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2096\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2106,"href":"https:\/\/thomaspatrick.org.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2096\/revisions\/2106"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thomaspatrick.org.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2096"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thomaspatrick.org.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2096"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thomaspatrick.org.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2096"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}