Liturgy Alive, Models of Celebrations

Am 5:14 –15, 21–24; Ps 50:7, 8 – 9, 10–11, 12–13, 16bc–17; Mt 8:28 –34

Daily Gospel

First Reading: Am 5:14 –15, 21–24

Seek good and not evil,
that you may live;
Then truly will the LORD, the God of hosts,
be with you as you claim!
Hate evil and love good,
and let justice prevail at the gate;
Then it may be that the LORD, the God of hosts,
will have pity on the remnant of Joseph.
I hate, I spurn your feasts, says the LORD,
I take no pleasure in your solemnities;
Your cereal offerings I will not accept,
nor consider your stall-fed peace offerings.
Away with your noisy songs!
I will not listen to the melodies of your harps.
But if you would offer me burnt offerings,
then let justice surge like water,
and goodness like an unfailing stream.

Responsorial Psalm: Ps 50:7, 8 – 9, 10–11, 12–13, 16bc–17

R./ To the upright I will show
      the saving power of God.

“Hear, my people, and I will speak;
Israel, I will testify against you;
God, your God, am I.”
R./ To the upright I will show
      the saving power of God.

“Not for your sacrifices do I rebuke you,
for your burnt offerings are before me always.
I take from your house no bullock,
no goats out of your fold.”
R./ To the upright I will show
      the saving power of God.

“For mine are all the animals of the forests,
beasts by the thousand on my mountains.
I know all the birds of the air,
and whatever stirs in the plains, belongs to me.”
R./ To the upright I will show
      the saving power of God.

“If I were hungry, I should not tell you,
for mine are the world and its fullness.
Do I eat the flesh of strong bulls,
or is the blood of goats my drink?”
R./ To the upright I will show
      the saving power of God.

“Why do you recite my statutes,
and profess my covenant with your mouth,
Though you hate discipline
and cast my words behind you?”
R./ To the upright I will show
      the saving power of God.

Gospel Reading Introduction
Jesus takes pity on people considered possessed by the devil, outcasts of little value to their pagan fellow citizens, who are more concerned about the loss of their pigs than over the cure of these outcasts. This text is difficult to understand unless we pay attention to the underlying theme of impurity. The outcasts from whom Jesus will exorcise demons live in an impure place, a cemetery; the demons are driven out into pigs, unclean animals for the Jews. The pagans of the region do not yet recognize Jesus and this seems to indicate that the story is symbolic of times still to come: evil is still rampant. But in any case the power of Jesus is already working.

Gospel Reading: Mt 8:28 –34

When Jesus came to the territory of the Gadarenes, two
demoniacs who were coming from the tombs met him. They
were so savage that no one could travel by that road. They
cried out, “What have you to do with us, Son of God? Have
you come here to torment us before the appointed time?” Some
distance away a herd of many swine was feeding. The demons
pleaded with him, “If you drive us out, send us into the herd of
swine.” And he said to them, “Go then!” They came out and
entered the swine, and the whole herd rushed down the steep
bank into the sea where they drowned. The swineherds ran
away, and when they came to the town they reported everything,
including what had happened to the demoniacs. Thereupon
the whole town came out to meet Jesus, and when they saw
him they begged him to leave their district.

Commentary

In this disturbing story, Jesus threatens the status quo of the town of Gadara. His impressive miracle upsets the routine and the livelihood of the place, and they beg Him to leave.
It has been said that Jesus comes both to comfort the afflicted and to afflict the comfortable. We might resist a particular teaching of Jesus because it will demand too great a change of us. We might be the comfortable ones who are afflicted by the challenging words of Jesus. May God's grace help us to open ourselves more and more each day to the will of God.

General Intercessions

- For the Church, that like our God, it may care for those who are least favored and least loved, so that the Gospel may be Good News to them, we pray:

- For governments and public officials, that they may not tolerate favoritism or discrimination of any kind and that they may defend the oppressed and restore their rights, we pray:

- For those considered outcasts by "respectable" society, that we may not judge them, but that our goodness, respect and understanding may help them to integrate themselves in our communities, we pray:

Prayer over the Gifts

Lord, loving God,
your Son Jesus died on the cross
as an outcast deserted by his people,
but that was the way in which he saved us.
Let this offering of bread and wine express
that we are one with Jesus
and that with him we accept people
the way you accept them and want to save them.
We ask this through Christ our Lord.

Prayer after Communion

God, our Father,
you have let us share the table of your Son
and let us join him in giving praise and thanks to you.
By his power we want to continue
giving you honor and thanks
with the whole of our everyday lives
through deeds of justice, love
and endless compassion for people
who lose their struggle with the difficulties of life.
We ask this through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Blessing

"Let justice flow like water, and righteousness like an ever flowing stream." If we can be just and good, the Lord will listen to us and accept our offering, for then it will be part of the sacrifice of Jesus. May God bless you, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.