Saturday 30 th July 2022
St. Peter
Chrysologus
(380 – 450)
He was born and died in Imola in northern Italy. The name “Chrysologus” means “golden speech”, and was given to Peter because he was such a gifted preacher; unfortunately, most of his writings have perished, and only a collection of short sermons remains.
Entrance Antiphon : Cf. 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 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, one God, for ever and ever.
First reading : Jeremiah 26:11-16,24
The priests and prophets addressed the officials and all the people, ‘This man deserves to die, since he has prophesied against this city, as you have heard with your own ears.’ Jeremiah, however, replied to the people as follows: ‘The Lord himself sent me to say all the things you have heard against this Temple and this city. So now amend your behaviour and actions, listen to the voice of the Lord your God: if you do, he will relent and not bring down on you the disaster he has pronounced against you. For myself, I am as you see in your hands. Do whatever you please or think right with me. But be sure of this, that if you put me to death, you will be bringing innocent blood on yourselves, on this city and on its citizens, since the Lord has truly sent me to you to say all these words in your hearing.’ The officials and all the people then said to the priests and prophets, ‘This man does not deserve to die: he has spoken to us in the name of the Lord our God.’ Jeremiah had a protector in Ahikam son of Shaphan, so he was not handed over to the people to be put to death.
Psalm 68:15-16,30-31,33-34
R/ In your great love, answer me, O God.
- Rescue me from sinking in the mud; save me from my foes. Save me from the waters of the deep lest the waves overwhelm me. Do not let the deep engulf me nor death close its mouth on me.
- As for me in my poverty and pain let your help, O God, lift me up. I will praise God’s name with a song; I will glorify him with thanksgiving.
- The poor when they see it will be glad and God-seeking hearts will revive; for the Lord listens to the needy and does not spurn his servants in their chains.
Gospel Acclamation : cf.Lk8:15
Alleluia, alleluia! Blessed are those who, with a noble and generous heart, take the word of God to themselves and yield a harvest through their perseverance. Alleluia!
Gospel : Matthew 14:1-12
Herod the tetrarch heard about the reputation of Jesus, and said to his court, ‘This is John the Baptist himself; he has risen from the dead, and that is why miraculous powers are at work in him.’ Now it was Herod who had arrested John, chained him up and put him in prison because of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife. For John had told him, ‘It is against the Law for you to have her.’ He had wanted to kill him but was afraid of the people, who regarded John as a prophet. Then, during the celebrations for Herod’s birthday, the daughter of Herodias danced before the company, and so delighted Herod that he promised on oath to give her anything she asked. Prompted by her mother she said, ‘Give me John the Baptist’s head, here, on a dish.’ The king was distressed but, thinking of the oaths he had sworn and of his guests, he ordered it to be given her, and sent and had John beheaded in the prison. The head was brought in on a dish and given to the girl who took it to her mother. John’s disciples came and took the body and buried it; then they went off to tell Jesus.
Prayer over the Offerings
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.
Communion Antiphon : Ps 102: 2
Bless the Lord, O my soul, and never forget all his benefits.
Prayer after Communion
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.
Meditation
“Give me John the Baptist’s head, here, in a dish.” This may have been one of the requests the king did not expect. Obviously, the request is not from the girl, she has nothing to do with the head of John. The reading mentions how Herodias has been looking for an opportunity to kill John and surely the king knew. If the king finally granted the request, he was also responsible for the death of John. The lesson to learn from the story from the gospel is that we must be careful with the kind of promises we make. Secondly, the fulfilment of whatever promise must be discerned with wisdom. If the king had applied wisdom, he would have known that the request was not from the girl and in such situation, he was not bound to fulfil it.