by | Sep 2, 2022 | Evangelium

Saturday 03rd  September 2022

 

Pope St. Gregory

the Great

(540 – 604)

 

He was elected Pope on 3 September 590, the first monk to be elected to this office. He wrote extensively on pastoral care, spirituality, and morals, and designated himself “servant of the servants of God.” He died on 12 March 604.

 

Entrance Antiphon

Blessed Gregory, raised upon the throne of Peter, sought always the beauty of the Lord and lived in celebration of that love.

 

Collect

O God, who care for your people with gentleness and rule them in love, through the intercession of Pope Saint Gregory, endow, we pray, with a spirit of wisdom those to whom you have given authority to govern, that the flourishing of a holy flock may become the eternal joy of the shepherds. 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 : 1 Corinthians 4:6-15

Take Apollos and myself as an example and remember the maxim: ‘Keep to what is written.’ It is not for you, so full of your own importance, to go taking sides for one man against another. In any case, brother, has anybody given you some special right? What do you have that was not given to you? And if it was given, how can you boast as though it were not? Is it that you have everything you want – that you are rich already, in possession of your kingdom, with us left outside? Indeed I wish you were really kings, and we could be kings with you! But instead, it seems to me, God has put us apostles at the end of his parade, with the men sentenced to death; it is true – we have been put on show in front of the whole universe, angels as well as men. Here we are, fools for the sake of Christ, while you are the learned men in Christ; we have no power, but you are influential; you are celebrities, we are nobodies. To this day, we go without food and drink and clothes; we are beaten and have no homes; we work for our living with our own hands. When we are cursed, we answer with a blessing; when we are hounded, we put up with it; we are insulted and we answer politely. We are treated as the offal of the world, still to this day, the scum of the earth. I am saying all this not just to make you ashamed but to bring you, as my dearest children, to your senses. You might have thousands of guardians in Christ, but not more than one father and it was I who begot you in Christ Jesus by preaching the Good News.

 

Psalm 144(145):17-21

R/  The Lord is close to all who call him.

 

  1. 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.
  2. He grants the desires of those who fear him, he hears their cry and he saves them. The Lord protects all who love him; but the wicked he will utterly destroy.
  3. Let me speak the praise of the Lord, let all mankind bless his holy name for ever, for ages unending.

Gospel Acclamation : cf.Ps26:11

Alleluia, alleluia! Instruct me, Lord, in your way; on an even path lead me. Alleluia!

 

Gospel : Luke 6:1-5

One sabbath Jesus happened to be taking a walk through the cornfields, and his disciples were picking ears of corn, rubbing them in their hands and eating them. Some of the Pharisees said, ‘Why are you doing something that is forbidden on the sabbath day?’ Jesus answered them, ‘So you have not read what David did when he and his followers were hungry how he went into the house of God, took the loaves of offering and ate them and gave them to his followers, loaves which only the priests are allowed to eat?’ And he said to them, ‘The Son of Man is master of the sabbath.’

 

Prayer over the Offerings

Grant our supplication, we pray, O Lord, that this sacrifice we present in celebration of Saint Gregory may be for our good, since through its offering you have loosed the offences of all the world. Through Christ our Lord.

 

Communion Antiphon : Cf. Lk 12: 42

Behold a faithful and prudent steward to give them their allowance of food at the proper time.

 

Prayer after Communion

Through Christ the teacher, O Lord, instruct those you feed with Christ, the living Bread, that on the feast day of Saint Gregory they may learn your truth and express it in works of charity. Through Christ our Lord.

 

Meditation

Apart from those in essential services (when possible), for many of us Sunday has almost become an ordinary day. It is now the best time to go and watch or play a game of football, basketball, to attend to our various businesses, to accomplish one project or another, or even to go to nightclubs, all the while neglecting to recognise our Creator and Redeemer. We no longer worship God; we do not spend as much as a moment to offer a prayer in thanksgiving for our lives. Every Sunday is a celebration of our reconciliation with God. Going to Mass on Sunday to worship God, therefore, is not only a fulfilment of an obligation but also a joyful experience of the resurrection event. We are brought closer to God and to one another. Breaking the law is acceptable when there is an urgent basic human need to satisfy, such as hunger, life, etc. (especially when it is not made up). Otherwise, it must be observed and kept holy.