Friday 09 FEbruary

by | Feb 8, 2024 | Evangelium

Saint Teilo

Green/White

Teilo lived in the sixth century as a monk, with St David at Mynyw. He founded his own monastery at Llandeilo Fawr where he died. At Llandaff he is venerated as founder of the See.

Entrance Antiphon : Ps 94: 6-7

O come, let us worship God and bow low before the God who made us, for he is the Lord our God.

Collect

Keep your family safe, O Lord, with unfailing care, that, relying solely on the hope of heavenly grace, they may be defended always by your protection. 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 Kings 11:29-32,12:19

One day when Jeroboam had gone out of Jerusalem, the prophet Ahijah of Shiloh accosted him on the road. Ahijah was wearing a new cloak; the two of them were in the open country by themselves. Ahijah took the new cloak he was wearing and tore it into twelve strips, saying to Jeroboam, ‘Take ten strips for yourself, for thus the Lord speaks, the God of Israel, “I am going to tear the kingdom from Solomon’s hand and give ten tribes to you. He shall keep one tribe for the sake of my servant David and for the sake of Jerusalem, the city I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel.’ And Israel has been separated from the House of David until the present day.

Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 80(81): 10-15

R/           I am the Lord your God: listen to my warning.

Let there be no foreign god among you, no worship of an alien god. I am the Lord your God,  who brought you from the land of Egypt.

But my people did not heed my voice and Israel would not obey, so I left them in their stubbornness of heart to follow their own designs.

O that my people would heed me, that Israel would walk in my ways! At once I would subdue their foes, turn my hand against their enemies.

Gospel Acclamation : cf.Jn6:63,68

Alleluia, alleluia! Your words are spirit, Lord, and they are life; you have the message of eternal life. Alleluia!

Gospel : Mark 7:31-37

Returning from the district of Tyre, Jesus went by way of Sidon towards the Sea of Galilee, right through the Decapolis region. And they brought him a deaf man who had an impediment in his speech; and they asked him to lay his hand on him. He took him aside in private, away from the crowd, put his fingers into the man’s ears and touched his tongue with spittle. Then looking up to heaven he sighed; and he said to him, ‘Ephphatha’, that is, ‘Be opened.’ And his ears were opened, and the ligament of his tongue was loosened and he spoke clearly. And Jesus ordered them to tell no one about it, but the more he insisted, the more widely they published it. Their admiration was unbounded. ‘He has done all things well,’ they said ‘he makes the deaf hear and the dumb speak.’

Prayer over the Offerings

O Lord, our God, who once established these created things to sustain us in our frailty, grant, we pray, that they may become for us now the Sacrament of eternal life. Through Christ our Lord.

Communion Antiphon : Cf. Ps 106: 8-9

Let them thank the Lord for his mercy, his wonders for the children of men, for he satisfies the thirsty soul, and the hungry he fills with good things.

Prayer after Communion

O God, who have willed that we be partakers in the one Bread and the one Chalice, grant us, we pray, so to live that, made one in Christ, we may joyfully bear fruit for the salvation of the world. Through Christ our Lord.

Meditation

Jesus pulls a deaf and dumb man away, inserts his fingers into his ears, spits on his tongue, looks up to heaven, and prays; holy gestures. The man’s ears immediately open, his tongue loosens, and he can talk clearly. The adoration is limitless. «He has done all things well, » they remarked, «he makes the deaf hear and the dumb speak.» This is healing, or the recovery from a physical condition. We’re getting close to the end of this Gospel. What Jesus did to this guy is intended to happen to all his followers, even his closest disciples. We must have our ears expanded to hear and comprehend the complete message of Jesus. We must talk frankly about what we have heard and learned after we have heard and understood. For the disciple, hearing and speaking are inextricably linked.