Then Tobit went back in, rejoicing and praising God with full voice... Tobiah told to his father that the Lord God had granted him a successful journey… – Tobit 11:15

      Last January 10, we celebrated the 72ndbirthday of my Papa. I’ve been physically away from him for seven years, yet I believe that our hearts are still connected. Unfortunately, in my seven years of spiritual mission far away from home, Papa hadn’t attended our prayer meetings.

       Oh, did I mention that Papa is already gone? Two days from now, it will be his seventh death anniversary. It pains me to remember that I wasn’t there during his last breath, yet I’m thankful that I was able to deepen my relationship with him for the last year of his life.

       I believe that he is rejoicing and praising God with full voice every day. While I’m serving at our weekly Feasts, I believe that my earthly father is celebrating and serving in the eternal Feast of our Heavenly Father. I can’t wait for the right time for us to be reunited and tell him that my journey on earth had been a success.

       Do you spend quality time with your loved ones? Make sure you do before it’s too late. Aben Garlan (mail@abengarlan.com)

Reflection:“Family is not an important thing. It’s everything.” (Michael J. Fox)

Lord Jesus, teach me how to love the people that matter most in my life. May I deepen my relationship with them. Amen.

St. Ephrem, deacon and doctor of the Church, pray for us.

Tobit did his best to live righteously and in the end, God restored his sight and healed him. Like Tobit, let us form our consciences well and act on its judgments. This is essential for a holy life. Let us take responsibility for our actions. It is by our choices that people will know our response to God.

5 Anna sat watching the road by which her son was to come. 6 When she saw him coming, she exclaimed to his father, “Tobit, your son is coming, and the man who traveled with him!” 7 Raphael said to Tobiah before he reached his father: “I am certain that his eyes will be opened. 8 Smear the fish gall on them. This medicine will make the cataracts shrink and peel off from his eyes; then your father will again be able to see the light of day.” 9 Then Anna ran up to her son, threw her arms around him, and said to him, “Now that I have seen you again, son, I am ready to die!” And she sobbed aloud. 10 Tobit got up and stumbled out through the courtyard gate. Tobiah went up to him 11 with the fish gall in his hand, and holding him firmly, blew into his eyes. “Courage, father,” he said. 12 Next he smeared the medicine on his eyes, 13 and it made them smart. Then, beginning at the corners of Tobit’s eyes, Tobiah used both hands to peel off the cataracts. When Tobit saw his son, he threw his arms around him 14 and wept. He exclaimed, “I can see you, son, the light of my eyes!” Then he said: “Blessed be God, and praised be his great name, and blessed be all his holy angels. May his holy name be praised throughout all the ages, 15 Because it was He who scourged me, and it is he who has had mercy on me. Behold, I now see my son Tobiah!” Then Tobit went back in, rejoicing and praising God with full voice for everything that had happened. Tobiah told his father that the Lord God had granted him a successful journey; that he had brought back the money; and that he had married Raguel’s daughter Sarah, who would arrive shortly, for she was approaching the gate of Nineveh. 16 Tobit and Anna rejoiced and went out to the gate of Nineveh to meet their daughter-in-law. When the people of Nineveh saw Tobit walking along briskly, with no one leading him by the hand, they were amazed. 17 Before them all Tobit proclaimed how God had mercifully restored sight to his eyes. When Tobit reached Sarah, the wife of his son Tobiah, he greeted her: “Welcome, my daughter! Blessed be your God for bringing you to us, daughter! Blessed is your father and blessed is my son Tobiah, and blessed are you, daughter! Welcome to your home with blessing and joy. Come in, daughter!” That day there was joy for all the Jews who lived in Nineveh.

R: Praise the Lord, my soul!

1 Praise the Lord, O my soul; 2 I will praise the Lord all my life; I will sing praise to my God while I live. (R) 6 The Lord keeps faith forever, 7 secures justice for the oppressed, gives food to the hungry. The Lord sets captives free. (R) 8 The Lord gives sight to the blind. The Lord raises up those that were bowed down; the Lord loves the just. 9 The Lord protects strangers. (R) The fatherless and the widow he sustains, but the way of the wicked he thwarts. 10 The Lord shall reign forever; your God, O Zion, through all generations. Alleluia! (R)

The interpretation of individual texts in the Old Testament can be tricky. The argument of Jesus used in today’s Gospel is unknown, but the crowd loved it. When we read the Old Testament, we must be careful to understand it within the context of when it was written and read it with the eyes of faith. These texts were written by ordinary men under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, so there is a bit of the mundane and human, as well as the inspirational and divine, in them.  

Whoever loves me will keep my word, and my Father will love him and we will come to him.

35 As Jesus was teaching in the temple area he said, “How do the scribes claim that the Christ is the son of David? 36 David himself, inspired by the Holy Spirit, said: The Lord said to my lord, ‘Sit at my right hand until I place your enemies under your feet.’ 37 David himself calls him ‘lord’; so how is he his son?” The great crowd heard this with delight.

think: What help do you need to understand the Scripture better?

Read the Bible in one year  1 Kings 6-8

T O D A Y’S BLESSING LIST

thank You, Lord, for: ______________________________________________________

OUR LORD AND MASTER

Trying to understand possible references to Christ in the Old Testament is fraught with difficulty. In many cases, it is next to impossible to untangle the human from the divine and, at times, no easy answer is found. As regards the text in today’s Gospel, I prefer to focus upon the fact that King David clearly knew who he was working for — that God was his Lord and Master. So does Christ have a clear understanding of how He lives in obedience to His Father’s will. The real question is this: How do we live with Christ as our Lord and Master?

       It is easy to say that Jesus is Lord of our lives. A completely different level of submission is required to ensure that this is how we truly live. If we want to know what it means to have Jesus as our Lord and Master, then we must familiarize ourselves with the lives of the saints and learn from them about how to submit to God.

       We are all called to be saints but how many of us will reach the level of the canonized saints of the Church is another matter. It is possible to do so but not easy. As we grow in discipleship each day, let us remember that the call God places on our lives is full and total, and we ought to work towards a 100-percent response. This is our own personal pilgrimage to make. Fr. Steve Tynan, MGL

---------- REFLECTION QUESTIONS ----------

Are you doing the best that you can to deny sin and follow God’s call upon your life? Are there areas in your life where you can do better?

Holy Spirit, give me wisdom and discernment as I make decisions regarding my faith. Amen.