Image Credit- https://creator.nightcafe.studio/creation/eBgM3jmS7MgqPFphIyM8/a-chain-in-a-broken-circle-broken-by-the-cross-of-christ-with-the-words-sin-and-mercy-on-either-side?ru=Paul-Evangelion
Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time. Year C - Sunday, February 23, 2025 (EPISODE: 519)
FIRST READING: 1 Samuel 26:2, 7-9, 12-13, 22-25 ++
Psalm 103:1-2, 3-4, 8+10, 12-13. "the lord is kind and merciful"
SECOND READING: 1 Corinthians 15:45-50 ++
GOSPEL ACCLAMATION (John 13:34). Alleluia, alleluia! I give you a new commandment. Love one another as I have loved you.
GOSPEL: Luke 6:27-38
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Please listen to the audio recordings of the Mass – (Readings, prayers and homily), for Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time. Year C - Sunday, February 23, 2025 by clicking this link here: https://soundcloud.com/user-633212303/faith-hope-and-love-seventh/s-9PqyoPAJ9bD (EPISODE:519 )
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*Prologue (Fr Paul Kelly)
What does it mean for us to, (as St Paul says so wonderfully in the second reading), "bear the image of the one of Heaven?" Or, as another translation says: "be modelled on the Heavenly man, (Jesus)."
Surely it means, we open ourselves up to the Lord's grace, teaching and values and allow ourselves to be reshaped into an icon of Christ's grace, mercy, and compassion. It means a deeper union with Christ – to the point of exercising our thinking, abilities, and powers in union with how Christ acts.
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The first reading is quite challenging. David has been persecuted, quite unjustly by King Saul. Saul is suffering terrible delusions, paranoia about David.
David has been nothing but loyal to him. War breaks out, but David and his army are given an extraordinary chance to kill Saul, but David refuses to do so. This is not the first time this will happen.
It's a striking lesson, just because we've been given the power to lift up and to cast down, and simply because we have it within our ability to kill or to heal, does not mean that we should use our freedom to destroy, to avenge or to harm. God has given us freedom, but it's freedom to do the loving actions that God wants us to do. David unites himself to God's patient, loving forbearance.
He does not lower himself to repay the wrongdoing of others with their same behavior. He does not return bad for bad, but rather he uses God's perfect antidote, returning love and kindness for wrongdoing, thus cancelling it out, rather than multiplying the harm. This is a radical and otherworldly solution, but clearly it is divine wisdom, and it's beautiful.
As David says so beautifully, today the Lord put you in my power, but I would not raise my hand against the Lord's anointed. In this instance, David used his ability to be modeled upon the values and actions of God's ways, and not human ways, and the results are refreshing, surprising and wonderful. Once, where it seemed only one solution to the problem of King Saul and David, was one would strike the other down.
Now there's a beautiful second option, reconciliation, rebuilding of understanding and trust. We're invited to give from God's gracious and compassionate love within, rather than to mirror or to give back what we receive from selfish, narrow actions from others. Our Lord confirms this heavenly mindset in the gospel.
He teaches us a very challenging message that goes against our basic instinct as a human. Do good to those who harm you. Pray for them.
Go further than the minimum. Don't repay bad for bad. The word love used by our Lord in this teaching is not the same as the word for family love, or love of friends, or a love of a spouse, but it's the love that wishes the best and only the good for another, irrespective of their actions.
Wanting for everyone that dignity and respect, that good that anyone deserves as a child of God, whether they themselves have acted in ways befitting of their status as children of God. Do this and you will be children of the Most High, for God himself is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked. Be generous, not stingy or selfish.
Loving and compassionate, not gossiping and judging. Merciful, not vengeful and precious. The standards by which we will be judged is going to be the standard with which we treat others.
Are we tempted to be offended when someone slights us? Are we outraged when someone wrongs us? But then we look at our Lord. He deserved all honour, all obedience and service. At times each of us has offended the Lord, slighted him, in so many different ways.
We haven't given God his due. We've deliberately or carelessly chosen to do what is wrong. God would have been in his rights to become furious, to lash out, to punish, to cast us down.
But God does not. And thank goodness. So many times I thank God that we humans are not treated the way we would treat others if we were God, because the results would be disastrous and capricious.
Rather, our Lord is full of love, mercy and forbearance. Thanks be to God that the Lord does not choose to exercise his rights against us when we've wronged him time and time again, and sometimes almost what we would think is unforgivably. But God is the one who chooses to forgive.
If we truly model ourselves on the heavenly person, Jesus, and if we bear the image of the one of heaven, Christ, then we too must have the same attitudes and responses when we're offended, when we're slighted or wronged. How very different would the world be and our local communities be if this was the full reality, if this was practiced regularly by all. Otherwise, as Jesus points out, if our goodness and kindness go no further than our family and friends, those we already have goodwill with, then what difference is that from the pagans or the sinners? They're kind to their kin and friends themselves.
So Christ invites us to be fully immersed in his ways, not just dipping our toes into the waters of baptism, but plunging into God's mercy and overflowing love and patience. The golden rule in many ways is a universal rule, even in the secular society we live in. It's also found in other religions, Jewish, Greek, and even Confucian.
But in each of these traditions, it's framed negatively and in a limiting way, namely, don't do things to people that you wouldn't like people to do to you. But in Christ, this teaching goes further, and it's expressed in a wonderfully positive light. It's not creating a negative rule, it's creating a positive disposition.
That is, not merely refraining from doing what we would not want done to us, but also doing good things for others that we would want people to do for us. Christ's saying itself goes the extra mile. I just want to add another insight from someone who was commentating on these readings this weekend, especially the first reading.
The writer says, David is an anointed messiah, and he shows mercy by taking King Saul's sword and his water jug. The writer says, I cannot help seeing foreshadowed the cross, when the sword in the hands of another soldier pierces the side of the King, the son of David, Jesus, to give us the greatest mercy of all. The water and blood flow from Jesus' side in our baptism and in the Eucharist, feeding us until we too enter the deep sleep of the Lord.++++++++++++++++++
-To listen to the whole Sunday Mass each week (including homily) from Surfers Paradise Catholic Parish, please visit this link: Liturgy for you at Home (by SPCP) - https:- soundcloud.com/user-633212303/tracks.
((References: Fr Paul W. Kelly; Barclay, W. (1975). The Gospel of Luke. 2nd ed. Edinburgh: St. Andrew Press).
(Image Credit: Shutterstock Licensed. 1828646321 Be merciful bible words with the sky over mountain background – Contributor: -Naitham)
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References:
Homily by Fr Paul W. Kelly
Barclay, W. (1975). The Gospel of Luke. 2nd ed. Edinburgh: St. Andrew Press
Image Credit:
Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time. Year C (Sunday, February 23, 2025) (EPISODE: 519)
The Lord be with you.
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{{May God's Spirit of Wisdom and understanding abide in you.}}
Our God's love and mercy knows no bounds, and so let us recall our sins so as to worthily celebrate this Holy Sacrifice.
(option two on the cards):
Have mercy on us, O Lord.
- For we have sinned against you.
Show us, O Lord, your mercy.
- And grant us your salvation.
May almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us our sins, and bring us to everlasting life. Amen.
- Lord have mercy
- Christ have mercy
- Lord have mercy
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Psalm 103:1-2, 3-4, 8+10, 12-13. "the lord is kind and merciful"
GOSPEL ACCLAMATION (John 13:34). Alleluia, alleluia! I give you a new commandment. Love one another as I have loved you.
Memorial Acclamation
1. We proclaim your Death, O Lord, and profess your Resurrection until you come again.
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PREFACE: Sundays Ordinary I
Euch prayer two
(theme variation: v1/full )
(pre+post variation: v2-short)
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{heartfelt thanks to you all for uniting in prayer and reflectying upon God's goodness and care.}
Go and announce the Gospel of the Lord.
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Archive of homilies and reflections: http://homilycatholic.blogspot.com.au
To contact Fr. Paul, please email: paulwkelly68@gmail.com
To listen to the weekly homily audio podcast, please click this link here. https://soundcloud.com/user-633212303/tracks
Further information relating to the audio productions linked to this Blog:
"Faith, Hope and Love - Christian worship and reflection" - Led by Rev Paul Kelly
Prayers and chants — Roman Missal, 3rd edition, © 2010, The International Commission on English in the liturgy. (ICEL)
Scriptures - New Revised Standard Version: © 1989, and 2009 by the NCC-USA. (National Council of Churches of Christ - USA)
"The Psalms" ©1963, 2009, The Grail - Collins publishers.
Prayers of the Faithful - " Together we pray" by Robert Borg'. E.J. Dwyer, Publishers, (1993) . (Sydney Australia).
Sung "Mass In Honour of St. Ralph Sherwin" - By Jeffrey M. Ostrowski. The Gloria, Copyright © 2011 ccwatershed.org.
- "Faith, Hope and Love" theme hymn - in memory of William John Kelly - Inspired by 1 Corinthians 13:1-13. Music by Paul W. Kelly. Arranged and sung, with additional lyrics by Stefan Kelk. 2019.
"Quiet Time." Instrumental Reflection music. Written by Paul W Kelly. 1988, 2007. & This arrangement: Stefan Kelk, 2020.
- "Today I Arise" - For Trisha J Kelly. Original words and music by Paul W. Kelly. Inspired by St Patrick's Prayer. Arranged and sung, with additional lyrics by Stefan Kelk. 2019.
Sound Engineering and editing - P.W. Kelly.
Microphones: - Shure MV5
Editing equipment: NCH software - MixPad Multitrack Studio Recording Software
NCH – WavePad Audio Editing Software. Masters Edition v 12.44
Sound Processing: iZotope RX 6 Audio Editor
[Production - KER - 2025]
May God bless and keep you.
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