Jesus always gives strength of mind, body or soul when we place ourselves in God's loving presence.

All power in heaven and on earth was entrusted to his hands.

He was doing the will of the Father, and accomplishing the work with which he had been commissioned.

"The Father," he said, "worketh hitherto, and I work;" 

 

 

＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊ 

1 Kings 11:29-32; 12:19

Once, when Jeroboam

Went out of Jerusalem, the prophet Ahijah of Shiloh found him on the road. The two of them were alone in the open country when Ahijah, who had a new garment on, clutched and tore it into twelve pieces. He then said to Jeroboam, "Take ten pieces for yourself for this is the word of Yahweh, the God of Israel: 'I am about to tear the kingdom from Solomon's hands to give you ten tribes. Only one tribe shall be left to him for the sake of my servant David and Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel.

So Israel has been in rebellion against the house of David to the present time.

 

Ps 81:10-11ab, 12-13, 14-15 I am the Lord, your God: hear my voice.

 

＊＊＊ Gospel ＊＊＊

Mark 7:31-37

Again, Jesus set out: from the country of Tyre he passed through Sidon and, skirting the sea of Galilee, he came to the territory of Decapolis. There, a deaf man, who also had difficulty in speaking, was brought to him. They asked Jesus to lay his hand upon him. Jesus took him apart from the crowd, put his fingers into the man's ears, and touched his tongue with spittle. Then, looking up to heaven, he said with a deep sigh, "Ephphata!" that is, "Be opened!"

And immediately, his ears were opened, his tongue was loosened, and he began to speak clearly. Jesus ordered them not to tell anyone about it; but the more he insisted, the more they proclaimed it. The people were completely astonished and said, "He has done all things well; he makes the deaf hear and the dumb speak."

 

Gospel Reflection ：

"Be Open"

Openness is a fundamental attitude we need to observe if we want to expand our missionary sphere. Being open is akin to having a listening attitude. The Gospel today narrates how Jesus healed a deaf man with a speech impediment. Jesus cured the man by first dealing with his deafness. Only after Jesus cured the man's deafness was the man able to speak clearly. The Gospel narrates that for the healing of the man's deafness and speech impediment, Jesus uttered, "Ephphata!" The Gospel explains the meaning of Ephphata, which is "Be open." We are called to proclaim the hope of the Gospel in today's confused and troubled world. We need to speak clearly as we convey its message. But before we are able to proclaim the Gospel's message with clarity, we first need to hear and understand it clearly. Moreover, when we are open, we see more possibilities and we will not simply be bogged down even when we are confronted with apparently hopeless situations.