A mother cannot take her eyes off her baby, because her baby is the treasure that her heart cherishes.

Where our treasure is, there will our heart be.

When I look at my heart,

Jesus is asking me not to put my heart and hopes in material possessions.

St. Aloysius Gonzaga, religious

 ＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊  

2 Kings 11:1-4, 9-18, 20*

When Athaliah, the mother of Ahaziah,

“What is the kingdom of God like?”

Jesus uses imagery culled from everyday life to explain what the kingdom of God is.

In the Gospel, tells of the faith which is as big as a mustard seed,

he must be referring to a sincere faith.

The kingdom gestates and sprouts, proximity to Jesus and his way puts us

in a position to learn more about the kingdom.

＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊     

Ezekiel 17:22-24

Thus says Yahweh:

Jesus tells listeners to not put too much emphasis in the use of words when relating to God.

Prayer is not a conversation with God per se but a relationship.

Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness.

God knows us in and out anyway, with our needs, frustrations, with our needs, frustrations, hopes, fears sins, and dreams.

＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊     

Sirach 48:1-14

Then came the prophet Elijah,

 The evil one, uses every form of subtle prevarication and equivocation in order to hide his true intention.

"If a man vows a vow to the LORD, or swears an oath to bind himself by a pledge, he shall not break his word.

He shall do according to all that proceeds out of his mouth."

Make no oath at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God, or by the earth, for it is the footstool of His feet.

＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊     

1 Kings 19:19-21

Elijah left. He found Elisha,

During this season, the faithful are summoned to do more works of charity,

to pray more intensely and to fast more meaningfully.

In today's Gospel, Jesus reminds us not to trumpet our religious practices out loud but rather to do them secretly.

Jesus also instructs us to keep our good deeds secret.

"Rend your heart, not your garment." 

St. Romuald, abbot

＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊      

2 Kings 2:1, 6-14*

(...) When Elijah and Elisha stood by the Jordan,

Jesus clearly said that the law of God didn’t just ask for pureness on the outside,

but also pureness in the soul.

God doesn’t just abhor sin on the outside, but even more so sin inside our hearts.

Jesus is making it clear again and again, that’s it not just the action that is sinful, but the thought also.

We must be careful about what we look at and what we think about. Lust will destroy us,

as will other sinful thoughts, as those sins will lead to even greater sins.

＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊    

1 Kings 19:9a, 11-16

On reaching the place,

 How merciful, just kind and forgiving the Lord is!

God does in fact pronounce judgment and wrath upon the perpetrators of injustice.

And yet when they humble themselves and beg for his mercy and forgiveness,

he shows himself a truly merciful.

1st Reading: 1 Kings 21:17-29

Then Yahweh spoke to Elijah of Tishbe,

 We know that we are not on good terms with someone.

The holy voice from within us invites us, need to be reconciled with others.

We tend to overlook the smaller sins that we commit everyday unaware.

Even to our smallest sins. For if left uncheck, they might grow.

 St. Anthony of Padua, priest & doctor

 ＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊     

1 Kings 18:41-46

Elijah then said to Ahab,

 In the pursuit of justice, what is taken must be returned back or if not, its equivalent. That is the law of retaliation.

God gave this law through a tooth for a tooth, an eye for an eye as a standard.

To prevent the excesses of revenge or the influence of personal bias destroying the social harmony within the nation of Israel.

 ＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊     

1 Kings 21:1-16

Now Naboth,

 At a time when the Teachers of the Law and the Scribes and Pharisees are preoccupied with its letter,

Jesus does not abolish the Law but comes to give it a deeper meaning and insight.

He did not come to abolish but to fulfill the law.

It’s a fulfillment based on a proper understanding of the role of the law in enhancing the lives of believers.

＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊     

1 Kings 18:20-39*

So Ahab sent for all the people