Tuesday, August 28th 2018

Memorial of Saint Augustine, Bishop and Doctor of the Church

LECTIONARY
426

FIRST READING
2 THES 2:1-3A, 14-17

We ask you, brothers and sisters,
with regard to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ
and our assembling with him,
not to be shaken out of your minds suddenly,
or to be alarmed either by a "spirit," or by an oral statement,
or by a letter allegedly from us
to the effect that the day of the Lord is at hand.
Let no one deceive you in any way.

To this end he has also called you through our Gospel
to possess the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Therefore, brothers and sisters, stand firm
and hold fast to the traditions that you were taught,
either by an oral statement or by a letter of ours.

May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father,
who has loved us and given us everlasting encouragement
and good hope through his grace,
encourage your hearts and strengthen them
in every good deed and word.

PSALM
PS 96:10, 11-12, 13

Response: The Lord comes to judge the earth.

Say among the nations: The LORD is king.
He has made the world firm, not to be moved;
he governs the peoples with equity.

Let the heavens be glad and the earth rejoice;
let the sea and what fills it resound;
let the plains be joyful and all that is in them!
Then shall all the trees of the forest exult.

Before the LORD, for he comes;
for he comes to rule the earth.
He shall rule the world with justice
and the peoples with his constancy.

GOSPEL
MT 23:23-26

Jesus said:
"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites.
You pay tithes of mint and dill and cummin,
and have neglected the weightier things of the law:
judgment and mercy and fidelity.
But these you should have done, without neglecting the others.
Blind guides, who strain out the gnat and swallow the camel!

"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites.
You cleanse the outside of cup and dish,
but inside they are full of plunder and self-indulgence.
Blind Pharisee, cleanse first the inside of the cup,
so that the outside also may be clean."

Daily Reflection

28th August 2018 – St Augustine

To the common Jews, the Scribes and Pharisees were authority figures supposedly entrusted with interpreting the will of God. They were people to both fear and respect. Their every command was to be obeyed and their demands, however oppressive, were to be met. However, Jesus is extremely sharp in his criticism of them because they observed the Law without the spirit and the purpose, which alone gives the Law its meaning.

Unlike the Pharisees who selectively held back knowledge about the faith, because that is what gave them the power, Paul chose to explain to the Thessalonians who seemed disappointed that Christ had not yet ‘come again’. Paul told them that if they were truly convinced about the values of Jesus, they would live by them, whether or not Jesus’ coming was in the near future or later.

We find a similar charism in St Augustine (bishop and doctor of the Church), who we honour today. As a Christian philosopher and theologian, he enriched the Church with several Christian doctrines.

Seeking to know the ‘God I believe in’ is the first step to better living; sharing that knowledge is the next.