GOSPEL

July 12, 2018 (Thursday) 14th Week in Ordinary Time Psalter: Week 2/(Green) Ps 80:2ac & 3b, 15-16 Let us see your face, Lord, and we shall be saved.

1st Reading: Hos 11:1-4, 8c-9

I loved Israel when he was a child; out of Egypt I called my son. But the more I have called, the further have they gone from me—sacrificing to the Baals, burning incense to the idols. Yet, it was I who taught Ephraim to walk, taking them by the arms; yet, little did they realize that it was I who cared for them. I led them with cords of human kindness, with leading strings of love, and I became for them as one who eases the yoke upon their neck and stoops down to feed them.

How can I give you up, Ephraim? Can I abandon you like Admah or make you like Zeboiim? My heart is troubled within me and I am moved with compassion. I will not give vent to my great anger; I will not re- turn to destroy Ephraim, for I am God and not human. I amthe Holy One in your midst; and I do not want to come to you in anger.

Gospel: Mt 10:7-15

Go, and proclaim this message: The kingdom of heaven is near. Heal the sick, bring the dead back to life, cleanse the lepers, and drive out demons. Freely have you received, freely give. Do not carry any gold or silver or money in your purses. Do not take a traveling bag, or an extra shirt, or sandals, or a walking stick: workers deserve to be compensated.

When you come to a town or a village, look for a worthy person, and stay there until you leave.

When you enter the house, wish it peace. If the people are worthy people, your peace will rest on them; if they are not worthy people, your blessing will come back to you.

And if you are not welcomed, and your words are not listened to, leave that house or that town, and shake the dust off your feet. I assure you, it will go easier for the people of Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment, than it will for the people of that town.

Reflection:

My heart is troubled within me and I am moved with compassion.

The Lord compares Israel or Ephraim to a little child he has taught to walk and whom he has raised tenderly to his cheeks. Yet the older Israel grew, the further he drifted away from the Lord.

The Lord expresses his sentiments: He is hurt and angered, but at the same time is moved with compassion for Israel. The Lord thus vows not to destroy Israel.

Genuine love does not necessarily mean the absence of hurt or anger, but the embrace and transcendence of such anger and the decision, nonetheless, to treat our offender with compassion.