Ninth Week in Ordinary Time

You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart...
You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
There is no other commandment greater than these.”
Mark 12

Creighton University Online Ministries
Weekly Guide for Daily Prayer
Ninth Week of Ordinary Time: May 30 - June 5, 2021

Ninth Week in Ordinary Time

This week begins with Trinity Sunday which always follows Pentecost. It celebrates the un-knowable relationship between the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit - and their loving support for us in our lives. “I have much more to tell you, but you cannot bear it now. But when he comes, the Spirit of truth, he will guide you to all truth.”

Monday is the Feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary. This week we recognize the sacrifices made by a number of martyrs in the Church. Tuesday is the Memorial of St. Justin, Martyr. Thursday we remember St. Charles Lwanga and Companions, Martyrs. Saturday is the Memorial of St. Boniface, Bishop and Martyr.

This week is our only exposure to the Book of Tobit in the two year cycle of weekday readings. The Book of Tobit is a novel in the Wisdom literature tradition. We read the story of the misfortunes Tobit and a young woman, named Sarah. The story is about God's fidelity, even though they are tested, and their perseverance in prayer and works of charity. The songs of praise in Tobit this week are extraordinary.

Mark's Gospel offers stories of how Jesus is in the midst of a struggle with the religious leaders in Jerusalem who do not like them. He tells them the Parable of the tenant farmers, telling them that the stone rejected by builders has become the cornerstone. They almost arrest him. His opponents try to ensnare Jesus with question about the temple tax, but he isn't trapped by them. When they question him about the resurrection, Jesus tells a parable which teaches that God is the God of the living. "to love your neighbor as yourself is worth more than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.” When asked which is the first commandment, Jesus gives two - highlighting the equal importance of love of God and neighbor. Jesus is both Son of David and Messiah and Lord. Jesus warns of those who abuse widows on spiritual pretexts and tells his disciples to notice the widow who gave from her poverty.

Sunday in the US is the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ. For the rest of the world, it is the Tenth Sunday of Ordinary Time. “If a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand.”

Daily Prayer This Week

This week of prayer can be very blessed. Beginning with the celebration of the Trinity - the powerful way God loves us, and the presence of the Spirit of the Father and the Son with us - we also reflect on the beauty of the Visitation and the encounter between Mary and Elizabeth, and between Jesus and John, in the womb.

In the first movement for the week we let Jesus change our perspective on things. We can practice all week seeing things from Jesus' point of view. When we get angry with someone, we might be tempted to scream at them or worse. Instead we can let Jesus speak to our hearts and help us with the grace to forgive that person and actually love, as Jesus loves. We can take the perspective of Tobit, and of Mary and Elizabeth - fully trusting God's way, offering us freedom to say "yes" more deeply to our call.

This type of daily prayer, finding intimacy with God throughout our very busy days, can only work if we keep focusing on what we are desiring each day. And that can only work if we begin each day, naming our desires. Keep the desires simple: for example, “Lord, today, please help me see the grace you are offering me in the poverty I feel in this situation.” It can take only seconds to say that in the morning when I get up, or while I'm showering or getting dressed. But, by saying it out loud to ourselves, we give shape to a background place of conversation with the Lord all day. With some focused moments of prayer throughout the day, our desires will interact with everything that happens to us.

“It is here, Lord, that you are asking me to surrender my anger. Mercy is so hard, but it is the way to life you are offering me. I know you desire mercy more than sacrifice. I so much want to know the blessedness of being a loving person. I feel more peaceful just knowing you are with me as I try to respond to this person with more compassion and forgiveness.”

Each evening, our daily prayer comes to closure. We briefly look back through our day and remember those moments of “connection” and thank the Lord for the graces given. It takes practice, but the rewards are what we truly desire.

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