Sharing Guidelines
*Sharing is not a time for teaching or debate; it is a time to sense the marvelous work of the Holy Spirit who leads the gathering.
*Reflection sharing is not meant to teach others but to share the meaning you personally have discovered. Therefore, do not criticize or debate another person’s sharing. Avoid boasting of your own understanding or knowledge.
*Respect the grace of the Holy Spirit, who reveals the meaning of the Word while dwelling among us, and listen attentively to others’ sharing, holding it in your heart.
*Keep confidential any personal reflections or stories shared in the group; practicing brotherly love means not passing along private matters outside the meeting.
*When speaking, always use the first person singular (“I”). Be careful not to distance or generalize your story by using the third person (“he,” “they”) or the first person plural (“we”).
*Keep it short.
Reading 1
Isaiah 56:1, 6-7
Thus says the LORD:
Observe what is right, do what is just;
for my salvation is about to come,
my justice, about to be revealed.
The foreigners who join themselves to the LORD,
ministering to him,
loving the name of the LORD,
and becoming his servants—
all who keep the sabbath free from profanation
and hold to my covenant,
them I will bring to my holy mountain
and make joyful in my house of prayer;
their burnt offerings and sacrifices
will be acceptable on my altar,
for my house shall be called
a house of prayer for all peoples.
-The Word of the Lord – Thanks be to God
Reading 2
Romans 11:13-15, 29-32
Brothers and sisters:
I am speaking to you Gentiles.
Inasmuch as I am the apostle to the Gentiles,
I glory in my ministry in order to make my race jealous
and thus save some of them.
For if their rejection is the reconciliation of the world,
what will their acceptance be but life from the dead?
For the gifts and the call of God are irrevocable.
Just as you once disobeyed God
but have now received mercy because of their disobedience,
so they have now disobeyed in order that,
by virtue of the mercy shown to you,
they too may now receive mercy.
For God delivered all to disobedience,
that he might have mercy upon all.
-The Word of the Lord – Thanks be to God
Gospel
Matthew 15:21-28
At that time, Jesus withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon.
And behold, a Canaanite woman of that district came and called out,
“Have pity on me, Lord, Son of David!
My daughter is tormented by a demon.”
But Jesus did not say a word in answer to her.
Jesus’ disciples came and asked him,
“Send her away, for she keeps calling out after us.”
He said in reply,
“I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”
But the woman came and did Jesus homage, saying, “Lord, help me.”
He said in reply,
“It is not right to take the food of the children
and throw it to the dogs.”
She said, “Please, Lord, for even the dogs eat the scraps
that fall from the table of their masters.”
Then Jesus said to her in reply,
“O woman, great is your faith!
Let it be done for you as you wish.”
And the woman’s daughter was healed from that hour.
-The Gospel of the Lord -Praise to you Lord, Jesus Christ
Today’s Reflection
The prophet Isaiah says, “I will bring to my holy mountain and make joyful in my house of prayer” He tells us that God’s salvation is also for people from every nation. Saint Paul gives the Christians in Rome an interesting explanation. Because of the disobedience of the Jewish people, God’s mercy and salvation were also given to the Gentiles.
Jesus went to the area of Tyre and Sidon, a place where many non-Jewish people lived. There, a Canaanite woman came to Him with a desperate request. Because her daughter was suffering, this mother came to meet the Savior.
The people around Jesus ignored her cries. Even Jesus seemed to test her patience and faith. But the woman continued to ask Jesus to heal her daughter. She completely trusted in His power and did not give up.
She was even willing to accept the smallest blessing, like the crumbs that fall from the table. Jesus praised her because of her great faith.
Because of this mother’s great faith, her daughter was freed from the power of evil. The faith of this Gentile woman helped reveal the universal mercy and love of Jesus. It showed that a new time had come when people of every nation could worship God the Father as one family in the Lord.
The faith of the Canaanite woman stands in strong contrast to the suffering of her daughter. When people experience great pain and feel trapped, they may become discouraged. But they may also begin to look to heaven and ask God for help.
The Canaanite woman from Tyre and Sidon chose Jesus and trusted His words. Nothing could stop her—not rejection, humiliation, or the feeling of being left out.
Faith helps us overcome our suffering. Faith can break the chains that hold us captive.
What about our faith? (류한영 베드로 신부)
