Catholic Caucus: Daily Mass Readings xx-November-2023

Universalis/Jerusalem Bible ^

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29 November 2023

Wednesday of week 34 in Ordinary Time



basilica Saint-Sernin of Toulouse

Readings at Mass

Liturgical Colour: Green. Year: A(I).

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First reading

Daniel 5:1-6,13-14,16-17,23-28 ©

The writing on the wall

King Belshazzar gave a great banquet for his noblemen; a thousand of them attended, and he drank wine in company with this thousand. As he sipped his wine, Belshazzar gave orders for the gold and silver vessels to be brought which his father Nebuchadnezzar had looted from the sanctuary in Jerusalem, so that the king, his noblemen, his wives and his singing women could drink out of them. The gold and silver vessels looted from the sanctuary of the Temple of God in Jerusalem were brought in, and the king, his noblemen, his wives and his singing women drank out of them. They drank their wine and praised their gods of gold and silver, of bronze and iron, of wood and stone. Suddenly the fingers of a human hand appeared, and began to write on the plaster of the palace wall, directly behind the lamp-stand; and the king could see the hand as it wrote. The king turned pale with alarm: his thigh-joints went slack and his knees began to knock.

  Daniel was brought into the king’s presence; the king said to Daniel, ‘Are you the Daniel who was one of the Judaean exiles brought by my father the king from Judah? I am told that the spirit of God Most Holy lives in you, and that you are known for your perception, intelligence and marvellous wisdom. As I am told that you are able to give interpretations and to unravel difficult problems, if you can read the writing and tell me what it means, you shall be dressed in purple, and have a chain of gold put round your neck, and be third in rank in the kingdom.’

  Then Daniel spoke up in the presence of the king. ‘Keep your gifts for yourself,’ he said ‘and give your rewards to others. I will read the writing to the king without them, and tell him what it means. You have defied the Lord of heaven, you have had the vessels from his Temple brought to you, and you, your noblemen, your wives and your singing women have drunk your wine out of them. You have praised gods of gold and silver, of bronze and iron, of wood and stone, which cannot either see, hear or understand; but you have given no glory to the God who holds your breath and all your fortunes in his hands. That is why he has sent the hand which, by itself, has written these words. The writing reads: Mene, Mene, Tekel and Parsin. The meaning of the words is this: Mene: God has measured your sovereignty and put an end to it; Tekel: you have been weighed in the balance and found wanting; Parsin: your kingdom has been divided and given to the Medes and the Persians.’

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Responsorial Psalm	Daniel 3:62-67 ©

Sun and moon! bless the Lord.

  Give glory and eternal praise to him!

Stars of heaven! bless the Lord.

  Give glory and eternal praise to him!

Showers and dews! all bless the Lord.

  Give glory and eternal praise to him!

Winds! all bless the Lord.

  Give glory and eternal praise to him!

Fire and heat! bless the Lord.

  Give glory and eternal praise to him!

Cold and heat! bless the Lord.

  Give glory and eternal praise to him!

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Gospel Acclamation	Lk21:36

Alleluia, alleluia!

Stay awake, praying at all times

for the strength to stand with confidence

before the Son of Man.

Alleluia!

Or:	Rv2:10

Alleluia, alleluia!

Even if you have to die, says the Lord,

keep faithful, and I will give you

the crown of life.

Alleluia!

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Gospel	Luke 21:12-19 ©

Your endurance will win you your lives

Jesus said to his disciples: ‘Men will seize you and persecute you; they will hand you over to the synagogues and to imprisonment, and bring you before kings and governors because of my name – and that will be your opportunity to bear witness. Keep this carefully in mind: you are not to prepare your defence, because I myself shall give you an eloquence and a wisdom that none of your opponents will be able to resist or contradict. You will be betrayed even by parents and brothers, relations and friends; and some of you will be put to death. You will be hated by all men on account of my name, but not a hair of your head will be lost. Your endurance will win you your lives.’

Christian Art

Each day, The Christian Art website gives a picture and reflection on the Gospel of the day.

The readings on this page are from the Jerusalem Bible, which is used at Mass in most of the English-speaking world. The New American Bible readings, which are used at Mass in the United States, are available in the Universalis apps, programs and downloads.

You can also view this page with the Gospel in Greek and English.

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For your reading, reflection, faith-sharing, comments, questions, discussion.

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KEYWORDS: catholic; lk21; ordinarytime; prayer;

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Luke
	English: Douay-Rheims	Latin: Vulgata Clementina	Greek NT: Byzantine/Majority Text (2000)
	Luke 21
12.	But before all these things, they will lay their hands upon you, and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues and into prisons, dragging you before kings and governors, for my name's sake.	Sed ante hæc omnia injicient vobis manus suas, et persequentur tradentes in synagogas et custodias, trahentes ad reges et præsides propter nomen meum :	προ δε τουτων παντων επιβαλουσιν εφ υμας τας χειρας αυτων και διωξουσιν παραδιδοντες εις συναγωγας και φυλακας αγομενους επι βασιλεις και ηγεμονας ενεκεν του ονοματος μου
13.	And it shall happen unto you for a testimony.	continget autem vobis in testimonium.	αποβησεται δε υμιν εις μαρτυριον
14.	Lay it up therefore into your hearts, not to meditate before how you shall answer:	Ponite ergo in cordibus vestris non præmeditari quemadmodum respondeatis :	θεσθε ουν εις τας καρδιας υμων μη προμελεταν απολογηθηναι
15.	For I will give you a mouth and wisdom, which all your adversaries shall not be able to resist and gainsay.	ego enim dabo vobis os et sapientiam, cui non poterunt resistere et contradicere omnes adversarii vestri.	εγω γαρ δωσω υμιν στομα και σοφιαν η ου δυνησονται αντειπειν ουδε αντιστηναι παντες οι αντικειμενοι υμιν
16.	And you shall be betrayed by your parents and brethren, and kinsmen and friends; and some of you they will put to death.	Trademini autem a parentibus, et fratribus, et cognatis, et amicis, et morte afficient ex vobis :	παραδοθησεσθε δε και υπο γονεων και συγγενων και φιλων και αδελφων και θανατωσουσιν εξ υμων
17.	And you shall be hated by all men for my name's sake.	et eritis odio omnibus propter nomen meum :	και εσεσθε μισουμενοι υπο παντων δια το ονομα μου
18.	But a hair of your head shall not perish.	et capillus de capite vestro non peribit.	και θριξ εκ της κεφαλης υμων ου μη αποληται
19.	In your patience you shall possess your souls.	In patientia vestra possidebitis animas vestras.	εν τη υπομονη υμων κτησασθε τας ψυχας υμων

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Catena Aurea by St. Thomas Aguinas

Luke CHAP. 21

21:12–19

12. But before all these, they shall lay their hands on you, and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues, and into prisons, being brought before kings and rulers for my name’s sake.

13. And it shall turn to you for a testimony.

14. Settle it therefore in your hearts, not to meditate before what ye shall answer:

15. For I will give you a mouth and wisdom, which all your adversaries shall not be able to gainsay nor resist.

16. And ye shall be betrayed both by parents, and brethren, and kinsfolks, and friends; and some of you shall they cause to be put to death.

17. And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake.

18. But there shall not an hair of your head perish.

19. In your patience possess ye your souls.

GREGORY. (Hom. 35. in Evang.) Because the things which have been prophesied of arise not from the injustice of the inflictor of them, but from the deserts of the world which suffers them, the deeds or wicked men are foretold; as it is said, But before all these things, they shall lay their hands upon you: as if He says, First the hearts of men, afterwards the elements, shall be disturbed, that when the order of things is thrown into confusion, it may be plain from what retribution it arises. For although the end of the world depends upon its own appointed course, yet finding some more corrupt than others who shall rightly be overwhelmed in its fall, our Lord makes them known.

CYRIL OF ALEXANDRIA. Or He says this, because before that Jerusalem should be taken by the Romans, the disciples, having suffered persecution from the Jews, were imprisoned and brought before rulers; Paul was sent to Rome to Cæsar, and stood before Festus and Agrippa.

It follows, And it shall turn to you for a testimony. In the Greek it is εἰς μαρτύριον, that is, for the glory of martyrdom.

GREGORY. (ut sup.) Or, for a testimony, that is, against those who by persecuting you bring death upon themselves, or living do not imitate you, or themselves becoming hardened perish without excuse, from whom the elect take example that they may live. But as hearing so many terrible things the hearts of men may be troubled, He therefore adds for their consolation, Settle it therefore in your hearts, &c.

THEOPHYLACT. For because they were foolish and inexperienced, the Lord tells them this, that they might not be confounded when about to give account to the wise. And He adds the cause, For I will give you a mouth and wisdom, which all your adversaries shall not be able to gainsay or resist. As if He said, Ye shall forthwith receive of me eloquence and wisdom, so that all your adversaries, were they gathered together in one, shall not be able to resist you, neither in wisdom, that is, the power of the understanding, nor in eloquence, that is, excellence of speech, for many men have often wisdom in their mind, but being easily provoked to their great disturbance, mar the whole when their time of speaking comes, But not such were the Apostles, for in both these gifts they were highly favoured.

GREGORY. (ut sup.) As if the Lord said to His disciples, “Be not afraid, go forward to the battle, it is I that fight; you utter the words, I am He that speaketh.”

AMBROSE. Now in one place Christ speaks in His disciples, as here; in another, the Father; (Mat. 16:17) in another the Spirit of the Father speaketh. (Mat. 10:20.) These do not differ but agree together, In that one speaketh, three speak, for the voice of the Trinity is one.

THEOPHYLACT. Having in what has gone before dispelled the fear of inexperience, He goes on to warn them of another very certain event, which might agitate their minds, lest falling suddenly upon them, it should dismay them; for it follows, And ye shall be betrayed both by parents, and brethren, and kinsfolk, and some of you shall they cause to be put to death.

GREGORY. (ut sup.) We are the more galled by the persecutions we suffer from those of whose dispositions we made sure, because together with the bodily pain, we are tormented by the bitter pangs of lost affection.

GREGORY OF NYSSA. But let us consider the state of things at that time. While all men were suspected, kinsfolk were divided against one another, each differing from the other in religion; the gentile son stood up the betrayer of his believing parents, and of his believing son the unbelieving father became the determined accuser; no age was spared in the persecution of the faith; women were unprotected even by the natural weakness of their sex.

THEOPHYLACT. To all this He adds the hatred which they shall meet with from all men.

GREGORY. (ut sup.) But because of the hard things foretold concerning the affliction of death, there immediately follows a consolation, concerning the joy of the resurrection, when it is said, But there shall not an hair of your head perish. As though He said to the martyrs, Why fear ye for the perishing of that which when cut, pains, when that can not perish in you, which when cut gives no pain?

BEDE. Or else, There shall not perish a hair of the head of our Lord’s Apostles, because not only the noble deeds and words of the Saints, but even the slightest thought shall meet with its deserving reward.

GREGORY. (Mor. 5. c. 16.) He who preserves patience in adversity, is thereby rendered proof against all affliction, and so by conquering himself, he gains the government of himself; as it follows, In your patience shall ye possess your souls. For what is it to possess your souls, but to live perfectly in all things, and sitting as it were upon the citadel of virtue to hold in subjection every motion of the mind?

GREGORY. (Hom. 35. in Ev.) By patience then we possess our souls, because when we are said to govern ourselves, we begin to possess that very thing which we are. But for this reason, the possession of the soul is laid in the virtue of patience, because patience is the root and guardian of all virtues. Now patience is to endure calmly the evils which are inflicted by others, and also to have no feeling of indignation against him who inflicts them.

Catena Aurea Luke 21

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Martyrdom of Saint Catherine

Gaudenzio Ferrari
1540
Oil on panel
cm 334 x 210
Pinacoteca di Brera

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NOVEMBER 29, 2023

Saint Saturninus of Toulouse

It is said that St. Saturninus (Saturnin) was one of the most illustrious martyrs France has given to the Church. Among other distinctions, he served as the first bishop of Toulouse. Apparently his fervent preaching brought about many conversions — so many, in fact, that he soon had a church. To reach the church he had to pass before the capitol and its temple, where the pagan priests felt his frequent passing was silencing their oracles.

One day they seized him, and on his unshakable refusal to sacrifice to idols, they condemned him to being tied by the feet to a bull which dragged him about the town until the rope broke. Two Christian women piously gathered up the remains and buried them in a deep ditch, that they might not be profaned by the pagans. His successors, Sts. Hilary and Exuperius, gave him a more honorable burial. A church was erected where the bull stopped. It still exists, and is called the Church of the Taur (the bull).

The body of the saint was transferred at an early date and is still preserved in the Church of St. Sernin (or Saturninus), one of the most ancient and beautiful of Southern France. His cult spread widely abroad. The account of his writings, known as his “Acts,” was embellished with several details, and legends linked his name with the beginning of the churches of Eauze, Auch, Pamplona, and Amiens, but these are without historic foundation.

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catholicexchange.com

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The Martyrdom of Saint Saturnin