First reading Ephesians 2:19-22
In Christ you are no longer aliens, but citizens like us
You are no longer aliens or foreign visitors: you are citizens like all the saints, and part of God’s household. You are part of a building that has the apostles and prophets for its foundations, and Christ Jesus himself for its main cornerstone. As every structure is aligned on him, all grow into one holy temple in the Lord; and you too, in him, are being built into a house where God lives, in the Spirit.
Responsorial Psalm 18(19):2-5
Their word goes forth through all the earth.
The heavens proclaim the glory of God,
and the firmament shows forth the work of his hands.
Day unto day takes up the story
and night unto night makes known the message.
Their word goes forth through all the earth.
No speech, no word, no voice is heard
yet their span extends through all the earth,
their words to the utmost bounds of the world.
Their word goes forth through all the earth.
Gospel Luke 6:12-16
Jesus chooses his twelve apostles
Jesus went out into the hills to pray; and he spent the whole night in prayer to God. When day came he summoned his disciples and picked out twelve of them; he called them ‘apostles’: Simon whom he called Peter, and his brother Andrew; James, John, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James son of Alphaeus, Simon called the Zealot, Judas son of James, and Judas Iscariot who became a traitor.
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The centrality of prayer
“Jesus went onto the mountain to pray; and he spent the whole night in prayer to God”. Jesus’ relationship with God was central in His life. From this prayerful union with God, Jesus lived His mission. In today’s gospel, the time that Jesus spent on the mountain in prayer moved and led Him to choose the Twelve as well as to teach and heal great multitudes of people. Prayer has to take the center place in our lives. “We are not made to run all the time, we have an inner life that cannot always be neglected” (Pope Francis).
Often we are so caught up with our busy schedule that we forget to spend time with Jesus in prayer. Let us be determined to find space and time each day to seek solitude with Jesus. As we celebrate the feasts of SS Simon and Jude, let us ask St. Simon the zealot to give us a zealous heart to seek God above all and St. Jude the patron of hopeless cases to provide us with the determination to make time and space to be with Jesus.
Question for reflection:
Is prayer central and crucial in my life?
Is prayer central and crucial in my life?
