Today, June 5
Feast of the Day
No feast of the day
Saint of the Day
Born around 680 in Devonshire, England, Wynfrid was raised in English Benedictine monasteries. By 717, he was a renowned teacher and preacher, but gave up his work in response to a call to the mission field of Friesland (northern Netherlands), where he laboured alongside Saint Willibrord.
He travelled to Rome where Pope Gregory II gave him the name Boniface, along with a commission to preach to the heathen. Later, he was made a bishop and received official documents to ensure his protection from pagan rulers. At Geismar, Boniface made a tremendous impression on a huge gathering of pagans by destroying the great Oak of Thor, an object of pagan worship, without being harmed by 'the gods.'
Boniface's work in Germany and in the Frankish Church as missionary, organizer and reformer was outstanding and lasting. He is called the "Apostle of Germany." On June 5, 754, he and 30 companions were killed by non-Christians as he was preparing to confirm more converts.©2011 Living with Christ, Novalis - Bayard Press Canada Inc., http://www.livingwithchrist.ca/. Reprinted with permission.
Readings of the Day
Second Letter to Timothy 3,10-17.
You have followed my teaching, way of life, purpose, faith, patience, love, endurance, persecutions, and sufferings, such as happened to me in Antioch, Iconium, and Lystra, persecutions that I endured. Yet from all these things the Lord delivered me. In fact, all who want to live religiously in Christ Jesus will be persecuted. But wicked people and charlatans will go from bad to worse, deceivers and deceived. But you, remain faithful to what you have learned and believed, because you know from whom you learned it, and that from infancy you have known (the) sacred scriptures, which are capable of giving you wisdom for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for refutation, for correction, and for training in righteousness, so that one who belongs to God may be competent, equipped for every good work.
Psalms 119(118),157.160.161.165.166.168.
Though my persecutors and my foes are many, I turn not away from your decrees. Permanence is your word's chief trait; Each of your just ordinances is everlasting. Princes persecute me without cause But my heart stands in awe of your word. Those who love your law have great peace, And for them there is no stumbling block. I wait for your salvation, O LORD, And your commands I fulfill. I keep your precepts and your decrees, For all my ways are before you.
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Mark 12,35-37.
As Jesus was teaching in the temple area he said, "How do the scribes claim that the Messiah is the son of David? David himself, inspired by the holy Spirit, said: 'The Lord said to my lord, "Sit at my right hand until I place your enemies under your feet."' David himself calls him 'lord'; so how is he his son?" (The) great crowd heard this with delight.
Daily Reflection
In the Greek translation of the Old Testament, the ineffable Hebrew name YHWH, by which God revealed himself to Moses (cf. Ex 3:14), is rendered as Kyrios, “Lord”. From then on, “Lord” becomes the more usual name by which to indicate the divinity of Israel’s God. The New Testament uses this full sense of the title “Lord” both for the Father and – what is new – for Jesus, who is thereby recognized as God Himself (cf. 1 Cor 2:8). Jesus ascribes this title to himself in a veiled way when he disputes with the Pharisees about the meaning of Psalm 110, but also in an explicit way when he addresses his apostles (cf. Mt 22:41-46; Acts 2:34-36; Heb 1:13; Jn 13:13). Throughout his public life, he demonstrated his divine sovereignty by works of power over nature, illnesses, demons, death, and sin. Very often in the Gospels people address Jesus as “Lord”. This title testifies to the respect and trust of those who approach him for help and healing (cf. Mt 8:2; 14:30; 15:22…). At the prompting of the Holy Spirit, “Lord” expresses the recognition of the divine mystery of Jesus (cf. Lk 1:43; 2:11). In the encounter with the risen Jesus, this title becomes adoration: “My Lord and my God!” It thus takes on a connotation of love and affection that remains proper to the Christian tradition: “It is the Lord!” (Jn 20:28; Jn 21:7) By attributing to Jesus the divine title “Lord,” the first confessions of the Church’s faith affirm from the beginning that the power, honor, and glory due to God the Father are due also to Jesus, because “he was in the form of God,” (cf. Acts 2:34-36; Rom 9:5; Tit 2:13; Rev 5:13; Phil 2:6) and the Father manifested the sovereignty of Jesus by raising him from the dead and exalting him into his glory (cf. Rom 10:9; 1 Cor 12:3; Phil 2:9-11). From the beginning of Christian history, the assertion of Christ’s lordship over the world and over history has implicitly recognized that man should not submit his personal freedom in an absolute manner to any earthly power, but only to God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Caesar is not “the Lord” (cf. Rev 11:15; Mk 12:17; Acts 5:29). “The Church …believes that the key, the center, and the purpose of the whole of man’s history is to be found in its Lord and Master.” Christian prayer is characterized by the title “Lord,” whether in the invitation to prayer (“The Lord be with you.”), its conclusion (“through Christ our Lord”), or the exclamation full of trust and hope: Maran atha (“Our Lord, come!”), or Marana tha (“Come, Lord!”) – “Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!” (1 Cor 16:22; Rev 22:20)