Tuesday of Week 13 in Ordinary Time
Liturgical Colour: Green. Year A(II).
First Reading
Amos 3:1-8; 4:11-12
Listen, sons of Israel,
to this oracle the Lord speaks against you,
against the whole family
I brought out of the land of Egypt:
"You alone,
of all the families of earth,
have I acknowledged;
therefore it is for all your sins
that I mean to punish you.
Do two men walk together
unless they have agreed to do so?
Does the lion roar in the forest
when it has no prey?
Does the young lion cry out
from its den
if it has caught nothing?
Does a bird fall into a snare on the earth
when there is no trap for it?
Does a snare spring up from the ground
without catching anything?
Is a trumpet blown in a city,
and the people are not afraid?
Does disaster come to a city,
unless the Lord has done it?
Surely the Lord God does nothing
without revealing his secret
to his servants the prophets.
The lion has roared;
who will not fear?
The Lord God has spoken;
who can but prophesy?"
"I overthrew some of you,
as when God overthrew
Sodom and Gomorrah,
and you were like a brand
plucked from the burning;
yet you did not return to me,"
says the Lord.
"Therefore thus I will do to you,
O Israel;
because I will do this to you,
prepare to meet your God."
Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 5:5-8
Response: Lead me, Lord, in your justice.
You are no God
who delights in wickedness;
evil may not dwell with you.
The arrogant
shall not stand before your eyes.
You hate all evildoers.
Response: Lead me, Lord, in your justice.
But I,
through the abundance
of your steadfast love,
will enter your house.
I will bow down
toward your holy temple
in awe of you.
Response: Lead me, Lord, in your justice.
Lead me, O Lord,
in your righteousness
because of my enemies;
make your way straight
before me.
Gospel
Matthew 8:23-27
Jesus got into the boat,
and his disciples followed him.
Suddenly
a great storm arose on the sea,
so that the boat
was being swamped by the waves;
but he was asleep.
They went and woke him,
saying,
"Lord,
save us!
We are perishing!"
He said to them,
"Why are you afraid,
O you of little faith?"
Then he rose,
rebuked the winds
and the sea,
and there was
a great calm.
The men marvelled,
saying,
"What sort of man is this,
that even the winds
and the sea obey him?"
Reflection
The prophet Amos speaks with remarkable clarity. Israel had been chosen by God, blessed with his covenant, and entrusted with his law. Yet privilege also brought responsibility. Because they belonged to God, they were accountable for the way they lived. Amos' warnings were not spoken out of anger alone but out of love. God desired repentance before judgement became inevitable. The Catechism reminds us that conversion is always God's initiative, continually inviting us to return to him with our whole heart (CCC 1427-1432).
The repeated questions throughout the reading build towards one unavoidable conclusion: nothing happens without purpose, and God does not remain silent. Before judgement comes, he sends prophets. Before consequences arrive, he offers opportunities for repentance. Divine justice is never separated from divine mercy.
The Gospel presents another scene of fear. Experienced fishermen are terrified by a violent storm while Jesus sleeps peacefully in the boat. Their panic is understandable, yet Christ asks a deeper question:
"Why are you afraid, O you of little faith?"
The miracle is not only that Jesus calms the sea, but that he reveals his divine authority over creation itself. The winds and waves obey him because all creation recognises its Creator. The Catechism teaches that Christ's miracles reveal the coming of God's Kingdom and confirm that he truly is the Son of God (CCC 547-550).
Storms remain part of every Christian life. Some are external—illness, financial hardship, grief, uncertainty. Others rage within us through anxiety, doubt, temptation, or fear. Like the disciples, we often assume that Christ is absent because he appears silent. Yet today's Gospel reminds us that his presence is never determined by our emotions. Even while asleep, he remained in the boat. Even in silence, he remained Lord.
Amos calls us to prepare to meet God.
Matthew reminds us that the God we meet is already beside us.
The challenge for every disciple is not whether storms will come—they will—but whether we will trust the One who commands them. Faith is not confidence that storms will never arise; it is confidence that Christ remains sovereign even when the waves seem overwhelming.
When the disciples reached the other shore, they carried more than the memory of a miracle. They carried a deeper understanding of who Jesus truly is.
That same question echoes today:
"What sort of man is this?"
The answer is the foundation of our faith.
He is the Lord of creation, the Lord of the Church, and the Lord of every storm we will ever face.
One line to carry today
When Christ is in the boat, trust him more than you fear the storm.
No comments:
Post a Comment