10 August 2023 - Only By a Grace Refelctions
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TOPIC: ARE WE A CHEERFUL GIVER?
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First Reading: Second Corinthians 9: 6-10
Responsorial Psalm: Psalms 112: 1-2, 5-6, 7-8, 9
Alleluia: John 8: 12bc
Gospel: John 12: 24-26
Our first reading today speaks of God loving a cheerful giver. St. Paul challenges the people of Corinth to give freely and generously, without sadness or compulsion and assures them that God will supply everything they need. As the saying goes, God can never be outdone in generosity.
St. Lawrence is a good model of cheerful giving even to the point of dying for the sake of the Gospel. Two anecdotes published locally by the Anawin Community Center attest to this. First, is when he was commanded to appear for execution and bring along all the treasures of the Church entrusted to him by the Pope, he brought along with him a multitude of Rome’s crippled, blind, sick, indigent people and announced: “These are the true treasures of the Church.” For this he was ordered burned alive. The second, is as tradition tells us when he was being burned alive on a gridiron, he jokingly said to his torturers: “I’m done on this side. You can turn me over.” St. Lawrence was a cheerful giver and ever happy to suffer death for the sake of Christ and His people.
How about us, my dear brothers and sisters? Are we willing to give all to God and cheerfully face its consequences?
This is the 1205th installment of our CFC contemplation series focusing on the daily liturgical readings.
[NOTE: As we continue to pray for Bro Bong Arjonillo’s healing and recovery, let us listen to our brother Rouquel Ponte, a member of the Board, as he brings us today's reflection.
