SIXTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME

Thursday

Year II

Readings

First Reading
Jas 2:1–9

Responsorial Psalm
Ps 34:2–3, 4–5, 6–7

Gospel
Mk 8:27–33

Meditation on Today’s Readings

Taken from the Vatican II Sunday and Weekday Missal
Written by Celia Sirois

Today’s reading from Genesis describes the covenant God made with Noah and his descendants under the sign of the rainbow. In the view of Judaism, the covenant with Noah reveals God’s will for the salvation of all human beings without distinction. The author of the Letter of James also underscores God’s impartiality. After all, he asks, “Did not God choose those who are poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the Kingdom?” So he warns, “show no partiality as you adhere to the faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ.”

In today’s Gospel, Jesus shows himself impartial too. Peter’s profession of faith in Jesus as the Messiah is incomplete, for Peter has not yet recognized or reckoned with the true nature of Jesus’ messiahship. This is made dramatically clear when he adamantly refuses to accept Jesus’ prediction of the passion. Jesus responds with his eyes on his disciples—those there present and those still to come, like us. “Get behind me, Satan!” His point is inescapable: any disciple, even Peter, who denies the cross stands on the side of Satan.

The copyright for the Sunday Missal Introductions is:
Copyright (c) 2001, Daughters of St. Paul
The copyright for the Weekday Missal Introduction is:
Copyright (c) 2002, Daughters of St. Paul