Gospel: Mark
8:14-21
The
disciples had forgotten to bring bread, and they had only one loaf with them in
the boat. Jesus enjoined them, “Watch out, guard against the leaven of the
Pharisees and the leaven of Herod. They concluded among themselves that it was
because they had no bread. When he became aware of this he said to them, “Why
do you conclude that it is because you have no bread? Do you not yet understand
or comprehend? Are your hearts hardened? Do you have eyes and not see, ears and
not hear? And do you not remember, when I broke the five loaves for the five
thousand, how many wicker baskets full of fragments you picked up? They
answered him, “Twelve.” “When I broke the seven loaves for the four thousand,
how many full baskets of fragments did you pick up?” They answered him,
“Seven.” He said to them, “Do you still not understand?”
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Reflection:
Do you
allow the enticement of this world to take off your focus on Jesus? For example
the Sunday obligation to celebrate Holy Mass. Many of us today sometimes do not
pay much attention to the highest form of worship inside the church. We
sacrifice it for our man worldly undertaking that only pull us away from Jesus.
Do you allow this to happen to you?
In the
gospel Jesus admonished his disciples to beware of the leaven of the Pharisees
and Herod. He used the leaven as a metaphor that they should not be convinced
by the inducement of the Pharisees and Herod to leave him for them.
Both the
Pharisees and Herod represents power, the power of religion and government which
for all intents and purposes are worldly and temporary. Jesus was actually telling
His disciples not to leave Him for what they represent. In effect Jesus was
telling them not to favor the world over their love for God.
The
secular world has many inducements such as: power, money, greed, popularity,
lust, ego, self-centeredness etc… We should be careful of these worldly
appendages, we should not let ourselves be deceived by these temporal
inducements.
Let us
rather continue be steadfast with our love, fellowship and fidelity with Jesus
through our words and actions. For what would we gain if we have all the
things that this world can if we don’t have God? – Marino J. Dasmarinas
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