THURSDAY OF THE SEVENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME, FEBRUARY 27, 2025

An Ancient millstone

MASS READINGS:

Gospel

Mark 9:41-50

Jesus said to his disciples: ""Anyone who gives you a cup of water to drink because you belong to Christ ,amen, I say to you, will surely not lose his reward. ""Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin,   it would be better for him if a great millstone were put around his neck and he were thrown into the sea. If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter into life maimed   than with two hands to go into Gehenna, into the unquenchable fire. And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter into life crippled   than with two feet to be thrown into Gehenna. And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out. Better for you to enter into the Kingdom of God with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into Gehenna, where their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched."" Everyone will be salted with fire. Salt is good, but if salt becomes insipid, with what will you restore its flavor? Keep salt in yourselves and you will have peace with one another.""

REFLECTION:

 it would be better for him if a great millstone were put around his neck and he were thrown into the sea.

This is one of the scariest, if not most sobering, reading on the consequences of evil. Self mutilation was not what Jesus was advocating, but with every sentence, the evil of sin is emphasized to the degree that just the mere mention of evil and sin, brings horror to me. No one wants a millstone around their neck and be thrown to the ocean, no one wants amputations, blindness, or being thrown into eternal fires of Gehenna. Shocking! but a very straightforward way for us to understand the effects of evil.

We have to take a hammer, chisel, and a strong conviction and love for God, and start working on our scandalous wicked ways if we want to enter eternal life with God. Uncontrolled free will will lead us to the maggot ridden, worm infested world of hell. Remember, that immediately after death, we meet our judgment. Do we want eternal separation from God?

But we do not live just for ourselves. If we lead others to sin by our behavior or attitude, by what we do or don't do, or cause a weaker person to do wrong, we will pay for this scandal. In all, it is not our will power that will save us, but it is our trust and faith in our Redeemer that through prayer and a willing desire to change, we will see the effect of love on our lives, on our souls. So quit spending time reading or seeing the nonsense on the internet, speak with love, no gossip, and avoid the sinful enticements that will separate us and others from the eternal joy of eternity with God.

Pray for the priests to have the courage to preach on sin, heaven and hell: To have easy access to confession, be available for spiritual counselling, and to show by example and not scandal what it means to do God's will. Visit our website, papamio.org for our prayer for priests, videos and devotionals.

God Bless You.