Cycle B - Year II:  

4 February 2024: Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time 

(Liturgical color: Green)

Readings:

First Reading:        Job 7:1-4, 6-7

Second Reading:   1 Corinthians 9:16-19, 22-23

Gospel:  Please read  Mark 1:29-39 

"Ora et Labora!"

The Latin phrase "ora et labora" translates literally to "work and pray". Because prayer is the energy that sustains in our work. "And "when we entrust our works to the Lord, our plans will succeed". (Proverbs 16:3)  This typically describes our Lord's public ministry, as we hear from today's Gospel.

The Gospel proclamation tells us how our Lord Jesus Christ spend His public life. The evangelist St. Mark describes Jesus public ministry: preaching, curing of the sick, driving out demons, praying, and moving on to continue this work in another place.

Jesus came to the house of Simon-Peter, and his mother-in-law was sick. Even though it was a Sabbath, Jesus was moved to cure her because our Lord always puts compassion for the needy over the Law that prohibits healing on a Sabbath. And then Peter's mother-in-law waited on Jesus and the others.

There is a lesson to learned from this healing incident. When Jesus heals us physically or even spiritually, the best way to thank the Lord is to serve Him in our brothers and sisters in need, just what Simon's mother-in-law did after being healed.

Our Lord's compassion and healing of the sick is a clear sign of the Kingdom of God. The Church continues to extend Christ's healing presence to others in its ministry to the sick. In the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick, the Church prays for spiritual and physical healing, forgiveness of sins, and comfort for those who are suffering from illness.

The Gospel narrative continues that people kept bringing to Jesus all who were ill and possessed by demons even after sunset. It must be an exhausting day for our Lord,  This scene brings up the importance for us of availability. As a faith community we are invited to be available to those who are  in genuine need. But we also need to find a balance between people's needs and our limited resources. We do not help people by making ourselves to the point of burnout.

In the morning, "while still very dark", Jesus got up early and slipped out of the house where He was staying to a deserted place to be alone in prayer with His heavenly Father. The Gospel stories tell us that as well as healing, casting out demons, Jesus was in the habit of going off to a quiet place to pray. Because in prayer and conversation with His Father, Jesus finds strength and energy in His demanding public ministry. Let us learn from this example of our Lord as well, and make praying the primary source of our activities and actions while living in this busy, chaotic world. In prayer, we also bring our decision-making to God, asking for His guidance and direction in our lives. For it is when we pray that we connect with God, Who is the Author and Creator of all things.  Amen.

Today is a Day of Prayer and Awareness against Human Trafficking. Let us pray for the victims of human trafficking all over the work, and that perpetrators of this crime against humanity be brought to justice, before men and before God.

A blessed Sunday to us all. And thank you for a moment with God.

Ad Jesum per Mariam!