Psalm for Sunday, June 16, 2019

Reflections

Psalm 8:  4-5, 6-7, 8-9   (Read)

“What is man that you are mindful 

of him?  Yet you have made him 

little less than a god.” 

Why did our Creator give us life? 

Why are we given rule over God's 

works, and why did He put all things 

under our feet?  These age old 

questions are raised again by our 

psalmist, David, who is awed that 

God has made us so much like 

heavenly beings.

It is clear that we are made in the 

image of God, and we are His children. 

As the voice of Wisdom tells us, in 

Sunday's first reading, God takes delight 

in his children.  (Proverbs 8:31)

And St Paul, in the second reading,

reminds us that the Love of God has 

been poured out into our hearts through 

the Holy Spirit that has been given to us.

(Romans 5:5) 

God dwells within us that we might have 

a share in His divinity. 

This Sunday we celebrate the Solemnity of the 

Holy Trinity.  Having been baptized in the Spirit, 

we are able to experience the divine Trinity within 

us.  It is said that we shall feel a resemblance to 

God in our souls.  'It is in the most secret recesses 

of the soul that God is known, in which he acts and 

exists. God is one with us; we can no more separate 

ourselves from God than from our own selves.' 

(Father John Tauler)

The Catechism teaches that God has destined us 

to share in the exchange of love among the Father, 

Son, and Holy Spirit.  'Man's living area is broadened 

and raised up to the supernatural level of divine life.' 

(St John Paul II)

'The Father has sent the Spirit into our hearts so that 

we cry 'Abba, Father.'  God is nearer to us than we are 

to ourselves through the divine indwelling.' (Magnificat).

Believing this is so, then we should be devoted to 

bearing fruit and lifting up our brothers and sisters, 

fulfilling the gifts of the Spirit that have been given to us. 

If we do that, God will truly be pleased, and what better 

way is there to praise Him than by doing His work. 

As our psalmist says, “O Lord, our God, how wonderful 

your name in all the earth!” 

Amen

Discussion Questions for Reflection  
 

1.  Our Psalmist says that we are made 'little less than the angels,

and crowned with glory and honor.'   As a child of God, speak of how 

you are doing the work of the Lord and how you know He takes pleasure 

in what you do.

2.  The Psalm tells us that the Lord has given us humans dominion over 

'all the beasts of the field ... and whatever swims the paths of the seas.'  

We know also that the earth was designed to be lived in.   What are you 

doing to be a good steward over the 'works of His hands?' 

  

Psalm for Sunday, June 9, 2019

Reflections 

Psalm 104:  1, 24, 29-30, 31, 34  (Read)

“When you send forth your spirit, 

they are created.” 

Animated by the Spirit, the divine 

breath, we who are His creatures 

sing of the glory of our Creator.  

Our psalmist affirms, “When you 

send forth your Spirit, you renew 

the face of the earth.”  

God our Creator is the source of 

all natural life. So also the Holy Spirit 

is the source of all supernatural life. 

We are nothing without the divine 

breath -- “If you take away their breath,

they perish and return to their dust.”

It is this same creative breath that came 

down on the disciples in that locked room 

St Luke speaks of in today's first reading.

(Acts 2:1-4)

The Holy Spirit empowered the disciples 

to go forth and proclaim the Gospel boldly 

to men of all nations, speaking different tongues.

We too are called to be baptized in the Spirit, 

and to receive the divine breath of the Lord. 

Having been baptized in the Spirit, we are a 

new creation, and are called to glorify the Lord

in what we do. In this way, as the Psalm says, 

“May the Lord be glad in his works.”

Fortunately for us too, the Spirit is manifested

in each of us for some benefit, as St Paul 

reminds us in today's second reading. 

(1 Corinthians 12:7)

All we have to do is accept Christ and 

believe in Him.

Without the breath of the Holy Spirit, we have 

no spiritual life. But thanks to God's gift, 

we are a new creation; we are baptized into  

Christ, and we share in the divinity of our Lord.

And that alone gives us reason to praise God.

As our psalmist says, “Pleasing to Him be my 

theme; I will be glad in the Lord.”

Amen

Discussion Questions for Reflection 
   

1.  As in our Psalm, do you also feel the presence of the 'divine breath' 

in your spiritual life?  Speak of how the Holy Spirit is at work in your life.

2.  Our psalmist says that the Spirit of the Lord 'renews the face of the earth.'   

Tell of how you are a new creation, after having been baptized in the Holy Spirit.

Psalm for Sunday, June 2, 2019

Reflections 

Psalm 47: 2-3, 6-7, 8-9   (Read)

“God mounts His throne amid shouts of joy.” 

This Sunday we celebrate the Ascension of our Lord, who was 

taken up to heaven to be seated 

at the right hand of the Father, 

far above every principality, 

with authority over every nation, 

as our second reading tells us.  

(Ephesians 1: 20-21)

With such an awesome God on His throne, 

what hope do we have as mere human beings 

that He will have anything more to do with us? 

How far removed can we be if this Jesus is taken

up to heaven and has all things put beneath His 

feet (including us)?

Fortunately, for us men, Jesus leaves us with a way 

to share in His divinity, through the Holy Spirit which 

He gives to us.  His power and presence remain within 

us, so long as we repent from our sins and believe 

in Him.

Power is often associated with arrogance and brutal 

treatment, but our God uses His power to work 

miracles, and bring about healing. He is risen, and

is seated at the right hand of the Father in heaven. 

Knowing this, we shout with joy, and we praise Him.

After Jesus' Ascension, the disciples began their 

active ministry, empowered by the Holy Spirit.

That same power is given to us so long as we believe; 

we too are called to ministry.  And for that we are 

inspired to praise the Lord, as the psalmist says, 

“Clap your hands, shout to God with joyful cries; 

sing praise to God!”

Amen

Discussion Questions for Reflection

1.  The Psalm speaks of God mounting His throne and reigning over the nations.   

If God is raised up so far above us, how do you go about having a relationship 

with our Lord so that He is present to you?

2.  The Psalm's verses tell of God as the great king over all the earth, and we are 

urged to sing praise to our king.  Describe how our Lord's Ascension inspires you 

to celebrate with shouts of joy.

Psalm for Sunday, May 26, 2019

Reflections
 
Psalm 67:  2-3, 5-6, 8   (Read)

“May God be gracious to us and bless us;
may God's face shine upon us.” 
 
So much that God does for us is contained
in this opening verse of the Psalm.  God gives
us His grace through His son Jesus, who is
our Savior.  And we all want God’s blessings as
the Psalm says.  Since the time of Moses,
God’s chosen people have reached out for
God’s blessings.
 
God gives us material blessings –
all our treasure and gifts are from Him.
And thankfully, He gives us spiritual blessings
as well – as St Paul tells us, to each individual
the manifestation of the spirit is given for
some benefit.  
 
No wonder that we Gentiles were attracted
to the faith, when St Paul and Barnabas
were traveling through the towns and visiting
the early churches.  And what could be better
than to have God's face shine upon us, as the
psalmist says.  We have a hint of what the
radiance of God's face may be like in this

Sunday's 2nd reading, where St John speaks of
the light of God's glory that shines in the
city of heaven.  (John 21: 10-11)
 
By ministering to the Gentiles the 'way' of
the Lord became known upon earth among
all the nations, as the Psalm says.  Indeed the
Psalm  predicts that God’s saving power shall
be known among all the peoples.  Thankfully,
that includes us.
 
Today we join with our psalmist and the members
of the early church in praising God –
“May the peoples praise you, O God;
may all the peoples praise you.”
 
Amen

Discussion Questions for Reflection
   
1.  Our psalmist asks that God will let His face shine upon us.   

Tell of how you have felt the radiance of God when He is present to you.

2.  The Psalm prays that the Lord's 'way' be known among all nations.   

What have you done personally to encourage others to follow 

the 'way' of the Lord? 

Psalm for Sunday, May 19, 2019

Reflections
 
Psalm 145:  8-9, 10-11, 12-13   (Read) 

“The Lord is good to all and
compassionate toward all his works.”
 
When we reflect on what God has
done for us, we remember that God
has always done good things for us. 
That is God's nature – as the Psalm
says, “The Lord is gracious and
merciful and of great kindness.”
And so we pray this psalm to bless,
praise, and exalt the heavenly Father
in His perfection and in His works.
 
Our psalmist dwells on the everlasting
nature of God, on his love and presence
throughout all time, and we are called
to praise the Lord forever.  Our psalmist
reminds us, “The Lord is good to all
and compassionate toward all his works.”
We know this inherently because we live
our lives with an unending stream of divine love.
 
There are times when we may question
why God allows us to suffer, why He allows
“bad things to happen to good people.”
We may ask, as the early believers probably did,
“Why is it necessary to undergo such hardships
to enter the kingdom of God?” 
 
Afflictions go hand in hand in our walk
with the Lord.   We may not understand
what God is up to, but we can be sure that
our faith will be strengthened if we stand
fast in the face of suffering.  We will become
better witnesses for Christ as we are humbled.
We become better servants if we bear up
with our difficulties and trust in the Lord,
as our psalmist tells us.  
 
Endurance is a Godly quality and will help
us to get 'yoked' to Jesus.   Having done that,
we, like our psalmist David, join with the
faithful and speak of the glory of God's reign
and bless His name.
 
Amen


Discussion Questions for Reflection

1.   The Psalm says, 'Let all your works give you thanks, O Lord.'    
Are you one of His works?   Tell of how you give thanks to the Lord 
and bless Him as one of His faithful ones.

2.   Our psalmist speaks of the everlasting nature of God's divine love.   
Describe how God's love has helped you to overcome hardship 
and get 'yoked' to Jesus. 

Psalm for Sunday, May 12, 2019

Reflections 

Psalm 100: 1-2, 3, 5   (Read)

"We are God's people,

the sheep of his flock." 

The Psalm begins with a call for us

to 'sing joyfully to the Lord.'  That

same joyful spirit filled St Paul and 

his companions when they began 

their ministry to the Gentiles that 

day in Antioch.  (Acts 13:14, 43-52)

And their ministry has become our 

ministry – as our psalmist says, 

we are called to 'worship the Lord 

with cries of gladness; come before 

Him with joyful song.' 

But after all, we are like sheep, and 

we need someone to look after us 

so that we don't go astray.  What 

could be better than to have Jesus

as our Good Shepherd?   We are his 

lambs; we hear his voice; He knows 

us; and we follow Him. 

As our psalmist says, we belong to God.

And God has given us to his Son. No one 

can take us out of his hand, as Jesus tells 

us in today's Gospel. (John 10:27-30)

We are a well tended flock indeed. 

As our Lord's sheep, we hear his voice, 

we follow Him, and we praise Him because,

'Good indeed is the Lord, his love endures 

forever, his faithfulness lasts through every 

generation.'

Amen

Discussion Questions for Reflection

1.  There is something comforting about being shepherded by

our Lord Jesus.  Our psalmist says we are 'the flock He tends.'
Speak of how you feel to be one of His sheep.

2.  The Psalm tells us to 'serve the Lord with gladness.'   Give an
example of how you are serving Him with a joyful spirit.
 

  

Psalm for Sunday, May 5, 2019

Reflections

Psalm 30: 2, 4, 5-6, 11-12, 13   (Read)

“I praise you, Lord, for you raised me up."

This is a Psalm that Jesus himself 

might have prayed, following his 

resurrection: “I praise you, Lord, 

for you raised me up and did not 

let my enemies rejoice over me.”

Our Lord Jesus was raised up 

from the pit by the Father, even 

though He bore the weight of our 

sins.  “Lord you brought me up 

from the netherworld; you let me 

live, from going down to the pit.”

God’s anger over the sins of all men,

that Christ took upon himself, lasted 

but a moment -- “Divine anger lasts 

but a moment; divine favor lasts 

a lifetime.”

The Psalm speaks to us as we take part 

in the joy of Easter. The joy of the resurrection 

comes to us at dawn, after a terrible night, 

as it came to those early followers of Jesus.

“At nightfall, weeping enters in, but with the 

dawn, rejoicing.” And that alone is reason 

enough to change our mourning into dancing.

The Psalm concludes with praise that is 

worthy of the Lamb, and recalls for us the 

voices of the angels that St John speaks of in 

today's second reading from Revelation 5:11-12,

“O Lord, my God, forever will I give you thanks.”

Amen

Discussion Questions for Reflection 

  

1.  Our psalmist says that God's anger lasts but a moment, while His favor 

lasts a lifetime.   Give an example of how you have been blessed by God's 

favor after having fallen away for a time.

2.  The Psalm speaks of changing our mourning into dancing.   Tell of how the 

resurrection of our Lord has lifted you up and brought within you a rejoicing of the spirit.