awith

July 15

[media presentation below]

GospelThink

Tuesday, July 15

MATTHEW 11:20-24
What I have done should lead you to your need for repentance.

Prayerthoughts
a. The towns were made up of people, of course, and the people of the towns were the ones who did not repent, even though they had seen great things. I have seen great things that God has done. As a result, do I try to stay away from thoughts, words and deeds that are harmful to me and others?

b. If the people of the cities of Tyre and Sidon had seen the deeds that the Lord did, they would have been easily influenced by the Lord. Do I say enough that I am sorry for the sins of my past?

c. Jesus makes a direct statement to the people around him in Capernaum. Do I show to the people of my locale that I am truly a follower of Jesus?

d. The Lord makes it clear that he wants me to not only say that I am sorry for past sins, but to stay away from situations that lead to evil. As I study my life right now, what are the pockets of evil that I should avoid?

e. My prayerthoughts…

Today, I will read Exodus, chapter 2, and write an
important thought from it.

Some Thoughts on the Liturgy

THE LORD’S ACTION IN OUR LIVES

+ Jesus continues his public ministry in the Gospel today

- and it seems that it has not been a success when one studies the reception he received:

- the people of Nazareth had already thrown him out

- here Jesus criticizes the people of Chorazin, Bethsaida and Capernaum for not understanding what he is doing

- for not seeing the miracles

- for not establishing faith

- even though Jesus did remarkable deeds, it seems that many did not receive him well

+ The first reading is the beginning of the life of the second most important person of faith in the Hebrew Scriptures, namely Moses

- his amazing early life

- but ending with rejection: Moses had to flee from Egypt

- it seems that Moses was not destined to be anything but another citizen

+ A comparison can easily be made to today’s world

- there are many miracles that are performed within that world

- many graces that we have been given

- many technological advances that we have made

- many gifts that we personally have enjoyed and do enjoy

- and at the same time, many times we fail to recognize what God has done for us

+ What Jesus is talking about basically for the citizens of Chorazin, Bethsaida and Capernaum is a lack of awareness

- one of the primary directives of the spiritual life, in fact, maybe the beginning point

- is that we have to be aware of the Lord’s action in our lives

- and to be aware, we have to spend time in looking at the things that have been accomplished

- to study the direction of our lives and to see the Lord at work

- to recognize the Lord’s presence in the things around us

- we must be aware of God’s work in our lives as we study a person like Moses

+ In order to grow spiritually,

- we must be aware of God’s action around us

- we must study those actions with the eyes of faith

- that is, as people imbued with the belief that Moses had and Jesus wanted us to have.

MEDIA PRESENTATION

Song: "Without You" -- The Kid Laroi

IF YOU DON'T TAKE IT BACK

The Gospel

MATTHEW 27:3-5

MATTHEW 27:3-5

Then Judas, his betrayer, seeing that Jesus had been condemned, deeply regretted what he had done. He returned the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders, saying, “I have sinned in betraying innocent blood.” They said, “What is that to us? Look to it yourself.” Flinging the money into the temple, he departed and went off and hanged himself.

Gospelthink: Suicide has been described as a permanent solution to a temporary problem. I must be willing to consider other solutions when I feel down for some reason.

“You cut out a piece of me, and now I’m bleeding internally, left here without you. And it hurts for me to think about what life could possibly be like without you. I can’t believe that you wouldn’t believe me. The heck with all of your reasons, I lost my cool, you know I didn’t mean it. Now I see it, you run and repeat. And I can’t take it back, so in the past is where we’ll leave it. So there you go, I’ll never find the words to say I’m sorry, but I’m scared to be alone." [Lyrics adjusted]

Human emotions are complex, and therefore, discovering romantic love is very complicated. At times, the people in love will say words that they do not mean, and their selfishness will lead to conclusions that neither really want, and the relationship falls apart even though it could be salvaged. The song "Without You" from The Kid Laroi gives that scenario. The man in the relationship does not want to be alone, he sings, but at the same time, he does not want to say he's sorry. And so the relationship ends.

The relationship between Jesus and Judas was not a romantic one, of course, but it was one based on love. Jesus chose Judas to be one of the Twelve, and therefore it was a relationship of special significance. It became a confusing one because for some reason Judas could not comprehend what Jesus wanted. In Judas' mind then, he had to make a decision about the future. He chose to move on in his life away from the relationship he had with Jesus, but his unstable emotions caused things he never intended.

Break ups do not usually end up suicidal, but they feel like it at times. But when one studies what happened rationally, one can see how breakups happen. In The Kid Laroi's song, the man in the relationship said some things, the lady reacted, told others, and at that point, if either of them had acted rationally by talking it out and discussing how they felt, then the breakup could have been prevented. Unfortunately, selfishness often takes over, and irreparable decisions are made.

The song is basically a negative song in that it ends with bitter feelings, it seems. What must happen if the song is to be considered positive in some way is to look at what can be learned. Unfortunately, in disagreements in relationships, words are spoken that really hurt one another. It is at that point that the relationship must allow for a rational thought rather than a selfish one.

If the couple takes the time to talk things out, most probably a good conclusion will follow. Either they will decide to leave the relationship in a good space, and move on, or they will discuss what they meant, and repair the relationship. We make mistakes all the time because we are human, but if we learn from them, those mistakes can lead to good conclusions.

PRAYER

Good and gracious God, because we are human, our relationships with others can be very confused and complicated. Give us the grace to understand what our selfishness can lead us to, and help us resolve our lives with rational thought. Be with us, we pray.

+++++

GUIDE FOR CLASSROOM PRESENTATION AND PERSONAL ENRICHMENT

Theme: In a break up, we will have pain, but we must learn some things from it or else our lives could hurt forever.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
1. What does the song "Without You" teach young people?
2. What do you think was Judas' motivation for betraying Jesus?
3. Money obviously plays a part in Judas' betrayal. Money is and has always been important. What is most people's attitude toward money today, and what should it be?
4. Do you believe that Jesus' and Judas' friendship was ever "close"? Yes or no and why?
5. Given the circumstances of Judas' situation, what should he have done?
6. Lyrics analysis: "You know I didn't mean it." Is that generally a true statement? Yes or no and why?
7. Why do people not want to say that they are sorry?
8. The meditation makes the point that acting rationally involves sincere communication. Do you think that most relationships reach this point before marriage?
9. Besides lack of communication, what are some causes of marriage breakdown?
10. What most of all should we learn in any relationship?