5TH TUESDAY IN ORDINARY TIME-The Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes & The World Day of Prayer for the Sick

“This people honors me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.” (Mk 7:6)

FIRST READING - Genesis 1:20—2:4a

A reading from the Book of Genesis

God said,

"Let the water teem with an abundance of living creatures,

and on the earth let birds fly beneath the dome of the sky."

and so it happened:

God created the great sea monsters

and all kinds of swimming creatures with which the water teems,

and all kinds of winged birds.

God saw how good it was, and God blessed them, saying,

"Be fertile, multiply, and fill the water of the seas;

and let the birds multiply on the earth."

Evening came, and morning followed–the fifth day.

Then God said,

"Let the earth bring forth all kinds of living creatures:

cattle, creeping things, and wild animals of all kinds."

and so it happened:

God made all kinds of wild animals, all kinds of cattle,

and all kinds of creeping things of the earth.

God saw how good it was.

Then God said:

"Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.

Let them have dominion over the fish of the sea,

the birds of the air, and the cattle,

and over all the wild animals

and all the creatures that crawl on the ground."

God created man in his image;

in the divine image he created him;

male and female he created them.

God blessed them, saying:

"Be fertile and multiply;

fill the earth and subdue it.

Have dominion over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air,

and all the living things that move on the earth."

God also said:

"See, I give you every seed-bearing plant all over the earth

and every tree that has seed-bearing fruit on it to be your food;

and to all the animals of the land, all the birds of the air,

and all the living creatures that crawl on the ground,

I give all the green plants for food."

And so it happened.

God looked at everything he had made, and he found it very good.

Evening came, and morning followed–the sixth day.

Thus the heavens and the earth and all their array were completed.

Since on the seventh day God was finished with the work he had been doing,

he rested on the seventh day from all the work he had undertaken.

So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy,

because on it he rested from all the work he had done in creation.

Such is the story of the heavens and the earth at their creation.

GOSPEL OF THE DAY - Mark 7:1-13

From the Gospel according to Mark

When the Pharisees with some scribes who had come from Jerusalem

gathered around Jesus,

they observed that some of his disciples ate their meals

with unclean, that is, unwashed, hands.

(For the Pharisees and, in fact, all Jews,

do not eat without carefully washing their hands,

keeping the tradition of the elders.

And on coming from the marketplace

they do not eat without purifying themselves.

And there are many other things that they have traditionally observed,

the purification of cups and jugs and kettles and beds.)

So the Pharisees and scribes questioned him,

"Why do your disciples not follow the tradition of the elders

but instead eat a meal with unclean hands?"

He responded,

"Well did Isaiah prophesy about you hypocrites,

as it is written:

This people honors me with their lips,

but their hearts are far from me;

in vain do they worship me,

teaching as doctrines human precepts.

You disregard God's commandment but cling to human tradition."

He went on to say,

"How well you have set aside the commandment of God

in order to uphold your tradition!

For Moses said,

Honor your father and your mother,

and Whoever curses father or mother shall die.

Yet you say,

'If someone says to father or mother,

"Any support you might have had from me is qorban"'

(meaning, dedicated to God),

you allow him to do nothing more for his father or mother.

You nullify the word of God

in favor of your tradition that you have handed on.

And you do many such things."

5TH TUESDAY IN ORDINARY TIME-The Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes & The World Day of Prayer for the Sick

Dear People of God,

The Word of God in today's Gospel, God wants everyone to understand two laws: the first is the law of God and the second is the law of man.

As for God's laws, mankind cannot add to or subtract from them but must carry them out accordingly. Those who carry out what God teaches will enjoy the glory of the Kingdom of Heaven in the future.

What is God's law? It is the Ten Commandments summarized into two words: love God above all things and love your neighbor as yourself, and God sums up His laws in two words: love and charity.

That's what God wants us to obey absolutely.

Because He is the Creator of all things, God is omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipotent over the universe, all things, and humans.

He knows all things that are good or bad for His creation. He is the One who sets the law.

God always loves humankind and wants humans to be happy with Him.

Therefore, He wants His children to live according to the law He has set forth, not to deviate from them, and to obey them completely.

The law of God is very brief, summed up in two words 'love' and charity.'

By practicing these two words, humankind will enjoy eternal happiness with Him; for in Heaven only love exists.

How about human laws? During the Old Testament, humans set forth six hundred thirteen laws. Those are the laws that were recorded in books; in addition, humans added many more laws.

Humanity has shackled ourselves, yet we are only sinners before God. We have been blinded by sin, covering our ears and eyes, unable to see where the Light is, where the darkness is, yet we dare to set forth laws and force ourfellow human beings to follow them, saying that when we do these things, we will enter the Kingdom of God.

However, God does not need human laws. God only needs humans to live according to His laws, to fear God, and to love others, that is enough.

Having a fear of God means being humble before Him. Do not be arrogant and think we are like the scribes, teachers of faith, highly educated, morally holy, and leave God out, because God knows the heart of each person.

He clearly knows the truth about falsehoods in the depths of our hearts. He said: "These people honor Me with their lips, but their hearts are far from Me."

Therefore, God calls everyone, especially the hierarchy in the Church to live in humility and do what God teaches, to face God, and to put into practice His law engraved in the heart of each person, not just to keep the law of appearance like the ancient scribes: Why don't the scribes tell the disciples of Jesus to live in charity and love, instead they rebuked them for not washing their hands before eating?

For humans, that is reasonable; but for God, He does not need it. What He needs is for humanity to be charitable to one another, pure from the heart, love one another sincerely, and humbly obey the law.

Do not be arrogant or conceited, do not consider yourself the lawkeeper, the ones who live pleasing to God.

Do not think that just because we have fasted, prayed, and attended Mass daily, does not mean we cannot commit sin.

But in fact, we have committed a great sin by treating others with a lack of charity toward one another, to the poor, and the weak, especially toward those who are called by God to walk in the plan of the Sanctification of the Holy Spirit.

Today's Gospel is also a warning for each of us: we must live by the word 'love'. Never be arrogant, condemn, or judge our brothers and sisters; because only God is the One who judges, condemns, and gives rewards or punishments.

Today is the feast of Our Lady of Lourdes.

God gave a blessing to Saint Bernadette, a 14-year-old girl, who could not read nor write, the daughter of a poor family in Lourdes, to see the apparition of the Blessed Mother Mary, the incomparably beautiful, the Immaculate Conception, the one who always put into practice God's commandments.

We must know to thank God and know to run to and call on the Blessed Virgin Mary, and live like her—listening to God's words and putting into practice God's teachings: by living in simplicity, humility, always loving, and acknowledging that we are nothing but sinners.

By relying on the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, humanity will receive the grace of conversion and return to God and will be healed by God in both body and soul.

It is at the place where the Blessed Virgin Mary appeared that God caused a spring of water to gush forth, capable of curing all diseases and casting out demons for those who have complete faith in God and in the presence of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

In this era, the Blessed Mother is still present among humanity. In the Holy Land of the Blessed Mother of Healing the whole world, she is caring for, comforting, and providing support to the sick and the sinners who come to her.

At this place, God has opened a well of the Water of salvation - a source of water flowing from God - for all those who believe

-in the Plan of Sanctification of the Holy Spirit in the New Era.

-believe in the Realistic Word of God written through the hands of Angel Thien Thuong;

-believe in God sending angels to accompany humanity to Sanctify humans,

-believe that God saves repentant demons and that God uses the demons to work for Him,

-with great plans of salvation which human intelligence cannot comprehend.

Only those who simply put into practice God's commandments, love God, and love people, will be given understanding by Him.

-O Blessed Mother Mary - the Healer of the whole world, have mercy on us, we are the sick and sinners who know to run to call on your holy name. Please have mercy on the world that is under the domination of Satan and heal our bodies and souls.

May you mercifully bring many souls back to God. Help all creatures to repent, help us to acknowledge our sins, and help us to be determined to stop sinning so that we can enjoy the presence of God in this life and the next.

Thanks be to God. Amen.