14 Jan
Mon 		1st Week in Ordinary Time
1 Sam. 1:1-8
Ps. 115:12-13.14-17, 18-19
Mk. 1:14-20
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In the Gospel Jesus tells us that the time to which the Prophets have looked forward with such desire has come ?the time when God would visit His people and establish His peace and justice and the reign of His love in this world. Yes, Jesus is proclaiming that God is acting powerfully now to establish His kingdom, to fulfil His promises, to bring healing and liberation to His people. The Kingdom announced by John the Baptist has come to life in Jesus.

Jesus begins His public ministry. It starts with the call of His first disciples: Andrew, Simon, James and John. They abandon their trades and leave their families to follow Jesus. Their response to Christ is so complete it becomes a model for all future kinds of discipleship.

What binds disciples throughout the world together is the effort to place Jesus seriously as Lord of their lives. To remain with family and job as a Christian disciple requires many subtle judgements but can be as challenging, radical and rewarding as is leaving everything to follow Jesus our Lord and Saviour.


Lord of our life, help us to work with You to bring God's Kingdom into reality. Let us follow You closely and faithfully. Amen.

DAILY OFFERING
Eternal Father, I offer You everything I do this day; my thoughts, words, joys and sufferings. Grant that, vivified by the Holy Spirit and united to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary, my life this day may be of service to You and to others. I also pray that all those preparing for marriage discover in Sacrament the source of Christ's grace for living a fithful and fruitful love. Amen.

PRAYING WITH THE CHURCH
INTENTION
That Christians may intensify their efforts to announce together Jesus Christ, the only Saviour of the world.
Elaboration

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P R A Y I N G    W I T H    T H E    C H U R C H    

INTENTION : That Christians may intensify their efforts to announce together Jesus Christ, the only Saviour of the world.

In the Apostolic Letter At the Beginning of the New Millennium Pope John Paul II looks towards the future and exhorts the members of the Church not to be afraid to leave the coastal waters "where there is nothing to fish" and move into deep waters. If we are prepared to do this, our catch will be abundant. The Pope particularly exhorts Christ's disciples to intensify their efforts to bring greater unity in the Christian Community.

The invocation "Launch out into the deep" is a binding imperative, the strength that sustains us, and a salutary rebuke for our slowness and closed-heartedness. It is on Jesus' prayer and not on our own strength that we base the hope that even within history we shall be able to reach full and visible communion with all Christians.

Our trust that we may succeed in attaining the full and visible communion of all Christians, "rests on Jesus' prayer, not on our own capacity". The Lord calls us to unity and will not fail to pour forth His grace on us. But in this context also, as in all our relations with God's salvific grace, we too must do our share. God does not save us against our will; God does not save us if we do not collaborate towards our salvation.



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