Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint John 9, 1-41
Jesus said to his disciples:
“Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets.
I have come not to abolish but to fulfill.
Amen, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away,
not the smallest letter or the smallest part of a letter
will pass from the law,
until all things have taken place.
Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments
and teaches others to do so
will be called least in the kingdom of heaven.
But whoever obeys and teaches these commandments
will be called greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
I tell you, unless your righteousness surpasses
that of the scribes and Pharisees,
you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.
“You have heard that it was said to your ancestors,
You shall not kill; and whoever kills will be liable to judgment.
But I say to you,
whoever is angry with his brother
will be liable to judgment;
and whoever says to his brother, ‘Raqa,’
will be answerable to the Sanhedrin;
and whoever says, ‘You fool,’
will be liable to fiery Gehenna.
Therefore, if you bring your gift to the altar,
and there recall that your brother
has anything against you,
leave your gift there at the altar,
go first and be reconciled with your brother,
and then come and offer your gift.
Settle with your opponent quickly while on the way to court.
Otherwise your opponent will hand you over to the judge,
and the judge will hand you over to the guard,
and you will be thrown into prison.
Amen, I say to you,
you will not be released until you have paid the last penny.
“You have heard that it was said,
You shall not commit adultery.
But I say to you,
everyone who looks at a woman with lust
has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
If your right eye causes you to sin,
tear it out and throw it away.
It is better for you to lose one of your members
than to have your whole body thrown into Gehenna.
And if your right hand causes you to sin,
cut it off and throw it away.
It is better for you to lose one of your members
than to have your whole body go into Gehenna.
“It was also said,
Whoever divorces his wife must give her a bill of divorce.
But I say to you,
whoever divorces his wife – unless the marriage is unlawful –
causes her to commit adultery,
and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.
“Again you have heard that it was said to your ancestors,
Do not take a false oath,
but make good to the Lord all that you vow.
But I say to you, do not swear at all;
not by heaven, for it is God’s throne;
nor by the earth, for it is his footstool;
nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King.
Do not swear by your head,
for you cannot make a single hair white or black.
Let your ‘Yes’ mean ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No’ mean ‘No.’
Anything more is from the evil one.”
I am the light of the world
- A man blind from birth. Sometimes, there are situations in life that you simply don’t see—things that happen around you without your awareness. There may be aspects of your family’s past that you never knew about, yet today you’re still affected by their consequences. It’s easy to form opinions about situations you don’t fully understand, and this can happen in your own life, too. Avoid judging your parents; there are experiences they went through that you haven’t lived, which help explain why they behave the way they do. Approach life with the understanding that there are things you might never discover or only come to understand much later.
- Clay. Gaining clarity in life is a process that involves facing many different situations. Our experiences, along with the tangible signs around us, teach us and help us grow. To truly see, you must first accept your own blindness. Allow yourself to be guided to the place where your sight can be restored. This new perspective enables you to see people rather than judge them, to recognize possible solutions instead of just focusing on problems, and to find ways to build peace among those around you rather than sow conflict.
- Begging. The man begged because he couldn’t see. When you don’t look honestly at your own life, you may find yourself begging, too. You beg for affection, for love, for friendship, or for a parental figure. You beg because you’re blind, and when you can’t see clearly, you settle for whatever scraps you can find.
Never forget that something good is on the way!
God bless you and protect you in the name of the Father, of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
