Reading I
Jer 1:4-5, 17-19
The word of the LORD came to me, saying:
Before I formed you in the womb I knew you,
before you were born I dedicated you,
a prophet to the nations I appointed you.
But do you gird your loins;
stand up and tell them
all that I command you.
Be not crushed on their account,
as though I would leave you crushed before them;
for it is I this day
who have made you a fortified city,
a pillar of iron, a wall of brass,
against the whole land:
against Judah’s kings and princes,
against its priests and people.
They will fight against you but not prevail over you,
for I am with you to deliver you, says the LORD.
Reading II
1 Cor 12:31—13:13 or 13:4-13
Brothers and sisters:
Strive eagerly for the greatest spiritual gifts.
But I shall show you a still more excellent way.
If I speak in human and angelic tongues,
but do not have love,
I am a resounding gong or a clashing cymbal.
And if I have the gift of prophecy,
and comprehend all mysteries and all knowledge;
if I have all faith so as to move mountains,
but do not have love, I am nothing.
If I give away everything I own,
and if I hand my body over so that I may boast,
but do not have love, I gain nothing.
Love is patient, love is kind.
It is not jealous, it is not pompous,
It is not inflated, it is not rude,
it does not seek its own interests,
it is not quick-tempered, it does not brood over injury,
it does not rejoice over wrongdoing
but rejoices with the truth.
It bears all things, believes all things,
hopes all things, endures all things.
Love never fails.
If there are prophecies, they will be brought to nothing;
if tongues, they will cease;
if knowledge, it will be brought to nothing.
For we know partially and we prophesy partially,
but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass away.
When I was a child, I used to talk as a child,
think as a child, reason as a child;
when I became a man, I put aside childish things.
At present we see indistinctly, as in a mirror,
but then face to face.
At present I know partially;
then I shall know fully, as I am fully known.
So faith, hope, love remain, these three;
but the greatest of these is love.
or
Brothers and sisters:
Love is patient, love is kind.
It is not jealous, it is not pompous,
it is not inflated, it is not rude,
it does not seek its own interests,
it is not quick-tempered, it does not brood over injury,
it does not rejoice over wrongdoing but rejoices with the truth.
It bears all things, believes all things,
hopes all things, endures all things.
Love never fails.
If there are prophecies, they will be brought to nothing;
if tongues, they will cease;
if knowledge, it will be brought to nothing.
For we know partially and we prophesy partially,
but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass away.
When I was a child, I used to talk as a child,
think as a child, reason as a child;
when I became a man, I put aside childish things.
At present we see indistinctly, as in a mirror,
but then face to face.
At present I know partially;
then I shall know fully, as I am fully known.
So faith, hope, love remain, these three;
but the greatest of these is love.
Gospel
Lk 4:21-30
Jesus began speaking in the synagogue, saying:
“Today this Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing.”
And all spoke highly of him
and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his mouth.
They also asked, “Isn’t this the son of Joseph?”
He said to them, “Surely you will quote me this proverb,
‘Physician, cure yourself,’ and say,
‘Do here in your native place
the things that we heard were done in Capernaum.’”
And he said, “Amen, I say to you,
no prophet is accepted in his own native place.
Indeed, I tell you,
there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah
when the sky was closed for three and a half years
and a severe famine spread over the entire land.
It was to none of these that Elijah was sent,
but only to a widow in Zarephath in the land of Sidon.
Again, there were many lepers in Israel
during the time of Elisha the prophet;
yet not one of them was cleansed, but only Naaman the Syrian.”
When the people in the synagogue heard this,
they were all filled with fury.
They rose up, drove him out of the town,
and led him to the brow of the hill
on which their town had been built,
to hurl him down headlong.
But Jesus passed through the midst of them and went away.
Meditation: 1 Corinthians 12:31–13:13
Addressing the fractious Corinthian church, Paul urged the believers to “strive eagerly for the greatest spiritual gifts” (1 Corinthians 12:31).
He even told them how to get there: by practicing love. Not the overly romantic love that musicians sing about but divine love—love that moves mountains and changes hearts. It’s the love Jesus poured out when he died on the cross. It’s also the love that we experience as we give our lives over to Jesus.
Let’s face it. We are all fallible. We all make mistakes in the way we treat people. We all fail to meet the standard of love presented in this reading. So how can we love in the way Paul describes here? By receiving it as a gift and not trying to manufacture it all on our own. Prophecy, tongues, miracles—all these spectacular gifts of the Spirit will fade. Plus, they are all limited by our own understanding and capabilities. But not love. It is limitless. It never fails.
Just as Jesus taught Peter, Paul, and the other apostles the way of love, so too does he want to teach us. As we stay faithful to prayer, Scripture, and the sacraments, something happens. Often enough, it is a gradual process so that we don’t even notice what is happening. Perhaps someone else may make a comment that prompts us to review our actions. We see that God’s grace has moved us to become more kind and generous. It has made us more alert to other people’s situations and needs.
All this happens because we are becoming like Jesus. We are eating of his body in the Eucharist and soaking up his wisdom in the Scriptures, and the Holy Spirit is responding by forming us according to God’s image and likeness.
So let God fill you with his perfect love today. There will be plenty of time for action as the day unfolds. For now, just sit still and receive. This, after all, is the greatest of all the gifts!
“Lord, I surrender my relationships to you. Come and fill me to over-flowing so that your love can flow from me to everyone in my life.”
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