Reading 1
Gn 9:1-13
God blessed Noah and his sons and said to them:
“Be fertile and multiply and fill the earth.
Dread fear of you shall come upon all the animals of the earth
and all the birds of the air,
upon all the creatures that move about on the ground
and all the fishes of the sea;
into your power they are delivered.
Every creature that is alive shall be yours to eat;
I give them all to you as I did the green plants.
Only flesh with its lifeblood still in it you shall not eat.
For your own lifeblood, too, I will demand an accounting:
from every animal I will demand it,
and from one man in regard to his fellow man
I will demand an accounting for human life.
If anyone sheds the blood of man,
by man shall his blood be shed;
For in the image of God
has man been made.
Be fertile, then, and multiply;
abound on earth and subdue it.”
God said to Noah and to his sons with him:
“See, I am now establishing my covenant with you
and your descendants after you
and with every living creature that was with you:
all the birds, and the various tame and wild animals
that were with you and came out of the ark.
I will establish my covenant with you,
that never again shall all bodily creatures be destroyed
by the waters of a flood;
there shall not be another flood to devastate the earth.”
God added:
“This is the sign that I am giving for all ages to come,
of the covenant between me and you
and every living creature with you:
I set my bow in the clouds to serve as a sign
of the covenant between me and the earth.”
Ps 102:16-18, 19-21, 29 and 22-23
Responsorial PsalmR. (20b)
From heaven the Lord looks down on the earth.
The nations shall revere your name, O LORD,
and all the kings of the earth your glory,
When the LORD has rebuilt Zion
and appeared in his glory;
When he has regarded the prayer of the destitute,
and not despised their prayer.
R. From heaven the Lord looks down on the earth.
Let this be written for the generation to come,
and let his future creatures praise the LORD:
“The LORD looked down from his holy height,
from heaven he beheld the earth,
To hear the groaning of the prisoners,
to release those doomed to die.”
R. From heaven the Lord looks down on the earth.
The children of your servants shall abide,
and their posterity shall continue in your presence,
That the name of the LORD may be declared in Zion,
and his praise, in Jerusalem,
When the peoples gather together,
and the kingdoms, to serve the LORD.
R. From heaven the Lord looks down on the earth.
Gospel
Mk 8:27-33
Jesus and his disciples set out
for the villages of Caesarea Philippi.
Along the way he asked his disciples,
“Who do people say that I am?”
They said in reply,
“John the Baptist, others Elijah,
still others one of the prophets.”
And he asked them,
“But who do you say that I am?”
Peter said to him in reply,
“You are the Christ.”
Then he warned them not to tell anyone about him.
He began to teach them
that the Son of Man must suffer greatly
and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes,
and be killed, and rise after three days.
He spoke this openly.
Then Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him.
At this he turned around and, looking at his disciples,
rebuked Peter and said, “Get behind me, Satan.
You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do.”
Meditation: Mark 8:27-33
“The Son of Man must suffer greatly.” (Mark 8:31)
Picture a young family: A child is born, and the parents are delighted-—even though their lives are about to get a lot more complicated. They will spend the next couple of decades pouring out love, time, money, and energy for their child, because they want to give him or her the very best they can. They will go to work every day, maybe even at multiple jobs, to make ends meet. They’ll teach their child about right and wrong. They’ll live on a budget. They’ll care for their child’s heart-aches, stomach aches, and head-aches. And because their child is so young, he or she will have no idea of all that the parents are sacrificing.
In a similar way, Jesus pours out his love for us every day, simply because we’re worth it to him. His entire life on earth, in fact, was an offering of love. It cost us nothing but cost him everything. Imagine what it took for the eternal Son of God to give up his heavenly throne and become a helpless baby. He willingly, even eagerly, subjected him-self to all the challenges of living as a human being in this fallen world: pain, hunger, and temptation. He had to learn how to walk and talk.
He had to deal with the pain and sadness of Joseph’s death. He had to work as a carpenter to support his mother and himself. And then he had to make the difficult decision to leave Mary alone while he went out preaching and teaching.
Imagine, also, how hard it must have been for Jesus to endure accusations and rejection from some of his own people—the very ones he had come to serve and redeem. And to top it all off, he was nailed to a cross and died an agonizing, humiliating death as a blasphemer and criminal. And he did all of this because he loves you.
In prayer today, take a long look at Jesus’ life of sacrifice. The cost of our salvation was very high, but Jesus was happy to pay it. Reflect on this love, and allow it to move your heart. Listen closely, and you’ll hear Jesus tell you: “You’re worth it. I love you.”
“Jesus, I am in awe of your love for me! You have captured my heart, and I worship you.”
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