Catholic Daily Mass Reading, 2nd August 2023 + Reflection
First reading
Exodus 34:29-35
Moses passes on to the people the orders given by the Lord
When Moses came down from the mountain of Sinai – as he came down from the mountain, Moses had the two tablets of the Testimony in his hands – he did not know that the skin on his face was radiant after speaking with the Lord. And when Aaron and all the sons of Israel saw Moses, the skin on his face shone so much that they would not venture near him. But Moses called to them, and Aaron with all the leaders of the community came back to him; and he spoke to them. Then all the sons of Israel came closer, and he passed on to them all the orders that the Lord had given him on the mountain of Sinai. And when Moses had finished speaking to them, he put a veil over his face. Whenever he went into the Lord’s presence to speak with him, Moses would remove the veil until he came out again. And when he came out, he would tell the sons of Israel what he had been ordered to pass on to them, and the sons of Israel would see the face of Moses radiant. Then Moses would put the veil back over his face until he returned to speak with the Lord.
Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 98(99):5-7,9
You are holy, O Lord our God.
Exalt the Lord our God;
bow down before Zion, his footstool.
He the Lord is holy.
You are holy, O Lord our God.
Among his priests were Aaron and Moses,
among those who invoked his name was Samuel.
They invoked the Lord and he answered.
You are holy, O Lord our God.
To them he spoke in the pillar of cloud.
They did his will; they kept the law,
which he, the Lord, had given.
You are holy, O Lord our God.
Exalt the Lord our God;
bow down before his holy mountain
for the Lord our God is holy.
You are holy, O Lord our God.
Gospel Acclamation
Ps118:105
Alleluia, alleluia!
Your word is a lamp for my steps
and a light for my path.
Alleluia!
Or:
Jn15:15
Alleluia, alleluia!
I call you friends, says the Lord,
because I have made known to you
everything I have learnt from my Father.
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Alleluia!
Gospel
Matthew 13:44-46
He sells everything he owns and buys the field
Jesus said to the crowds: ‘The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field which someone has found; he hides it again, goes off happy, sells everything he owns and buys the field.
‘Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls; when he finds one of great value he goes and sells everything he owns and buys it.’
Reflection
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“The kingdom of God is like a treasure,” says Jesus in today’s Gospel. In fact, it is the greatest treasure we can ever possess or even think of! Once discovered and possessed, nothing else would be of greater value than this. Saint Paul puts it bluntly: “Indeed I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord” (Phil 3:8). The question is how do we discover and possess the kingdom of God? We have to follow the example of the farmer and the merchant – one finding the treasure by chance and the other searching and finding a pearl of great value. On finding the most valuable treasure, they are willing to give up everything else to possess it. Our personal study, prayer and meditation will lead us to the discovery of the treasure hidden with us. And on finding, we should be willing to detach our hearts from everything else to give first priority to the treasure that surpasses all other things: Christ Jesus, Our Lord!
