Reading 1 Is 22:19-23
Thus says the LORD to Shebna, master of the palace:
“I will thrust you from your office
and pull you down from your station.
On that day I will summon my servant
Eliakim, son of Hilkiah;
I will clothe him with your robe,
and gird him with your sash,
and give over to him your authority.
He shall be a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem,
and to the house of Judah.
I will place the key of the House of David on Eliakim’s shoulder;
when he opens, no one shall shut
when he shuts, no one shall open.
I will fix him like a peg in a sure spot,
to be a place of honor for his family.”
Responsorial Psalm Ps 138:1-2, 2-3, 6, 8
R. (8bc) Lord, your love is eternal; do not forsake the work of your hands.
I will give thanks to you, O LORD, with all my heart,
for you have heard the words of my mouth;
in the presence of the angels I will sing your praise;
I will worship at your holy temple.
R. Lord, your love is eternal; do not forsake the work of your hands.
I will give thanks to your name,
because of your kindness and your truth:
When I called, you answered me;
you built up strength within me.
R. Lord, your love is eternal; do not forsake the work of your hands.
The LORD is exalted, yet the lowly he sees,
and the proud he knows from afar.
Your kindness, O LORD, endures forever;
forsake not the work of your hands.
R. Lord, your love is eternal; do not forsake the work of your hands.
Reading 2 Rom 11:33-36
Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God!
How inscrutable are his judgments and how unsearchable his ways!
For who has known the mind of the Lord
or who has been his counselor?
Or who has given the Lord anything
that he may be repaid?
For from him and through him and for him are all things.
To him be glory forever. Amen.
Gospel Mt 16:13-20
Jesus went into the region of Caesarea Philippi and
he asked his disciples,
“Who do people say that the Son of Man is?”
They replied, “Some say John the Baptist, others Elijah,
still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”
He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”
Simon Peter said in reply,
“You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
Jesus said to him in reply,
“Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah.
For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father.
And so I say to you, you are Peter,
and upon this rock I will build my church,
and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it.
I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven.
Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven;
and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”
Then he strictly ordered his disciples
to tell no one that he was the Christ.
Catholic Fundamentalism Interpretation:
The Loving Programmer rules on earth. He removes from office those whom He wishes to remove, and replaces them with those He wants in charge of things.
The lesson is that all political figures should realize that His will is done on earth, as it is in Heaven.
In our own time, as we see office holders being thrown from their high positions for moral turpitude, we see His Will being done.
Those whom He puts in authority will not be shaken in their faith and obedience. He gives them the programming power they need. Such people will bring honor to their family (including The Church).
R: Your love, Loving Programmer, goes on forever. Do not allow your (human) programs to erase or corrupt each other.
I, one of Your human programs, will give thanks to You with my own program, because You have heard what I’ve said. In the presence of Your programming assistants, I will sing Your praises, I will worship before the Tabernacle that contains You.
R. Your love, Loving Programmer, goes on forever. Do not allow Your (human) programs to erase or corrupt each other.
I will give thanks to Your Name because You are king and filled with truth. When I asked You for Programming Assistance, You downloaded it for me and let it be powerful within me.
R. Your love, Loving Programmer, goes on forever. Do not allow Your (human) programs to erase or corrupt each other.
Though The Loving Programmer is above all, He sees the lowly and knows who is full of vanity. Your kindness, O Loving Programmer, is unerasable. Please continue to provide us with Your Programming Assistance.
R. Your love Loving Programmer, goes on forever. Do not allow Your (human) programs to erase or corrupt each other.
(We should be stunned by) How much The Loving Programmer knows!
We can’t understand what He has programmed and can’t see into future downloads as He can.
Who among us human programs could know what goes on in the thinking of He Who has programmed and downloaded each of our programs? Who could give Him anything and think He owes one of us anything? He has programmed and downloaded all that there is.
To Him be glory forever. So be it.
Jesus went to a place named for two prominent political leaders and asked His disciples, “Who do people say that I am?”
They answered, “Some say You are John the Baptist. Others, Elijah. Others say You are Jeremiah or one of the prophets, (whose program was restored to life).”
He kept asking, “But Who do you say that I am?”
Simon Peter had the answer revealed to him by The Holy Wireless Connector and was not afraid to give that answer: “You are The Living Program, written and downloaded by The Loving Programmer.”
Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon, son of Jonah. Neither your own programming ability or that of those around you has not figured this out, but My Father, The Loving Programmer, has had The Holy Wireless Connector let you know this Truth. (So, He has chosen you.) So, I say to you, you are The Rock on whom I will build My Church and all the viruses in virusville will not be able to destroy it. I will give you the access codes you need to obtain Programming Assistance. If you, or the priests who follow you, forgive the sins of any of the beloved human programs, they are forgiven. If you don’t forgive them, neither will The Loving Programmer.”
Then, He gave hard orders to them to tell no one that He was The Program, downloaded on earth in perfect, obedient, human form.
