Saint Gabriel's Church

Today -Lord’s Day      5:00 pm Vigil (Saturday)
                        10:00 am (Sunday)

Monday — 12 Noon
Tuesday — 8:00 am
Wednesday —12 Noon
Thursday — 8:00 am
Friday — 12 Noon
Saturday — 8:00 am

Lord’s Day      5:00 pm Vigil (Saturday – 8/8)
                        10:00 am (Sunday- 8/9)

Eucharistic Blessing & Sharing

Brief Summary of Readings

The scripture passages for this Sunday are remarkable for bringing together a wide range of the word of God to focus us on the reality of the gifts of God for which we give thanks (Eucharist).

Isaiah 55:1-3
The return from the Babylonian Exile is the occasion for these writings of the prophet Isaiah (third generation) in the mid 500’s B.C. He describes God at work saving his people using the image of a great banquet – all of which is free, without us paying for it. It is a gift of God and we are being called to acknowledge that God is the source of what is this generosity we are experiencing. This all stems from his Covenant love.

Psalm 145:8-9, 15-16, 17-18 (cf. 16)
The hand of the Lord feeds us; he answers all our needs.
 This thanksgiving and praise of God comes in a prayer form in this psalm. Our response begins with the Moses old statement of faith in our Lord as a merciful God who has shown great tolerance of us over the centuries as he pours out his grace and reconciliation to change our hearts to be in harmony with his. This divine assistance is expressed as “food” that nourishes us with his covenant word.

Romans 8:35, 37-39
Saint Paul teaches us that God has joined us to himself by a bond that cannot be broken because his covenant love is in Christ Jesus — nothing can separate us from him because of his Son’s love in dying and rising for us.

Matthew 14:13-21
The well-known testimony of the Gospels comes to us in the verses where Jesus feeds the multitude. He takes ity on his people, as the Lord did of old, he gives thanks to his Father for such a gift, there is no one else could so provide what we really need, giving us daily bread as he did in establishing the Covenant in the desert.

All this can be summed up in no better way than in Jesus’ own words:

One does not live on bread alone,
but on every word that comes forth from the mouth of God Matthew 4:4b

Alternate version of Sunday’s prayer of the Church.

It is by you, O Lord, that we have been created and now live. It is also through you that our lives are guided to their heavenly goal. We are not only proud of this fact but are confident in coming to your inexhaustible goodness and love seeking what we need from you and for which we hunger. Sustain us with your food from above that our lives be so nourished by you that we reach life’s fulfillment in your heavenly home.

[Check out the new additional form of the daily scripture passages updated for computer screens of our day. See below on this home page .]