Daily Catholic Mass Readings for August 12, 2023
First Reading: Deuteronomy 6.4-13
4Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one.5Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.6These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts.7Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.8Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads.9Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.10When the LORD your God brings you into the land he swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, to give you-a land with large, flourishing cities you did not build,11houses filled with all kinds of good things you did not provide, wells you did not dig, and vineyards and olive groves you did not plant-then when you eat and are satisfied,12be careful that you do not forget the LORD, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.13Fear the LORD your God, serve him only and take your oaths in his name.
Psalm 18
1I love you, O LORD, my strength.2The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge. He is my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.3I call to the LORD, who is worthy of praise, and I am saved from my enemies.4The cords of death entangled me; the torrents of destruction overwhelmed me.5The cords of the grave coiled around me; the snares of death confronted me.6In my distress I called to the LORD; I cried to my God for help. From his temple he heard my voice; my cry came before him, into his ears.7The earth trembled and quaked, and the foundations of the mountains shook; they trembled because he was angry.8Smoke rose from his nostrils; consuming fire came from his mouth, burning coals blazed out of it.9He parted the heavens and came down; dark clouds were under his feet.10He mounted the cherubim and flew; he soared on the wings of the wind.11He made darkness his covering, his canopy around him- the dark rain clouds of the sky.12Out of the brightness of his presence clouds advanced, with hailstones and bolts of lightning.13The LORD thundered from heaven; the voice of the Most High resounded.14He shot his arrows and scattered the enemies, great bolts of lightning and routed them.15The valleys of the sea were exposed and the foundations of the earth laid bare at your rebuke, O LORD, at the blast of breath from your nostrils.16He reached down from on high and took hold of me; he drew me out of deep waters.17He rescued me from my powerful enemy, from my foes, who were too strong for me.18They confronted me in the day of my disaster, but the LORD was my support.19He brought me out into a spacious place; he rescued me because he delighted in me.20The LORD has dealt with me according to my righteousness; according to the cleanness of my hands he has rewarded me.21For I have kept the ways of the LORD; I have not done evil by turning from my God.22All his laws are before me; I have not turned away from his decrees.23I have been blameless before him and have kept myself from sin.24The LORD has rewarded me according to my righteousness, according to the cleanness of my hands in his sight.25To the faithful you show yourself faithful, to the blameless you show yourself blameless,26to the pure you show yourself pure, but to the crooked you show yourself shrewd.27You save the humble but bring low those whose eyes are haughty.28You, O LORD, keep my lamp burning; my God turns my darkness into light.29With your help I can advance against a troop; with my God I can scale a wall.30As for God, his way is perfect; the word of the LORD is flawless. He is a shield for all who take refuge in him.31For who is God besides the LORD? And who is the Rock except our God?32It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect.33He makes my feet like the feet of a deer; he enables me to stand on the heights.34He trains my hands for battle; my arms can bend a bow of bronze.35You give me your shield of victory, and your right hand sustains me; you stoop down to make me great.36You broaden the path beneath me, so that my ankles do not turn.37I pursued my enemies and overtook them; I did not turn back till they were destroyed.38I crushed them so that they could not rise; they fell beneath my feet.39You armed me with strength for battle; you made my adversaries bow at my feet.40You made my enemies turn their backs in flight, and I destroyed my foes.41They cried for help, but there was no one to save them- to the LORD, but he did not answer.42I beat them as fine as dust borne on the wind; I poured them out like mud in the streets.43You have delivered me from the attacks of the people; you have made me the head of nations; people I did not know are subject to me.44As soon as they hear me, they obey me; foreigners cringe before me.45They all lose heart; they come trembling from their strongholds.46The LORD lives! Praise be to my Rock! Exalted be God my Savior!47He is the God who avenges me, who subdues nations under me,48who saves me from my enemies. You exalted me above my foes; from violent men you rescued me.49Therefore I will praise you among the nations, O LORD; I will sing praises to your name.50He gives his king great victories; he shows unfailing kindness to his anointed, to David and his descendants forever.
Gospel: Matthew 17.14-20
14When they came to the crowd, a man approached Jesus and knelt before him.15"Lord, have mercy on my son," he said. "He has seizures and is suffering greatly. He often falls into the fire or into the water.16I brought him to your disciples, but they could not heal him."17"O unbelieving and perverse generation," Jesus replied, "how long shall I stay with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring the boy here to me."18Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of the boy, and he was healed from that moment.19Then the disciples came to Jesus in private and asked, "Why couldn't we drive it out?"20He replied, "Because you have so little faith. I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you."
Sermon
The readings today invite us to reflect on the power of faith and the importance of remaining rooted in God’s love and commandments. In the first reading from Deuteronomy, Moses reminds the Israelites of the fundamental truth: the Lord our God is one, and they are to love Him with all their heart, soul, and strength. This love is not abstract but lived out in concrete ways—teaching the commandments to their children, meditating on them in daily life, and keeping them ever-present in their homes and actions. Moses warns them not to forget God when they enter the Promised Land and enjoy its blessings, lest they grow complacent and turn away from the One who has freed them.
In the Gospel, we see a father’s desperate plea for his epileptic son, whom the disciples could not heal. Jesus rebukes the unclean spirit, and the boy is cured. When the disciples ask why they failed, Jesus points to their lack of faith. He assures them that even a small amount of faith—like a mustard seed—can move mountains. This passage reminds us that faith is not about our own strength or understanding but about trusting in God’s power and presence, even when we face challenges that seem insurmountable.
Together, these readings call us to a deeper faith and a more intentional way of living. Like the Israelites, we are blessed by God in countless ways, but we must not let comfort or success lead us to forget Him. Like the father in the Gospel, we must bring our struggles and doubts to Jesus, trusting in His mercy and power. And like the disciples, we must recognize the limits of our own efforts and humbly rely on God’s grace. Let us ask for the faith to love God wholeheartedly, to trust Him in all circumstances, and to live out His commandments with joy and gratitude.