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First Reading: 2 Samuel 15:13-14, 30; 16:5-13
An informant came to David with the report,
"The children of Israel have transferred their loyalty to Absalom."
At this, David said to all his servants
who were with him in Jerusalem:
"Up! Let us take flight, or none of us will escape from Absalom.
Leave quickly, lest he hurry and overtake us,
then visit disaster upon us and put the city to the sword."
As David went up the Mount of Olives, he wept without ceasing.
His head was covered, and he was walking barefoot.
All those who were with him also had their heads covered
and were weeping as they went.
As David was approaching Bahurim,
a man named Shimei, the son of Gera
of the same clan as Saul's family,
was coming out of the place, cursing as he came.
He threw stones at David and at all the king's officers,
even though all the soldiers, including the royal guard,
were on David's right and on his left.
Shimei was saying as he cursed:
"Away, away, you murderous and wicked man!
The Lord has requited you for all the bloodshed in the family of Saul,
in whose stead you became king,
and the Lord has given over the kingdom to your son Absalom.
And now you suffer ruin because you are a murderer."
Abishai, son of Zeruiah, said to the king:
"Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king?
Let me go over, please, and lop off his head."
But the king replied: "What business is it of mine or of yours,
sons of Zeruiah, that he curses?
Suppose the Lord has told him to curse David;
who then will dare to say, 'Why are you doing this?'"
Then the king said to Abishai and to all his servants:
"If my own son, who came forth from my loins, is seeking my life,
how much more might this Benjaminite do so?
Let him alone and let him curse, for the Lord has told him to.
Perhaps the Lord will look upon my affliction
and make it up to me with benefits
for the curses he is uttering this day."
David and his men continued on the road,
while Shimei kept abreast of them on the hillside,
all the while cursing and throwing stones and dirt as he went.
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 3:2-3, 4-5, 6-7
R./ Lord, rise up and save me.
O Lord, how many are my adversaries!
Many rise up against me!
Many are saying of me,
"There is no salvation for him in God."
R./ Lord, rise up and save me.
But you, O Lord, are my shield;
my glory, you lift up my head!
When I call out to the Lord,
he answers me from his holy mountain.
R./ Lord, rise up and save me.
When I lie down in sleep,
I wake again, for the Lord sustains me.
I fear not the myriads of people
arrayed against me on every side.
R./ Lord, rise up and save me.
Gospel Reading: Mark 5:1-20
Jesus and his disciples came to the other side of the sea,
to the territory of the Gerasenes.
When he got out of the boat,
at once a man from the tombs who had an unclean spirit met him.
The man had been dwelling among the tombs,
and no one could restrain him any longer, even with a chain.
In fact, he had frequently been bound with shackles and chains,
but the chains had been pulled apart by him and the shackles smashed,
and no one was strong enough to subdue him.
Night and day among the tombs and on the hillsides
he was always crying out and bruising himself with stones.
Catching sight of Jesus from a distance,
he ran up and prostrated himself before him,
crying out in a loud voice,
"What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God?
I adjure you by God, do not torment me!"
(He had been saying to him, "Unclean spirit, come out of the man!")
He asked him, "What is your name?"
He replied, "Legion is my name. There are many of us."
And he pleaded earnestly with him
not to drive them away from that territory.
Now a large herd of swine was feeding there on the hillside.
And they pleaded with him,
"Send us into the swine. Let us enter them."
And he let them, and the unclean spirits came out and entered the swine.
The herd of about two thousand rushed down a steep bank into the sea,
where they were drowned.
The swineherds ran away and reported the incident in the town
and throughout the countryside.
And people came out to see what had happened.
As they approached Jesus,
they caught sight of the man who had been possessed by Legion,
sitting there clothed and in his right mind.
And they were seized with fear.
Those who witnessed the incident explained to them what had happened
to the possessed man and to the swine.
Then they began to beg him to leave their district.
As he was getting into the boat,
the man who had been possessed pleaded to remain with him.
But Jesus would not permit him but told him instead,
"Go home to your family and announce to them
all that the Lord in his pity has done for you."
Then the man went off and began to proclaim in the Decapolis
what Jesus had done for him; and all were amazed.
Opening Prayer
Lord, our God,
through your Son, Jesus Christ,
you showed your concerned love
even to the most pitiable of people.
Inspire among us too people who care,
and may our own words and gestures
always reflect the love without boundaries
of your Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord.
Liturgy of the Word
First Reading Introduction
David flees from the rebellion started by his son Absalom and is gene-rous enough not to punish the man who curses and humiliates him. Maybe this humiliation is part of God's plan, he says.
Gospel Introduction
On his first journey to pagan territory, Jesus cures a possessed man. Biblical scholars generally accept the historical foundation of this strange incident, namely, that Jesus took pity on a sick man and revealed his divine power to the pagans. Much of the rest may be a midrash, a sort of free allegorical theological commentary in rabbinic style. For the Jews had a very low opinion of pagans. They were slaves of demons, living in impure places of death, like tombs, and not much better than pigs. In any case, Jesus is not limited by boundaries and goes to these most alienated people, but they do not accept him. Only the man who is healed shows faith in Jesus.
General Intercessions
– For the many in our harsh world who are still suffering from discrimination, treated as outcasts or nowhere welcome, we pray:
– For all of us, that we may never see compassion as weakness or something to hide, we pray:
– For gratitude for the gifts we have received from the Lord and for the goodness people have let us experience, we pray:
Prayer over the Gifts
Lord, our God,
we bring bread and wine before you
to share in the thanksgiving of your Son.
With him we give you praise
for your covenant of love
and we ask you in all humility
always to remember that those around us
belong to you as much or more than we do,
on account of Jesus Christ, our Lord.
Prayer after Communion
Lord our God, you taught us today
that it is better to forgive than to punish,
better to help than to speak words of pity.
Help us to have concern toward our neighbor,
even when it is not appreciated,
the compassionate and uplifting attitude
of Jesus Christ, our Lord.
Blessing
To the man he had cured, Jesus said: "Go home to your friends and tell them how much the Lord has done for you." Let us tell our friends how much the Lord has done for us, and may Almighty God bless you, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
