7:11 for 19th Sunday in Ordinary Time (CycleA)

If you missed our 7:11 call, here is the transcript. It is a short version of Preparing for the Mass
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Father, anoint us with your Holy Spirit, so that as we read your eternal word, your word may penetrate our whole being and transform us.

Grant us the blessing to be a faithful disciples in believing the Word of God and that we may be a light shining upon all who are in darkness.

Amen

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Gospel MT 14:22-33

After he had fed the people, Jesus made the disciples get into a boat

and precede him to the other side,

while he dismissed the crowds.

After doing so, he went up on the mountain by himself to pray.

When it was evening he was there alone.

Meanwhile the boat, already a few miles offshore,

was being tossed about by the waves, for the wind was against it.

During the fourth watch of the night,

he came toward them walking on the sea.

When the disciples saw him walking on the sea they were terrified.

"It is a ghost," they said, and they cried out in fear.

At once Jesus spoke to them, "Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid."

Peter said to him in reply,

"Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water."

He said, "Come."

Peter got out of the boat and began to walk on the water toward Jesus.

But when he saw how strong the wind was he became frightened;

and, beginning to sink, he cried out, "Lord, save me!"

Immediately Jesus stretched out his hand and caught Peter, and said to him,

"O you of little faith, why did you doubt?"

After they got into the boat, the wind died down.

Those who were in the boat did him homage, saying,

"Truly, you are the Son of God."

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Commentary by Augustine         

“Bid me come to you upon the water” (Mt 14:28).

The Gospel tells us how Christ the Lord walked upon the waters of the sea, and how the apostle Peter did the same until fear made him falter and lose confidence. Then he began to sink. Peter emerged from the water only after calling on the Lord with renewed faith.

Regard the sea as a symbol of the present world, and the apostle Peter as a symbol of the one and only Church.

When we consider Peter as a representative member of the Church we should distinguish between what was due to God’s action in him and what was attributable to himself. Then we will be founded upon rock and remain firm and unmoved in the face of the wind, rain, and floods . . . . . . which are the trials and temptations of this present world.

Look at Peter, at one moment he is all confidence, at the next all uncertainty and doubt.   He professes faith in Jesus, and then he fears for his life.
But when Peter counted on the Lord’s help, it enabled him to walk on the water. 
When human frailty made him falter, he turned once more to the Lord, who immediately stretched out his hand to help him, raised him up as he was sinking, and rebuked him for his lack of faith.
Think, then, of this world as a sea, whipped up to tempestuous heights by violent winds. 
A person’s own private tempest will be his or her unruly desires. 
If you love God you will have power to walk upon the waters, and all the world’s swell and turmoil will remain beneath your feet. 
But if you love the world it will surely engulf you, for it always devours its lovers, never sustains them.
If you feel your foot slipping beneath you, if you become a prey to doubt or realize that you are losing control, if, in a word, you begin to sink, say: “Lord, I am drowning, save me!” 
Remember that only He who died for your sake, can save you.

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Come Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful.

And enkindle in them the fire of your love.

Send forth your spirit and they shall be created.

And you will renew the face of the earth.

Lord by the light of your Holy Spirit you have taught the hearts of your faithful.

In that same spirit help us to relish what is right and always rejoice in His consolation. We ask this through Christ Our Lord.   

Amen