Today's Thoughts to Live by, July 21, Sun, 16th Sunday in Ordinary Time:

Liturgy of the Word --

Jer. 23:1-6;

Ps. 23:1-3, 3-4, 5, 6;

Eph. 2:13-18;

Mk. 6:30-34.

1. 1st Reading, Jer. 23:1-6 -- Jeremiah declares the Lord's denunciation of Israel's rulers. "Woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the flock of my pasture" (v.1). "I will punish your evil deeds" (v. 2). "I myself will gather the remnant of my flock from all the lands to which I have banished them and bring them to their fold; there they shall be fruitful and multiply. I will raise up shepherds who will shepherd them so that they need no longer fear or be terrified; none shall be missing" (vv. 2-4).

2. The Lord will provide a new king from David's line, who will govern wisely and rule justly. Israel will be secure. His name will be "The Lord our justice" (vv. 5-6). The prophecy alludes to Jesus, whom the angel Gabriel declared to the Blessed Virgin Mary as the son of King David.

3. 2nd Reading, Eph. 2:13-18 -- The unity and peace between Gentile and Jewish believers. "For he [Christ] is our peace, who made both [Gentile and Jewish believers] one and broke down the dividing wall of enmity, through his flesh [his crucifixion], abolishing the law [the Mosaic Law], that he might create in himself one new person in place of the two, thus establishing peace, and might reconcile both with God, in one body, through the cross, putting that enmity to death by it" (vv. 14-16). "He preached peace..., through him we both [Gentile and Jewish believers] have access in one Spirit to the Father" (vv. 17-18).

4. Gospel, Mk. 6:30-

34 -- The Compassion of Jesus. After the return of the apostles from their mission (vv. 7-13), Jesus says to them, "Come away to a deserted place and rest a while"(vv. 30-31). For Jesus, "to rest a while" is not only to break the busyness of his ministry by going into solitude and rest, but also to be re-energized through prayer and communion with His Father.

5. So they go off on a boat to a deserted place. But still people follow them on foot "from all the towns" (v. 33). Disembarking from the boat, Jesus sees the vast crowd. His heart is moved with pity for them "for they were like sheep without a shepherd." He begins teaching them (v. 34).

6. Jesus is the compassionate Good Shepherd, who feeds his flock with the word of God and with material food (the multiplication of the loaves, vv. 35-44), and, with priceless love, gives us, in the Holy Eucharist, his own sacrificial body to partake and his sacrificial blood to drink.

7. "The Lord our justice" is on our side, but are we on his side? We need to be counted among those who fight against injustices in our society. Jesus is our Shepherd, tending to our needs, caring for us, bringing us back to the flock when we break away through sin. May we always repose in his divine heart.

8. Prayer -- Almighty and most merciful God, in the days of the prophet Jeremiah, you promised to give us our Good Shepherd, Jesus, son of David and your own Divine Son. Grant, we pray, that we may always be united with him and never stray from his flock. This we pray through the same Christ, our Lord. Amen.

Prayers, best wishes , God bless!