Word of the day

From the book of Exodus
Ex 3:13-20

Moses, hearing the voice of the LORD from the burning bush, said to him,

"When I go to the children of Israel and say to them,
'The God of your fathers has sent me to you,'
if they ask me, 'What is his name?' what am I to tell them?"
God replied, "I am who am."
Then he added, "This is what you shall tell the children of Israel:
I AM sent me to you."

God spoke further to Moses, "Thus shall you say to the children of Israel:
The LORD, the God of your fathers,
the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, the God of Jacob,
has sent me to you.

"This is my name forever;
this my title for all generations.

"Go and assemble the elders of Israel, and tell them:
The LORD, the God of your fathers,
the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob,
has appeared to me and said:
I am concerned about you
and about the way you are being treated in Egypt;
so I have decided to lead you up out of the misery of Egypt
into the land of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites,
Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites,
a land flowing with milk and honey.

"Thus they will heed your message.
Then you and the elders of Israel
shall go to the king of Egypt and say to him:
"The LORD, the God of the Hebrews, has sent us word.
Permit us, then, to go a three-days' journey in the desert,
that we may offer sacrifice to the LORD, our God.

"Yet I know that the king of Egypt will not allow you to go
unless he is forced.
I will stretch out my hand, therefore,
and smite Egypt by doing all kinds of wondrous deeds there.
After that he will send you away."

From the Gospel according to Matthew
Mt 11:28-30

Jesus said:
"Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened,
and I will give you rest.
Take my yoke upon you and learn from me,
for I am meek and humble of heart;
and you will find rest for yourselves.
For my yoke is easy, and my burden light."

Today we shall pause on a moving Gospel passage (cf. Mt 11:28-30), in which Jesus says: “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest ... learn from me; for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls” (vv. 28-29). The Lord’s invitation is surprising: He calls to follow Him people who are lowly and burdened by a difficult life; He calls to follow Him people who have many needs, and He promises them that in Him they will find rest and relief. The invitation is extended in the imperative form: “Come to me”, “take my yoke” and “learn from me”. (…) Among those who are weary of life, the Gospel also often includes the poor (cf. Mt 11:5) and the little ones (cf. Mt 18:6). This means those who cannot rely on their own means, nor on important friendships. They can only trust in God. Conscious of their humble and wretched condition, they know that they depend on the Lord’s mercy, awaiting from Him the only help possible. At last, in Jesus’ invitation they find the response they have been waiting for. Becoming his disciples they receive the promise of finding rest for all their life. (General Audience, 14 September 2016)