4 September 2011, Twenty-Third Sunday in Ordinary Time
Bible readings
"Go and Tell Him..."
Fraternal correction has the savour of the Gospel: the first
Christians practiced it frequently, just as Our Lord had established
it, "Go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone", and it
occupied a very important position in their lives. They were very
much aware of its effectiveness. Saint Paul writes to the faithful
at Thessalonica: "If anyone refuses to obey what we say in this
letter ... Do not look on him as an enemy, but warn him as a
brother." In the Epistle to the Galatians the Apostle says that this
correction has to be made "in a spirit of gentleness." In the same
way, Saint James the Apostle encourages the first Christians,
reminding them of the reward that God will give them: If anyone
among you wanders from the truth and someone brings him back,
let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from the error of
his way will save his soul from death and (this) will cover a
multitude of sins." It is no small reward. We cannot excuse ourselves
and repeat once again the words of Cain, "Am I my brother's keeper?"
Amongst the excuses that can lodge themselves in our mind
so that we do not make or so we put off making, fraternal correction,
is the fear of offending the person we have to warn. It seems para-
doxical that a doctor should not fail to tell a patient that if he wants
to be cured he must undergo a painful operation, and that we
Christians should be reluctant to tell people around us that the health
of their soul -- of how much greater value this is than bodily health --
is at risk!...
Whenever we make a fraternal correction we have to practice
a series of virtues, without which it would not be an act of true
charity.
"That is why when you have to correct, you should do so with charity,
at the opportune moment, without humiliating. And you must be ready
yourself to learn and to improve in the very faults you are correcting."
This is how Jesus would practice it if he were in our place, with the
same delicacy and with the same fortitude.
-- Francis Fernandez
In Conversation with God (3:24.3)
If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts. (Psalm 95)
28 August 2011, Twenty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time
Bible readings
Sharers in the Suffering of Christ
... [T]he witnesses of the New Covenant speak of the greatness
of the Redemption, accomplished through the suffering of Christ. The
Redeemer suffered in place of man and for man. Every man has his
own share in the Redemption. Each one is also called to share in that
suffering through which the Redemption was accomplished. He is
called to share in that suffering through which all human suffering has
also been redeemed. In bringing about the Redemption through
suffering, Christ has also raised human suffering to the level of the
Redemption. Thus each man, in his suffering, can also become a
sharer in the redemptive suffering of Christ....
... St. Paul speaks of various sufferings and, in particular, of those
in which the first Christians became sharers "for the sake of Christ."
These sufferings enable the recipients of that letter to share in the work
of the Redemption, accomplished through the suffering and death of the
Redeemer. The eloquence of the cross and death is, however, completed
by the eloquence of the resurrection. Man finds in the resurrection a
completely new light, which helps him to go forward through the thick
darkness of humiliations, doubts, hopelessness and persecution.
Therefore the Apostle will also write in the second letter to the
Corinthians:
"For as we share abundantly in Christ's sufferings, so through Christ we
share abundantly in comfort too." Elsewhere he addresses to his
recipients words of encouragement: "May the Lord direct your hearts to
the love of God and to the steadfastness of Christ." And in the letter
to the Romans he writes: "I appeal to you, therefore, brethren, by the
mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and
acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship."
-- Blessed Pope John Paul II
"On the Meaning of Christian Suffering"
(Salvifici Doloris), V
O Son of the eternal Father, Jesus Christ, our Lord and King of all.
What have You left behind You in the world, that we, as Your heirs, could
inherit from You? What did you possess but sorrow, pain, ignominy and a
tree on which You suffered a most bitter death? We, Your true children,
O God, will abandon our inheritance; we shall not flee from suffering. Amen.
-- Saint Teresa of Avila (1515-1582)
21 August 2011, Twenty-First Sunday in Ordinary Time
Bible readings: http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/082111.cfm
"The Keys of the Kingdom"
From the beginning of his public life Jesus chose certain men,
twelve in number, to be with him and to participate in his mission. He
gives the Twelve a share in his authority and "sent them out to preach
the kingdom of God and to heal." They remain associated for ever
with Christ's kingdom, for through them he directs the Church....
Simon Peter holds the first place in the college of the Twelve;
Jesus entrusted a unique mission to him. Through a revelation from
the Father, Peter had confessed: "You are the Christ, the Son of the
Living God." Our Lord then declared to him: "You are Peter, and on
this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of Hades will not
prevail against it." Christ, the "living stone," thus assures his Church,
built on Peter, of victory over the powers of death. Because of the faith he
confessed Peter will remain the unshakeable rock of the Church. His
mission will be to keep this faith from every lapse and to strengthen
his brothers in it.
Jesus entrusted a specific authority to Peter: "I will give you the
keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall
be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed
in heaven." The "power of the keys" designates authority to govern the
house of God, which is the Church. Jesus, the Good Shepherd,
confirmed this mandate after his Resurrection: "Feed my sheep." The
power to "bind and loose" connotes the authority to absolve sine, to
pronounce doctrinal judgments, and to make disciplinary decisions in
the Church. Jesus entrusted this authority to the Church through the
ministry of the apostles and in particular through the ministry of
Peter, the only one to whom he specifically entrusted the keys of the kingdom.
-- Catechism of the Catholic Church
paragraphs 551-553
Lord, your love is eternal;
so not forsake the work of your hands.
-- Psalm 138
Sunday 14 August 2011, Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Bible readings
"That He Might Have Mercy Upon All"
At all times and in every race, anyone who fears God and does
what is right has been acceptable to him (cf Acts 10:35). He has,
however, willed to make men holy and save them, not as individuals
without any bond or link between them, but rather to make them into
a people who might acknowledge him and serve him in holiness. He
therefore chose the Israelite race to be his own people and established
a covenant with it. He gradually instructed this people -- in its
history
manifesting both himself and the decree of his will --and made it holy
unto himself. All these things, however, happened as a preparation
and figure of that new and perfect covenant which was to be ratified in
Christ, and of the fuller revelation which was to be given through the
Word of God made flesh. "Behold the days are coming, says the Lord,
when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house
of Judah ... I will put my law within them, and I will write it upon
their
hearts, and they shall be my people ... For they shall know me from the
least of them to the greatest, says the Lord" (Jer. 31:31-34). Christ
initiated this new covenant, , namely the new covenant in his blood
(cf. 1 Cor. 11:25); he called a race made up of Jews and Gentiles which
would be one, not according to the flesh, but in the Spirit, and this
race
would be the new People of God. For those who believe in Christ, who
are reborn, not from a corruptible seed, but from an incorruptible one
through the word of the living God (cf. 1 Pet. 1:23), not from flesh,
but
from water and the Holy Spirit (cf. Jn. 3:5-6), are finally established
as
"a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation ... who in times past
were not a people, but now are the People of God" (1 Pet. 2:9-10).
Vatican II, Lumen Gentium
Dogmatic Constitution on the Church
Section 9
"Mary has gone to heaven in both body and soul, and the angels
rejoice. I can imagine, too, the delight of St. Joseph, her most chaste
spouse, who awaited her in paradise. Yet what of us who remain on
earth? Our faith tells us that here below, in our present life, we are
pilgrims, wayfarers. Our lot is one of suffering, of sacrifices, and
privations. Nonetheless, joy must mark the rhythm of our steps.
"Serve the Lord with joy' -- there is no other way to serve him."
-- Cause of Our Joy"
CPB, 177
Sunday 7 August 2011, Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Bible readings
Praying for Those Who Don't Know Christ
"Those who have not yet received the Gospel are related
to the People of God in various ways."
The relationship of the Church with the Jewish People. When
she delves into her own mystery, the Church, the People of God in
the New Covenant, discovers her link with the Jewish People, "the
first to hear the Word of God." The Jewish faith, unlike other
non-Christian religions, is already a response to God's revelation in
the Old Covenant. To the Jews "belong the sonship, the glory, the
covenants, the giving of the law, the worship, and the promises;
to them belong the patriarchs, and of their race, according to the flesh,
is the Christ"; "for the gifts and the call of God are irrevocable."
And when one considers the future, God's People of the Old
Covenant and the new People of God tend towards similar goals:
expectation of the coming (or the return) of the Messiah. But one awaits
the return of the messiah who died and rose from the dead and is
recognized as Lord and Son of God; the other awaits the coming of
a Messiah, whose features remain hidden till the end of time; and the
latter waiting is accompanied by the drama of not knowing or of
misunderstanding Christ Jesus.
To reunite all his children, scattered and led astray by sin, the
Father willed to call the whole of humanity together into his Son's Church.
The Church is the place where humanity must rediscover its unity and
salvation. The Church is "the world reconciled." She is that bark
which "in the full sail of the Lord's cross, by the breath of the Holy
Spirit, navigates safely in this world." According to another image dear to
the Church Fathers, she is prefigured by Noah's ark, which alone saves
from the flood.
-- Catechism of the Catholic Church
paragraphs 839, 840, 845
Let us pray for those who do not believe in Christ, that the light of the Holy
Spirit may show them the way to salvation. Almighty and eternal God,
enable those who do not acknowledge Christ to find the truth as they walk
before you in sincerity of heart. Help us to grow in love for one another, to
grasp more fully the mystery of your godhead, and to become more perfect
witnesses of your love in the sight of men. We ask this through Christ
our Lord.
Amen.
-- Celebration of the Lord's Passion, Good Friday
31 July 2011, Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Bible readings
Loving the Sacred Heart that Loves Us
[The] search of man's heart ends when one discovers God's
Heart. On this topic, St. Augustine says: "You made us for yourself,
Oh God, and our heart is restless until it rests in you". The concern
to which St. Augustine refers is the difficulty we all have in attaining
true Love as a consequence of our condition of creatures; we are
finite; moreover, we are sinners. Over and over again we run into the
difficulty of our selfishness, the chaos of our passions, that throws away
this true Love. Man's heart "needs" a heart at his same level, a heart
that can enter into his history, and, on the other hand, an "all-powerful"
heart that can take him out of his limitations and sins. We can say that
in Jesus Christ, God has met mankind and has loved us with a "human
heart". In the encounter of man's heart with the Sacred Heart of Jesus,
the mystery of salvation becomes real. "In fact, from the infinite horizon
of his love, God wished to enter into the limits of human history and
human condition. He took on a body and a heart. Thus, we can contemplate
and encounter the infinite in the finite, the invisible and ineffable
Mystery in the human Heart of Jesus, the Nazarene" (Benedict XVI, Angelus,
6/1/2008).
The most perfect revelation of this Love is the Cross. In the Cross
God's love for us has reached its limit with the donation of His life.
The biggest expression of how much and in which way God loves us, is the
open heart of Jesus on the Cross, as a consequence of the wound on His
side with a spear. As the Pope states in his message; "it is from Jesus'
heart, pierced on the Cross, that this divine life streamed forth" (WYD
message). Thus, in the Cross, Jesus changes our "heart of stone"
wounded by sin, into a "heart of flesh", like his: he gives us his Love and,
at the same time, he enables us to love with his same love.
The fountain where man must drink in order to satisfy his infinite
demand for love and being loved, flows from Jesus' Heart, alive and
risen from the dead....Holiness is an immersion in the flow of love that
springs up from the Sacred Heart of Jesus......
-- Preparatory Catechesis for the
Consecration of the youth of the
world to the Sacred Heart of Jesus
Christ during Wold Youth Day, Madrid, 2011
Heart of Jesus, Fountain of life and holiness, have mercy on us!
24 July 2011, Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Bible readings: http://usccb.org/nab/072411.shtml
The Pearl of Great Price
Death puts an end to human life as the time open to either
accepting or rejecting the divine grace manifested in Christ. The
New Testament speaks of judgment primarily in its aspect of the
final encounter with Christ i;n his second coming, but also repeatedly
affirms that each will be rewarded immediately after death in accordance
with his works and faith. The parable of the poor man Lazarus and the
words of Christ on the cross to the good thief, as well as other New
Testament texts speak of a final destiny of the soul -- a destiny which
can be different for some and for others.
Each man receives his eternal retribution in him immortal soul
at the very moment of his death, in a particular judgment that refers
his life to Christ: either entrance into the blessedness of heaven --
through a purification or immediately, --or immediate and everlasting
damnation. "At the evening of life, we shall be judged on our love."
Those who die in God's grace and friendship and are perfectly
purified live for ever with Christ. They are like God for ever, for
they "see him as he is," face to face....
This perfect life with the Most Holy Trinity -- this communion of
life and love with the Trinity, with the Virgin Mary, the angels and all
the blessed -- is called "heaven." Heaven is the ultimate end and the
fulfillment of the deepest human longings, the state of supreme,
definitive happiness.
To live in heaven is "to be with Christ." The elect live "in Christ,"
but they retain, or rather find, their true identity, their own name.
"For life is to be with Christ; where Christ is, there is life,
there is the kingdom"
-- Catechism of the Catholic Church
paragraphs 1021 - 1025
Lord, I love your commands.
(Psalm 119)
17 July 2011, Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Bible readings: http://usccb.org/nab/071711.shtml
Kingdom of God FAQ
Who is invited to come into the Kingdom of God proclaimed and brought
about by Jesus?
All are invited by Jesus to enter the Kingdom of God. Even the worst
of sinners is called to convert and to accept the boundless mercy of
the Father. Already here on earth, the Kingdom belongs to those who
accept it with a humble heart. To them the mysteries of the Kingdom
are revealed.
Why did Jesus manifest the Kingdom by means of signs and miracles?
Jesus accompanied his words with signs and miracles to bear witness
to the fact that the Kingdom is present in him, the Messiah. Although
he healed some people, he did not come to abolish all evils here below
but rather to free us especially from the slavery of sin. The driving out
of demons proclaimed that his cross would be victorious over "the
ruler of this world" (John 12:31).
In the Kingdom, what authority did Jesus bestow upon his Apostles?
Jesus chose the twelve, the future witnesses of his Resurrection, and
made them sharers of his mission and of his authority to teach, to
absolve from sins, and to build up and govern the Church. In this
college, Peter received "the keys of the kingdom" (Matthew 16:19) and
assumed the first place with the mission to keep the faith in its integrity
and to strengthen his brothers.
-- Compendium, Catechism of the Catholic Church
Questions 107 - 109
Merciful Father,
in the beginning you created us
and by the Passion of your only Son
you created us anew.
Work in us now, we ask you,
both to will and do what pleases you.
Since we are weak and of ourselves
can do no good,
grant us your grace and heavenly blessing
that in whatever work we are engaged
we may do all for your honor and glory;
that being kept from sin
and growing in doing good
so long as we live on this earth
we may serve you;
and after our death
we may be forgiven all our sins
and attain eternal life.
-- Saint Anselm (1033-1109)
Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, July 10, 2011
Bible readings: http://www.usccb.org/nab/071011.shtml
Bearing Fruit in the Kingdom of God
Everyone is called to enter the kingdom. First announced
to the children of Israel, this messianic kingdom is intended to
accept men of all nations. To enter it, one must first accept Jesus'
word:
The word of the Lord is compared to a seed which
is sown in a field; those who hear it with faith and
are numbered among the little flock of Christ have
truly received the kingdom. Then, by its own power,
the seed sprouts and grows until the harvest.
Jesus' invitation to enter his kingdom comes in the form of
parables, a characteristic feature of his teaching. Through his
parables he invites people to the feast of the kingdom, but he also
asks for a radical choice: to gain the kingdom, one must give
everything. Words are not enough; deeds are required. The
parables are like mirrors for man: will he be hard soil or good earth
for the word? What use has he made of the talents he has received?
Jesus and the presence of the kingdom in this world are secretly
at the heart of the parables. One must enter the kingdom, that is,
become a disciple of Christ, in order to "know the secrets of the
kingdom of heaven." For those who stay "outside." everything
remains enigmatic.
The Decalogue, the Sermon on the Mount, and the apostolic
catechesis describe for us the paths that lead to the Kingdom of
heaven. Sustained by the grace of the Holy Spirit, we tread them,
step by step, by everyday acts. By the working of the Word of
Christ, we slowly bear fruit in the Church to the glory of God.
-- Catechism of the Catholic Church
paragraphs 543, 546, 1724
The seed that falls on good ground
will yield a fruitful harvest,
(Luke 8:8)
Fourteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, July 3, 2011
Bible readings: http://usccb.org/nab/070311.shtml
"I Give Praise to You, Father...."
Why is there a universal call to prayer?
Because through creation God first calls every being from nothingness.
Even after the Fall man continues to be capable of recognizing his
Creator and retains a desire for the One who has called him into existence.
All religions, and the whole history of salvation in particular, bear witness
to this human desire for God. It is God first of all, however, who ceaselessly
draws every person to the mysterious encounter known as prayer.
How does Jesus teach us to pray?
Jesus teaches us to pray not only with the Our Father but also when he
prays. In this way he teaches us, in addition to the content, the dispositions
necessary for every true prayer: purity of heart that seeks the Kingdom and
forgives one's enemies, bold and filial faith that goes beyond what we feel
and understand, and watchfulness that protects the disciple from temptation.
What are the essential forms of Christian prayer?
They are blessing and adoration, the prayer of petition and intercession,
thanksgiving and praise. The Eucharist contains and expresses all the
forms of prayer.
Is it possible to pray always?
Praying is always possible because the time of the Christian is the time
of the risen Christ who remains "with you always" (MMt 28:20). Prayer
and the Christian life are therefore inseparable:
"It is possible to offer frequent and fervent prayer even at the
market place or strolling alone. It is possible also in your
place of business, while buying or selling, or even while
cooking." (Saint John Chrysostom)
-- Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church
Questions 535, 544, 550, 576
I will praise your name for ever, my king and my God.
The Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ: Corpus Christi, June 26, 2011
Bible readings: http://www.usccb.org/nab/062611.shtml
What Does Corpus Christi Mean to Me?
What does Corpus Christi mean to me? It does not only
bring the liturgy to mind; for me, it is a day on which heaven and
earth work together. In my mind's eye it is the time when spring
is turning into summer; the sun is high in the sky, and crops are
the crops are ripening in field and meadow. The Church's feasts
make present the mystery of Christ, but Jesus Christ was immersed
in the faith of the people of Israel and so, arising from this
background
in Israel's life, the Christian feasts are also involved with the rhythm
of the year, the rhythm of seedtime and harvest. How could it be
otherwise in a liturgy which has at its center the sign of bread, fruit
of the earth and heaven? Here this fruit of the earth, bread, is
privileged to be the bearer of him in whom heaven and earth, God
and man have become one. The way the Church's feasts fit in with
the seasons of the year is therefore not an accident. Consequently
we must go on to discover the inner rhythm of the Church's year and
see the place of Corpus Christi has within it.
First of all, clearly, it grows out of the mystery of Easter and
Pentecost: it presupposes the Resurrection and the sending of the
Spirit. But it is also in close proximity to the Feast of the Trinity,
which reveals the inner logic in the connection between Easter and
Pentecost. It is only because God himself is the eternal dialogue of
love that he and speak and be spoken to. Only because he himself
is relationship can we relate to him; only because he is love can he
love and be loved in return. Only because his is threefold can he be
the grain of wheat which dies and the bread of eternal life.
Ultimately, then, Corpus Christi is an expression of faith in God, in love,
in the fact that God is love. All that is said and done on Corpus Christi is
in fact a single variation on the theme of love, what it is and what it
does. In one of his Corpus Christi hymns Thomas Aquinas puts it beautifully:
nec sumptus consumitur -- love does not consume: it gives and, in
giving, receives. And in giving it is not used up but renews itself.
Since Corpus Christi is a confession of faith in love, it is totally
appropriate that the day should focus on the mystery of
transubstantiation. Love is transubstantiation, transformation.
Corpus Christi tells us: Yes, there is such a thing as love, and
therefore there is transformation, therefore there is hope. And hope
gives us strength to live and face the world.....
-- Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger (aka Pope Benedict XVI)
Feast of Faith, pages 136-137.
He has granted peace in your borders;
with the best of wheat he fills you.
-- Psalm 147
The Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity, June 19, 2011
Bible readings: http://www.usccb.org/nab/061911.shtml
A God Merciful and Gracious
After Israel's sin, when the people had turned away from God
to worship the golden calf, God hears Moses' prayer of intercession
and agrees to walk in the midst of an unfaithful people, thus
demonstrating his love. When Moses asks to see his glory, God responds
"I will make all my goodness pass before you, and will proclaim before you
my name 'the LORD [YHWH]." Then the LORD passes before Moses and
proclaims, "YHWH, YHWH, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and
abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness"; Moses then confesses the
LORD is a forgiving God.
The divine name, "I Am" or "He Is," expresses God's faithfulness:
despite the faithlessness of men's sin and the punishment it deserves,
he keeps "steadfast love for thousands." By going so far as to give up
his own Son for us, God reveals that he is "rich in mercy." By giving
his life to free us from sin, Jesus reveals that he himself bears the divine
name: "When you have lifted up the Son of man, then you will realize
that 'I Am.' "
God, "He who is." revealed himself to Israel as the one "abounding
in steadfast love and faithfulness." These two terms express summarily
the riches of the divine name. In all his works God displays not only
his kindness, goodness, grace, and steadfast love, but also his
trustworthiness, constancy, faithfulness, and truth. "I give thanks to your name for
your steadfast love and your faithfulness." He is the Truth, for "God is
light and in him there is no darkness"; "God is love," as the apostles John
teaches.
God's love for Israel is compared to a father's love for his son. His
love for his people is stronger than a mother's for her children. God
loves his people more than a bridegroom his beloved; his love will be
victorious over even the worst infidelities and will extend to his most precious
gift: "God so loved the world that he gave his only Son."
-- Catechism of the Catholic Church
paragraphs 210, 211, 214, 219
Glory and praise for ever!
Pentecost, June 12, 2011
Bible readings: http://www.usccb.org/nab/061211.shtml
Who Is the Holy Spirit?
Who is this Holy Spirit? He is God himself. The third Person
of the Blessed Trinity. He is sent to each of us by the Father and
the Son. He is their greatest gift and he remains constantly with
us. He abides in us.
The clearest description of the work of the Holy Spirit has
been given by Saint Paul, who said that the Spirit produces
"love, joy, peace, patient endurance, kindness, generosity,
faith, mildness and chastity (Gal 5:22). Qualities such as these
are ideal in every walk of life and in all circumstances: at home,
with your teachers and friends; in the factory or at the university;
with all the people you meet.
The Prophet Isaiah also attributed special gifts to the Holy
Spirit: "a spirit of wisdom and understanding, a spirit of counsel
and of strength, a spirit of knowledge and fear of the Lord" (Is 11:2).
Saint Paul is right in saying: "Since we live by the Spirit, let us
follow the Spirit's lead" (Gal 5:25).
With gifts and qualities such as these we are equal to any
task and capable of overcoming any difficulties. Yet our lives
remain our own, and the Spirit acts on each of us differently, in
harmony with our individual personality and the characteristics
we have inherited from our parents and from the upbringing
received in our homes.
Because he is so near to us, yet so unobtrusive, we should
turn to the Holy Spirit instinctively in all our needs and ask him
for his guidance and help. The Spirit comes to help us in our
weakness. What more could be done for us? What more can
we expect of God than that?
-- Blessed John Paul II
31 May 1982
Come, Holy Spirit, Creator come,
From your bright heavenly throne!
Come, take possession of our souls,
And make them all your own.
The Seventh Sunday in Easter, June 5, 2011
Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord
Bible readings: http://www.usccb.org/nab/060511.shtml
On the Meaning of the Ascension
...In the Scripture readings the whole significance of Christ's
Ascension is summarized for us. The richness of this mystery is spelled out in two
statements: Jesus gave instructions, and then Jesus took his place.
... The instructions indicated, above all, that the Apostles were to
wait for the Holy Spirit, who was the gift of the Father. From the beginning,
it had to be crystal-clear that the source of the Apostles' strength is the Holy
Spirit. It is the Holy Spirit who guides the Church in the way of truth; the
Gospel is to spread through the power of God, and not by means of human wisdom or
strength.
The Apostles, moreover, were instructed to teach -- to proclaim the
Good News to the whole world. And they were to baptize in the name of
the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Like Jesus, they were
to speak explicitly about the Kingdom of God and about salvation. The Apostles
were to give witness to Christ to the ends of the earth. The early Church
clearly understood these instructions and the missionary era began. And
everybody knew that this missionary era could never end until the same Jesus, who
went up to heaven, would come back again.
And the second reflection on the meaning of the Ascension is found in
this phrase: Jesus took his place. After having undergone the
humiliation of his passion and death, Jesus took his place at the right-hand of
God; he took his place with his eternal Father. But he also entered heaven as
our Head. Whereupon, in the expression of Leo the Great, the glory of the
Head became the hope of the body. For all eternity Christ takes his place
as the firstborn among many brethren: our nature is with God in Christ. And
as man, the Lord Jesus lives for ever to intercede for us with the Father. At the
same time, from his throne of glory, Jesus sends out to the whole Church
a message of hope and a call to holiness.
-- Blessed John Paul II
Homily, 24 May 1979.
For king of all the earth is God;
sing hymns of praise.
God reigns over the nations,
God sits upon his holy throne.
-- Psalm 47
The Sixth Sunday in Easter, May 29, 2011
Bible readings: http://www.usccb.org/nab/052911.shtml
"Then They Laid Hands On Them..."
In the Old Testament the prophets announced that the Spirit of
the Lord would rest on the hoped-for Messiah for his saving mission.
The descent of the Holy Spirit on Jesus at his baptism by John was
the sign that this was he who was to come, the Messiah, the Son of God.
He was conceived of the Holy Spirit; his whole life and his whole
mission are carried out in total communion with the Holy Spirit whom
the Father gives him "without measure."
This fullness of the Spirit was not to remain uniquely the Messiah's,
but was to be communicated to the whole messianic people. On several
occasions Christ promised this outpouring of the Spirit, a promise which
he fulfilled first on Easter Sunday and then more strikingly at Pentecost.
Filled with the Holy Spirit the apostles began to proclaim "the mighty
works of God," and Peter declared this outpouring of the Spirit to be the
sign of the messianic age. Those who believed in the apostolic preaching and
were baptized received the gift of the Holy Spirit in their turn.
From that time on the apostles, in fulfillment of Christ's will,
imparted to the newly baptized by the laying on of hands the gift of the
Spirit that completes the grace of Baptism. For this reason in the
Letter to the Hebrews the doctrine concerning Baptism and the laying on of
hands is listed among the first elements of Christian instruction. The
imposition of hands is rightly recognized by the Catholic tradition as
the origin of the sacrament of Confirmation, which in a certain way
perpetuates the grace of Pentecost in the Church.
-- Catechism of the Catholic Church
Paragraphs 1312-1314
Come, Holy Spirit
... On the faithful, who adore
And confess you, evermore
In your sevenfold gift descend;
Give them virtue's sure reward;
Give them your salvation, Lord;
Give them joys that never end.
The Fifth Sunday in Easter, May 22, 2011
Bible readings: http://www.usccb.org/nab/052211.shtml
To Be a Holy Priesthood...
The baptized have become "living stones" to be "built into a
spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood." By Baptism they share
in the priesthood of Christ, in his prophetic and royal mission. They
are "a chose race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God's own
people that [they] may declare the wonderful deeds of him who
called [them] out of darkness into his marvelous light." Baptism
gives a share in the common priesthood of all believers.
Christ, high priest and unique mediator, has made of the Church
"a kingdom, priests for his God and Father." The whole community of
believers is, as such, priestly. The faithful exercise their baptismal
priesthood through their participation, each according to his own
vocation, in Christ's mission as priest, prophet, and king. Through the
sacraments of Baptism and Confirmation the faithful are "consecrated
to be ... a holy priesthood."
The ministerial or hierarchical priesthood of bishops and priests,
and the common priesthood of all the faithful participate, "each in its
own proper way, in the one priesthood of Christ." While being "ordered
one to another," they differ essentially. In what sense? While the
common priesthood of the faithful is exercised by the unfolding of baptismal
grace -- a life of faith, hope, and charity, a life according to the Spirit --,
the ministerial priesthood is at the service of the common priesthood. It
is directed at the unfolding of the baptismal grace of all Christians. The
ministerial priesthood is a means by which Christ unceasingly builds up
and leads his Church. For this reason it is transmitted by its own
sacrament, the sacrament of Holy Orders.
-- Catechism of the Catholic Church
paragraphs 1268, 1546-1547
"Do not let your hearts be troubled.
You have faith in God; have faith in me."
The Fourth Sunday in Easter, May 15, 2011
Bible readings: http://www.usccb.org/nab/051511.shtml
Jesus' Flock is His Church
It was the Son's task to accomplish the Father's plan of
salvation in the fullness of time. Its accomplishment was the reason
for his being sent. "The Lord Jesus inaugurated his Church by
preaching the Good News, that is, the coming of the Reign of God,
promised over the ages in the scriptures." To fulfill the Father's
will, Christ ushered in the Kingdom of heaven on earth. The
Church "is the Reign of Christ already present in mystery."
"This Kingdom shines out before men in the word, in the
works and in the presence of Christ." To welcome Jesus' word
is to welcome "the Kingdom itself." The seed and beginning of
the Kingdom are the "little flock" of those whom Jesus came to
gather around him, the flock whose shepherd he is. They form
Jesus' true family. To those whom he thus gathered around him,
he taught a new "way of acting" and a prayer of their own.
The Lord Jesus endowed his community with a structure
that will remain until the Kingdom is fully achieved. Before all else
there is the choice of the Twelve with Peter as their head.
Representing the twelve tribes of Israel, they are the foundation
stones of the new Jerusalem. The Twelve and the other disciples
share in Christ's mission and his power, but also in his lot. By
all his actions, Christ prepares and builds his Church.
-- Catechism of the Catholic Church
paragraphs 763-765
Prayer for the Pope
Lord, source of eternal life and truth, give to Your shepherd
Benedict a spirit of courage and right judgment, a spirit of knowledge
and love. By governing with fidelity those entrusted to his care may
he, as successor to the apostle Peter and vicar of Christ, build Your Church
into a sacrament of unity, love, and peace for all the world.
We ask this though our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, who lives and
reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, on God for ever and ever. Amen.
The Third Sunday in Easter, May 8, 2011
Bible readings: http://www.usccb.org/nab/050811.shtml
Seeing the Risen Lord
.....Not everyone saw the Risen Jesus. Why not?
Why did he not go in triumph to the Pharisees and Pilate
to show them that he was alive and to let them touch his
scars? But in asking such questions we are forgetting
that Jesus was not a resuscitated corpse like Lazarus and
the boy of Naim. They were allowed to return once more
to their erstwhile biological life, which sooner or later would
have to end, after all, with death. What happened in Jesus'
case was quite different: he did not return to the old life but
began a new one, a life that is ultimate, no longer subject to
nature's law of death but standing in God's freedom and
hence final and absolute. A life, therefore, that is no longer
part of the realm of physics and biology, although it has
integrated matter and nature into itself on a higher plane.
And that is why it is no longer within the ambit of our senses
of touch and sight. The Risen One cannot be seen like a
piece of wood or stone. He can only be seen by the person
to whom he reveals himself. And he only reveals himself
to one whom he can entrust with a mission. He does not
reveal himself to curiosity but to love; love is the indispensable
organ if we are to see and apprehend him.....
There is another important aspect: Jesus shows himself
in the act of departure. This is clearest in the event of Emmaus
and in his meeting with Mary Magdalen. He summons us to
go with him. Resurrection is not an indulgence of curiosity:
it is mission. Its intention is to transform the world. It calls for
an active joy, the joy of those who are themselves going along
the path of the Risen One. That is true today too: he only shows
himself to those who walk with him. The angel's first word to the
women was, "He is not here, he is going before you to Galilee;
there you will see him" (Mk 16:6). So, once and for all, we are
told where the Risen One is to be found and how we are to meet
him: he goes before you. He is present in preceding us. By
following him we can see him.
--Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger
Seek That Which Is Above
p. 63-65
I have set the Lord ever before me;
with him at my right hand I shall not be disturbed.
-- Psalm 16
Divine Mercy Sunday, May 1, 2011
Bible readings: http://www.usccb.org/nab/050111.shtml
Discovering His Mercy
It is precisely because sin exists in the world, which "God
so loved ... that he gave his only Son," that God, who "is love,"
cannot reveal Himself otherwise than as mercy. This corresponds
not only to the most profound truth of that love which God is, but
also to the whole interior truth of man and of the world which is
man's temporary homeland.
Mercy in itself, as a perfection of the infinite God, is also
infinite. Also infinite therefore and inexhaustible is the Father's
readiness to receive the prodigal children who return to His home.
Infinite are the readiness and power of forgiveness which flow
continually from the marvelous value of the sacrifice of the Son.
No human sin can prevail over this power or even limit it. On the
part of man only a lack of good will can limit it, a lack of readiness
to be converted and to repent, in other words persistence in
obstinacy, opposing grace and truth, especially in the face of the
witness of the cross and resurrection of Christ.
Therefore, the Church professes and proclaims conversion.
Conversion to God always consists in discovering His mercy,
that is, in discovering that love which is patient and kind as only
the Creator and Father can be; the love to which the "God and
Father of our Lord Jesus Christ" is faithful to the uttermost
consequences
in the history of His covenant with man: even to the cross and to
the death and resurrection of the Son. Conversion to God is always
the fruit of the "rediscovery" of this Father, who is rich in mercy.
-- Blessed John Paul II
Dives is Misericordia, 13
(On the Mercy of God)
Eternal Father, I offer You the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of
your dearly beloved Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, in atonement for our
sins and those of the whole world.
For the sake of His sorrowful Passion, have mercy on us
and on the whole world.
-- Chaplet of Divine Mercy prayers
Easter Sunday, April 24, 2011
Bible readings: http://www.usccb.org/nab/042411.shtml
Who is this Jesus Who is Risen?
We believe in our Lord Jesus Christ, who is the Son
of God. He is the Eternal Word, born of the Father before
time began, and one in substance with the Father, homo-
ousios to Patri, and through Him all things were made.
He was incarnate of the Virgin Mary by the power of the
Holy Spirit, and was made man: equal therefore to the
Father according to His divinity, and inferior to the Father
according to His humanity; and Himself one, not by some
impossible confusion of His natures, but by the unity of
His person.
He dwelt among us, full of grace and truth. He pro-
claimed and established the Kingdom of God and made us
know in Himself the Father. He gave us His new command-
ment to love one another as He loved us. He taught us
the way of the beautitudes of the Gospel: poverty in spirit,
meekness, suffering borne with patience, thirst after justice,
mercy, purity of heart, will for peace, persecution suffered
for justice sake. Under Pontius Pilate He suffered -- the
Lamb of God bearing on Himself the sins of the world, and
He died for us on the cross, saving us by His redeeming
blood. He was buried, and, of His own power, rose on the
third day, raising us by His resurrection to that sharing in
the divine life which is the life of grace. He ascended to
heaven, and He will come again, this time in glory, to judge
the living and the dead: each according to his merits --
those who have responded to the love and piety of God
going to eternal life, those who have refused them to the
end going to the fire that is not extinguished.
And His Kingdom will have no end.
-- Pope Paul VI
Credo of the People of God.
Rejoice, heavenly powers! Sing, choirs of angels!
Exult, all creation around God's throne!
Jesus Christ, our King, is risen!
Sound the trumpet of salvation!
-- Easter Exsultet
Palm Sunday, April 17, 2011
Bible readings: http://www.usccb.org/nab/041711.shtml
Recognizing the Face of God
In Greek and Latin, the two international languages of the time, and in Hebrew, the language of the Chosen People, a sign stood above the Cross of Jesus, indicating who he was: the King of the Jews, the promised Son of David. Pilate, the unjust judge, became a prophet despite himself. The kingship of Jesus was proclaimed before all the world. Jesus himself had not accepted the title "Messiah", because it would have suggested a mistaken, human idea of power and deliverance. Yet now the title can remain publicly displayed above the Crucified Christ. He is indeed king of the world. Now he is truly "lifted up". In sinking to the depths he rose to the heights.
Now he has radically fulfilled the commandment of love, he has completed the offering of himself, and in this way he is now the revelation of the true God, the God who is love. Now we know who God is. Now we know what true kingship is.
Jesus prays Psalm 22, which begins with the words: "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" (Ps 22:2). He takes to himself the whole suffering people of Israel, all of suffering humanity, the drama of God's darkness, and he makes God present in the very place where he seems definitively vanquished and absent.
The Cross of Jesus is a cosmic event. The world is darkened, when the Son of God is given up to death. The earth trembles. And on the Cross , the Church of the Gentiles is born. The Roman centurion understands this, and acknowledges Jesus as the Son of God. From the Cross he triumphs -- ever anew.
Prayer
Lord Jesus Christ, at the hour of your death the sun was darkened.
Ever anew you are being nailed to the Cross.
At this present hour of history we are living in God's darkness.
Through your great sufferings and the wickedness of men,
the face of God, your face, seems obscured, unrecognizable.
And yet, on the Cross, you have revealed yourself.
Precisely by being the one who suffers and loves, you are exalted.
From the Cross on high you have triumphed.
Help us to recognize your face at this hour of darkness and tribulation.
Help us to believe in you and to follow you in our hour of darkness and need.
Show yourself once more to the world at this hour.
Reveal to us your salvation.
-- Twelfth Station, Vatican, Vis Crucis, 2005
The Fifth Sunday in Lent, April 10, 2011
Bible readings: http://www.nccbuscc.org/nab/041011.shtml
Resurrection of the Body FAQ
What is meant by the "resurrection of the body"?
This means that the definitive state of man will not be one in which
his spiritual soul is separated from his body. Even our mortal bodies
will one day come to life again.
What is the relationship between the Resurrection of Christ and our
resurrection?
Just as Christ is truly risen from the dead and now lives forever, so he
himself will raise everyone on the last day with an incorruptible body:
"Those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who
have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation" (John 5:29).
What happens to our body and our soul after death?
After death, which is the separation of the body and the soul, the body
becomes corrupt while the soul, which is immortal, goes to meet the
judgment of God and awaits its reunion with the body when it will
rise transformed at the time of the return of the Lord. How the resur-
rection of the body will come about exceeds the possibilities of our
imagination and understanding.
What does it mean to die in Christ Jesus?
Dying in Christ Jesus means to die in the state of God's grace without
any mortal sin. A believer in Christ, following his example, is thus able to
transform his own death into an act of obedience and love for the Father.
"This saying is sure: If we have died with him, we will also live with him"
(2 Timothy 2:11).
Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church
Questions 203 - 206.
God, from whom to be turned is to fall;
to whom to be turned is to rise;
and in whom to stand is to live forever:
grant us
in all our duties your help,
in all our problems your guidance,
in all our dangers your protection,
in all our sorrows your peace,
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
-- Saint Augustine (354-410 AD)
Fourth Sunday in Lent, April 3, 2011
Bible readings: http://www.nccbuscc.org/nab/040311.shtml
Faith Gives Sight to the Blind
Consider chapter nine of St. John. 'And Jesus saw, as he passed on his way, a man who had been blind from birth. Whereupon his disciples ask him, Master, was this man guilty of sin, or was it his parents, that he should have been born blind?' These men, even though they were so close to Christ, could still think badly about that poor blind man. So do not be surprised if, as you go through life seeking to serve the Church, you also come across disciples of Our Lord behaving in a similar manner towards you or towards others. Don't let it worry you and, like the blind man, take no notice; just place yourselves wholeheartedly in Christ's hands. He does not accuse, he pardons. He does not condemn, he forgives. He is not cold and indifferent towards illness, but instead cures it with divine diligence.
Our Lord 'spat on the ground, and made clay with the spittle. Then he spread the clay on the man's eyes, and said to him, Go and wash in the pool of Siloe (a name that means, Sent). So he went and washed there, and came back with his sight restored.'
What an example of firm faith the blind man gives us! A living, operative faith. Do you behave like this when God commands, when so often you can't see, when your soul is worried and the light is gone? What power could the water possibly contain that when the blind man's eyes were moistened with it they were cured? Surely some mysterious eye salve, or a precious medicine made up in the laboratory of some wise alchemist, would have done better? But the man believed; he acted on the command of God, and he returned with eyes full of light.
-- Saint Josemaria Escriva (1902-1975)
Friends of God, # 192-193
O God, you are the hope of the hopeless,
The savior of the troubled,
The healer of the sick.
Be to us all things for all
For you know each one singly, the prayer and need of each,
The home of each. Amen.
-- Saint Basil (330-379 AD)
Third Sunday in Lent, March 27, 2011
Bible readings: http://www.nccbuscc.org/nab/032711.shtml
Harden Not Your Hearts
Hear His voice today: "Harden not your hearts" (Ps 95:8).
This prayer is relevant and necessary, but it is particularly recommended in the course of these forty days that we hear the voice of the living God. It is a penetrating voice, when we consider how God speaks in Lent not only with the exceptional richness of His Word in the liturgy and in the Church's life but above all with the paschal eloquence of the Passion and Death of His own Son. He speaks with His cross and with His sacrifice. In a certain sense, this is the last discourse in His dialogue with man, lasting centuries, a dialogue with his mind and with his heart, with his conscience and his conduct. The heart means man in his inner spirituality, the very center, so to say, of his likeness with God. The interior man. The man of conscience.
Our prayer during Lent aims at awakening of consciences, arousing them to the voice of God. In fact, the diseases of consciences, their indifference to good and evil, their errors, are a great danger to man. The are indirectly a menace to society as well, because the level of society's morals depends in the ultimate analysis on the human conscience.
A man who has a hardened heart and a degenerate conscience is spiritually a sick man, even though he may enjoy the fullness of powers and physical capacities. Everything must be done to bring him back to having a healthy soul. "Hear today his voice ... harden not your heart."
--Pope John Paul II
15 March 1981
Come, let us bow down in worship;
let us kneel before the Lord who made us.
-- Psalm 95
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