†Quote of the Day
"It is suffering, more than anything else, which clears the way for the grace which transforms human souls. Suffering, more than anything else makes present in the history of humanity the powers of the Redemption." Pope St. John Paul II †Today's Meditation†
"The divine activity permeates the whole universe, it pervades every creature; wherever they are it is there; it goes before them, with them, and it follows them; all they have to do is to let the waves bear them on. Would to God that … all men could know how very easy it would be for them to arrive at a high degree of sanctity. They would only have to fulfill the simple duties of Christianity and of their state in life; to embrace with submission the crosses belonging to that state, and to submit with faith and love to the designs of Providence in all those things that have to be done or suffered without going out of their way to seek occasions for themselves. … This is the spirituality of all ages and of every state. No state of life can, assuredly, be sanctified in a more exalted manner, nor in a more wonderful and easy way than by the simple use of the means that God, the sovereign director of souls, gives them to do or to suffer at each moment."
—Fr. Jean-Pierre de Caussade, p. 8
†Daily Verse "Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the road broad that leads to destruction, and those who enter through it are many. How narrow the gate and constricted the road that leads to life. And those who find it are few." Matthew 7:13-14 |  click to read more | | St. Germaine Cousin (1579–1601) was born in a remote French village to a peasant farmer. She was born with a deformed right arm and a disease that causes abscesses in her neck. Her mother died when she was an infant, and her father remarried. Due to Germaine's deformities, her stepmother was thoroughly disgusted with her. She severely neglected and physically abused the child, and taught others to do the same. Starving, sick, and dressed in rags with no shoes, Germaine was forced to sleep in the barn. Her stepmother once attempted to kill her off by sending her to tend sheep near a wolf-infested forest. St. Germaine was a simple and pious child, and through her extreme hardships she developed a deep interior life. She prayed the rosary and went to Mass daily, leaving her sheep to the care of her guardian angel. Even though she was emaciated, she shared the little food she had with beggars. Her piety was admired by the village children, and adults gradually became aware of her holiness, especially when news of her miracles began to circulate. St. Germaine died at the age of twenty-two, succumbing to her poor living conditions. Many years later her body was found incorrupt. Villagers began praying for her intercession and receiving miraculous cures, resulting in her canonization in 1867. St. Germaine is the patron saint of unattractive people, peasant girls, abuse victims, handicapped people, and abandoned people. Her feast day is June 15th. | Thursday of the Tenth Week in Ordinary Time Reading 1 2 Cor 3:15—4:1, 3-6 Brothers and sisters:
To this day, whenever Moses is read,
a veil lies over the hearts of the children of Israel,
but whenever a person turns to the Lord the veil is removed.
Now the Lord is the Spirit and where the Spirit of the Lord is,
there is freedom.
All of us, gazing with unveiled face on the glory of the Lord,
are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory,
as from the Lord who is the Spirit. Therefore, since we have this ministry through the mercy shown us,
we are not discouraged.
And even though our Gospel is veiled,
it is veiled for those who are perishing,
in whose case the god of this age
has blinded the minds of the unbelievers,
so that they may not see the light of the Gospel
of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.
For we do not preach ourselves but Jesus Christ as Lord,
and ourselves as your slaves for the sake of Jesus.
For God who said, Let light shine out of darkness,
has shone in our hearts to bring to light
the knowledge of the glory of God
on the face of Jesus Christ. Responsorial Psalm Ps 85:9ab and 10, 11-12, 13-14 R. (see 10b) The glory of the Lord will dwell in our land.
I will hear what God proclaims;
the LORD–for he proclaims peace to his people.
Near indeed is his salvation to those who fear him,
glory dwelling in our land.
R. The glory of the Lord will dwell in our land.
Kindness and truth shall meet;
justice and peace shall kiss.
Truth shall spring out of the earth,
and justice shall look down from heaven.
R. The glory of the Lord will dwell in our land.
The LORD himself will give his benefits;
our land shall yield its increase.
Justice shall walk before him,
and salvation, along the way of his steps.
R. The glory of the Lord will dwell in our land. Alleluia Jn 13:34 R. Alleluia, alleluia.
I give you a new commandment:
love one another as I have loved you.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel Mt 5:20-26 Jesus said to his disciples:
"I tell you, unless your righteousness surpasses that
of the scribes and Pharisees,
you will not enter into the Kingdom of heaven. "You have heard that it was said to your ancestors,
You shall not kill; and whoever kills will be liable to judgment.
But I say to you, whoever is angry with his brother
will be liable to judgment,
and whoever says to his brother,
Raqa, will be answerable to the Sanhedrin,
and whoever says, 'You fool,' will be liable to fiery Gehenna.
Therefore, if you bring your gift to the altar,
and there recall that your brother
has anything against you,
leave your gift there at the altar,
go first and be reconciled with your brother,
and then come and offer your gift.
Settle with your opponent quickly while on the way to court with him.
Otherwise your opponent will hand you over to the judge,
and the judge will hand you over to the guard,
and you will be thrown into prison.
Amen, I say to you,
you will not be released until you have paid the last penny."
| Daily Meditation: Matthew 5:20-26 Leave your gift there at the altar, go first and be reconciled. (Matthew 5:24) Any Jew who wanted to offer a sacrifice "at the altar" (Matthew 5:24) would have had to travel to the Temple in Jerusalem to do so, no matter where he lived. There were no other altars in Israel. So for most people, turning around and reconciling with someone before making an offering would have required a long round trip. Impractical, yes, but that's how important Jesus thought it was to reconcile! Jesus' words pose a big challenge for us as well. Unresolved differences, past hurts, words spoken in anger—none of these are easily resolved. In fact, unsettled issues between people have a way of festering and worsening over the years. We might even become comfortable with putting them aside and assume that it's better to leave things as they are. So we ignore them and go on with our everyday lives. That's why it's so important that we remain open to the promptings of the Holy Spirit. If you've tried to bury the pain, he might help you to see how sadness or regret might be weighing you down. He might even help you recognize ways your own sin might have contributed to the situation and give you a desire to try and reconcile. If that happens, pray and ask the Spirit what your next step should be. Should you attempt reconciliation? Or should you leave it at the feet of the Lord for now? If you sense the Spirit leading you to approach the person, you can trust that he will help you find the best way to do it. If you think he is encouraging you to wait, you can trust that he will help you reconcile, in his time and by his means, at some later point. Even if it's impossible to reconcile, the Spirit can give you peace about the situation as well as a desire to pray for that person. Remember, Jesus not only desires reconciliation, but he also provides the grace to do it—whether immediately or gradually, in his time and with his guidance. "Holy Spirit, when one of my relationships is broken, help me know when and how to reconcile." 2 Corinthians 3:15–4:1, 3-6
Psalm 85:9-14 | From today's 1st Holy Scripture:
"Brothers and sisters:
To this day, whenever Moses is read, a veil lies over the hearts of the children of Israel, but whenever a person turns to the Lord the veil is removed.
Now the Lord is the Spirit and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom." end of verse. The Scriptures are true. There is a veil over the hearts of God's chosen ones. But the veil is lifted so that we may see Him and enter Him, if we so choose. How can we choose to see him? Turn from evil. Turn from bad, and turn to the good. Every time we do so, the veil is lifted more and more. | We pray today:
" will hear what God proclaims;
the LORD–for he proclaims peace to his people. Near indeed is his salvation to those who fear him, glory dwelling in our land.
The glory of the Lord will dwell in our land"
end of Psalm. They say a great enemy of faith is not atheism, or anything else, but fear; the wrong kind of fear. The real problem in the world then, is the wrong fear. We not fear the Lord as we ought. Even our Lord Jesus told us: "But I will warn you whom to fear: fear the One who, after He has killed, has authority to cast into hell; yes, I tell you, fear Him! "-Luke 12.
And a true love of God should bring us to a true fear of God. To be so amazed with Him. To be so afraid to offend Him! | In the Gospel today we heard:
"Amen, I say to you,
you will not be released until you have paid the last penny." end of verse. | From Bishop Barron:
"Friends, in today's Gospel, Jesus commands us to be reconciled with one another. I want to say something about the role of forgiveness in repairing our broken relationships.
When you are at worship and realize that you need to forgive someone (or be forgiven by someone), go and do it. Go get reconciled, then come back. It's like a rule of physics. There is something hidden in the deep mystery of God, and I can't fully explicate it. Somehow, if there is a lack of forgiveness in you, it blocks the movement of God in you. Perhaps it's simply because God is love, and so whatever is opposed to love in us blocks the flow of God's power and God's life.
One reason we do not forgive is that we feel that some injustice has been done to us, and we resent it. A good cure for this feeling is to kneel before the cross of Jesus. What do you see there? The innocent Son of God nailed to the cross—the ultimate injustice. What does he do? He forgives his persecutors. Meditate on that, and your sense of being treated unjustly will fade away." end quote Bishop Barron.
Who is on the way to court? I often think of this verse when I am going to meet our Lord, not in death, but in the Holy Eucharist. I should not receive Him, or meet Him unworthily. I should not go dressed wrong. I should not go with filth or worse, mortal sin, a dagger with blood on it. What does all of this mean?
It means we are on our way to the court, the judge, and Jesus is the judge. It means we should not go receive Him unworthily. It means that there is judgement to pay for cementing a bad relationship by receiving Him while I am doing things on the side...wrong.
And so, watch your mouth.
Wash your mouth too!
Watch what you say. Every little nasty word you said, there is hell to pay. Oh you won't hear protestants teach this, but theirs is a watered down version of authentic faith that is supposed to be in full bloom with grace from Heaven. "Desgraciado" is a word in spanish that translate more to "disgraced" but it sounds more like you are calling them unfortunate, miserable, wretch, or even a loser. And this is the case when we fall from grace.
Therefore, I ask you, as I ask people directly, not to call people names. Not to say "stupid" or anything that becomes more of a curse...than a blessing. Your mouth can bless God or spit on Him, and remember, His life spark is in every single soul. That is why we are to treat everyone with integrity, and dignity.
You should notice that the most classy people in the world, are the most reverent with God our Father. They dress the part, they look the part, and they live the part, of a life of grace.
And this has nothing to do with money. A very poor person or a very rich person can live this life of grace, or the opposite, a life of disgrace with a bad mouth, a bad temperament, a bad heart to say the least.
I write to you, to save you the high cost of letting our weakness get the best of us. For the devil only grows with weakness. The more you are weak, the more the devil can take over, and the weakness is a permission. Therefore, be strong in the Lord, and set your heart straight, and we will live life in abundance of grace and virtue, all things righteousness that is necessary to enter the narrow gate of Heaven, while the weak fall on the wide road to hell. I hope you become strong with this encouragement from the Lord Himself. Let's pray:
To God our Father be all the Honor, Glory, and the Kingdom, forever and ever! Amen |  Hear it click | WOW!
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Mark 13:31 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away. | If one day you don't receive these, just visit Going4th.com
God Bless You! Peace | | |
