†Quote of the Day
"At each step we can admire the grandeur, the power, the goodness of God. How bountifully He provides for all our wants—I would even say for our pleasures!"
–St. Theodore Guerin †Today's Meditation
"Infinite grief I wish from My creature in two ways: in one way, through her sorrow for her own sins, which she has committed against Me her Creator; in the other way, through her sorrow for the sins which she sees her neighbors commit against Me. Of such as these, inasmuch as they have infinite desire, that is, are joined to Me by an affection of love, and therefore grieve when they offend Me, or see Me offended, their every pain, whether spiritual or corporeal, from wherever it may come, receives infinite merit, and satisfies for a guilt which deserved an infinite penalty, although their works are finite and done in finite time; but, inasmuch as they possess the virtue of desire, and sustain their suffering with desire, and contrition, and infinite displeasure against their guilt, their pain is held worthy. Paul explained this when he said: If I had the tongues of angels, and if I knew the things of the future and gave my body to be burned, and have not love, it would be worth nothing to me. The glorious Apostle thus shows that finite works are not valid, either as punishment or recompense, without the condiment of the affection of love."
—St. Catherine of Siena, p. 4 An Excerpt From
Dialogue of St. Catherine of Siena †Daily Verse
"What will separate us from the love of Christ? Will anguish, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or the sword? As it is written: "For your sake we are being slain all the day; we are looked upon as sheep to be slaughtered." No, in all these things we conquer overwhelmingly through him who loved us."
–Romans 8:35-37 |  click to read more | | St. Theodore Guerin (1798–1856), also known as St. Theodora, was born in Etables, France, towards the end of the French Revolution. She was a pious child who loved prayer and who knew her vocation was to be a nun. However, she was delayed in following this path after the murder of her father when she was 15, which, in addition to the previous death of two of her siblings, sent her mother into a deep depression. St. Theodore took on the household tasks and the care of her mother and her remaining sister. Finally, when she was 25, her mother gave her consent, and Theodore left home to enter the religious life. She joined the Sisters of Providence who served God by educating children and caring for the poor, the sick, and the dying. In 1840 she was asked to lead a band of missionary sisters and establish her order in the United States of America, specifically to serve the pioneers in Indiana. Even though her health was fragile, she crossed the Atlantic and then traveled by steamboat and stagecoach until she reached the wilderness mission of St. Mary of the Woods, which consisted only of a tiny log chapel. She and her five sisters endured the extreme hardships common to life on the frontier. Less than a year after arriving she opened an academy which became the first Catholic women's Liberal Arts college in the United States, still active today, called St. Mary of the Woods College. St. Theodore also established numerous schools, pharmacies, and orphanages throughout the state of Indiana. She was beatified by Pope John Paul II and canonized in 2006 by Pope Benedict XVI. Her feast day is October 3rd. | Tuesday of the Twenty-sixth Week in Ordinary Time Reading 1 Zec 8:20-23 Thus says the LORD of hosts:
There shall yet come peoples,
the inhabitants of many cities;
and the inhabitants of one city shall approach those of another,
and say, "Come! let us go to implore the favor of the LORD";
and, "I too will go to seek the LORD."
Many peoples and strong nations shall come
to seek the LORD of hosts in Jerusalem
and to implore the favor of the LORD.
Thus says the LORD of hosts:
In those days ten men of every nationality,
speaking different tongues, shall take hold,
yes, take hold of every Jew by the edge of his garment and say, "Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you." Responsorial Psalm Ps 87:1b-3, 4-5, 6-7 R. (Zec 8:23) God is with us.
His foundation upon the holy mountains
the LORD loves:
The gates of Zion,
more than any dwelling of Jacob.
Glorious things are said of you,
O city of God!
R. God is with us.
I tell of Egypt and Babylon
among those that know the LORD;
Of Philistia, Tyre, Ethiopia:
"This man was born there."
And of Zion they shall say:
"One and all were born in her;
And he who has established her
is the Most High LORD."
R. God is with us.
They shall note, when the peoples are enrolled:
"This man was born there."
And all shall sing, in their festive dance:
"My home is within you."
R. God is with us. Alleluia Mk 10:45 R. Alleluia, alleluia.
The Son of Man came to serve
and to give his life as a ransom for many.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel Lk 9:51-56 When the days for Jesus to be taken up were fulfilled,
he resolutely determined to journey to Jerusalem,
and he sent messengers ahead of him.
On the way they entered a Samaritan village
to prepare for his reception there,
but they would not welcome him
because the destination of his journey was Jerusalem.
When the disciples James and John saw this they asked,
"Lord, do you want us to call down fire from heaven
to consume them?"
Jesus turned and rebuked them,
and they journeyed to another village.
| Daily Meditation: Luke 9:51-56 Lord, do you want us to call down fire from heaven? (Luke 9:54) There's no way around it—rejection hurts! Whether being denied a job or a date, most of us can recall the pain of being turned down or cast aside. It's easy to take these experiences personally and to give in to the temptation to respond in anger. So we can understand James and John's harsh reaction to the Samaritans who refused to welcome Jesus in today's Gospel (Luke 9:53-54). By contrast, Jesus didn't respond in wrath. Instead, he rebuked James and John and moved on to another village. In fact, every time Jesus faced rejection or hostility, he chose patience, mercy, and forgiveness. How unlike Jesus we are! Some of the deepest wounds we carry come from times of rejection, when someone chose not to love us. Because of these encounters, we may feel justified in responding like James and John. While it's understandable that we might feel pain in these moments—and even afterward—by God's grace, we don't have to call down "fire from heaven" (Luke 9:54). Instead of lashing out, we can look to Jesus, who blesses those who curse him. This event in Samaria foreshadows Jesus' passion and death. There, we see humanity's rejection of God as well as God's willingness to endure even death for the sake of his people. We witness Jesus' steadfast mercy most vividly at Calvary. The onlookers told Jesus to come down from the cross and retaliate if he was truly the Messiah. Even the soldiers jeered, "Save yourself!" But he didn't. Instead, he prayed, "Father, forgive them" (Luke 23:34, 37). Jesus always extends mercy. No matter how many times we trip and fall, he invites us to begin again, to return to him and receive that mercy. Like James and John, we struggle to understand a God who allows us—or anyone else—to reject him. We can't fully grasp God's enduring love. It's a love that tenaciously seeks us out and then humbly and tenderly waits for us to respond. Today, let's thank Jesus for enduring so much in order to save us. Let's praise him for his mercy. And let's show that mercy to the people around us. "Lord, thank you for loving me so patiently!" Zechariah 8:20-23
Psalm 87:1-7 | From today's 1st Holy Scripture:
""Come! let us go to implore the favor of the LORD";
and, "I too will go to seek the LORD."
Many peoples and strong nations shall come
to seek the LORD of hosts in Jerusalem
and to implore the favor of the LORD........" end of verse.
. . . One popular priest that I follow online says better days are coming, where communist nations will even turn to the Lord, and not only that, but they will lead the world in Christianity, and our own nation will rank lower than them in following the Lord. But if you tune into another channel or priest, they will be calling out doom and gloom. Who is right? Who is wrong? A prophets words are to be headed, not ignored. Yes, doom if we do not do God's will, but glory if we do! So you cannot say who is right or wrong, but only that we do the will of the Lord. Then we can implore Him and ask for favor and He does pour forth graces to all who desire. | We pray today:
"They shall note, when the peoples are enrolled:
"This man was born there."
And all shall sing, in their festive dance:
"My home is within you."
God is with us ......."_ end of Psalm." Do you believe our Lord is with us? Do you believe God is with us? Do you believe in the Holy Spirit? The Trinity are within, do you believe? IF you believe, then, why do you doubt? Why do you anger? Why do you grow impatient? Why do you lose faith? Does He not see what you see by living inside of you? Or could it be He is not living within? | In the Gospel today we heard:
"When the days for Jesus to be taken up were fulfilled, he resolutely determined to journey to Jerusalem, and he sent messengers ahead of him......." end of Gospel verse. Do you believe our Lord is still sending messengers ahead of Him?
Do you believe He is coming again? The second coming.
Has the message reached you and have you accepted it wholeheartedly? | Then we heard:
"On the way they entered a Samaritan village
to prepare for his reception there,
but they would not welcome him
because the destination of his journey was Jerusalem." They would've welcomed our Lord, if it wasn't going to cost them...their very lives! Right? Because they found out He was going to Jerusalem, they said "I better not get involved with this...there will be much trouble with the government!" How quickly we turn from true faith to convenience. How soon we betray the Lord who provides and turn when He asks us to provide a place for Him to stay...in your home, in your heart.
This infuriates the disciples.
"Lord, do you want us to call down fire from heaven to consume them?"
Jesus turned and rebuked them, and they journeyed to another village. How many times does our Lord rebuke us? He rebukes Peter, and before that, He rebukes James and John. When St. Peter was rebuked He said "Jesus turned and told Peter, "Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me because you're not thinking about God's concerns but human concerns." Because our thoughts don't match His...there is a rough connection if any, between you and our Lord. You have a hard time with faith. You become saddened, or worse, aggravated, or worse, despondent. Do you want the wrath of God to come over your enemies? Or the fire of God's love? ........ Let us pray:
Lord consume us with your love! |  Click To Hear | Random Bible Verse 1
John 14:23 [John 14] 23 Jesus answered him, "If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. | If one day you don't receive these, just visit Going4th.com
God Bless You! Peace | | |
