† Quote of the Day "Let nothing disturb you, let nothing frighten you. All things pass. God does not change. Patience achieves everything. Whoever has God lacks nothing; God alone suffices." — St. Teresa of Avila Today's Meditation "Perhaps we do not know what love is, nor does this greatly surprise me. Love does not consist in great sweetness of devotion, but in a fervent determination to strive to please God in all things, in avoiding, as far as possible, all that would offend Him, and in praying for the increase of the glory and honor of His Son and for the growth of the Catholic Church." —St. Teresa of Avila, p. 54-55
An excerpt from Interior Castle Daily Verse "If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, his religion is vain. Religion that is pure and undefiled before God and the Father is this: to care for orphans and widows in their affliction and to keep oneself unstained by the world." — James 1:26-27 | St. Teresa Of Avila St. Teresa of Avila (1515–1582), also known as St. Teresa of Jesus, was born in Spain to a large, devout, and prominent Catholic family. Fascinated with the lives of the saints taught to her by her pious parents, as children she and a brother tried to run away from home to seek martyrdom among the Moors. After an uncle found them and returned them home, they built hermitages for themselves in the family garden. At the age of 14 Teresa was plunged into sorrow upon the death of her mother; to find consolation she asked the Virgin Mary to be her new mother. When she began to exhibit worldly vanities, her father placed her in a convent to be educated with other ladies of her social class. Determined to avoid marriage, and motivated more by the need for security than love for God, at the age of twenty Teresa entered religious life as a Carmelite nun. For two decades she led what she describes as a mediocre prayer life, hindered by too much socialization with visitors. However, an intense prayer experience in her forties helped her to renounce worldly attachments and enter deeper into a life of prayer. She advanced rapidly and taught others to do the same, being encouraged by a vision of the place reserved for her in hell if she was unfaithful to God's graces. She had many profound mystical experiences for which she was often slandered and ridiculed. After the reform of her own life she worked hard to reform the laxity of many Carmelite convents, and was successful even while being greatly opposed in her efforts. She was a strong and important female figure of her era, and her great progress in the spiritual life led her to write the spiritual classics Interior Castle and The Way of Perfection. For these works St. Teresa of Avila was named the first female Doctor of the Church. Her feast day is October 15th. | Memorial of Saint Teresa of Jesus, Virgin and Doctor of the Church • Readings for the Memorial of Saint Teresa of Jesus, Virgin and Doctor of the Church Reading 1 GAL 5:1-6 Brothers and sisters:
For freedom Christ set us free;
so stand firm and do not submit again to the yoke of slavery.
It is I, Paul, who am telling you
that if you have yourselves circumcised,
Christ will be of no benefit to you.
Once again I declare to every man who has himself circumcised
that he is bound to observe the entire law.
You are separated from Christ,
you who are trying to be justified by law;
you have fallen from grace.
For through the Spirit, by faith, we await the hope of righteousness.
For in Christ Jesus,
neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything,
but only faith working through love. Responsorial Psalm PS 119:41, 43, 44, 45, 47, 48 R. (41a) Let your mercy come to me, O Lord.
Let your mercy come to me, O LORD,
your salvation according to your promise.
R. Let your mercy come to me, O Lord.
Take not the word of truth from my mouth,
for in your ordinances is my hope.
R. Let your mercy come to me, O Lord.
And I will keep your law continually,
forever and ever.
R. Let your mercy come to me, O Lord.
And I will walk at liberty,
because I seek your precepts.
R. Let your mercy come to me, O Lord.
And I will delight in your commands,
which I love.
R. Let your mercy come to me, O Lord.
And I will lift up my hands to your commands
and meditate on your statutes.
R. Let your mercy come to me, O Lord. Alleluia HEB 4:12 R. Alleluia, alleluia.
The word of God is living and effective,
able to discern reflections and thoughts of the heart.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel LK 11:37-41 After Jesus had spoken,
a Pharisee invited him to dine at his home.
He entered and reclined at table to eat.
The Pharisee was amazed to see
that he did not observe the prescribed washing before the meal.
The Lord said to him, "Oh you Pharisees!
Although you cleanse the outside of the cup and the dish,
inside you are filled with plunder and evil.
You fools!
Did not the maker of the outside also make the inside?
But as to what is within, give alms,
and behold, everything will be clean for you."
| Daily Meditation: Luke 11:37-41 A Pharisee invited him to dine. (Luke 11:37) One day a mother of two was preparing chicken for dinner. As she trimmed the fat from the meat, a thought passed through her mind. She felt as if the Lord was telling her, "Sandra, this is what I am doing in your life—trimming away the things that distract you from me." It seemed a little silly, but the message stayed with her. Years later, when she shared the story with a group of parishioners, people could tell that the message still moved her deeply. Sandra wasn't doing anything extraordinary when she sensed the Lord speaking to her. She was just going about her daily routine. She wasn't even praying. Similarly, in today's Gospel, the Pharisee in question wasn't at the Temple or immersed in prayer. He had simply invited Jesus over for dinner. It may not have been a religious setting, but that didn't keep Jesus from talking to him about the state of his heart. God doesn't need us to be doing anything special for him to speak to us. Of course, regular prayer and Scripture reading can help us become more attuned to his voice, but God isn't limited to those times. We might hear him while we are washing the dishes or driving to work. He might catch our attention through a friend's words or a newspaper article. Maybe a new thought pops into our mind, seemingly out of nowhere, and gives us a fresh perspective or brings a sense of peace we didn't have before. Or we have a disagreement with someone close to us, and we sense the Spirit helping us to stay peaceful. No matter how he chooses to speak to us, we can be sure that it is God when we feel drawn to love him and each other more fully. So keep your heart and mind open today. Don't doubt God's involvement in your life. There is so much he wants to say. There is so much more love he wants to share. He is not a distant God. He is your Father, and he loves speaking with you. "Lord, come speak to me at any time of the day. Help me to recognize your voice." Galatians 5:1-6
Psalm 119:41, 43-45, 47-48 | Reflections with Brother Adrian: |  Click to hear Audio | In the Holy Scripture we hear today:
"The Lord said to him, "Oh you Pharisees!
Although you cleanse the outside of the cup and the dish,
inside you are filled with plunder and evil.
You fools!
Did not the maker of the outside also make the inside?
But as to what is within, give alms,
and behold, everything will be clean for you....." end quote. | From Bishop Barron:
"Friends, Jesus concludes today's Gospel by prescribing giving alms as a key to holiness. I've quoted to you before some of the breathtaking remarks of saints and popes about almsgiving: Leo XIII says, "Once the demands of necessity and propriety have been met, the rest of your money belongs to the poor." John Chrysostom says, "The man who has two shirts in his closet, one belongs to him; the other belongs to the man who has no shirt."
The deepest root of all of this is in the prophets, who continually rail against those who are indifferent to the poor. The prophets teach us that compassion is key to biblical ethics, feeling the pain of others in our own hearts. We're not dealing with an abstract Aristotelian moral philosophy, but rather with something more visceral.
This is precisely why the two great commandments are so tightly linked: "Love the Lord, your God, with all your heart . . . and your neighbor as yourself." In loving God you feel the feelings of God, and God is compassionate to the poor and oppressed. That's all the argument that a biblical person needs......". end quote.
Our Lord said:
"You fools!
Did not the maker of the outside also make the inside?
But as to what is within, give alms,
and behold, everything will be clean for you."
Wow! Who is the fool? You? Or me? We all get fooled! Don't we? Sometimes we see or hear things mistakenly, don't we? We get the wrong info, and we believe it and even swear by it, but we are actually fooled! Let's not believe everything we feel, feelings are often bad spirits, like temptations. Let's not believe everything we see or hear in the news! Only believe what then?
The Good News. The Good news is every word that comes forth from the mouth of God, Jesus.
So when He says "fools!", believe it.
Give alms. Take a cue from Our Father. He is a lover. God is a lover. And this means He is a giver. When Jesus our Lord sent disciples out, He told them not to take anything, no money, no extra clothes.
Everything would hinge on Him.
I am battling within, to be a giver. A forgiver. One who can give forgiveness. I find deep inside, a resentment. Some of those I help so much, treat me with disdain, they treat me like the scum of the earth.
How can I give with joy? Not without grace.
It is only through grace that we can turn sour things into sweetness.
And can I give joyfully to those that just keep asking me for "alms"? Sure, with God's grace and holy discernment.
You will find that the more you give, the less you have, and the less you have, is the less to worry about.
I've accumulated much in my life, and sometimes one can wonder if we are just hoarding things. It is good to offload, give away all you can before we leave this earth, or else, it will hold you down. How can you ascend to Heaven when you are attached to sin and things of the world?
You see, our Lord is asking us for much more than meets the eye.
Love isn't easy. Love is to will the good of the other. Even if they do not will the good for you always. Now this becomes sacrificial love. God hurts, He has a heart called Jesus Christ, Savior and King of the Universe. Yet, He loves. Yet He forgives. Yet He hopes. Yet, we need to detach ourselves to self and world, and follow Him ever more closer to his Sacred and Beautiful Burning Heart, furnace of love. |  audio | Random Bible Verse 1
Proverbs 20:3 3 It is an honor for a man to keep aloof from strife, but every fool will be quarreling. | If one day you don't receive these, just visit Going4th.com
God Bless You! Peace | | |
