† Saint Quote:I will glory not because I am righteous, but because I am redeemed; I will glory not because I am free from sins, but because my sins are forgiven me. I will not glory because I have done good nor because someone has done good to me, but because Christ is my advocate with the Father and because the blood of Christ has been shed for me. St. Ambrose Meditation quote“Many try to fly away from temptations only to fall more deeply into them; for you cannot win a battle by mere flight. It is only by patience and humility that you will be strengthened against the enemy. Those who shun them outwardly and do not pull them out by the roots will make no progress; for temptations will soon return to harass them and they will be in a worse state. It is only gradually—with patience and endurance and with God’s grace—that you will overcome temptations sooner than by your own efforts and anxieties . . . Gold is tried by fire and the upright person by temptation. Often we do not know what we can do until temptation shows us what we are . . . This is how temptation is: first we have a thought, followed by strong imaginings, then the pleasure and evil emotions, and finally consent. This is how the enemy gains full admittance, because he was not resisted at the outset. The slower we are to resist, the weaker we daily become and the stronger the enemy is against us.”
—Thomas à Kempis, p. 32-33 Daily VerseMay the God of peace himself make you perfectly holy and may you entirely, spirit, soul, and body, be preserved blameless for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls you is faithful, and he will also accomplish it. 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24
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EWTN Daily Saint
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St. Bridget of SwedenPatron Saint of: Europe, widows, pilgrims, and difficult marriages
Feast Day: July 23 St. Bridget (1303-1373) was born into a devout and prestigious family in Sweden. Her father was a governor, judge, and one of the wealthiest landowners in the country. Bridget received an excellent religious education, and from a young age demonstrated a great capacity for holiness. She even experienced mystical visions in her childhood. At the age of thirteen she was given in marriage to a similarly devout young man named Ulf. Together the two had a happy marriage and raised eight children, one of whom was St. Catherine of Sweden. St. Bridget became famous for her sanctity, and she was well-acquainted with the Swedish king and many theologians who sought her counsel. When Bridget and Ulf were in their forties, they went on pilgrimage along the famous Way of St. James. Shortly afterwards Ulf died, and Bridget gave herself entirely to the religious life. Her visions became more frequent, and were written down in a famous work called the Revelations of St. Bridget of Sweden. She also founded a new religious order known as the Brigittines. To obtain approval for her Order she traveled to Rome with her daughter Catherine, where she lived until her death. St. Bridget of Sweden is one of the six patron saints of Europe. Her feast day is July 23rd.
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Thursday of the Sixteenth Week in Ordinary TimeLectionary: 398 Reading 1Jeremiah 2:1-3, 7-8, 12-13 This word of the LORD came to me:
Go, cry out this message for Jerusalem to hear!
I remember the devotion of your youth,
how you loved me as a bride,
Following me in the desert,
in a land unsown.
Sacred to the LORD was Israel,
the first fruits of his harvest;
Should any presume to partake of them,
evil would befall them, says the LORD. When I brought you into the garden land
to eat its goodly fruits,
You entered and defiled my land,
you made my heritage loathsome.
The priests asked not,
“Where is the LORD?”
Those who dealt with the law knew me not:
the shepherds rebelled against me.
The prophets prophesied by Baal,
and went after useless idols. Be amazed at this, O heavens,
and shudder with sheer horror, says the LORD.
Two evils have my people done:
they have forsaken me, the source of living waters;
They have dug themselves cisterns,
broken cisterns, that hold no water. Responsorial PsalmPsalm 36:6-7ab, 8-9, 10-11 R. (10a) With you is the fountain of life, O Lord.
O LORD, your mercy reaches to heaven;
your faithfulness, to the clouds.
Your justice is like the mountains of God;
your judgments, like the mighty deep.
R. With you is the fountain of life, O Lord.
How precious is your mercy, O God!
The children of men take refuge in the shadow of your wings.
They have their fill of the prime gifts of your house;
from your delightful stream you give them to drink.
R. With you is the fountain of life, O Lord.
For with you is the fountain of life,
and in your light we see light.
Keep up your mercy toward your friends,
your just defense of the upright of heart.
R. With you is the fountain of life, O Lord. AlleluiaMatthew 11:25 R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Blessed are you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth;
you have revealed to little ones the mysteries of the Kingdom.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. GospelMatthew 13:10-17 The disciples approached Jesus and said,
“Why do you speak to the crowd in parables?”
He said to them in reply,
“Because knowledge of the mysteries of the Kingdom of heaven
has been granted to you, but to them it has not been granted.
To anyone who has, more will be given and he will grow rich;
from anyone who has not, even what he has will be taken away.
This is why I speak to them in parables, because
they look but do not see and hear but do not listen or understand.
Isaiah’s prophecy is fulfilled in them, which says: You shall indeed hear but not understand,
you shall indeed look but never see.
Gross is the heart of this people,
they will hardly hear with their ears,
they have closed their eyes,
lest they see with their eyes
and hear with their ears
and understand with their hearts and be converted
and I heal them. “But blessed are your eyes, because they see,
and your ears, because they hear.
Amen, I say to you, many prophets and righteous people
longed to see what you see but did not see it,
and to hear what you hear but did not hear it.”
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Praise to You Oh Lord Jesus Christ!
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From Word Among Us WAU.org
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Daily Meditation: Matthew 13:10-17Blessed are your eyes, because they see, and your ears, because they hear. (Matthew 13:16) A high school teacher stands before her class. Some students are chatting with one another. Many are looking at their phones. A couple of drowsy souls are nodding off. Only a handful are attuned to what the teacher is saying. For them, there is a sense of openness and a hope that what they are hearing is important. This scene plays out wherever humans gather—whether in conference rooms, in family visits, in churches, or even online. Staying focused can be a challenge; even Jesus knew that not everyone was listening carefully to his words. That’s why, in an echo of the Beatitudes, he calls “blessed” those who actively look and listen to him (Matthew 13:16). But before he speaks this blessing, Jesus quotes the prophet Isaiah to explain why some people “hear but [do] not understand” and why they “look but never see” (Matthew 13:14). He says that the issue is not with their ears or eyes. Instead, he says, “Gross is the heart of this people” (13:15). Because they have closed off their hearts, they have become incapable of seeing and hearing what is right in front of them. We can read this passage only as a condemnation of those whose hearts have become “gross,” but that would be too limiting. There is also an invitation here. If we can learn to become active listeners and observers of the Lord, we’ll begin to receive “knowledge of the mysteries of the Kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 13:11). We’ll receive insights into the mind of God. We’ll come to understand the ways sin has clouded our thinking or darkened our hearts. And most important, we’ll come to see how God’s love undergirds everything he has ever done. So listen closely and look carefully when you are praying and reading Scripture. Welcome Jesus into your heart and ask him to let you sense his presence with you personally. Don’t let guilt or sin or boredom get in the way. Slow down and take your time; don’t rush through your prayer. Tell yourself that the words you are reading can speak to you and your situation. And trust that the God who loves you wants to speak to you! “Lord, open my eyes and my ears to you!” Jeremiah 2:1-3, 7-8, 12-13
Psalm 36:6-11
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Reflections with Brother Adrian:
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From today's Holy Gospel: "... The disciples approached Jesus and said,
“Why do you speak to the crowd in parables?”
He said to them in reply,
“Because knowledge of the mysteries of the Kingdom of heaven
has been granted to you, but to them it has not been granted.
To anyone who has, more will be given and he will grow rich;
from anyone who has not, even what he has will be taken away.
This is why I speak to them in parables, because
they look but do not see and hear but do not listen or understand. .... ”
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From Bishop Barron: "But why is the biblical God so elusive? Because he brought the whole of the finite universe into existence. God must be other in a way that transcends any and all modes of otherness discoverable within creation.” End quote.
We were studying the scripture for Sunday Gospel last night. The Gospel that day will be about parables.
About finding a pearl of great price, a treasure of great price in which the person sells all they have to go get it.
The question is about the Kingdom of God, once you find it, then...what will you do?
You will have a decision to make. A serious one.
Will you cash everything in? Like the Apostles? Leaving everything behind, friends, family, jobs, homes?
Or, will you look back to the plow? Will you look back at Sodom and Gomorrah?
Will you double think things? Will you stall out? Will you...be afraid to trust? Will you not risk everything?
These parables then...are not meant for the faint of heart...but for the strong.
Not strong physically, if that were the case there would be few saints if it was about physical attributes. Not, many times it is the inverse.
Now we are talking strength in faith, the kind of strength will will need to enter the narrow gate. Why is the narrow gate needing strength to enter?
Someone said that we are so immersed in so many things, that we read these things and just put it away when we are done.
Like this reflection, what is going to happen after you click out and delete it?
It will be like my favorite fable of the ducks, everybody says "Amen" and goes on waddling home after hearing in a sermon that they were meant to fly.
What is the preaching here ? That you are meant to be saints of God, holy children of the Holy Light. You are meant to be the body of Christ. You are mean to live in and for the Holy Spirit.
The parables are for those that are ready and willing to do God's will. Are you all in, now that you know what is set before you? The very Kingdom of God!!!!
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Random Bible Verse 1
Colossians 2:6–7 Alive in Christ! "Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, 7 rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving."
Word of the Lord!
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God Bless You! Peace
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