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Thursday, May 8, 2014

I Will Give

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Minute Meditations

The Power of Service
Real power is found in service. Just like Jesus, who didn't come to be served, but to serve, his service was seen on the Cross. He humbled Himself unto death. He died on a Cross for us, to serve us, to save us. --Pope Francis

— from Saint Francis, Pope Francis




St. Peter of Tarentaise

(c. 1102-1174)

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There are two men named St. Peter of Tarentaise who lived one century apart. The man we honor today is the younger Peter, born in France in the early part of the 12th century. (The other man with the same name became Pope Innocent the Fifth.)

The Peter we're focusing on became a Cistercian monk and eventually served as abbot. In 1142, he was named archbishop of Tarentaise, replacing a bishop who had been deposed because of corruption. Peter tackled his new assignment with vigor. He brought reform into his diocese, replaced lax clergy and reached out to the poor. He visited all parts of his mountainous diocese on a regular basis.

After about a decade as bishop Peter "disappeared" for a year and lived quietly as a lay brother at an abbey in Switzerland. When he was "found out," the reluctant bishop was persuaded to return to his post. He again focused many of his energies on the poor.

Peter died in 1175 on his way home from an unsuccessful papal assignment to reconcile the kings of France and England.

 

Saint of the Day
Lives, Lessons and Feast
By Leonard Foley, O.F.M.; revised by Pat McCloskey, O.F.M.

 


 



Presence

Dear Jesus, I come to you today
longing for your presence.
I desire to love you as You love me.
May nothing ever separate me from You.


Freedom

Lord, may I never take the gift
of freedom for granted. You gave
me the great blessing of freedom of
spirit. Fill my spirit with Your peace and
Your joy.

Consciousness

I ask how I am within myself today? Am I particularly tired, stressed, or off-form?
If any of these characteristics apply, can I try to let go of the concerns that disturb me?




The Word of God

Reading 1 acts 8:26-40

The angel of the Lord spoke to Philip,
"Get up and head south on the road
that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza, the desert route."
So he got up and set out.
Now there was an Ethiopian eunuch,
a court official of the Candace,
that is, the queen of the Ethiopians,
in charge of her entire treasury,
who had come to Jerusalem to worship, and was returning home.
Seated in his chariot, he was reading the prophet Isaiah.
The Spirit said to Philip,
"Go and join up with that chariot."
Philip ran up and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet and said,
"Do you understand what you are reading?"
He replied,
"How can I, unless someone instructs me?"
So he invited Philip to get in and sit with him.
This was the Scripture passage he was reading:

Like a sheep he was led to the slaughter,
and as a lamb before its shearer is silent,
so he opened not his mouth.
In his humiliation justice was denied him.
Who will tell of his posterity?
For his life is taken from the earth
.

Then the eunuch said to Philip in reply,
"I beg you, about whom is the prophet saying this?
About himself, or about someone else?"
Then Philip opened his mouth and, beginning with this Scripture passage,
he proclaimed Jesus to him.
As they traveled along the road
they came to some water,
and the eunuch said, "Look, there is water.
What is to prevent my being baptized?"
Then he ordered the chariot to stop,
and Philip and the eunuch both went down into the water,
and he baptized him.
When they came out of the water,
the Spirit of the Lord snatched Philip away,
and the eunuch saw him no more,
but continued on his way rejoicing.
Philip came to Azotus, and went about proclaiming the good news
to all the towns until he reached Caesarea.

Responsorial Psalm ps 66:8-9, 16-17, 20

R. (1) Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Bless our God, you peoples,
loudly sound his praise;
He has given life to our souls,
and has not let our feet slip.
R. Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Hear now, all you who fear God, while I declare
what he has done for me.
When I appealed to him in words,
praise was on the tip of my tongue.
R. Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Blessed be God who refused me not

my prayer or his kindness!
R.
Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.

or:
R. Alleluia.
 
 
Gospel jn 6:44-51
 
Jesus said to the crowds:
"No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draw him,
and I will raise him on the last day.
It is written in the prophets:

They shall all be taught by God.

Everyone who listens to my Father and learns from him comes to me.
Not that anyone has seen the Father
except the one who is from God;
he has seen the Father.
Amen, amen, I say to you,
whoever believes has eternal life.
I am the bread of life.
Your ancestors ate the manna in the desert, but they died;
this is the bread that comes down from heaven
so that one may eat it and not die.
I am the living bread that came down from heaven;
whoever eats this bread will live forever;
and the bread that I will give
is my Flesh for the life of the world."


Conclusion

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit,

As it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be, world without end.



Catholic Meditations

Meditation: John 6:44-51

View NAB Reading at USCCB.org

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3rd Week of Easter

I am the bread of life. (John 6:48)

Have you ever skipped a meal and felt the stress on your brain and body? You may have felt fatigued, moody, or light-headed. Scientists tell us that prolonged fasting is not very wise as it can cause short- and long-term health problems. In fact, nutritionists have published a plethora of books to help us maintain a healthy and balanced diet. Well, in the same way that nutritionists are concerned with our physical health, Jesus is concerned with our spiritual health. That's why he came to give himself to us as the living bread.

In addition to speaking about the gift of the Eucharist, the image of the bread of life also speaks about God's revelation to us in Christ. When the Israelites were trekking through the desert toward the Promised Land, God provided manna to feed them. But that manna sustained only their physical bodies, not their spirits. In today's Gospel, Jesus tells us that God the Father sent him as a kind of food that surpasses the manna. Jesus, the Messiah, came to feed our spirits and to make a way for us to enter into heaven. He made it possible for us to live with God forever. He promises that all who eat of him—all who embrace his revelation—will be raised up to eternal life!

The good news is that in the Eucharist, Jesus gives us this food of eternal life here and now. We don't have to wait until we die to "live forever" (John 6:51). We can begin to experience the grace of heaven by surrendering our lives to the Lord and letting him fill us daily with his grace, strength, and wisdom. Every time we eat his Body and drink his Blood, we can celebrate our redemption and receive even more revelation of his goodness. Every time we ponder his words in the Scriptures and the teachings of the Church, we can experience him filling our hunger and satisfying our thirst.

Today, join Peter in his great proclamation of faith and surrender: "Master, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and are convinced that you are the Holy One of God" (John 6:68-69).

"Lord, you are truly the Messiah, the bread from heaven. Fill me and renew me."

 

Acts 8:26-40; Psalm 66:8-9, 16-17, 20


my2cents:

The Spanish 5minutos said today:
"One of the virtues that not only in Easter shouldn't characterize the Christians is the joy, that springs from the victory of JEsus over sin and death.  There are various things that can inundate your life with a permanent joy. Do you know what they are? I will number them so you can think during this time of relaxation.
1.  Smile:  Don't stop smiling.  The more, the better.  The smile makes the heart happy.  They say who laughs much, takes a happy life and hardly suffers a heart attack.  Keep the peace in your soul, conserve your good spirit, calm the nerves and embellish your face.  What more beautiful poem than to see the joy of your smiling face!
2.  Look at the good in things.  Do not forget that above the dark clouds, the life will reverberates always with the clarity of God the creator.  Do not lament yourself of the roses surrounded by thorns, but better yet be happy and rejoice thinking of a thing so prosaic like the thorns deserve to enjoy the company of something so delectable like the rose.
3.  Spread your happiness.  Happiness is a perfume that nobody can spread on others without a drop falling over themself.
4.   Think of pleasant things: Our life is what our thoughts make of it.
5.  Write about the benefits you have received.  I would say write them to conserve them in your memory. 
Look friend, you have so many gifts and graces receied from God to turn them in for sadnesses and melancholies.  You see with these 5 points you can be a distinct person of what you are actually.  Live Happy Today!   "

The Ethiopian eunuch left joyful having been born again, baptized into the promises of Christ, a promise He intends to keep and we do not intend to break on our part.  What the eunuch and all of us should rejoice in right now is in the Gospel, especially what we heard today "No one can come to me (JESUS) unless the Father who sent Me draw Him".  You were drawn to this point in the email.  The Father has drawn you to Him.  Drawing you means calling you, means wanting you, means loving you.  AWWHHH that is so sweeeeet!  Isn't it?  He wants you smiling, He wants you after you've cried out of pain or guilt, He is drawing you.  HE LOVES ME!  I remember when I rode the school bus one day as a young boy, I remembered on day a high schooler was ecstatic on her stop to get off, apparently her boyfriend had just proposed to her to marry her and she was jumping up and down hugging everyone one the bus including yours truly.  She looked so happy, and I believe they are still married to this day, still happy.  This joy belongs to you, because the groom, of the wedding is none other than Jesus.  He proposed today to you.  Will you be mine?  Because that is the essence of being drawn to Him.  That is the purpose of a baptism, and that is the purpose of being one with Him in being drawn in the Holy Eucharist, the bread of Life, the flesh He provides for the Life of the world.  Well, I'm not jumping up and down all day, but more often than not I feel like hugging everybody, especially the scoundrels that just don't seem to make their way to our Lord very easy.  Perhaps that is why people like our current Pope Francis I.  Perhaps this is what will draw people to Christ.  In the Cursillo, we are called to make friends...not necessarily for myself but for Christ, the ultimate provider and the ultimate friend that unites us all.  There is where our peace and joy is at, in the Sacred Heart (Love) of Jesus.  His heart is made of flesh when consecrated to His love
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