| Minute Meditations
St. Francis Xavier From Venice, where he was ordained a priest in 1537, Francis Xavier went on to Lisbon and from there sailed to the East Indies, landing at Goa, on the west coast of India. For the next 10 years he labored to bring the faith to such widely scattered peoples as the Hindus, the Malayans and the Japanese. He spent much of that time in India, and served as provincial of the newly established Jesuit province of India. Wherever he went, he lived with the poorest people, sharing their food and rough accommodations. He spent countless hours ministering to the sick and the poor, particularly to lepers. Very often he had no time to sleep or even to say his breviary but, as we know from his letters, he was filled always with joy. Francis went through the islands of Malaysia, then up to Japan. He learned enough Japanese to preach to simple folk, to instruct and to baptize, and to establish missions for those who were to follow him. From Japan he had dreams of going to China, but this plan was never realized. Before reaching the mainland he died. His remains are enshrined in the Church of Good Jesus in Goa. He and St. Therese of Lisieux were declared co-patrons of the missions in 1925. Francis died on the island of Sancian, a hundred miles southwest of Hong Kong. In his final sickness he had to be removed from the ship because the Portuguese sailors feared that kindness to him would offend their master. They were forced to leave him on the sands of the shore, exposed to a bitter wind, but a Portuguese merchant led him into a ramshackle hut. He prayed continually, between spasms of delirium and the doubtful therapy of bleeding. He grew weaker and weaker. "I [Anthony, his friend] could see that he was dying, and put a lighted candle in his hand. Then, with the name of Jesus on his lips, he gave his spirit to his Creator and Lord with great peace and repose." Comment: All of us are called to "go and preach to all nations" (see Matthew 28:19). Our preaching is not necessarily on distant shores but to our families, our children, our husband or wife, our coworkers. And we are called to preach not with words, but by our everyday lives. Only by sacrifice, the giving up of all selfish gain, could Francis Xavier be free to bear the Good News to the world. Sacrifice is leaving yourself behind at times for a greater good, the good of prayer, the good of helping someone in need, the good of just listening to another. The greatest gift we have is our time. Francis gave his to others. Patron Saint of: Japan Missionaries Presence As I sit here, the beating of my heart, Freedom Lord, you granted me the great gift of freedom. Consciousness At this moment Lord I turn my thoughts to You. I will leave aside my chores and preoccupations. The Word of God Reading 1 is 25:6-10aOn this mountain the LORD of hosts will provide for all peoples A feast of rich food and choice wines, juicy, rich food and pure, choice wines. On this mountain he will destroy the veil that veils all peoples, The web that is woven over all nations; he will destroy death forever. The Lord GOD will wipe away the tears from all faces; The reproach of his people he will remove from the whole earth; for the LORD has spoken. On that day it will be said: "Behold our God, to whom we looked to save us! This is the LORD for whom we looked; let us rejoice and be glad that he has saved us!" For the hand of the LORD will rest on this mountain. Responsorial Psalm ps 23:1-3a, 3b-4, 5, 6R. (6cd) I shall live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life. The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. In verdant pastures he gives me repose; Beside restful waters he leads me; he refreshes my soul. R. I shall live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life. He guides me in right paths for his name's sake. Even though I walk in the dark valley I fear no evil; for you are at my side With your rod and your staff that give me courage. R. I shall live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life. You spread the table before me in the sight of my foes; You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. R. I shall live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life. Only goodness and kindness follow me all the days of my life; And I shall dwell in the house of the LORD for years to come. R. I shall live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life. AlleluiaR. Alleluia, alleluia.Behold, the Lord comes to save his people; blessed are those prepared to meet him. R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel mt 15:29-37At that time: Jesus walked by the Sea of Galilee, went up on the mountain, and sat down there. Great crowds came to him, having with them the lame, the blind, the deformed, the mute, and many others. They placed them at his feet, and he cured them. The crowds were amazed when they saw the mute speaking, the deformed made whole, the lame walking, and the blind able to see, and they glorified the God of Israel. Jesus summoned his disciples and said, "My heart is moved with pity for the crowd, for they have been with me now for three days and have nothing to eat. I do not want to send them away hungry, for fear they may collapse on the way." The disciples said to him, "Where could we ever get enough bread in this deserted place to satisfy such a crowd?" Jesus said to them, "How many loaves do you have?" "Seven," they replied, "and a few fish." He ordered the crowd to sit down on the ground. Then he took the seven loaves and the fish, gave thanks, broke the loaves, and gave them to the disciples, who in turn gave them to the crowds. They all ate and were satisfied. They picked up the fragments left over--seven baskets full. Conversation Jesus you speak to me through the words of the gospels. May I respond to your call today. Teach me to recognise your hand at work in my daily living. Conclusion Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, Saint Francis Xavier, Priest They all ate and were satisfied. (Matthew 15:37)
Imagine if you walked into your local hospital and started praying over the patients for healing, and they all jumped out of their beds shouting for joy because they were healed. Wouldn't you be astounded? Well, this is what the people who followed Jesus experienced. They were astonished when they saw "the lame walking, and the blind able to see" (Matthew 15:31). Wherever he went, Jesus found people who were hurting. And in every case, he felt nothing but compassion for them. Love moved him to perform all those miracles—a love that longed to see his people made whole, a love that yearned to bring all the blessings of the kingdom into people's lives. With every miracle, Jesus showed the people that God was nearer than they thought! He had broken through the barriers of sin, sickness, and death, just to be with them. Today's story of the loaves and fishes shows that God loves us too much to leave us feeling hungry or defeated. On that day, Jesus blessed the bread, broke it, and shared it with his followers. Today, he does the same thing every time we gather for the Eucharist. Only now, he feeds us with his own Body and Blood, not just with physical food. Back then, he satisfied the people's bodily hunger. Now, he satisfies our inner hunger—our hunger for love, for mercy, for companionship, and, yes, for healing. Is there an area in your life where you need a miracle or a healing? Don't be afraid to come to Jesus and ask. Surely the people who ate the loaves and fishes weren't bashful about their needs. Go ahead and imitate them. Sit with Jesus during Mass and listen to his word. Look with wonder as the priest lifts the Host and chalice to your heavenly Father. Then come and receive, with your heart wide open, and take a leap of faith as you do. Be expectant. Ask Jesus to fill you and heal you. Even if you don't see anything happen right away, believe that he is still at work in you. Remember, you have received Christ himself. He is with you, and he is in you. Wait patiently, and he will show you just how close he is. "Thank you, Jesus, for all the little and big miracles that you are performing in my life."
Isaiah 25:6-10
my2cents: On that mountain, it happened. What Isaiah had prophecied, God would come to prepare a perfect feast. How many loaves? 7, the perfect number. How many fish? A few. A few men had brought to the table the little they had, and God made more from there. Now are we talking about the same mountain of the skull or the one where He fed thousands? Because on one He cured and healed, and felt compassion for them after three days, He fed them. He led them through valleys and mountains and the darkness of the night, and then He would not let them go without being fed. Now again, which mountain are we talking about? First of all, let us not put limits on God "nope, you can only go this far in my life, my heart, my mind, and my soul" as if to say "i'm only opening the door this much, just try to come in if you want". It's not about if He wants, it's about if we want. And so it is fitting, the Psalms, the Lord is my shepherd and He leads to His house to dwell with Him forever. Now let's take today; it will be a sad day today, if I fail to see a miracle. Now let's take tomorrow; it will be a sad tomorrow having not realized today's miracle. And yesterday's miracle? What was it? What made all the difference? Was it for better or for worse? It comes down to appreciating, this act of giving thanks. For what? The bad stuff or the good stuff? Everything that leads to a better life with Christ. Because I have seen some lose children, wives, husbands, and they come now closer to the Lord. Because I have seen children, wives, and husbands encounter the Lord and they come closer to the Lord. I have seen one near death come back to life, and this is a miracle, to see God in action, because love is not an idea nor a feeling, but an action. "If there was a good god how could he allow suffering". Then, the question is, how could God allow His only encarnation, the flesh embodiment of God, how could that one have been born among the poorest of the poor, in a haystack among animals. "Oh I hate to be treated like an animal", I've even yelled stuff like this. But God did. How could God allow Mary and Joseph to be chased right after Jesus was born, refugees into Egypt, running for being persecuted? "Oh I feel discriminated" we've all felt no matter your beliefs or color. Interesting how flipped the tables are, especially when we think the world is just about us. And so, the newborn God, was placed among animals, persecuted, parents suffering hardships, but God provided. And this is the story of Advent (the coming of our Lord, the birth of the coming). It is one of hope, because ultimately, God provides. He provided on the mountain after 3 days of remaining with Him. He provided with what all and little we had to offer. What mountain am I talking about? At our community rosary before the friendship group reunion on Monday, upon the meditations of the Joyful mysteries, and I meditated, I was suddenly shocked, as if taken to the realization of a thought, 'many men take trips for hunting and fishing, and I do not, but the trips I take are retreats, Cursillos, hunting away evil and fishing for men', and the pictures of all the cursillos I've helped at hanging on my wall were the men caught up with the Lord. Now, this is the kicker in the whole thought; I've always thought I had done very, VERY little for God, but it was as if God were saying something else, as if He had been honored, and that broke me down to tears, to the point that in relating the message I couldn't talk in friendship group, I couldn't explain and I still can not explain. It is the story of the few fish and how much God does with those few fish. It is the story of great love meeting little love. It is the story of God using very little to do very much. It is a love story in the end, and it is God's story. The end has been written, and the beauty, like in my revelation, is to realize where God fit you in the picture, without you even knowing, all you had done was offered what little you had, a yes. And that yes becomes the yes of yesterday, the little miracle, had I opened my entire heart, mind, and soul to the miracle and the action of giving thanks, love, appreciation for what happened on that mountain. What mountain? The mountain where Love was set high, treated worse than an animal, persecuted. And those that followed through His death and resurrection were fed the perfect bread, His body FOREVER  adrian
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