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| Overcoming Obstacles |  | | Exclusion, apathy, complacency, worldliness: These are the faults that the pope sees as standing in the way of us going forth and sharing the Good News. As an antidote, he holds forth the importance of listening, inclusion, community, and sacrifice. And ultimately his answer is to hold on to the joy of the Gospel and the joy of sharing that Good News. | | |
Blessed Jutta of Thuringia
(d. 1264?)
 Today's patroness of Prussia began her life amidst luxury and power but died the death of a simple servant of the poor.
In truth, virtue and piety were always of prime importance to Jutta and her husband, both of noble rank. The two were set to make a pilgrimage together to the holy places in Jerusalem, but her husband died on the way. The newly widowed Jutta, after taking care to provide for her children, resolved to live in a manner utterly pleasing to God. She disposed of the costly clothes, jewels and furniture befitting one of her rank, and became a Secular Franciscan, taking on the simple garment of a religious. From that point her life was utterly devoted to others: caring for the sick, particularly lepers; tending to the poor, whom she visited in their hovels; helping the crippled and blind with whom she shared her own home. Many of the townspeople of Thuringia laughed at how the once-distinguished lady now spent all her time. But Jutta saw the face of God in the poor and felt honored to render whatever services she could. About the year 1260, not long before her death, Jutta lived near the non-Christians in eastern Germany. There she built a small hermitage and prayed unceasingly for their conversion. She has been venerated for centuries as the special patron of Prussia.
Jesus once said that a camel can pass through a needle's eye more easily than a rich person can enter God's realm. That's pretty scary news for us. We may not have great fortunes, but we who live in the West enjoy a share of the world's goods that people in the rest of the world cannot imagine. Much to the amusement of her neighbors, Jutta disposed of her wealth after her husband's death and devoted her life to caring for those who had no means. Should we follow her example, people will probably laugh at us, too. But God will smile.
Daily Prayer - 2015-06-25 Presence Lord, help me to be fully alive to your holy presence.
Enfold me in your love.
Let my heart become one with yours. Freedom I will ask God's help, to be free from my own preoccupations, to be open to God in this time of prayer, to come to know, love and serve God more. 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 Thursday of the Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time Abram's wife Sarai had borne him no children.
She had, however, an Egyptian maidservant named Hagar.
Sarai said to Abram:
"The LORD has kept me from bearing children.
Have intercourse, then, with my maid;
perhaps I shall have sons through her."
Abram heeded Sarai's request.
Thus, after Abram had lived ten years in the land of Canaan,
his wife Sarai took her maid, Hagar the Egyptian,
and gave her to her husband Abram to be his concubine.
He had intercourse with her, and she became pregnant.
When she became aware of her pregnancy,
she looked on her mistress with disdain.
So Sarai said to Abram:
"You are responsible for this outrage against me.
I myself gave my maid to your embrace;
but ever since she became aware of her pregnancy,
she has been looking on me with disdain.
May the LORD decide between you and me!"
Abram told Sarai: "Your maid is in your power.
Do to her whatever you please."
Sarai then abused her so much that Hagar ran away from her.
The LORD's messenger found her by a spring in the wilderness,
the spring on the road to Shur, and he asked,
"Hagar, maid of Sarai, where have you come from
and where are you going?"
She answered, "I am running away from my mistress, Sarai."
But the LORD's messenger told her:
"Go back to your mistress and submit to her abusive treatment.
I will make your descendants so numerous," added the LORD's messenger,
"that they will be too many to count.
Besides," the LORD's messenger said to her:
"You are now pregnant and shall bear a son;
you shall name him Ishmael,
For the LORD has heard you,
God has answered you.
This one shall be a wild ass of a man,
his hand against everyone,
and everyone's hand against him;
In opposition to all his kin
shall he encamp."
Hagar bore Abram a son,
and Abram named the son whom Hagar bore him Ishmael.
Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore him Ishmael. Abram told Sarai: "Your maid is in your power.
Do to her whatever you please."
Sarai then abused her so much that Hagar ran away from her.
The LORD's messenger found her by a spring in the wilderness,
the spring on the road to Shur, and he asked,
"Hagar, maid of Sarai, where have you come from
and where are you going?"
She answered, "I am running away from my mistress, Sarai."
But the LORD's messenger told her:
"Go back to your mistress and submit to her abusive treatment.
I will make your descendants so numerous," added the LORD's messenger,
"that they will be too many to count.
Besides," the LORD's messenger said to her:
"You are now pregnant and shall bear a son;
you shall name him Ishmael,
For the LORD has heard you,
God has answered you.
This one shall be a wild ass of a man,
his hand against everyone,
and everyone's hand against him;
In opposition to all his kin
shall he encamp."
Hagar bore Abram a son,
and Abram named the son whom Hagar bore him Ishmael.
Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore him Ishmael. R. (1b) Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good,
for his mercy endures forever.
Who can tell the mighty deeds of the LORD,
or proclaim all his praises?
R. Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Blessed are they who observe what is right,
who do always what is just.
Remember us, O LORD, as you favor your people.
R. Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Visit me with your saving help,
that I may see the prosperity of your chosen ones,
rejoice in the joy of your people,
and glory with your inheritance.
R. Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.
or:
R. Alleluia. R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Whoever loves me will keep my word,
and my Father will love him
and we will come to him.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. Jesus said to his disciples:
"Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,'
will enter the Kingdom of heaven,
but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven.
Many will say to me on that day,
'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name?
Did we not drive out demons in your name?
Did we not do mighty deeds in your name?'
Then I will declare to them solemnly,
'I never knew you. Depart from me, you evildoers.'
"Everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them
will be like a wise man who built his house on rock.
The rain fell, the floods came,
and the winds blew and buffeted the house.
But it did not collapse; it had been set solidly on rock.
And everyone who listens to these words of mine
but does not act on them
will be like a fool who built his house on sand.
The rain fell, the floods came,
and the winds blew and buffeted the house.
And it collapsed and was completely ruined."
When Jesus finished these words,
the crowds were astonished at his teaching,
for he taught them as one having authority,
and not as their scribes. Some thoughts on today's scripture - St. Ignatius wrote: "Love ought to manifest itself more by deeds than by words". This teaching comes close to that offered by Jesus in today's reading.
- Ponder the two powerful metaphors used by Jesus: the house built on rock and the house built on sand. Where have I built my "house" (= my life) and what kind of foundations does it have? Am I a wise person or a foolish one?
Conversation Sometimes I wonder what I might say if I were to meet you in person Lord. I think I might say "Thank You Lord" for always being there for me. I know with certainty there were times when you carried me, Lord. When it was through your strength I got through the dark times in my life. 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.
 Meditation: Matthew 7:21-29 Subscriber? Login to view archives.
12th Week in Ordinary Time Everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock. (Matthew 7:24) Aurelius seemed to have everything: a great education, a great job, a lover, and political power at his fingertips. But despite having more than most dream of, he was restless. Then came the day when he opened up Paul's Letter to the Romans and read the first verse that caught his eye: "Put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the desires of the flesh" (Romans 13:14). His heart began to burn as divine light came rushing in. Because of this encounter with God's word, Aurelius, also known as Augustine, took one big step toward his transformation from sinner to saint. St. Augustine would probably identify closely with today's reading. It's a parable about God's word with this central message: building your life on the word of God is like building your home on a solid foundation. It helps you withstand any storm of life. The Bible contains keys to right living that we can apply immediately: do unto others what you would have them do unto you, turn the other cheek, and honor your father and mother. But it's more than just a self-help book. The most important aspect of God's word is its ability to bring us face-to-face with Jesus, who is the living Word of God. Augustine was raised by a Christian mother and was probably familiar with many of the stories and teachings in the Bible. But it wasn't until he had a personal experience of God speaking to him through Scripture that his life turned around. What happened for Augustine can happen for us. If we spend time with the word of God every day—not just reading it but pondering it, praying through it, and listening to it—we'll begin to find Jesus. Our hearts will be stirred by what we read, and the words will begin to come alive for us, as if they were written just for us. We'll hear Jesus speaking them to us, showing us how they apply to our own situations and filling our hearts with freedom and hope. Do you want to build your life on a solid foundation? Then dive into Scripture! "Holy Spirit, help me to build my life on your word. Write your word on my heart today." Genesis 16:1-12, 15-16
Psalm 106:1-5
my2cents:
It is a message from Heaven. Who's will is going to be done?
In today's 1st Holy Scripture, Hagar is used, the servant is used as if an animal, as if a surrogate mother, as if the soul of one woman could give birth to your own child, but we fool ourselves, and then suffer the consequences, like Sarai. She would later point the finger "she looks at me with disdain" as if without anymore respect or honor. But we look into a mirror when we point the finger. Sarai abused Hagar, the so called mother of "her children". Hagar runs away probably with the thoughts running through her head "I can't take it, I can't do this anymore", and these thoughts run over and over in one's head, all the abuse, the disrespect, the torture. And she had to have been praying, because an angel appeared, a messenger, "go back and take the abuse". SAY WHAT? This doesn't seem right in a world that says "you shouldn't have to take that". Yet...Jesus did. Hagar, like the mother of our Lord, had to take the abuse of those who said she was having a baby out of wedlock, yet the Lord was with her, and provided...salvation. Jesus did. The moral of this, the teaching of this...obedience. Hagar did it. Mary did it. And Jesus did it. And so can you. You can take the abuse. You can be obedient. You can be saved in doing so.
Not everyone who says Lord Lord, listens, nor does the actual will of the Father.
The Psalms Pray on "Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good, for his mercy endures forever. Who can tell the mighty deeds of the LORD, or proclaim all his praises?...Blessed are they who observe what is right, who do always what is just."
The Holy Gospel speaks with the Word of our Lord Jesus the Christ, "'I never knew you. Depart from me, you evildoers.' You see, evil does not fit in the Kingdom of Heaven, in the Heavens. In the universe, there is life beyond this life, and it is not material, and that is the point of life, to aspire for what is right, and what is right is what God wants. Oh sure, I want to heal people and Oh sure, I want to help people, and oh sure I want to prophecy, but do I really want to do what God is asking of me? Not everyone wants to. We want to do our own thing. We want to live life according to our own plan...not His. What happens when life happens? Someone dies, or evil tears families apart, or check this out that some see as bad...an unexpected pregnancy. What commotion is stirred. We cry because it wasn't our plan. Our plan was to be happy. Our plan was for nothing bad to happen. Our plan was to do bad and nothing bad to happen. Our plan was to be as good as we can be or try to be, and come into Heaven...without really doing everything God wanted..the important thing...doing His will. So what is His will? For sure, today's Gospel is telling us that His will is for us to be in Heaven with Him. Does that help you? Ok, then the natural order then becomes this..."how can I help our Lord?" Submit to His abuse? What is His abuse? A cross? Is that what it takes to get to Heaven? Is that all? LOL. Look. I have a sincere gut feeling, something I have never told anyone. I believe that a soul that finds itself in Heaven, looking back at the cross would think and say, "yes, the cross was worth it, and so much more" as a matter of fact, it would seem like so little even...offered for God. This is called "For Greater Glory". Bravery is submission to God. Courage is strength from God in prayer. Remember, He only gives crosses to those He loves. Those that show up to Heaven's gates without a cross...is like showing up to the border without your identification. "WHO ARE YOU?"
 adrian
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