Growth Requires Trust It is possible that the part of our self that pioneers into new territory is in intimate conversation and communion with God, desiring a not yet realized future. We receive inklings of the conversation through our dreams, hopes, and desires. Seeds are planted within us, and if we are courageous and daring enough, surprising growth occurs. The requirements for growth are trusting life and realizing there is really no security other than love. So much possibility exists for each person, but possibility only happens in present time wedded with our willingness to engage in the world with wonder and reverence. —from Your Spiritual Garden: Tending to the Presence of God | ✞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 OF THE DAY
"After the events of the Resurrection and Ascension, Mary entered the Upper Room together with the Apostles to await Pentecost, and was present there as the Mother of the glorified Lord. ... Thus there began to develop a special bond between this Mother and the Church. For the infant Church was the fruit of the Cross and Resurrection of her Son. Mary, who from the beginning had given herself without reserve to the person and work of her Son, could not but pour out upon the Church, from the very beginning, her maternal self-giving. After her Son's departure, her motherhood remains in the Church as maternal mediation: interceding for all her children, the Mother cooperates in the saving work of her Son, the Redeemer of the world. In fact the Council teaches that the 'motherhood of Mary in the order of grace . . . will last without interruption until the eternal fulfillment of all the elect'. With the redeeming death of her Son, the maternal mediation of the handmaid of the Lord took on a universal dimension, for the work of redemption embraces the whole of humanity."
— Pope St. John Paul II, p. 129-30
AN EXCERPT FROM
Mary: God's Yes to Man ✞ VERSE OF THE DAY
"May the God of peace himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be kept sound and blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls you is faithful, and he will do this."
1 Thessalonians 5:23-24 |  click to read more | | ST. BRIDGET OF SWEDEN 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. | Monday of the Sixteenth Week in Ordinary Time Reading 1 Mi 6:1-4, 6-8 Hear what the LORD says:
Arise, present your plea before the mountains,
and let the hills hear your voice!
Hear, O mountains, the plea of the LORD,
pay attention, O foundations of the earth!
For the LORD has a plea against his people,
and he enters into trial with Israel. O my people, what have I done to you,
or how have I wearied you? Answer me!
For I brought you up from the land of Egypt,
from the place of slavery I released you;
and I sent before you Moses,
Aaron, and Miriam. With what shall I come before the LORD,
and bow before God most high?
Shall I come before him with burnt offerings,
with calves a year old?
Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams,
with myriad streams of oil?
Shall I give my first-born for my crime,
the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?
You have been told, O man, what is good,
and what the LORD requires of you:
Only to do the right and to love goodness,
and to walk humbly with your God. Responsorial Psalm pS 50:5-6, 8-9, 16bc-17, 21 and 23
R. (23b) To the upright I will show the saving power of God.
"Gather my faithful ones before me,
those who have made a covenant with me by sacrifice."
And the heavens proclaim his justice;
for God himself is the judge.
R. To the upright I will show the saving power of God.
"Not for your sacrifices do I rebuke you,
for your burnt offerings are before me always.
I take from your house no bullock,
no goats out of your fold."
R. To the upright I will show the saving power of God.
"Why do you recite my statutes,
and profess my covenant with your mouth,
Though you hate discipline
and cast my words behind you?"
R. To the upright I will show the saving power of God.
"When you do these things, shall I be deaf to it?
Or do you think that I am like yourself?
I will correct you by drawing them up before your eyes.
He that offers praise as a sacrifice glorifies me;
and to him that goes the right way I will show the salvation of God."
R. To the upright I will show the saving power of God. Alleluia Ps 95:8
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
If today you hear his voice,
harden not your hearts.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel Mt 12:38-42 Some of the scribes and Pharisees said to Jesus,
"Teacher, we wish to see a sign from you."
He said to them in reply,
"An evil and unfaithful generation seeks a sign,
but no sign will be given it
except the sign of Jonah the prophet.
Just as Jonah was in the belly of the whale three days and three nights,
so will the Son of Man be in the heart of the earth
three days and three nights.
At the judgment, the men of Nineveh will arise with this generation
and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah;
and there is something greater than Jonah here.
At the judgment the queen of the south will arise with this generation
and condemn it, because she came from the ends of the earth
to hear the wisdom of Solomon;
and there is something greater than Solomon here."
| Meditation: Matthew 12:38-42 Saint Bridget, Religious (Optional Memorial Teacher, we wish to see a sign. (Matthew 12:38) How many signs did these Pharisees need? For months, they had seen Jesus heal the sick, cast out demons, and raise the dead. Would another sign really have made a difference for them? When a person steadfastly refuses to believe something, even in the face of overwhelming data, it's probably not because of weak faith; it's more likely because of a hardened heart. What about us? What kinds of signs has Jesus left us to strengthen and reaffirm our faith? Well, first, there is historical evidence outside of the New Testament that Jesus existed. We have accounts from the Roman historians Tacitus and Suetonius. We also have the Jewish historian Josephus, who wrote that Jesus was "a doer of great works" who "was crucified." Then there is also the New Testament itself. We could say that the Bible is unreliable, but again, historical evidence seems to point away from that. Writings about other historical figures from that time—people like Julius Caesar and Tacitus—exist, but the oldest reliable manuscripts come from nearly a thousand years after their deaths. What's more, only a few copies of these manuscripts have survived. By contrast, nearly five thousand copies of the Greek New Testament and ten thousand copies of its Latin translation exist—and they date back as far as AD 130. Clearly, we can rely on these accounts of Jesus far more than the accounts of Tacitus and Caesar! Then, of course, there were the apostles themselves. If Jesus weren't God and if he hadn't risen from the dead, there would be no reason for his disciples to dedicate their lives to spreading the good news of the resurrection. At the very least, there would be no need for them to become martyrs for the cause. That's a lot of signs! So the question is not "Did Jesus exist?" Neither is the question "Did people really believe he is the Son of God?" The only question left for us is "Can I believe that Jesus is who the Scriptures say he is? Can I stake my life on him and his promises?" C. S. Lewis once said that the evidence leaves us with only three possibilities: Jesus was either a liar, a lunatic, or the Lord. Let's believe the third option, and give him our hearts today. "Lord, I believe!" Micah 6:1-4, 6-8
Psalm 50:5-6, 8-9, 16-17, 21, 23 | my2cents:
"You have been told, O man, what is good, and what the LORD requires of you". At one point our Lord asks "O my people, what have I done to you,
or how have I wearied you? Answer me!" At the stations of the cross, this verse is answered with "I opened the Red Sea before you, and you opened my side with a lance." In my constant thoughts of our Lord, one of a time I was taken and saw our Lord on mount Calvary. It was a dark moment. In what should have been a glorious moment, I saw myself in my thoughts yesterday, not focusing on Him, but looking away, overwhelmed with "my own problems". How easy it is to be distracted, and the lance is picked up when we look away. Let us pray: "To the upright I will show the saving power of God."When you do these things, shall I be deaf to it? Or do you think that I am like yourself?
I will correct you by drawing them up before your eyes. He that offers praise as a sacrifice glorifies me; and to him that goes the right way I will show the salvation of God." In the Holy Gospel our Lord speaks: "An evil and unfaithful generation seeks a sign, but no sign will be given it except the sign of Jonah the prophet." What sign did they want? Probably what they required to see. As if to say, "do things my way and I will believe". And a parent loses a child and they no longer believe. Or, you gradually begin to give way to doubt, and turn away, and lose focus on what our Lord said. Today, let us see the sign that God offers, the sign of Jonah the prophet. The sign was that he was taken away for 3 days and came back to preach repentance for the salvation of the world. What kind of sign is that? It is the sign we need. It is a sign for the times. If the world needs healing, it needs to start with repentance. If the world needs a sign, we need to be that sign. Does God exist? It must be answered with your life. Does God care? It must be answered with your heart. Is God really here? It must be declared with your witness. I just recalled a message that I was supposed to give to you from the Blessed Sacrament, God said to tell you these words and with this I will leave you:
Our Lord Our God says: "I AM HERE" | |
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