We Move Toward Salvation Together Holy people testify to God's holiness. Alone, humans cannot show God's holiness. Too much evil, injustice, and pain exist in the world for individuals alone to manifest God's goodness. That is why the Hebrew Scriptures say that we are saved together. In this process, we need God's grace. The communal dimension of God's salvation is felt most strongly in family bonds. Family members need one another as they move toward salvation. —from the book Your [Imperfect] Holy Family | † QUOTE
"Holiness consists simply in doing God's will, and being just what God wants us to be."
— St. Therese of Lisieux † MEDITATION OF THE DAY
"Through the sacraments of Christian initiation, man receives the new life of Christ. Now we carry this life 'in earthen vessels', and it remains 'hidden with Christ in God'. We are still in our 'earthly tent', subject to suffering, illness, and death. This new life as a child of God can be weakened and even lost by sin. The Lord Jesus Christ, physician of our souls and bodies, who forgave the sins of the paralytic and restored him to bodily health, has willed that his Church continue, in the power of the Holy Spirit, his work of healing and salvation, even among her own members. This is the purpose of the two sacraments of healing: the sacrament of Penance and the sacrament of Anointing of the Sick."
— (CCC, 1420-21)
AN EXCERPT FROM
Catechism of the Catholic Church † VERSE OF THE DAY
"Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act. He will make your vindication shine like the light, and the justice of your cause like the noonday. Be still before the Lord, and wait patiently for him; do not fret over those who prosper in their way, over those who carry out evil devices."
Psalm 37:5-7 |  click to read more | | STS. COSMAS & DAMIAN Sts. Cosmas and Damian (d. 287 A.D.) were twin brothers born in Arabia. They both became skilled physicians who practiced in Asia Minor. They took no money for their medical services, for which they were well-respected. Because of their charity they drew many to the Catholic faith. During the Christian persecution under the Roman Emperor Diocletian, Cosmas and Damian were targeted, arrested, and tortured. After being miraculously preserved from injury throughout their cruel tortures, holding firm in their faith to the end, they were finally killed by beheading. They were martyred together with their three brothers. Their remains were buried in Syria and many miracles were attributed to them. In gratitude for the healing he received through the intercession of Sts. Cosmas and Damian, Roman Emperor Justinian I (6th c.) restored a church dedicated to their honor in Constantinople, which became a place of pilgrimage. Sts. Cosmas and Damian are regarded as the patron saints of physicians, surgeons, and pharmacists. They are mentioned by name in the Roman Canon of the Mass, and share a feast day on September 26th. | Wednesday of the Twenty-fifth Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 451 Reading 1 PRV 30:5-9 Every word of God is tested;
he is a shield to those who take refuge in him.
Add nothing to his words,
lest he reprove you, and you will be exposed as a deceiver. Two things I ask of you,
deny them not to me before I die:
Put falsehood and lying far from me,
give me neither poverty nor riches;
provide me only with the food I need;
Lest, being full, I deny you,
saying, "Who is the LORD?"
Or, being in want, I steal,
and profane the name of my God. Responsorial Psalm PS 119:29, 72, 89, 101, 104, 163
R. (105) Your word, O Lord, is a lamp for my feet.
Remove from me the way of falsehood,
and favor me with your law.
R. Your word, O Lord, is a lamp for my feet.
The law of your mouth is to me more precious
than thousands of gold and silver pieces.
R. Your word, O Lord, is a lamp for my feet.
Your word, O LORD, endures forever;
it is firm as the heavens.
R. Your word, O Lord, is a lamp for my feet.
From every evil way I withhold my feet,
that I may keep your words.
R. Your word, O Lord, is a lamp for my feet.
Through your precepts I gain discernment;
therefore I hate every false way.
R. Your word, O Lord, is a lamp for my feet.
Falsehood I hate and abhor;
your law I love.
R. Your word, O Lord, is a lamp for my feet. Alleluia MK 1:15
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
The Kingdom of God is at hand;
repent and believe in the Gospel.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel LK 9:1-6 Jesus summoned the Twelve and gave them power and authority
over all demons and to cure diseases,
and he sent them to proclaim the Kingdom of God
and to heal the sick.
He said to them, "Take nothing for the journey,
neither walking stick, nor sack, nor food, nor money,
and let no one take a second tunic.
Whatever house you enter, stay there and leave from there.
And as for those who do not welcome you,
when you leave that town,
shake the dust from your feet in testimony against them."
Then they set out and went from village to village
proclaiming the Good News and curing diseases everywhere. | Meditation: Luke 9:1-6 Saints Cosmas and Damian, Martyrs (Optional Memorial) Take nothing for the journey. (Luke 9:3) Don't take money on your trip. Don't pack a suitcase. Travel insurance? Don't bother! When you arrive at your destination, just look around for someone who seems friendly, and stay with them. If a travel agent gave you that kind of advice, you'd probably walk out of his office! But this is pretty close to what Jesus says when he tells the Twelve to take nothing for their first missionary journey. They were traveling from village to village—shouldn't they plan their trip, make arrangements, and have extra supplies? Nope. Planning and preparation are not bad things, but Jesus didn't want them to miss the chance to see God provide for their needs. Jesus was sending out his disciples to heal and preach. But he was also sending them out so that they could learn to rely on God for all their needs. He wanted them to know that it was their heavenly Father who provided for them and gave them the words and power to work in his name. It's a lesson he wants to teach all of his followers. Church history is full of examples of saints who stepped out in faith even when they did not have what was required for their task. And God provided for them! Think of John Bosco, who was famous all over Turin, Italy, for feeding the masses of orphan boys with bread or chestnuts from a near-empty basket. Or think of Mother Teresa, who often had no food for the people she cared for until she received a last-minute donation at dinnertime. Don't let your lack of preparation or resources keep you from starting to serve. Things don't always work out perfectly, even for the saints. Even the apostles had their ups and downs. After this successful missionary trip, they still misunderstood Jesus, abandoned him, and even denied him. Your experience might also have ups and downs, but that's okay. Just take one step forward and let God provide what you are lacking. Go ahead and start a conversation with that child of yours who is having a hard time in school. Let God provide the courage for you to bring up a sensitive topic like your spouse's spending. Trust him to give you what you need so that you can serve the people in your path. "Lord, help me today to trust that you will provide for me." Proverbs 30:5-9
Psalm 119:29, 72, 89, 101, 104, 163 | my2cents: The Word said today "Lest, being full, I deny you, saying, "Who is the LORD?"
Or, being in want, I steal, and profane the name of my God."
Being empty makes room for Him. That's why fasting is a good offering. A powerful prayer, because you suffer with Him in mind the entire time. It is good because you are in good with Him. But if you don't fast? Chances are you could be full...of yourself. There are some words that are very hard in Holy Scripture, and it speaks of those are found "wanting". Want of all the other things but our Lord, found "lacking" is the proper term. Lacking what? What is necessary for a life with our Lord...grace. Let us pray: "Your word, O Lord, is a lamp for my feet. Falsehood I hate and abhor; your law I love." I told my fallen away sister yesterday "we should go to the same church". She said "it's not for me". Yet, the bible says we should aim to be of one flock and of one shepherd. Can it happen? Yes and no. Will it happen? It is on your will. I told her "you need to go to church every Sunday". I was just simply stating God's commandment. And His desire is that we are one. The Catholic Church is the 1st church in the world, not the perfect one, I doubt there is a perfect one out there. Catholic means "universal". It is for the whole world. Even the whole universe. Why is this important? Falsehood is bad, and we hold the truth of faith. And the truth is centered on...Jesus. In comes our Lord into our lives: "Jesus summoned the Twelve and gave them power and authority over all demons and to cure diseases, and he sent them to proclaim the Kingdom of God and to heal the sick." He said "take nothing with you." I have seen a suitcase sitting in middle of my house for going on a couple weeks. As I saw it yesterday, still there, kind of in the way, I thought "we are but mere pilgrims in this life". Suitcase ready to go on to the next leg of our journey. But our Lord said to not even take a suitcase! Not to take anything. But take what then?
Him. Take Him. That's all we need. Take Him. When we go to receive our Lord in the Eucharist, we only take our hearts to Him. Be careful how you receive Him. As I told a brother last night "the Eucharist is a catalyst and for some it begins a hardening process for this bonding agent". Before receiving the Eucharist we need to be prepared, with a contrite and humble heart, having received grace to receive grace, confession before Eucharist. Seal what is good. Harden what is good...holiness brought about by humility. They say the most powerful weapon against evil is humility. Not the rosary, not the Eucharist (remember what our Lord does!). We must approach life with humility. Can I explain to you what humility is? No, I'm not too humble, I have bad moments of flaring up, I'm sorry right after it, but why do I flare up? Humility not hardened. So all I can do is point to humility like a pointer dog on a hunt, I see it, and I'm pointing to our Mother Mary who points to our Lord Jesus. Humility was crucified. Humility lost her whole life to God, by giving it to Him. Those who enter religious life are thought by worldly minds "they have lost their lives". But we must lose our lives to gain it. You ask a faithful religious if they are happy, and they begin to glow with their smile "Yes" I would not live my life any other way than to be totally devoted to God!
It's funny how we are trained to see things backwards in the world. Just see suffering, how it is despised in the world. Yet, our Lord came to suffer: Humiliation, abuse, neglect, lies, betrayal, torture, and murder. He was highly sought out for good or for bad.
Where do we stand today? Take nothing with you. If you are rejected (for our Lord), dust the feet, take nothing of that with you either. If I am happy, I am to live as if I am not. If I am sad, I am to live as if I am not. They say Mother Mary never was really seen to do more than a small smile. She was said to have been faithful to the stations of the cross, to our Lord's passion. She was passionate. To her, His passion was compassion and precious. How do we see our Lord's passion? Most are probably unmoved, the dirge does not move a full person. Jesus wants us to go out and preach and heal. I am a preacher. You are a preacher. I am called to be a healer. You are called to go out and heal. Preach and heal. Heal a broken world by preaching the truth in you heart. The two healing Sacraments are Confession (repentance) and annointing of the sick (healing). I've had annointing, and it is strange. Something fortifying comes over you. You become strong...spiritually.
I'm asking you to be strong by being humble and accepting our Lord.
Can we ? yes.
Will we?
I pray we do, for the good of His flock | |
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