 clickable | | Using Our Creativity for Others A Christian celebration of humanity consists in lovingly midwifing our fellow humans into full being. One of our God-given endowments is creativity, the ability to cooperate with God in the inauguration of the kingdom. We're called to use this creativity in nurturing our brothers and sisters as full members of that kingdom, and we do this by going out of our way to help them recognize and affirm themselves as images of God. In concrete terms, this means performing the acts of charity listed in the twenty-fifth chapter of Matthew: clothing the naked, tending the sick, visiting the imprisoned, giving food and drink to the hungry and thirsty. Celebrating the sheer existence of others often demands that we do the dirty work of easing the material burdens that inhibit them from arriving at a conscious appreciation of their own holiness. —from the book Perfect Joy: 30 Days with Francis of Assisi by Kerry Walters |  MorningOffering.com | † Saint Quote
"Three things are necessary for the salvation of man: to know what he ought to believe; to know what he ought to desire; and to know what he ought to do."
— St. Thomas Aquinas † MEDITATION OF THE DAY
"One of the most formidable obstacles to the conversion of a soul is the fact that God is a hidden God: Deus absconditus. But God, in His goodness, reveals Himself, in a certain manner, through His saints, and even through fervent souls. In this way, the supernatural filters through and becomes visible to the faithful, who are thus able to apprehend something of the mystery of God . . . make no mistake, there is a sort of instinct by which souls, without clearly defining what it is they sense, are aware of this radiation of the supernatural."
— Dom Jean-Baptist Chautard, p. 124-5
AN EXCERPT FROM
Soul of the Apostolate † VERSE OF THE DAY
"You who live in the shelter of the Most High, who abide in the shadow of the Almighty, will say to the Lord, 'My refuge and my fortress; my God, in whom I trust.'"
Psalm 91:1-2 |  click to read more | | Saint John XXIII Although few people had as great an impact on the 20th century as Pope John XXIII, he avoided the limelight as much as possible. Indeed, one writer has noted that his "ordinariness" seems one of his most remarkable qualities. The firstborn son of a farming family in Sotto il Monte, near Bergamo in northern Italy, Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli was always proud of his down-to-earth roots. In Bergamo's diocesan seminary, he joined the Secular Franciscan Order. After his ordination in 1904, Fr. Roncalli returned to Rome for canon law studies. He soon worked as his bishop's secretary, Church history teacher in the seminary, and as publisher of the diocesan paper. His service as a stretcher-bearer for the Italian army during World War I gave him a firsthand knowledge of war. In 1921, Fr. Roncalli was made national director in Italy of the Society for the Propagation of the Faith. He also found time to teach patristics at a seminary in the Eternal City. In 1925, he became a papal diplomat, serving first in Bulgaria, then in Turkey, and finally in France. During World War II, he became well acquainted with Orthodox Church leaders. With the help of Germany's ambassador to Turkey, Archbishop Roncalli helped save an estimated 24,000 Jewish people. Named a cardinal and appointed patriarch of Venice in 1953, he was finally a residential bishop. A month short of entering his 78th year, Cardinal Roncalli was elected pope, taking the name John after his father and the two patrons of Rome's cathedral, St. John Lateran. Pope John took his work very seriously but not himself. His wit soon became proverbial, and he began meeting with political and religious leaders from around the world. In 1962, he was deeply involved in efforts to resolve the Cuban missile crisis. His most famous encyclicals were Mother and Teacher (1961) and Peace on Earth (1963). Pope John XXIII enlarged the membership in the College of Cardinals and made it more international. At his address at the opening of the Second Vatican Council, he criticized the "prophets of doom" who "in these modern times see nothing but prevarication and ruin." Pope John XXIII set a tone for the Council when he said, "The Church has always opposed… errors. Nowadays, however, the Spouse of Christ prefers to make use of the medicine of mercy rather than that of severity." On his deathbed, Pope John said: "It is not that the gospel has changed; it is that we have begun to understand it better. Those who have lived as long as I have…were enabled to compare different cultures and traditions, and know that the moment has come to discern the signs of the times, to seize the opportunity and to look far ahead." "Good Pope John" died on June 3, 1963. Saint John Paul II beatified him in 2000, and Pope Francis canonized him in 2014.
Reflection Throughout his life, Angelo Roncalli cooperated with God's grace, believing that the job at hand was worthy of his best efforts. His sense of God's providence made him the ideal person to promote a new dialogue with Protestant and Orthodox Christians, as well as with Jews and Muslims. In the sometimes noisy crypt of St. Peter's Basilica, many people become silent on seeing the simple tomb of Pope John XXIII, grateful for the gift of his life and holiness. After his beatification, his tomb was moved into the basilica itself. | Friday of the Twenty-seventh Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 465
Reading 1 Jl1:13-15; 2:1-2 Gird yourselves and weep, O priests!
wail, O ministers of the altar!
Come, spend the night in sackcloth,
O ministers of my God!
The house of your God is deprived
of offering and libation.
Proclaim a fast,
call an assembly;
Gather the elders,
all who dwell in the land,
Into the house of the LORD, your God,
and cry to the LORD! Alas, the day!
for near is the day of the LORD,
and it comes as ruin from the Almighty. Blow the trumpet in Zion,
sound the alarm on my holy mountain!
Let all who dwell in the land tremble,
for the day of the LORD is coming;
Yes, it is near, a day of darkness and of gloom,
a day of clouds and somberness!
Like dawn spreading over the mountains,
a people numerous and mighty!
Their like has not been from of old,
nor will it be after them,
even to the years of distant generations. Responsorial Psalm Ps 9:2-3, 6 and 16, 8-9 R.(9) The Lord will judge the world with justice.
I will give thanks to you, O LORD, with all my heart;
I will declare all your wondrous deeds.
I will be glad and exult in you;
I will sing praise to your name, Most High.
R. The Lord will judge the world with justice.
You rebuked the nations and destroyed the wicked;
their name you blotted out forever and ever.
The nations are sunk in the pit they have made;
in the snare they set, their foot is caught.
R. The Lord will judge the world with justice.
But the LORD sits enthroned forever;
he has set up his throne for judgment.
He judges the world with justice;
he governs the peoples with equity.
R. The Lord will judge the world with justice. Alleluia Jn 12:31b-32 R. Alleluia, alleluia.
The prince of this world will now be cast out,
and when I am lifted up from the earth
I will draw all to myself, says the Lord.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel Lk 11:15-26 When Jesus had driven out a demon, some of the crowd said:
"By the power of Beelzebul, the prince of demons,
he drives out demons."
Others, to test him, asked him for a sign from heaven.
But he knew their thoughts and said to them,
"Every kingdom divided against itself will be laid waste
and house will fall against house.
And if Satan is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand?
For you say that it is by Beelzebul that I drive out demons.
If I, then, drive out demons by Beelzebul,
by whom do your own people drive them out?
Therefore they will be your judges.
But if it is by the finger of God that I drive out demons,
then the Kingdom of God has come upon you.
When a strong man fully armed guards his palace,
his possessions are safe.
But when one stronger than he attacks and overcomes him,
he takes away the armor on which he relied
and distributes the spoils.
Whoever is not with me is against me,
and whoever does not gather with me scatters. "When an unclean spirit goes out of someone,
it roams through arid regions searching for rest
but, finding none, it says,
'I shall return to my home from which I came.'
But upon returning, it finds it swept clean and put in order.
Then it goes and brings back seven other spirits
more wicked than itself who move in and dwell there,
and the last condition of that man is worse than the first." | Meditation: Joel 1:13-15; 2:1-2 Saint John XXIII, Pope (Optional Memorial) The house of your God is deprived. . . . Cry to the Lord! (Joel 1:13, 14) In the year 2000, at the start of the new millennium, Pope St. John Paul II celebrated a special Mass for Pardon, in which he led the congregation in prayers of repentance for the sins of God's people over the past two thousand years. That gesture of repentance—made on behalf of the whole Church—is similar to the summons God made through the prophet Joel to the priests and ministers of the Temple. Joel called them to gather in the house of the Lord to hold a liturgy of lamentation for the people's sins—sins that had brought a terrible plague upon them (Joel 1:14). He compared the ravaged land to the state of the people's hearts and called them to repent. The priests had neglected their duties and so were depriving God of the honor he deserves. Even worse, they were depriving the people of the benefit of their prayers and sacrifices on their behalf. Notice that God assembled the priests and ministers to offer prayers of repentance on behalf of Israel. It's amazing, isn't it? God knew that the prayers of a small group of priests had the potential to turn the tide of a huge plague—and turn the hearts of the people back to him. That's the beauty and the power of intercessory prayer, and it's not limited just to priests! Each one of us can imitate these ministers of the Temple and bridge the gap for people who might not be able or willing to come to the Lord themselves. We offer prayers of repentance, thanksgiving, or worship on behalf of a son or daughter, teacher or student, coworker or cousin who needs help or has wandered far from the Lord. What would this look like? Well, in addition to praying for a person's needs, tell God that you want to pray in that person's place. Maybe that means imagining yourself offering prayers of repentance for them. It might mean thanking God for an act of grace he has given them. Or it could mean just picturing that person standing before Jesus and imagining what Jesus would want to say to them. However you pray, remember that your cries will never go unheeded. "Lord, pour out your Spirit as we cry to you for help." Psalm 9:2-3, 6, 8-9, 16
Luke 11:15-26 |  clickable | There is a rule of life, attributed to St. Augustine and to almost all the reasonably articulate saints since his day, and in any event verified in the experience of everyone who has made even the most meager attempt to live the Christian life. In its traditional form it runs, 'Pray as if everything depended on God; work as if everything depended on you.' Here, in action, is that wholehearted acceptance of two opposites which somehow fuses into one continuing act of successful living.
—Frank Sheed
from Theology and Sanity | my2cents:
"Yes, it is near, a day of darkness and of gloom, a day of clouds and somberness!" The days that people would say "the world is ending", have come and gone, several times at that.
Usually it is said when there are major wars. Some have used the tactic with global warming to various degrees. And why all the doom and gloom and hell and brimstone wordage? That's not nice is it? Or is it a good reminder for our generation and future generations? | Let us pray: "The Lord will judge the world with justice.
I will give thanks to you, O LORD, with all my heart;
I will declare all your wondrous deeds.
I will be glad and exult in you;
I will sing praise to your name, Most High."
This is to live prepared. We had a guy from EWTN, Doug, came gave a conference talk one time. He had a backpack, packed with end of days things, water purifier, survival tools and a meal thing. Why did he come with such a weird setup and talk? It was the times of a new presidential election and even a quote from a mystic was brought up.
We left weirded out. It was an eye opener of sorts. But did it change hearts? To be prepared? To live always giving praise and with our lights on for the Lord? | Our Lord was blamed as evil or using evil for casting out demons, to which He said "Every kingdom divided against itself will be laid waste and house will fall against house. And if Satan is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand?"
Nowadays, people still blame the Holy Catholic church and the Pope of being evil and doing things in the name of evil, I've even been told that our thinking and praying to Mary is an evil thing. I said "if you say she is evil then you say God/Jesus is evil". You see how the train of thoughts go?
And our Lord takes it further into the heart: ""When an unclean spirit goes out of someone,
it roams through arid regions searching for rest
but, finding none, it says, 'I shall return to my home from which I came.'
And if it finds it cleaned up, it invites more evils to come inside, evil spirits. | What's that all about? A man was just exorcised, freed from demonic spirits. It was a fair warning, as if to say "Now GO, and Sin No More". It is the same to me as if in Confession. I am cleansed but if I go home and do nothing with my faith, nothing to grow and nurture charity, piety, and virtues, those evil spirits will be lurking back in no time.
Feed your spirit.
Feed the good.
You are doing well to read this but read more.
You are doing well to be in ministry but do more.
Like what? Connecting with our Lord on a more intimate level, which is brought about by charity, through humility, and all things holiness.
Today's message is doom and gloom, but only to those who do not have ears... If today you hear, open up fully to our LORD!! |  hear it read | adrian Random Bible Verse 1
Romans 8:26 26 Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. Thank You Jesus | |
