 clickable | | Pilgrim's Prayer This is what a pilgrim does: walk. And it is the way the pilgrim prays, with his or her feet. And the feet walk through dark clouds to illumination to the light that is holy action. Through dark, cloud-filled days to a hint of subtle lightening to the sun breaking through, the feet taking us where we least thought we'd go, where before we had thought darkness dwelt, and finding there instead, in bright sunlight, the broken, the poor, the marginal, those made ugly or disfigured by abuse and oppression and woundedness. We are changed simply by walking, rain or shine, toward and back from whatever shrine we had thought contained our hope and longing. We walk back toward what was there all along that we could not see. —from Enter Assisi: An Invitation to Franciscan Spirituality |  MorningOffering.com | †Saint Quote "When you pray, you only have to ask for two things: You should ask for the light to see the will of God, and you have to ask for the courage to be able to do the will of God."
— Venerable Msgr. Aloysius Schwartz
† MEDITATION OF THE DAY
"My great God, you know all that is in the universe, because you yourself have made it. It is the very work of your hands. You are omniscient, because you are omnicreative. You know each part, however minute, as perfectly as you know the whole. You know mind as perfectly as you know matter. You know the thoughts and purposes of every soul as perfectly as if there were no other soul in the whole of your creation. You know me through and through; all my present, past, and future are before you as one whole. You see all those delicate and evanescent motions of my thought which altogether escape myself. You can trace every act, whether deed or thought, to its origin and can follow it into its whole growth and consequences. You know how it will be with me at the end; you have before you that hour when I shall come to you to be judged. How awful is the prospect of finding myself in the presence of my judge! Yet, O Lord, I would not that you should not know me. It is my greatest stay to know that you read my heart. Oh, give me more of that openhearted sincerity which I have desired. Keep me ever from being afraid of your eye, from the inward consciousness that I am not honestly trying to please you. Teach me to love you more, and then I shall be at peace, without any fear of you at all."
— Bl. John Henry Newman, p.150
AN EXCERPT FROM
Everyday Meditations † VERSE OF THE DAY
"He is the one we proclaim, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone fully mature in Christ. To this end I strenuously contend with all the energy Christ so powerfully works in me."
Colossians 1:28-29 |  click to read more | | ST. HENRY II Saint Henry II (972-1024 A.D.) was born to the Duke of Bavaria and the Princess of Burgundy. He was a pious child and was given the education of a priest. However, his destiny changed when he succeeded his father as the Duke of Bavaria and took a holy woman as his wife. Upon the sudden death of his cousin he also became the King of Germany. Then, in 1014 A.D. he was crowned Holy Roman Emperor in St. Peter's Basilica by Pope Benedict VIII. St. Henry was determined to rule the empire with justice for the greater glory of God. He was known for his virtue and great faith; when entering any town, he would first pray in a church dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary. He also invoked the saints to help him in battle against pagan armies. He did much good for his subjects and for the Church, and was graced with many mystical experiences. He and his wife, St. Cunegundes, observed perfect chastity during their marriage and therefore remained childless. Henry tried to enter a monastery after the death of his wife, however, his application was refused because it was thought he would continue to do much good if he remained in the world. St. Henry is the patron of dukes, kings, childless people, the handicapped, and people rejected by religious orders. His feast day is July 13th. | Monday of the Fifteenth Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 389
Reading 1 Is 1:10-17 Hear the word of the LORD,
princes of Sodom!
Listen to the instruction of our God,
people of Gomorrah!
What care I for the number of your sacrifices?
says the LORD.
I have had enough of whole-burnt rams
and fat of fatlings;
In the blood of calves, lambs and goats
I find no pleasure. When you come in to visit me,
who asks these things of you?
Trample my courts no more!
Bring no more worthless offerings;
your incense is loathsome to me.
New moon and sabbath, calling of assemblies,
octaves with wickedness: these I cannot bear.
Your new moons and festivals I detest;
they weigh me down, I tire of the load.
When you spread out your hands,
I close my eyes to you;
Though you pray the more,
I will not listen.
Your hands are full of blood!
Wash yourselves clean!
Put away your misdeeds from before my eyes;
cease doing evil; learn to do good.
Make justice your aim: redress the wronged,
hear the orphan's plea, defend the widow. Responsorial Psalm 50:8-9, 16bc-17, 21 and 23 R. (23b) 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 you 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 Mt 5:10 R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness,
for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel Mt 10:34-11:1 Jesus said to his Apostles:
"Do not think that I have come to bring peace upon the earth.
I have come to bring not peace but the sword.
For I have come to set
a man against his father,
a daughter against her mother,
and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law;
and one's enemies will be those of his household. "Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me,
and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me;
and whoever does not take up his cross
and follow after me is not worthy of me.
Whoever finds his life will lose it,
and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. "Whoever receives you receives me,
and whoever receives me receives the one who sent me.
Whoever receives a prophet because he is a prophet
will receive a prophet's reward,
and whoever receives a righteous man
because he is righteous
will receive a righteous man's reward.
And whoever gives only a cup of cold water
to one of these little ones to drink
because he is a disciple–
amen, I say to you, he will surely not lose his reward." When Jesus finished giving these commands to his Twelve disciples,
he went away from that place to teach and to preach in their towns. | Daily Meditation: Matthew 10:34–11:1 Whoever does not take up his cross and follow after me is not worthy of me. (Matthew 10:38) Most great love stories involve a lover making huge sacrifices for the sake of the beloved—crossing oceans, losing one's reputation, forfeiting wealth, even risking death. All such sacrifices are made happily, and boldly, with no regrets—for the sake of the beloved. But the greatest love story of all is the one of a God who made the most amazing sacrifice imaginable. He took on our humanity, not as a conquering hero, but as a tiny baby. He was willingly mocked, spit on, tortured, and finally crucified, all out of love for each one of us. How can we possibly respond to so great a love? Can we be like our Savior, the Lover who was happy to sacrifice for the ones he loves? Can we accept and bear our crosses as Jesus did, out of love for the One who sacrificed for us? We all have crosses to bear; it comes with living in a fallen world. We could grudgingly resign ourselves to them. Or out of love for God, we could accept them with peace and trust and try to be as loving and merciful to those involved as Jesus is to us. So if we are caring for a family member with a mental illness, we can do it lovingly and with prayerful trust in the Lord. If we have to relate to a difficult boss each day, we can do it with forbearance and kindness. If we are serving in a ministry to the poor or the homeless, we can serve even on days when we would rather be doing something else. The late superior general of the Jesuit order, Fr. Pedro Arrupe, once wrote, "What you are in love with, what seizes your imagination, will affect everything." Being in love with God will decide everything in our lives, including how we take up and respond to our crosses each day. The world's greatest love story is our story as well. Because God loved us first, we are able to bear our crosses with the love and joy of a lover—and that makes all the difference! "Lord Jesus, help me to take up my cross and follow after you today with a heart full of love." Isaiah 1:10-17
Psalm 50: 8-9, 16-17, 21, 23 |  clickable | To what can I compare being received into the Church? Think of a man who has been living for a long time in a little cottage on the grounds of a palace. One day he stumbles across the palace threshold and falls flat on his face; yet he finds, to his astonishment, that he is welcome.
— J. Budziszewski
from Faith and Reason: Philosophers Explain Their Turn to Catholicism | my2cents:
"Put away your misdeeds from before my eyes;
cease doing evil; learn to do good.
Make justice your aim: redress the wronged,
hear the orphan's plea, defend the widow."
Can it be that we think obeying laws makes us perfect? Where is the love of the law of God?
For example, some of us may go to Mass, and have fulfilled our "obligation", and that's it, we go to stay out of trouble with whoever said to do this. But that "whoever" is not just anybody, it is an eternal being, that calls on us each and every day to be one with Him most intimately...Father, help us. | We pray today: ""Why do you recite my statutes,
and profess my covenant with your mouth,
Though you hate discipline
and cast my words behind you?"
To the upright I will show the saving power of God."
Good teachers teach by the way they live out their teachings, right? Imagine an obese man telling you how to lose weight, would you believe in him? But he actually may know how, but can't do it. That is why God says to listen to what they say but not do the evil they do. We must love the truth of God. Love discipline, love to be disciples of God. | Our Lord said:
""Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me,
and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me;
and whoever does not take up his cross
and follow after me is not worthy of me.
Whoever finds his life will lose it,
and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it." | How can I love God more than any one on earth?
At one point Jesus says we must hate the world. Ouch! A person said "I can't hate my wife!" And I tried to explain what Jesus meant in the bible but he got up and left the bible study we were having. He chose his wife, to be his life, but his wife cannot give him eternal life!
Our true love in Heaven desires true eternal love and life for us.
It is like we said in RCIA class yesterday, like that treasure in the field, or that fine pearl, where you trade everything else you got for that treasure you find, you are all in.
I write to you because our Lord asked to give you hope, but not just any hope and not just any peace. Once you find this hope and peace, you'll see what it costs. It costs your life my friend. Trade it in. Humility calls for this. One thing for another. Confess your sins to receive mercy. When receiving the Eucharist of our Lord, leave your life behind, and never look back. | Random bible verse from an online generator:
Mt 6:2
2 "Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. 3 But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you. | If one day you don't receive these, just visit my website Going4th.com, surely you'll find me there. God Bless You! Share the Word. Share this, share what is good | |
