†Saint Quote
"Christ is my Spouse. He chose me first and His I will be. He made my soul beautiful with the jewels of grace and virtue. I belong to Him whom the angels serve."
–St. Agnes †Today's Meditation
"Oh, how painful it is to Me that souls so seldom unite themselves to Me in Holy Communion. I wait for souls, and they are indifferent toward Me. I love them tenderly and sincerely, and they distrust Me. I want to lavish My graces on them, and they do not want to accept them. They treat Me as a dead object, whereas My Heart is full of love and mercy. In order that you may know at least some of My pain, imagine the most tender of mothers who has great love for her children, while those children spurn her love. Consider her pain. No one is in a position to console her. This is but a pale image and likeness of My love."
—Jesus to St. Faustina Kowalska, p. 1447 An Excerpt From
Diary of Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska - Divine Mercy in My Soul †Daily Verse
"But without faith it is impossible to please him, for anyone who approaches God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him."
–Hebrews 11:6 |  click to read more | | †Nativity of John the Baptist A family relation of Jesus, St. John the Baptist is called "the Forerunner" because he was sent by God to "prepare the way of the Lord" ahead of Jesus' public ministry. The birth of St. John the Baptist to his elderly and previously barren parents, Zechariah and Elizabeth, is recorded in St. Luke's Gospel. His birth was announced to his father Zechariah by the Archangel Gabriel, who also brought the news of Christ's birth to the Blessed Virgin Mary. John the Baptist's nativity is one of only three birthdays celebrated by the Church, along with the nativities of Jesus and Mary. Though not an official dogma, according to ancient tradition St. John the Baptist was freed from original sin at the moment his mother heard the greeting of the Blessed Virgin at the Visitation, causing John to leap in his mother's womb through the action of the Holy Spirit. So, like Jesus and Mary, St. John would have been born without sin, and therefore his birthday is also worthy of special honor. Because Christ praised John the Baptist so highly by saying "Truly I tell you, among those born of women no one has arisen greater than John the Baptist," he was one of the most highly venerated saints in the ancient and medieval Church. He has two feasts: his nativity on June 24th and his passion on August 29th. | Solemnity of Most Sacred Heart of Jesus Lectionary: 172
Reading I Ez 34:11-16 Thus says the Lord GOD:
I myself will look after and tend my sheep.
As a shepherd tends his flock
when he finds himself among his scattered sheep,
so will I tend my sheep.
I will rescue them from every place where they were scattered
when it was cloudy and dark.
I will lead them out from among the peoples
and gather them from the foreign lands;
I will bring them back to their own country
and pasture them upon the mountains of Israel
in the land's ravines and all its inhabited places.
In good pastures will I pasture them,
and on the mountain heights of Israel
shall be their grazing ground.
There they shall lie down on good grazing ground,
and in rich pastures shall they be pastured
on the mountains of Israel.
I myself will pasture my sheep;
I myself will give them rest, says the Lord GOD.
The lost I will seek out,
the strayed I will bring back,
the injured I will bind up,
the sick I will heal,
but the sleek and the strong I will destroy,
shepherding them rightly. Responsorial Psalm Ps 23:1-3a, 3b-4, 5, 6. R (1) The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. In verdant pastures he gives me repose;
beside restful waters he leads me; he refreshes my soul.
R The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
He guides me in right paths for his name's sake.
Even though I walk in the dark valley I fear no evil; for you are at my side
with your rod and your staff that give me courage.
R The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
You spread the table before me in the sight of my foes;
you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.
R The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
Only goodness and kindness follow me all the days of my life;
and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD for years to come.
R The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want. Reading II Rom 5:5b-11 Brothers and sisters:
The love of God has been poured out into our hearts
through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us.
For Christ, while we were still helpless,
died at the appointed time for the ungodly.
Indeed, only with difficulty does one die for a just person,
though perhaps for a good person
one might even find courage to die.
But God proves his love for us
in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us.
How much more then, since we are now justified by his blood,
will we be saved through him from the wrath.
Indeed, if, while we were enemies,
we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son,
how much more, once reconciled,
will we be saved by his life.
Not only that,
but we also boast of God through our Lord Jesus Christ,
through whom we have now received reconciliation. Alleluia Mt 11:29ab R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Take my yoke upon you, says the Lord,
and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. OR: Jn 10:14 R. Alleluia, alleluia.
I am the good shepherd, says the Lord,
I know my sheep, and mine know me.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel Lk 15:3-7 Jesus addressed this parable to the Pharisees and scribes:
"What man among you having a hundred sheep and losing one of them
would not leave the ninety-nine in the desert
and go after the lost one until he finds it?
And when he does find it,
he sets it on his shoulders with great joy
and, upon his arrival home,
he calls together his friends and neighbors and says to them,
'Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep.'
I tell you, in just the same way
there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents
than over ninety-nine righteous people
who have no need of repentance." | Daily Meditation: Luke 15:3-7 Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep. (Luke 15:6) Today, on this feast of the Sacred Heart, we are presented with two portrayals of Jesus. One is the familiar image associated with the Sacred Heart devotion: Jesus pointing to his heart, which is aflame with love and encircled with thorns. The other comes from today's readings portraying Jesus as the Good Shepherd. So how are they related? The good shepherd in Jesus' parable takes the incredible risk of leaving the rest of his flock; he doesn't want to lose a single one of his dearly beloved sheep. Similarly, God took an incredible risk: he sent his own Son to live among us, his sheep. That's what the heart represents in the Sacred Heart image. God, the Creator of the universe, took on a human heart so that he could be our Good Shepherd and call each of us by name (John 10:3). In coming to us in the flesh, God fulfilled the promise he made to Ezekiel in today's first reading: "I myself will pasture my sheep" (34:15). Not only did God come as a human being to teach and guide us, however; he also came to save us by laying down his life for us. That's what the circle of thorns in the Sacred Heart image brings to mind. Through his passion, death, and resurrection, Jesus ensured that none of us would have to be lost forever. Just as a good shepherd protects his flock from the dangers of the wilderness, Jesus rescued us from Satan, sin, and death. He rescued us even when it meant a crown of thorns, a brutal scourging, and an excruciating death on the cross. As Jesus showed us in his parable of the lost sheep, God's love and mercy are without limits. He isn't angry that the lost sheep made the mistake of wandering away in the first place. No, his only desire is to find that lost one and carry it on his shoulders back to the rest of the flock. So on this great feast, gaze on the image of the Sacred Heart and thank the Good Shepherd with all your heart for what he has done for you. "Jesus, Good Shepherd, I praise and thank you for your never-ending love and mercy!" Ezekiel 34:11-16
Psalm 23:1-6
Romans 5:5-11 | From today's 1st Holy Scripture:
"As a shepherd tends his flock when he finds himself among his scattered sheep, so will I tend my sheep" Do you believe the Lord is still shepherding? I do.
And how? Through you! Look no further, because the Lord is living and active through people, all day, every day. I'm seeking lost souls, I'm shepherding and so are you. | We pray in Psalms:
"The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.
In verdant pastures he gives me repose; beside restful waters he leads me; he refreshes my soul." | In today's Gospel we heard our Lord:
""What man among you having a hundred sheep and losing one of them would not leave the ninety-nine in the desert and go after the lost one until he finds it?" Who comes to mind? God? What about St. Augustine's mother...Monica?
Doesn't she fit the role of seeking one that is lost and leaving everything behind to save...her son? For eternity.
What parent goes to these extents nowadays? The world teaches that there's not much you can do when raising kids, and some even teach "let them teach themselves" (choose their own sexual identity, and philosophies,etc). This is devil talk. Who raises them? The darkness always wants to take over...that is its design.
And so, it is not natural to pray. It's not natural to be self sacrificing. This takes effort. And this email is to encourage you to such. To turn to Him...more and more. | Let's Pray: 1 Jesus, my Lord, my God, my All,
How can I love thee as I ought?
And how revere this wondrous gift,
So far surpassing hope or thought?
Sweet Sacrament, we thee adore;
Oh, make us love thee more and more.
Oh, make us love thee more and more. 2 Had I but Mary's sinless heart
To love thee with, my dearest King,
Oh, with what bursts of fervant praise
Thy goodness, Jesus, would I sing.
Sweet Sacrament, we thee adore;
Oh, make us love thee more and more.
Oh, make us love thee more and more. 3 Thy Body, Soul, and Godhead, all,
O mystery of love divine.
I cannot compass all I have,
For all thou hast and art are mine.
Sweet Sacrament, we thee adore;
Oh, make us love thee more and more.
Oh, make us love thee more and more. |  click to hear | Random bible verse generator: 2 Corinthians 10:17–18
17 "Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord." 18 For it is not the one who commends himself who is approved, but the one whom the Lord commends. | If one day you don't receive these, just visit Going4th.com
God Bless You! Peace | | |
