†Saint Quote
"We are born to love, we live to love, and we will die to love still more." St. Joseph Cafasso †Today's Meditation
"The fact that we can't save ourselves is something we acknowledge in words, but in fact we find it very hard to accept. We'd all like to be saved by our own efforts…to shine in other people's eyes, even on the spiritual level. Worldly people want to be highly regarded because they have luxurious cars, expensive watches, designer clothes, professional prestige, and go around with beautiful people. As good Christians, we may want to stand out for our virtues, charisms, experience, and sound judgement. Then we consider that we are on the right path. But in fact we're in danger of ending up with exactly the same mindset as the worldly people described above. Very often, without realizing it, we have a worldly outlook on the spiritual life: self-fulfillment, self-affirmation, expansion of the ego, etc. And spiritual pride, we must be aware, is sometimes more destructive than social, worldly pride."
—Fr. Jacques Philippe, pg. 34-35
Cover image from the book, The Way of Trust and Love
An Excerpt From The Way of Trust and Love
†Daily Verse "Who among you is wise and understanding? Let him show his works by a good life in the humility that comes from wisdom." James 3:13
J.Lily |  click to read more | | St. Euphrasia St. Euphrasia (380-410 A.D.) was the only child of noble Christian parents serving the court of the Christian Emperor Theodosius I, their relative, in Constantinople. After her birth her parents vowed to remain celibate in order to commit their lives fully to prayer and penance. Her father died soon after, and Euphrasia moved with her mother to Egypt near a large monastery of nuns. At the age of seven Euphrasia vowed her virginity to Christ and desired to join the monastery. Her mother gladly presented her to the abbess, and then died soon after. When the Emperor heard of her mother's death, he sought out Euphrasia for an arranged marriage. Euphrasia denied the offer due to her vow, and requested that her large estate be sold with the money given to the poor, and all her slaves freed. The Emperor was greatly pleased with her chosen course in life, and did all that she asked. As a nun Euphrasia did great penances. In order to resist temptations to sin, she would perform difficult manual labor, often lifting heavy stones and moving them from one place to another for days on end, and other such drudgery. She was known to perform miracles both before and after her death at the age of thirty. Her feast day is March 13th. | Monday of the Third Week of Lent Reading 1 2 Kgs 5:1-15ab Naaman, the army commander of the king of Aram,
was highly esteemed and respected by his master,
for through him the LORD had brought victory to Aram.
But valiant as he was, the man was a leper.
Now the Arameans had captured in a raid on the land of Israel
a little girl, who became the servant of Naaman's wife.
"If only my master would present himself to the prophet in Samaria,"
she said to her mistress, "he would cure him of his leprosy."
Naaman went and told his lord
just what the slave girl from the land of Israel had said.
"Go," said the king of Aram.
"I will send along a letter to the king of Israel."
So Naaman set out, taking along ten silver talents,
six thousand gold pieces, and ten festal garments.
To the king of Israel he brought the letter, which read:
"With this letter I am sending my servant Naaman to you,
that you may cure him of his leprosy." When he read the letter,
the king of Israel tore his garments and exclaimed:
"Am I a god with power over life and death,
that this man should send someone to me to be cured of leprosy?
Take note! You can see he is only looking for a quarrel with me!"
When Elisha, the man of God,
heard that the king of Israel had torn his garments,
he sent word to the king:
"Why have you torn your garments?
Let him come to me and find out
that there is a prophet in Israel." Naaman came with his horses and chariots
and stopped at the door of Elisha's house.
The prophet sent him the message:
"Go and wash seven times in the Jordan,
and your flesh will heal, and you will be clean."
But Naaman went away angry, saying,
"I thought that he would surely come out and stand there
to invoke the LORD his God,
and would move his hand over the spot,
and thus cure the leprosy.
Are not the rivers of Damascus, the Abana and the Pharpar,
better than all the waters of Israel?
Could I not wash in them and be cleansed?"
With this, he turned about in anger and left. But his servants came up and reasoned with him.
"My father," they said,
"if the prophet had told you to do something extraordinary,
would you not have done it?
All the more now, since he said to you,
'Wash and be clean,' should you do as he said."
So Naaman went down and plunged into the Jordan seven times
at the word of the man of God.
His flesh became again like the flesh of a little child, and he was clean. He returned with his whole retinue to the man of God.
On his arrival he stood before him and said,
"Now I know that there is no God in all the earth,
except in Israel." Responsorial Psalm PS 42:2, 3; 43:3, 4 R. (see 42:3) Athirst is my soul for the living God.
When shall I go and behold the face of God?
As the hind longs for the running waters,
so my soul longs for you, O God.
R. Athirst is my soul for the living God.
When shall I go and behold the face of God?
Athirst is my soul for God, the living God.
When shall I go and behold the face of God?
R. Athirst is my soul for the living God.
When shall I go and behold the face of God?
Send forth your light and your fidelity;
they shall lead me on
And bring me to your holy mountain,
to your dwelling-place.
R. Athirst is my soul for the living God.
When shall I go and behold the face of God?
Then will I go in to the altar of God,
the God of my gladness and joy;
Then will I give you thanks upon the harp,
O God, my God!
R. Athirst is my soul for the living God.
When shall I go and behold the face of God? Verse Before the Gospel See Psalm 130:5, 7 I hope in the LORD, I trust in his word;
with him there is kindness and plenteous redemption. Gospel Lk 4:24-30 Jesus said to the people in the synagogue at Nazareth:
"Amen, I say to you,
no prophet is accepted in his own native place.
Indeed, I tell you, there were many widows in Israel
in the days of Elijah
when the sky was closed for three and a half years
and a severe famine spread over the entire land.
It was to none of these that Elijah was sent,
but only to a widow in Zarephath in the land of Sidon.
Again, there were many lepers in Israel
during the time of Elisha the prophet;
yet not one of them was cleansed, but only Naaman the Syrian."
When the people in the synagogue heard this,
they were all filled with fury.
They rose up, drove him out of the town,
and led him to the brow of the hill
on which their town had been built,
to hurl him down headlong.
But he passed through the midst of them and went away.
| If the prophet had told you to do something extraordinary, would you not have done it? (2 Kings 5:13) Somewhere along the line, you've probably heard of the "KISS" principle: Keep It Simple, Sweetheart! (Though you may have seen other variations for the final "S"!) That principle might be a good way to understand today's first reading. Naaman was a successful leader in a culture known for its elaborate customs and strict hierarchy. So being afflicted with leprosy threatened not just his health but his social status as well. Surely he had tried complicated cures and rigorous remedies, but none had worked. What would this Israelite prophet recommend? Naaman had probably pictured how this transaction should play out. There would be formal greetings and an exchange of gifts befitting a foreign dignitary. But instead, Elisha snubs him by not even coming to the door. Compounding the insult, the holy man tells him to wash in the less-than-impressive Jordan River. He didn't come all this way for this! Where was the elaborate ritual? The exotic ointment? The sacrifice of purification? It was insultingly simple! Lent is a time for us to seek a deeper, stronger relationship with the Lord, but it doesn't have to be complicated. Perhaps we attack Ash Wednesday with a heroic regimen of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. We sense that we won't be able to sustain it, but we try to keep it up anyway, hoping it will bear awesome fruit. We may even have a list of ideas of how the Lord should reward our piety. But God's grace is so accessible that we just have to ask for it. Our elaborate prayers don't change God. It's quite the opposite. When we come to him with humility and simplicity, he changes us. More than anything else, Jesus is looking for hearts that are open and ready to receive his word and act on it. He is looking for people who are willing to transform their everyday lives simply by welcoming him to be a part of them. So set aside the complexities on this Lenten journey. Set aside time to simply be with Jesus. He just wants to be near you. "Jesus, let me simply follow you today!" Psalm 42:2, 3; 43:3, 4
Luke 4:24-30 | From today's 1st Holy Scripture:
""My father," they said, "if the prophet had told you to do something extraordinary, would you not have done it?" What extraordinary thing is the Lord our God asking of you? | We pray today:
"When shall I go and behold the face of God?
As the hind longs for the running waters,
so my soul longs for you, O God.
Athirst is my soul for the living God" | In the Gospel today we heard our Lord:
"Again, there were many lepers in Israel
during the time of Elisha the prophet;
yet not one of them was cleansed, but only Naaman the Syrian." | "Friends, in today's Gospel, Jesus' hometown rejects him as a prophet. And I want to say a word about your role as a prophet.
When most lay people hear about prophecy, they sit back and their eyes glaze over. "That's something for the priests and the bishops to worry about; they're the modern-day prophets. I don't have that call or that responsibility."
Well, think again! Vatican II emphasized the universal call to holiness, rooted in the dynamics of Baptism. Every baptized person is conformed unto Christ—priest, prophet, and king. Whenever you assist at Mass, you are exercising your priestly office, participating in the worship of God. Whenever you direct your kids to discover their mission in the Church, or provide guidance to someone in the spiritual life, you are exercising your kingly office.
As a baptized individual, you are also commissioned as a prophet—which is to say, a speaker of God's truth. And the prophetic word is not your own. It is not the result of your own meditations on the spiritual life, as valuable and correct as those may be. The prophetic word is the word of God given to you by God."_ How quickly we reject what we don't want to hear. Truth hurts. But the truth is good for us. What we need then is the greatest miracle...of humility to God Himself in His servants and people and become one with Him. ....†....
Lord, help us learn true humility, and therefore learn true faith.
.......... |  Hear it click | Random Bible Verse 1
Psalm 37:4 4 Delight yourself in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart. | If one day you don't receive these, just visit Going4th.com
God Bless You! Peace | | |
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