†Quote of the Day "Grant me, O Lord my God, a mind to know you, a heart to seek you, wisdom to find you, conduct pleasing to you, faithful perseverance in waiting for you, and a hope of finally embracing you." St. Thomas Aquinas †Today's Meditation Today's Meditation "There is not a moment in which God does not present Himself under the cover of some pain to be endured, of some consolation to be enjoyed, or of some duty to be performed. All that takes place within us, around us, or through us, contains and conceals His divine action. It is really and truly there present, but invisibly present, so that we are always surprised and do not recognise His operation until it has ceased. If we could lift the veil, and if we were attentive and watchful God would continually reveal Himself to us, and we should see His divine action in everything that happened to us, and rejoice in it. At each successive occurrence we should exclaim: 'It is the Lord', and we should accept every fresh circumstance as a gift of God. We should look upon creatures as feeble tools in the hands of an able workman, and should discover easily that nothing was wanting to us, and that the constant providence of God disposed Him to bestow upon us at every moment whatever we required." —Fr. Jean-Pierre de Caussade, p. 49 †Daily Verse "The way of the righteous is level; thou dost make smooth the path of the righteous. In the path of thy judgments, O Lord, we wait for thee; thy memorial name is the desire of our soul. My soul yearns for thee in the night, my spirit within me earnestly seeks thee. For when thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world learn righteousness." Isaiah 26:7-9 | click to read more | | Saint Ignatius of Santhia St. Ignatius of Santhia (1686-1770) was born in Italy to an upper-class family. He received his early education from a devout priest, a relative of his mother, who inspired him to join the priesthood. He studied philosophy and theology, and after his ordination served as a diocesan priest for six years. St. Ignatius earned a reputation as an excellent preacher of retreats and missions, and he had a promising future within the diocese. His family and parishioners were surprised and disappointed when he decided to join the Capuchin Franciscans in Turin as a poor, humble friar. However, St. Ignatius flourished in the poverty and simplicity of the Franciscan way of life. He became well-known for his wisdom and sanctity, and many people from all walks of life came to him for confession and spiritual direction. He had a great devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary and prayed the rosary faithfully. He served God with humble obedience and inspired this virtue in the Franciscan novices over whom he had charge. He spent his last years on a sickbed where he continued to hear confessions and give dire | Friday of the Twenty-fourth Week in Ordinary Time Reading 1 1 Tm 6:2c-12 Beloved: Teach and urge these things. Whoever teaches something different and does not agree with the sound words of our Lord Jesus Christ and the religious teaching is conceited, understanding nothing, and has a morbid disposition for arguments and verbal disputes. From these come envy, rivalry, insults, evil suspicions, and mutual friction among people with corrupted minds, who are deprived of the truth, supposing religion to be a means of gain. Indeed, religion with contentment is a great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, just as we shall not be able to take anything out of it. If we have food and clothing, we shall be content with that. Those who want to be rich are falling into temptation and into a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires, which plunge them into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is the root of all evils, and some people in their desire for it have strayed from the faith and have pierced themselves with many pains. But you, man of God, avoid all this. Instead, pursue righteousness, devotion, faith, love, patience, and gentleness. Compete well for the faith. Lay hold of eternal life, to which you were called when you made the noble confession in the presence of many witnesses. Responsorial Psalm Ps 49:6-7, 8-10, 17-18, 19-20 R. Blessed the poor in spirit; the Kingdom of heaven is theirs! Why should I fear in evil days when my wicked ensnarers ring me round? They trust in their wealth; the abundance of their riches is their boast. R. Blessed the poor in spirit; the Kingdom of heaven is theirs! Yet in no way can a man redeem himself, or pay his own ransom to God; Too high is the price to redeem one's life; he would never have enough to remain alive always and not see destruction. R. Blessed the poor in spirit; the Kingdom of heaven is theirs! Fear not when a man grows rich, when the wealth of his house becomes great, For when he dies, he shall take none of it; his wealth shall not follow him down. R. Blessed the poor in spirit; the Kingdom of heaven is theirs! Though in his lifetime he counted himself blessed, "They will praise you for doing well for yourself," He shall join the circle of his forebears who shall never more see light. R. Blessed the poor in spirit; the Kingdom of heaven is theirs! Alleluia See Mt 11:25 R. Alleluia, alleluia. Blessed are you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth; you have revealed to little ones the mysteries of the Kingdom. R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel Lk 8:1-3 Jesus journeyed from one town and village to another, preaching and proclaiming the good news of the Kingdom of God. Accompanying him were the Twelve and some women who had been cured of evil spirits and infirmities, Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out, Joanna, the wife of Herod's steward Chuza, Susanna, and many others who provided for them out of their resources. | DAILY MEDITATION: 1 TIMOTHY 6:2-12 T_hose who want to be rich are falling into temptation. (1 Timothy 6:9)_ Today seems to be "money day" in our readings! At the end of the first reading, St. Paul warns against falling into harmful desires, especially the desire to be rich (1 Timothy 6:9). Then, Psalm 49 reminds us not to be envious when we see someone else growing rich because "when he dies, he shall take none of it" (49:18). Finally, in the Gospel, we hear of the women who provided for Jesus and his disciples "out of their resources" (Luke 8:3). So let's look at how we think about money—especially since today's readings kind of bring us full circle. Paul's advice to Timothy raises the central issue. The problem, as Paul sees it, seems to be in our desires. When he warns against the temptations and fallout of wanting "to be rich" (1 Timothy 6:9), the Greek word he uses is plouteo. But that doesn't just mean wanting to be financially secure; it also means desiring an overabundance and the best that money can buy. It doesn't just mean wanting more than we need; it also means wanting what someone else has. And that can become a trap for us. The psalm provides a sort of antidote to these disordered desires. It tells us that seeing someone else become rich should not distress us or make us grasp more for ourselves. The rich may boast in "the abundance of their riches" (Psalm 49:7), but they will be disappointed. Why? Because material wealth is temporary. It does not follow us into the afterlife (49:18), and it certainly cannot save us (49:8-9). Today's Gospel gives us an example of what a healthy relationship to money can look like. The women who supported Jesus were wealthy; they clearly had abundant "resources" (Luke 8:3). But their generosity with the gifts God had given them shows that they were not driven by the desire to attain more just for the sake of having more (8:3). They used money as a tool by freely sharing it to support Jesus and his ministry. How does God want you to think about money? Remember that you can't take it with you. So be content with what you have, and be as generous as you are able. "Lord, I want to think about money the way you do." Psalm 49:6-10, 17-20 Luke 8:1-3 | click to hear 2cents | Reflections with Brother Adrian: | From today's 1st Holy Scripture: _"For the love of money is the root of all evils, and some people in their desire for it have strayed from the faith and have pierced themselves with many pains. But you, man of God, avoid all this. Instead, pursue righteousness, devotion, faith, love, patience, and gentleness. Compete well for the faith....."_ end of verse. . . . | We pray today: "Why should I fear in evil days when my wicked ensnarers ring me round? They trust in their wealth; the abundance of their riches is their boast. Blessed the poor in spirit; the Kingdom of heaven is theirs!........"_ end of Psalm." | In the Gospel today we heard: "Jesus journeyed from one town and village to another, preaching and proclaiming the good news of the Kingdom of God. Accompanying him were the Twelve and some women who had been cured of evil spirits and infirmities..." ........" end of Gospel verse. ... | They went with our Lord....preaching and proclaiming the good news. That is our calling in our Sacraments. That was His calling before ascending into Heaven. Our Lord calls...and when He calls...it is not an invitation...but a command. ........ Let us pray: LORD, help us have a heart to hear You and to follow You forever. | Click To Hear | Random Bible Matthew 5:8 [Matthew 5] 8 "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. | If one day you don't receive these, just visit Going4th.com God Bless You! Peace | | |
No comments:
Post a Comment