†Saint Quote of the Day
"Three things are necessary to everyone: truth of faith which brings understanding, love of Christ which brings compassion, and endurance of hope which brings perseverance."
–St. Bonaventure †Today's Meditation
Today's Meditation
"My Heart overflows with great mercy for souls, and especially for poor sinners. If only they could understand that I am the best of Fathers to them and that it is for them that the Blood and Water flowed from My Heart as from a fount overflowing with mercy. For them I dwell in the tabernacle as King of Mercy. I desire to bestow My graces upon souls, but they do not want to accept them. You, at least, come to Me as often as possible and take these graces they do not want to accept. In this way you will console My Heart. Oh, how indifferent are souls to so much goodness, to so many proofs of love! My Heart drinks only of the ingratitude and forgetfulness of souls living in the world. They have time for everything, but they have no time to come to Me for graces."
—Jesus to St. Maria Faustina Kowalska, 367 †Daily Verse
"But even if you should suffer because of righteousness, blessed are you. Do not be afraid or terrified with fear of them, but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts. Always be ready to give an explanation to anyone who asks you for a reason for your hope, but do it with gentleness and reverence, keeping your conscience clear, so that, when you are maligned, those who defame your good conduct in Christ may themselves be put to shame." –1 Peter 3:14-16 |  click to read more | | St. Regina Saint Regina (d. 286 A.D.) was born to pagan parents in France. Her mother died in childbirth, and her father gave her to the care of a Christian nurse who secretly baptized her and raised her in the Christian faith. As Regina grew older her embrace of Christianity became evident, and her father disowned her as a result. Regina then went to live with her Christian nurse. They lived in poverty, and Regina tended sheep to help support the household. This solitude allowed her time to pray and meditate on the lives of the saints. When she was fifteen years of age, a Roman proconsul by the name of Olybrius was determined to marry her. He became greatly disturbed when he discovered that she was a Christian. He asked her to renounce her faith in order to save her life and secure a prosperous marriage with him. Regina staunchly refused to deny her faith, having already taken a vow of virginity to Christ. For her defiance she was cast into prison. Hoping that her resolve would gradually weaken, Olybrius visited her in prison and asked her once more to renounce her faith. Regina's determination only increased with time, and she again refused. Olybrius, angered, had her severely tortured with her body being scourged, burned, and raked. Finally, she was beheaded. Her resolve under torture and the appearance of a dove above her head caused witnesses to convert to Christianity. After her death many miracles were attributed to her relics. St. Regina is the patron of poor people, shepherdesses, and torture victims. Her feast day is September 7th. | Thursday of the Twenty-second Week in Ordinary Time Reading 1 Col 1:9-14 Brothers and sisters:
From the day we heard about you, we do not cease praying for you
and asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of God's will
through all spiritual wisdom and understanding
to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord,
so as to be fully pleasing, in every good work bearing fruit
and growing in the knowledge of God,
strengthened with every power, in accord with his glorious might,
for all endurance and patience,
with joy giving thanks to the Father, who has made you fit to share
in the inheritance of the holy ones in light.
He delivered us from the power of darkness
and transferred us to the Kingdom of his beloved Son,
in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. Responsorial Psalm Ps 98:2-3ab, 3cd-4, 5-6 R. (2) The Lord has made known his salvation.
The LORD has made his salvation known:
in the sight of the nations he has revealed his justice.
He has remembered his kindness and his faithfulness
toward the house of Israel.
R. The Lord has made known his salvation.
All the ends of the earth have seen
the salvation by our God.
Sing joyfully to the LORD, all you lands;
break into song; sing praise.
R. The Lord has made known his salvation.
Sing praise to the LORD with the harp,
with the harp and melodious song.
With trumpets and the sound of the horn
sing joyfully before the King, the LORD.
R. The Lord has made known his salvation. Alleluia Mt 4:19 R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Come after me, says the Lord,
and I will make you fishers of men.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel Lk 5:1-11 While the crowd was pressing in on Jesus and listening to the word of God,
he was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret.
He saw two boats there alongside the lake;
the fishermen had disembarked and were washing their nets.
Getting into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon,
he asked him to put out a short distance from the shore.
Then he sat down and taught the crowds from the boat.
After he had finished speaking, he said to Simon,
"Put out into deep water and lower your nets for a catch."
Simon said in reply,
"Master, we have worked hard all night and have caught nothing,
but at your command I will lower the nets."
When they had done this, they caught a great number of fish
and their nets were tearing.
They signaled to their partners in the other boat
to come to help them.
They came and filled both boats
so that the boats were in danger of sinking.
When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at the knees of Jesus and said,
"Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man."
For astonishment at the catch of fish they had made seized him
and all those with him,
and likewise James and John, the sons of Zebedee,
who were partners of Simon.
Jesus said to Simon, "Do not be afraid;
from now on you will be catching men."
When they brought their boats to the shore,
they left everything and followed him.
| DAILY MEDITATION: LUKE 5:1-11
Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man. (Luke 5:8) If you've ever put a fresh coat of paint on a single wall in a room of your house, you've probably noticed that the other walls, the rugs, and even the furniture suddenly look so much worse than before. The brightness of the new wall makes everything else look dull. It can be frustrating to see the stark contrast, and you might wish you could paint or replace everything in the room! In some ways, coming into the presence of the Lord can be like painting one wall of our home. Our sinfulness becomes achingly obvious when we get a sense of Jesus' holiness and goodness. Like that homeowner, we are aware of how far short we fall compared to the perfect love of our Savior. This is one way to understand Peter's reaction in today's Gospel. When he realizes that Jesus miraculously helped him catch all those fish, he didn't show simple astonishment, as if he had just witnessed a magic trick. He caught a glimpse of Jesus' holiness, and that glimpse moved him to fall to his knees and confess his sinfulness. In light of Jesus' perfection, his imperfections became clear. This would be depressing if the story ended with Peter on his knees, ashamed of his sin. But that's not how it ends. Hearing Peter's confession, Jesus simply says, "Do not be afraid," and then he calls him into a new life of "catching men" instead of fish (Luke 5:10). Isn't that amazing? Jesus didn't reject Peter because of his sin. He didn't walk away and look for someone better qualified. Instead, he poured out his love and mercy and called Peter to his side. It can be hard not to get discouraged by our sins. We might want to avoid getting too close to Jesus because we are afraid of what he'll say to us. If that describes you, let this story reassure you. Jesus' love for you is so pure and full of mercy that there's no room for condemnation or rejection. All he wants is to forgive you and heal you. All he wants is to renovate every "room" in your heart so that you can know his goodness and share it with the people around you. So "do not be afraid" (Luke 5:10)! "Thank you, Lord, for looking upon me with infinite mercy and love!" Colossians 1:9-14
Psalm 98:2-6 |  click to hear 2cents | Reflections with Brother Adrian: | From today's 1st Holy Scripture:
"He delivered us from the power of darkness
and transferred us to the Kingdom of his beloved Son,
in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. ....." end of verse. . . .
Would you agree that Christ is the light?
Would you then agree that this is what He came for...to shine the light in our dark world?
Would you also agree that He has called us to do the same by Him living in us?
Holy Eucharist let us shine! | We pray today:
"The LORD has made his salvation known:
in the sight of the nations he has revealed his justice.
He has remembered his kindness and his faithfulness
toward the house of Israel. ...."_ end of Psalm." | In the Gospel today we heard:
"When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at the knees of Jesus and said,
"Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man."
For astonishment at the catch of fish they had made seized him
and all those with him,
and likewise James and John, the sons of Zebedee,
who were partners of Simon.
Jesus said to Simon, "Do not be afraid;
from now on you will be catching men."........" end of Gospel verse. | Our Lord reveals Himself in miracles, and miracles that are to be discusssed and shared throughout the world. Do you believe? Do you believe this happened? How does it make you feel? Does it move you?
Have you ever seen such things, where all things looked grim and desolate, like a barren desert, and suddenly there was a spring of water, of life giving water?
This is what Saint Peter our first Pope saw on that seashore. Something a professional fisherman could ever dream of, happened before his very eyes.
And this same thing can be for us as we are now called to hope in fishing for men (and women), men here meaning all mankind. The translation is better in other languages where "men" means everyone. And why fishing for men? And how? What bait can we use! What fishing techniques can we use?
And this is important because the harvest has been growing by leaps and bounds as people have fallen away from the church and the faith.
There is so much work to do!
How can we bring men to our Lord?
Just like one day at a time, it will be one person at a time. Serve Jesus in the person in front of you. And it will be our Lord shining the light.
........
Let us pray:
Lord, by Your side, I will seek other shores. You have come to the seashore, looking for me. I am here, and with Thee I want to be! |  Click To Hear | Random Bible Verse 1
Philippians 4:6–7
[Philippians 4] 6 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. | If one day you don't receive these, just visit Going4th.com
God Bless You! Peace | | |
