† Daily Quote "Nothing great is ever achieved without much enduring." St. Catherine of Siena Today's Meditation "If you love God, lust has no place in your heart. Saint Augustine teaches that the sin of lust is like an iron chain that binds you fast, enslaving your will to perversity. When lust gains entry to your heart, it quickly takes root as a habit. If you don't resist and uproot it, that habit inevitably becomes necessary."
—Patrick Madrid, p. 336 Daily Verse "Consider it all joy, my brothers, when you encounter various trials, for you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. And let perseverance be perfect, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing." James 1:2-4 | St. James the Lesser St. James the Lesser (1st c.), also called St. James the Just, was one of the Twelve Apostles and the cousin of Jesus. Both James and his brother, St. Jude, began to follow Jesus in the second year of his ministry. St. James the Less was the first of the Twelve Apostles to whom the risen Christ appeared. After Jesus' ascension into heaven, James was given charge as bishop of the Church in Jerusalem, making him an important leader of the early Church. He was well-known for his prayer life and holiness. It is described that his knees and forehead were calloused due to long hours spent prostrate in prayer. His sanctity was such that he was respected by the Jews and considered by many to be a holy man. James the Less is the author of the New Testament epistle that bears his name. He was martyred by being thrown from the roof of the Jerusalem temple and then stoned and beaten to death as he prayed for his murderers. He died in the year 62 A.D. during the reign of the Roman Emperor Nero. St. James the Less is the patron saint of pharmacists and the dying. His feast day is May 3rd. | Feast of Saints Philip and James, Apostles Reading 1 1 Cor 15:1-8 I am reminding you, brothers and sisters,
of the Gospel I preached to you,
which you indeed received and in which you also stand.
Through it you are also being saved,
if you hold fast to the word I preached to you,
unless you believed in vain.
For I handed on to you as of first importance what I also received:
that Christ died for our sins
in accordance with the Scriptures;
that he was buried;
that he was raised on the third day
in accordance with the Scriptures;
that he appeared to Cephas, then to the Twelve.
After that, he appeared to more
than five hundred brothers and sisters at once,
most of whom are still living,
though some have fallen asleep.
After that he appeared to James,
then to all the Apostles.
Last of all, as to one born abnormally,
he appeared to me. Responsorial Psalm Ps 19:2-3, 4-5 R. (5) Their message goes out through all the earth.
or:
R. Alleluia.
The heavens declare the glory of God;
and the firmament proclaims his handiwork.
Day pours out the word to day;
and night to night imparts knowledge.
R. Their message goes out through all the earth.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Not a word nor a discourse
whose voice is not heard;
Through all the earth their voice resounds,
and to the ends of the world, their message.
R. Their message goes out through all the earth.
or:
R. Alleluia. Alleluia Jn 14:6b, 9c R. Alleluia, alleluia.
I am the way, the truth, and the life, says the Lord;
Philip, whoever has seen me has seen the Father.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel Jn 14:6-14 Jesus said to Thomas, "I am the way and the truth and the life.
No one comes to the Father except through me.
If you know me, then you will also know my Father.
From now on you do know him and have seen him."
Philip said to him,
"Master, show us the Father, and that will be enough for us."
Jesus said to him, "Have I been with you for so long a time
and you still do not know me, Philip?
Whoever has seen me has seen the Father.
How can you say, 'Show us the Father'?
Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me?
The words that I speak to you I do not speak on my own.
The Father who dwells in me is doing his works.
Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me,
or else, believe because of the works themselves.
Amen, amen, I say to you,
whoever believes in me will do the works that I do,
and will do greater ones than these,
because I am going to the Father.
And whatever you ask in my name, I will do,
so that the Father may be glorified in the Son.
If you ask anything of me in my name, I will do it."
| Daily Meditation: Psalm 19:2-5 Their message goes out through all the earth. (Psalm Response) Today we celebrate two faithful apostles: Sts. Philip and James. We don't know a great deal about them, outside of what little the Gospels tell us. But we do know that Jesus chose them to be among his closest followers, and they said yes—and went on to proclaim the "message" of salvation (Psalm 19:5). Philip lived in Bethsaida, where Jesus called him (John 1:43). Philip not only followed Jesus, but he also led his friend Nathanael to meet the Lord (1:45). He brought Jesus his concerns, saying, "Two hundred days' wages worth of food would not be enough" to feed the crowds and "Show us the Father" (John 6:7; 14:8). We know even less about St. James, son of Alphaeus, who is also called James "the Lesser." His name distinguishes him from the other apostle, James "the Greater," son of Zebedee, who was killed by Herod in AD 44. Many scholars believe James the Lesser helped Peter lead the church in Jerusalem until he was killed by stoning in AD 62 (Acts 12:17; Galatians 1:19). Both Sts. Philip and James died as martyrs for preaching the gospel, so their message did indeed go out "to the ends of the world" (Psalm 19:5). That message still goes out today through the apostles' successors and through every Christian who shares the good news of Jesus—even through you. You may not feel much like an evangelist, but even the apostles started out as ordinary disciples. They heard the call and followed close to Jesus. They learned how to pray, how to serve, and how to minister to people who needed to know their heavenly Father. Like Philip and James, your encounters with Jesus can equip you to share the good news with someone in your path. So follow their example. Listen to Jesus in the words of Scripture and in the quiet of your prayer. Let him teach you about his Father and fill your heart with zeal to share his love. And don't be afraid to say, "Come and see" (John 1:46). You might just lead someone to believe in Jesus. "Lord, help me to share your good news wherever I go." 1 Corinthians 15:1-8
John 14:6-14 |  try to hear it read by AI | Reflections with Brother Adrian: | In the Holy Scripture we hear today:
""Master, show us the Father, and that will be enough for us."
Jesus said to him, "Have I been with you for so long a time
and you still do not know me, Philip?
Whoever has seen me has seen the Father.
How can you say, 'Show us the Father'?
Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me?
The words that I speak to you I do not speak on my own......" end quote. | Wouldn't it be strange, that if you pass from this life, and God our Father revealed who He was your whole life with you? That He had been there all along and you never noticed it?
He is alive. And He is speaking through people around us, and through nature, and through any means HE sees necessary.
But because this is how the spiritual world works, we also need to familiarize ourselves with His voice so that we know when the evil one is trying to speak to us too!
Because our Lord was shocked with Philip, saying "Have I been with you for so long a time and you still do not know me, Philip?" and to you He is saying the very same right now! Do not read scripture saying this was for Philip 2,000 years ago, no! The message is for you this very day! You are the Philip, you are the follower, you are the one who is sitting there with him and doubting or wondering where God is at! You are the one asking for signs of the Father, and to see Our Father! Yet our Lord is telling us very clearly: "Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me?". The Holy Spirit was infused in every cell of our Lord Jesus, and this the Holy Spirit of the Father! We are not alone!
Our Lord wants to live through us! Our Father wants to live through us! The Holy Spirit wants to live through us!
Why don't we let it be?
Why do we choose darkness instead? You can't see in the dark! Why do you want to go there and be there? That is a very hard place to see our Lord.
If you want to see Him, you will. But you must seek Him to see.
And you will be shocked that you don't see some human form or angelic being as our Father, because I'm sorry, but He is much more than that.
He is everything and in everything, and on that note then, we must do as He says to make His everything become a reality in our world. His everything is Jesus. His heart. How can we live on doubting and wanting more than our Lord, in the Scripture and in the Eucharist where the Word becomes the literal body of the Heart of God, our everything Jesus the Christ!
Can He be everything for you?
What if you pass from this life and you realize something totally shocking that would rock your world for the rest of your life: what if you realized that to Him, you were everything...meaning, He loved you more than anyone else ever could've even come close, so much that before you were born, He died for You?
Well guess what, He did. And He's back. Now He desires to live in and through you. He loves you even more now, more than any physical being could ever love, now it gets serious...now it's more than personal...it is spiritual, with eternity at stake, time has no hold, bodies have no hold.
God loves you forever. Let's love Him more than we think possible. Love God. Love neighbor. Love Holy Spirit.
Speak through Us Lord. Let us be attentive to Your every beckoning call.
|  Click for Audio | This is so beautifully amazing!
Today's Random Bible Verse :
Random Bible Verse 1 4 But1 God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—6 and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. | If one day you don't receive these, just visit Going4th.com
God Bless You! Peace | | |
