† Quote of the Day "Our true worth does not consist in what human beings think of us. What we really are consists in what God knows us to be." — St. John Berchmans Today's Meditation "It seems to me that kneeling this moment before my Lord, concealed in the Holy Eucharist, as if next to my Mother beneath the cross, I surrender myself together with her for the accomplishment of God's most holy will in all things. I desire to love her with the heart of St. John the beloved disciple and to always abide with her. Together with St. John Berchmans I can say, 'I love Mary; therefore, I also expect to persevere in good, until the end.'" —Mother Raohael Lubowidzka of the sweetest Heart of Jesus, CSFN, p.
An excerpt from 100 Holy Hours for Women Daily Verse "But rather, love your enemies and do good to them, and lend expecting nothing back; then your reward will be great and you will be children of the Most High, for he himself is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked. Be merciful, just as [also] your Father is merciful." — Luke 6:35-36 | St. John Berchmans St. John Berchmans (1599-1621) was born in Flanders, Belgium, the eldest of five children of a shoemaker. He was a virtuous and well-liked child who would often rise early to serve at two or three Masses a day before he reached the age of seven. On Friday evenings he had a custom of making the Stations of the Cross outdoors while barefoot. When he was nine years old his mother suffered from a long and terrible illness, and John faithfully attended her bedside until she died. As a pious young person devoted to the things of God, he enrolled in a Jesuit college where he was known for being an energetic and outgoing student with great academic potential and leadership qualities. He also joined the Society of the Blessed Virgin and prayed her Office daily. He discerned a vocation to the religious life and began priestly formation as a Jesuit. His way of holiness was to perform his ordinary duties with extraordinary fidelity and perfection even in the smallest details, believing that, "If I do not become a saint when I am young, I shall never become one." He died tragically of a fever at the age of twenty-two while studying for the seminary in Rome. Many miracles were attributed to him after his death. St. John Berchmans is the patron saint of altar servers and young people. His feast day is November 26th. | Tuesday of the Thirty-fourth Week in Ordinary Time Reading 1 RV 14:14-19 I, John, looked and there was a white cloud,
and sitting on the cloud one who looked like a son of man,
with a gold crown on his head and a sharp sickle in his hand.
Another angel came out of the temple,
crying out in a loud voice to the one sitting on the cloud,
"Use your sickle and reap the harvest,
for the time to reap has come,
because the earth's harvest is fully ripe."
So the one who was sitting on the cloud swung his sickle over the earth,
and the earth was harvested.
Then another angel came out of the temple in heaven
who also had a sharp sickle.
Then another angel came from the altar, who was in charge of the fire,
and cried out in a loud voice
to the one who had the sharp sickle,
"Use your sharp sickle and cut the clusters from the earth's vines,
for its grapes are ripe."
So the angel swung his sickle over the earth and cut the earth's vintage.
He threw it into the great wine press of God's fury. Responsorial Psalm 96:10, 11-12, 13 R. (13b) The Lord comes to judge the earth.
Say among the nations: The LORD is king.
He has made the world firm, not to be moved;
he governs the peoples with equity.
R. The Lord comes to judge the earth.
Let the heavens be glad and the earth rejoice;
let the sea and what fills it resound;
let the plains be joyful and all that is in them!
Then shall all the trees of the forest exult.
R. The Lord comes to judge the earth.
Before the LORD, for he comes;
for he comes to rule the earth.
He shall rule the world with justice
and the peoples with his constancy.
R. The Lord comes to judge the earth. Alleluia RV 2:10C R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Remain faithful until death,
and I will give you the crown of life.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel LK 21:5-11 While some people were speaking about
how the temple was adorned with costly stones and votive offerings,
Jesus said, "All that you see here–
the days will come when there will not be left
a stone upon another stone that will not be thrown down."
Then they asked him,
"Teacher, when will this happen?
And what sign will there be when all these things are about to happen?"
He answered,
"See that you not be deceived,
for many will come in my name, saying,
'I am he,' and 'The time has come.'
Do not follow them!
When you hear of wars and insurrections,
do not be terrified; for such things must happen first,
but it will not immediately be the end."
Then he said to them,
"Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.
There will be powerful earthquakes, famines, and plagues
from place to place;
and awesome sights and mighty signs will come from the sky."
| Daily Meditation: Luke 21:5-11 The days will come . . . (Luke 21:6) Horrifying. That's how many people would describe that day in April 2019 when the Cathedral of Notre Dame in Paris burned. As the majestic church's roof and spire were consumed by flames and collapsed, throngs of people looked on in despair. How could such a beautiful place of worship—one that had been built for the glory of God and had stood the test of centuries—suddenly seem so vulnerable? Horrifying. That's also how we might describe Jesus' words in today's Gospel. The people of Jerusalem were admiring the Temple, "adorned with costly stones and votive offerings" (Luke 21:5). But Jesus shocked them when he said that this place, where God dwelt with his people and where they worshipped him, would be destroyed. As majestic as the Temple was, "there [would] not be left a stone upon another stone" (21:6). And that was just the beginning. Jesus also predicted wars and natural disasters that would accompany these alarming events (21:10-11). Such calamities might make you question whether there is anything stable or permanent in this world. And that's a good question to ask. Because events like these have the potential—paradoxically—to point you toward some very good news. Yes, created things are passing away. Cathedrals, temples, political stability, even simple comforts—none of them will last forever. But you were not made just for this created world. You were made for eternity. You belong to heaven itself! So when things around you don't seem so stable, remember that your horizon extends far beyond this passing earthly realm. When people or possessions that you thought you could trust let you down, know that Jesus is completely trustworthy because he never changes. He holds you in the palm of his hand, and he will never let you go. And when you start to worry about your security, realize that no matter what happens, Jesus has already prepared a place for you in his Father's house (John 14:2). You belong to him! "Jesus, I trust in you. When I am distressed by instability, help me to sink my roots deeper into you." Revelation 14:14-19
Psalm 96:10-13 | Reflections with Brother Adrian: |  Click to hear Audio | In the Holy Scripture we hear today:
"When you hear of wars and insurrections,
do not be terrified; for such things must happen first,
but it will not immediately be the end."
Then he said to them,
"Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.
There will be powerful earthquakes, famines, and plagues
from place to place;
and awesome sights and mighty signs will come from the sky." ....." end Gospel quote, word of the Lord. | From Bishop Barron:
"Friends, in today's Gospel, Jesus responds to questions about the end of the world. When will it come? What will happen?
Why were the first Christians interested in these questions? The simplest and deepest answer is that they had experienced the end of the world—precisely in the dying and rising of Jesus.
Jesus came preaching the kingdom of God, and the nations conspired against him. The old world seemed to conquer this new world that Jesus embodied. But then, in the Resurrection, they saw that the old world—the world predicated upon death and the world that had done Jesus in—was now defeated.
So awed were they by the Resurrection—and you can sense it in every book and letter of the New Testament—that they awaited the imminent arrival of the new state of affairs, the return of Jesus and the establishment of God's kingdom. Though Jesus did not immediately return, the old world was over, broken, compromised, its destruction now just a matter of time....." End quote Bishop Barron.
Everything that our Lord has said on earth, in our world, has been fulfilled and is being fulfilled, and will continue to be fulfilled.
The book of Revelation points the "Son of Man" with a sickle, and has swung the sickle at the calling of an angel from the temple, for the harvest to be harvested for the time was right. Grapes were thrown into the wine press of God's fury.
And this was God's fury, that He entered our life, and we failed to recognize Him. We fail to acknowledge Him. We fail to choose Him. We fail to obey Him. Why is this so infuriating? After many centuries of frustration, things can turn into a boil. Something has to be done. We don't get it. Wars are unending. People continue fighting, in your home, in your church, in your community, and nations against nations. We just don't learn! We don't seem to learn from the past. We repeat the same stupid mistakes over and over, at the cost of many innocent lives.
Just because we do not seem to care about innocent lives, it does not mean that God does not care about innocent lives.
And so, it is to our own demise that we fail to recognize His coming.
The advent of the Christ the King.
I think of one immense injustice to Heaven. Please learn this injustice.
The greatest injustice in Heaven, is that we are given this life on earth to have faith that moves mountains, yet, we squander it with a doubt, and waste away our lives. What do I mean? It means that our prayers are huge, and have eternal ramifications! How is that even fair in Heaven, that us that are lowly, can have such a huge benefit from God Himself?
And so it is, a beautiful gift, the faith, the very love of God.
But since we were faithless, God had to come show us Himself what faith ought to be.
He came, in the Son of Man, the only Child of God made in woman, creation, to save humanity, and we chose sin in our darkness, our stupidity, our sinfulness, yet, He let Himself be slaughtered so that our yes could be opened to Him.
Then, the temple was destroyed in every sense. Our temple would be destroyed, by our own doing, by destroying the God man. No more of your sacrifices are needed, only His offering of thanksgiving to God in the Eucharist. Revelation, fulfilled. Revelation, living daily.
Take heart, let us gather under His wings, for Jesus is the supreme angel of all angels. He desires for the harvest and laborers to come together. The time is coming and has come. He is now, and forever, giving glory to God, in us, and on that cross.
One man at the nursing home said to me this Sunday as we prayed together with the group, "I believe you are on a mission to bring joy to the world". Later my mom would randomly tell me that evening, that the Holy Spirit is His own person, as Jesus is His only Person.
Yes, yet, they are one.
And this is how and why our Lord wants to come to us. In Jesus our King, yes, in the Holy Spirit, definitely.
Lord help us make Thy Kingdom come! Come Lord! We will start making room, the best room in our home, our heart, and soul. The King of us all is coming. He knows the Way. He Is the Truth, our life. |  audio | Random Bible Verse 1
Ephesians 6:16–18 16 In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; 17 and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, 18 praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints, | If one day you don't receive these, just visit Going4th.com
God Bless You! Peace | | |
