† Quote of the Day "If then we have angels, let us be sober, as though we were in the presence of tutors; for there is a demon present also." -St. John Chrysostom Today's Meditation "I will first, dearest daughter, speak to thee of the dignity of priests, having placed them where they are through My goodness, over and above the general love which I have had to My creatures, creating you in My image and likeness and re-creating you all to the life of grace in the Blood of My Only-begotten Son, whence you have arrived at such excellence, through the union which I made of My Deity with human nature; so that in this you have greater dignity and excellence than the angels, for I took your human nature and not that of the angels. Wherefore, as I have said to you, I, God, have become man, and man has become God by the union of My Divine Nature with your human nature. This greatness is given in general to all rational creatures, but, among these I have especially chosen My ministers for the sake of your salvation, so that, through them, the Blood of the humble and immaculate Lamb, My Only-begotten Son, may be administered to you." —St. Catherine Of Siena, p. 137-138
An excerpt from Dialogue of St. Catherine of Siena Daily Verse | St. Rosalia (1130–1166 A.D.) was born to a wealthy and noble Norman family, descendants of Charlemagne who had migrated to Sicily. From a young age Rosalia was strongly drawn to Christ, which caused her to leave her life of wealth and comfort to follow Him in complete solitude as a hermitess. Tradition holds that St. Rosalia was led by two angels to a cave near Palermo where she spent the rest of her life in prayer, complete solitude, and works of penance. On the cave wall she wrote "I, Rosalia, daughter of Sinibald, Lord of Roses, and Quisquina, have taken the resolution to live in this cave for the love of my Lord, Jesus Christ." Centuries later, when a plague was ravaging Palermo, her relics were discovered in the cave by a hunter to whom she had appeared in order to direct him to their location. Rosalia instructed the hunter to have her relics carried in procession three times around the city, after which the plague ceased. St. Rosalia was credited with saving the city, and a sanctuary was erected in her cave which remains a pilgrimage site to this day. St. Rosalia is the patron of Palermo and Sicily, Italy. Her feast day is September 4th. | Thursday of the Twenty-second Week in Ordinary Time Reading 1 Colossians 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 Psalm 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 Matthew 4:19 R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Come after me, says the Lord,
and I will make you fishers of men.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel Luke 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.
| Praise to You Oh Lord Jesus Christ! | Daily Meditation: Colossians 1:9-14 . . . growing in the knowledge of God. (Colossians 1:10) The process of growth is mysterious. Think of the way children develop. On the one hand, it's easy to observe growth spurts, like when a preschooler skips several clothing sizes or when, seemingly overnight, an adolescent towers over both parents. But there are other times when the change is harder to perceive—that is, until someone else points it out. It's the same thing with spiritual growth. Sometimes you can't see the way Jesus is shaping you, so you just have to hold fast to him and trust that he is at work. That's what happened with St. Paul. He saw how much the Colossians had grown "in the knowledge of God," and he urged them to persevere in cooperating with the Holy Spirit (1:10). He was confident that if they did, they would only keep growing! In your own life, you can probably point to a dramatic moment or two when you "grew up" in a hurry. Perhaps it was when you went away to college or after you experienced an unexpected tragedy. The situation made you grapple with what kind of relationship you would have with God, and the Holy Spirit gave you the grace to say a deeper "yes" to the Lord. And that changed everything! But far more of your growth happens in such tiny steps that it can be hard to see. So what does this type of growth look like? It still comes from the Holy Spirit's work in you, and as you pay attention, you will start to see it. Maybe one day you notice that you've become more patient with a coworker who used to annoy you. Or maybe you realize that the memory of a past hurt no longer troubles you as much. Or when you have your heart set on something and your plans fall through, you're able to accept it—at least a little more peacefully. With practice, you will become better at noticing the ways the Spirit is moving in your life. When you see God at work, whether in big or small ways, your hope grows, and so does your faith. So rejoice that God is so committed to you! And while you're at it, imitate St. Paul by pointing out how the Spirit is working in your friends or family. You just might help open their eyes to the Spirit's ways! "Holy Spirit, thank you for all the ways you have helped me grow closer to you!" Psalm 98:2-6
Luke 5:1-11 | Reflections with Brother Adrian: |  Hear AI Read it for u | From today's Holy Gospel: "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........." Word of the Lord. | From Bishop Barron: ".....In many ways, everything else in your life is secondary, is commentary. When the Lord Jesus Christ gets into your boat, he will always lead you to the depths. Duc in altum ("Put out into the deep"), as St. John Paul II loved to quote. More dangerous? Yes. More exciting? Yes. Now, mind you, the depths we're talking about here are spiritual depths. The excitement we're talking about is the true excitement that comes from spiritual transformation. The depths have nothing to do with what the world considers important or exciting." end quote.
From Roberto Juarez:
"The result of Simon Peter's obedience is miraculous. Abundant fishing is a sign of Jesus' father and his authority over creation. This extraordinary catch also symbolizes the spiritual abundance experienced when you trust in the Lord.....Like Peter, James and John, we are called to leave behind everything that prevents us from fully following Christ and to accept the mission he entrusts to us, being "fishers of men", that is, bringing the message of the Gospel to others. Like these early disciples, we must trust in the power of Jesus to work miracles in our lives and respond generously to his call." end quote.
What an amazing event my family in Christ. Really.
Wikipedia said of the miraculous catch: "The miraculous catch of fish, or more traditionally the miraculous draught of fish(es), is either of two events commonly (but not universally)[1] considered to be miracles in the canonical gospels. The miracles are reported as taking place years apart from each other, but in both miracles apostles are fishing unsuccessfully in the Sea of Galilee when Jesus tells them to try one more cast of the net, at which they are rewarded with a great catch."
On the first catch, Peter lowers the nets at the command of Jesus and then our Lord says "fear not, from now on you will be fishers of men" and then on the second miracle catch, our Lord had resurrected, they did not recognize Him, but later recognized him.
And what did our Lord say? Eventually our Lord asks Peter "Do you love Me?. And after that conversation our Lord says "Truly, truly I tell you, when you were younger, you used to put on your belt and walk wherever you wanted; but when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands and someone else will put your belt on you, and bring you where you do not want to go." 19Now He said this, indicating by what kind of death he would glorify God. And when He had said this, He *said to him, "Follow Me!"
Peter eventually did everything Jesus commands. He fed the sheep as our first pope. And, He died on a cross, just as Jesus said to do when He said "Follow Me".
What Peter saw was pure amazing things, and so, it did not amaze him that he would have to give up his life in this special way for God, for Jesus, for the Holy Spirit.
The miracle of the fish catch means something. Mother Mary had it right when she said "Do whatever He tells you". Why?
Don't ask why. Don't worry about the results. I've often asked why, when I see very poor results, very few fish being caught as we fish for men.
Just do whatever He tells you. He knows the end result....of our obedience....our will united with His. |  audio | Random Bible Verse 1
Isaiah 40:30–31 30 Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted;
31 but they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.
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God Bless You! Peace | | |
