† Saint Quote of the DayA soul which does not practice the exercise of prayer is very like a paralyzed body which, though possessing feet and hands, makes no use of them. St. Alphonsus Liguori
Today's Meditation“Oh, what awesome mysteries take place during Mass! One day we will know what God is doing for us in each Mass, and what sort of gift He is preparing in it for us. Only His divine love could permit that such a gift be provided for us. O Jesus, my Jesus, with what great pain is my soul pierced when I see this fountain of life gushing forth with such sweetness and power for each soul, while at the same time I see souls withering away and drying up through their own fault. O Jesus, grant that the power of mercy embrace these souls.”
—St. Maria Faustina Kowalska, 914
Daily Verse"But for thee, O Lord, do I wait; it is thou, O Lord my God, who wilt answer. "
Psalm 38:15
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EWTN Daily Saint
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St. BartholomewPatron Saint of: Butchers, bookbinders, leather workers, and plasterers
Feast Day: August 24 St. Bartholomew (1st c.) is one of Jesus’ Twelve Apostles who, together with his friend and fellow Apostle Philip, came from Cana in Galilee. All we know of St. Bartholomew (also called Nathaniel) is what is mentioned of him in the synoptic Gospels and the book of Acts. Philip told Bartholomew that he had found the Messiah, and, despite Bartholomew’s incredulity, the two went together to see Jesus. When Jesus saw Bartholomew he exclaimed, “Here is a true Israelite. There is no duplicity in him!”, indicating that Bartholomew possessed great purity of heart. Bartholomew then asked Jesus how he knew him, and Jesus explained that he saw Bartholomew sitting under the fig tree. This secret between Jesus and Bartholomew caused Bartholomew to immediately exclaim that Jesus was the Messiah and the Son of God. According to the Roman Martyrology, Bartholomew became a missionary in the East, preaching and evangelizing in Asia Minor, Ethiopia, India, and finally Armenia, where he was flayed alive and beheaded by King Astyages. St. Bartholomew is the patron saint of nervous and neurological diseases, butchers, leather workers, tanners, cobblers, trappers, and shoemakers. His feast day is August 24th.
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Feast of Saint Bartholomew, ApostleLectionary: 629 Reading 1Revelation 21:9b-14 The angel spoke to me, saying,
"Come here.
I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb."
He took me in spirit to a great, high mountain
and showed me the holy city Jerusalem
coming down out of heaven from God.
It gleamed with the splendor of God.
Its radiance was like that of a precious stone,
like jasper, clear as crystal.
It had a massive, high wall,
with twelve gates where twelve angels were stationed
and on which names were inscribed,
the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel.
There were three gates facing east,
three north, three south, and three west.
The wall of the city had twelve courses of stones as its foundation,
on which were inscribed the twelve names
of the twelve Apostles of the Lamb. Responsorial PsalmPsalm 145:10-11, 12-13, 17-18 R. (12) Your friends make known, O Lord, the glorious splendor of your Kingdom.
Let all your works give you thanks, O LORD,
and let your faithful ones bless you.
Let them discourse of the glory of your Kingdom
and speak of your might.
R. Your friends make known, O Lord, the glorious splendor of your Kingdom.
Making known to men your might
and the glorious splendor of your Kingdom.
Your Kingdom is a Kingdom for all ages,
and your dominion endures through all generations.
R. Your friends make known, O Lord, the glorious splendor of your Kingdom.
The LORD is just in all his ways
and holy in all his works.
The LORD is near to all who call upon him,
to all who call upon him in truth.
R. Your friends make known, O Lord, the glorious splendor of your Kingdom. AlleluiaJohn 1:49b R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Rabbi, you are the Son of God;
you are the King of Israel.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. GospelJohn 1:45-51 Philip found Nathanael and told him,
"We have found the one about whom Moses wrote in the law,
and also the prophets, Jesus son of Joseph, from Nazareth."
But Nathanael said to him,
"Can anything good come from Nazareth?"
Philip said to him, "Come and see."
Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him and said of him,
"Here is a true child of Israel.
There is no duplicity in him."
Nathanael said to him, "How do you know me?"
Jesus answered and said to him,
"Before Philip called you, I saw you under the fig tree."
Nathanael answered him,
"Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the King of Israel."
Jesus answered and said to him,
"Do you believe
because I told you that I saw you under the fig tree?
You will see greater things than this."
And he said to him, "Amen, amen, I say to you,
you will see heaven opened and the angels of God
ascending and descending on the Son of Man."
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Praise to You Oh Lord Jesus Christ!
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From Word Among Us WAU.org
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Daily Meditation: John 1:45-51Can anything good come from Nazareth? (John 1:46) How easy it is to judge people and situations based only on earthly assumptions! That’s what Nathanael did when he first heard about Jesus. Nathanael, who is thought to be the same person as Bartholomew, saw only a carpenter’s son, a man from a small town in Galilee. But when Jesus told him, “I saw you under the fig tree,” Nathanael saw Jesus in a whole new light—not just as a man from Nazareth, but as “the Son of God” and “the King of Israel” (John 1:48, 49). It can be very challenging to look at things through the lens of God’s great wisdom. Nathanael made his first disparaging comment about Jesus before he had encountered him. But once Jesus spoke with him, Nathanael’s vision was enlarged. He saw that Jesus already knew him and that he had a wonderful future in store for him. After that one conversation, Nathanael’s life was never the same. He chose to follow Jesus. In turn, Jesus chose him as one of the Twelve. Like Nathanael, we, too, may see only the earthly reality but miss the heavenly one. We might wonder, “What good can come from X situation?” or “What good can come from Y relationship?” But as he did for Nathanael, Jesus can open our minds and give us a heavenly perspective on whatever might be puzzling to us. He can help us see everything in the light of his love and his purpose for our lives. Let Jesus open your mind today. Close your eyes and picture yourself resting under the shade of a leafy tree, like Nathanael. Imagine Jesus walking toward you. He sits down next to you, looks at you intently, and says, “Before the creation of the world, I saw you and I loved you. Now, what’s on your mind?” Go ahead and share your heart with him. Then wait and see how he responds. Even if you don’t hear anything in that moment, trust that over time, Jesus will open your eyes to see your life in a heavenly light. God has “greater things” in store for you (John 1:50)—and he wants you to set your sights on them, even now! “Jesus, open my mind and my heart to heaven!” Revelation 21:9-14
Psalm 145:10-13, 17-18
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Reflections with Brother Adrian:
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From today's Holy Gospel: "....Nathanael answered him,
"Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the King of Israel."
Jesus answered and said to him,
"Do you believe
because I told you that I saw you under the fig tree?
You will see greater things than this."
And he said to him, "Amen, amen, I say to you,
you will see heaven opened and the angels of God
ascending and descending on the Son of Man....”
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From Roberto Juarez:
"There are periods of existence when we need at all costs to seek to understand what we are experiencing (through reflection, through prayer, or by asking for advice from those who demonstrate their prudence), because it is thanks to this light and in cooperation with it that we have understood that we will progress in this way. But there are also times when one must renounce understanding: then the time will have come to abandon oneself to God with blind trust. The light will come later: What I do, you do not understand now, you will understand later, Jesus says to Peter.
In this case, trying to understand at all costs would do us more harm than good, it would increase the pain instead of calming it and it would only exacerbate our doubts, our insecurities, our fears and our questions, without answering them. It is no longer a question of satisfying the intelligence by seeking an answer, but of making acts of faith and abandoning oneself to God. The only thing that can give us peace is not to have the answer to our questions, but to have humble and trusting prayer, that attitude expressed by the prophet Jeremiah: It is good to wait in silence for the help of Yahweh." end of quote from Roberto.
From Brother Adrian: In Mass today, our priest spoke about our prejudices we may have on people. What color skin. Where are they from. All so you have preconceived notions. And what happens when you depend on familiar or similar differences? The proverb "familiarity breeds contempt" means that knowing someone or something very well can cause you to lose respect for them, take them for granted, or focus on their flaws. The concept is ancient, with similar ideas traced back to Aesop and Geoffrey Chaucer.
This contempt can be deadly. I think of the great "Crocodile Hunter" when I think of contempt.
The "Crocodile Hunter" was Steve Irwin, a famous Australian animal expert, TV host, and nature protector. He became known around the world for his energetic style and hands-on work with dangerous animals like crocodiles and snakes. He died in 2006 at age 44 after a stingray barb pierced his chest while filming underwater.
I always use this example when I speak in our safety meetings.
I remind everyone that we should not be comfortable, mindless, thinking you know everything...or else, the worst could happen to you.
Watch your six. "Watch your six" means to watch your back or stay alert to hidden dangers. The number six refers to the 6 o'clock position on a clock face, which is directly behind you when 12 o'clock is straight ahead.
As I grow older, I'm watching my environment. I study. Not only books, but how life works. I watch how our Lord works, and I see how darkness has powers as well.
As I grow older, I become, more afraid...to sin. Is this spiritual maturity?
Have I digressed from the call of God, to Bartholomew or Nathaniel?
I watch how things are constantly changing. Old places disappear, new ones grow in other areas. But the morals, the are constants. But how evil works, it can get crazy if you are not constantly living a life of grace.
Nathaniel, though he was with prejudice about our Lord, he was pleasantly surprised. The secret to being amazed ( a true sign of the Holy Spirit) is....being open to Him. So when they told Him "come to the Lord", he may have doubted, but was open to the possibility of encountering the Messiah...our Savior.
And because of this...an encounter happened.
Our Lord said "I saw you". And this changed everything.
What was the moment like? Nathaniel must have been praying for God to see him. And our Lord said he saw him.
As for you, be prepared. This world is constantly evolving...but there are constants looking at you. It is the Holy Trinity.
Not only that, but people looking at you everywhere you go...God sees you through them too. What will they see?
Even those that treat you ill, they too want to see. And it boils down to the question for martyrs ... "do YOU believe?".
And what is the great Amen? We went to a family conference this weekend, over 1,000 in attendance. One of the most impressive speakers was a priest that wrote a book I bought, the only book I bought, even after seeing Chris Stefanick and Edward Sri speak: THE THUNDEROUS AMEN: Confessions of Another Augustine by AUGUSTINE OWUSU PEPRAH (Author).
I'm getting into the thundersous Amen, and diving in, it gets deep fast.
But it it all boils down to the conversion point as well. And what happens after a conversion?
THE GREAT AMEN AWAITS.
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Random Bible Verse 1
Matthew 6:24 “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money."
Word of the Lord!
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