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Saint Quote of the Day
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There are in truth three states of the converted: the beginning, the middle, and the perfection. In the beginning they experience the charms of sweetness; in the middle the contests of temptation; and in the end the fullness of perfection. Pope St. Gregory the Great
Today's Meditation“The first level of contrition is a contrition of fear. It’s called, “imperfect contrition” or “attrition,” because it’s motivated by awareness of the ugliness of sin and by fear of eternal damnation. Prompted by the Holy Spirit, it begins a process of inner conversion that disposes us to grace and is completed by sacramental absolution…The second level of contrition, called “perfect contrition,” [is] motivated not by a self-oriented fear, but by love for God and the awareness of how good He is. This is much more personal, leading to a deeper relationship with God and a growing desire to avoid anything that might offend Him.”
– Vinny Flynn, p.118-119
Daily Verse †For those he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, so that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those he predestined he also called; and those he called he also justified; and those he justified he also glorified. What then shall we say to this? If God is for us, who can be against us? Romans 8:29-31
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EWTN Daily Saint
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Pope St. Gregory the GreatPatron Saint of: Musicians, singers, teachers, and liturgical music
Feast Day: September 3 Pope St. Gregory the Great (540-604 A.D.) was the son of a wealthy Roman senator. His mother and two of his aunts are also saints, which provided him with a strong and devout religious upbringing. His skill in grammar and rhetoric were exceptional, and he followed in his father’s political footsteps by serving in public office as the prefect of Rome. Discerning a call to the religious life, he sold all of his possessions and converted his home into a Benedictine monastery. He used his liquidated assets to build six other monasteries. Because of his talent and intelligence he was unanimously chosen to become the Roman Pontiff, the first monk to become Pope. During his lifetime Rome was sacked by invading barbarian hordes, and the city also suffered severe damage from floods and pestilence, causing his pontificate to be an important one. He brought stability and order to the Church in a time of great societal and cultural upheaval. His profound influence on the doctrine, organization, and discipline of the Church cannot be underestimated, thus earning him the title “The Great” which he shares with only two other popes. For his abundant doctrinal and spiritual writings he is also considered to be one of the four great Doctors of the Latin Church. He is most commonly known for promoting and standardizing the sacred music of liturgical worship, now called “Gregorian Chant.” Pope St. Gregory the Great is the patron of popes, masons, choir boys, singers, teachers, and musicians. His feast day is September 3rd.
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Memorial of Saint Gregory the Great, Pope and Doctor of the ChurchLectionary: 434 Reading 11 Corinthians 3:18-23 Brothers and sisters:
Let no one deceive himself.
If anyone among you considers himself wise in this age,
let him become a fool, so as to become wise.
For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in the eyes of God,
for it is written: God catches the wise in their own ruses, and again: The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise, that they are vain. So let no one boast about human beings, for everything belongs to you,
Paul or Apollos or Cephas,
or the world or life or death,
or the present or the future:
all belong to you, and you to Christ, and Christ to God. Responsorial PsalmPsalm 24:1bc-2, 3-4ab, 5-6 R. (1) To the Lord belongs the earth and all that fills it.
The LORD's are the earth and its fullness;
the world and those who dwell in it.
For he founded it upon the seas
and established it upon the rivers.
R. To the Lord belongs the earth and all that fills it.
Who can ascend the mountain of the LORD?
or who may stand in his holy place?
He whose hands are sinless, whose heart is clean,
who desires not what is vain.
R. To the Lord belongs the earth and all that fills it.
He shall receive a blessing from the LORD,
a reward from God his savior.
Such is the race that seeks for him,
that seeks the face of the God of Jacob.
R. To the Lord belongs the earth and all that fills it. AlleluiaMatthew 4:19 R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Come after me, says the Lord,
and I will make you fishers of men.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. GospelLuke 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.
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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: Luke 5:1-11Put out into deep water. (Luke 5:4) Peter had fished all night with nothing to show for it. So when Jesus told him to “put out into deep water” once more, this seasoned fisherman must have been skeptical (Luke 5:4). But he told Jesus, “At your command I will lower the nets” (5:5). The resulting catch was so massive that Peter fell on his knees before the Lord. By responding with obedience and trust to Jesus’ invitation, Peter received the grace to see Jesus as his Lord. Did you know that Jesus invites all of us into “deep water”? Through prayer, he calls us into a personal relationship with him. Yet perhaps we sometimes feel a bit like Peter when he told the Lord, “We have worked hard all night and have caught nothing” (Luke 5:5). Maybe we try to talk to God but don’t feel his presence or sense him speaking to us. Or we continue to ask him to heal a difficult relationship or a loved one, but nothing happens. It’s tempting in such situations to skip our times of prayer or stop praying altogether. It’s hard to keep lowering our nets, only to come up empty once again! If that’s the case for you, don’t give up! Perhaps he is asking you to spend extra time with him in Adoration or to read and study the Scriptures more intentionally. He might be calling you to attend daily Mass more regularly or to go on a weekend retreat. Whatever you do, believe that Jesus has grace in store for you. He wants to strengthen you so that you can respond to him as Peter did, with obedience and trust. Even if you are going through a dry season, keep leaning in. Over time you will come to a deeper knowledge of Jesus not only as your Savior but as your truest friend and constant companion. You will discover the Lord who desires to be with you, no matter how he answers your prayers. Every day, find a time to “put out into deep water” by raising your heart and mind to your Lord. Even if you don’t harvest a “great number of fish” each time you pray (Luke 5:6), trust that he is pleased with your desire to know him more deeply and to follow him more closely. “Lord, help me to go deeper with you.” 1 Corinthians 3:18-23
Psalm 24:1-6
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Reflections with Brother Adrian:
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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. "
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From Roberto Juarez: "Today's Gospel invites us to look at our own nets. Maybe they are full or empty. Maybe we are tired and we have tried something many times and it hasn't worked. But Jesus comes back to our boat and says, "Put out into the deep." And maybe we have many reasons to answer, "It doesn't make sense." "We've already tried." "I'm tired." "I can't take it anymore." But today we can learn from Peter: "By your word, I will let down the nets." That's faith. Trusting when we don't see. Going on when it hurts, loving when it hurts, waiting when it seems like there's no way out. And then we'll discover that true miraculous catch isn't just about filling our nets. It's about discovering that Jesus is in our boat. Let us ask him today: "Lord, enter my boat. Enter my life. When my nets are empty, give me confidence. When I am afraid, tell me: 'Do not be afraid.' And when you call me, give me the courage to leave everything and follow you."
And may we too one day be able to hear Jesus' call and respond generously: "Lord, by your word I will let down my nets." end of quote from Roberto.
- - - From Brother Adrian: Bishop Barron ended his reflection on this with: "This is signaled symbolically by the Lord’s directive to put out into the deep water. On our own, we can know and will within a very narrow range, seeking those goods and truths that appear within the horizon of our natural consciousness, but when grace invades us, we are enticed into far deeper waters." Our Lord had just got into the boat of SAINT PETER.
He had commanded them to drop nets onto the other side.
What other side? The one they had been trying over and over all night with no luck, no successes?
But.
See what happens when God enters the scene.
The impossible happens.
And it happens in obedience.
It happens in faith.
It happens when we allow Him into our boat, our very lives.
But what God wants…enters the scene.
Notice how He leaves the scene of this story:
"Do not be afraid;
from now on you will be catching men."
And it is said that SAINT PETER, the very one who fell on his knees asking our Lord to depart from him because he was a sinner, then followed Christ.
The same it is to be for you and for me.
That Christ enters our scene, our lives, and we fall to our knees, get back up, and follow Him, to go fishing for what HE WANTS.
Men. Fishing for men. What about women?
In biblical Hebrew and Greek, words translated as "men" or "man" did not always mean only males. It depended entirely on the specific word used and the context.
In this context, this verse of Luke 5:10 we see that the original Greek text uses the plural word ἀνθρώπους (anthrōpous), which is a form of anthrōpos. As mentioned before, this word means human beings, people, or mankind as a whole.Who it includes: It refers to all of humanity—both men and women.
We get a better sense of this word if you hear it in Spanish, where "men" means "mankind" in its context. We lose some things in English language.
I digress.
Fishers of Men. Listen up!
What is at stake?
Listen on Sunday's Gospel that is to come. Where we are to admonish a sinner.
To let people know they are hurting themselves, living in sin, committing a sin. It could very well affect your own salvation, by playing the ignorant fool, or worse…the lazy fool, or worse, the foolish virgin that still wasted her life on herself, but was supposedly waiting for the groom.
Now we are getting deep.
Admonition we learned last night, really calls us to call His children to reconciliation! To reconcile with OUR FATHER.
Admonishing a sinner is a Spiritual Work of Mercy that relies on the guidance and grace of the Holy Spirit to gently help someone turn away from wrongdoing.
This is a call.
God's call.
Time to go fishing…for LOVE.
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Random Bible Verse 1
1 Peter 3:18 " For Christ also suffered1 once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit"
Word of the Lord!
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Month of Our Lady of Sorrows (Mater Dolorosa)
Devotion of the Month Opening prayer of Novena to Our Lady of Sorrows: O, Mother most holy and sorrowful, Queen of Martyrs, you who stood by your Son as He agonized on the cross; by the sufferings of your life, by that sword of pain that pierced your heart, by your perfect joy in heaven, look down on me kindly as I kneel before you, sympathizing with your sorrows and offering you my petition with childlike trust. Dear Mother, since your Son refuses you nothing, ask of His Sacred Heart to mercifully grant what I ask, through the merits of His sacred passion, along with those of your sufferings at the foot of the cross. Mother most merciful, to whom shall I go in my misery if not to you who pities us poor, sinful exiles in this valley of tears? In our name, offer Jesus but one drop of His most precious blood, but one pang of His loving heart. Remind Him that you are our sweetness, our life, and our hope, and your prayer will be heard. Amen.
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God Bless You! Peace
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