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Saint Quote of the Day
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When we attend to the needs of those in want, we give them what is theirs, not ours. More than performing works of mercy, we are paying a debt of justice. Pope Saint Gregory the Great
Today's Meditation“Scripture offers us a look at the fruits we can expect as we grow closer to God: charity, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, forbearance, gentleness, faith, modesty, self-control, and chastity. Cut off from him, we rely on our own well to refresh our souls rather than the un-depletable wellspring available to us as sons and daughters of our eternal Father. We cannot understand who we really are without reference to him who is both the cause and the purpose of our lives, physically and spiritually. We are called to communion with him and this is a process of continually conforming our will to his.” –Carrie Gress and Noelle Mering, p.66
Daily Verse †Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the lands! Serve the Lord with gladness! Come into his presence with singing! Know that the Lord is God! It is he that made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him, bless his name! For the Lord is good; his steadfast love endures for ever, and his faithfulness to all generations. Psalm 100
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EWTN Daily Saint
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Saint Jean-Gabriel PerboyrePatron Saint of: China, missionaries, and Vincentians
Feast Day: September 11 St. Jean-Gabriel Perboyre (1802-1840) was one of eight children born to a farming family in France. He was a pious child and served as a model of virtue for his childhood companions. He discerned a call to the priesthood and joined the Vincentians along with a younger brother, with the full support of his parents. He served as a seminary professor for many years, and his sanctity impressed even his superiors. He longed to serve in the missions to China, but his poor health prevented him and his brother was sent instead. He prayed and begged to also be sent to preach in China and to suffer martyrdom there. After his brother died on the voyage to China, Jean-Gabriel was allowed to take his place in the mission. He arrived in China in 1835 and his labors there were met with great success. In 1839 persecutions broke out against the Christian missionaries, and Jean-Gabriel was one of the first to be arrested. The events leading to his death bear a striking resemblance to the Passion and Death of Christ. He was betrayed to the authorities by one of his new converts for thirty pieces of silver, stripped of his garments and clothed with rags, bound, and dragged from tribunal to tribunal. At each trial, he was brutally treated and tortured. He was finally condemned to death along with seven other criminals on September 11, 1840. He was martyred by being strangled to death as he hung on a cross. His feast day is September 11th.
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Friday of the Twenty-third Week in Ordinary TimeLectionary: 441 Reading 11 Corinthians 9:16-19, 22b-27 Brothers and sisters:
If I preach the Gospel, this is no reason for me to boast,
for an obligation has been imposed on me,
and woe to me if I do not preach it!
If I do so willingly, I have a recompense,
but if unwillingly, then I have been entrusted with a stewardship.
What then is my recompense?
That, when I preach, I offer the Gospel free of charge
so as not to make full use of my right in the Gospel. Although I am free in regard to all,
I have made myself a slave to all
so as to win over as many as possible.
I have become all things to all, to save at least some.
All this I do for the sake of the Gospel,
so that I too may have a share in it. Do you not know that the runners in the stadium all run in the race,
but only one wins the prize?
Run so as to win.
Every athlete exercises discipline in every way.
They do it to win a perishable crown,
but we an imperishable one.
Thus I do not run aimlessly;
I do not fight as if I were shadowboxing.
No, I drive my body and train it,
for fear that, after having preached to others,
I myself should be disqualified. Responsorial PsalmPsalm 84:3, 4, 5-6, 12 R. (2) How lovely is your dwelling place, Lord, mighty God!
My soul yearns and pines
for the courts of the LORD.
My heart and my flesh
cry out for the living God.
R. How lovely is your dwelling place, Lord, mighty God!
Even the sparrow finds a home,
and the swallow a nest
in which she puts her young—
Your altars, O LORD of hosts,
my king and my God!
R. How lovely is your dwelling place, Lord, mighty God!
Blessed they who dwell in your house!
continually they praise you.
Blessed the men whose strength you are!
their hearts are set upon the pilgrimage.
R. How lovely is your dwelling place, Lord, mighty God!
For a sun and a shield is the LORD God;
grace and glory he bestows;
The LORD withholds no good thing
from those who walk in sincerity.
R. How lovely is your dwelling place, Lord, mighty God! AlleluiaSee John 17:17b, 17a R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Your word, O Lord, is truth;
consecrate us in the truth.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. GospelLuke 6:39-42 Jesus told his disciples a parable:
"Can a blind person guide a blind person?
Will not both fall into a pit?
No disciple is superior to the teacher;
but when fully trained,
every disciple will be like his teacher.
Why do you notice the splinter in your brother's eye,
but do not perceive the wooden beam in your own?
How can you say to your brother,
'Brother, let me remove that splinter in your eye,'
when you do not even notice the wooden beam in your own eye?
You hypocrite! Remove the wooden beam from your eye first;
then you will see clearly
to remove the splinter in your brother's eye."
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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 6:27-38Love your enemies. (Luke 6:27) Let’s be honest—this is one of the hardest commands Jesus has given us. Just think about how many aspects of life in this world are built on the idea of triumphing over your enemies or crushing the competition. You see it most clearly in business and military conflicts, but it can also show up at work, in neighborhoods, and in families at times. Even a glimpse into our own hearts reveals a similar pattern: when you learn that someone “hates” you, the immediate instinct quite often is not to forgive them but to hate them back. If someone treats you poorly, it’s not unusual to want to strike back at them. But Jesus commands us to love our enemies—the total opposite of all of this. How can we possibly live it out? By fixing our eyes on him. In the face of all the enmity, indifference, and hatred he encountered, Jesus returned love. Even when he suffered the hatred of those who crucified him, he responded, “Father, forgive” (Luke 23:34). Jesus is calling us to treat everyone around us with his kindness, regardless of how they treat us. He wants them to be struck to the heart when they see our love. He wants them to be moved to seek out the One whose love they see in us. Yes, Jesus’ command is challenging. But he knows how hard it can be. That’s why he is always with you, offering you his grace and help. And it’s why he is also ready to forgive you when you fall short. Just remember that every time you choose love—especially in the face of hatred or opposition—you are joining Jesus in his mission of building his kingdom. Every time you find the grace to put aside selfishness, you are making room for his joy and his peace. And every time you reject the false wisdom of an eye for an eye, you open yourself to the true wisdom and guidance of the Holy Spirit. So try your best to “love your enemies” (Luke 6:27). Resolve to “do good to those who hate you” (6:27). “Stop condemning” and offer mercy instead (6:37). You never know whose life you might change—including your own! “Jesus, I am weak, but you are strong. Help me to love as you love.” 1 Corinthians 8:1-7, 11-13
Psalm 139:1-3, 13-14, 23-24
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Reflections with Brother Adrian:
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From today's Holy Gospel: "…How can you say to your brother,
'Brother, let me remove that splinter in your eye,' when you do not even notice the wooden beam in your own eye?
You hypocrite! Remove the wooden beam from your eye first;
then you will see clearly to remove the splinter in your brother's eye…”
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From Roberto Juarez: "While I'm busy pointing out the other, I don't have to face myself. Jesus breaks that strategy. He puts a mirror in front of us. He tells us: "Come to me and let yourself be transformed". That is why the Christian community must be a place where truth and mercy walk together. A place where we can recognize our mistakes. Where we can ask for forgiveness, correct each other fraternally. Where no one is definitively condemned for his past. Today Jesus holds a mirror before us. "Why do you look at the speck of your brother's eye and do not notice the beam in your own?" He does not ask us to close our eyes to evil. He asks us to do something much more difficult: to look first at our own hearts. Before judging, examining ourselves, condemning ourselves, understanding, correcting, allowing ourselves to be corrected, pointing out the sin of our brothers and sisters, recognize that we too need God's mercy. And then we will be able to help the other. Not from superiority or pride, but from fraternity. Because only those who know that they also need to be saved can truly become an instrument of salvation for others. Let us ask the Lord today: "Jesus, clean our eyes". Remove from our eyes everything that prevents us from seeing our brothers and sisters with mercy. Heal our pride, our wounds, our prejudices. And give us a humble heart, capable of recognizing its own mistakes and generous in helping others to get up. And that we may always live what Jesus asks of us: "First take the beam out of your eye; then you will see clearly". end of quote from Roberto.
From Brother Adrian: The old TV Show called Dr. Phil was popular for a long time. I remember seeing him on TV and said something I never forgot. He was explaining to another person that they must look at it like this: "I don't like in you, what I see in me".
What can this be? Their faults. Right? Their flaws.
Jealousy? Pride rears its horrible head. It happens to men and women, in slightly different ways, but it still happens.
Oh we are so good at seeing other people's defects.
The guys at work even call others by nicknames they give them, like a guy that is missing a thumb, they call him the "fork" or another guy here was called "Big Feet". But those are just the nicer names, you don't want to know the others.
I have asked people to stop doing that at our company. But one guy I had trouble with, because everybody was saying "La Perra" which means a dog, a female dog at that. I thought "poor guy, I got to put a stop to this". But, the guys kept telling me that was the name he preferred. And I asked him, and he said yes, that is what his dad used to call him as a child. I digress. The faults of others.
We are to help others with their faults, sure, in the appropriate manner of love, and even praying deeply and sincerely about it before the rebuke or the reproach.
How many of us have that ability? Everybody can…all you have to ask God for is…grace. Perhaps that is the oil we need for when our Lord comes. It happened with Mother Mary. The Archangel said she was "full of grace" Protestants, please pay attention to this short phrase and examine it to the fullest extent of what this means. She was not just "highly favored" as they say. But she was FULL OF GRACE! Then our Lord encountered her by overshadowing her. And some terrible things happened to her, a sword pierced her own soul. That is an eternal meaning.
Why would God seemingly punish someone so in love with God?
Ah. Let us take that log out of our eye for a moment.
Purification? Sometimes, makes room for grace sure.
But to our Lord? Why did Mary and our Lord Jesus have to suffer a sword through their heart?
So that many eyes and ears would be opened to see…in order to receive what is being availed. God's love and mercy.
And THIS is the most amazing gift from God. Self Sacrifice. If only we would see what this mean.
And to see, we have some logging work to do, even a deforestation caused by mass confusion and division.
But for those that can see more clear…they won't see people like trees, but like human beings, the image and likeness of God Himself.
Try that for me next time. It is my secret to love. I see God in every person. And that changes all my attitude on my approach. Because HE IS everywhere….
I Love You Oh My God!
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WOW! Random Bible Verse 1
John 3:3 " Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again1 he cannot see the kingdom of God.”
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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