† Saint Quote
Often, actually very often, God allows his greatest servants, those who are far advanced in grace, to make the most humiliating mistakes. This humbles them in their own eyes and in the eyes of their fellow men.
-St. Louis de Montfort
Today's Meditation
“Know, dearest daughter, how, by humble, continual, and faithful prayer, the soul acquires, with time and perseverance, every virtue. Wherefore should she persevere and never abandon prayer… The soul should advance by degrees, and I know well that, just as the soul is at first imperfect and afterwards perfect, so also is it with her prayer. She should nevertheless continue in vocal prayer, while she is yet imperfect, so as not to fall into idleness. But she should not say her vocal prayers without joining them to mental prayer, that is to say, that while she is reciting, she should endeavor to elevate her mind in My love, with the consideration of her own defects and of the Blood of My only-begotten Son, wherein she finds the breadth of My charity and the remission of her sins.”
—St. Catherine Of Siena, p. 92
Daily Verse †
When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the infant leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth, filled with the holy Spirit, cried out in a loud voice and said, "Most blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. And how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For at the moment the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the infant in my womb leaped for joy. Blessed are you who believed that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled."
▪ Luke 1:41-45
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EWTN Daily Saint
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St. Elizabeth of the Visitation
Patron Saint of: Expectant mothers and couples struggling with infertility
Feast Day: November 5
St. Elizabeth of the Visitation (1st c.) was the wife of Zachary (Zechariah), a temple priest, and the cousin and close companion of the Blessed Virgin Mary. She is the one whom Our Lady visited in haste after the Annunciation. The Angel Gabriel had told Mary that Elizabeth was expecting a miraculous child in her old age. Upon hearing Mary’s voice, who was then carrying the Son of God in her womb, Elizabeth’s unborn child leaped in her womb by the power of the Holy Spirit. It was with Elizabeth that Mary first shared the joy of the Incarnation of Jesus Christ. St. Elizabeth gave birth to St. John the Baptist, the prophet who prepared the way for Jesus’ ministry. St. Elizabeth is described in the Gospel of Luke as “righteous in the eyes of God, observing all the commandments of the Lord blamelessly.” St. Elizabeth shares a feast day with her husband, Zachary, on November 5th.
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Thursday of the Thirty-first Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 488
Reading 1
Philippians 3:3-8a
Brothers and sisters:
We are the circumcision,
we who worship through the Spirit of God,
who boast in Christ Jesus and do not put our confidence in flesh,
although I myself have grounds for confidence even in the flesh.
If anyone else thinks he can be confident in flesh, all the more can I.
Circumcised on the eighth day,
of the race of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin,
a Hebrew of Hebrew parentage,
in observance of the law a Pharisee,
in zeal I persecuted the Church,
in righteousness based on the law I was blameless.
But whatever gains I had,
these I have come to consider a loss because of Christ.
More than that, I even consider everything as a loss
because of the supreme good of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.
Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 105:2-3, 4-5, 6-7
R. (3b) Let hearts rejoice who search for the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Sing to him, sing his praise,
proclaim all his wondrous deeds.
Glory in his holy name;
rejoice, O hearts that seek the LORD!
R. Let hearts rejoice who search for the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Look to the LORD in his strength;
seek to serve him constantly.
Recall the wondrous deeds that he has wrought,
his portents, and the judgments he has uttered.
R. Let hearts rejoice who search for the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.
You descendants of Abraham, his servants,
sons of Jacob, his chosen ones!
He, the LORD, is our God;
throughout the earth his judgments prevail.
R. Let hearts rejoice who search for the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Alleluia
Matthew 11:28
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened,
and I will give you rest, says the Lord.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
Luke 15:1-10
The tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to listen to Jesus,
but the Pharisees and scribes began to complain, saying,
“This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”
So Jesus addressed this parable to them.
“What man among you having a hundred sheep and losing one of them
would not leave the ninety-nine in the desert
and go after the lost one until he finds it?
And when he does find it,
he sets it on his shoulders with great joy
and, upon his arrival home,
he calls together his friends and neighbors and says to them,
‘Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep.’
I tell you, in just the same way
there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents
than over ninety-nine righteous people
who have no need of repentance.
“Or what woman having ten coins and losing one
would not light a lamp and sweep the house,
searching carefully until she finds it?
And when she does find it,
she calls together her friends and neighbors
and says to them,
‘Rejoice with me because I have found the coin that I lost.’
In just the same way, I tell you,
there will be rejoicing among the angels of God
over one sinner who repents.”
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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 15:1-10
Rejoice with me! (Luke 15:6)
Everyone knows what it is to lose something precious—a person, a relationship, your freedom, your health. And everyone knows the rush of relief and joy when whatever was lost is restored to you. That experience of elation and relief when you find what you have lost is exactly where Jesus meets us in these parables of the lost sheep and the lost coin.
Let’s imagine that we are the lost sheep or lost coin, and the Lord is searching tirelessly for us. Now we can get a glimpse of how these parables reveal the character of God. It doesn’t matter how far we’ve wandered or how long we’ve been gone or where we went; he keeps on pursuing us. When he finds us—when we allow him to rescue us from sin and bring us out of the darkness of shame or despair—he doesn’t respond with judgment. He doesn’t complain about how long he has had to search for us. Rather, God rejoices with a joy that reverberates through all of heaven!
Picture Jesus delighting in the fact that “tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to listen,” despite the complaints of others (Luke 15:1). These were the people on the margins: those shamed or excluded, the ones everyone had written off as hopeless. Yet it’s precisely to them that Jesus turns with open arms. Now imagine yourself in that scene. Wherever you are reading this—at home, in a prison cell, in a hospital room, or in a season of deep struggle—Jesus’ gaze falls on you. His demeanor makes clear that he welcomes you unconditionally. He speaks to your heart and invites you to walk away from whatever sins are leaving you empty.
Think of the joy that radiates from Jesus when you accept his invitation and bring your burdens and sins to Confession. Think of the angels rejoicing when you acknowledge your need for mercy. They see you on the path to freedom as you reach out to the Lord. And that sight fills them with joy!
Sit with these truths for a while in prayer today. If you have access to the Sacrament of Reconciliation, make plans to go. If not, pour out your heart to the Lord right where you are. Let him find you.
“Jesus, I rejoice at your mercy—for me and for all sinners!”
Philippians 3:3-8
Psalm 105:2-7
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Reflections with Brother Adrian:
Audio Link
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From today's Holy Gospel:
So Jesus addressed this parable to them.
“What man among you having a hundred sheep and losing one of them
would not leave the ninety-nine in the desert
and go after the lost one until he finds it? …
“Or what woman having ten coins and losing one
would not light a lamp and sweep the house,
searching carefully until she finds it?
And when she does find it,
she calls together her friends and neighbors
and says to them,
‘Rejoice with me because I have found the coin that I lost.’
In just the same way, I tell you,
there will be rejoicing among the angels of God
over one sinner who repents."
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From Roberto Juarez:
"There is one last lesson that we cannot forget. Jesus not only invites us to seek out those who have been lost; he also asks us to learn to rejoice when someone returns. The Pharisees and scribes do not rejoice when they see sinners coming to Jesus. They are scandalized. Their attitude contrasts with the joy of the pastor and the woman who have recovered what they had lost. We too can fall into this temptation. We can feel uncomfortable when someone is given a new opportunity, when a person who had drifted away returns to the community, or when someone who has made mistakes begins a new life.
The Gospel invites us to abandon this attitude and to share in God's joy. The conversion of a person should not arouse suspicion, but gratitude. Mercy received must become mercy offered. May we never forget that, for the Lord, no one is definitively lost. There is always a way back and there is always a joy prepared for those who return home." end quote.
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From Bishop Barron:
"Friends, one feature of today’s Gospel passage is the craziness of the shepherd: “What man among you having a hundred sheep and losing one of them would not leave the ninety-nine in the desert and go after the lost one until he finds it?” Well, the implied answer is “No one.” Who would take that great a risk, putting the ninety-nine in danger to find the one? It’s just bad economics. Why would God fret over one little soul? Why would he bother?
Well, it’s his nature. It’s what he does. As Catherine of Siena put it, he is pazzo d’amore (crazy in love). God is as crazy for you as if you were the only one in the world." end quote.
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Your Brother Adrian.
What kind of shepherd leaves 99 sheep to find one lost sheep?
This kind of shepherd is the one who cares.
And this is rare.
Our Lord spoke this parable in a time where the shepherds were locking out the sheep from entering the Kingdom.
Yet, here we are. Who are we in the story? A lost soul? A bad shepherd?
Who are you? To dive into the Scripture, we must pray, and take the time…to care…to care about what our Lord says.
It takes me an hour to write to you, busy with work, busy with so many things. But I stick to it. Why? Because, God's message is all about caring, in a dark world, where nobody really seems to care.
And our Lord came from Heaven, that ONE SON of GOD, as a lamb, to shepherd back all of God's sheep.
He comes with an everlasting message from the cross, for when the world asks "who really cares?". And our Lord stretches out His arms, and has thugs stretch them out of His sockets to go beyond human measures and capabilities, to tell us forever, "MY CHILD, I CARE THIS MUCH".
There He is, arms stretched wide. "I LOVE YOU THIS MUCH".
And there He is, the embodiment of God's love, God's Sacred Heart pouring out eternally for you and for me.
For God So LOVES the world. He didn't love it in a past tense, but in the past, the present, and the future tense all at once.
And now, He wants that lost sheep, to find Him, and lead others to Him, in a continuous love relation to our Father in Heaven.
You have come to the right place, to the very side of Him, on the cross, under His wing, where He can grasp your hand, and you grasp the neighbor hand, those around you, to fly to Heaven, to bask in the warmth of our Lord in Heaven.
If you are lost…then seek Him. If you see those that are lost, seek them. I always tell people that you will never have homeless people knocking at your door, it would be rare. Lazarus in the parables did not knock. But the poor need you. And He who finds Him…finds the answer, the love that we seek.
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Random Bible Verse 1
Ephesians 1:13–14
" In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, 14 who is the guarantee1 of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it,2 to the praise of his glory."
Word of the Lord!
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God Bless You! Peace
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