The Precious Blood"Prayer to the Precious Blood" written by St. Elizabeth Ann Seton: Lord Jesus, by faith in Your merits, I now take Your Precious Blood and sprinkle it over myself and my family right from the crown of my head to the very soles of my feet. I claim total and complete protection for my life and my family. Lord Jesus, keep me free today from evil, sin, temptation, Satan’s attacks and afflictions, fear of darkness, fear of man, sickness, diseases, doubts, anger, all calamities and from all that is not of thy Kingdom. Fill me, Lord Jesus, with the gift of Your Holy Spirit, and grant me the gifts of wisdom, knowledge, understanding and discernment so that I will live today in Your glory by doing that which is right. Amen.
† Saint Quote:“Jesus, help me to simplify my life by learning what you want me to be, and becoming that person.” St. Therese of Lisieux Meditation quote"The queen bee never settles in her hive without being surrounded by her swarm, and charity never takes possession of the heart without bringing in her train all other virtues, exercising them and bringing them into play as a general his troops. But she does not call them forth suddenly, all at once, nor in all times and places. The good man is like a tree planted by the water-side that will bring forth its fruit in due season, because when a soul is watered with charity, it brings forth good works seasonably and with discretion." St. Francis de Sales An excerpt from An Introduction to the Devout Life: Pg. 117 Daily VerseIn the day of prosperity be joyful, and in the day of adversity consider; God has made the one as well as the other.
Ecclesiastes 7:14a
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EWTN Daily Saint
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St KilianPatron Saint of: Würzburg, white-collar workers, and against rheumatism
Feast Day: July 8 St. Kilian (c. 640-689 A.D.), also known as St. Cillian, was born to a noble family in Ireland. As a child he was known for his piety and love of study, which led him to the priesthood. He became a traveling bishop on the island, and in 686 A.D. left Ireland with eleven companions to travel throughout Gaul (present day France and parts of Germany) to preach the Gospel. From there he traveled to Rome to get official sanction from the Pope to become a missionary. Once obtained, St. Kilian returned north and settled in Würzburg as his base of activity along with two of his original companions. He began his work evangelizing the pagans in large parts of Franconia and Thuringia (north and central Germany), earning the name 'Apostle of Franconia.' Saint Kilian converted the Duke of Würzburg and convinced him to end his unlawful marriage. This greatly angered the Duke's wife, who resisted St. Kilian's attempts to convert her. While her husband was away, she had St. Kilian and his two missionary companions beheaded as they were preaching. A cathedral was built on the spot of their martyrdom by the first bishop of Würzburg. On St. Kilian's feast his relics, along with those of his two companions, are paraded through the streets and put on display in the Würzburg Cathedral, which is dedicated to him. St. Kilian's feast day is July 8th.
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Wednesday of the Fourteenth Week in Ordinary TimeLectionary: 385 Reading 1Hosea 10:1-3, 7-8, 12 Israel is a luxuriant vine
whose fruit matches its growth.
The more abundant his fruit,
the more altars he built;
The more productive his land,
the more sacred pillars he set up.
Their heart is false,
now they pay for their guilt;
God shall break down their altars
and destroy their sacred pillars.
If they would say,
“We have no king”—
Since they do not fear the LORD,
what can the king do for them? The king of Samaria shall disappear,
like foam upon the waters.
The high places of Aven shall be destroyed,
the sin of Israel;
thorns and thistles shall overgrow their altars.
Then they shall cry out to the mountains, “Cover us!”
and to the hills, “Fall upon us!” “Sow for yourselves justice,
reap the fruit of piety;
break up for yourselves a new field,
for it is time to seek the LORD,
till he come and rain down justice upon you.” Responsorial PsalmPsalm 105:2-3, 4-5, 6-7 R. (4b) Seek always the face of 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. Seek always the face of 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. Seek always the face of 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. Seek always the face of the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia. AlleluiaMark 1:15 R. Alleluia, alleluia.
The Kingdom of God is at hand:
repent and believe in the Gospel.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. GospelMatthew 10:1-7 Jesus summoned his Twelve disciples
and gave them authority over unclean spirits to drive them out
and to cure every disease and every illness.
The names of the Twelve Apostles are these:
first, Simon called Peter, and his brother Andrew;
James, the son of Zebedee, and his brother John;
Philip and Bartholomew,
Thomas and Matthew the tax collector;
James, the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddeus;
Simon the Cananean, and Judas Iscariot
who betrayed Jesus. Jesus sent out these Twelve after instructing them thus,
“Do not go into pagan territory or enter a Samaritan town.
Go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
As you go, make this proclamation: ‘The Kingdom of heaven is at hand.’”
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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: Matthew 10:1-7Make this proclamation: “The Kingdom of heaven is at hand.” (Matthew 10:7) Can you imagine what people of Jesus’ time must have thought when they first heard his apostles proclaim these words? First-century Palestine didn’t look like anybody’s idea of heaven. The people were under Roman occupation, and life was hard. There was sickness, disease, and poverty. Where was this kingdom? But Jesus’ command to preach the kingdom wasn’t a mistake. He wanted the people to know that there was hope. Yes, this hope called for repentance (Matthew 4:17). But that repentance would lead them into a life of freedom and deliverance. A new world was coming, and the Messiah was here to bring it about! So the disciples did as Jesus had commanded them. They preached the gospel. They cured the sick, raised the dead, and cast out demons. People’s lives were changed, and the kingdom began to spread. This is how the kingdom of God spreads today. It might seem to be happening little by little, but it is spreading. Consider, after two thousand years, how much that “little by little” has grown! Think of the churches, the schools, the hospitals, the orphanages, and ministries that have developed over all that time. Think of the many saints in centuries gone by—and the many saints in our own day—who have touched countless lives: Mother Teresa, Oscar Romero, and a teenager named Carlo Acutis. And then there’s you. You may not think of yourself as having any special part to play in the growth of the kingdom of God. But every time you act out of love for Jesus, every time you pray for someone’s healing, every time you share your faith, you are building the kingdom. Every time you die to yourself for Jesus’ sake or the sake of one of his people, you are making his light shine a little brighter in this world. Every one of these actions proclaims that the kingdom of heaven is at hand! Don’t ever think you’re insignificant. Every one of us is a part of God’s plan! So seek to follow the Holy Spirit’s leading today. Just by doing what the Lord asks of you, even the smallest thing, you are bringing the kingdom closer. “Lord, let your heavenly kingdom reign in me and through me today!” Hosea 10:1-3, 7-8, 12
Psalm 105:2-7
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Reflections with Brother Adrian:
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From today's Holy Gospel: "... Jesus sent out these Twelve after instructing them thus,
“Do not go into pagan territory or enter a Samaritan town.
Go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
As you go, make this proclamation: ‘The Kingdom of heaven is at hand.... ”
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From Bishop Barron:
"Friends, in today’s Gospel, Jesus summons apostles whom he shapes and sends on mission. Priests, through the centuries—from Augustine and Aquinas, to Francis Xavier and John Henry Newman, to John Paul II—are the descendants of those first friends and apprentices of the Lord. They have been needed in every age, and they are needed today, for the kingdom of heaven must be proclaimed, the poor must be served, God must be worshipped, and the sacraments must be administered. Spiritual fathers are required especially in our time, when a rising tide of secularism threatens to overwhelm the religious impulse. We are wired for God; we will never satisfy the deepest longing of our hearts apart from God. The secularist ideology teaches that sufficient amounts of wealth, pleasure, power, or honor will make us happy. Who will counter this? Who will speak to this culture of the beauty of God? Who will remind us that our lives are not about us? Who will break open the words of the gospel and spread out the banquet table of Christ’s body and blood? This is why we need priests." End quote.
From Roberto Juarez: "Although this Gospel speaks directly of the Twelve, we also participate in this mission. By Baptism we have all been sent. We do not all carry out the same ministry. But we are all missionary disciples. The first mission begins at home. In the family. With co-workers. With the neighbors. With friends. Many times the most effective announcement does not consist of long speeches. It consists of a coherent life. In unexpected patience. In an offered pardon. In a hope that attracts attention. In a serene joy. Thus evangelization begins.
This Gospel also invites us to look with gratitude at the apostolic ministry that continues in the Church today.
We need holy priests.
We need faithful bishops.
We need missionaries.
We need men and women religious. We need families who will help their children discover God's call.
Vocations are not a problem unique to seminaries. They are the responsibility of the entire Christian community. A Church that prays for vocations is collaborating with Christ's mission.
Every time we celebrate the Eucharist, something similar happens to what happens in this Gospel. First we are summoned. Then we hear the Word. We are nourished by the Body of Christ. And finally we are sent.
The Mass always ends with a mission. We don't go out simply because the celebration is over. We are sent out to bring Christ to the world. The liturgy does not end in the church. It continues in everyday life.
Today's Gospel reminds us that the whole Church is a community of called and sent.
No one gives himself the mission. It is Christ who calls, forms and sends. Let us ask him today to renew in us the joy of our baptismal vocation. May we never forget that before we are apostles we must be disciples.
May we learn to remain close to him in order to proclaim him authentically. And may we be humble instruments of that great news which the Twelve began to proclaim and which continues to resound throughout the Church today: "The Kingdom of heaven is at hand." end quote.
We are baptized in the Holy Catholic Church as three things:
Priest.
Prophet.
King.
Because we are baptized into the body of Christ.
A class I was teaching this week was asked about their experience in proclaiming God's word. They were asked to explain the rejections they have been through.
Not many had experienced this, or could think of an answer, except one that said he was a protestant street preacher and experienced rejection there out in the open. I would say, that if you are truly living and proclaiming the Gospel of Christ and His Good News, you will indeed experience rejection. It is normal, because His news does not always go well with what people want to hear, or to make them feel good.
One said that their brother used to be a believer but turned atheist and he is now a fierce opponent of the Good News.
I said that it is their interior conscious causing the rift. Deep down, they want to believe.
Our Lord comes into the world, not simply to be among us forever, but to literally work through us, and in us.
We are on this earth, in what the Holy Churches teaches and calls "the Church Militant", always son a mission.
Our Lord put the 12 Apostles into a mission and they in turn have left us with the ongoing mission.
How do we help the ministry of a Catholic Priest? We are called to be his body, as Christ is our head.
Did you know that at the end of a Mass there is a huge blessing and calling us out to go out on a mission for Christ?
Sadly, some do not know about this and they walk out, especially in our parish when we start this huge laundry list of announcements.
But it is God our Father sending us out.
Some times, as a choir director, I try to pick a song that is not so joyful...because we must recall that the end of Mass is not the end of your mission, for the day, nor for the week. We are sent forth to do EXACTLY as He has asked.
A few hearts will hear the Holy WILL of God in Mass, but not many. I compare it to me preaching at our Company Safety Meetings where I tell them what can save their lives or their health and they seem to agree but walk out and do the exact opposite of what I told them to do. Like the ducks story, where all them go waddling to church to hear "You are birds! You can fly across the sky!" They all quacked "AMEN!" and waddled slowly all the way home.
We too, my dear brothers and sisters, we are God's children called to cast out bad spirits, to preach, to bring Christ to the world. AMEN?
Bring light to the darkness in your world. Amen?
To do God's HOLY WILL. Amen?
To sacrifice to God our love and not seek to just pleasure ourselves. AMEN?
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Romans 8:32 " He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?"
Word of the Lord!
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