Friday - January 05, 2018
In order to acquire tranquility in action it is necessary to carefully consider what we are capable of accomplishing and never to undertake more than that. It is self-love, ever more anxious to do much rather than to do well and this self-love that wishes to undertake everything and accomplishes nothing!
~~St. Francis DeSales
TODAY'S READINGS
January 5, 2018
Memorial of Saint John Neumann, Bishop
Lectionary: 208
Reading 11 JN 3:11-21
Beloved:
This is the message you have heard from the beginning:
we should love one another,
unlike Cain who belonged to the Evil One
and slaughtered his brother.
Why did he slaughter him?
Because his own works were evil,
and those of his brother righteous.
Do not be amazed, then, brothers and sisters, if the world hates you.
We know that we have passed from death to life
because we love our brothers.
Whoever does not love remains in death.
Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer,
and you know that no murderer has eternal life remaining in him.
The way we came to know love
was that he laid down his life for us;
so we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers.
If someone who has worldly means
sees a brother in need and refuses him compassion,
how can the love of God remain in him?
Children, let us love not in word or speech
but in deed and truth.
Now this is how we shall know that we belong to the truth
and reassure our hearts before him
in whatever our hearts condemn,
for God is greater than our hearts and knows everything.
Beloved, if our hearts do not condemn us,
we have confidence in God.
This is the message you have heard from the beginning:
we should love one another,
unlike Cain who belonged to the Evil One
and slaughtered his brother.
Why did he slaughter him?
Because his own works were evil,
and those of his brother righteous.
Do not be amazed, then, brothers and sisters, if the world hates you.
We know that we have passed from death to life
because we love our brothers.
Whoever does not love remains in death.
Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer,
and you know that no murderer has eternal life remaining in him.
The way we came to know love
was that he laid down his life for us;
so we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers.
If someone who has worldly means
sees a brother in need and refuses him compassion,
how can the love of God remain in him?
Children, let us love not in word or speech
but in deed and truth.
Now this is how we shall know that we belong to the truth
and reassure our hearts before him
in whatever our hearts condemn,
for God is greater than our hearts and knows everything.
Beloved, if our hearts do not condemn us,
we have confidence in God.
Responsorial PsalmPS 100:1B-2, 3, 4, 5
R. (2a) Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.
Sing joyfully to the LORD, all you lands;
serve the LORD with gladness;
come before him with joyful song.
R. Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.
Know that the LORD is God;
he made us, his we are;
his people, the flock he tends.
R. Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.
Enter his gates with thanksgiving,
his courts with praise;
Give thanks to him; bless his name.
R. Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.
The LORD is good:
the LORD, whose kindness endures forever,
and his faithfulness, to all generations.
R. Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.
A holy day has dawned upon us.
Come, you nations, and adore the Lord.
Today a great light has come upon the earth.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Sing joyfully to the LORD, all you lands;
serve the LORD with gladness;
come before him with joyful song.
R. Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.
Know that the LORD is God;
he made us, his we are;
his people, the flock he tends.
R. Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.
Enter his gates with thanksgiving,
his courts with praise;
Give thanks to him; bless his name.
R. Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.
The LORD is good:
the LORD, whose kindness endures forever,
and his faithfulness, to all generations.
R. Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.
Alleluia
R. Alleluia, alleluia.A holy day has dawned upon us.
Come, you nations, and adore the Lord.
Today a great light has come upon the earth.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
GospelJN 1:43-51
Jesus decided to go to Galilee, and he found Philip.
And Jesus said to him, "Follow me."
Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the town of Andrew and Peter.
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 the sky opened and the angels of God
ascending and descending on the Son of Man."
And Jesus said to him, "Follow me."
Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the town of Andrew and Peter.
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 the sky opened and the angels of God
ascending and descending on the Son of Man."
******************************
STOP CONDEMNING YOURSELF
Are you harder on yourself than you should be? Are you slow to forgive yourself? Do you beat yourself up because of past sins and other failures? Self-condemnation steals our joy. And today's first reading restores it by teaching us how to reassure our hearts when we feel guilty.
It says that we know that we've passed from death to life, from sinfulness to saintliness, from the devil's domain to the kingdom of God, because of the love that we have for others. It isn't perfect yet, but we can be sure that this love is genuine when it expresses itself in good deeds.
If there's anyone whom you think you do not love (an ex-spouse perhaps?), consider this: Would you be willing to do a good deed for that person? (Praying for him or her counts as a good deed.) If so, you have love and you remain in Christ. God does not condemn you, and therefore neither should you.
The final part of this scripture holds a very important key to holiness: We have "confidence in God" if and when we allow ourselves to stop condemning ourselves. We must look at the truth about our core saintliness: The Holy Spirit dwells within us, and because of this we have an innate desire to be holy. Therefore, we belong to the truth, i.e., we belong to the Spirit of Truth. And if we belong to God's Spirit, we have his supernatural ability to make holy decisions, even when we're tempted to sin.
Sin is natural; saintliness is supernatural, but it's our true nature because of our baptism. By looking at what's good in us instead of focusing on our failures, we can gain confidence in our own ability to be saintly, because we know that it's God who gives us that ability. And this makes it easier to recognize and rely on God's help in being holy.
Jesus did not come to condemn the world, remember? He came to save us from sin and its destruction, and he came to redeem us from sin and transfigure us into saints. Those of us who want to be saints are never condemned by him, not even when we fall back into old sinful patterns. When we fail to live as the holy people that his Holy Spirit enables us to be, he isn't happy, he's not approving of what we do, and he asks us to "Go and sin no more." But rather than condemn us, he helps us.
God's love is never withheld; it's never conditional, never based on how saintly we are. His love is based on his own perfect holiness. And his helpfulness is based on our needs and our willingness to be helped.
Refusing to forgive ourselves is the same as saying that God didn't know what he was doing when Jesus was crucified. It's saying that God should refuse to forgive us and that he's stupid for loving us unconditionally. Now, doesn't that sound ridiculous?
You are God's beloved: Have confidence in his ability and his desire to help you live in the reality of your saintliness. This will empower you to birth Jesus more fully into the world by the way you live your life.
----------------------------
******************************
STOP CONDEMNING YOURSELF
Are you harder on yourself than you should be? Are you slow to forgive yourself? Do you beat yourself up because of past sins and other failures? Self-condemnation steals our joy. And today's first reading restores it by teaching us how to reassure our hearts when we feel guilty.
It says that we know that we've passed from death to life, from sinfulness to saintliness, from the devil's domain to the kingdom of God, because of the love that we have for others. It isn't perfect yet, but we can be sure that this love is genuine when it expresses itself in good deeds.
If there's anyone whom you think you do not love (an ex-spouse perhaps?), consider this: Would you be willing to do a good deed for that person? (Praying for him or her counts as a good deed.) If so, you have love and you remain in Christ. God does not condemn you, and therefore neither should you.
The final part of this scripture holds a very important key to holiness: We have "confidence in God" if and when we allow ourselves to stop condemning ourselves. We must look at the truth about our core saintliness: The Holy Spirit dwells within us, and because of this we have an innate desire to be holy. Therefore, we belong to the truth, i.e., we belong to the Spirit of Truth. And if we belong to God's Spirit, we have his supernatural ability to make holy decisions, even when we're tempted to sin.
Sin is natural; saintliness is supernatural, but it's our true nature because of our baptism. By looking at what's good in us instead of focusing on our failures, we can gain confidence in our own ability to be saintly, because we know that it's God who gives us that ability. And this makes it easier to recognize and rely on God's help in being holy.
Jesus did not come to condemn the world, remember? He came to save us from sin and its destruction, and he came to redeem us from sin and transfigure us into saints. Those of us who want to be saints are never condemned by him, not even when we fall back into old sinful patterns. When we fail to live as the holy people that his Holy Spirit enables us to be, he isn't happy, he's not approving of what we do, and he asks us to "Go and sin no more." But rather than condemn us, he helps us.
God's love is never withheld; it's never conditional, never based on how saintly we are. His love is based on his own perfect holiness. And his helpfulness is based on our needs and our willingness to be helped.
Refusing to forgive ourselves is the same as saying that God didn't know what he was doing when Jesus was crucified. It's saying that God should refuse to forgive us and that he's stupid for loving us unconditionally. Now, doesn't that sound ridiculous?
You are God's beloved: Have confidence in his ability and his desire to help you live in the reality of your saintliness. This will empower you to birth Jesus more fully into the world by the way you live your life.
----------------------------
God Bless You.....
Rosary Family
The mother of Jesus promised St. Dominic that, “one day through the rosary & the scapular I shall save the world!”
No comments:
Post a Comment