SAINT QUOTE OF THE DAY : Monday - July 02, 2018

Monday - July 02, 2018

Strive to acquire the virtues you think your brothers lack, and then you will no longer see their defects, because you yourselves will not have them.

-- St. Augustine

 

 

 

July 2, 2018

 

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Monday of the Thirteenth Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 377

Reading 1AM 2:6-10, 13-16

Thus says the LORD:
For three crimes of Israel, and for four,
I will not revoke my word;
Because they sell the just man for silver,
and the poor man for a pair of sandals.
They trample the heads of the weak
into the dust of the earth,
and force the lowly out of the way.
Son and father go to the same prostitute,
profaning my holy name.
Upon garments taken in pledge
they recline beside any altar;
And the wine of those who have been fined
they drink in the house of their god.

Yet it was I who destroyed the Amorites before them,
who were as tall as the cedars,
and as strong as the oak trees.
I destroyed their fruit above,
and their roots beneath.
It was I who brought you up from the land of Egypt,
and who led you through the desert for forty years,
to occupy the land of the Amorites.

Beware, I will crush you into the ground
as a wagon crushes when laden with sheaves.
Flight shall perish from the swift,
and the strong man shall not retain his strength;
The warrior shall not save his life,
nor the bowman stand his ground;
The swift of foot shall not escape,
nor the horseman save his life.
And the most stouthearted of warriors
shall flee naked on that day, says the LORD.

Responsorial PsalmPS 50:16BC-17, 18-19, 20-21, 22-23

R. (22a) Remember this, you who never think of God.
"Why do you recite my statutes,
and profess my covenant with your mouth,
Though you hate discipline
and cast my words behind you?"
R. Remember this, you who never think of God.
"When you see a thief, you keep pace with him,
and with adulterers you throw in your lot.
To your mouth you give free rein for evil,
you harness your tongue to deceit."
R. Remember this, you who never think of God.
"You sit speaking against your brother;
against your mother's son you spread rumors.
When you do these things, shall I be deaf to it?
Or do you think that I am like yourself?
I will correct you by drawing them up before your eyes."
R. Remember this, you who never think of God.
"Consider this, you who forget God,
lest I rend you and there be no one to rescue you.
He that offers praise as a sacrifice glorifies me;
and to him that goes the right way I will show the salvation of God."
R. Remember this, you who never think of God.

AlleluiaPS 95:8

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
If today you hear his voice,
harden not your hearts.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

GospelMT 8:18-22

When Jesus saw a crowd around him,
he gave orders to cross to the other shore.
A scribe approached and said to him,
"Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go."
Jesus answered him, "Foxes have dens and birds of the sky have nests,
but the Son of Man has nowhere to rest his head."
Another of his disciples said to him,
"Lord, let me go first and bury my father."
But Jesus answered him, "Follow me,
and let the dead bury their dead."

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ONLY IF!!!

If Jesus said to you, "Come follow Me into a life that's very different from the one you have now", what familiar comforts would you find hard to give up? What unfinished business would you want to accomplish first?

In today's Gospel reading, Jesus is talking to those of us who want to follow him "but only if --." Only if we have a comfortable place to sleep and an easy road to travel. Only if we control which duties to handle. Only if God doesn't ask for much. Only if everything stays predictable and God's plans are obvious. Only if it doesn't interfere with what's already in our plans.

Following Christ is rarely convenient and comfortable. In fact, it's an up-stream swim that goes against the currents of normal life. At times, it even seems irresponsible! Why? Because God stretches us beyond our current limitations so that we can become ever more effective as apostles for his kingdom.

"Follow Me," says Jesus. Do you want to have better relationships? Then go the extra mile. Do you want to find healing from the wounds that others have caused you? Then forgive over and over again until you've finally let go of the desire to see remorse and repentance. Do you want to find peace? Then surrender to God everything that you're fighting for, and trust him to provide you with what you need when you need it, which is always better than the way you think you need it.

"Let the dead bury the dead" means that we should leave behind our lifeless, fruitless efforts in trying to solve problems the way unbelievers do. Those who do not give up everything to follow Christ should not be our examples, nor should we feel obligated to do what they say we should do. In Christ we become truly alive. But are we willing to do the ridiculous, what the world calls nonsense? Are we willing to take a left turn where the world posts a big sign that says "turn right"?

Every day, we face both little and large decisions about going left or going right. "I'll follow you, Lord, but wait, not to there! You don't really want me to do that ministry; I'm not good enough at it." Or .... "I'll follow you, Lord, but wait, not now! This isn't the right time! I have other obligations. I'm too busy. And I can't cook dinner for my sick neighbor until after we form a friendship, which by the way, Lord, I don't have time for either."

No matter how hard we try, we'll never find the easy, comfortable life that we're striving for, so why live in the illusion that it's a worthwhile goal? Jesus says, "Come, let go of everything that holds you back from reaching your full potential in the kingdom of God. Be ridiculous and follow Me!"

Today's Prayer

Eternal Father, Today I decide to leave my past in Your hands. I don't want to live looking backwards any more. Give me the grace to persevere faithfully, walking toward the goal You have for me today. Praised be to You, my Lord. Amen.

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!”