SAINT QUOTE OF THE DAY : Saturday - September 01, 2018

Saturday - September 01, 2018

All of us can attain to Christian virtue and holiness, no matter in what condition of life we live and no matter what our life work may be.

--Saint Francis de Sales

 

September 1, 2018

 

« August 31  |  September 2 »

Saturday of the Twenty-first Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 430

Reading 11 COR 1:26-31

Consider your own calling, brothers and sisters.
Not many of you were wise by human standards,
not many were powerful,
not many were of noble birth.
Rather, God chose the foolish of the world to shame the wise,
and God chose the weak of the world to shame the strong,
and God chose the lowly and despised of the world,
those who count for nothing,
to reduce to nothing those who are something,
so that no human being might boast before God.
It is due to him that you are in Christ Jesus,
who became for us wisdom from God,
as well as righteousness, sanctification, and redemption,
so that, as it is written,
Whoever boasts, should boast in the Lord.

Responsorial PsalmPS 33:12-13, 18-19, 20-21

R. (12) Blessed the people the Lord has chosen to be his own.
Blessed the nation whose God is the LORD,
the people he has chosen for his own inheritance.
From heaven the LORD looks down;
he sees all mankind.
R. Blessed the people the Lord has chosen to be his own.
But see, the eyes of the LORD are upon those who fear him,
upon those who hope for his kindness,
To deliver them from death
and preserve them in spite of famine.
R. Blessed the people the Lord has chosen to be his own.
Our soul waits for the LORD,
who is our help and our shield,
For in him our hearts rejoice;
in his holy name we trust.
R. Blessed the people the Lord has chosen to be his own.

AlleluiaJN 13:34

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
I give you a new commandment:
love one another as I have loved you.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

GospelMT 25:14-30

Jesus told his disciples this parable:
"A man going on a journey 
called in his servants and entrusted his possessions to them.
To one he gave five talents; to another, two; to a third, one– 
to each according to his ability.
Then he went away.
Immediately the one who received five talents went and traded with them,
and made another five.
Likewise, the one who received two made another two.
But the man who received one went off and dug a hole in the ground
and buried his master's money.
After a long time 
the master of those servants came back and settled accounts with them.
The one who had received five talents
came forward bringing the additional five.
He said, 'Master, you gave me five talents.
See, I have made five more.'
His master said to him, 'Well done, my good and faithful servant.
Since you were faithful in small matters,
I will give you great responsibilities.
Come, share your master's joy.'
Then the one who had received two talents also came forward and said,
'Master, you gave me two talents.
See, I have made two more.'
His master said to him, 'Well done, my good and faithful servant.
Since you were faithful in small matters,
I will give you great responsibilities.
Come, share your master's joy.'
Then the one who had received the one talent came forward and said,
'Master, I knew you were a demanding person,
harvesting where you did not plant
and gathering where you did not scatter;
so out of fear I went off and buried your talent in the ground.
Here it is back.'
His master said to him in reply, 'You wicked, lazy servant!
So you knew that I harvest where I did not plant
and gather where I did not scatter?
Should you not then have put my money in the bank
so that I could have got it back with interest on my return?
Now then! Take the talent from him and give it to the one with ten.
For to everyone who has,
more will be given and he will grow rich;
but from the one who has not,
even what he has will be taken away.
And throw this useless servant into the darkness outside,
where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.'"

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Life Is a Mission

Introductory Prayer: Lord, I come to you again in prayer. Even though I cannot see you, I know through faith that you are present in my life. I hope in your promise to be with me. I love you, and I know you love me. Accept this prayer as a token of my love.
Petition: Teach me, Lord, to take all that you have given me and make it produce fruit for your kingdom.
1. God’s Gifts: The Gospel tells us clearly that God distributes his gifts among us as he wills, and he entrusts each one of us with a mission. He gives us what we need to produce fruits for his kingdom, and he expects us to use those gifts responsibly and diligently. No two people are exactly alike, and God treats each one individually as a unique person made in his image. We need to live before God and respond to him sincerely by using to the maximum the talents he has given us. Are we making the best use of all that God has given us, or have we neglected some things and taken others for granted? Might we be committing a sin of omission with regards to some of our talents?
2. Life as a Mission: The servants who invest the talents and make a return on them have understood the purpose of their lives and the time they have at their disposal. These servants were generous with everything their master had given them, making it bear fruit, and they received from him the reward of greater intimacy and more responsibility. Each of us is also given a limited amount of time in life to use our various gifts to give glory to God and help save other souls. We too should work every day to hear those words: “Well done, good and faithful servant.”
3. The Useless Servant: How often we are paralyzed by fear or false prudence into doing nothing, into trying just to preserve ourselves! Sometimes we don’t take God’s gifts seriously or think we have been given very little, and we use that as a rationalization for making no effort or for producing little for God. We blame circumstances or others, but the fact is we are neglecting to produce the fruits God wants. The master didn’t expect a return of five talents from the servant to whom he gave only one. He would have been happy with a return of one more, but the lazy servant closed in on his egoism, self-love, and laziness. We must resolve to use our God-given talents wisely to net him a significant return.
Conversation with Christ: Lord, give me the grace and love to work for your kingdom with all the talents that you have given me. Let me return them all to you with real fruits for your kingdom.
Resolution: I will make a plan for evangelizing other souls and look for fruits of holiness in others.

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!”

SAINT QUOTE OF THE DAY : Friday - August 31, 2018

Friday - August 31, 2018

Whoever is humble, on being humiliated, humbles himself the more; on being rejected, rejoices in the disgrace; on being placed in low and mean occupations, acknowledges himself to be more honored than he deserves, and performs them willingly; and only abhors and avoids exalted and honorable offices.

-- St. Jane Frances de Chantal

 

August 31 , 2018

 

« August 30  |  September 1 »

Friday of the Twenty-first Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 429

Reading 11 COR 1:17-25

Brothers and sisters:
Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the Gospel,
and not with the wisdom of human eloquence,
so that the cross of Christ might not be emptied of its meaning.

The message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing,
but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.
For it is written:

I will destroy the wisdom of the wise,
and the learning of the learned I will set aside.

Where is the wise one?
Where is the scribe?
Where is the debater of this age?
Has not God made the wisdom of the world foolish?
For since in the wisdom of God
the world did not come to know God through wisdom,
it was the will of God through the foolishness of the proclamation
to save those who have faith.
For Jews demand signs and Greeks look for wisdom,
but we proclaim Christ crucified,
a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles,
but to those who are called, Jews and Greeks alike,
Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.
For the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom,
and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength.

Responsorial PsalmPS 33:1-2, 4-5, 10-11

R. (5) The earth is full of the goodness of the Lord.
Exult, you just, in the LORD;
praise from the upright is fitting.
Give thanks to the LORD on the harp;
with the ten stringed lyre chant his praises.
R. The earth is full of the goodness of the Lord.
For upright is the word of the LORD,
and all his works are trustworthy.
He loves justice and right;
of the kindness of the LORD the earth is full.
R. The earth is full of the goodness of the Lord.
The LORD brings to nought the plans of nations;
he foils the designs of peoples.
But the plan of the LORD stands forever;
the design of his heart, through all generations.
R. The earth is full of the goodness of the Lord.

AlleluiaLK 21:36

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Be vigilant at all times and pray,
that you may have the strength to stand before the Son of Man.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

GospelMT 25:1-13

Jesus told his disciples this parable:
"The Kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins
who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. 
Five of them were foolish and five were wise. 
The foolish ones, when taking their lamps,
brought no oil with them,
but the wise brought flasks of oil with their lamps. 
Since the bridegroom was long delayed,
they all became drowsy and fell asleep.
At midnight, there was a cry,
'Behold, the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!' 
Then all those virgins got up and trimmed their lamps. 
The foolish ones said to the wise,
'Give us some of your oil,
for our lamps are going out.' 
But the wise ones replied,
'No, for there may not be enough for us and you.
Go instead to the merchants and buy some for yourselves.' 
While they went off to buy it,
the bridegroom came
and those who were ready went into the wedding feast with him. 
Then the door was locked.
Afterwards the other virgins came and said,
'Lord, Lord, open the door for us!' 
But he said in reply,
'Amen, I say to you, I do not know you.' 
Therefore, stay awake,
for you know neither the day nor the hour."

 

 

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WHO IS THE FOOL?

Christianity is absurd! It's the opposite of everything that makes sense. St. Paul says in today's first reading that the message of the cross is "foolishness" (in some translations, "complete absurdity") and a "stumbling block." How often have you looked foolish for doing what God asks you to do? How often have you hesitated because you felt foolish?

The Bible is full of foolish nonsense. Peter was foolish enough to tell Jesus that he'd like to walk on water, and he sank only when he tried to understand what was happening.

And how do you think the Virgin Mary felt when the angel told her she'd become pregnant with the Messiah without ever "knowing" a man? She knew enough about biology to wonder, "How can this be?" But unlike Peter, she did not sink away from the absurdities of God.

And oh my, what about the cross? How in the world could the destruction of one man's life and ministry bring about such good results? How could carrying our own crosses be good? How in the world, indeed! The wisdom of this world is, in reality, just folly.

What's the most absurd thing going on in your life right now? What is God doing that makes no sense at all? Ahhh, the fun of living in absurdity. What an adventure!

Remember what Jesus tells us in today's Gospel reading: The truly foolish folks are those who don't expect God to do the unexpected. The foolish bridesmaids thought the groom would arrive before they ran out of oil in their lamps. They thought they understood the situation, and when they discovered that the groom was going to be absurdly late, they scratched their heads in confusion and scrambled to find more oil.

Notice that they ran off to the store after the groom's arrival was announced. Talk about idiocy!

The absurdity of what Christ leads us into is the opposite of such idiocy. To follow Christ in everything -- including walking on water in situations where we think we'll sink -- requires us to distrust our logic. We cannot trust our perception or our understanding of the situations we face or the work that God calls us to do. Those of us who want to have a good grasp of God's thought processes had better quit now, before the brain hits foolishness overload and crashes like a computer that has too many programs running at the same time.

The sooner we accept the absurdity of being a Christian, the sooner we will discover that living the risky adventures of holiness is much, much better than a safe life of sound logic and easy decisions.

So, get ready for anything! Fill your lamp with plenty of oil right now, while it's still illogical.

Today's Prayer

My Lord, It is difficult for me to be humble for the sake of my neighbors beyond my own interests, but I know that with Your grace and my daily effort I'll be the instrument of love that You want me to be. 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!”

SAINT QUOTE OF THE DAY : Thursday - August 30, 2018

Thursday - August 30, 2018

What has a person to fear who lives in the arms and bosom of God?

-- St. Paul of the Cross

 

August 30 , 2018

 

« August 29  |  August 31 »

Thursday of the Twenty-first Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 428

Reading 1 1 COR 1:1-9

Paul, called to be an Apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God,
and Sosthenes our brother,
to the Church of God that is in Corinth,
to you who have been sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be holy,
with all those everywhere who call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours.
Grace to you and peace from God our Father
and the Lord Jesus Christ.

I give thanks to my God always on your account
for the grace of God bestowed on you in Christ Jesus,
that in him you were enriched in every way,
with all discourse and all knowledge,
as the testimony to Christ was confirmed among you,
so that you are not lacking in any spiritual gift
as you wait for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ.
He will keep you firm to the end,
irreproachable on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.
God is faithful,
and by him you were called to fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

Responsorial PsalmPS 145:2-3, 4-5, 6-7

R. (1) I will praise your name for ever, Lord.Every day will I bless you,
and I will praise your name forever and ever.
Great is the LORD and highly to be praised;
his greatness is unsearchable.
R. I will praise your name for ever, Lord.
Generation after generation praises your works
and proclaims your might.
They speak of the splendor of your glorious majesty
and tell of your wondrous works.
R. I will praise your name for ever, Lord.
They discourse of the power of your terrible deeds
and declare your greatness.
They publish the fame of your abundant goodness
and joyfully sing of your justice.
R. I will praise your name for ever, Lord.

AlleluiaMT 24:42A, 44

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Stay awake!
For you do not know when the Son of Man will come.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

GospelMT 24:42-51

Jesus said to his disciples:
"Stay awake!
For you do not know on which day your Lord will come.
Be sure of this: 
if the master of the house
had known the hour of night when the thief was coming,
he would have stayed awake
and not let his house be broken into.
So too, you also must be prepared,
for at an hour you do not expect, the Son of Man will come.

"Who, then, is the faithful and prudent servant,
whom the master has put in charge of his household
to distribute to them their food at the proper time?
Blessed is that servant whom his master on his arrival finds doing so.
Amen, I say to you, he will put him in charge of all his property.
But if that wicked servant says to himself, 'My master is long delayed,'
and begins to beat his fellow servants,
and eat and drink with drunkards,
the servant's master will come on an unexpected day
and at an unknown hour and will punish him severely
and assign him a place with the hypocrites,
where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth."

 

 

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When Jesus Comes for You!

What will Jesus find you doing when he comes for you? This does not necessarily mean he will make his Second Coming appearance in your lifetime. But most certainly he will come for you in the moment you die. What will you be doing for the kingdom of God at the time of your death?

As Jesus says in today's Gospel reading, we don't know when that will happen. What if you have a brain aneurysm while enjoying a movie that glorifies violence, or shows sex outside the sacred union of a married man and woman, or other immoralities? What if you have a massive heart attack while swearing angrily at a motorist who cuts you off on the highway? Jesus comes for you and says --- ?

Hey, it could happen! There is no guarantee that our death will come while we're being nice to someone. Nor can we count on dying in bed peacefully while a priest gives us the Sacraments of Anointing and Holy Communion to send us on our way to heaven free from all sin.

Jesus tells us: "Stay awake! Don't get sleepy and close your eyes to the needs around you! Pay attention! Look at what you could be doing!"

St. Paul points out in today's first reading that God endows us abundantly with every gift and talent that we need, every bit of knowledge that we need, and all the strength and endurance that we need to remain blameless until Christ comes for us. How do we remain blameless? By choosing every day to live the reality of who we really are: As followers of Christ we are no longer sinners but are saints learning to be holier today than yesterday, and in this reality we continue the mission of Christ right up to the moment of death, even with our dying breaths!

The far-sighted servant that Jesus mentions is one who wastes no time in worthless activities that have no eternal value. We are faithful servants if we bless the kingdom of God through everything we do, even -- and especially -- in secular places. Everything we do can have eternal value if we pay attention to the Holy Spirit's guidance and do everything for the glory of God.

Washing dishes can have eternal value. Taking a friend out to dinner certainly has eternal value. We work for God when we smile at a stranger or give a compliment. We can serve his kingdom in the way we drive and in the birthday cards we send. Every task in our jobs glorifies God if we do it well and honestly. How we spend our money can honor God. Each word we speak should bless and not curse.

We don't have to be constantly active in ministry to be God's faithful servant. But we do have to stay awake and alert to what we're doing, how we're doing it, and for whom we're doing it. Ultimately, everything we do should bless the kingdom of God.

Today's Prayer

We thank You, Lord, because You have entrusted to us great things! Grant us the grace of having an alert and persevering heart in expecting Your Word. 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!”