Thursday - September 12, 2019
Nothing but self-will
can separate us
from God.
-- St. Alphonsus Liguori
Nothing but self-will
can separate us
from God.
-- St. Alphonsus Liguori
September 12 2019
Thursday of the Twenty-third Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 440
Reading 1COL 3:12-17
Brothers and sisters:
Put on, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved,
heartfelt compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience,
bearing with one another and forgiving one another,
if one has a grievance against another;
as the Lord has forgiven you, so must you also do.
And over all these put on love,
that is, the bond of perfection.
And let the peace of Christ control your hearts,
the peace into which you were also called in one Body.
And be thankful.
Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly,
as in all wisdom you teach and admonish one another,
singing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs
with gratitude in your hearts to God.
And whatever you do, in word or in deed,
do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus,
giving thanks to God the Father through him.
Put on, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved,
heartfelt compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience,
bearing with one another and forgiving one another,
if one has a grievance against another;
as the Lord has forgiven you, so must you also do.
And over all these put on love,
that is, the bond of perfection.
And let the peace of Christ control your hearts,
the peace into which you were also called in one Body.
And be thankful.
Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly,
as in all wisdom you teach and admonish one another,
singing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs
with gratitude in your hearts to God.
And whatever you do, in word or in deed,
do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus,
giving thanks to God the Father through him.
Responsorial PsalmPS 150:1B-2, 3-4, 5-6
R.(6) Let everything that breathes praise the Lord!
Praise the LORD in his sanctuary,
praise him in the firmament of his strength.
Praise him for his mighty deeds,
praise him for his sovereign majesty.
R. Let everything that breathes praise the Lord!
Praise him with the blast of the trumpet,
praise him with lyre and harp,
Praise him with timbrel and dance,
praise him with strings and pipe.
R. Let everything that breathes praise the Lord!
Praise him with sounding cymbals,
praise him with clanging cymbals.
Let everything that has breath
praise the LORD! Alleluia.
R. Let everything that breathes praise the Lord!
Praise the LORD in his sanctuary,
praise him in the firmament of his strength.
Praise him for his mighty deeds,
praise him for his sovereign majesty.
R. Let everything that breathes praise the Lord!
Praise him with the blast of the trumpet,
praise him with lyre and harp,
Praise him with timbrel and dance,
praise him with strings and pipe.
R. Let everything that breathes praise the Lord!
Praise him with sounding cymbals,
praise him with clanging cymbals.
Let everything that has breath
praise the LORD! Alleluia.
R. Let everything that breathes praise the Lord!
Alleluia1 JN 4:12
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
If we love one another,
God remains in us,
and his love is brought to perfection in us.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
If we love one another,
God remains in us,
and his love is brought to perfection in us.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
GospelLK 6:27-38
Jesus said to his disciples:
"To you who hear I say, love your enemies,
do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you,
pray for those who mistreat you.
To the person who strikes you on one cheek,
offer the other one as well,
and from the person who takes your cloak,
do not withhold even your tunic.
Give to everyone who asks of you,
and from the one who takes what is yours do not demand it back.
Do to others as you would have them do to you.
For if you love those who love you,
what credit is that to you?
Even sinners love those who love them.
And if you do good to those who do good to you,
what credit is that to you?
Even sinners do the same.
If you lend money to those from whom you expect repayment,
what credit is that to you?
Even sinners lend to sinners,
and get back the same amount.
But rather, love your enemies and do good to them,
and lend expecting nothing back;
then your reward will be great
and you will be children of the Most High,
for he himself is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked.
Be merciful, just as also your Father is merciful.
"Stop judging and you will not be judged.
Stop condemning and you will not be condemned.
Forgive and you will be forgiven.
Give and gifts will be given to you;
a good measure, packed together, shaken down, and overflowing,
will be poured into your lap.
For the measure with which you measure
will in return be measured out to you."
"To you who hear I say, love your enemies,
do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you,
pray for those who mistreat you.
To the person who strikes you on one cheek,
offer the other one as well,
and from the person who takes your cloak,
do not withhold even your tunic.
Give to everyone who asks of you,
and from the one who takes what is yours do not demand it back.
Do to others as you would have them do to you.
For if you love those who love you,
what credit is that to you?
Even sinners love those who love them.
And if you do good to those who do good to you,
what credit is that to you?
Even sinners do the same.
If you lend money to those from whom you expect repayment,
what credit is that to you?
Even sinners lend to sinners,
and get back the same amount.
But rather, love your enemies and do good to them,
and lend expecting nothing back;
then your reward will be great
and you will be children of the Most High,
for he himself is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked.
Be merciful, just as also your Father is merciful.
"Stop judging and you will not be judged.
Stop condemning and you will not be condemned.
Forgive and you will be forgiven.
Give and gifts will be given to you;
a good measure, packed together, shaken down, and overflowing,
will be poured into your lap.
For the measure with which you measure
will in return be measured out to you."
******************************
Dealing with the Enemy
Terrorists sometimes are militant Muslims, sometimes anarchists attacking their own country, and sometimes a kid that no one suspected as dangerous. We live in an unsafe world. We're on the alert hoping to identify possible enemies before it's too late.
As Christians, we always know the identity of the enemy. As Christians, we know that the humans who behave as our enemies are really only victims and weapons of the true enemy, the Evil One and his spiritual forces of darkness. This is true whether it's ISIS or the family member who has disrupted your home.
In our Gospel reading today, Jesus gives us the weapons of war that will crush the true enemy: Love your human enemies, he said. Do good to those who hate you. Bless those who curse you. Pray for those who attack you.
But how can love be an evil-destroying weapon?
Evil is really only a void, the absence of God, the absence of love. The void causes extreme inner discomfort, which triggers anger and hatred due to the frustration of not being loved enough. The sad irony of this is that the love that's desired now has no opportunity to fill the void. And where love is blocked, evil spreads like a poisonous weed.
But you can give love to those who are being unloving. (Remember, you have the supernatural love of God within you; rely on that!) You can do good to those who do evil. You can replace curses with blessings. And thus the void gets voided.
Jesus said, "Forgive, and you will be forgiven." No terrorist, no evil-doer of any sort, can destroy the peace that comes from being forgiven by God. When faced with a war in the world or in our homes, we find our peace by praying: "Father, forgive them, for they don't really know what they're doing. Bring all souls to heaven, especially those in most need of your mercy."
St. Paul wrote in today's first reading: "You are God's chosen ones. You are the beloved. Therefore, clothe yourselves with heartfelt mercy and compassion." He repeated what Jesus had said: "Forgive whatever grievances you have against others. Forgive as the Lord has forgiven you."
Mercy is love that is not deserved. Forgiveness makes us merciful. When the door to love is closed, our acts of mercy deliver God's love like a secret weapon. Will it make a difference? We cannot force someone to open up to God and receive his healing and his purifying love, but by using the weapons of love that Jesus has given us, we defeat the real enemy. That definitely makes a difference, even if we don't always get to see it.
Today's Prayer
Beloved Lord Jesus, You call me to travel a new and wonderful path with You. To follow it, I must decide to love and break the chains of my resentments and judgements. I want to be free and to set free my brothers and sisters, as You have asked us to. 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!”
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