MASS READINGS & SAINT QUOTE OF THE DAY : Saturday - November 27, 2021

Saturday - November 27, 2021

We should love God because He is God, and the measure of our love should be to love Him without measure. 

-- St Bernard

November 27, 2021

Saturday of the Thirty-fourth Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 508

 

Reading 1                                                     Dn 7:15-27

I, Daniel, found my spirit anguished within its covering of flesh,

and I was terrified by the visions of my mind.

I approached one of those present

and asked him what all this meant in truth;

in answer, he made known to me the meaning of the things:

“These four great beasts stand for four kingdoms

which shall arise on the earth.

But the holy ones of the Most High shall receive the kingship,

to possess it forever and ever.”

 

But I wished to make certain about the fourth beast,

so very terrible and different from the others,

devouring and crushing with its iron teeth and bronze claws,

and trampling with its feet what was left;

about the ten horns on its head, and the other one that sprang up,

before which three horns fell;

about the horn with the eyes and the mouth that spoke arrogantly,

which appeared greater than its fellows.

For, as I watched, that horn made war against the holy ones

and was victorious until the Ancient One arrived;

judgment was pronounced in favor of the holy ones of the Most High,

and the time came when the holy ones possessed the kingdom.

He answered me thus:

 

“The fourth beast shall be a fourth kingdom on earth

different from all the others;

It shall devour the whole earth,

beat it down, and crush it.

The ten horns shall be ten kings

rising out of that kingdom;

another shall rise up after them,

Different from those before him,

who shall lay low three kings.

He shall speak against the Most High

and oppress the holy ones of the Most High,

thinking to change the feast days and the law.

They shall be handed over to him

for a year, two years, and a half-year.

But when the court is convened,

and his power is taken away

by final and absolute destruction,

Then the kingship and dominion and majesty

of all the kingdoms under the heavens

shall be given to the holy people of the Most High,

Whose Kingdom shall be everlasting:

all dominions shall serve and obey him.”

 

Responsorial Psalm                                              Daniel 3:82, 83, 84, 85, 86, 87

 

R. Give glory and eternal praise to him.

 

“You sons of men, bless the Lord;

praise and exalt him above all forever.”

R. Give glory and eternal praise to him.

“O Israel, bless the Lord;

praise and exalt him above all forever.”

R. Give glory and eternal praise to him.

“Priests of the Lord, bless the Lord;

praise and exalt him above all forever.”

R. Give glory and eternal praise to him.

“Servants of the Lord, bless the Lord;

praise and exalt him above all forever.”

R. Give glory and eternal praise to him.

“Spirits and souls of the just, bless the Lord;

praise and exalt him above all forever.”

R. Give glory and eternal praise to him.

“Holy men of humble heart, bless the Lord;

praise and exalt him above all forever.”

R. Give glory and eternal praise to him.

 

Alleluia                                                                      Lk 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.

 

Gospel                                                                       Lk 21:34-36

Jesus said to his disciples:

“Beware that your hearts do not become drowsy

from carousing and drunkenness

and the anxieties of daily life,

and that day catch you by surprise like a trap.

For that day will assault everyone

who lives on the face of the earth.

Be vigilant at all times

and pray that you have the strength

to escape the tribulations that are imminent

and to stand before the Son of Man.”

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GOD WANTS TO HEAL YOUR FEARS

Examine the role that fear has been playing in your life. Ask yourself, "What's keeping me from fully trusting in God's goodness toward me? How does fear play into this?"

Fear is our enemy. God's love is the cure for all of our traumas and every fear, every worry, every anxiety. The safe and perfect love that we do not receive from humans is readily available from him. Do we really believe this? It seems that most people do not.

It's not something that is taught often enough in religious education classrooms, homilies, and adult faith formation events. I've met many good, faith-filled people who are ridden with anxiety. The reason, in many cases, is that we tend to expect—even demand—that our peace and joy come from other people doing what they are called to do (i.e., love as they should with the love of Christ).

A wife expects her husband to love her faithfully, listen to her because he cares, and humbly apologize when he's wronged her. The husband expects his wife to be supportive of him in his trials, love him no matter what mood he's in, and humbly apologize when she's wronged him. The truth is: This is the love that God calls for in the Vocation of Marriage, so of course it's expected. The fact is: Everyone fails. Humans will always disappoint us.

Only God's love is perfect. And it requires spiritual and emotional discipline to turn to him and let his more-than-enough love become our more-than-enough peace and joy.

Abba-Father's touch is very healing. But people run and hide from it. And yet, despite their best efforts to make a good life for themselves, hiding from God actually increases their fear, worry and anxiety. If they don't recognize this as a wake-up call but continue trying to hide from the God who sees all and knows all, their thought-processes become irrational. Their inner soul, which knew God from the day of their conception, is in conflict with their minds and their wills.

As Saint Augustine so famously said to God, "You arouse us so that praising You may bring us joy, because You have made us and drawn us to Yourself, and our heart is restless until it rests in You."

Whether a fear is small or huge, it disempowers us at the very time we're seeking to gain control. For example, the fear of not being able to find employment after being laid off from a job can pull us away from God's help by convincing us that we're failures, Fear lies to us, and so we lose the freedom to be who we truly are and to do what we're gifted and called by God to do.

Abba-Father, in contrast, freely gives us freedom: freedom from sin through Christ, and then freedom to be his adopted children—with all that this includes.

Saint John tells us in his first epistle: "There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love." (1 John 4:18 NIV) What are you afraid of?

When we understand what it means to be loved by Abba-Father, fear dissipates. How much anxiety we have is an indicator of how well we understand (or remember) Abba's love. To overcome anxiety, first identify the misconceptions you're believing about God, then ask the Holy Spirit to fill you with the truth about each misconception.

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God Bless You.....

The Rosary Family

The mother of Jesus promised St. Dominic that, “one day through the rosary & the scapular I shall save the world!”