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Catholic Caucus: Daily Mass Readings, 07-18-14, OM, St. Camillus de Lellis, Priest
USCCB.org/RNAB ^ | 07-18-14 | Revised New American Bible

Posted on 07/17/2014 8:13:19 PM PDT by Salvation

July 18, 2014

Friday of the Fifteenth Week in Ordinary Time

 

 

Reading 1 Is 38:1-6, 21-22, 7-8

When Hezekiah was mortally ill,
the prophet Isaiah, son of Amoz, came and said to him:
“Thus says the LORD: Put your house in order,
for you are about to die; you shall not recover.”
Then Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the LORD:

“O LORD, remember how faithfully and wholeheartedly
I conducted myself in your presence,
doing what was pleasing to you!”
And Hezekiah wept bitterly.

Then the word of the LORD came to Isaiah: “Go, tell Hezekiah:
Thus says the LORD, the God of your father David:
I have heard your prayer and seen your tears.
I will heal you: in three days you shall go up to the LORD’s temple;
I will add fifteen years to your life.
I will rescue you and this city from the hand of the king of Assyria;
I will be a shield to this city.”

Isaiah then ordered a poultice of figs to be taken
and applied to the boil, that he might recover.
Then Hezekiah asked,
“What is the sign that I shall go up to the temple of the LORD?”

Isaiah answered:
“This will be the sign for you from the LORD
that he will do what he has promised:
See, I will make the shadow cast by the sun
on the stairway to the terrace of Ahaz
go back the ten steps it has advanced.”
So the sun came back the ten steps it had advanced.

Responsorial Psalm Is 38:10, 11, 12abcd, 16

R. (see 17b) You saved my life, O Lord; I shall not die.
Once I said,
“In the noontime of life I must depart!
To the gates of the nether world I shall be consigned
for the rest of my years.”
R. You saved my life, O Lord; I shall not die.
I said, “I shall see the LORD no more
in the land of the living.
No longer shall I behold my fellow men
among those who dwell in the world.”
R. You saved my life, O Lord; I shall not die.
My dwelling, like a shepherd’s tent,
is struck down and borne away from me;
You have folded up my life, like a weaver
who severs the last thread.
R. You saved my life, O Lord; I shall not die.
Those live whom the LORD protects;
yours is the life of my spirit.
You have given me health and life.
R. You saved my life, O Lord; I shall not die.

Gospel Mt 12:1-8

Jesus was going through a field of grain on the sabbath.
His disciples were hungry
and began to pick the heads of grain and eat them.
When the Pharisees saw this, they said to him,
“See, your disciples are doing what is unlawful to do on the sabbath.”
He said to the them, “Have you not read what David did
when he and his companions were hungry,
how he went into the house of God and ate the bread of offering,
which neither he nor his companions
but only the priests could lawfully eat?
Or have you not read in the law that on the sabbath
the priests serving in the temple violate the sabbath
and are innocent?
I say to you, something greater than the temple is here.
If you knew what this meant, I desire mercy, not sacrifice,
you would not have condemned these innocent men.
For the Son of Man is Lord of the sabbath.”



TOPICS: Catholic; General Discusssion; Prayer; Worship
KEYWORDS: catholic; mt12; ordinarytime; prayer; saints
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1 posted on 07/17/2014 8:13:19 PM PDT by Salvation
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2 posted on 07/17/2014 8:14:21 PM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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To: All

From: Isaiah 38:1-6, 21-22, 7-8

Illness and cure of Hezekiah


In those days Hezekiah became sick and was at the point of death. And Isaiah
the prophet the son of Amoz came to him, and said to him, “Thus says the Lord:
Set your house in order; for you shall die, you shall not recover.” [2] Then Heze-
kiah turned his face to the wall, and prayed to the Lord, [3] and said, “Remember
now, O Lord, I beseech thee, how I have walked before thee in faithfulness and
with a whole heart, and have done what is good in thy sight.” And Hezekiah wept
bitterly. [4] Then the word of the Lord came to Isaiah: [5] “Go and say to Heze-
kiah, Thus says the Lord, the God of David your father: I have heard your prayer,
I have seen your tears; behold, I will add fifteen years to your life. [6] I will deliver
you and this city out of the hand of the king of Assyria, and defend this city.

[21] Now Isaiah had said, “Let them take a cake of figs, and apply to the boil,
that he may recover.” [22] Hezekiah also had said, “What is the sign that I shall
go up to the house of the Lord?”

[7] “This is the sign to you from the Lord, that the Lord will do this thing that he
has promised: [8] Behold, I will make the shadow cast by the declining sun on
the dial of Ahaz turn back ten steps.” So the sun turned back on the dial the ten
steps by which it had declined.

*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:

38:1-22. Hezekiah’s faith and devotion were tested during the siege of Jerusalem:
now comes a further test: the king falls gravely ill, even though he is still a young
man. This time, too, he turns to God, and his prayer is answered. Isaiah’s inter-
vention (vv. 4-8) assures the king that his health will he restored; the defence of
the city requires it.

Here we are given a further example of Hezekiah’s trust in the Lord as against
Ahaz’s lack of faith. The Lord offers him a sign (just as he did his father) that he
will keep his word (vv. 7-8; cf. 7:14). After this, Hezekiah’s canticle is inserted (vv.
9-20) — a passage which does not appear in the parallel texts in 2 Kings and 2
Chronicles, and which has features of the sapiential writing style. The poem
takes the form of a thanksgiving psalm spoken by the king. When all seemed
lost (vv. 10-12), he had recourse to the Lord in humble and trusting prayer (vv.
13-16), and God saved him from death (v. 17). Therefore, the psalmist expresses
his great desire to worship the Lord in the temple (cf. v. 22) along with the rest of
the community (vv. 18-20). Verses 21-22 fit in better (as St Jerome points out) af-
ter vv. 6-7, which is where they appear in the parallel account (2 Kings 20:7).

38:8. From the text of the book of Isaiah found at Qumran we know that Ahaz
had built a flight of steps that worked as a sundial, so that the time could he told
depending on which steps were in shadow. “Turning the sun back” meant exten-
ding the day by a few hours — a sign that God would grant the king some more
years of life.

*********************************************************************************************
Source: “The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries”. Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.


3 posted on 07/17/2014 8:27:04 PM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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To: All

From: Matthew 12:1-8

The Question of the Sabbath


[1] At that time Jesus went through the grainfields on the Sabbath; His disciples
were hungry, and they began to pluck ears of grain and to eat. [2] But when the
Pharisees saw it, they said to Him, “Look, Your disciples are doing what is not
lawful to do on the Sabbath.” [3] He said to them, “Have you not read what David
did, when he was hungry, and those who were with him: [4] how he entered the
house of God and ate the bread of the Presence, which it was not lawful for him
to eat nor for those who were with him, but only for the priests? [5] Or have you
not read in the law how on the Sabbath the priests in the temple profane the Sab-
bath, and are guiltless? [6] I tell you, something greater than the temple is here.
[7] And if you had known what this means, ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice,’
you would not have condemned the guiltless. [8] For the Son of Man is Lord of
the Sabbath.”

*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:

2. “The Sabbath”: this was the day the Jews set aside for worshipping God. God
Himself, the originator of the Sabbath (Genesis 2:3), ordered the Jewish people to
avoid certain kinds of work on this day (Exodus 20:8-11; 21:13; Deuteronomy 5:
14) to leave them free to give more time to God. As time went by, the rabbis com-
plicated this divine precept: by Jesus’ time they had extended to 39 the list of
kinds of forbidden work.

The Pharisees accuse Jesus’ disciples of breaking the Sabbath. In the casuistry
of the scribes and the Pharisees, plucking ears of corn was the same as harves-
ting, and crushing them was the same as milling—types of agricultural work for-
bidden on the Sabbath.

3-8. Jesus rebuts the Pharisees’ accusation by four arguments—the example of
David, that of the priests, a correct understanding of the mercy of God and Jesus’
own authority over the Sabbath.

The first example which was quite familiar to the people, who were used to liste-
ning to the Bible being read, comes from 1 Samuel 21:2-7: David, in flight from
the jealousy of King Saul, asks the priest of the shrine of Nob for food for his men;
the priest gave them the only bread he had, the holy bread of the Presence; this
was the twelve loaves which were placed each week on the golden altar of the
sanctuary as a perpetual offering from the twelve tribes of Israel (Leviticus 24:5-9).
The second example refers to the priestly ministry to perform the liturgy, priests
had to do a number of things on the Sabbath but did not thereby break the law of
Sabbath rest (cf. Numbers 28:9). On the other two arguments, see the notes on
Matthew 9:13 and Mark 2:26-27, 28.

[The notes on Matthew 9:13 states:

13. Here Jesus quotes Hosea 6:6, keeping the hyperbole of the Semitic style. A
more faithful translation would be: “I desire mercy more than sacrifice”. It is not
that our Lord does not want the sacrifices we offer Him: He is stressing that every
sacrifice should come from the heart, for charity should imbue everything a Chris-
tian does — especially his worship of God (see 1 Corinthians 13:1-13; Matthew 5:
23-24).]

[The notes on Mark 2:26-27, 28 states:

26-27. The bread of the Presence consisted of twelve loaves or cakes placed
each morning on the table in the sanctuary, as homage to the Lord from the
twelve tribes of Israel (cf. Leviticus 24:5-9). The loaves withdrawn to make room
for the fresh ones were reserved to the priests. Abiathar’s action anticipates what
Christ teaches here. Already in the Old Testament God had established a hierar-
chy in the precepts of the Law so that the lesser ones yielded to the main ones.

This explains why a ceremonial precept (such as the one we are discussing)
should yield before a precept of the natural law. Similarly, the commandment
to keep the Sabbath does not come before the duty to seek basic subsistence.
Vatican II uses this passage of the Gospel to underline the value of the human
person over and above economic and social development: “The social order and
its development must constantly yield to the good of the person, since the order
of things must be subordinate to the order of persons and not the other way a-
round, as the Lord suggested when He said that the Sabbath was made for man
and not man for the Sabbath. The social order requires constant improvement:
it must be founded in truth, built on justice, and enlivened by love” (”Gaudium
Et Spes”, 26).

Finally in this passage Christ teaches God’s purpose in instituting the Sabbath:
God established it for man’s good, to help him rest and devote himself to Divine
worship in joy and peace. The Pharisees, through their interpretation of the Law,
had turned this day into a source of anguish and scruple due to all the various
prescriptions and prohibitions they introduced.

By proclaiming Himself ‘Lord of the Sabbath’, Jesus affirms His divinity and His
universal authority. Because He is Lord he has the power to establish other
laws, as Yahweh had in the Old Testament.

28. The Sabbath had been established not only for man’s rest but also to give glo-
ry to God: that is the correct meaning of the expression “the Sabbath was made
for man.” Jesus has every right to say He is Lord of the Sabbath, because He is
God. Christ restores to the weekly day of rest its full, religious meaning: it is not
just a matter of fulfilling a number of legal precepts or of concern for physical well-
being: the Sabbath belongs to God; it is one way, suited to human nature, of ren-
dering glory and honor to the Almighty. The Church, from the time of the Apostles
onwards, transferred the observance of this precept to the following day, Sunday
— the Lord’s Day — in celebration of the resurrection of Christ.

“Son of Man”: the origin of the messianic meaning of this expression is to be
found particularly in the prophecy of Dan 7:13ff, where Daniel, in a prophetic vi-
sion, contemplates ‘one like the Son of Man’ coming down on the clouds of Hea-
ven, who even goes right up to God’s throne and is given dominion and glory and
royal power over all peoples and nations. This expression appears 69 times in
the Synoptic Gospels; Jesus prefers it to other ways of describing the Messiah —
such as Son of David, Messiah, etc.—thereby avoiding the nationalistic overtones
those expressions had in Jewish minds at the time (cf. “Introduction to the Gos-
pel According to St. Mark”, p. 62 above.]

*********************************************************************************************
Source: “The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries”. Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.


4 posted on 07/17/2014 8:31:13 PM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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To: All
Scripture readings taken from the Jerusalem Bible, published and copyright © 1966, 1967 and 1968 by Darton, Longman & Todd

Readings at Mass


First reading

Isaiah 38:1-6,21-22,7-8 ©

Hezekiah fell ill and was at the point of death. The prophet Isaiah son of Amoz came and said to him, ‘The Lord says this, “Put your affairs in order, for you are going to die, you will not live.”’ Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and addressed this prayer to the Lord, ‘Ah, Lord, remember, I beg you, how I have behaved faithfully and with sincerity of heart in your presence and done what is right in your eyes.’ And Hezekiah shed many tears.

  Then the word of the Lord came to Isaiah, ‘Go and say to Hezekiah, “The Lord, the God of David your ancestor, says this: I have heard your prayer and seen your tears. I will cure you: in three days’ time you shall go up to the Temple of the Lord.” I will add fifteen years to your life. I will save you from the hands of the king of Assyria, I will protect this city.”’

  ‘Bring a fig poultice,’ Isaiah said, ‘apply it to the ulcer and he will recover.’ Hezekiah said, ‘What is the sign to tell me that I shall be going up to the Temple of the Lord?’ ‘Here’ Isaiah replied’’ ‘is the sign from the Lord that he will do what he has said. Look, I shall make the shadow cast by the declining sun go back ten steps on the steps of Ahaz.’ And the sun went back the ten steps by which it had declined.


Canticle

Isaiah 38:10-12,16 ©

 

The canticle of Hezekiah

You have held back my life, O Lord, from the pit of doom.

I said, ‘So I must go away,

  my life half spent,

assigned to the world below

  for the rest of my years.’

You have held back my life, O Lord, from the pit of doom.

I said, ‘No more shall I see the Lord

  in the land of the living,

no more shall I look upon men

  within this world.

You have held back my life, O Lord, from the pit of doom.

‘My home is pulled up and removed

  like a shepherd’s tent.

Like a weaver you have rolled up my life,

  you cut it from the loom.

You have held back my life, O Lord, from the pit of doom.

‘For you, Lord, my heart will live,

  you gave me back my spirit;

you cured me, kept me alive,

  changed my sickness into health.’

You have held back my life, O Lord, from the pit of doom.


Gospel Acclamation

cf.Ps26:11

Alleluia, alleluia!

Instruct me, Lord, in your way;

on an even path lead me.

Alleluia!

Or

Jn10:27

Alleluia, alleluia!

The sheep that belong to me listen to my voice,

says the Lord,

I know them and they follow me.

Alleluia!


Gospel

Matthew 12:1-8 ©

Jesus took a walk one sabbath day through the cornfields. His disciples were hungry and began to pick ears of corn and eat them. The Pharisees noticed it and said to him, ‘Look, your disciples are doing something that is forbidden on the sabbath.’ But he said to them, ‘Have you not read what David did when he and his followers were hungry – how he went into the house of God and how they ate the loaves of offering which neither he nor his followers were allowed to eat, but which were for the priests alone? Or again, have you not read in the Law that on the sabbath day the Temple priests break the sabbath without being blamed for it? Now here, I tell you, is something greater than the Temple. And if you had understood the meaning of the words: What I want is mercy, not sacrifice, you would not have condemned the blameless. For the Son of Man is master of the sabbath.’


5 posted on 07/17/2014 8:39:15 PM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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Perpetual Novena for the Nation (Ecumenical)
6 posted on 07/17/2014 8:40:28 PM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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To: All
Prayers for The Religion Forum (Ecumenical)
7 posted on 07/17/2014 8:40:52 PM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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Comment #8 Removed by Moderator

To: All

 
Jesus, High Priest
 

We thank you, God our Father, for those who have responded to your call to priestly ministry.

Accept this prayer we offer on their behalf: Fill your priests with the sure knowledge of your love.

Open their hearts to the power and consolation of the Holy Spirit.

Lead them to new depths of union with your Son.

Increase in them profound faith in the Sacraments they celebrate as they nourish, strengthen and heal us.

Lord Jesus Christ, grant that these, your priests, may inspire us to strive for holiness by the power of their example, as men of prayer who ponder your word and follow your will.

O Mary, Mother of Christ and our mother, guard with your maternal care these chosen ones, so dear to the Heart of your Son.

Intercede for our priests, that offering the Sacrifice of your Son, they may be conformed more each day to the image of your Son, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.

Saint John Vianney, universal patron of priests, pray for us and our priests

This icon shows Jesus Christ, our eternal high priest.

The gold pelican over His heart represents self-sacrifice.

The border contains an altar and grapevines, representing the Mass, and icons of Melchizedek and St. Jean-Baptiste Vianney.

Melchizedek: king of righteousness (left icon) was priest and king of Jerusalem.  He blessed Abraham and has been considered an ideal priest-king.

St. Jean-Baptiste Vianney is the patron saint of parish priests.

9 posted on 07/17/2014 8:42:28 PM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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To: All
Pray a Rosary each day for our nation.

Pray the Rosary

1.  Sign of the Cross:  In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

2.  The Apostles Creed:  II BELIEVE in God, the Father almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. He descended into hell; on the third day he rose again from the dead; he ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of God, the Father Almighty; from there He shall come to judge the living and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.

3.  The Lord's Prayer:  OUR Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen.

4. (3) Hail Mary:  HAIL Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou amongst women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now, and in the hour of our death. Amen. (Three times)

5. Glory Be:  GLORY be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Fatima Prayer: Oh, my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of hell, lead all souls to heaven, especially those in most need of your mercy.

Announce each mystery, then say 1 Our Father, 10 Hail Marys, 1 Glory Be and 1 Fatima prayer.  Repeat the process with each mystery.

End with the Hail Holy Queen:

Hail, Holy Queen, Mother of Mercy, our life, our sweetness and our hope! To thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve! To thee do we send up our sighs, mourning and weeping in this vale of tears! Turn then, most gracious advocate, thine eyes of mercy towards us; and after this, our exile, show unto us the blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus!

O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary! Pray for us, O holy Mother of God, that we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

Final step -- The Sign of the Cross

 

The Mysteries of the Rosary

By tradition, Catholics meditate on these Mysteries during prayers of the Rosary.
The biblical references follow each of the Mysteries below.


The Sorrowful Mysteries
(Tuesdays and Fridays)
1. The Agony in the Garden (Matthew 26:36-46, Luke 22:39-46) [Spiritual fruit - God's will be done]
2. The Scourging at the Pillar (Matthew 27:26, Mark 15:15, John 19:1) [Spiritual fruit - Mortification of the senses]
3. The Crowning with Thorns (Matthew 27:27-30, Mark 15:16-20, John 19:2) [Spiritual fruit - Reign of Christ in our heart]
4. The Carrying of the Cross (Matthew 27:31-32, Mark 15:21, Luke 23:26-32, John 19:17) [Spiritual fruit - Patient bearing of trials]
5. The Crucifixion (Matthew 27:33-56, Mark 15:22-39, Luke 23:33-49, John 19:17-37) [Spiritual fruit - Pardoning of Injuries]

10 posted on 07/17/2014 8:43:21 PM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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To: All



~ PRAYER ~

St. Michael, the Archangel, defend us in battle
 Be our protection against the wickedness
and snares of the devil;
May God rebuke him, we  humbly pray,
 and do thou, O Prince of the heavenly host,
 by the power of God,
 Cast into hell Satan and all the evil spirits
who prowl through the world seeking the ruin of souls.
 Amen
+

11 posted on 07/17/2014 8:43:43 PM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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A Prayer for our Free Nation Under God
God Save Our Country web site (prayer warriors)
Prayer Chain Request for the United States of America
Pray for Nancy Pelosi
Prayer and fasting will help defeat health care reform (Freeper Prayer Thread)
Prayer Campaign Started to Convert Pro-Abortion Catholic Politicians to Pro-Life
[Catholic Caucus] One Million Rosaries
Non-stop Rosary vigil to defeat ObamaCare

From an Obama bumper sticker on a car:

"Pray for Obama.  Psalm 109:8"

   

PLEASE JOIN US -

Evening Prayer
Someone has said that if people really understood the full extent of the power we have available through prayer, we might be speechless.
Did you know that during WWII there was an advisor to Churchill who organized a group of people who dropped what they were doing every day at a prescribed hour for one minute to collectively pray for the safety of England, its people and peace?  


There is now a group of people organizing the same thing here in America. If you would like to participate: Every evening at 9:00 PM Eastern Time (8:00 PM Central) (7:00 PM Mountain) (6:00 PM Pacific), stop whatever you are doing and spend one minute praying for the safety of the United States, our troops, our citizens, and for a return to a Godly nation. If you know anyone else who would like to participate, please pass this along. Our prayers are the most powerful asset we have.    Please forward this to your praying friends.


12 posted on 07/17/2014 8:44:14 PM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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To: All
Most Precious Blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ
 

 
July Devotion: The Precious Blood

July Devotion: The Precious Blood 
Like the Sacred Wounds of Jesus, His Precious Blood deserves special honor because of its close relation to the Sacred Passion. That honor was given to it from the beginning by the Apostles who praised its redeeming power. (Rom. 5:9 "we are justified by His blood"; Heb. 13:12 "and so Jesus also, that He might sanctify the people by His blood, suffered outside the gate"; 1 John 1:7 "and the blood of Jesus Christ, His Son, cleanses us from all sin.") 
The Church has always held devotion to the Precious Blood in high esteem. We continue to recognize and publicly acknowledge the profound indebtedness of the whole human race to Christ, Priest and Victim. 
Standing at the foot of the cross, we see Jesus' head, hands, feet, and side pouring out streams of precious blood. It is precious because it: 
•      Redeems us and atones for our sins. Through His precious blood we are reconciled to God, made one with Him. Death ceases to be death and heaven's gates are opened to us.  
•      Cleanses us from all sin.  
•      Preserves us and keeps us safe from the grasp of evil.  When the Father sees us washed in the Blood of the Lamb we are spared.  
•      Comforts us. It is the constant reminder that Jesus - true God and true man suffered and died to save us and to open heaven to us because He loves us.  
•      Sanctifies us.  The same blood that justifies by taking away sin, continues to work within us.  Its action gives us the grace to continue on the path toward the Kingdom of God.  It assists us in achieving our new nature, leading us onward in subduing sin and in following the commands of God.  
Jesus shed His precious blood seven times during His life on earth.  They events were: 
•      Jesus shed His Blood in the Circumcision  
•      Jesus shed His Blood whilst praying in the Garden of Olives  
•      Jesus shed His Blood in the scourging  
•      Jesus shed His Blood in the crowning with thorns  
•      Jesus shed His Blood while carrying His cross  
•      Jesus shed His Blood in the crucifixion  
•      Jesus shed His Blood and water when His side was pierced 
 
The Power of the Precious Blood 
"I adore You, O Precious Blood of Jesus, flower of creation, fruit of virginity, ineffable instrument of the Holy Spirit, and I rejoice at the thought that You came from the drop of virginal blood on which eternal Love impressed its movement; You were assumed by the Word and deified in His person. I am overcome with emotion when I think of Your passing from the Blessed Virgin's heart into the heart of the Word, and, being vivified by the breath of the Divinity, becoming adorable because You became the Blood of God." (St. Albert the Great)
 

At their recent meeting, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops had continuous Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament for "healing and peace."   They encouraged parishes and communities to have ongoing Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament.  In these dark months of woundedness, pain and violence we need to turn to the Precious Blood of Jesus in the Eucharist, for healing, peace, and light.  
"What power we have in the Precious Blood of Jesus in the Holy Eucharist!  He is there to protect us, to be our refuge and our redemption.  (In Exodus 12, God told Moses to have His chosen people mark their door posts with the blood of an unblemished lamb, during the first Passover. Those who did this were spared when the Angel of the death passed by). This is why Archbishop Sheen said that we must call down the Blood of the Lamb, Jesus in the Most Blessed Sacrament.  For, he warned, when we stop calling down the Blood of the Lamb, we start calling down the blood of each other."  (From our book Bread of Life)      
"And the Lamb on the throne will shepherd them. He will lead them to springs of life-giving water" (Rev 7:17). 
"In the tumultuous events of our time, it is important to look to the Eucharist: it must be at the heart of the life of priests and consecrated people; the light and strength of spouses in putting into practice their commitment to fidelity, chastity and the apostolate; the ideal in education and in training children, adolescents and young people; the comfort and support of those who are troubled, of the sick and all who are weeping in the Gethsemane of life."  (Pope John Paul II)  
Precious Blood of Jesus, save us! 
"The only time our Lord asked the Apostles for anything was the night when He went into His agony.  But as often in the history of the church since that time, evil was awake, but the disciples were asleep.  That is why there came out of His anguished and lonely Heart a sigh: 'Could you not watch one hour with Me?'" (Mt 26:40).  Not for an hour of activity did he plead, but for an hour of friendship (Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen).  
 
St. Maria Goretti,  Patroness of Youth & Children of Mary, Feast-July 6 St. Maria of Italy (1890-1902), couldn't wait to make her First Communion.  She wanted to receive Jesus in the Holy Eucharist so that she could become more beautiful and pure like Him; she wanted Him to live in her, close to her heart.  After she received Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament for the first time, she stayed in Church for a long time after Mass to talk to Him. Maria's family lived with and worked for a farmer. His son Alessandro kept trying to make Maria sin against purity.  One day, when everyone else was working, Alessandro grabbed Maria and tried to make her sin.  Maria kept crying out for him to stop, and each time she did, he stabbed her. Courageously,   Maria resisted him and was stabbed fourteen times. St. Maria died the next day.  
"Look at Maria Goretti....  Like her, be capable of defending your purity of heart and body.  Be committed to the struggle against evil and sin.  Always esteem and love, purity and virginity." (Pope John Paul II, 1990)      
 
A Prayer for Priests 
O my God, help those priests who are faithful to remain faithful; to those who are falling, stretch forth Your Divine Hand that they may grasp it as their support.  In the great ocean of Your mercy, lift those poor unfortunate ones who have fallen, that being engulfed therein they may receive the grace to return to Your Great Loving Heart.  Amen.  Precious Blood of Jesus, protect them!
 
The Eucharist is the fruit of our Lords Passion. Jesus gave up His Body on the cross so that He may give you His Body in the Holy Eucharist. Jesus poured out His very last drop of Blood on the cross so that He may fill you with His Divine Love each time that you receive Him in Holy Communion and visit Him in Eucharistic Adoration! 
"The Eucharist, in the Mass and outside of the Mass, is the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ, and is therefore deserving of the worship that is given to the living God, and to Him alone" (Pope John Paul II, September 29, 1979, Phoenix Park, Ireland) 
"The bread and wine, fruit of human hands, transformed through the power of the Holy Spirit into the body and blood of Christ, become a pledge of the 'new heaven and new earth,' announced by the Church in her daily mission." "In Christ, whom we adore present in the mystery of the Eucharist, the father uttered his final word with regard to humanity and human history." "To live the Eucharist, it is necessary, as well, to spend much time in adoration in front of the Blessed Sacrament, something which I myself experience every day drawing from it strength, consolation and assistance."  "How could the Church fulfill her vocation without cultivating a constant relationship with the Eucharist, without nourishing herself with this food which sanctifies, without founding her missionary activity on this indispensable support?" "To evangelize the world there is need of apostles who are 'experts' in the celebration, adoration and contemplation of the Eucharist" (Pope John Paul II, World Mission Message 2004).
 
The Power of the Precious Blood of Jesus in the Holy Eucharist  
 
"The Precious Blood belongs in an especial manner to men. Much more, therefore, does God invite them to come to its heavenly baths, and receive therein, not only the cleansing of their souls, but the power of a new and amazing life. Every doctrine in theology is a call to the Precious Blood.  Every ceremony in the Church tells of it . . . .  Every supernatural act is a growth of it. Everything that is holy on earth is either a leaf, bud, blossom or fruit of the Blood of Jesus. To its fountains God calls the sinner, that he may be lightened of his burdens. There is no remission of him in anything else.  Only there is his lost sonship to be found. The saints are no less called by God to these invigorating streams. It is out of the Precious Blood that men draw martyrdoms, vocations, celebacies, austerities, heroic charities, and all the magnificent graces of high sanctity.  The secret nourishment of prayer is from those fountains" (Father Faber, The Precious Blood).  
 

The Most Precious Blood of Jesus
July is traditionally associated with the Precious Blood of Our Lord. It may be customary to celebrate the votive Mass of the Precious Blood on July 1.

The extraordinary importance of the saving Blood of Christ has ensured a central place for its memorial in the celebration of this cultic mystery: at the centre of the Eucharistic assembly, in which the Church raises up to God in thanksgiving "the cup of blessing" (1 Cor 10, 16; cf Ps 115-116, 13) and offers it to the faithful as a "real communion with the Blood of Christ" (1 Cor 10, 16); and throughout the Liturgical Year. The Church celebrates the saving Blood of Christ not only on the Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ, but also on many other occasions, such that the cultic remembrance of the Blood of our redemption (cf 1 Pt 1, 18) pervades the entire Liturgical Year. Hence, at Vespers during Christmastide, the Church, addressing Christ, sings: "Nos quoque, qui sancto tuo redempti sumus sanguine, ob diem natalis tui hymnum novum concinimus." In the Paschal Triduum, the redemptive significance and efficacy of the Blood of Christ is continuously recalled in adoration. During the adoration of the Cross on Good Friday the Church sings the hymn: "Mite corpus perforatur, sanguis unde profluit; terra, pontus, astra, mundus quo lavanturflumine", and again on Easter Sunday, "Cuius corpus sanctissimum in ara crucis torridum, sed et cruorem roesum gustando, Deo vivimus (194).

Catholic Word of the Day: LITANY OF THE PRECIOUS BLOOD, 09-25-12
ST. GASPAR: Founder of the Society of the Precious Blood
Mass in the Cathedral of the Most Precious Blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ (London, 9/18)

Devotion to the Drops of Blood Lost by our Lord Jesus Christ on His Way to Calvary (Prayer/Devotion)
Chaplet of the Most Precious Blood
Catholic Word of the Day: PRECIOUS BLOOD, 12-03-11
The Traditional Feast of the Most Precious Blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ (Catholic Caucus)
Devotion to the Precious Blood
DOCTRINE OF THE BLOOD OF CHRIST
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,And More on the Precious Blood
Litany of the Most Precious Blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ
NOTHING IS MORE POTENT AGAINST EVIL THAN PLEADING THE PRECIOUS BLOOD OF CHRIST
Litany of the Most Precious Blood of Jesus


"Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you"  (Jn 6:53).  

13 posted on 07/17/2014 8:44:48 PM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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To: All
July 2014

Pope's Intentions

Universal: That sports may always be occasions of human fraternity and growth.

For Evangelization: That the Holy Spirit may support the work of the laity who proclaim the Gospel in the poorest countries.

14 posted on 07/17/2014 8:45:57 PM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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Daily Gospel Commentary

Friday of the Fifteenth week in Ordinary Time

Commentary of the day
Origen (c.185-253), priest and theologian
Homilies on the Book of Numbers, no.23

"The Son of Man is Lord of the sabbath"

We don’t see that the words of Genesis: “God rested on the Sabbath day from all his works” came to pass on this seventh day of creation nor, indeed, that that they have come to pass today. We always see God at work. There is no Sabbath when God stops working, no day when he does not “make his sun rise on the bad and the good and cause rain to fall on the just and the unjust”, when he does not make “grass to sprout on the mountains and herbs for the service of men”…, or when he does not “put to death and give life”.

This is how our Lord answers those who accused him of working and healing on the Sabbath: “My Father is at work until now and I am at work.” By this he showed that, during the time of this world, there is no Sabbath when God rests from watching over the progress of the world and destiny of humankind… In his wisdom as Creator he never ceases to exercise his providence and watchful care over his creatures “until the end of the world”. Therefore the real Sabbath when God will rest from all his works will be the world to come when “sorrow and mourning will flee” and God will be “all in all”.

(Biblical references: Gn 2,2; Mt 5,45; Ps 146[7],8; 1Sm 2,6; Jn 5,17; Mt 28,20; Is 35,10 LXX; Col 3,11)


15 posted on 07/17/2014 8:48:43 PM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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"Freedom consists not in doing what we like, but in having the right to do what we ought."

-St. John Paul II

16 posted on 07/17/2014 8:55:22 PM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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Just A Minute Just A Minute (Listen)
Some of EWTN's most popular hosts and guests in a collection of one minute inspirational messages. A different message each time you click.

17 posted on 07/17/2014 9:01:50 PM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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The Angelus 

The Angel of the Lord declared to Mary: 
And she conceived of the Holy Spirit. 

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee; blessed art thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen. 

Behold the handmaid of the Lord: Be it done unto me according to Thy word. 

Hail Mary . . . 

And the Word was made Flesh: And dwelt among us. 

Hail Mary . . . 


Pray for us, O Holy Mother of God, that we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ. 

Let us pray: 

Pour forth, we beseech Thee, O Lord, Thy grace into our hearts; that we, to whom the incarnation of Christ, Thy Son, was made known by the message of an angel, may by His Passion and Cross be brought to the glory of His Resurrection, through the same Christ Our Lord.

Amen. 


18 posted on 07/17/2014 9:02:34 PM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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Comment #19 Removed by Moderator

To: All
Saint Camillus de Lellis, Priest

Saint Camillus de Lellis, Priest
Optional Memorial
July 18th
(in the United States this memorial is transferred from July 14th)


unknown artist

(1550-1614). Born of a noble family of Chieti in Italy, Camillus was a young soldier of fortune and had become penniless because of an addiction to gambling when he decided to consecrate his life to the service of the sick. He improved the treatment and care of hospital patients, and founded the order of Ministers of the sick (now known as the Camellians).

Source: Daily Roman Missal, Edited by Rev. James Socías, Midwest Theological Forum, Chicago, Illinois ©2003

 

Collect:
O God, who adorned the Priest Saint Camillus
with a singular grace of charity towards the sick,
pour out upon us, by his merits,
a spirit of love for you,
so that, serving you in our neighbor,
we may, at the hour of our death,
pass safely over to you.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. +Amen.

First Reading: 1 John 3:14-18
We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brethren. He who does not love abides in death. Any one who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him. By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us; and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. But if any one has the world's goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God's love abide in him? Little children, let us not love in word or speech but in deed and in truth.

Gospel Reading: John 15:9-17
As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you; abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in his love. These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.

"This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you. No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you. You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide; so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you. This I command you, to love one another.


20 posted on 07/18/2014 6:03:45 AM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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