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.

"Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you" (Lk 1:28)

"Blessed are you among women,
and blessed is the fruit of your womb"
(Lk 1:42).

Luke
	English: Douay-Rheims	Latin: Vulgata Clementina	Greek NT: Byzantine/Majority Text (2000)
	Luke 20
27.	And there came to him some of the Sadducees, who deny that there is any resurrection, and they asked him,	Accesserunt autem quidam sadducæorum, qui negant esse resurrectionem, et interrogaverunt eum,	προσελθοντες δε τινες των σαδδουκαιων οι αντιλεγοντες αναστασιν μη ειναι επηρωτησαν αυτον
28.	Saying: Master, Moses wrote unto us, If any man's brother die, having a wife, and he leave no children, that his brother should take her to wife, and raise up seed unto his brother.	dicentes : Magister, Moyses scripsit nobis : Si frater alicujus mortuus fuerit habens uxorem, et hic sine liberis fuerit, ut accipiat eam frater ejus uxorem, et suscitet semen fratri suo.	λεγοντες διδασκαλε μωσης εγραψεν ημιν εαν τινος αδελφος αποθανη εχων γυναικα και ουτος ατεκνος αποθανη ινα λαβη ο αδελφος αυτου την γυναικα και εξαναστηση σπερμα τω αδελφω αυτου
29.	There were therefore seven brethren: and the first took a wife, and died without children.	Septem ergo fratres erant : et primus accepit uxorem, et mortuus est sine filiis.	επτα ουν αδελφοι ησαν και ο πρωτος λαβων γυναικα απεθανεν ατεκνος
30.	And the next took her to wife, and he also died childless.	Et sequens accepit illam, et ipse mortuus est sine filio.	και ελαβεν ο δευτερος την γυναικα και ουτος απεθανεν ατεκνος
31.	And the third took her. And in like manner all the seven, and they left no children, and died.	Et tertius accepit illam. Similiter et omnes septem, et non reliquerunt semen, et mortui sunt.	και ο τριτος ελαβεν αυτην ωσαυτως ωσαυτως δε και οι επτα ου κατελιπον τεκνα και απεθανον
32.	Last of all the woman died also.	Novissime omnium mortua est et mulier.	υστερον [δε] παντων απεθανεν και η γυνη
33.	In the resurrection therefore, whose wife of them shall she be? For all the seven had her to wife.	In resurrectione ergo, cujus eorum erit uxor ? siquidem septem habuerunt eam uxorem.	εν τη ουν αναστασει τινος αυτων γινεται γυνη οι γαρ επτα εσχον αυτην γυναικα
34.	And Jesus said to them: The children of this world marry, and are given in marriage:	Et ait illis Jesus : Filii hujus sæculi nubunt, et traduntur ad nuptias :	και αποκριθεις ειπεν αυτοις ο ιησους οι υιοι του αιωνος τουτου γαμουσιν και εκγαμισκονται
35.	But they that shall be accounted worthy of that world, and of the resurrection from the dead, shall neither be married, nor take wives.	illi vero qui digni habebuntur sæculo illo, et resurrectione ex mortuis, neque nubent, neque ducent uxores :	οι δε καταξιωθεντες του αιωνος εκεινου τυχειν και της αναστασεως της εκ νεκρων ουτε γαμουσιν ουτε εκγαμιζονται
36.	Neither can they die any more: for they are equal to the angels, and are the children of God, being the children of the resurrection.	neque enim ultra mori potuerunt : æquales enim angelis sunt, et filii sunt Dei, cum sint filii resurrectionis.	ουτε γαρ αποθανειν ετι δυνανται ισαγγελοι γαρ εισιν και υιοι εισιν του θεου της αναστασεως υιοι οντες
37.	Now that the dead rise again, Moses also shewed, at the bush, when he called the Lord, The God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob;	Quia vero resurgant mortui, et Moyses ostendit secus rubum, sicut dicit Dominum, Deum Abraham, et Deum Isaac, et Deum Jacob.	οτι δε εγειρονται οι νεκροι και μωσης εμηνυσεν επι της βατου ως λεγει κυριον τον θεον αβρααμ και τον θεον ισαακ και τον θεον ιακωβ
38.	For he is not the God of the dead, but of the living: for all live to him.	Deus autem non est mortuorum, sed vivorum : omnes enim vivunt ei.	θεος δε ουκ εστιν νεκρων αλλα ζωντων παντες γαρ αυτω ζωσιν
39.	And some of the scribes answering, said to him: Master, thou hast said well.	Respondentes autem quidam scribarum, dixerunt ei : Magister, bene dixisti.	αποκριθεντες δε τινες των γραμματεων ειπον διδασκαλε καλως ειπας
40.	And after that they durst not ask him any more questions.	Et amplius non audebant eum quidquam interrogare.	ουκετι δε ετολμων επερωταν αυτον ουδεν

27. Then came to him certain of the Sadducees which deny that there is any resurrection; and they asked him,
28. Saying, Master, Moses wrote to us, If any man's brother die, having a wife, and he die without children, that his brother should take his wife, and raise up seed to his brother.
29. There were therefore seven brethren: and the first took a wife, and died without children.
30. And the second took her to wife, and he died childless.
31. And the third took her; and in like manner the seven also: and they left no children, and died.
32. Last of all the woman died also.
33. Therefore in the resurrection whose wife of them is she? for seven had her to wife.
34. And Jesus answering said to them, The children of this world marry, and are given in marriage:
35. But they which shall be accounted worthy to obtain that world, and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry, nor are given in marriage:
36. Neither can they die any more: for they are equal to the angels; and are the children of God, being the children of the resurrection.
37. Now that the dead are raised, even Moses showed at the bush, when he calls the Lord the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.
38. For he is not a God of the dead, but of the living: for all live to him.
39. Then certain of the Scribes answering said, Master, you have well said.
40. And after that they durst not ask him any question at all.

BEDE; There were two heresies among the Jews, one of the Pharisees, who boasted in the righteousness of their traditions, and hence they were called by the people, "separated;" the other of the Sadducees, whose name signified "righteous," claiming to themselves that which they were not. When the former went away, the latter came to tempt Him.

ORIGEN; The heresy of the Sadducees not only denies the resurrection of the dead, but also believes the soul to die with the body. Watching then to entrap our Savior in His words, they proposed a question just at the time when they observed Him teaching His disciples concerning the resurrection;

as it follows, And they asked him, saying, Master, Moses wrote to us, If a brother, etc.

AMBROSE; According to the letter of the law, a woman is compelled to marry, however unwilling, in order that a brother may raise up seed to his brother who is dead. The letter therefore kills, but the Spirit is the master of charity.

THEOPHYL. Now the Sadducees resting upon a weak foundation, did not believe in the doctrine of the resurrection. For imagining the future life in the resurrection to be carnal, they were justly misled, and hence reviling the doctrine of the resurrection as a thing impossible they invent the story, There were seven brothers, etc.

BEDE; They devise this story in order to convict those of folly, who assert the resurrection of the dead. Hence they object a base fable, that they may deny the truth of the resurrection.

AMBROSE; Mystically, this woman is the synagogue, which had seven husbands, as it is said to the Samaritan, You had five husbands, because the Samaritan follows only the five books of Moses, the synagogue for the most part seven. And from none of them has she received the seed of a hereditary offspring, and so can have no part with her husbands in the resurrection, because she perverts the spiritual meaning of the precept into a carnal. For not any carnal brother is pointed at, who should raise seed to his deceased brother, but that brother who from the dead people of the Jews should claim to himself for wife the wisdom of the divine worship, and from it should raise up seed in the Apostles, who being left as it were unformed in the womb of the synagogue, have according to the election of grace been thought worthy to be preserved by the admixture of a new seed.

BEDE; Or these seven brothers answer to the reprobate, who throughout the whole life of the world which revolves in seven days, are fruitless in good works, and these being carried away by death one after another, at length the course of the evil world, as the barren woman, itself also passes away.

THEOPHYL. But our Lord shows that in the resurrection there will be no fleshly conversation, thereby overthrowing their doctrine together with its slender foundation; as it follows, And Jesus said to them, The children of this world marry, etc.

AUG. For marriages are for the sake of children, children for succession, succession because of death. Where then there is no death, there are no marriages; and hence it follows, But they which shall be accounted worthy, etc.

BEDE; Which must not be taken as if only they who are worthy were either to rise again or be without marriage, but all sinners also shall rise again, and abide without marriage in that new world. But our Lord wished to mention only the elect, that He might incite the minds of His hearers to search into the glory of the resurrection.

AUG. As our discourse is made up and completed by departing and succeeding syllables, so also men themselves whose faculty discourse is by departure and succession make up and complete the order of this world, which is built up with the mere temporal beauty of things. But in the future life, seeing that the Word which we shall enjoy is formed by no departure and succession of syllables, but all things which it has it has everlastingly and at once, so those who partake of it, to whom it alone will be life shall neither depart by death, nor succeed by birth, even as it now is with the angels; as it follows, For they are equal to the angels.; For as the multitude of the angels is indeed very great, yet they are not propagated by generation, but have their being from creation, so also to those who rise again, there is no more necessity for marriage; as it follows, And are the children of God.

THEOPHYL. As if He said, Because it is God who works in the resurrection, rightly are they called the sons of God, who are regenerated by the resurrection. For there is nothing carnal seen in the regeneration of them that rise again, there is neither coming together, nor the womb, nor birth.

BEDE; Or they are equal to the angels, and the children of God, because made new by the glory of the resurrection, with no fear of death, with no spot of corruption, with no quality of an earthly condition, they rejoice in the perpetual beholding of God's presence.

ORIGEN; But because the Lord says in Matthew, which is here omitted, You do err, not knowing the Scriptures, ask the question, where is it so written, They shall neither marry, nor be given in marriage? for as I conceive there is no such thing to be found either in the Old or New Testament, but the whole of their error had crept in from the reading of the Scriptures without understanding; for it is said in Esaias, My elect shall not have children for a curse. Whence they suppose that the like will happen in the resurrection. But Paul interpreting all these blessings as spiritual, knowing them not to be carnal, says to the Ephesians, You have blessed us in all spiritual blessings.

THEOPHYL Or to the reason above given the Lord added the testimony of Scripture, Now that the dead are raised, Moses also showed at the bush, as the Lord said, I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. As if he said, If the patriarchs have once returned to nothing so as not to live with God in the hope of a resurrection, He would not have said, I am, but, I was, for we are accustomed to speak of things dead and gone thus, I was the Lord or Master of such a thing; but now that He said, I am, He shows that He is the God and Lord of the living. This is what follows, But he its not a God of the dead, but of the living: for all live unto him. For though they have departed from life, yet live they with Him in the hope of a resurrection.

BEDE; Or He says this, that after having proved that the souls abide after death, (which the Sadducees denied,) He might next introduce the resurrection also of the bodies, which together with the souls have done good or evil. But that is a true life which the just live to God, even though they are dead in the body. Now to prove the truth of the resurrection, He might have brought much more obvious examples from the Prophets, but the Sadducees received only the five books of Moses, rejecting the oracles of the Prophets.

CHRYS. As the saints claim as their own the common Lord of the world, not as derogating from His dominion, but testifying their affection after the manner of lovers, who do not brook to love with many, but desire to express a certain peculiar and especial attachment; so likewise does God call Himself especially the God of these, not thereby narrowing but enlarging His dominion; for it is not so much the multitude of His subjects that manifests His power, as the virtue of His servants. Therefore He does not so delight in the name of the God of heaven and earth, as in that of in God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Now among men servants are thus denominated by, their masters; for we say, 'The steward of such a man', but on the contrary God is called the God of Abraham.

THEOPHYL. But when the Sadducees were silenced, the Scribes commend Jesus, for they were opposed to them, saying to Him, Master, you have well said.

BEDE; And since they had been defeated in argument, they ask Him no further questions, but seize Him, and deliver Him up to the Roman power. From which we may learn, that the poison of envy may indeed be subdued, but it is a hard thing to keep it at rest.

Catena Aurea Luke 20

Mystical Marriage of St Catherine

Paolo Veronese

c. 1575
Oil on canvas, 337 x 241 cm
Gallerie dell'Accademia, Venice

Information: St. Mechtilde

Feast Day: November 19

Born: 1240 or 1241 at the ancestral castle of Helfta, near Eisleben, Saxony

Died: 19 November, 1298

Holy Spirit Interactive Kids: A Saint a Day

St. Nerses

Feast Day: November 19
Born: (around) 300 :: Died: 369

Nerses lived in Armenia and was educated at Cappadocia. He married a princess and was the father of St. Isaac the Great.

He was an official in the court of King Arshak. After Nerses' wife died, he was ordained a priest. He became chief bishop of Armenia in 363.

He and St. Basil worked to help the people become more fervent Catholics. They called a meeting of all the Armenian bishops and wanted to help the priests and people grow in holiness.

Bishop Nerses respected the vocation of monks. He wanted new monasteries to begin. He started hospitals and encouraged the rich to be honest and generous.

King Arshak was not living a good life. When he murdered his wife, Olympia, Bishop Nerses publicly condemned this terrible crime. The king sent Bishop Nerses away from his diocese and appointed another bishop.

King Arshak was killed in battle against the Persians. His son became king but the son was more evil than his father. Bishop Nerses corrected him.

The new king pretended to be sorry. He invited the bishop to his palace for supper to show he was sorry. But the food was poisoned and Nerses died right there at the king's table. He is considered a martyr and the Armenians call him "the great."

CATHOLIC ALMANAC

Saturday, November 19

Liturgical Color: Green

Today the Church honors St.
Agnes of Assisi, virgin. St.
Agnes was the sister of St.
Clare of Assisi, and followed her
to the convent at age 15. Under
the direction of St. Francis of
Assisi, she helped establish
several convents in northern
Italy.

Catholic Culture

Ordinary Time: November 19th

Saturday of the Thirty-Third Week of Ordinary Time

MASS READINGS

November 19, 2016 (Readings on USCCB website)

COLLECT PRAYER

Grant us, we pray, O Lord our God, the constant gladness of being devoted to you, for it is full and lasting happiness to serve with constancy the author of all that is good. 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.

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Recipes (5)

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Activities (10)

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Prayers (4)

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Library (2)

Old Calendar: St. Elizabeth of Hungary, widow; St. Pontianus, pope and martyr; St. Mechtildis (Matilda) (hist)

According to the 1962 Missal of St. John XXIII the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite, today is the feast of St. Elizabeth of Hungary and the commemoration of St. Pontianus (or Pontian). According to the Ordinary Form St. Elizabeth's feast is now celebrated on November 17 and St. Pontianus (or Pontian) is on August 13.

Historically today is the feast of St. Mechtildis who was born to a noble family in Heifta, Saxony, and was placed in a Benedictine convent at age seven. Mechtildis was a mystic, and aided St. Gertrude with her Book of Special Graces or The Revelation of St. Mechtildis.

Death does not herald the end of personal existence but rather a new triumphal beginning. Although we are faced with the certainty of death, we are at the same time consoled by the promise of a glorious bodily immortality. What Christ, the Head of the Mystical Body, did for Himself He will also do for His members. The same divine power is always operative within Him.

During the final week of the ecclesiastical year, the language of the liturgy becomes very earnest and impressive. The Last Judgment with all its terrors is approaching. By this reminder the Church desires to make us realize our responsibilities, but she also desires to show us in Christ's judgment His crowning victory and the completion of His work of redemption. We should be inspired with confidence and very great hope at the thought that He who will come to judge us is the very same who came into this world to save us. Throughout the liturgical year the Church never ceases to remind us of this.

Like a Drop of Water as It Falls into the Ocean
The month of November opens with two Feast Days lived intensely by the Liturgy and by popular piety: All Saints and All Souls. These two feasts give depth to the month traditionally dedicated to praying for those who have crossed the threshold of hope. When we pray for the faithful departed, or better, for those living in the Next World, we are reminded of the ultimate realities of human existence. Authentic Christians are ever more keenly aware of this dimension as they pray for the souls in Purgatory, who are unable to help themselves and rely on our prayers.

“O good Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of Hell and take all souls into Heaven, especially those most in need of your mercy ”. With this brief and intense invocation, Our Lady in Fatima asked people to pray to Jesus for the holy souls in Purgatory. Each of us is called to holiness and if we were to take seriously the wonderful vocation to live here in earth in communion with the Lord Jesus, then death would be simply “departing” for Heaven.

Thinking of human freedom there comes to mind what Jesus said: “many are called but few are chosen” (Mt 22, 14). God calls everyone to holiness, but few heed the invitation to a banquet of intimate communion with Jesus, the banquet of eternal life which starts here on earth. We are too distracted by many things, like the guests in Gospel who make excuses with the host saying: “I have bought a piece of land and must go and see it. Please accept my apologies." Another said, "I have bought five yoke of oxen and am on my way to try them out. Please accept my apologies." Yet another said, "I have just got married and so am unable to come." (Lc 14, 18-20).

We may feel we are entitled to live life without entrusting it day after day to the one who created and redeemed us, without spending it entirely for the Kingdom of God, because there are so many other important things on which apparently it can be spent: success, profit, so-called “well-being”, a career, power… in general anything which favors affirmation of self, among the wide range of opportunities presented by the world today.

And so life is full of concerns which suffocate loving attention for our Lord and God, and interest for him disappears. The believer is tempted to put off prayer until 'after' his radical conversion: when I have more time I will pray, when I have less concerns I will give more thought to others, when I feel like it I will go more often to church…

The life which the saints lived was not about waiting until tomorrow simply because tomorrow does not belong to us. Ours is only the present moment and it is today that we must convert our hearts, refusing compromise with sin, which is the real enemy of happiness, earthly and heavenly. Grave sin stops supernatural life and, consequently, holiness, that is growth in Jesus Christ.

On life's horizon, the believer and every person, has to look at death. Certainly we celebrate earthly birth, surrounding it with much attention, but not to be forgotten either, is the “birth” prelude to the great birth to Heaven! For the believer in Christ, life on earth runs towards eternal Life in God. The saints knew this and their funerals were celebrations, because their death was lived as their “birth” to Heaven.

Life on earth is like a drop of water as it falls down into the ocean waiting to embrace it. It falls in a very short time. What a wonderful, consoling truth for the believer, awareness, certainty that comes from faith, of the promises of the Risen Lord, life does not fall into nothingness, it is joined forever with the infinite love of God, plunged into the boundless sea of His Divine mercy! As the Holy Father Benedict XVI, said with these luminous words: “Today we confirm our hope in eternal life founded on the death and resurrection of Christ. ‘I am risen and will be with you forever, says the Lord, and my hand will support you. Whenever you fall, you will fall into my hands and I will be there even at the door of death. Where no one can accompany you and where you can take nothing with you. There I will be waiting to change the darkness into light” (Benedict XVI, Angelus, 2 November 2008).

— by Mgr Luciano Alimandi, Agenzia Fides

Things to Do:

Today would be a good time to meditate on our own last end. Maybe pick up the Imitation of Christ and read Book 1 Chapter 24.
Make sure you have your Advent wreath ready, candles and all. Decide what ceremony and prayers you will use with your family.
If you are going to make or use an Advent calendar or the Jesse tree gather everything you need today.
If you plan to stir-up plum pudding on Sunday be sure you have all the ingredients.

St. Mechtildis
St. Mechtildis was one of a trio of extraordinary mystics who inhabited the same Benedictine convent in Saxony in the late thirteenth century. Aside from Mechtildis of Helfta (born in Hackeborn – and also carries that title), first came to the convent of Helfta when she was seven, there was also the ex-Beguine St Mechtild of Magdeburg (70 years prior) and the younger, St Gertrude the Great. None of these women held any notable office in their community and yet they exerted spiritual authority far beyond the convent as a result of their visions and their wide reputation for holiness.

Mechtildis of Helfta and Gertrude were particularly close. Gertrude had been donated, to the convent at the age of five, and Mechtildis, fifteen years her senior, had been largely responsible for her upbringing. As nuns and mystics they both developed a similar spirituality, emphasizing an affective devotion to the humanity of Christ and a strong focus on the Eucharist.
In the case of Mechtildis, her first mystical vision occurred while receiving Holy Communion. our Lord appeared to her, held her hands, and left his imprint on her heart "like a seal in wax." Christ furthermore presented his own heart to her in the form of a cup and said, "By my heart you will praise me always; go, offer to all the saints the drink of life from my heart that they may be happily inebriated with it."

Mechtildis had a great devotion to the humanity of Christ, for this humanity was the "door" by which human beings and, indeed, all creation entered into union with divinity. In one extraordinary vision she perceived that "the smallest details of creation are reflected in the Holy Trinity by means of the humanity of Christ, because it is from the same earth that produced them that Christ drew his humanity."

As a result of her visions, Mechtildis wielded tremendous authority within her community and beyond. She was regarded as a prophet, teacher, and counsellor, "a tender mother of the unfortunate by her continual prayers, her zealous instruction, and her consolations." The teachings and visions of St. Mechtildis were carefully recorded, by her spiritual daughter and lifelong friend, St. Gertrude, in a work entitled the Book of Special Grace. She died on November 19, 1298.

Excerpted from Belgravia Catholic Church of St Anne

Things to Do:

Read The Love of the Sacred Heart of Jesus by St. Mechtilde

The Word Among Us

Meditation: Luke 20:27-40

Common of the Blessed Virgin Mary

They are the children of God because they are the ones who will rise. (Luke 20:36)

Today’s reading must have been one of St. John Bosco’s favorites because it invites us to reflect on heaven, our eternal home. Bosco believed that God had called him to work with the young men of Turin, Italy. His heart went out especially to those boys who were living on the streets. He helped them find good jobs even as he taught them how to pray and follow the Lord.

To achieve these goals, Bosco developed what he called his “Festive Oratory” as an instrument of conversion and a comprehensive educational institution. On Sundays, he would gather all his boys—as many as six hundred of them—for prayer, confession, Mass, and games. And during the week, he organized them into smaller groups for prayer, discussion, and friendship building.

Finally, once a month, Bosco took his boys to the local cemetery, where he would speak to them about death and dying. In addition to teaching them how to live in this world, he sought to teach his boys how to prepare for a “happy death” and get ready to enter heaven.

When topics like the end-time and the promise of heaven come up, we probably notice that a combination of hopeful, uncertain, and even fearful thoughts arise. Our uncertain thoughts make us wonder what heaven will be like. What will we do all day? What will our relationship with our family and friends be like? Will we like it? Our fearful thoughts may lead us to worry that God won’t let us in or that we’ll just squeak by and experience only a part of heaven’s blessings. And our good thoughts fill us with hope and eager anticipation. We remember that in heaven there is no pain, sickness, war, poverty, division, or death. And we think about being with Jesus forever.

Take a look inside yourself right now, and see what thoughts are dominant. Then in prayer today, ask the Holy Spirit to strengthen your faith so that all fearful thoughts will be banished. Let him convince you that heaven will exceed your every expectation.

“Jesus, teach me to be as confident about heaven as John Bosco was. Show me the glorious inheritance that you have in store for me and for everyone who loves you.”

Revelation 11:4-12
Psalm 144:1-2, 9-10

Marriage = One Man and One Woman Until Death Do Us Part

Daily Marriage Tip for November 19, 2016:

Do you find yourself comparing your marriage or family life to others around you? Gratitude is the best remedy against jealousy.

Regnum Christi

November 19, 2016 – Christ Is the Answer

19 Nov 2016

Saturday of the Thirty-Third Week in Ordinary Time

Luke 20: 27-40

Some Sadducees, those who say there is no resurrection, came to him and asked him a question, “Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies, leaving a wife but no children, the man shall marry the widow and raise up children for his brother. Now there were seven brothers; the first married, and died childless; then the second and the third married her, and so in the same way all seven died childless. Finally the woman also died. In the resurrection, therefore, whose wife will the woman be? For the seven had married her.” Jesus said to them, “Those who belong to this age marry and are given in marriage; but those who are considered worthy of a place in that age and in the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage. Indeed they cannot die anymore, because they are like angels and are children of God, being children of the resurrection. And the fact that the dead are raised Moses himself showed, in the story about the bush, where he speaks of the Lord as the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. Now he is God not of the dead, but of the living; for to him all of them are alive.” Then some of the scribes answered, “Teacher, you have spoken well.” For they no longer dared to ask him another question.

Introductory Prayer: Lord Jesus, you are the Alpha and the Omega. You have given me life and offer me eternal life with you. You deserve my honor, gratitude and love, and yet you never impose yourself upon me. Thank you for respecting my freedom so that I can offer myself to you. All that I have is yours; I return it to you.

Petition: Lord Jesus, help me to be a child of God, a child of the resurrection.

1. Simple and Constant Conversation: Today we see some Sadducees asking Christ an important question about heaven. Christ teaches us that once we are in heaven, things will be considerably different than they are here on earth. This is a beautiful example how we can converse with Christ. We simply need to ask him questions: questions about our faith, about difficulties we may be having with certain relationships, about career changes, etc. The answers we receive may not be what we were expecting or hoping for, but what is important is that we engage Christ in conversation every day and that we seek to please him in everything we do. This open, warm contact with Our Lord is already a little taste of heaven.

2. Union with Christ: Christ reminds us that he and the Father are the God of the living. He gave us our life; we lost it. He became man, suffered, died and rose on the third day that we might have a new life — a life in and with God, now and for all eternity. Our ultimate marriage will be in heaven, as we will be one with God as Jesus is.

3. Participation in the Life of God: When God reveals his mysteries to us, we participate in his life. God has made us so we would pursue him, so we would listen to him, so we would understand him, so we would crave the things of God. Is not that a mystery unto itself? We have a God who wants to speak with us constantly about the things of heaven! This reality, this inestimable gift, should move us to share with others the Good News.

Conversation with Christ: Lord Jesus, through your death and resurrection and my baptism, you have made me a child of God. Help me to appreciate more fully this day and what it means to be a child of God. Grant me the grace to live in accord with this gift of gifts.

Resolution: Today I will look on all things as if God were speaking to me in every moment.

One Bread, One Body

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All Issues > Volume 32, Issue 6

<< Saturday, November 19, 2016 >>

Revelation 11:4-12
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Psalm 144:1-2, 9-10

Luke 20:27-40
Similar Reflections

COME TO THE WITNESS STAND

"These witnesses have power." —Revelation 11:6

What do you picture when you think of the Church? Do you think of a building, a group of people praying, or a family at table? St. John, in the book of Revelation, pictures the Church as being witnesses (Rv 11:5), people testifying personally and publicly to their relationship with Jesus.

John pictures the Church as witnesses because Jesus commanded us before His Ascension to be His witnesses (Acts 1:8). Thus, to be a witness is foundational and essential to being a Christian. Our faith in Jesus must be personal and publicly communicated, or we are involved in an aberration of Christianity. We are "under compulsion and have no choice" to witness to Jesus and publicly proclaim His Gospel (see 1 Cor 9:16). We are ruined if we don't preach it (see 1 Cor 9:16).

The Church of witnesses has been so powerful in changing the world that the term "witness" has come to mean "martyr," someone who has been killed because of his love for the Lord. Will you accept the Holy Spirit's power to love God so much that you will speak publicly of that love and even be martyred for that love? Will you choose to be a member of the Church by Jesus' standards? Witness for Jesus.

Prayer: Father, may our attitude toward witnessing not be clouded by fear but motivated by love.

Promise: They "are no longer liable to death. Sons of the resurrection, they are sons of God." —Lk 20:36

Praise: Sheila witnessed to her brother during a long family trip and he listened.