Catholic Caucus: Daily Mass Readings, 09-17-04, Optional, St. Robert Bellarmine

USCCB.org/New American Bible ^ | 09-17-04 | New American Bibl

[Salvation]

September 17, 2004
Friday of the Twenty-fourth Week in Ordinary Time

Psalm: Friday 40 Reading I Responsorial Psalm Gospel

Reading I
1 Cor 15:12-20

Brothers and sisters:
If Christ is preached as raised from the dead,
how can some among you say there is no resurrection of the dead?
If there is no resurrection of the dead,
then neither has Christ been raised.
And if Christ has not been raised, then empty too is our preaching;
empty, too, your faith.
Then we are also false witnesses to God,
because we testified against God that he raised Christ,
whom he did not raise if in fact the dead are not raised.
For if the dead are not raised, neither has Christ been raised,
and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is vain;
you are still in your sins.
Then those who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished.
If for this life only we have hoped in Christ,
we are the most pitiable people of all.

But now Christ has been raised from the dead,
the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.

Responsorial Psalm
Ps 17:1bcd, 6-7, 8b and 15

R (15b) Lord, when your glory appears, my joy will be full.
Hear, O LORD, a just suit;
attend to my outcry;
hearken to my prayer from lips without deceit.
R Lord, when your glory appears, my joy will be full.
I call upon you, for you will answer me, O God;
incline your ear to me; hear my word.
Show your wondrous mercies,
O savior of those who flee
from their foes to refuge at your right hand.
R Lord, when your glory appears, my joy will be full.
Hide me in the shadow of your wings,
But I in justice shall behold your face;
on waking, I shall be content in your presence.
R Lord, when your glory appears, my joy will be full.

Gospel
Lk 8:1-3


Jesus journeyed from one town and village to another,
preaching and proclaiming the good news of the Kingdom of God.
Accompanying him were the Twelve
and some women who had been cured of evil spirits and infirmities,
Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out,
Joanna, the wife of Herod's steward Chuza,
Susanna, and many others
who provided for them out of their resources.

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For your reading, reflection, faith-sharing, comments, questions, discussion.

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Alleluia Ping!

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Saint Robert Bellarmine [Patron of Catechists]

[eastsider]

Catholic Caucus: Daily Mass Readings, 09-17-04, Optional, St. Robert Bellarmine

St. Robert Francis Romulus Bellarmine

[Salvation]

From: 1 Corinthians 15:12-20


The Basis of our Faith

---

[12] Now if Christ is preached as raised from the dead, how can some of
you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? [13] But if there is
no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised; [14] if
Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your
faith is in vain. [15] We are even found to be misrepresenting God,
because we testified of God that he raised Christ, whom he did not
raise if it is true that the dead are not raised. [16] For if the dead
are not raised, then Christ has not been raised. [17] If Christ has not
been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins.
[18] Then those who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished.
[19] If for this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are of all men
most to be pitied.


The Cause of our Resurrection

---

[20] But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits
of those who have fallen asleep.

---

Commentary:


12-19. St Paul very forcefully states that the resurrection of Christ
is an essential truth of the Christian faith; without it that faith is
vain. For, by rising from the dead Christ completes the work of
Redemption. Dying on the cross meant victory over sins; but it was
necessary also that he should rise from the dead and thereby conquer
death, the outcome of sin (cf. Rom 5:12). "It was necessary that Christ
should rise again in order to manifest the justice of God; for it was
most appropriate that he who through obedience to God was degraded, and
loaded with ignominy, should by him be exalted. [...] He rose also to
confirm our faith, which is necessary for justification; for the
resurrection of Christ from the dead by his own power affords an
irrefutable proof that he was the Son of God. Again the resurrection
nourishes and sustains our hope. As Christ rose again, we rest on an
assured hope that we too shall rise again; the members must necessarily
arrive at the condition of their head. [...] Finally, the resurrection
of our Lord, it should also be taught, was necessary to complete the
mystery of our salvation and redemption. By his death Christ liberated
us from sin, by his resurrection he restored to us the most important
of those privileges which we had forfeited by sin" ("St Pius V
Catechism", I, 6, 12).


In these verses St Paul is really giving indirect arguments in support
of Christ's resurrection, by pointing out what an absurd situation we
would be in if Jesus Christ had not risen: our faith would be in vain
(vv. 14,17,18), as would our hope (v.19); the Apostles would be false
witnesses and their preaching valueless (vv 14-15); and we would still
be in our sins (v. 17). Christians, in other words, would be "of all
men most to be pitied" (v. 19).


20-28. The Apostle insists on the solidarity that exists between Christ
and Christians: as members of one single body, of which Christ is the
head, they form as it were one organism (cf. Rom 6:3-11; Gal 3:28).
Therefore, once the resurrection of Christ is affirmed, the
resurrection of the just necessarily follows. Adam's disobedience
brought death for all; Jesus, the new Adam, has merited that all should
rise (cf. Rom 5:12-21). "Again, the resurrection of Christ effects for
us the resurrection of our bodies not only because it was the efficient
cause of this mystery, but also because we all ought to arise after the
example of the Lord. For with regard to the resurrection of the body we
have this testimony of the Apostle: 'As by a man came death, by a man
has come also the resurrection of the dead' (1 Cor 15:21). In all that
God did to accomplish the mystery of our redemption he made use of the
humanity of Christ as an effective instrument, and hence his
resurrection was, as it were, an instrument for the accomplishment of
our resurrection" ("St Pius V Catechism", I, 6, 13).


Although St Paul here is referring only to the resurrection of the just
(v. 23), he does speak elsewhere of the resurrection of all mankind
(cf. Acts 24:15). The doctrine of the resurrection of the bodies of all
at the end of time, when Jesus will come in glory to judge everyone,
has always been part of the faith of the Church; "he [Christ] will come
at the end of the world, he will judge the living and the dead; and he
will reward all, both the lost and the elect, according to their works.
And all those will rise with their own bodies which they now have so
that they may receive according to their works, whether good or bad;
the wicked, a perpetual punishment with the devil; the good, eternal
glory with 'Christ" (Fourth Lateran Council, "De Fide Catholica", chap.
1).

---

Source: "The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries". Biblical text
taken from the Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries
made by members of the Faculty of Theology of the University of
Navarre, Spain. Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock,
Co. Dublin, Ireland.

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Thanks for that link, eastsider!

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From: Luke 8:1-3


The Holy Women

---

[1] Soon afterward He (Jesus) went on through cities and villages,
preaching and bringing the Good News of the Kingdom of God. And the
Twelve were with Him, [2] and also some women who had been healed of
evil spirits and infirmities: Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven
demons had gone out, [3] and Joanna, the wife of Chuza, Herod's
steward, and Susanna, and many others, who provided for them out of
their means.

---

Commentary:


1-3. The Gospel refers a number of times to women accompanying our
Lord. Here St. Luke gives us the names of three of them--Mary, called
Magdalene, to whom the risen Christ appeared beside the Holy Sepulchre
(John 20:11-18; Mark 16:9); Joanna, a lady of some position, whom we
also meet among the women who went to the tomb on the morning of the
Resurrection (Luke 24:10), and Susanna, whom the Gospel does not mention
again. The role of these women consisted in helping Jesus and His
disciples out of their own resources, thereby showing their gratitude
for what Christ had done for them, and in cooperating in His ministry.


Men and women enjoy equal dignity in the Church. Within the context of
that equality, women certainly have specific characteristics which must
necessarily be reflected in their role in the Church: "All the
baptized, men and women alike, share equally in the dignity, freedom
and responsibility of the children of God.... Women are called to
bring to the family, to society and to the Church, characteristics
which are their own and which they alone can give--their gentle warmth
and untiring generosity, their love for detail, their quick-wittedness
and intuition, their simple and deep piety, their constancy.... A
woman's femininity is genuine only if she is aware of the beauty of
this contribution for which there is no substitute--and if she
incorporates it into her own life" ([St] J. Escriva, "Conversations", 14 and
87).


The Gospel makes special reference to the generosity of these women.
It is nice to know that our Lord availed Himself of their charity, and
that they responded to Him with such refined and generous detachment
that Christian women feel filled with a holy and fruitful envy (cf.
[St] J. Escriva, "The Way", 981).

---

Source: "The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries". Biblical text
taken from the Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries
made by members of the Faculty of Theology of the University of
Navarre, Spain. Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock,
Co. Dublin, Ireland.

[Romulus]

Yeah, but he was a Jesuit!

[Salvation]

FEAST OF THE DAY

St. Robert Bellarmine was born around the year 1542 in Tuscany. As
he was growing up, Bellarmine devoted his scholarly studies to
Scripture, study of the Early Church Fathers, and how to improve the
state of the Church. He entered the Jesuit order and was ordained to
the priesthood in the year 1570. At this time there was the
Reformation was causing turmoil in religious circles and part of
Bellarmine's mission was to settle disputes and educate people in
the true Faith. Bellarmine educated the faithful with his sermons and
with instruction as a professor at Louvain. One of Bellarmine's
scholarly writings that still exists is "Disputations on the
Controversies."

St. Robert was made a cardinal by Pope Clement VIII and was lived
in the Vatican advising various institutions. Even though he had the
opportunity to enjoy the wealth of the Church and the pleasures of
Rome, Bellarmine continued to live an austere life of poverty. He ate
few fancy meals, gave generously to the poor and gave up all
materiel possessions. Some of examples of his generosity included
using his wall hangings to clothe the poor, and also giving them all
the extra food of his household.

Throughout his lifetime, Robert was involved in various debates
including ones looking at the divine rights of kings, at the supremacy
of the pope and the Galileo controversy. St. Robert Ballaramine died
in 1621, was canonized in 1930 and was declared a doctor of the
Church in 1931 by Pope Pius XI. He is the patron of catechists and
catechumens.


QUOTE OF THE DAY

Charity is that with which no man is lost, and without which no man is
saved. -St. Robert Bellarmine


TODAY IN HISTORY

853 Death of St. Columba of Cordoba
1179 Death of St. Hildegarde
1621 Death of St. Robert Bellarmine


TODAY'S TIDBIT

Christian witness is practical testimony or evidence given by
Christians of their faith in all circumstances of life. Prayer, general
conduct, and good works are ways that this is performed. This term
is also understood as acting in accordance with Christian faith and
practicing Christianity.


INTENTION FOR THE DAY

Please pray for all travelers.

[Salvation]

Friday, September 17, 2004
The Sacred Stigmata of Saint Francis of Assisi (Feast)

First Reading: Psalm: Gospel:

Galatians 6:14-18 Galatians 2:16, 20; Philippians 1:20-21 Luke 9:23-26 The price of Divine Love is not to be appreciated; for it suffices to obtain the Kingdom of Heaven, and the love of Him who has loved us so much merits the highest degree of our love.  -- St. Francis of Assisi

[eastsider]

From Salvation's #9: "He is the patron of catechists and catechumens."

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Come on! All Jesuits are Jebbies!

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American Cathlic's Saint of the Day

September 17, 2004

St. Robert Bellarmine

(1542-1621)

When Robert Bellarmine was ordained in 1570, the study of Church history and the Fathers of the Church was in a sad state of neglect. A promising scholar from his youth in Tuscany, he devoted his energy to these two subjects, as well as to Scripture, in order to systematize Church doctrine against the attacks of the Reformers. He was the first Jesuit to become a professor at Louvain.

His most famous work is his three-volume Disputations on the Controversies of the Christian faith. Particularly noteworthy are the sections on the temporal power of the pope and the role of the laity. He incurred the anger of both England and France by showing the divine-right-of-kings theory untenable. He developed the theory of the indirect power of the pope in temporal affairs; although he was defending the pope against the Scottish philosopher Barclay, he also incurred the ire of Pope Sixtus V.

Bellarmine was made a cardinal by Pope Clement VIII on the grounds that "he had not his equal for learning." While he occupied apartments in the Vatican, Bellarmine relaxed none of his former austerities. He limited his household expenses to what was barely essential, eating only the food available to the poor. He was known to have ransomed a soldier who had deserted from the army and he used the hangings of his rooms to clothe poor people, remarking, "The walls won't catch cold."

Among many activities, he became theologian to Pope Clement VIII, preparing two catechisms which have had great influence in the Church.

The last major controversy of Bellarmine's life came in 1616 when he had to admonish his friend Galileo, whom he admired. Bellarmine delivered the admonition on behalf of the Holy Office, which had decided that the heliocentric theory of Copernicus was contrary to Scripture. The admonition amounted to a caution against putting forward—other than as a hypothesis—theories not yet fully proved. It was an example of the fact that saints are not infallible.

Bellarmine died on September 17, 1621. The process for his canonization was begun in 1627 but was delayed for political reasons, stemming from his writings, until 1930. In 1931 Pius XI declared him a Doctor of the Church.

Comment:

The renewal in the Church sought by Vatican II was difficult for many Catholics. In the course of change, many felt a lack of firm guidance from those in authority. They yearned for the stone columns of orthodoxy and an iron command with clearly defined lines of authority.

Vatican II assures us in The Church in the Modern World, "There are many realities which do not change and which have their ultimate foundation in Christ, who is the same yesterday and today, yes, and forever."

Robert Bellarmine devoted his life to the study of Scripture and Catholic doctrine. His writings help us understand that not only is the content of our faith important, it is Jesus' living person—as revealed by his life, death and resurrection—that is the source of revelation.

The real source of our faith is not merely a set of doctrines but rather the person of Christ still living in the Church today.

When he left his apostles, Jesus assured them of his living presence: "When the Spirit of truth comes, he will lead you to the complete truth" (see John 16:30).

Quote:

"Sharing in solicitude for all the Churches, bishops exercise this episcopal office of theirs, received through episcopal consecration, in communion with and under the authority of the Supreme Pontiff. All are united in a college or body with respect to teaching the universal Church of God and governing her as shepherds" (Decree on the Bishops' Pastoral Office, 3).

[Salvation]

One Bread, One Body

One Bread, One Body

All Issues > Volume 20, Number 5

<< Friday, September 17, 2004 >>

St. Robert Bellarmine

1 Corinthians 15:12-20

Psalm 17

Luke 8:1-3

View Readings

JESUS IS RISEN! ALLELUIA FOREVER!

“If Christ was not raised, your faith is worthless.” —1 Corinthians 15:17

Jesus is raised from the dead, and He has promised to also raise from the dead those who live for Him. This is the major revelation of the Christian faith. If Jesus is risen, then He is God. If He is God, then all His revelations, claims, and promises must be true. If Jesus has not risen, then He is not God, and Christianity must be a sham. We are therefore not forgiven our sins (see 1 Cor 15:17). We are not born again. We are not children of God. We are not free, pure, or holy. “Those who have fallen asleep in Christ are the deadest of the dead” (1 Cor 15:18). If Christ is not risen, “we are the most pitiable of men” (1 Cor 15:19), life is meaningless, there is no hope for us, and we are doomed.

“But, as it is, Christ is now raised from the dead, the First Fruits of those who have fallen asleep” (1 Cor 15:20). In the splendor of the risen Christ’s divine glory, we live a radically new life, as children of God, partakers in the divine nature (2 Pt 1:4), and as the Lord’s royal, priestly, and holy family (1 Pt 2:9). We are saved, redeemed, chosen, and called to be holy as the Lord is holy (see 1 Pt 1:15-16). We live in final victory, while we merely wait with Jesus for His enemies to be put beneath His feet (see Heb 10:12-13). Although we still take up our crosses each day (Lk 9:23) and share in the sufferings of Christ (Phil 3:10), we live the love, joy, and freedom of Christ’s risen life on earth and we look forward to living the perfection of that life face to face with Jesus in heaven.

With ever stronger faith, live the risen life to the full.

Prayer: Father, strengthen my faith in Jesus’ resurrection and show me ways that this faith is being subtly undermined.

Promise: “The Twelve accompanied Him, and also some women who had been cured of evil spirits and maladies.” —Lk 8:1-2

Praise: St. Robert’s defense of truth and Catholic teaching was so blessed by God that it was erroneously believed to have been written by a group of scholars.

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The Word Among Us

Friday, September 17, 2004

Meditation
1 Corinthians 15:12-20



In fact, Christ has been raised from the dead. (1 Corinthians 15:20)

Writing from the city of Ephesus around a.d. 51, the apostle Paul testified that because of the resurrection of Christ, his faith is not useless. Almost two thousand years later, a college student in the United States told his skeptical mother, “I’ll never forget the day, Mom, when I knew Jesus was alive. It changed me forever!”

Isn’t that amazing? Two witnesses, separated by a huge expanse of time, place, and circumstance, testify to the same experience—an experience shared by millions of others throughout the ages. None of these people had seen Jesus in the flesh, and yet they all spoke of his power and presence with such confidence that those who listened could not help but be moved.

We know that we are called to evangelize, but it’s important to know also that evangelization is far more than stating some historical facts about Jesus. At its heart, evangelization is testifying to a life-changing encounter with the risen Lord and inviting others to the same experience. As we keep our hearts open to Jesus through prayer, the Scriptures, sacraments, as we submit our lives to him and allow his love to transform us, we too will be moved to witness in a powerful way. Our witness can be every bit as effective as Paul’s and the young college student’s. It can bring others to question their priorities and look to Jesus, asking if they can come to know him just as intimately.

Blessed Mother Teresa, who was one of the greatest evangelists of our time, defined evangelism this way: “That you have Jesus in your heart and then carry him to the hearts of others.” Similarly, in his exhortation, On Evangelization in the Modern World, Pope Paul VI affirmed that this kind of witnessing is at the very heart of the church. “It is unthinkable,” he wrote, “that a person should accept the word and give himself to the kingdom without becoming a person who bears witness to it and proclaims it in his turn” (24). Unthinkable? Yes, but only because everyone who accepts Christ is changed from the inside out—and that change can’t help but overflow into a life of witnessing and preaching.

“Lord Jesus, thank you for changing my life so dramatically. Give me the courage, wisdom, and strength now to go out and tell others about you.”