Catholic Caucus: Daily Mass Readings, 12-09-04, Optional-St. Juan Diego

December 9, 2004
Thursday of the Second Week of Advent

Reading I
Is 41:13-20

I am the LORD, your God,
who grasp your right hand;
It is I who say to you, "Fear not,
I will help you."
Fear not, O worm Jacob,
O maggot Israel;
I will help you, says the LORD;
your redeemer is the Holy One of Israel.
I will make of you a threshing sledge,
sharp, new, and double-edged,
To thresh the mountains and crush them,
to make the hills like chaff.
When you winnow them, the wind shall carry them off
and the storm shall scatter them.
But you shall rejoice in the LORD,
and glory in the Holy One of Israel.

The afflicted and the needy seek water in vain,
their tongues are parched with thirst.
I, the LORD, will answer them;
I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them.
I will open up rivers on the bare heights,
and fountains in the broad valleys;
I will turn the desert into a marshland,
and the dry ground into springs of water.
I will plant in the desert the cedar,
acacia, myrtle, and olive;
I will set in the wasteland the cypress,
together with the plane tree and the pine,
That all may see and know,
observe and understand,
That the hand of the LORD has done this,
the Holy One of Israel has created it.

Responsorial Psalm
145:1 and 9, 10-11, 12-13ab

R (8) The Lord is gracious and merciful; slow to anger, and of great kindness.
I will extol you, O my God and King,
and I will bless your name forever and ever.
The LORD is good to all
and compassionate toward all his works.
R The Lord is gracious and merciful; slow to anger, and of great kindness.
Let all your works give you thanks, O LORD,
and let your faithful ones bless you.
Let them discourse of the glory of your Kingdom
and speak of your might.
R The Lord is gracious and merciful; slow to anger, and of great kindness.
Let them make known to men your might
and the glorious splendor of your Kingdom.
Your Kingdom is a Kingdom for all ages,
and your dominion endures through all generations.
R The Lord is gracious and merciful; slow to anger, and of great kindness.

Gospel
Mt 11:11-15

Jesus said to the crowds:
"Amen, I say to you,
among those born of women
there has been none greater than John the Baptist;
yet the least in the Kingdom of heaven is greater than he.
From the days of John the Baptist until now,
the Kingdom of heaven suffers violence,
and the violent are taking it by force.
All the prophets and the law prophesied up to the time of John.
And if you are willing to accept it,
he is Elijah, the one who is to come.
Whoever has ears ought to hear."

From: Matthew 11:11-15

The Mission of John the Baptist. Jesus' Reply

(Jesus spoke to the crowds,) [11] "Truly, I say to you, among those
born of women there has risen no one greater than John the Baptist; yet
he who is least in the Kingdom of Heaven is greater than he. [12] From
the days of John the Baptist until now the Kingdom of Heaven has
suffered violence, and men of violence take it by force. [13] For all
the prophets and the law prophesied until John; [14] and if you are
willing to accept it, he is Elijah who is to come. [15] He who has
ears to hear, let him hear."

Commentary:

11. With John the Old Testament is brought to a close and we are on the
threshold of the New. The Precursor had the honor of ushering Christ
in, making Him known to men. God had assigned him the exalted mission
of preparing His contemporaries to hear the Gospel. The Baptist's
faithfulness is recognized and proclaimed by Jesus. The praise he
received is a reward for his humility: John, realizing what his role
was, had said, "He must increase, but I must decrease" (John 3:30).

St. John the Baptist was the greatest in the sense that he had received
a mission unique and incomparable in the context of the Old Testament.
However, in the Kingdom of Heaven (the New Testament) inaugurated by
Christ, the divine gift of grace makes the least of those who
faithfully receive it greater than the greatest in the earlier
dispensation. Once the work of our redemption is accomplished, God's
grace will also be extended to the just of the Old Alliance. Thus, the
greatness of John the Baptist, the Precursor and the last of the
prophets, will be enhanced by the dignity of being made a son of God.

12. "The Kingdom of Heaven has suffered violence": once John the
Baptist announces that the Christ is already come, the powers of Hell
redouble their desperate assault, which continues right through the
lifetime of the Church (cf. Ephesians 6:12). The situation described
here seems to be this: the leaders of the Jewish people, and their
blind followers, were waiting for the Kingdom of God the way people
wait for a rightful legacy to come their way; but while they rest on
the laurels of the rights and rewards they think their race entitles
them to, others, the men of violence (literally, attackers) are taking
it, as it were, by force, by fighting the enemies of the soul--the
world, the flesh and the devil.

"This violence is not directed against others. It is a violence used
to fight your own weaknesses and miseries, a fortitude, which prevents
you from camouflaging your own infidelities, a boldness to own up to
the faith even when the environment is hostile" ([St] J. Escriva, "Christ Is
Passing By", 82).

This is the attitude of those who fight their passions and do
themselves violence, thereby attaining the Kingdom of Heaven and
becoming one with Christ. As Clement of Alexandria puts it: "The
Kingdom of Heaven does not belong to those who sleep and who indulge
all their desires, but to those who fight against themselves" ("Quis
Dives Salvetur", 21).

14. John the Baptist is Elijah, not in person, but by virtue of his
mission (cf. Matthew 17:10-13; Mark 9:10-12).

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.

Collect:
Lord God, through blessed Juan Diego you made known the love of Our Lady of Guadalupe toward your people. Grant by his intercession that we who follow the counsel of Mary, our Mother, may strive continually to do your will. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

December 09, 2004

Optional Memorial of St. Juan Diego (USA)

Today the Church in the United States celebrates the optional memorial of St. Juan Diego, an Indian convert, to whom the Virgin Mary appeared as he was going to Mass in Tlatlelolco, Mexico. Our Lady asked him to tell the Bishop that she desired a shrine to be built on the spot to manifest her love for all mankind. She left a marvelous portrait of herself on the mantle of Juan Diego as a sign for the Bishop. This miraculous image has proved to be ageless, and is kept in the shrine built in her honor, the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Patroness of the Americas.

St. Juan Diego
Little is known about the life of Juan Diego before his conversion, but tradition and archaelogical and iconographical sources, along with the most important and oldest indigenous document on the event of Guadalupe, "El Nican Mopohua" (written in Náhuatl with Latin characters, 1556, by the Indigenous writer Antonio Valeriano), give some information on the life of the saint and the apparitions.

Juan Diego was born in 1474 with the name "Cuauhtlatoatzin" ("the talking eagle") in Cuautlitlán, today part of Mexico City, Mexico. He was a gifted member of the Chichimeca people, one of the more culturally advanced groups living in the Anáhuac Valley.

When he was 50 years old he was baptized by a Franciscan priest, Fr. Peter da Gand, one of the first Franciscan missionaries. On December 9, 1531, when Juan Diego was on his way to morning Mass, the Blessed Mother appeared to him on Tepeyac Hill, the outskirts of what is now Mexico City. She asked him to go to the Bishop and to request in her name that a shrine be built at Tepeyac, where she promised to pour out her grace upon those who invoked her. The Bishop, who did not believe Juan Diego, and asked for a sign to prove that the apparition was true. On December 12, Juan Diego returned to Tepeyac. Here, the Blessed Mother told him to climb the hill and to pick the flowers that he would find in bloom. He obeyed, and although it was winter time, he found roses blooming. He gathered the flowers and took them to Our Lady who carefully placed them in his mantle and told him to take them to the Bishop as "proof". When he opened his mantle, the flowers fell on the ground and there remained impressed, in place of the flowers, an image of the Blessed Mother, the apparition at Tepeyac.

With the Bishop's permission, Juan Diego lived the rest of his life as a hermit in a small hut near the chapel where the miraculous image was placed for veneration. Here he cared for the church and the first pilgrims who came to pray to the Mother of Jesus.

Much deeper than the exterior grace of having been chosen as Our Lady's messenger, Juan Diego received the grace of interior enlightenment and from that moment, he began a life dedicated to prayer and the practice of virtue and boundless love of God and neighbour. He died in 1548 and was buried in the first chapel dedicated to the Virgin of Guadalupe. He was beatified on May 6, 1990 by Pope John Paul II in the Basilica of Santa Maria di Guadalupe, Mexico City.

The miraculous image, which is preserved in the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe, shows a woman with native features and dress. She is supported by an angel whose wings are reminiscent of one of the major gods of the traditional religion of that area. The moon is beneath her feet and her blue mantle is covered with gold stars. The black girdle about her waist signifies that she is pregnant. Thus, the image graphically depicts the fact that Christ is to be "born" again among the peoples of the New World, and is a message as relevant to the "New World" today as it was during the lifetime of Juan Diego.

Patron: Mexico.

Symbols: Pictured carrying a tilma full of roses.

Things to Do:

Read Pope John Paul II's homily at the canonization of St. Juan Diego.
Pray to St. Juan Diego for migrant Mexican workers who come to the USA trying to support their families.
If you know of a Mexican family who may need your help, surprise them with a food basket or offer them a ride if they don't have a car. If you speak Spanish, see if they need an interpreter for an important appointment.
Meditate on Our Lady's beautiful words to St. Juan Diego: "Hear and let it penetrate into your heart, my dear little son; let nothing discourage you, nothing depress you. Let nothing alter your heart or your countenance. Also, do not fear any illness or vexation, anxiety or pain. Am I not here who am your Mother? Are you not under my shadow and protection? Am I not your fountain of life? Are you not in the crossing of my arms? Is there anything else that you need?"
Cook some Mexican dishes for dinner and bake a Rose Petal Pound Cake or other rose theme for dessert in honor of St. Juan Diego.
From the Catholic Culture Library:
Recommended Reading: For children: Our Lady of Guadalupe by Tomie dePaola. For adults: The Wonder of Guadalupe by Francis Johnston.
For music for Juan Diego's and OUr Lady of Guadalupe's feast, see www.savae.org. The San Antonio Vocal Arts Ensemble have two cds of authentic music by Mexican medieval composers. Very beautiful!
Visit Our Lady of Guadalupe, Patroness of the Americas for detailed accounts on the apparition to Juan Diego. You can also send online cards from this site. See also Patron Saints Index.

Mt 11:11-15
#	Douay-Rheims	Vulgate
11	Amen I say to you, there hath not risen among them that are born of women a greater than John the Baptist: yet he that is the lesser in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.	amen dico vobis non surrexit inter natos mulierum maior Iohanne Baptista qui autem minor est in regno caelorum maior est illo
12	And from the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent bear it away.	a diebus autem Iohannis Baptistae usque nunc regnum caelorum vim patitur et violenti rapiunt illud
13	For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John:	omnes enim prophetae et lex usque ad Iohannem prophetaverunt
14	And if you will receive it, he is Elias that is to come.	et si vultis recipere ipse est Helias qui venturus est
15	He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.	qui habet aures audiendi audiat

SODALITY December 9

One Man’s Answer to Christ’s Call

Presence of God

Grace I Ask:
To be inspired to imitate the generous answer of St. Thomas More to the call of Christ.

Mental Picture:
The fat stubborn Kin Henry VIII Of England in his private chamber, pleading with his chancellor and friend, Thomas More …. “Come now, Thomas. Set aside your silly scruples about taking the oath of my supremacy over the Church. I don’t want to have to be harsh with you as I have been with the others. Imagine you, a great scholar, in the Tower of London; you, my best friend, on the gallows.

“Listen to my call. I will give you even more power over all my subjects so that no one in all England will be greater than you. The dukedom of Lancaster—it will be yours. Your son will marry Elizabeth and be the future king. Everything I have except the crown will be yours!”

Thomas More lowers his head and closes his eyes. He seems to hear within himself the call of another King:

“If you will be perfect, go, sell what you have and come, follow me. If ay man will come after me, let him deny himself daily, take up his cross, and follow me … No one can serve two masters… He that is not with me is against me.”

My Personal Application
We know which King’s call Thomas More answers, for no son of his ever became king of England. And we do not call him Sir Thomas More but Saint Thomas More.

And I—which call am I going to answer? Is it that of the world of riches, selfishness and ease? Or is it that of Christ my King to poverty or spirit, self-sacrifice and zealous work for my neighbor? I cannot answer both calls. Which will it be?

I Speak to St. Thomas More:
Saint Thomas, I thrill to your generous answer to Christ’s call. Inspire me with your courage and your generosity to hear Christ’s call to me. Obtain for me the grace to answer His challenge the noble way that you did, evern it it means my death as it did for you.

Thought for Today:
Which call will I answer?

Homily of the Day

Homily of the Day

Title:	Let Him Grasp Your Hand
Author:	Monsignor Dennis Clark, Ph. D.
Date:	Thursday, December 9, 2004

Isaiah 41:13-20; Matthew 11:11-15

Life's journey can get lonely at times, and sometimes we can feel exceedingly alone in the midst of a crowd of people whom we've known for years. Even children with loving parents can experience this, and so can husbands and wives who are devoted to each other. At times this sense of isolation and solitariness is brought on by trouble somewhere in our lives, some heavy secret or private burden which we believe cannot be shared but must be faced alone. Sometimes it's just our weariness that makes us withdraw and sit alone.

But at times, the decision is not our own. Our friends have left us and we have been deserted and left to face life with no support, no encouragement, and no comfort. That can be especially bitter, particularly when we know we've done nothing to deserve so painful a rejection.

Walking alone, especially for any length of time, can plunge us into a dark valley from which escape can seem impossible. At that juncture, we need to listen closely to God's words to us as He speaks through the prophet Isaiah: "I am the Lord, your God, Who grasp your right hand; it is I Who say to you, 'Fear not, I will help you.'"

Whatever your trouble, whatever the challenge you face, let the Lord grasp your right hand, and don't be afraid, for your are alone no more. You never were!

American Cathlic's Saint of the Day

December 9, 2004

St. Juan Diego

(1474-1548)

Thousands of people gathered in the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe July 31, 2002, for the canonziation of Juan Diego, to whom the Blessed Mother appeared in the 16th century. Pope John Paul II celebrated the ceremony at which the poor Indian peasant became the Church’s first indigenous saint.

The Holy Father called the new saint “a simple, humble Indian” who accepted Christianity without giving up his identity as an Indian. “In praising the Indian Juan Diego, I want to express to all of you the closeness of the church and the pope, embracing you with love and encouraging you to overcome with hope the difficult times you are going through,” John Paul said. Among the thousands present for the event were members of Mexico’s 64 indigenous groups.

First called Cuauhtlatohuac (“The eagle who speaks”), Juan Diego’s name is forever linked with Our Lady of Guadalupe because it was to him that she first appeared at Tepeyac hill on December 9, 1531. The most famous part of his story is told in connection with the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe (December 12). After the roses gathered in his tilma were transformed into the miraculous image of Our Lady of Guadalupe, however, little more is said about Juan Diego.

In time he lived near the shrine constructed at Tepeyac, revered as a holy, unselfish and compassionate catechist who taught by word and especially by example.

During his 1990 pastoral visit to Mexico, Pope John Paul II confirmed the long-standing liturgical cult in honor of Juan Diego, beatifying him. Twelve years later he was proclaimed a saint.

Comment:

God counted on Juan Diego to play a humble yet huge role in bringing the Good News to the peoples of Mexico. Overcoming his own fear and the doubts of Bishop Juan de Zumarraga, Juan Diego cooperated with God’s grace in showing his people that the Good News of Jesus is for everyone. Pope John Paul II used the occasion of this beatification to urge Mexican lay men and women to assume their responsibilities for passing on the Good News and witnessing to it.

Quote:

“Similar to ancient biblical personages who were collective representations of all the people, we could say that Juan Diego represents all the indigenous peoples who accepted the Gospel of Jesus, thanks to the maternal aid of Mary, who is always inseparable from the manifestation of her Son and the spread of the Church, as was her presence among the Apostles on the day of Pentecost” (Pope John Paul II, beatification homily).

The Word Among Us

Thursday, December 09, 2004

Meditation
ISAIAH 41:13-20

Many of us have firsthand experience of the dry, parched, barren land called the desert. For the most part, it’s devoid of any vegetation, and the ground seems to be crying out to be filled by spring rain. If you travel in desert countries, you will also encounter many roadside billboards advertising ice water and refreshing drinks. The pictures on these signs are so enticing that they only make you all the more thirsty for cool, clear water.

Isn’t the same true in our spiritual lives? Until we are touched by the Lord and filled with the waters of the Holy Spirit, we are very much like a dry desert with its lack of life and its yearning for pure and simple refreshment.

Today’s first reading paints a beautiful picture of a barren desert being transformed into a lush forest and of those with parched tongues being given water by the Lord himself. And this is exactly what we’re celebrating this Advent: In Jesus Christ, the Word made flesh, we are restored to life.

Restored to life: These words can fall so easily from our lips, but the more we experience this restoration, the more we find ourselves in awe over what Jesus is offering to us. Knowing his love and his presence is like drinking an ice-cold glass of water after a day of hard work in the sun. It’s like resting in a warm, comforting bath after a day filled with stress. It’s like coming home after a long, tiring journey.

Brothers and sisters, this is the life that is available to us every single day. Jesus Christ, the fountain of life, offers it to us every time we pray, listen for the Spirit’s voice in our day, and love and serve our families. It’s a life we can taste as we read God’s word, meditate on his overflowing love, and reach out to the poor and hurting. It’s a refreshing, invigorating experience we can receive as we enjoy the beauty of a golden sunrise or gaze in wonder at the vastness of the night sky. There is no end to the ways Jesus refreshes us!

“Praise to you, Lord Jesus, for pouring out the water of life upon us! Praise to you for offering us your refreshment and revival day after day! Come, O Lord, and fill us once again!”

One Bread, One Body

All Issues > Volume 21, Number 1

<< Thursday, December 9, 2004 >>

St. Juan Diego

Isaiah 41:13-20

Psalm 145

Matthew 11:11-15

View Readings

YOU COCKROACH, YOU!

“Fear not, O worm Jacob, O maggot Israel; I will help you, says the Lord.” —Isaiah 41:14

God calls the chosen people a “worm” and a “maggot.” This is like calling someone today a “cockroach.” It’s not an uplifting name but one that prompts you to look for a can of insecticide. However, when the Lord calls us a “cockroach,” He’s actually exaggerating our power. Of ourselves, we don’t have even the capabilities of a cockroach. Without Jesus, we can literally do nothing (Jn 15:5).

Jesus takes us in our nothingness and makes us “a threshing sledge...to thresh the mountains and crush them, to make the hills like chaff” (Is 41:15). The Lord so exalts us that “the least born into the kingdom of God” is greater than John the Baptizer, the greatest man who had ever lived up to that time (Mt 11:11). In Christ, we who were worms, maggots, and cockroaches are now greater than Abraham, Joseph, Moses, Elijah, Isaiah, Jeremiah, etc. The Lord has been so good to us, giving us “more than we ask or imagine” (Eph 3:20). “The Lord has done great things for us; we are glad indeed” (Ps 126:3).

Prayer: Lord, “what is man that You should be mindful of him, or the son of man that You should care for him? You have made him little less than the angels, and crowned him with glory and honor. You have given him rule over the works of Your hands, putting all things under his feet” (Ps 8:5-7).

Promise: “I will set in the wasteland the cypress, together with the plane tree and the pine, that all may see and know, observe and understand, that the hand of the Lord has done this, the Holy One of Israel has created it.” —Is 41:19-20

Praise: St. Juan Diego’s simple faith in his Blessed Mother has led to blessings for millions of her children.

FEAST OF THE DAY

Juan Diego Cuatitlatoatzin, meaning talking eagle, was a native
Mexican who converted to Catholicism. He was a member of the
Chichimeca people and is thought to have been one of the
community's major leaders. Juan had a reputation for holiness and
generosity and later in his life he devoted himself to the pilgrims who
visited the church built in honor of Our Lady of Guadeloupe.

Out of love for his faith and the Mass, he walked fifteen miles to
Mexico City every day to attend Mass. Four hundred and seventy six
years ago today, he was walking to Mass when Our Lady appeared
to him requesting him to build a church on the site where they were
standing. After several apparitions and several miracles, the bishop
granted his permission for a church to be built on the site. After the
church was finished, Juan Diego is said to have devoted the
remainder of his life to directing and caring for pilgrims who came to
see the image of Our Lady of Guadeloupe. Bl. Juan Diego was
beatified by Pope John Paul II in Mexico City in the year 1990 and canonized
July 31, 2002.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

Present sorrow and suffering is the way to glory, the way to the kingdom. -St. Bernard

TODAY IN HISTORY

1531 First apparition of Our Lady at Guadeloupe

TODAY'S TIDBIT

Yesterday marked the anniversary of the convocation of the First
Vatican Council. This council was held in the Vatican and attended
by almost 800 bishops from around the world. This council was
made up of four public sessions and 89 general meetings before its
end on July 7, 1870. This council defined papal primacy and
infallibility in a dogmatic constitution on the Church and touched on
other issues such as natural religion, revelation, and the relationship
between faith and reason.

INTENTION FOR THE DAY

Please pray for the church in missionary areas.

INTENTION FOR THE DAY

Please pray through the intercession of St. Vincent de Paul, for all
who are poor.

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.