Catholic Caucus: Daily Mass Readings, 11-16-05, Opt. St. Margaret-Scotland, St. Gertrude-Great

November 16, 2005
Wednesday of the Thirty-third Week in Ordinary Time

Psalm: Wednesday 49

Reading I
2 Mc 7:1, 20-31

It happened that seven brothers with their mother were arrested
and tortured with whips and scourges by the king,
to force them to eat pork in violation of God’s law.

Most admirable and worthy of everlasting remembrance was the mother,
who saw her seven sons perish in a single day,
yet bore it courageously because of her hope in the Lord.
Filled with a noble spirit that stirred her womanly heart with manly courage,
she exhorted each of them
in the language of their ancestors with these words:
“I do not know how you came into existence in my womb;
it was not I who gave you the breath of life,
nor was it I who set in order
the elements of which each of you is composed.
Therefore, since it is the Creator of the universe
who shapes each man’s beginning,
as he brings about the origin of everything,
he, in his mercy,
will give you back both breath and life,
because you now disregard yourselves for the sake of his law.”

Antiochus, suspecting insult in her words,
thought he was being ridiculed.
As the youngest brother was still alive, the king appealed to him,
not with mere words, but with promises on oath,
to make him rich and happy if he would abandon his ancestral customs:
he would make him his Friend
and entrust him with high office.
When the youth paid no attention to him at all,
the king appealed to the mother,
urging her to advise her boy to save his life.
After he had urged her for a long time,
she went through the motions of persuading her son.
In derision of the cruel tyrant,
she leaned over close to her son and said in their native language:
“Son, have pity on me, who carried you in my womb for nine months,
nursed you for three years, brought you up,
educated and supported you to your present age.
I beg you, child, to look at the heavens and the earth
and see all that is in them;
then you will know that God did not make them out of existing things;
and in the same way the human race came into existence.
Do not be afraid of this executioner,
but be worthy of your brothers and accept death,
so that in the time of mercy I may receive you again with them.”

She had scarcely finished speaking when the youth said:
“What are you waiting for?
I will not obey the king’s command.
I obey the command of the law given to our fathers through Moses.
But you, who have contrived every kind of affliction for the Hebrews,
will not escape the hands of God.”

Responsorial Psalm
Ps 17:1bcd, 5-6, 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.
My steps have been steadfast in your paths,
my feet have not faltered.
I call upon you, for you will answer me, O God;
incline your ear to me; hear my word.
R. Lord, when your glory appears, my joy will be full.
Keep me as the apple of your eye;
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 19:11-28

While people were listening to Jesus speak,
he proceeded to tell a parable because he was near Jerusalem
and they thought that the Kingdom of God
would appear there immediately.

So he said,
“A nobleman went off to a distant country
to obtain the kingship for himself and then to return.
He called ten of his servants and gave them ten gold coins
and told them, ‘Engage in trade with these until I return.’
His fellow citizens, however, despised him
and sent a delegation after him to announce,
‘We do not want this man to be our king.’
But when he returned after obtaining the kingship,
he had the servants called, to whom he had given the money,
to learn what they had gained by trading.
The first came forward and said,
‘Sir, your gold coin has earned ten additional ones.’
He replied, ‘Well done, good servant!
You have been faithful in this very small matter;
take charge of ten cities.’
Then the second came and reported,
‘Your gold coin, sir, has earned five more.’
And to this servant too he said,
‘You, take charge of five cities.’
Then the other servant came and said,
‘Sir, here is your gold coin;
I kept it stored away in a handkerchief,
for I was afraid of you, because you are a demanding man;
you take up what you did not lay down
and you harvest what you did not plant.’
He said to him,
‘With your own words I shall condemn you,
you wicked servant.
You knew I was a demanding man,
taking up what I did not lay down
and harvesting what I did not plant;
why did you not put my money in a bank?
Then on my return I would have collected it with interest.’
And to those standing by he said,
‘Take the gold coin from him
and give it to the servant who has ten.’
But they said to him,
‘Sir, he has ten gold coins.’
He replied, ‘I tell you,
to everyone who has, more will be given,
but from the one who has not,
even what he has will be taken away.
Now as for those enemies of mine who did not want me as their king,
bring them here and slay them before me.’”

After he had said this,
he proceeded on his journey up to Jerusalem.

From: 2 Maccabees 7:1, 20-31

Martyrdom of the Seven Brothers and Their Mother

[1] It happened also that seven brothers and their mother were
arrested and were being compelled by the king, under torture with
whips and cords, to partake of unlawful swine’s flesh.

[20] The mother was especially admirable and worthy of honorable
memory. Though she saw her seven sons perish within a single day, she
bore it with good courage because of her hope in the Lord. [21] She
encouraged each of them in the language of their fathers. Filled with
a noble spirit, she~fired her woman’s reasoning with a man’s courage,
and said to them, [22] "I do not know how you came into being in my
womb. It was not I who gave you life and breath, nor I who set in
order the elements within each of you. [23] Therefore the Creator of
the world, who shaped the beginning man and devised the origin of all
things, will in his mercy give Iife and breath back to you again,
since you now forget yourselves for the sake of his laws.”

[24] Antiochus felt that he was being treated with contempt, and he
was suspicious of her reproachful tone. The youngest brother being
still alive, Antiochus not only appealed to him in words, but promised
with oaths that he would make him rich and enviable if he would turn
from the ways of his fathers, and that he would take him for his
friend and entrust him with public affairs.

[25] Since the young man would not listen to him at all, the king
called the mother to him and urged her to advise the youth to save
himself. [26] After much urging on his part, she undertook to persuade
her son. [27] But, leaning close to him, she spoke in their native
tongue as follows, deriding the cruel tyrant: “My son, have pity on
me. I carried you nine months in my womb, and nursed you for three
years, and have reared you and brought you up to this point in your
life, and have taken care of you.’ [28] I beseech you, my child, to
look at the heaven and the earth and see everything that is in them,
and recognize that God did not make them out of things that existed.
Thus also mankind comes into being. [29] Do not fear this butcher, but
prove worthy of your brothers. Accept death, so that in God’s mercy I
may get you back again with your brothers.”

[30] While she was still speaking, the young man said, ‘What are you
waiting for? I will not obey the king’s command, but I obey the
command of the law that was given to our fathers through Moses. [31]
But you, who have contrived all souls ol evil against the Hebrews,
will certainly not escape the hands of God."

Commentary:

7:1-42. This is one of the most famous and popular passages in the
history of the Maccabees--so much so that traditionally (but
improperly) these brothers are usually referred to as “the Maccabees”.
The sacred writer does not tell us the boys’ names, or where it all
happened; and he brings in the presence of the king to heighten the
dramatic effect. The bravery of these young men, it would seem, was
inspired by the good example given by Eleazar (cf. 6:28). The mother’s
intervention divides the scene into two parts--first the martyrdom of
the six older brothers (vv. 2-19), and then that of the youngest and
the mother herself (vv. 20-41).

In the first part the conviction that the just will rise and evildoers
will be punished builds up as the story goes on. Each of the replies
given by the six brothers contains some aspect of that truth. The
first says that just men prefer to die rather than sin (v. 2) because
God will reward them (v. 6); the second, that God will raise them to a
new life (v. 9); the third, that they will rise with their bodies
remade (v. 11); the fourth, that for evildoers there will be no
“resurrection to life” (v. 14); the fifth, that there will be
punishment for evildoers (v. 17); and the sixth, that when just people
suffer it is because they are being punished for their own sins (v. 18).

In the second part, both the mother and the youngest brother affirm
what the others have said: but the boy adds something new when he says
that death accepted by the righteous works as atonement for the whole
people (vv. 37-38).

The resurrection of the dead, which “God revealed to his people
progressively” ("Catechism of the Catholic Church", 992), is a
teaching that is grounded first on Moses’ words about God having
compassion on his servants (v. 6; cf. Deut 32:36), and the idea that
if they die prematurely they will receive consolation in the next
life. This is the point being made by the first brother, and it
implies that God “faithfully maintains his covenant with Abraham and
his posterity” (ibid.). As the mother sees it (vv. 27—28), belief in
the resurrection comes from “faith in God as creator of the whole man,
body and soul” (ibid., 992). Our Lord Jesus Christ ratifies this
teaching and links it to faith in himself (cf. in 5:24—25; 11:25); and
he also purifies the Pharisees’ notion of the resurrection, which was
an interpretation based only on material terms (cf. Mk
12:18—27; 1 Cor 15:35—53).

In what the mother says (v. 28) we can also see belief in the creation
of the world out of nothing “as a truth full of promise and hope”
("Catechism of the Catholic Church", 297). On the basis of this
passage and some New Testament passages, such as John 1:3 and Hebrews
11:3, the Church has formulated its doctrine of creation: “We believe
that God needs no pre-existent thing or any help in order to create
(cf. Vatican I: DS 3022), nor is creation any sort of necessary
emanation from the divine substance (cf. Vatican I: DS 3023-3024).
God creates freely ‘out of nothing’ (DS 800; 3025). If God had drawn
the world from pre-existent matter, what would be so extraordinary in
that? A human artisan makes from a given material whatever he wants,
while God shows his power by starting from nothing to make all he
wants” ("Catechism of the Catholic Church", 296).

The assertion that the death of martyrs has expiatory value (vv.
37-38) prepares us to grasp the redemptive meaning of Christ’s death;
but we should remember that Christ, by his death, not only deflected
the punishment that all men deserve on account of sin, but also,
through his grace, makes sinful men righteous in God’s sight (cf. Rom 3:21-26).

Many Fathers of the Church, notably St Gregory Nazianzen ("Orationes",
15, 22), St Ambrose ("De Jacob Et Vitae Beata", 2, 10, 44-57), St
Augustine ("In Epistolain loannis", 8, 7), and St Cyprian ("Ad
Fortunatus", 11) heaped praise on these seven brothers and their
mother. St John Chrysostom invites us to imitate them whenever
temptation strikes: “All the moderation that they show in the midst of
dangers we, too, should imitate by the patience and temperance with
which we deal with irrational concupiscence, anger, greed for possessions,
bodily passions, vainglory and suchlike. For if we manage to control
their flame, as (the Maccabees) did the flame of the fire, we will be
able to be near them and have a share in their confidence and freedom
of spirit” ("Homiliae in Maccabaeos", 1,3).

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.

From: Luke 19:11-28

Parable of the Pounds

[11] As they heard these things, He (Jesus) proceeded to tell a
parable, because He was near to Jerusalem, and because they supposed
that the Kingdom of God was to appear immediately. [12] He said
therefore, "A nobleman went into a far country to receive kingly power
and then return. [13] Calling ten of his servants, he gave them ten
pounds, and said to them, `Trade with these till I come.' [14] But his
citizens hated him and sent an embassy after him saying, `We do not
want this man to reign over us.' [15] When he returned, having
received the kingly power, he commanded these servants, to whom he had
given the money, to be called to him, that he might know what they had
gained by trading. [16] The first came before him, saying, `Lord, your
pound has made ten pounds more.' [17] And he said to him, `Well done,
good servant! Because you have been faithful in a very little, you
shall have authority over ten cities.' [18] And the second came,
saying, `Lord, your pound has made five pounds.' [19] And he said to
him, `And you are to be over five cities.' [20] Then another came,
saying, `Lord, here is your pound, which I kept laid away in a napkin;
[21] for I was afraid of you, because you are a severe man; you take up
what you did not lay down, and reap what you did not sow.' [22] He
said to him, `I will condemn you out of your own mouth, you wicked
servant! You knew that I was a severe man, taking up what I did not
lay down and reaping what I did not sow? [23] Why then did you not put
my money into the bank, and at my coming I should have collected it
with interest?' [24] And he said to those who stood by, `Take the
pound from him, and give it to him who has the ten pounds.' [25] (And
they said to him, `Lord, he has ten pounds!') [26] `I tell you, that
to every one who has will more be given; but from him who has not, even
what he has will be taken away. [27] But as for these enemies of mine,
who did not want me to reign over them, bring them here and slay them
before me.'"

The Messiah Enters the Holy City

[28] And when He had said this, He went on ahead, going up to
Jerusalem.

Commentary:

11. The disciples had a wrong concept of the Kingdom of Heaven: they
thought it was about to happen and they saw it in earthly terms: they
envisaged Jesus conquering the Roman tyrant and immediately
establishing the Kingdom in the holy city of Jerusalem, and that when
that happened they would hold privileged positions in the Kingdom.
There is always a danger of Christians failing to grasp the
transcendent, supernatural character of the Kingdom of God in this
world, that is, the Church, which "has but one sole purpose--that the
Kingdom of God may come and the salvation of the human race may be
accomplished." (Vatican II, "Gaudium Et Spes", 45).

Through this parable our Lord teaches us that, although His reign has
begun, it will only be fully manifested later on. In the time left to
us we should use all the resources and graces God gives us, in order to
merit the reward.

13. The "mina", here translated as "pound", was worth about 35 grammes
of gold. This parable is very like the parable of the talents reported
in St. Matthew (cf. 25:14-30).

14. The last part of this verse, although it has a very specific
context, reflects the attitude of many people who do not want to bear
the sweet yoke of our Lord and who reject Him as king. "There are
millions of people in the world who reject Jesus Christ in this way; or
rather they reject His shadow, for they do not know Christ. They have
not seen the beauty of His face; they do not realize how wonderful His
teaching is. This sad state of affairs makes me want to atone to our
Lord. When I hear that endless clamor--expressed more in ignoble
actions than in words--I feel the need to cry out, `He must reign!' (1
Corinthians 15:25)" ([St] J. Escriva, "Christ Is Passing By", 179).

17. God counts on our fidelity in little things, and the greater our
effort in this regard the greater the reward we will receive: "Because
you have been `in pauca fidelis', faithful in small things, come and
join in your Master's happiness. The words are Christ's. `In pauca
fidelis!... Now will you neglect little things, if Heaven itself is
promised to those who mind them?" ([St] J. Escriva, "The Way", 819).

24-26. God expects us to strive to put to good use the gifts we have
received--and He lavishly rewards those who respond to His grace. The
king in the parable is shown to be very generous towards his
servants--and generous in rewarding those who managed to increase the
money they were given. But he is very severe towards the lazy servant
who was also the recipient of a gift from his Lord, who did not let it
erode but guarded it carefully--and for this his king criticizes him:
he failed to fulfill the just command the king gave him when he gave
him the money: "Trade till I come." If we appreciate the treasures the
Lord has given us--life, the gift of faith, grace--we will make a
special effort to make them bear fruit--by fulfilling our duties,
working hard and doing apostolate. "Don't let your life be barren. Be
useful. Make yourself felt. Shine forth with the torch of your faith
and your love. With your apostolic life, wipe out the trail of filth
and slime left by the corrupt sowers of hatred. And set aflame all the
ways of the earth with the fire of Christ that you bear in your heart"
([St] J. Escriva, "The Way", 1).

28. Normally in the Gospels when there is mention of going to the Holy
City it is in terms of "going up" to Jerusalem (cf. Matthew 20:18; John
7:8), probably because geographically the city is located on Mount
Zion. Besides, since the temple was the religious and political
center, going up to Jerusalem had also a sacred meaning of ascending to
the holy place, where sacrifices were offered to God.

Particularly in the Gospel of St. Luke, our Lord's whole life is seen
in terms of a continuous ascent towards Jerusalem, where His
self-surrender reaches its high point in the redemptive sacrifice of the
Cross. Here Jesus is on the point of entering the city, conscious of
the fact that His passion and death are imminent.

Catholic Culture

Collect:
Father, you filled the heart of Saint Gertrude with the presence of your love. Bring light into our darkness and let us experience the joy of your presence and the power of your grace. Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

Recipes:

less

Activities:

less

Prayers:

less

November 16, 2005

Optional Memorials of St. Margaret of Scotland; St. Gertrude, virgin

Old Calendar: St. Gertrude

St. Margaret (c. 1045-1093) was the great-niece of St. Edward the Confessor. She was a Saxon princess, but raised in Hungary in exile. Returning to England, she had to flee once again after the Battle of Hastings, to the court of Malcolm, the King of Scotland, whom she married shortly thereafter. She proved to be a model mother and exemplary queen who brought up her eight children in an atmosphere of great devotion and worked hard to improve the morality of her subjects.

St. Gertrude, a Benedictine nun of the monastery of Helfta, in Saxony, is one of the great mystics of the Middle Ages. She was favored by visions of our Savior and has left a marvelous account of them in a book which she called Revelations. St. Gertrude introduced the devotion to the Sacred Heart which, four centuries later, St. Margaret Mary spread throughout the Church. She died at the beginning of the thirteenth century.

Before the reform of the Roman Calendar in 1969 June 10 was the feast day of St. Margaret of Scotland.

St. Margaret of Scotland

She was born in Hungary (1046), where her father was living in exile, and likewise spent her childhood there as an unusually devout and pious girl. In the course of time she went to England, when her father was called to high office in his fatherland by his uncle, King St. Edward III. Fortune, however, soon reversed itself again (Margaret's father died suddenly in 1057), and upon leaving England a mighty storm — or better, divine Providence — brought her to the shores of Scotland. Upon instructions from her mother, Margaret married Malcolm III, king of Scotland, in 1069. The country was blessed by her holy life and by her deeds of charity for the next thirty years. Her eight children she zealously trained in the practice of Christian virtues.

In the midst of royal splendor Margaret chastised her flesh by mortification and vigils and passed the greater part of the night in devout prayer. Her most remarkable virtue was love of neighbor, particularly love toward the poor. Her alms supported countless unfortunates; daily she provided food for three hundred and shared in the work of serving them personally, washing their feet and kissing their wounds

Excerpted from the Roman Breviary.

Queen Margaret of Scotland is the secondary patroness of Scotland. Margaret's copy of the Gospels is preserved in the Bodleian Library at Oxford University.

Patron: Death of children; large families; learning; queens; Scotland; widows.

Symbols: Black cross; sceptre and book; hospital.
Often portrayed as: queen, often carrying a black cross, dispensing gifts to the poor.

Things to Do:

Read more about this wonderful wife and mother: Life of St. Margaret of Scotland, Catholic Encyclopedia entry, For All the Saints, and David McRoberts' essay.
Give special attention to the virtue of charity today by performing some service for the poor, i.e. send alms, buy baby things for a local crisis pregnancy center, take a food donation to a food pantry.
Offer your support (even if it is just a little morale) to a mother with young children who is trying to raise her children to love God.
If you are a mother with young children then pray to St. Margaret to help you imitate her zeal in training her children;.
If you are a mother and need a little boost read Cardinal Mindszenty's book, The Mother.
Today it might be fun to cook a pot of Scottish soup in honor of St. Margaret who probably cooked many pots of soup herself.
For nameday celebrations of St. Margaret, a crown cake, denoting her rank would be appropriate; a book cake would recall the love she had for Sacred Scripture. Chocolate "coins" wrapped in gold foil could be distributed to guests in memory of her generosity.

St. Gertrude

St. Gertrude the Great, a Cistercian nun, is one of the most lovable German saints from medieval times, and through her writings she will remain for all ages a guide to the interior life. She was born in 1256 at Eisleben and at the age of five taken to the convent at Rossdorf, where Gertrude of Hackeborn was abbess. Similarity in name has often occasioned confusion between the two Gertrudes. Our St. Gertrude never functioned as superior.

In spite of much ill-health, Gertrude used her exceptional natural talents well, knew Latin fluently. When she was twenty-five years old (1281), Christ began to appear to her and to disclose to her the secrets of mystical union. Obeying a divine wish, she put into writing the favors of grace bestowed upon her. Her most important work, Legatus Divinae Pietatis, "The Herald of Divine Love," is distinguished for theological profundity, sublime poetry, and unusual clarity. How it stimulates love of God can be felt only by reading it; Abbot Blosius is said to have read it twelve times each year. St. Gertrude died in 1302, more consumed by the fire of God's love than by fever.

Excerpted from The Church's Year of Grace, Pius Parsch.

Patron: Nuns; travellers; West Indies.

Symbols: Crown; lily; taper; seven rings; heart with IHS; heart.

Things to Do:

Teach your children the Hail Mary in Latin;
Read The Life and Revelations of St. Gertrude the Great;
Pray the Novena of the Sacred Heart; say the Litany of St. Gertrude.

American Catholic’s Saint of the Day

November 16, 2005

St. Margaret of Scotland

(1050?-1093)

Margaret of Scotland was a truly liberated woman in the sense that she was free to be herself. For her, that meant freedom to love God and serve others.

Margaret was not Scottish by birth. She was the daughter of Princess Agatha of Hungary and the Anglo-Saxon Prince Edward Atheling. She spent much of her youth in the court of her great- uncle, the English king, Edward the Confessor. Her family fled from William the Conqueror and was shipwrecked off the coast of Scotland. King Malcolm befriended them and was captivated by the beautiful, gracious Margaret. They were married at the castle of Dunfermline in 1070.

Malcolm was good-hearted, but rough and uncultured, as was his country. Because of Malcolm’s love for Margaret, she was able to soften his temper, polish his manners and help him become a virtuous king. He left all domestic affairs to her and often consulted her in state matters.

Margaret tried to improve her adopted country by promoting the arts and education. For religious reform, she instigated synods and was present for the discussions which tried to correct religious abuses common among priests and people, such as simony, usury and incestuous marriages. With her husband, she founded several churches.

Margaret was not only a queen, but a mother. She and Malcolm had six sons and two daughters. Margaret personally supervised their religious instruction and their other studies.

Although she was very much caught up in the affairs of the household and country, she remained detached from the world. Her private life was austere. She had certain times for prayer and reading Scripture. She ate sparingly and slept little in order to have time for devotions. She and Malcolm kept two Lents, one before Easter and one before Christmas. During these times she always rose at midnight for Mass. On the way home she would wash the feet of six poor persons and give them alms. She was always surrounded by beggars in public and never refused them. It is recorded that she never sat down to eat without first feeding nine orphans and 24 adults.

In 1093, King William Rufus made a surprise attack on Alnwick castle. King Malcolm and his oldest son, Edward, were killed. Margaret, already on her deathbed, died four days after her husband.

Comment:

There are two ways to be charitable: the "clean way" and the "messy way." The "clean way" is to give money or clothing to organizations that serve the poor. The "messy way" is dirtying your own hands in personal service to the poor. Margaret's outstanding virtue was her love of the poor. Although very generous with material gifts, Margaret also visited the sick and nursed them with her own hands. She and her husband served orphans and the poor on their knees during Advent and Lent. Like Christ, she was charitable the "messy way."

Quote:

"When [Margaret] spoke, her conversation was with the salt of wisdom. When she was silent, her silence was filled with good thoughts. So thoroughly did her outward bearing correspond with the staidness of her character that it seemed as if she has been born the pattern of a virtuous life" (Turgot, St. Margaret's confessor).

American Catholic’s Saint of the Day

November 16

St. Gertrude

(1256?-1302)

Gertrude, a Benedictine nun in Helfta (Saxony), was one of the great mystics of the 13th century. Together with her friend and teacher St. Mechtild, she practiced a spirituality called "nuptial mysticism," that is, she came to see herself as the bride of Christ. Her spiritual life was a deep personal union with Jesus and his Sacred Heart, leading her into the very life of the Trinity.

But this was no individualistic piety. Gertrude lived the rhythm of the liturgy, where she found Christ. In the liturgy and Scripture, she found the themes and images to enrich and express her piety. There was no clash between her personal prayer life and the liturgy.

Comment:

Gertrude's life is another reminder that the heart of the Christian life is prayer: private and liturgical, ordinary or mystical, always personal.

Quote:

"Lord, you have granted me your secret friendship by opening the sacred ark of your divinity, your deified heart, to me in so many ways as to be the source of all my happiness; sometimes imparting it freely, sometimes as a special mark of our mutual friendship. You have so often melted my soul with your loving caresses that, if I did not know the abyss of your overflowing condescensions, I should be amazed were I told that even your Blessed Mother had been chosen to receive such extraordinary marks of tenderness and affection" (Adapted from The Life and Revelations of Saint Gertrude).

Homily of the Day

Homily of the Day

Title:	He Will Bring You Back Both Breath and Life
Author:	Monsignor Dennis Clark, Ph.D.
Date:	Wednesday, October 16, 2005

2 Maccabees 7:1,20-31 / Lk 19:11-28

Fear is one of the greatest adversaries that any of us will ever face. It steals our peace and our joy, it closes down many roads, and throws up many walls. Some form of fear is at the root of every sin, and some kind of fear is behind every failure to live up to our best selves. Fear pretends to be a protector of life, but in fact it is a friend only of death. Jesus said it best, "Fear is useless. What is needed is trust."

Nothing less than monumental trust can explain the confident courage of the mother of the Maccabees in today's Old Testament reading. As she watched each of her seven sons being carried off to a martyr's death, she was a tower of strength for them, and like the good mother she was, she explained to each of them why they had no reason to fear anything, not even death. "The Creator of the universe who shapes every man's beginning, as He brings about the origin of everything, will in His mercy bring you back both breath and life..." They heard her words, they trusted in their Creator's love, and they went to their death in peace.

Many things ever so much smaller than death frighten us and rob us of too many of our days. The time for that to stop forever is now. We need only trust in the love of the Creator who made us, and we will be free. Troubles will inevitably come, sometimes great ones. They may even kill us, but if we are connected to Him, they will never destroy us. That is God's promise!

The Word Among Us

Wednesday, November 16, 2005

Meditation
2 Maccabees 7:1,20-31

What a heroic witness this Jewish mother and her seven sons gave! Not wanting to dishonor God or his covenant, they chose to die painful deaths rather than transgress even the smallest of God’s commands. But as powerful a testimony as this was, this family did something even more important: They were among the first people in the Old Testament to demonstrate a clear belief in the resurrection from the dead. Reasoning that God created everything out of nothing and that he continues to create and to re-create, they willingly gave up their lives for their faith.

We owe much to this family! The story of their faith in the resurrection was instrumental in paving the way for the revelation that Jesus would later bring—revelation concerning the final judgment and the promise of eternal life. As Christians, we can now believe in a Savior who is already risen from the dead and has already opened heaven for all believers!

The question we now face is: Do I believe this? Am I convinced in the resurrection? In my heart, do I believe that Jesus will return at the end of time and that all believers will ultimately be raised, transformed, and united forever with him in love? Do I believe that this is my destiny?

Right now, your Father has you in the palm of his hand. He is both compassionate and powerful. He loves you and promises to hold you close to himself. If you trust in him—and if you translate this trust into a hopeful mixture of obedience and consistent repentance—he will bring you home. You will be raised from the dead at the end of time and united forever in glory with your Savior.

This mother and her seven sons are models of faith and trust for us. Faith like theirs, whatever our situation, can bring us much peace. God never promised that we won’t undergo trials and difficulties, but no matter how difficult things might get for us, we know that our Father will care for us. We know that he will never leave us or forsake us, not even at the end of time.

“Father, I love you. Thank you for the promise of everlasting life. Thank you for sending your Son Jesus to open heaven for me and all who embrace him.”

Psalm 17:1,5-6,8,15; Luke 19:11-28

Lk 19:11-28
#	Douay-Rheims	Vulgate
11	As they were hearing these things, he added and spoke a parable, because he was nigh to Jerusalem and because they thought that the kingdom of God should immediately be manifested.	haec illis audientibus adiciens dixit parabolam eo quod esset prope Hierusalem et quia existimarent quod confestim regnum Dei manifestaretur
12	He said therefore: a certain nobleman went into a far country, to receive for himself a kingdom and to return.	dixit ergo homo quidam nobilis abiit in regionem longinquam accipere sibi regnum et reverti
13	And calling his ten servants, he gave them ten pounds and said to them: Trade till I come.	vocatis autem decem servis suis dedit illis decem mnas et ait ad illos negotiamini dum venio
14	But his citizens hated him and they sent an embassage after him, saying: We will not have this man to reign over us.	cives autem eius oderant illum et miserunt legationem post illum dicentes nolumus hunc regnare super nos
15	And it came to pass that he returned, having received the kingdom: and he commanded his servants to be called, to whom he had given the money, that he might know how much every man had gained by trading,	et factum est ut rediret accepto regno et iussit vocari servos quibus dedit pecuniam ut sciret quantum quisque negotiatus esset
16	And the first came saying: Lord, thy pound hath gained ten pounds.	venit autem primus dicens domine mna tua decem mnas adquisivit
17	And he said to him: Well done, thou good servant, because thou hast been faithful in a little, thou shalt have power over ten cities.	et ait illi euge bone serve quia in modico fidelis fuisti eris potestatem habens supra decem civitates
18	And the second came, saying: Lord, thy pound hath gained five pounds.	et alter venit dicens domine mna tua fecit quinque mnas
19	And he said to him: Be thou also over five cities.	et huic ait et tu esto supra quinque civitates
20	And another came, saying: Lord, behold here is thy pound, which I have kept laid up in a napkin.	et alter venit dicens domine ecce mna tua quam habui repositam in sudario
21	For I feared thee, because thou art an austere man: thou takest up what thou didst not lay down: and thou reapest that which thou didst not sow.	timui enim te quia homo austeris es tollis quod non posuisti et metis quod non seminasti
22	He saith to him: Out of thy own mouth I judge thee, thou wicked servant. Thou knewest that I was an austere man, taking up what I laid not down and reaping that which I did not sow.	dicit ei de ore tuo te iudico serve nequam sciebas quod ego austeris homo sum tollens quod non posui et metens quod non seminavi
23	And why then didst thou not give my money into the bank, that at my coming I might have exacted it with usury?	et quare non dedisti pecuniam meam ad mensam et ego veniens cum usuris utique exegissem illud
24	And he said to them that stood by: Take the pound away from him and give it to him that hath ten pounds.	et adstantibus dixit auferte ab illo mnam et date illi qui decem mnas habet
25	And they said to him: Lord, he hath ten pounds.	et dixerunt ei domine habet decem mnas
26	But I say to you that to every one that hath shall be given, and he shall abound: and from him that hath not, even that which he hath shall be taken from him.	dico autem vobis quia omni habenti dabitur ab eo autem qui non habet et quod habet auferetur ab eo
27	But as for those my enemies, who would not have me reign over them, bring them hither and kill them before me.	verumtamen inimicos meos illos qui noluerunt me regnare super se adducite huc et interficite ante me
28	And having said these things, he went before, going up to Jerusalem.	et his dictis praecedebat ascendens in Hierosolyma

One Bread, One Body

<< Wednesday, November 16, 2005 >>

St. Margaret of Scotland
St. Gertrude

2 Maccabees 7:1, 20-31

Psalm 17

Luke 19:11-28

View Readings

YOUR LIFESAVING INVESTMENT

"Invest this." —Luke 19:13

In Matthew's version of the parable of the sums of money, the master lavishly praises his servants and invites them to share in his joy (Mt 25:21, 23). However in Luke's account, the master is demanding, severe, and unwilling to act with patience toward his servants, much as we would act toward an investment broker to whom we had entrusted thousands of dollars.

One message of this passage is that God expects performance from us. He invested the precious gift of life within us. Then He invested spiritual gifts and natural talents in us. Though He created us out of sheer love, He also expects a lasting return from us (Jn 15:16) and commands us to "invest" our lives in His service until He returns (Lk 19:13). In fact, the context of this parable in Luke's Gospel is Jesus' entry into Jerusalem (Lk 19:28): it's the time of visitation (Lk 19:44) and settling accounts (Lk 19:15; 20:10).

Investing our "all" is not an optional extra in the Christian life. It's a matter of life and death. The servant who did not invest his life for Jesus was judged as "worthless" (Lk 19:22) and was cast out into hell (Mt 25:30).

Are you holding back on giving anything in your life to Jesus? Jesus is "coming soon" (Rv 22:20). The day of visitation may be nearer than you think. "Why delay, then?" (Acts 22:16) Give your all to Jesus. Lay down your life in total service to Him now.

Prayer: Father, I "disregard" myself for Your sake (2 Mc 7:23). I am all Yours. Use me and use me up.

Promise: "I in justice shall behold Your face; on waking, I shall be content in Your presence." —Ps 17:15

Praise: St. Margaret raised her eight children to know, love, and serve God. Two of them became canonized saints.

A Voice in the Desert

Wednesday November 16, 2005 Thirty-third Week in Ordinary Time

Reading (2 Maccabees 7:1, 20-31) Gospel (St. Luke 19:11-28)

When we hear the words of Our Lord in the Gospel reading today, first about these people who hated Him and would not receive Him as their king, and then also regarding the servants to whom He had entrusted each a gold coin, we, of course, who claim to believe in Jesus, are those servants to whom He has entrusted His truth. Indeed, He has entrusted His very self to us in the Blessed Sacrament. So each one of us has been given this exceptionally valuable gift from Our Lord, and we are asked to do something with it.

Unlike just going and trading with a gold coin, what we are to do with the faith that we have been given is to make it grow. We can, each one of us, ask ourselves, “If I were to stand before the Lord today, what would I be able to show Him? What would I be able to say to Him about how much this gift that He has given to me has netted?” Could we really be able to show that we have done great things with this gift, through our lives of prayer and good works, through our lives of evangelical service in bringing Christ to others? Do we live the Faith out in the world, or is it something that we just keep hidden? If we come to Mass in the morning but then go out and live like pagans, that is like the guy who hid his coin in the handkerchief and then brought it back to the Lord to say, “Here’s Your coin back.” That is not going to be an option. Just to be able to say, “Well, I have to protect this so I don’t lose it,” is not going to be an acceptable thing on the Day of the Lord. We have to use what He has given us because it is the purpose for which it has been given.

We recognize also in this context these enemies who did not want Him to be their king. If ever there has been a day where it is more clear that Our Lord is being rejected, it is in our own time. We live in a society where there are more and more people who are falling away from their faith. We live in a society where paganism and other groups like Islam, who reject Our Lord as far as His divinity goes, are growing. We see that even among retailers it is acceptable to say, “Happy Hanukkah,” it is acceptable to say, “Merry Kwanzaa,” but it is forbidden for employees to say, “Merry Christmas,” because, after all, that is Christian and that is religious and we cannot accept that–as though somehow those others are not. We see that it is acceptable to celebrate anything except Jesus. It is acceptable to believe in anything but Jesus. They have rejected Him as the king.

If we are going to say that we accept Him as our King and we are His servants then we need to put ourselves in His service. We need to make sure we are using what He has given us to be able to extend His kingdom so that when we stand before Him we are going to give to Him a glorious return on the deposit that He has given to us. We, each of us, need to ask Him what it is that He wants us to do. How does He want this return? Because we have different personalities and because we have different abilities and gifts and talents, each one of us is going to be able to employ what Our Lord has given to us in different ways. In that way, everything will be covered because each person will be approaching things from a different perspective and at a different level. There will be no one, then, who will be able to say that they did not know the Lord or that they did not have an opportunity to hear about Him.

So it is not a question of who has the better thing, or, “How come I can’t do it that way,” but it is simply a question of, “What does God want me to do with what He has given to me,” and then, “Am I doing what He wants me to do with what He has entrusted to me?” That is what each of us needs to concern ourselves with, to make sure that with this wonderful gift which God has given us that we are employing it according to His Will and for His greater glory. In that way, not only will the Gospel be spread, but we will save our own soul and hopefully a number of others with us. That is what He is looking for. We live in a time when He is being rejected, when the enemies of Our Lord and of His Church are definitely growing, and their arrogance is pretty astounding. And so if we are going to claim to be His servants, we now have the opportunity to prove it.

* This text was transcribed from the audio recording with minimal editing.

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