Reading 1
1 Cor 6:1-11

Brothers and sisters:
How can any one of you with a case against another
dare to bring it to the unjust for judgment
instead of to the holy ones?
Do you not know that the holy ones will judge the world?
If the world is to be judged by you,
are you unqualified for the lowest law courts?
Do you not know that we will judge angels?
Then why not everyday matters?
If, therefore, you have courts for everyday matters,
do you seat as judges people of no standing in the Church?
I say this to shame you.
Can it be that there is not one among you wise enough
to be able to settle a case between brothers?
But rather brother goes to court against brother,
and that before unbelievers?

Now indeed then it is, in any case,
a failure on your part that you have lawsuits against one another.
Why not rather put up with injustice?
Why not rather let yourselves be cheated?
Instead, you inflict injustice and cheat, and this to brothers.
Do you not know that the unjust will not inherit the Kingdom of God?
Do not be deceived;
neither fornicators nor idolaters nor adulterers
nor boy prostitutes nor sodomites nor thieves
nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor robbers
will inherit the Kingdom of God.
That is what some of you used to be;
but now you have had yourselves washed, you were sanctified,
you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ
and in the Spirit of our God.

Responsorial Psalm
Ps 149:1b-2, 3-4, 5-6a and 9b

R. (see 4) The Lord takes delight in his people.
Sing to the LORD a new song
of praise in the assembly of the faithful.
Let Israel be glad in their maker,
let the children of Zion rejoice in their king.
R. The Lord takes delight in his people.
Let them praise his name in the festive dance,
let them sing praise to him with timbrel and harp.
For the LORD loves his people,
and he adorns the lowly with victory.
R. The Lord takes delight in his people.
Let the faithful exult in glory;
let them sing for joy upon their couches;
Let the high praises of God be in their throats.
This is the glory of all his faithful. Alleluia.
R. The Lord takes delight in his people.

Gospel
Lk 6:12-19

Jesus departed to the mountain to pray,
and he spent the night in prayer to God.
When day came, he called his disciples to himself,
and from them he chose Twelve, whom he also named Apostles:
Simon, whom he named Peter, and his brother Andrew,
James, John, Philip, Bartholomew,
Matthew, Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus,
Simon who was called a Zealot,
and Judas the son of James,
and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor.

And he came down with them and stood on a stretch of level ground.
A great crowd of his disciples and a large number of the people
from all Judea and Jerusalem
and the coastal region of Tyre and Sidon
came to hear him and to be healed of their diseases;
and even those who were tormented by unclean spirits were cured.
Everyone in the crowd sought to touch him
because power came forth from him and healed them all.

The Most Holy Name of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Optional Memorial
September 12th

Helen Hull Hitchcock

Collect: From the Collection of Masses of the Blessed Virgin Mary

First Reading (1st Option): Galatians 4:4-7
When the time had fully come, God sent forth His Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, "Abba! Father!" So through God you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son then an heir.

First Reading (2nd Option): Ephesians 1:3-6
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. He destined us in love to be his sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace which he freely bestowed on us in the Beloved.

Gospel Reading:Luke 1:39-47
In those days Mary arose and went with haste into the hill country, to a city of Judah, and she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and she exclaimed with a loud cry, "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And why is this granted me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For behold, when the voice of your greeting came to my ears, the babe in my womb leaped for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfilment of what was spoken to her from the Lord." And Mary said, "My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.

From: Luke 6:12-19

The Calling of the Apostles

[12] In these days He (Jesus) went out into the hills to pray; and all
night He continued in prayer to God. [13] And when it was day, He
called His disciples, and chose from them twelve, whom He named
Apostles: [14] Simon, whom He named Peter, and Andrew, his brother,
and James and John, and Philip and Bartholomew, [15] and Matthew,
and Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon who was
called the Zealot, [16] and Judas the son of James, and Judas Iscariot,
who became a traitor.

The Sermon on the Mount

[17] And He came down with them and stood on a level place, with a
great crowd of His disciples and a great multitude of people from all
Judea and Jerusalem and the sea coast of Tyre and Sidon, who came
to hear Him and to be healed of their diseases; [18] and those who
were troubled with unclean spirits were cured. [19] And all the crowd
sought to touch Him, for power came forth from Him and healed them
all.

Commentary:

12-13. The evangelist writes with a certain formality when describing
this important occasion on which Jesus chooses the Twelve, constitu-
ting them as the apostolic college: "The Lord Jesus, having prayed at
length to the Father, called to Himself those whom He willed and ap-
pointed twelve to be with Him, whom He might send to preach the King-
dom of God (cf. Mark 2:13-19; Matthew 10:1-42). These Apostles (cf.
Luke 6:13) He constituted in the form of a college or permanent assem-
bly, at the head of which He placed Peter, chosen from among them
(cf. John 21:15-17). He sent them first of all to the children of Israel and
then to all peoples (cf. Romans 1:16), so that, sharing in His power,
they might make all peoples His disciples and sanctify and govern
them (cf. Matthew 28:16-20; and par.) and thus spread the Church and,
administering it under the guidance of the Lord, shepherd it all days
until the end of the world (cf. Matthew 28:20). They were fully confirmed
in this mission on the day of Pentecost (cf. Act 2:1-26) [...]. Through
their preaching the Gospel everywhere (cf. Mark 16:20), and through its
being welcomed and received under the influence of the Holy Spirit by
those who hear it, the Apostles gather together the universal Church,
which the Lord founded upon the Apostles and built upon Blessed Peter
their leader, the chief cornerstone being Christ Jesus Himself (cf. Reve-
lation 21:14; Matthew 16:18; Ephesians 2:20). That divine mission,
which was committed by Christ to the Apostles, is destined to last until
the end of the world (cf. Matthew 28:20), since the Gospel, which they
were charged to hand on, is, for the Church, the principle of all its life
for all time. For that very reason the Apostles were careful to appoint
successors in this hierarchically constituted society" (Vatican II, "Lu-
men Gentium", 19-20).

Before establishing the apostolic college, Jesus spent the whole night
in prayer. He often made special prayer for His Church (Luke 9:18;
John 17:1ff), thereby preparing His Apostles to be its pillars (cf.
Galatians 2:9). As His Passion approaches, He will pray to the Father
for Simon Peter, the head of the Church, and solemnly tell Peter that
He has done so: "But I have prayed for you that your faith may not
fail" (Luke 22:32). Following Christ's example, the Church stipulates
that on many occasions liturgical prayer should be offered for the
pastors of the Church (the Pope, the bishops in general, and priests)
asking God to give them grace to fulfill their ministry faithfully.

Christ is continually teaching us that we need to pray always (Luke
18:1). Here He shows us by His example that we should pray with
special intensity at important moments in our lives. "`Pernoctans in
oratione Dei. He spent the whole night in prayer to God.' So St.
Luke tells of our Lord. And you? How often have you persevered like
that? Well, then...." ([Blessed] J. Escriva, "The Way", 104).

On the need for prayer and the qualities our prayer should have, see
the notes on Matthew 6:5-6; 7:7-11; 14:22-23; Mark 1:35; Luke 5:16;
11:1-4; 22:41-42.

12. Since Jesus is God, why does He pray? There were two wills in
Christ, one divine and one human (cf. "St. Pius X Catechism", 91), and
although by virtue of His divine will He was omnipotent, His human will
was not omnipotent. When we pray, what we do is make our will known
to God; therefore Christ, who is like us in all things but sin (Hebrews
4:15), also had to pray in a human way (cf. "Summa Theologiae", III, q.
21, a. 1). Reflecting on Jesus at prayer, St. Ambrose comments: "The
Lord prays not to ask things for Himself, but to intercede on my behalf;
for although the Father has put everything into the hands of the Son,
still the Son, in order to behave in accordance with His condition as man,
considers it appropriate to implore the Father for our sake, for He is our
Advocate [...]. A Master of obedience, by His example He instructs us
concerning the precepts of virtue: `We have an advocate with the Father'
(1 John 2:1)" ("Expositio Evangelii sec. Lucam, in loc.").

14-16. Jesus chose for Apostles very ordinary people, most of them poor
and uneducated; apparently only Matthew and the brothers James and
John had social positions of any consequence. But all of them gave up
whatever they had, little or much as it was, and all of them, bar Judas,
put their faith in the Lord, overcame their shortcomings and eventually
proved faithful to grace and became saints, veritable pillars of the Church.
We should not feel uneasy when we realize that we too are low in human
qualities; what matters is being faithful to the grace God gives us.

19. God became man to save us. The divine person of the Word acts
through the human nature which He took on. The cures and casting out
of devils which He performed during His life on earth are also proof that
Christ actually brings redemption and not just hope of redemption. The
crowds of people from Judea and other parts of Israel who flock to Him,
seeking even to touch Him, anticipate, in a way, Christians' devotion to
the holy Humanity of Christ.

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

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin,
Ireland.
Reprinted with permission from from Four Courts Press and Scepter
Publishers, the U.S. publishers.

From: 1 Corinthians 6:1-11

Recourse to Pagan Courts

[1] When one of you has a grievance against a brother, does he dare
go to law before the unrighteous instead of the saints? [2] Do you not
know that the saints will judge the world? And if the world is to be
judged by you, are you incompetent to try trivial cases? [3] Do you
not know that we are to judge angels? How much more, matters per-
taining to this life! [4] If then you have such cases, why do you lay
them before those who are least esteemed by the church? [5] I say
this to your shame. Can it be that there is no man among you wise
enough to decide between members of the brotherhood, [6] but bro-
ther goes to law against brother, and that before unbelievers?

[7] To have lawsuits at all with one another is defeat for you. Why not
rather suffer wrong? Why not rather be defrauded? [8] But you
yourselves wrong and defraud, and that even your own brethren.

[9] Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom
of God? Do not be deceived; neither the immoral, nor idolaters, nor
adulterers, nor homosexuals, [10] nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor
drunkards, nor revilers, nor robbers will inherit the kingdom of God.
[11] And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were
sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ
and in the Spirit of our God.

Commentary:

1-6. As usually happens in his letters, in the course of dealing with
some more or less important event in the Christian community, the
Apostle moves on to a much higher plane, and from there focuses
light onto the particular problem.

In this case, the scandal is that Christians are involved in lawsuits
against one another (v. 7) and are bringing these cases before pagan
courts instead of trying to settle them within the sphere of the Church;
Paul, as we can see, is quite incensed: "How dare any of your mem-
bers..."

Through Baptism, Christians are become holy, justified; that is, they
have obtained a share in the life and virtues of Christ and are called
to follow his example. Furthermore, like the Apostles (cf. Mt 19:28;
Lk 22:30), Christians will judge men and angels on the Last Day. They
are, therefore, instruments of and witnesses to divine justice. So, they
really should not go to law against each other; and if they do have
grievances the Christian community itself should provide people who
are equipped to act as arbitrators and have the grace of state to solve
the problems that arise. St Paul is not down-playing civil authority and
its autonomy, for all authority comes from God (Rom 13:1-5); he him-
self submitted to Roman tribunals, and he even appealed to Caesar
(cf. Acts 25:11-12). The specific advice he gives here--that Christians
should not bring cases before pagan court--ties in with Jewish practice.
Primarily, the Apostle is recommending to Christians to practice fra-
ternity and solve disagreements without going to pagan courts.

Moreover, going to law would be a great disservice to the Gospel:
what attraction could a community hold which was divided within itself?
[7] It is this grave scandal that he particularly wants to avoid.

3. The only Judge of the living and the dead, of angels and men, is
Jesus Christ. Christians are so intimately linked to Christ that St Paul
sees no objections to attributing the actions of the head to all the mem-
bers. Therefore, he does not attempt to speculate on the particular form
the Last Judgment will take--whether, for example, men will judge an-
gels or at least the fallen angels. His aim here may be simply to em-
phasize the intimate union of the Christian with Christ, which ought
to be reflected in just dealings with one another.

7-8. This is the reason why St Paul is so hard on the Corinthians.
They have failed to understand and to apply what our Lord said in the
Sermon on the Mount about bearing injuries (Mt 5:39-42). Worse still,
they have gone to law against each other in contravention of the stan-
dard set by those early Christians, who had one heart and soul (cf.
Acts 4:32). And they have tried to solve their disagreements in pagan
courts which know nothing of Christian brotherhood. St John Chryso-
stom points out the transgressions the Corinthians are guilty of: "For
one thing, not bearing injuries patiently; for another, offending others;
then looking for arbitrators to decide on the matter, finally, using this
procedure in a dispute with a Christian, a brother in the faith" ("Hom.
on 1 Cor, ad loc.").

St Paul's advice about money can usefully be read in the light of Ro-
mans 12:17-21: this shows us that he is not saying that a passive and
weak attitude to difficulties is the right one: difficulties should be faced
and an effort made to do positive good, at all times, to everyone.

"Let us especially resolve not to judge others, not to doubt their good
will, to drown evil in an abundance of good, sowing loyal friendship
justice and peace all around us. And let us resolve never to become
sad if our upright conduct is misunderstood by others; if the good
which, with the continuous help of our Lord, we try to accomplish is
misinterpreted by people who delight in unjustly guessing at our mo-
tives and who accuse us of wicked designs and deceitful behavior.
Let us forgive always, with a smile on our lips. Let us speak clearly,
without hard feelings, when in conscience we think we ought to speak.
And let us leave everything in the hands of our Father God, with a
divine silence--Jesus was silent' (Mt 26:63--if we are confronted with
personal attacks, no matter how brutal and shameful they might be.
Let us concern ourselves only with doing good deeds: God will see to
it that they shine before men (Mt 5:16)" ("Christ Is Passing By", 72).

9-10. In this list of sins, similar to that given in the previous chapter
(cf. 1 Cor 5:10-11), St Paul explicitly teaches that those who commit
these sins will not inherit the Kingdom, that is, will not attain eternal
salvation. The whole list is a kind of explanation of what "unrighteous-
ness" means. Thus, not only those go against righteousness who
wrongly go to law or defraud others: righteousness, justice, in the
language of the Bible is equivalent to holiness and therefore is
opposed to every kind of sin.

"Do not be deceived": the Greek can also be translated as "Do not let
yourselves be deceived" (cf. Eph 5 :5-6). Certainly, to make out that
such actions are good is worse than to commit them. And yet in Cor-
inth, and in other places at other times, there have been and are false
ideologies which interpret sinfulness as virtue. To combat tendencies
that seek to tone down or deny the reality of grave sin, the Church
points out that "a person sins mortally not only when his action comes
from direct contempt for love of God and neighbor, but also when he
consciously and freely, for whatever reason, chooses something which
is seriously disordered [...]. Pastors of souls must exercise patience
and generosity; but they are not allowed to render God's command-
ments null, nor to reduce unreasonably people's responsibility" (SCDF,
"Declaration Concerning Sexual Ethics", 10). Like Christ, pastors
should be uncompromising with evil and merciful to evildoers.

11. This reminder about the dignity of Christians brings to an end this
series of warnings. It reminds the Corinthians of their Baptism, its
effects and their need to return to their initial holiness.

These last words clearly contain a reference to the Trinitarian formula
used at Baptism (cf. Mt 28:19). The inclusion of the name of the three
persons of the Blessed Trinity implies an act of faith in God, One and
Three, and recognition that grace and justification are given us by the
Father, have been merited by his Son Jesus Christ, and are applied to
us through the action of the Holy Spirit.

Three words sum up the effects of Baptism--"washed", "sanctified",
and "justified" (cf. Acts 22:16; Eph 5:16; Tit 3:5); in addition to erasing
original sin, and any personal sin, Baptism gives us sanctifying grace
and the infused virtues: "The followers of Christ, called by God not in
virtue of their works but by his design and grace, and justified in the
Lord Jesus, have been made sons of God in baptism, the sacrament
of faith, and partakers of the divine nature, and so are truly sanctified.
They must therefore hold on to and perfect in their lives that sanctifi-
cation which they have received from God" ("Lumen Gentium", 40).

Reminding them of baptismal innocence, St Paul encourages the Corin-
thians to return to that state by a new conversion. After Baptism, the
sacrament of Penance received with the right dispositions restores
sanctifying grace and is, moreover, a means Christ chooses to con-
serve men in grace and bring them growth in grace: "The sacrament of
Penance contributes [much] to the development of the Christian life"
(Vatican II, "Christus Dominus", 30).

Mass Readings

First reading	1 Corinthians 6:1 - 11 ©
How dare one of your members take up a complaint against another in the law courts of the unjust instead of before the saints? As you know, it is the saints who are to ‘judge the world’; and if the world is to be judged by you, how can you be unfit to judge trifling cases? Since we are also to judge angels, it follows that we can judge matters of everyday life; but when you have had cases of that kind, the people you appointed to try them were not even respected in the Church. You should be ashamed: is there really not one reliable man among you to settle differences between brothers and so one brother brings a court case against another in front of unbelievers? It is bad enough for you to have lawsuits at all against one another: oughtn’t you to let yourselves be wronged, and let yourselves be cheated? But you are doing the wronging and the cheating, and to your own brothers. You know perfectly well that people who do wrong will not inherit the kingdom of God: people of immoral lives, idolaters, adulterers, catamites, sodomites, thieves, usurers, drunkards, slanderers and swindlers will never inherit the kingdom of God. These are the sort of people some of you were once, but now you have been washed clean, and sanctified, and justified through the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and through the Spirit of our God.

First reading

1 Corinthians 6:1 - 11 ©

How dare one of your members take up a complaint against another in the law courts of the unjust instead of before the saints? As you know, it is the saints who are to ‘judge the world’; and if the world is to be judged by you, how can you be unfit to judge trifling cases? Since we are also to judge angels, it follows that we can judge matters of everyday life; but when you have had cases of that kind, the people you appointed to try them were not even respected in the Church. You should be ashamed: is there really not one reliable man among you to settle differences between brothers and so one brother brings a court case against another in front of unbelievers? It is bad enough for you to have lawsuits at all against one another: oughtn’t you to let yourselves be wronged, and let yourselves be cheated? But you are doing the wronging and the cheating, and to your own brothers.
You know perfectly well that people who do wrong will not inherit the kingdom of God: people of immoral lives, idolaters, adulterers, catamites, sodomites, thieves, usurers, drunkards, slanderers and swindlers will never inherit the kingdom of God. These are the sort of people some of you were once, but now you have been washed clean, and sanctified, and justified through the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and through the Spirit of our God.

Psalm or canticle: Psalm 149

Gospel	Luke 6:12 - 19 ©
Jesus went out into the hills to pray; and he spent the whole night in prayer to God. When day came he summoned his disciples and picked out twelve of them; he called them ‘apostles’: Simon whom he called Peter, and his brother Andrew; James, John, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James son of Alphaeus, Simon called the Zealot, Judas son of James, and Judas Iscariot who became a traitor. He then came down with them and stopped at a piece of level ground where there was a large gathering of his disciples with a great crowd of people from all parts of Judaea and from Jerusalem and from the coastal region of Tyre and Sidon who had come to hear him and to be cured of their diseases. People tormented by unclean spirits were also cured, and everyone in the crowd was trying to touch him because power came out of him that cured them all.

Gospel

Luke 6:12 - 19 ©

Jesus went out into the hills to pray; and he spent the whole night in prayer to God. When day came he summoned his disciples and picked out twelve of them; he called them ‘apostles’: Simon whom he called Peter, and his brother Andrew; James, John, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James son of Alphaeus, Simon called the Zealot, Judas son of James, and Judas Iscariot who became a traitor.
He then came down with them and stopped at a piece of level ground where there was a large gathering of his disciples with a great crowd of people from all parts of Judaea and from Jerusalem and from the coastal region of Tyre and Sidon who had come to hear him and to be cured of their diseases. People tormented by unclean spirits were also cured, and everyone in the crowd was trying to touch him because power came out of him that cured them all.

Office of Readings -- Awakening Prayer

Office of Readings

If this is the first Hour that you are reciting today, you should precede it with the Invitatory Psalm.

O God, come to my aid.
O Lord, make haste to help me.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,
world without end.
Amen. Alleluia.

A suitable hymn may be inserted at this point.

Psalm 67 (68)
The Lord's triumphal journey
God arises and his enemies are scattered: those who hate him flee from his sight. You blow them away like wisps of smoke; as wax melts in front of a fire, so the wicked melt away before God. The righteous are glad and exult in God’s sight; they rejoice in their gladness. Sing to the Lord and celebrate his name! Make a road for him who rides upon the clouds – “The Lord” is his name. Rejoice in his sight, the father of orphans, defender of widows, God in his holy dwelling-place, God, who gives the lonely a house to dwell in, God, who leads captives out into prosperity; but the rebellious shall live in a desert land. God, when you set out in the sight of your people, when you crossed the wilderness – the earth shook. The heavens sent down dew at your coming – the God of Sinai, the God of Israel. At your bidding the rains came, O God, your inheritance was worn out but you refreshed it. All your creatures took up residence there, in your goodness you made a place for the needy. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Psalm 67 (68)

The Lord's triumphal journey

God arises and his enemies are scattered:
those who hate him flee from his sight.
You blow them away like wisps of smoke;
as wax melts in front of a fire,
so the wicked melt away before God.
The righteous are glad and exult in God’s sight;
they rejoice in their gladness.

Sing to the Lord and celebrate his name!
Make a road for him who rides upon the clouds –
“The Lord” is his name.
Rejoice in his sight,
the father of orphans, defender of widows,
God in his holy dwelling-place,
God, who gives the lonely a house to dwell in,
God, who leads captives out into prosperity;
but the rebellious shall live in a desert land.

God, when you set out in the sight of your people,
when you crossed the wilderness – the earth shook.
The heavens sent down dew at your coming –
the God of Sinai, the God of Israel.
At your bidding the rains came, O God,
your inheritance was worn out but you refreshed it.
All your creatures took up residence there,
in your goodness you made a place for the needy.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,
world without end.
Amen.

Psalm 67 (68)
The Lord gives out the word, and a great army of maidens brings the news: “The kings of the armies are fleeing, they are fleeing, and the fair one at home is dividing the spoils. While you sleep among the sheepfolds, the wings of the dove shine with silver, her feathers glow with green gold. Through her the Almighty scatters the kings, and the mountain of Salmon is white with snow. The mountain of Bashan is God’s mountain; the mountain of God is a high-peaked mountain. Why do you envy it, you high-peaked mountains, envy the mountain that God has chosen? The Lord will dwell there for ever. The chariots of God are ten thousand thousand: the Lord has come from Sinai to his holy sanctuary. You have scaled the heights, you have taken captives, you have received men as gifts so that even the rebels live with the Lord God. Blessings on the Lord, day after day! God will carry us, God our saviour. Our God is a God of salvation, our Lord is a Lord who rescues from death. Truly God will break the heads of his enemies, take the scalps of those who tread the path of crime. The Lord has spoken: “I shall bring them back from Bashan, I shall bring them back from the depths of the sea, so that your feet may be dipped in blood and the tongues of your dogs receive food from your enemies”. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Psalm 67 (68)

The Lord gives out the word,
and a great army of maidens brings the news:
“The kings of the armies are fleeing, they are fleeing,
and the fair one at home is dividing the spoils.
While you sleep among the sheepfolds,
the wings of the dove shine with silver,
her feathers glow with green gold.
Through her the Almighty scatters the kings,
and the mountain of Salmon is white with snow.

The mountain of Bashan is God’s mountain;
the mountain of God is a high-peaked mountain.
Why do you envy it, you high-peaked mountains,
envy the mountain that God has chosen?
The Lord will dwell there for ever.
The chariots of God are ten thousand thousand:
the Lord has come from Sinai to his holy sanctuary.
You have scaled the heights, you have taken captives,
you have received men as gifts
so that even the rebels live with the Lord God.

Blessings on the Lord, day after day!
God will carry us, God our saviour.
Our God is a God of salvation,
our Lord is a Lord who rescues from death.
Truly God will break the heads of his enemies,
take the scalps of those who tread the path of crime.

The Lord has spoken:
“I shall bring them back from Bashan,
I shall bring them back from the depths of the sea,
so that your feet may be dipped in blood
and the tongues of your dogs receive food from your enemies”.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,
world without end.
Amen.

Psalm 67 (68)
They have seen your processions, O God, the processions of God, my king, to his sanctuary. First came the singers, last the musicians, between them the maidens playing their drums. “Bless God in the assemblies: bless the Lord, you who spring from Israel!” There was young Benjamin, leading them, the princes of Judah in their rich robes, the princes of Zebulun, the princes of Naphtali. O God, command in your strength; make firm what you have achieved in us. From your temple in Jerusalem, kings shall bring you tribute. Rebuke the wild beast of the reeds, the herd of bulls, the lords of peoples. Let them lie prostrate before you with tribute of silver. Scatter the peoples that delight in war. Nobles will come from Egypt, Ethiopia will stretch out its hands to God. Kingdoms of the earth, sing to God; celebrate the Lord. Sing to God who rides on the highest heavens, at the origin of all things. Listen! – he speaks, a voice of power. Acknowledge the strength of the Lord: his majesty is over Israel, his strength is in the clouds. God inspires awe in his holy place; he, the God of Israel, gives power to his people; he gives them strength. Blessed be God! Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Psalm 67 (68)

They have seen your processions, O God,
the processions of God, my king, to his sanctuary.
First came the singers, last the musicians,
between them the maidens playing their drums.
“Bless God in the assemblies:
bless the Lord, you who spring from Israel!”
There was young Benjamin, leading them,
the princes of Judah in their rich robes,
the princes of Zebulun, the princes of Naphtali.

O God, command in your strength;
make firm what you have achieved in us.
From your temple in Jerusalem,
kings shall bring you tribute.
Rebuke the wild beast of the reeds,
the herd of bulls, the lords of peoples.
Let them lie prostrate before you with tribute of silver.
Scatter the peoples that delight in war.
Nobles will come from Egypt,
Ethiopia will stretch out its hands to God.

Kingdoms of the earth, sing to God;
celebrate the Lord.
Sing to God who rides on the highest heavens,
at the origin of all things.
Listen! – he speaks, a voice of power.

Acknowledge the strength of the Lord:
his majesty is over Israel,
his strength is in the clouds.
God inspires awe in his holy place;
he, the God of Israel, gives power to his people;
he gives them strength.
Blessed be God!

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,
world without end.
Amen.

Reading	Habakkuk 1:1 - 2:4 ©
The oracle that Habakkuk the prophet received in a vision. How long, O Lord, am I to cry for help while you will not listen; to cry ‘Oppression!’ in your ear and you will not save? Why do you set injustice before me, why do you look on where there is tyranny? Outrage and violence, this is all I see, all is contention, and discord flourishes. And so the law loses its hold, and justice never shows itself. Yes, the wicked man gets the better of the upright, and so justice is seen to be distorted. Cast your eyes over the nations, look, and be amazed, astounded. For I am doing something in your own days that you would not believe if you were told of it. For now I am stirring up the Chaldaeans, that fierce and fiery people who march miles across country to seize the homes of others. A people feared and dreaded, from their might proceeds their right, their greatness. Their horses are swifter than leopards, fiercer than wolves in the dark; their horsemen gallop on, their horsemen advance from afar, swooping like an eagle to stoop on its prey. They come for plunder, all of them, their faces scorching like an east wind; they scoop up prisoners like sand. They are a people that scoff at kings, and laugh at princes. They make light of all fortresses: they heap up earth and take them. Then the wind changes and is gone... Sinful, he who makes his own strength his god. Are not you, from ancient times the Lord, my God, my Holy One, who never dies? O Lord, you have made this people an instrument of justice, set it firm as a rock in order to punish. Your eyes are too pure to rest on wickedness, you cannot look on at tyranny. Why do you look on while men are treacherous, and stay silent while the evil man swallows a better man than he? You treat mankind like fishes in the sea, like creeping, masterless things. A people, these, who catch all on their hook, who draw them with their net, in their dragnet gather them, and so, triumphantly, rejoice. At this, they offer a sacrifice to their net, and burn incense to their dragnet, for providing them with luxury and lavish food. Are they then to empty their net unceasingly, slaughtering nations without pity? I will stand on my watchtower, and take up my post on my battlements, watching to see what he will say to me, what answer he will make to my complaints. Then the Lord answered and said, ‘Write the vision down, inscribe it on tablets to be easily read, since this vision is for its own time only: eager for its own fulfilment, it does not deceive; if it comes slowly, wait, for come it will, without fail. ‘See how he flags, he whose soul is not at rights, but the upright man will live by his faithfulness.’

Reading

Habakkuk 1:1 - 2:4 ©

The oracle that Habakkuk the prophet received in a vision.
How long, O Lord, am I to cry for help
while you will not listen;
to cry ‘Oppression!’ in your ear
and you will not save?

Why do you set injustice before me,
why do you look on where there is tyranny?
Outrage and violence, this is all I see,
all is contention, and discord flourishes.

And so the law loses its hold,
and justice never shows itself.
Yes, the wicked man gets the better of the upright,
and so justice is seen to be distorted.

Cast your eyes over the nations, look,
and be amazed, astounded.
For I am doing something in your own days
that you would not believe if you were told of it.

For now I am stirring up the Chaldaeans,
that fierce and fiery people
who march miles across country
to seize the homes of others.

A people feared and dreaded,
from their might proceeds their right, their greatness.

Their horses are swifter than leopards,
fiercer than wolves in the dark;
their horsemen gallop on,
their horsemen advance from afar,
swooping like an eagle to stoop on its prey.

They come for plunder, all of them,
their faces scorching like an east wind;
they scoop up prisoners like sand.

They are a people that scoff at kings,
and laugh at princes.
They make light of all fortresses:
they heap up earth and take them.

Then the wind changes and is gone...
Sinful, he who makes his own strength his god.

Are not you, from ancient times the Lord,
my God, my Holy One, who never dies?
O Lord, you have made this people an instrument of justice,
set it firm as a rock in order to punish.

Your eyes are too pure to rest on wickedness,
you cannot look on at tyranny.
Why do you look on while men are treacherous,
and stay silent while the evil man swallows a better man than he?

You treat mankind like fishes in the sea,
like creeping, masterless things.

A people, these, who catch all on their hook,
who draw them with their net,
in their dragnet gather them,
and so, triumphantly, rejoice.

At this, they offer a sacrifice to their net,
and burn incense to their dragnet,
for providing them with luxury
and lavish food.

Are they then to empty their net unceasingly,
slaughtering nations without pity?

I will stand on my watchtower,
and take up my post on my battlements,
watching to see what he will say to me,
what answer he will make to my complaints.

Then the Lord answered and said,
‘Write the vision down,
inscribe it on tablets
to be easily read,
since this vision is for its own time only:
eager for its own fulfilment, it does not deceive;
if it comes slowly, wait,
for come it will, without fail.

‘See how he flags, he whose soul is not at rights,
but the upright man will live by his faithfulness.’

Reading	A sermon by St Bernard
I shall stand upon my watch-tower to see what the Lord will say to me
We read in the gospel that when the Lord was teaching his disciples and urged them to share in his passion by the mystery of eating his body, some said: This is a hard saying, and from that time they no longer followed him. When he asked the disciples whether they also wished to go away, they replied: Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. I assure you, my brothers, that even to this day it is clear to some that the words which Jesus speaks are spirit and life, and for this reason they follow him. To others these words seem hard, and so they look elsewhere for some pathetic consolation. Yet wisdom cries out in the streets, in the broad and spacious way that leads to death, to call back those who take this path. Finally, he says: For forty years I have been close to this generation, and I said: They have always been faint-hearted. You also read in another psalm: God has spoken once. Once, indeed, because for ever. His is a single, uninterrupted utterance, because it is continuous and unending. He calls upon sinners to return to their true spirit and rebukes them when their hearts have gone astray, for it is in the true heart that he dwells and there he speaks, fulfilling what he taught through the prophet: Speak to the heart of Jerusalem. You see, my brothers, how the prophet admonishes us for our advantage: If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts. You can read almost the same words in the gospel and in the prophet. For in the gospel the Lord says: My sheep hear my voice. And in the psalm blessed David says: You are his people (meaning, of course, the Lord’s) and the sheep of his pasture. If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts. Hear also the prophet Habakkuk in today’s reading. Far from hiding the Lord’s reprimands, he dwells on them with attentive and anxious care. He says: I will stand upon my watch-tower and take up my post on the ramparts, keeping watch to see what he will say to me and what answer I will make to those who try to confute me. I beg you, my brothers, stand upon our watch-tower, for now is the time for battle. Let all our dealings be in the heart, where Christ dwells, in right judgement and wise counsel, but in such a way as to place no confidence in those dealings, nor rely upon our fragile defences.

Reading

A sermon by St Bernard

I shall stand upon my watch-tower to see what the Lord will say to me

We read in the gospel that when the Lord was teaching his disciples and urged them to share in his passion by the mystery of eating his body, some said: This is a hard saying, and from that time they no longer followed him. When he asked the disciples whether they also wished to go away, they replied: Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.
I assure you, my brothers, that even to this day it is clear to some that the words which Jesus speaks are spirit and life, and for this reason they follow him. To others these words seem hard, and so they look elsewhere for some pathetic consolation. Yet wisdom cries out in the streets, in the broad and spacious way that leads to death, to call back those who take this path. Finally, he says: For forty years I have been close to this generation, and I said: They have always been faint-hearted. You also read in another psalm: God has spoken once. Once, indeed, because for ever. His is a single, uninterrupted utterance, because it is continuous and unending.
He calls upon sinners to return to their true spirit and rebukes them when their hearts have gone astray, for it is in the true heart that he dwells and there he speaks, fulfilling what he taught through the prophet: Speak to the heart of Jerusalem. You see, my brothers, how the prophet admonishes us for our advantage: If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts. You can read almost the same words in the gospel and in the prophet. For in the gospel the Lord says: My sheep hear my voice. And in the psalm blessed David says: You are his people (meaning, of course, the Lord’s) and the sheep of his pasture. If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.
Hear also the prophet Habakkuk in today’s reading. Far from hiding the Lord’s reprimands, he dwells on them with attentive and anxious care. He says: I will stand upon my watch-tower and take up my post on the ramparts, keeping watch to see what he will say to me and what answer I will make to those who try to confute me. I beg you, my brothers, stand upon our watch-tower, for now is the time for battle. Let all our dealings be in the heart, where Christ dwells, in right judgement and wise counsel, but in such a way as to place no confidence in those dealings, nor rely upon our fragile defences.

A concluding prayer may follow here.

Catholic Culture

Collect:
Almighty God, our creator and guide, may we serve you with all our heart and know your forgiveness in our lives. 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.

Recipes:

» Crescents
» Fruit Salad

Activities:

less

Prayers:

September 12, 2006

Optional Memorial of the Most Holy Name of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Old Calendar: Most Holy Name of Mary

In accordance with Jewish custom our Lady's parents named her eight days after her birth, and were inspired to call her Mary. The Hebrew name of Mary (in Latin Domina) means lady or sovereign; this Mary is in virtue of her Son's soveriegn authority as Lord of the World. We call Mary our Lady as we call Jesus our Lord, and when we pronounce her name we affirm her power, implore her aid and place ourselves under her protection.

Most Holy Name of Mary

In accordance with Jewish custom our Lady's parents named her eight days after her birth, and were inspired to call her Mary. The feast of the Holy Name of Mary therefore follows that of her Birthday, as the Feast of the Holy Name of Jesus follows Christmas. The feast originated in Spain and was approved by the Holy See in 1513; Innocent XI extended its observance to the whole Church in 1683 in thanksgiving to our Lady for the victory on September 12, 1683 by John Sobieski, king of Poland, over the Turks, who were besieging Vienna and threatening the West. This day was commemorated in Vienna by creating a new kind of pastry and shaping it in the form of the Turkish half-moon. It was eaten along with coffee which was part of the booty from the Turks.

The ancient Onomastica Sacra have preserved the meanings ascribed to Mary's name by the early Christian writers and perpetuated by the Greek Fathers. "Bitter Sea", "Myrrh of the Sea", "The Light Giver", "The Enlightened One", "Lady", "Seal of the Lord" and "Mother of the Lord" are the principal interpretations. These etymologies suppose that the Hebrew form of the name is Maryãm, not Miryãm. From the time of St. Jerome until the 16th century preferred interpretations of Mary's name in the West was "Lady", "Bitter Sea", "The Light Giver" and especially "Star of the Sea". Stella Maris was by far the favored interpretation. The revival of Hebraic studies, which accompanied the Renaissance, led to a more critical appraisal of the meanings assigned to Our Lady's name. Miryãm has all the appearance of a genuine Hebrew name, and no solid reason has been discovered to warrant rejecting the Semitic origin of the word. The Hebrew name of Mary, Miryãm, (in Latin Domina) means lady or sovereign; this Mary is in virtue of her Son's sovereign authority as Lord of the World. We call Mary our Lady as we call Jesus our Lord, and when we pronounce her name we affirm her power, implore her aid and place ourselves under her protection.

Excerpted from Mariology by Juniper B. Carol, O.F.M.

Patron: People named Stella Maris, Estelle, Astrid, Astra, Muriel or Mary.

Symbols: Star of David, or six-pointed star appropriate for this feast.

Things to Do:

Learn the hymn Ave Maris Stella.
Pray the Divine Praises.

Regnum Christi

Called by Name
September 12, 2006

Jesus spends a whole night in prayer with his Father.

Tuesday of the Twenty-Third Week in Ordinary Time
Father Daniel Polzer, LC

Luke 6:12-19
Jesus departed to the mountain to pray, and he spent the night in prayer to God. When day came, he called his disciples to himself, and from them he chose Twelve, whom he also named apostles: Simon, whom he named Peter, and his brother Andrew, James, John, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, Simon who was called a Zealot, and Judas the son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor. And he came down with them and stood on a stretch of level ground. A great crowd of his disciples and a large number of the people from all Judea and Jerusalem and the coastal region of Tyre and Sidon came to hear him and to be healed of their diseases; and even those who were tormented by unclean spirits were cured. Everyone in the crowd sought to touch him because power came forth from him and healed them all.

Introductory Prayer: Lord I come to you once again in prayer to delve deeper into the mystery of your love for me and your call to my soul. You spent an entire night in prayer with your heavenly Father while I can hardly spend ten minutes in prayer without becoming distracted. Teach me to pray. I want to have the deep conversations with you as you had with your Father. Accept my prayer today as a small token of my desire to imitate you and become more like you.

Petition: Lord, help me to appreciate your call to be your apostle.

1. Jesus Prays. Jesus spends a whole night in prayer with his Father. No doubt, they discussed who should be among the apostles. They would have gone through the list one by one, discussing the strengths and the weaknesses of the men who would be chosen. Jesus likely would have interceded for his future apostles, begging his Father for the graces they would need to carry out the mission they were going to be given. Jesus calls me to follow him as his apostle. The call is not a halfhearted or hasty decision. Jesus ponders well my strengths and weaknesses before he calls me. He knows me inside and out and still he invites me to be his apostle and share in his mission.

2. Called By Name. Imagine what it was like to be assembled before Christ in the early morning and hear him as he called out the names of his apostles. What would it like to hear your name called? When Jesus calls out your name, the words are more then just an identification tag. He is calling the whole person, your entire being, with your personal history, talents and defects, sins and virtues, daydreams and generosity. Relish the beauty of this call. Jesus wants you, the you that reaches from the depth of your soul to your outward appearance. He wants you to be his apostle.

3. The Mission to Heal. The call of Christ has a very concrete and distinct purpose: the salvation of humanity. Humanity cries out for healing. The people come from all of Judea and Jerusalem and the coastal region of Tyre and Sidon thirsty for the truth of Christ’s words and the powerful touch of his grace. Christ invites you to share in this mission! What a privilege! What an honor to be chosen to be part of the team who will help rescue mankind from the misery of pride, sensuality and egoism and bring it to the fulfillment of a life of love and generosity.

Dialogue with Christ: Lord, thank you for this time of prayer and reflection. Many times, I forget why you have called me. I forget that I am not just an individual acting on my own behalf, but an apostle acting as your emissary. I know you have called me with all of my defects and weaknesses. Still I do not want to use this as an excuse to not work in growing in virtue or in overcoming the obstacles of my human frailty. I will work to be a better apostle, but at the same time, I will have the serenity and peace of knowing that you know perfectly well who I am and who you have called.

Resolution: I will live my day not being just me, but reflecting on my title as an apostle of Jesus Christ.

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.