Catholic Caucus: Daily Mass Readings, 11-22-12, M, St. Cecilia, virgin, martyr, Thanksgiving Day

USCCB.org/RNAB ^ | 11-22-12 | Revised New American Bible

[Salvation]

November 22, 2012

Memorial of Saint Cecilia, virgin and martyr

 

Reading 1 Rv 5:1-10

I, John, saw a scroll in the right hand of the one who sat on the throne.
It had writing on both sides and was sealed with seven seals.
Then I saw a mighty angel who proclaimed in a loud voice,
"Who is worthy to open the scroll and break its seals?"
But no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth
was able to open the scroll or to examine it.
I shed many tears because no one was found worthy
to open the scroll or to examine it.
One of the elders said to me, "Do not weep.
The lion of the tribe of Judah, the root of David, has triumphed,
enabling him to open the scroll with its seven seals."

Then I saw standing in the midst of the throne
and the four living creatures and the elders
a Lamb that seemed to have been slain.
He had seven horns and seven eyes;
these are the seven spirits of God sent out into the whole world.
He came and received the scroll from the right hand
of the one who sat on the throne.
When he took it,
the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders
fell down before the Lamb.
Each of the elders held a harp and gold bowls filled with incense,
which are the prayers of the holy ones.
They sang a new hymn:

"Worthy are you to receive the scroll
and break open its seals,
for you were slain and with your Blood you purchased for God
those from every tribe and tongue, people and nation.
You made them a kingdom and priests for our God,
and they will reign on earth."

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

R. (Rev. 5:10) The Lamb has made us a kingdom of priests to serve our God.
or:
R. Alleluia.
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 Lamb has made us a kingdom of priests to serve our God.
or:
R. Alleluia.
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 Lamb has made us a kingdom of priests to serve our God.
or:
R. Alleluia.
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 Lamb has made us a kingdom of priests to serve our God.
or:
R. Alleluia.

Gospel Lk 19:41-44

As Jesus drew near Jerusalem,
he saw the city and wept over it, saying,
"If this day you only knew what makes for peace--
but now it is hidden from your eyes.
For the days are coming upon you
when your enemies will raise a palisade against you;
they will encircle you and hem you in on all sides.
They will smash you to the ground and your children within you,
and they will not leave one stone upon another within you
because you did not recognize the time of your visitation."

[Salvation]

St. Paul Center blog

A True Thanksgiving

Posted by Matthew Leonard on 11.21.12 |

The turkey is thawing. Cars are being packed. Houses are being cleaned. I guess I’ve finally grown up because everybody’s on their way to my house this year. For the first time the Leonard family is hosting Thanksgiving. So while I don’t have to drive hours on end to distant lands in a van full of restless children, all juice spills and unidentified food items must be removed from the floors and walls of my house. Then there’s the pressure of playing the perfect host. Let’s be honest. It’s always lot easier to be the special guest star than The Love Boat “Julie McCoy”, making sure everyone has a good time. Regardless, I love it.

Even though every family has it’s foibles, there are few things which bring more pleasure than celebrating with relatives and close friends. And no matter our particular situation at this moment in the year, don’t forget that we have a lot to be thankful for…especially as Catholics. While our country celebrates Thanksgiving once a year with turkey, stuffing and cranberry sauce, we have the opportunity to celebrate a true thanksgiving every day with the most real food on heaven and earth - the Eucharist. In fact, the Greek word “eucharistia” means just that - “thanksgiving”. Because of the Eucharist, EVERY day can be a “Happy Thanksgiving”. So in the midst of all the frenetic activity surrounding this holiday weekend, make sure to take some time and be truly thankful with our Lord in the Mass.

And from all of us here at the St. Paul Center, God bless and Happy Thanksgiving!

Matthew Leonard
Executive Director

[Salvation]

Vultus Christi

Cecilia

By

Father Mark

 on November 22, 2012 11:50 AM |

Wishing a very blessed feastday to our Oblate sister Cecilia of Rome in Connecticut!

A Veiled Face

I never tire of looking at the statue of Saint Cecilia which lies over the tomb in her church in Rome’s Trastevere. Cecilia is lying on her side, looking almost as if she had been flung there. Her lovely face is hidden and her head is covered with the veil of virgins. The slash of the cruel blade across her neck is visible.

Faith

Even in death Cecilia declares her Catholic faith: the finger of one hand is extended, signifying her faith in the one true God. With three fingers of the other hand she confesses the Most Holy Trinity. Her knees are drawn up, making her look like a sleeping child. Her dress falls in graceful folds about her body. The whole composition is marked by purity and grace.

Found Incorrupt

In 1599, when Pope Clement VIII disinterred Saint Cecilia’s body, it was found to be incorrupt. The Pontiff engaged Stefano Maderno to carve Cecilia just as she was discovered. The artist inscribed his testimony on the statue’s base: “Behold the body of the most holy virgin Cecilia whom I myself saw lying incorrupt in her tomb. I have in this marble expressed for thee the same saint in the very same posture of body.”

A Masterpiece

Stefano Maderno was only twenty-three when he carved his Saint Cecilia; though he lived be forty, Saint Cecilia is his masterpiece. Reposing in death, Cecilia illustrates the truth of the psalmist’s words: “God gives to His beloved in slumber” (Ps 127:2).

Thérèse

Maderno’s Saint Cecilia reminds me also of the young Thérèse Martin who lingered before it while on pilgrimage to Rome with her father in 1887. Later on, Thérèse was inspired to write this prayer:

Cecilia, lend to me thy melody most sweet:
How many souls would I convert to Jesus now.
I fain would die, like thee, to win them to His feet;
For him give all my tears, my blood. Oh, help me thou!
Pray for me that I gain, on this our pilgrim way
Perfect abandonment that sweetest fruit of love.
Saint of my heart! Oh, soon, bring me to endless day;
Obtain that I may fly, with thee, to heaven above!

April 28, 1893

[Salvation]

Regnum Christi

Build Your Life on the Rock That Is Christ

| SPIRITUAL LIFE | SPIRITUALITY

Memorial of Saint Cecilia, virgin and martyr

Luke 19:41-44

As Jesus drew near Jerusalem, he saw the city and wept over it, saying, "If this day you only knew what makes for peace-- but now it is hidden from your eyes. For the days are coming upon you when your enemies will raise a palisade against you; they will encircle you and hem you in on all sides. They will smash you to the ground and your children within you, and they will not leave one stone upon another within you because you did not recognize the time of your visitation."

Introductory Prayer: Lord Jesus, many times I have overlooked your love in the circumstances of my life. I know you are always present, even if I don’t feel your love. This time of prayer is an opportunity to show you my love, and I truly desire to bring you consolation as you so often bring consolation to me.

Petition: Heavenly Father, help me to stand firm amidst the vicissitudes of life.

1. “As for Me and My Household, We Will Serve the Lord” (Joshua 24:15).

The beauty of this life is that it offers us so many options. We have all been given the grace of free will, and we can choose to do many things. We can choose where we would like to work, where we want to vacation, who our friends are, what we are going to do this very moment. But the most important choice we make in life is to decide whether to love and serve God or to deny him. God’s greatest, natural gift to us is free will, and with it we direct our own destiny. What a truly beautiful soul who chooses to spend his life serving God! Clearly opting for God and his ways gives direction to a person’s life and provides clarity in moments of darkness and trial.

2. The Time to Prepare for a Storm Is Now: The worst time to clean out the gutters is in the middle of a thunder storm. And that roof would have worked a lot better had it been fixed before a week of rain. The concept of being prepared is so hard for us human beings. Christ told his disciples, “Watch and pray, that you may not undergo the test” (Matthew 26:41). He was saying, “Be prepared. You never know when temptations or tough times are going to strike.”

3. Holding the Fort: The spiritual life is a lot like a castle. A castle has its strong points and its not-so-strong points. It has a moat, high stone walls and turrets, but it also has a gate made only of wood. Each of us has one or two things that can be likened to that wooden gate. We all have our weaknesses, but do we know what those weaknesses are? One of the keys to being able to resist sin is self-knowledge. If we know ourselves, we can avoid putting ourselves in compromising situations. We can use our strong points to fight the enemy and fortify those areas that are the weakest. In the end, the strongest weapon we have both to resist and to fight is our dependence on the Lord – our prayer and fidelity to his will!

Conversation with Christ: Jesus, I don’t want to base my life just on feelings and on what makes me happy. I want to live for you, to take a risk for you.

Resolution:I will start a constant prayer life by praying the Rosary every day this week.

[Salvation]

The Gift of Free Will

 

by Food For Thought on November 22, 2012 · 

Reading 1 Rv 5:1-10

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

Gospel Lk 19:41-44

The focus of today’s Gospel reading is on the gift of free will, which God has given us. It allows us to choose how we spend our life on earth and in eternity. We see Jesus weeping over Jerusalem. He knows the destruction that will come to the city because its people will choose their own greed and pride over the message of salvation which he has come to deliver. Their lack of faith will mean devastation, but Jesus cannot stop it. He must allow them to make the choice and then, live with the consequences.

These are harsh lessons. Yet they relate to many of the choices we must make every day in our own lives. We may not be asked to defy the government, but we may be challenged to defy popular culture or our friends or our boss in order to follow what God has commanded. How
closely do we count the loss when we need to make such a choice? How well do we identify the consequences, in terms of our eternal life, when deciding what is important to us?

Some people turn against God when God does not intervene to solve their problems or grant their desires or when the correct choice carries with it a serious consequence which is not to their liking. We may read the story of the persecution and death of Jesus and say that we would have
been loyal to him to the end. Look back at the choices you have made in the past and see if any of them compromised God’s mission for the sake of social acceptance or to keep peace in your family or to satisfy a personal hunger of yours. God is a loving God, but he is not an easy God. He requires obedience and loyalty and gives us free will to obey or not to obey. The consequence then becomes our own doing.

Thanks be to God that our God is not a vengeful God. In Jesus Christ we have a Savior who weeps over our misfortunes and whose blood, given on the cross, purchases each and every one of us for God on the condition that we acknowledge our sinfulness and return to his loving embrace.

[Salvation]

One Bread, One Body

One Bread, One Body

 

<< Thursday, November 22, 2012 >>

St. Cecilia

Revelation 5:1-10
View Readings

Psalm 149:1-6, 9

Luke 19:41-44

"THE PATH TO PEACE" (Lk 19:42)

 

"You failed to recognize the time of your visitation." —Luke 19:44

 

King Jesus visited the people of Jerusalem. They refused to accept Him as King and wouldn't rest until He was nailed to a cross. Refusing to accept Jesus as King had disastrous consequences. They could have had peace (Lk 19:42). Instead, in 70 A.D., they were surrounded by their enemies, the Romans, and Jerusalem was completely destroyed (see Lk 19:43-44).

In today's psalm, the people do recognize the visitation of their King, the Messiah. "The children of Zion rejoice in their King" (Ps 149:2). They praise Him and dance in festive celebration (Ps 149:3). Instead of being surrounded by their enemies, they bind their enemies in chains, wiping them out (Ps 149:6-9).

Our enemy is Satan and his kingdom of darkness (Eph 6:12). He has surrounded us with his culture of death. He has wreaked havoc upon us, wiping out many millions of babies in the womb, inundating us with rampant perversion and impurity, eliminating prayer from schools, workplaces, and often churches, etc. The psalmist proclaims that victory over our wicked enemy lies in openly welcoming Jesus as King. Are we in this predicament because we have failed to recognize Jesus as our King?

In three days, the Church celebrates the great feast of Christ the King. In five weeks, we celebrate Jesus' Christmas coming. King Jesus is coming. What kind of reception will we give Him?

 

Prayer: Jesus, Lion of Judah, I ask You to roar through me.

Promise: "The Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has won the right by His victory to open the scroll." —Rv 5:5

Praise: St. Cecilia "kept the Gospel of Christ ever near her heart; day or night she never ceased praying and speaking with God."

[Salvation]

 

[campaignPete R-CT]

sally, they had a special tonite on JFK visit to Ireland in 1963