Posted on 07/05/2014 8:26:22 PM PDT by Salvation
Definitely watch that little video. Profound and childlike.
14th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Reading I: Zechariah 9:9-10 II: Romans 8:9,11-13
25 At that time Jesus declared, "I thank thee, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that thou hast hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to babes;
26 yea, Father, for such was thy gracious will.
27 All things have been delivered to me by my Father; and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and any one to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.
28 Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light."
Acceptance of Jesus' message depends upon the Father's revelation, but this is granted to those who are open to receive, and refused to the arrogant.
-- Saint Ambrose of Milan
Just A Minute (Listen) Some of EWTN's most popular hosts and guests in a collection of one minute inspirational messages. A different message each time you click. |
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The Angel of the Lord declared to Mary:
Behold the handmaid of the Lord: Be it done unto me according to Thy word.
And the Word was made Flesh: And dwelt among us.
Amen. |
Saint Maria Goretti, Virgin & Martyr
Optional Memorial
July 6th
St. Maria Goretti, drawing by Helen Hull Hitchcock
Collect:
O God, author of innocence and lover of chastity,
who bestowed the grace of martyrdom
on your handmaid, the Virgin Saint Maria Goretti, in her youth,
grant, we pray, through her intercession,
that, as you gave her a crown for her steadfastness,
so we, too, may be firm
in obeying your commandments.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. +Amen.
First Reading: 1 Corinthians 6:13c-15a, 17-20
"Food is meant for the stomach and the stomach for food"--and God will destroy both one and the other. The body is not meant for immorality, but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body. And God raised the Lord and will also raise us up by his power. Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? Shall I therefore take the members of Christ and make them members of a prostitute? Never!
But he who is united to the Lord becomes one spirit with him. Shun immorality. Every other sin which a man commits is outside the body; but the immoral man sins against his own body. Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, which you have from God? You are not your own; you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.
Gospel Reading: John 12:24-26
Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. He who loves his life loses it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. If any one serves Me, he must follow Me; and where I am, there shall My servant be also; if any one serves Me, the Father will honor him.
Read - Michaelmas 2002 winning essay, The Little Lily of Purity by Katherine Buckmaster.
JOHN PAUL II
ANGELUS
Sunday, 7 July 2002
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
1. Maria Goretti died 100 years ago, on 6 July 1902. She had been mortally injured the day before by the blind violence of her attacker. My Venerable Predecessor, the Servant of God Pius XII, canonized her in 1950, holding her up to everyone as a model of courageous fidelity to the Christian vocation, even to the supreme sacrifice of life.
I wanted to recall this important event with a special Message addressed to the Bishop of Albano, stressing the timeliness of this martyr of purity, whom I hope adolescents and young people will get to know better.
St Maria Goretti is an example for the new generations who are threatened by a non-commital attitude that finds it difficult to understand the importance of the values which admit of no compromise.
2. Although she was poor and deprived of a school education, Maria, who was not yet 12 years old had a strong and mature personality, shaped by the religious instruction she had received in the family. This made her capable not only of defending herself with heroic chastity, but even of forgiving her murderer.
Her martyrdom reminds us that the human being is not fulfilled by following the impulses of pleasure but by living life with love and responsibility.
I well know, dear young people, how sensitive you are to these ideals. As I look forward to meeting you in Toronto in two weeks time, I would like to repeat to you today: do not let the consumer culture and pleasure numb your conscience! Be alert and vigilant "watchmen", be the real champions of a new humanity.
3. Let us now address Our Lady, whose name was given to St Maria Goretti. May the purest of human creatures help the men and women of our time, and especially young people, to rediscover the value of chastity and to live interpersonal relations in reciprocal respect and sincere love.
http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/john_paul_ii/angelus/2002/documents/hf_jp-ii_ang_20020707_en.html
[Saint] Maria Goretti
A Saint to Emulate [St. Maria Goretti]
St. Maria Teresa Goretti
[Saint] Maria Goretti - Virgin and Martyr
Saint Maria Goretti - Martyr of Purity
Feast Day: July 6
Born: October 16, 1890(1890-10-16), Corinaldo, Province of Ancona, Marche, Kingdom of Italy
Died: July 6, 1902 (aged 11), Nettuno, Province of Rome, Lazio, Kingdom of Italy
Canonized: June 24, 1950, Rome by Pope Pius XII
Major Shrine: Nettuno, Province of Rome, Lazio, Italy
Patron of: Crime victims, teenage girls, modern youth, Children of Mary
St. Maria Goretti
Feast Day: July 06
Born: 1890 :: Died: 1902
Maria was born at Corinaldo, Ancona in Italy into a poor but loving home and was one of six children. She was baptized the day after she was born. Her father Luigi Goretti was a farmer. Her mother Assunta, was a poor orphan girl who did not know how to read or write. Luigi and Assunta loved God, Mother Mary and each other.
Their oldest child, a boy died when he was just a baby. Although they were very poor, and life was difficult, Luigi and Assunta thanked God for His great gifts. Assunta lovingly taught her children about God’s great love, by her words and actions.
The children had no toys, so a rock or an apple was used as a ball to play with. Maria never had a single doll and they could not afford to go to school, but they were a very happy family that lived in the light of God’s grace.
When Maria was six, she played like other children, running through the grass, picking flowers, laughing and smiling. But instead of playing with her friends, Maria played more often with her younger brothers and sister, and kept them happy so they would not trouble their mother.
Then the family moved to the Pontine Marshes where Luigi, along with his partner Mr. Serenelli and his sixteen year old son Allessandro (Alexander), lived together on Conte Mazzoleni’s farm as tenant farmers.
By the time she was nine, Maria did the family marketing. She always did her errands quickly and returned home where she was needed. She was a friendly girl and everyone loved her. A cheerful grocer Giovanni, gave Maria an apple one day, after she had finished paying for her groceries. But Maria did not eat it.
Instead, she thanked Giovanni and put it in her pocket saying that her brother Allesandrino loved apples. Then he gave her a cookie, which again she put in her pocket saying that she would give it to her little sister Ersilia. Giovanni finally gave her another cookie and said he would be very hurt if she didn’t eat it herself. So Maria not wanting to offend him, ate it.
A short time later, Mr. Luigi fell very ill and died, leaving Assunta to bring up her five children alone. At twelve, Maria was already very pretty. She helped her mother on the farm, in the house and with the care of the other children. She never complained because they were so poor. In fact, she cheered up her poor mother and was a great comfort to her.
She went to Mass every day even though it meant a two-hour walk. Maria received the sacrament of Reconciliation as often as she could. When she came home, she taught the children their prayers and told them Bible stories. Alexander who often joined the family for the rosary slowly began to notice how pretty Maria was.
He tried a few times to touch her and make Maria sin. She absolutely refused and did her best to avoid him. July 5, 1902, was a hot summer day. Maria was alone in the cottage mending clothes while her mother worked on the farm and Mr. Serenelli slept under a tree.
Alexander asked Maria to come to him, and when she refused, he dragged her into a room. Maria begged him not to touch her, repeating over and over that God did not want this, it was a sin and he would go to hell. When she struggled and tried to scream, he stuffed a handkerchief into her mouth and angrily stabbed her many times with a dagger and then ran away.
When they found her, Maria was quickly taken to a hospital but she died about twenty-four hours later. During her last hours she received Jesus in Holy Communion with great joy. She then told the priest that she forgave Alexander with all her heart, for the love of Jesus and hoped God would forgive him too.
Her only worry was for her mother. Alexander was sent to prison for thirty years. For a long time, he did not feel sorry for what he had done. Then one night Maria appeared to him in a dream, walking in a garden and offering him a bunch of Lilies. She said, she hoped he would come to heaven one day. From that moment on, he was a changed man.
He wrote a letter to the bishop, begging God’s forgiveness for the great sin he had committed. When he was freed from prison after twenty-seven years, his first visit was to the Goretti home where he asked Maria's mother for forgiveness. Then Alexander spent the rest of his life as the gardener in a nearby monastery.
On April 27, 1947, Pope Pius XII appeared on the balcony of St. Peter's Basilica with Maria's eighty-two-year-old mother, Assunta and declared Maria “blessed”.
Three years later, in a grand ceremony that had to be held outside the Basilica because the crowds were so huge, Maria was declared a saint. It was the only time that a parent was present to witness their child's cannonization. The pope called her "a martyr of holy purity."
Reflection: We pray today for all children, that with courage they may stay away from sin and avoid hurting Jesus, who loves them so much. We ask St. Maria Goretti, to help them stay pure and holy.
Matthew | |||
English: Douay-Rheims | Latin: Vulgata Clementina | Greek NT: Byzantine/Majority Text (2000) | |
Matthew 11 |
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25. | At that time Jesus answered and said: I confess to thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them to the little ones. | In illo tempore respondens Jesus dixit : Confiteor tibi, Pater, Domine cæli et terræ, quia abscondisti hæc a sapientibus, et prudentibus, et revelasti ea parvulis. | εν εκεινω τω καιρω αποκριθεις ο ιησους ειπεν εξομολογουμαι σοι πατερ κυριε του ουρανου και της γης οτι απεκρυψας ταυτα απο σοφων και συνετων και απεκαλυψας αυτα νηπιοις |
26. | Yea, Father; for so hath it seemed good in thy sight. | Ita Pater : quoniam sic fuit placitum ante te. | ναι ο πατηρ οτι ουτως εγενετο ευδοκια εμπροσθεν σου |
27. | All things are delivered to me by my Father. And no one knoweth the Son, but the Father: neither doth any one know the Father, but the Son, and he to whom it shall please the Son to reveal him. | Omnia mihi tradita sunt a Patre meo. Et nemo novit Filium, nisi Pater : neque Patrem quis novit, nisi Filius, et cui voluerit Filius revelare. | παντα μοι παρεδοθη υπο του πατρος μου και ουδεις επιγινωσκει τον υιον ει μη ο πατηρ ουδε τον πατερα τις επιγινωσκει ει μη ο υιος και ω εαν βουληται ο υιος αποκαλυψαι |
28. | Come to me, all you that labour, and are burdened, and I will refresh you. | Venite ad me omnes qui laboratis, et onerati estis, et ego reficiam vos. | δευτε προς με παντες οι κοπιωντες και πεφορτισμενοι καγω αναπαυσω υμας |
29. | Take up my yoke upon you, and learn of me, because I am meek, and humble of heart: and you shall find rest to your souls. | Tollite jugum meum super vos, et discite a me, quia mitis sum, et humilis corde : et invenietis requiem animabus vestris. | αρατε τον ζυγον μου εφ υμας και μαθετε απ εμου οτι πραος ειμι και ταπεινος τη καρδια και ευρησετε αναπαυσιν ταις ψυχαις υμων |
30. | For my yoke is sweet and my burden light. | Jugum enim meum suave est, et onus meum leve. | ο γαρ ζυγος μου χρηστος και το φορτιον μου ελαφρον εστιν |
Sunday, July 6
Liturgical Color: Green
Today is optional memorial of St. Bruno,
priest. He founded the Carthusian Order
in 1084. He and his companions led
austere lives dedicated to prayer, poverty
and manual labor.
Day 205 - What is a sin in the first place? // How can we distinguish mortal sins from venial sins?
What is a sin in the first place?
A sin is a word, deed, or intention by which man deliberately and voluntarily offends against the true order of things, as God's loving providence has arranged them.
To sin means more than to violate some rules about which men have agreed. Sin turns freely and deliberately against God's love and ignores him. Sin is ultimately "love of oneself even to contempt of God" (St. Augustine), and in the extreme case the sinful creature says, "I want to be like God" (Gen 3:5). Just as sin burdens me with guilt, wounds me, and by its consequences ruins me, so too it poisons and damages the world in which I live. It becomes possible to recognize sin and its seriousness by drawing near to God.
How can we distinguish serious sins (mortal sins) from less serious (venial) sins?
Serious sin destroys the divine power of love in a person's heart, without which there can be no eternal beatitude. Hence it is also called mortal sin. Serious sin breaks with God, whereas venial sin only strains the relationship with him.
A serious sin cuts a person off from God. One requirement for such a sin is that it be opposed to an important value, for instance, directed against life or God (for example, murder, blasphemy, adultery, and so on) and that it be committed with full knowledge and full consent. Venial sins are opposed to secondary values (honor, truth, property, and so on) or are committed without full knowledge of their seriousness or without full consent of the will. Such sins disrupt the relationship with God but do not sever it. (YOUCAT questions 315-316)
Dig Deeper: CCC section (1849-1861) and other references here.
Part 3: Life in Christ (1691 - 2557)
Section 1: Man's Vocation Life in the Spirit (1699 - 2051)
Chapter 1: The Dignity of the Human Person (1700 - 1876)
Article 8: Sin (1846 - 1876)
II. THE DEFINITION OF SIN ⇡
Sin is an offense against reason, truth, and right conscience; it is failure in genuine love for God and neighbor caused by a perverse attachment to certain goods. It wounds the nature of man and injures human solidarity. It has been defined as "an utterance, a deed, or a desire contrary to the eternal law."121
121.
St. Augustine, Contra Faustum 22:PL 42,418; St. Thomas Aquinas, STh I-II,71,6.
Sin is an offense against God: "Against you, you alone, have I sinned, and done that which is evil in your sight."122 Sin sets itself against God's love for us and turns our hearts away from it. Like the first sin, it is disobedience, a revolt against God through the will to become "like gods,"123 knowing and determining good and evil. Sin is thus "love of oneself even to contempt of God."124 In this proud self-exaltation, sin is diametrically opposed to the obedience of Jesus, which achieves our salvation.125
122.
123.
124.
St. Augustine, De civ. Dei 14,28:PL 41,436.
125.
Cf. Phil 2:6-9.
It is precisely in the Passion, when the mercy of Christ is about to vanquish it, that sin most clearly manifests its violence and its many forms: unbelief, murderous hatred, shunning and mockery by the leaders and the people, Pilate's cowardice and the cruelty of the soldiers, Judas' betrayal so bitter to Jesus, Peter's denial and the disciples' flight. However, at the very hour of darkness, the hour of the prince of this world,126 the sacrifice of Christ secretly becomes the source from which the forgiveness of our sins will pour forth inexhaustibly.
126.
Cf. Jn 14:30.
III. THE DIFFERENT KINDS OF SINS ⇡
There are a great many kinds of sins. Scripture provides several lists of them. The Letter to the Galatians contrasts the works of the flesh with the fruit of the Spirit: "Now the works of the flesh are plain: fornication, impurity, licentiousness, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, anger, selfishness, dissension, factions, envy, drunkenness, carousing, and the like. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things shall not inherit the Kingdom of God."127
127.
Gal 5:19-21; cf. Rom 1:28-32; 1 Cor 9-10; Eph 5:3-5; Col 3:5-8; 1 Tim 1:9-10; 2 Tim 3:2-5.
Sins can be distinguished according to their objects, as can every human act; or according to the virtues they oppose, by excess or defect; or according to the commandments they violate. They can also be classed according to whether they concern God, neighbor, or oneself; they can be divided into spiritual and carnal sins, or again as sins in thought, word, deed, or omission. The root of sin is in the heart of man, in his free will, according to the teaching of the Lord: "For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, fornication, theft, false witness, slander. These are what defile a man."128 But in the heart also resides charity, the source of the good and pure works, which sin wounds.
128.
IV. THE GRAVITY OF SIN: MORTAL AND VENIAL SIN ⇡
Sins are rightly evaluated according to their gravity. The distinction between mortal and venial sin, already evident in Scripture,129 became part of the tradition of the Church. It is corroborated by human experience.
129.
Cf. 1 Jn 5:16-17.
Mortal sin destroys charity in the heart of man by a grave violation of God's law; it turns man away from God, who is his ultimate end and his beatitude, by preferring an inferior good to him.
Venial sin allows charity to subsist, even though it offends and wounds it.
Mortal sin, by attacking the vital principle within us that is, charity necessitates a new initiative of God's mercy and a conversion of heart which is normally accomplished within the setting of the sacrament of reconciliation: When the will sets itself upon something that is of its nature incompatible with the charity that orients man toward his ultimate end, then the sin is mortal by its very object ... whether it contradicts the love of God, such as blasphemy or perjury, or the love of neighbor, such as homicide or adultery. ... But when the sinner's will is set upon something that of its nature involves a disorder, but is not opposed to the love of God and neighbor, such as thoughtless chatter or immoderate laughter and the like, such sins are venial.130
130.
St. Thomas Aquinas, STh I-II,88,2, corp. art.
For a sin to be mortal, three conditions must together be met: "Mortal sin is sin whose object is grave matter and which is also committed with full knowledge and deliberate consent."131
131.
RP 17 § 12.
Grave matter is specified by the Ten Commandments, corresponding to the answer of Jesus to the rich young man: "Do not kill, Do not commit adultery, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Do not defraud, Honor your father and your mother."132 The gravity of sins is more or less great: murder is graver than theft. One must also take into account who is wronged: violence against parents is in itself graver than violence against a stranger.
132.
Mortal sin requires full knowledge and complete consent. It presupposes knowledge of the sinful character of the act, of its opposition to God's law. It also implies a consent sufficiently deliberate to be a personal choice. Feigned ignorance and hardness of heart133 do not diminish, but rather increase, the voluntary character of a sin.
133.
Cf. Mk 3:5-6; Lk 16:19-31.
Unintentional ignorance can diminish or even remove the imputability of a grave offense. But no one is deemed to be ignorant of the principles of the moral law, which are written in the conscience of every man. The promptings of feelings and passions can also diminish the voluntary and free character of the offense, as can external pressures or pathological disorders. Sin committed through malice, by deliberate choice of evil, is the gravest.
Mortal sin is a radical possibility of human freedom, as is love itself. It results in the loss of charity and the privation of sanctifying grace, that is, of the state of grace. If it is not redeemed by repentance and God's forgiveness, it causes exclusion from Christ's kingdom and the eternal death of hell, for our freedom has the power to make choices for ever, with no turning back. However, although we can judge that an act is in itself a grave offense, we must entrust judgment of persons to the justice and mercy of God.
Daily Readings for:July 06, 2014
(Readings on USCCB website)
Collect: O God, who in the abasement of your Son have raised up a fallen world, fill your faithful with holy joy, for on those you have rescued from slavery to sin you bestow eternal gladness. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
RECIPES
ACTIVITIES
o Your Child's Spiritual Training
PRAYERS
o Prayer for Vocations to the Priesthood and Religious Life
o Book of Blessings: Blessing Before and After Meals: Ordinary Time (2nd Plan)
· Ordinary Time: July 6th
· Fourteenth Sunday of Ordinary Time
Old Calendar: Fourth Sunday after Pentecost
"I give praise to you, Father, Lord of Heaven and earth, for although you have hidden these things from the wise and the learned you have revealed them to little ones. Yes, Father, such has been your gracious will. All things have been handed over to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son wishes to reveal him" (Matt 11:25-27).
Click here for commentary on the readings in the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite.
The Optional Memorial of St. Maria Goretti, virgin and martyr, is superseded by the Sunday liturgy.
Sunday Readings
The first reading is taken from the Book of the Prophet Zechariah 9:9-10 and indicates that the humility asked for by Jesus is the kind that he himself endured, for he came in meekness and without pageantry, yet his dominion would be to the ends of the earth. The example of the humble servant is the very person of Jesus himself who invites us in the second part of the gospel to come to Him for refreshment and rest. — A Celebrants Guide to the New Sacramentary - A Cycle by Kevin W. Irwin
The second reading is from the Letter of St. Paul to the Romans 8:9, 11-13 and contains one of the most important yet often misunderstood themes of St. Paul. The hellenistic dichotomy between the lower and higher nature is not found here, for flesh and spirit mean the whole man and the whole man stands in need of redemption by Christ. The Pauline teaching is not that part of man is redeemed and part of him is damnable. Rather man's whole personality is redeemed by the sacrifice of Christ. The vocation of the Christian, both "body" and "soul," is to conform his already redeemed person to the same Spirit he has already received at baptism. — A Celebrants Guide to the New Sacramentary - A Cycle by Kevin W. Irwin
The Gospel is from St. Matthew 11:25-30. Pagans and Jews had the same hardships of life to face as we have, and even greater ones. They earned their daily bread with the sweat of brow and body. Their illnesses were more frequent and less bearable than ours, for they had not the medical helps that we have. Death came to young and old then as it does now, but for them it was a final parting from loved ones, and no hope of a future happy meeting served to lighten their sorrow. All their crosses were crushing weights, sent to make life more miserable. Life on earth was passed in gloom and darkness and there was no shining star in the heavens to beckon them on or give them hope.
Surely God is good to us, to put us into this world at this day and age, and give us the light of faith, and the knowledge of God and of His loving plans for us, which make the burdens of this life so relatively light and even so reasonable for us. We still have to earn our bread. We still have sickness and pains. We still have death stalking the earth, but unlike the people before Christ we now see a meaning to all these trials.
The yoke of Christ is not really a yoke but a bond of love, which joins us to Him, and through Him, to our loving Father in heaven. The rule of life which He asks us to keep, if we are loyal followers of His, is not a series of prohibitions and don'ts. It is rather a succession of sign-posts on the straight road to heaven, making our journey easier and safer. He does ask us to carry our cross daily, that is, to bear the burden of each day's duty, but once the cross is grasped firmly and lovingly it ceases to be a burden.
Ours is a world which is in an all-out search for new idols. It is a world which has left the path marked out by Christ, and forgotten or tried to forget, that man's life does not end with death. To be a Christian and to have the light of faith to guide our steps in this neo-pagan darkness, is surely a gift, and a blessing from God, for which we can never thank Him enough. Thank you, God, for this gift. Please give us the grace and the courage to live up to it and to die in the certainty that we shall hear, as we shut our eyes on the light of this world, the consoling words, "come you blessed of my Father, possess the kingdom prepared for you."
Excerpted from The Sunday Readings by Fr. Kevin O'Sullivan, O.F.M.
14th Sunday in Ordinary Time
You have revealed them to the childlike. (Matthew 11:25)
Life is an adventure for little children. If you give them a present, they might play with the wrapping paper or the box it came in as much as the gift itself. Give a young boy a small fire engine, and he’ll imagine himself putting out a giant fire. Give a young girl a doll, and she’ll treat it as her own child. Children are also curious and imaginative, capable of intently focusing on the task at hand—especially when it comes to playtime!
Children have a tendency to keep things simple. They trust their parents. They believe everything their parents tell them. By contrast, we adults ask far too many questions. We like to think things through, weighing the pros and cons and examining every angle. While that’s usually a good thing, too much examination can make it hard for us to be trusting. This is especially true when it comes to faith. That’s why Jesus encourages us to be “childlike” (Matthew 11:25).
Following Jesus is an adventure. It’s about delving into the heart and mind of God. It’s about, as St. Ignatius of Loyola used to say, using our imagination to picture ourselves in biblical times, watching Jesus multiply the loaves and fishes or journeying to the Promised Land with the children of Abraham. It’s about being like an inquisitive child during story time: “Why did the food multiply? How can Jesus be everywhere at the same time? What does an angel look like?”
Whether you are at Mass, at prayer, or just talking to Jesus in the midst of your day, don’t settle for the same old routine. Discipleship should be an adventure, so go ahead and ask him to open your eyes and give you new insights into his stories and his love for you.
One more thing: children love a good hug. So today, imagine Jesus putting his arms around you and drawing you close to his heart. Hear him telling you how precious you are to him. Dare to be a child again.
“Here I am, Jesus, ready for a new adventure with you today.”
Zechariah 9:9-10; Psalm 145:1-2, 8-11, 13-14; Romans 8:9, 11-13
(Zechariah 9:9-10; Psalm 145:1-2,8-11,13-14; Romans 8:9,11-13; Matthew 11:25-30)
1. In the first reading, we see the contrast between the Savior who is “meek” and his powerful impact on bringing “peace to the nations.” Can you share an example from your own life where you succeeded by meekness instead of power?
2. In the first reading, the Lord also tells us to “Rejoice heartily” and to “shout for joy.” In the responsorial psalm, the psalmist tells us to praise, extol, and bless the Lord. What are some things the Lord has done in your life that would cause you to do this?
3. In the responsorial psalm, we also read of the Lord who is “gracious and merciful, slow to anger and of great kindness”. With whom might the Lord be asking you to respond in this matter this week?
4. In the letter to the Romans, St. Paul asks us to “put to death the deeds of the body.” You can do this because, “You are not in the flesh; on the contrary you are in the spirit, if only the Spirit of God dwells in you” (Romans 8:9). In your life, what “deeds of the body” do you need “to put to death”? How do you think the Lord wants you to do it?
5. In the Gospel, Jesus says that when it comes to revelation, his Father has “hidden these things from the wise and learned,” but he has “revealed them to little ones.” What specifically can you do this week to better hear from the Lord in prayer, through Scriptures, or at Mass?
6. Jesus also says in the Gospel that he will make the Father known to us. In light of the following words of Jesus, “Whoever has seen me has seen the Father” (John 14:9), what do you think the Father is like?
7. The meditation ends with these words: “Dare to be a child again.” What do these words mean to you regarding your relationship with your heavenly Father and Jesus?
8. Take some time now to pray that you would experience a new zeal, and a new sense of expectancy, for what Jesus wants to do in your life. Use the prayer at the end of the meditation as the starting point.
MY YOKE IS EASY AND MY BURDEN IS LIGHT [2]
(A biblical reflection on the 14th Ordinary Sunday, 6 July 2014)
Gospel Reading: Matthew 11:25-30
First Reading: Zechariah 9:9-10; Psalms: Psalm 145:1-2,8-11,13-14, Second Reading: Romans 8:9,11-13
The Scripture Text
At that time Jesus declared, I thank Thee, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that Thou hast hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to babes; yea, Father, for such was Thy gracious will. All things have been delivered to Me by My Father; and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and any one to whom the Son chooses to reveal Him. Come to Me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you, and learn from Me; for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy, and My burden is light. (Matthew 11:25-30 RSV)
It may seem hard to imagine that Jesus was a childlike as He encouraged His disciples to be but He was. We must remember that being childlike does not mean being childish. It means being completely dependent on ones parents as completely as Jesus depended on His Father.
Consider the brief prayer Jesus offered before He raised Lazarus from the dead. Standing outside the tomb, He simply said, Father I thank You for having heard Me. I knew that You always hear Me. Then He called out to Lazarus, and Lazarus returned to life (John 11:41-44). Consider also Jesus agonized prayer in Gethsemane just before He was arrested. Although His suffering was so great that His sweat became like great drops of blood He prayed the simplest and humblest of all prayers: Father not My will but Yours be done (Luke 22:39-44).
In each case, the message is simple: Trust in God today just as Jesus did and He will work more powerfully than You can imagine. It begins with humility. As we abandon all the grown-up ways of thinking we have taken on, our minds will be transformed and renewed by the peace and presence of God.
It is indeed through faith that we are justified before God, but it is in putting our faith into practice that we learn what it means to be children of God. To live every day in a way that pleases God is not always easy, but it is essential if we want to come to know God as our Father. Jesus knew the battle before Him every day was not easy, but He also knew that His Fathers love for Him was even stronger. Just as Jesus was strengthened every day as He turned to the Father in trust, we too will find Gods strength as we come to Him with childlike simplicity.
Prayer: Lord Jesus, Your yoke is easy and Your burden is light. Empower me today with Your Holy Spirit. May the Spirit who dwells in You dwell also in me, and lead me to love and trust the Father as You did. Amen.
Daily Marriage Tip for July 6, 2014:
I give praise to you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, for although you have hidden these things from the wise and the learned you have revealed them to the childlike. (Mt 11:25) We are called to praise God in all that we do, but that can be hard in our busy lives. Reflect on [
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Opening Prayer First Reading: Psalm: Second Reading: Romans 8:9,11-13
QUESTIONS:
Catechism of the Catholic Church: §§ 2603, 544, 2785, 151, 459
Every Christian should make Christ present among men. He ought to act in such a way that those who know Him sense `the aroma of Christ' (cf. 2 Corinthians 2:15). Men should be able to recognize the Master in His disciples. --St Josemaria Escriva
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