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Catholic Caucus: Daily Mass Readings, 05-27-17, OM, St. Augustine of Canterbury, Bishop
USCCB.org/RNAB ^ | 05-27-17 | Revised New American Bible

Posted on 05/26/2017 8:38:12 PM PDT by Salvation

May 27, 2017

Saturday of the Sixth Week of Easter

Reading 1 Acts 18:23-28

After staying in Antioch some time,
Paul left and traveled in orderly sequence
through the Galatian country and Phrygia,
bringing strength to all the disciples.

A Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria,
an eloquent speaker, arrived in Ephesus.
He was an authority on the Scriptures.
He had been instructed in the Way of the Lord and,
with ardent spirit, spoke and taught accurately about Jesus,
although he knew only the baptism of John.
He began to speak boldly in the synagogue;
but when Priscilla and Aquila heard him,
they took him aside
and explained to him the Way of God more accurately.
And when he wanted to cross to Achaia,
the brothers encouraged him
and wrote to the disciples there to welcome him.
After his arrival he gave great assistance
to those who had come to believe through grace.
He vigorously refuted the Jews in public,
establishing from the Scriptures that the Christ is Jesus.

Responsorial Psalm Ps 47:2-3, 8-9, 10

R. (8a) God is king of all the earth.
or:
R. Alleluia.
All you peoples, clap your hands;
shout to God with cries of gladness.
For the LORD, the Most High, the awesome,
is the great king over all the earth.
R. God is king of all the earth.
or:
R. Alleluia.
For king of all the earth is God;
sing hymns of praise.
God reigns over the nations,
God sits upon his holy throne.
R. God is king of all the earth.
or:
R. Alleluia.
The princes of the peoples are gathered together
with the people of the God of Abraham.
For God's are the guardians of the earth;
he is supreme.
R. God is king of all the earth.
or:
R. Alleluia.

Alleluia Jn 16:28

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
I came from the Father and have come into the world;
now I am leaving the world and going back to the Father.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel Jn 16:23b-28

Jesus said to his disciples:
"Amen, amen, I say to you,
whatever you ask the Father in my name he will give you.
Until now you have not asked anything in my name;
ask and you will receive, so that your joy may be complete.

"I have told you this in figures of speech.
The hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figures
but I will tell you clearly about the Father.
On that day you will ask in my name,
and I do not tell you that I will ask the Father for you.
For the Father himself loves you, because you have loved me
and have come to believe that I came from God.
I came from the Father and have come into the world.
Now I am leaving the world and going back to the Father."



TOPICS: Catholic; General Discusssion; Prayer; Worship
KEYWORDS: catholic; easter; jh16; prayer; saints
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To: All
Regina Coeli 

Queen of Heaven, rejoice, alleluia. / For He whom you did merit to bear, alleluia.

Has risen, as he said, alleluia. / Pray for us to God, alleluia.

Rejoice and be glad, O Virgin Mary, alleluia. / For the Lord has truly risen, alleluia.

Let us pray. O God, who gave joy to the world through the resurrection of Thy Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, grant we beseech Thee, that through the intercession of the Virgin Mary, His Mother, we may obtain the joys of everlasting life. Through the same Christ our Lord. Amen.


21 posted on 05/26/2017 9:06:54 PM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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To: Salvation
John
  English: Douay-Rheims Latin: Vulgata Clementina Greek NT: Byzantine/Majority Text (2000)
  John 16
23 And in that day you shall not ask me any thing. Amen, amen I say to you: if you ask the Father any thing in my name, he will give it you. Et in illo die me non rogabitis quidquam. Amen, amen dico vobis : si quid petieritis Patrem in nomine meo, dabit vobis. και εν εκεινη τη ημερα εμε ουκ ερωτησετε ουδεν αμην αμην λεγω υμιν οτι οσα αν αιτησητε τον πατερα εν τω ονοματι μου δωσει υμιν
24 Hitherto you have not asked any thing in my name. Ask, and you shall receive; that your joy may be full. Usque modo non petistis quidquam in nomine meo : petite, et accipietis, ut gaudium vestrum sit plenum. εως αρτι ουκ ητησατε ουδεν εν τω ονοματι μου αιτειτε και ληψεσθε ινα η χαρα υμων η πεπληρωμενη
25 These things I have spoken to you in proverbs. The hour cometh, when I will no more speak to you in proverbs, but will shew you plainly of the Father. Hæc in proverbiis locutus sum vobis. Venit hora cum jam non in proverbiis loquar vobis, sed palam de Patre annuntiabo vobis : ταυτα εν παροιμιαις λελαληκα υμιν αλλ ερχεται ωρα οτε ουκετι εν παροιμιαις λαλησω υμιν αλλα παρρησια περι του πατρος αναγγελω υμιν
26 In that day you shall ask in my name; and I say not to you, that I will ask the Father for you: in illo die in nomine meo petetis : et non dico vobis quia ego rogabo Patrem de vobis : εν εκεινη τη ημερα εν τω ονοματι μου αιτησεσθε και ου λεγω υμιν οτι εγω ερωτησω τον πατερα περι υμων
27 For the Father himself loveth you, because you have loved me, and have believed that I came out from God. ipse enim Pater amat vos, quia vos me amastis, et credidistis, quia ego a Deo exivi. αυτος γαρ ο πατηρ φιλει υμας οτι υμεις εμε πεφιληκατε και πεπιστευκατε οτι εγω παρα του θεου εξηλθον
28 I came forth from the Father, and am come into the world: again I leave the world, and I go to the Father. Exivi a Patre, et veni in mundum : iterum relinquo mundum, et vado ad Patrem. εξηλθον παρα του πατρος και εληλυθα εις τον κοσμον παλιν αφιημι τον κοσμον και πορευομαι προς τον πατερα

22 posted on 05/27/2017 11:06:06 AM PDT by annalex (fear them not)
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To: annalex
23. And in that day you shall ask me nothing. Verily, verily, I say to you, Whatsoever you shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you.
24. Hitherto have you asked nothing in my name; ask, and you shall receive, that your joy may be full.
25. These things have I spoken to you in proverbs; but the time comes, when I shall no more speak to you in proverbs, but I shall show you plainly of the Father.
26. At that day you shall ask in my name; and I say not to you, that I will pray the Father for you:
27. For the Father himself loves you, because you have loved me, and have believed that I came out from God.
28. I came forth from the Father, and am come into the world: again, I leave the world, and go to the Father.

CHRYS, Again our Lord shows that it is expedient that He should go: And in that day shall you ask Me nothing.

AUG. The word ask here means not only to seek for, but to ask a question: the Greek word from which it is translated has both meanings.

CHRYS. He says, And in that day, i.e. when I shall have risen again, you shall ask Me nothing, i.e. not say to Me, Show us the Father, and, Where do You go? since you will know this by the teaching of the Holy Ghost; or, you shall ask Me nothing, i.e. not want Me for a Mediator to obtain your requests, as My name will be enough, if you only call upon that: Verily, verily, I say to you, whatsoever you shall ask the Father in My Name, He will give it you. Wherein He shows His power; that neither seen, or asked, but named only to the Father, He will do miracles.

Do not think then, He said, that because for the future I shall not be with you, that you are therefore forsaken; for My name will be a still greater protection to you than My presence: Hitherto have you asked nothing in My Name; ask, and you shall receive, that your joy may be full.

THEOPHYL. I or when your prayers shall be fully answered, then will your gladness be greatest.

CHRYS. These words being obscure, He adds, These things have I spoken to you in proverbs, but the time comes when l shall no more speak to you in proverbs; for forty days He talked with them as they were assembled, speaking of the kingdom of God. And now, He says, you are in too great fear to attend to My words, but then, when you see Me risen again, you will be able to proclaim these things openly.

THEOPHYL. He still cheers them with the promise that help will be given them from above in their temptations: At that day you shall ask in My Name. And you will be so in favor with the Father, that you will no longer need my intervention: And I say not to you that I will pray the Father for you, for the Father Himself loves you. But that they might not start back from our Lord, as though they were no longer in need of Him, He adds, Because you have loved Me: as if to say, The Father loves you, because you have loved Me; when therefore you fall from My love, you will straightway fall from the Father's love.

AUG. But does He love us because we love Him; or rather do not we love Him, because He loved us; This is what the Evangelist says, Let us love God, because God first loved us (1 Jn 4:19). The Father then loves us, because we love the Son, it being from the Father and the Son, that we receive the love from the Father and the Son. He loves what He has made; but He would not make in us what He loved, except He loved us in the first place.

HILARY. Perfect faith in the Son, which believes and loves what has come forth from God, and deserves to be heard and loved for its own sake, this faith confessing the Son of God, born from Him, and sent by Him, needs not an intercessor with the Father; wherefore it follows, And have believed that I came forth from God.

His nativity and advent are signified by, I came forth from the Father, and am come into the world. The one is dispensation, the other nature. To have come from the Father, and to have come forth from God, have not the same meaning; because it is one thing to have come forth from God in the relation of Sonship, another thing to have come from the Father into this world to accomplish the mystery of our salvation. Since to come forth from God is to subsist as His Son, what else can He be but God.

CHRYS. As it was consolatory to them to hear of His resurrection, and how He came from God, and went to God, He dwells again and again on these subjects: Again, I leave the world, and go to the Father. The one was a proof that their faith in Him was not vain: the other that they would still be under His protection.

AUG. He came forth from the Father, because He is of the Father; He came into the world, because He showed Himself in the body to the world. He left the world by His departure in the body, and went to the Father by the ascension of His humanity, nor yet in respect of the government of His presence, left the world; just as when He went forth from the Father and came into the world, He did so in such wise as not to leave the Father. But our Lord Jesus Christ, we read, was asked questions, and petitioned after His resurrection; for when about to ascend to Heaven He was asked by His disciples when He would restore the kingdom to Israel; when in Heaven He was asked by Stephen, to receive his spirit.

And who would dare to say that as mortal He might be asked, as immortal He might not? I think then that when He says, In that day you shall ask Me nothing, He refers not to the time of His resurrection, but to that time when we shall see Him as He is: which vision is not of this present life, but of the life everlasting, when we shall ask for nothing, ask no questions, because there will remain nothing to be desired, nothing to be learnt.

ALCUIN. This is His meaning then: In the world to come, you shall ask me nothing: but in the mean time while you are traveling on this wearisome road, ask what you want of the Father, and He will give it you: Verily, verily, I say to you, Whatsoever you shall ask the Father in My Name, He will give it you.

AUG. The word whatsoever must not be understood to mean anything, but something which with reference to obtaining the life of blessedness is not nothing. That is not sought in the Savior's name, which is sought to the hindering of our salvation; for by in My name must be understood not the mere sound of the letters or syllables, but that which is rightly and truly signified by that sound. He who holds any notion concerning Christ, which should not be held of the only Son of God, does not ask in His name.

But he who thinks rightly of Him, asks in His name, and receives what he asks, if it be not against his eternal salvation; he receives when it is right he should receive; for some things are only denied at present in order to be granted at a more suitable time. Again, the words, He will give it you, only comprehend those benefits which properly appertain to the persons who ask.

All saints are heard for themselves, but not for all; for it is not will give simply, but will give you; what follows, Hitherto have you asked nothing in My name, may be understood in two ways: either that they had not asked in His name, because they had not known it as it ought to be known; or, you have asked nothing, because with reference to obtaining the thing you ought to ask for, what you have asked for is to be counted nothing.

That therefore they may ask in His name not for what is nothing, but for the fullness of joy, He adds, Ask and you shall receive, that your joy may be full. This full joy is not carnal, but spiritual joy; and it will be full, when it is so great that nothing can be added to it.

AUG. And this is that full joy, than which nothing can be greater, viz. to enjoy God, the Trinity, in the image of Whom we are made.

AUG, Whatsoever then is asked, which appertains to the getting this joy, this must be asked in the name of Christ. For His saints that persevere in asking for it, He will never in His divine mercy disappoint. But whatever is asked beside this is nothing, i.e. not absolutely nothing, but nothing in comparison with so great a thing as this. It follows: These things have I spoken to you in proverbs; but the time comes when I shall no more speak to you in proverbs, but I shall show you plainly of the Father.

The hour of which He speaks may be understood of the future life, when we shall see Him, as the Apostle said, face to face, and, These things have I spoken to you in proverbs, of that which the Apostle said, Now we see as in a glass darkly (1 Cor 13:12). But I will show you that the Father shall be seen through the Son; For no man knows the Father save the Son, and he to whom the Son shall reveal Him (Matt 11:17).

GREG. When He declares that He will show them plainly of the Father, He alludes to the manifestation about to take place of His own majesty which would troth show His own equality With the Father and the procession of the coeternal Spirit from both.

AUG. But this sense seems to be interfered with by what follows: At that day you shall ask in My name. What shall we have to ask for in a future life, when all our desires shall be satisfied; Asking implies the want of something. It remains then that we understand the words of Jesus going to make His disciples spiritual, from being carnal and natural beings.

The natural man so understands whatever he hears of God in a bodily sense, as being unable to conceive any other. Wherefore whatever Wisdom said of the incorporeal, immutable substance are proverbs to him, not that he accounts them proverbs but understands them as if they were proverbs. But when, become spiritual, he has begun to discern all things, though in this life he see but in a glass and in part, yet does he perceive, not by bodily sense, not by idea of the imagination, but by most sure intelligence of the mind, perceive and hold that God is not body, but spirit; the Son shows so plainly of the Father, that He who shows is seen to be of the same nature with Him who is shown.

Then they who ask, ask in His name, because by the sound of that name they understand nothing but the thing itself which is expressed by that name. These are able to think that our Lord Jesus Christ, in so far as He is man, intercedes with the Father for us' in so far as He is God, hears us together with the Father: which I think is His meaning when He says, And I say not to you that I will pray the Father for you. To understand this, viz. how that the Son does not ask the Father, but Father and Son together hear those who ask, is beyond the reach of any but the spiritual vision.

Catena Aurea John 16
23 posted on 05/27/2017 11:07:34 AM PDT by annalex (fear them not)
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To: annalex


Ascension

Crete, 15 Century

24 posted on 05/27/2017 11:12:59 AM PDT by annalex (fear them not)
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To: All
Saint Augustine of Canterbury

Fr. Don Miller, OFM

 Stained glass of <em>Apostle to the English</em> | photo by Lawrence, OPImage: Stained glass of Apostle to the English | photo by Lawrence, OP

Saint Augustine of Canterbury

Saint of the Day for May 27

(? – May 26, 605)

 

Saint Augustine of Canterbury’s Story

In the year 596, some 40 monks set out from Rome to evangelize the Anglo-Saxons in England. Leading the group was Augustine, the prior of their monastery. Hardly had he and his men reached Gaul when they heard stories of the ferocity of the Anglo-Saxons and of the treacherous waters of the English Channel. Augustine returned to Rome and to Gregory the Great—the pope who had sent them—only to be assured by him that their fears were groundless.

Augustine set out again. This time the group crossed the English Channel and landed in the territory of Kent, ruled by King Ethelbert, a pagan married to a Christian, Bertha. Ethelbert received them kindly, set up a residence for them in Canterbury and within the year, on Pentecost Sunday 597, was himself baptized. After being consecrated a bishop in France, Augustine returned to Canterbury, where he founded his see. He constructed a church and monastery near where the present cathedral, begun in 1070, now stands. As the faith spread, additional sees were established at London and Rochester.

Work was sometimes slow and Augustine did not always meet with success. Attempts to reconcile the Anglo-Saxon Christians with the original Briton Christians–who had been driven into western England by Anglo-Saxon invaders–ended in dismal failure. Augustine failed to convince the Britons to give up certain Celtic customs at variance with Rome and to forget their bitterness, helping him evangelize their Anglo-Saxon conquerors.

Laboring patiently, Augustine wisely heeded the missionary principles—quite enlightened for the times—suggested by Pope Gregory: purify rather than destroy pagan temples and customs; let pagan rites and festivals be transformed into Christian feasts; retain local customs as far as possible. The limited success Augustine achieved in England before his death in 605, a short eight years after his arrival, would eventually bear fruit long after in the conversion of England. Augustine of Canterbury can truly be called the “Apostle of England.”


Reflection

Augustine of Canterbury comes across today as a very human saint, one who could suffer like many of us from a failure of nerve. For example, his first venture to England ended in a big U-turn back to Rome. He made mistakes and met failure in his peacemaking attempts with the Briton Christians. He often wrote to Rome for decisions on matters he could have decided on his own had he been more self-assured. He even received mild warnings against pride from Pope Gregory, who cautioned him to “fear lest, amidst the wonders that are done, the weak mind be puffed up by self-esteem.” Augustine’s perseverance amidst obstacles and only partial success teaches today’s apostles and pioneers to struggle on despite frustrations and be satisfied with gradual advances.


Saint Augustine of Canterbury is the Patron Saint of:

England


25 posted on 05/27/2017 1:53:27 PM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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To: All
St Augustine of Canterbury: a ‘Celtic’ Perspective
ST. AUGUSTINE OF CANTERBURY CONFESSOR, APOSTLE OF THE ENGLISH 605 [Feast: May 27/28]
St.Augustine of Canterbury
26 posted on 05/27/2017 1:55:21 PM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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To: All
Information: St. Augustine of Canterbury

Feast Day: May 27

Born: early 6th century, Rome, Italy

Died: 26 May 604, Canterbury, Kent, England

Patron of: England

27 posted on 05/27/2017 2:07:14 PM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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To: All

St. Augustine of Canterbury

Feast Day: May 27
Died: 605

St. Augustine was born in Rome, Italy. When he grew up, he became a monk. Years later he was made the abbot of St. Andrew's monastery in Rome. Pope St. Gregory the Great chose him and forty other monks for a mission dear to his heart. They were to preach the Gospel or the Good News of Jesus to the people of England.

Abbot Augustine and the monks started on their journey for the British Isles. When they reached southern France, people warned them that the Celts in England were fierce. The monks felt discouraged and frightened.

They asked Augustine to go and ask the pope's permission to give up the whole idea. He did, but the pope would not change his mind. He said that the people in England wanted to accept the Christian faith. The monks went to England. They arrived in 596.

The missionaries were well received by King Ethelbert, whose wife was a Christian princess from France. When they landed, the monks formed a procession and walked along singing psalms. They carried a cross and a picture of our Lord. Many people received the monks' message. King Ethelbert himself was baptized on Pentecost, 597. Abbot Augustine became a bishop that same year.

St. Augustine often wrote asking the pope for advice. And Pope St. Gregory gave him much holy advice, too. Speaking about the many miracles St. Augustine worked, the pope said: "You must rejoice with fear and fear with joy for that gift." He meant that Augustine should be happy that through the miracles the English were being converted. But he should be careful not to become proud because the miracles were worked by God through him.

He worked to make peace between the Celtic churches and the Church of Rome. It was there that he was buried. At Canterbury, St. Augustine built a church and a monastery, which became the most important in England. St. Augustine died seven years after his arrival in England, on May 26, 605.


28 posted on 05/27/2017 2:08:59 PM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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To: All
CATHOLIC ALMANAC

Saturday, May 27

Liturgical Color: White

Today is the optional memorial
of St. Augustine of Canterbury,
bishop. He was known as the
Apostle to the English. In 597
A.D., he led 40 missionaries to
England. St. Augustine
converted the king and then
most of the country.

29 posted on 05/27/2017 2:17:07 PM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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To: All
Catholic Culture

Easter: May 27th

Optional Memorial of St. Augustine of Canterbury, bishop

MASS READINGS

May 27, 2017 (Readings on USCCB website)

COLLECT PRAYER

O God, who by the preaching of the Bishop Saint Augustine of Canterbury led the English peoples to the Gospel, grant, we pray, that the fruits of his labors may remain ever abundant in your Church. 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.

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Recipes (1)

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Activities (3)

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Prayers (11)


30 posted on 05/27/2017 2:35:22 PM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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To: All
The Word Among Us

Meditation: Acts 18:23-28

Saint Augustine of Canterbury, Bishop (Optional Memorial)

After staying in Antioch some time, Paul left and traveled. (Acts 18:23)

Paul’s experience in today’s first reading reminds us of one practical way that God can fill us: through our brothers and sisters in Christ.

Nothing is more refreshing than coming home! Our strength and joy are renewed, and we are filled up and ready to get back out into the world.

You can imagine how Paul must have felt when he returned to Antioch at the end of a long missionary journey. This bustling city had been home base for him for a number of years, and he surely felt comfortable in the familiar surroundings and among the friends he had made there. It appears that he even refused an invitation to stay longer in Ephesus so that he could get back home (Acts 18:20-21)!

Isn’t that encouraging? Even the zealous apostle Paul needed to “come home” from time to time. Perhaps he was weary from his travels and worn out from preaching the gospel. Perhaps he wanted to refocus himself in a familiar place so that he could continue to be effective as an evangelist. Or perhaps he just wanted some time with his spiritual family. Surely being among them reminded him of God’s faithfulness and encouraged him not to give up when he faced persecution.

Whatever else Paul experienced, he clearly felt encouraged because when he set off again, he was able to bring “strength to all the disciples” (Acts 18:23).

This sounds a lot like the way our friends in Christ can refresh us. When you’re feeling discouraged, a brother or sister can pray with you. When your spiritual gas tank needs filling, your spouse might care for the children so that you can spend time in Eucharistic adoration. Being at Mass with your fellow parishioners can fill you with grace for the coming week.

God wants to fill you today. He wants to refresh you so that you can strengthen other people. So don’t hesitate to “come home” when you need to. Let God minister to you as he did for Paul in Antioch.

“Fill me today, Lord. Refresh me so that I can strengthen your people.”

Psalm 47:2-3, 8-10
John 16:23-28

31 posted on 05/27/2017 2:42:43 PM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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To: All
Marriage = One Man and One Woman Until Death Do Us Part

Daily Marriage Tip for May 27, 2017:

Whose fault was your last fight? Maybe it clearly was one of you, but more often it’s a combination of misunderstanding, forgetting to do something, and spouses having different expectations. To resolve an argument, look at what you contributed more than what your spouse did wrong.

32 posted on 05/27/2017 2:44:28 PM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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To: Salvation

Thank you, Salvation.


33 posted on 05/27/2017 2:48:41 PM PDT by trisham (Zen is not easy. It takes effort to attain nothingness. And then what do you have? Bupkis.)
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To: trisham

Most welcome, dear trisham.


34 posted on 05/27/2017 5:43:46 PM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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To: All
Regnum Christi

May 27, 2017 – Confidence in the Father’s Love

Saturday of the Sixth Week of Easter

Father John Doyle, LC

John 16:23b-28

Jesus said to his disciples: “Amen, amen, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in my name he will give you. Until now you have not asked anything in my name; ask and you will receive, so that your joy may be complete. I have told you this in figures of speech. The hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figures but I will tell you clearly about the Father. On that day you will ask in my name, and I do not tell you that I will ask the Father for you. For the Father himself loves you, because you have loved me and have come to believe that I came from God. I came from the Father and have come into the world. Now I am leaving the world and going back to the Father.”

Introductory Prayer: Lord, as I begin this prayer I offer you my whole self: my thoughts, desires, decisions, actions, hopes, fears, weaknesses, failures and petty successes. I open my entire being to you, aware that you know everything already. I’m certain of your mercy and of the purifying power of your penetrating, loving gaze.

Petition: Father, help me to confide in you.

1. Ask and You Shall Receive: As a child I was often bashful to the extreme when dealing with strangers. I remember once my dad asked me to leave a food package at the rectory office as a contribution to the parish food drive for the poor. I was scared stiff. Finally after I got up the courage, I rang the doorbell, dropped the box and ran. At times we can feel the same apprehension and uncertainty before prayer. We are not sure if God will take kindly to “being disturbed” in his care for the universe to listen to our request. Ultimately, we need to remember how much God likes to be asked and to trust that, if what we are asking for is for our good or that of another, God will certainly grant it.

2. God’s Self-Revelation: Language is a vehicle of communication, and like every means of expressing ideas, it is limited. Speech, however, is really pushed to its limits when it tries to express realities about which humans have no clear conceptualizations. God’s power, his awesome majesty and his very being are far beyond our limited scope of comprehension. Jesus, as true God and true man, becomes the bridge between our human language and God, whom he knows intimately. Jesus uses the most adequate expressions possible for God –– such as Father ––, but he also reminds us that he is speaking in figures. One day he promises to tell us clearly and even introduce us to him. Is this my greatest hope? Would I be ready right now to be introduced to God the Father?

3. “The Father Himself Loves You” – Our Holy Father, Pope-Emeritus Benedict XVI, reminds us of the Father’s love: “True, no one has ever seen God as he is. And yet God is not totally invisible to us; he does not remain completely inaccessible. God loved us first, says the Letter of St John, and this love of God has appeared in our midst. He has become visible in as much as he ‘has sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him’ (1 John 4:9). God has made himself visible: in Jesus we are able to see the Father (cf. John 14:9). Indeed, God is visible in a number of ways. In the love-story recounted by the Bible, he comes towards us, he seeks to win our hearts, all the way to the Last Supper, to the piercing of his heart on the cross, to his appearances after the Resurrection and to the great deeds by which, through the activity of the apostles, he guided the nascent Church along its path” (Encyclical Letter Deus Caritas Est [God Is Love], December 25, 2005).

Conversation with Christ: Jesus, you have revealed the immense love the Father has for all people by the ultimate self-giving of your life. Help me never to doubt your love for me. Help me to respond to your love though fidelity to your will and the practice of exquisite charity.

Resolution: I will say a decade of the rosary for missionaries who are preaching God’s love to others.

35 posted on 05/27/2017 5:50:18 PM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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One Bread, One Body

One Bread, One Body

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All Issues > Volume 33, Issue 3

<< Saturday, May 27, 2017 >> St. Augustine of Canterbury
Pentecost Novena - Day 2

 
Acts 18:23-28
View Readings
Psalm 47:2-3, 8-10 John 16:23-28
Similar Reflections
 

HE'LL COME IF YOU'LL GO

 
"When Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him home and explained to him God's new way in greater detail." —Acts 18:26
 

On this second day of the Pentecost novena, we must think not only of praying the novena but also giving it. We need to take someone home and explain "to him God's new way in greater detail" (Acts 18:26). As we give, we "shall receive, and more besides" (Mk 4:24). At the first Christian Pentecost, one-hundred and twenty disciples of Jesus received the Holy Spirit at 9 o'clock in the morning. Then they shared the Holy Spirit with three-thousand other people who were baptized that day (Acts 2:41).

Mary received the Holy Spirit and conceived Jesus. "Thereupon Mary set out, proceeding in haste into the hill country," where she brought Jesus and the Holy Spirit to Elizabeth and her baby (Lk 1:39ff). The Holy Spirit is "given to those that obey" the Lord by sharing the Holy Spirit (see Acts 5:32). Thus, Pentecost by definition should not be in the singular. Pentecost results in another Pentecost, leading to Pentecosts after Pentecosts.

Are you docile to the Holy Spirit? You are willing to receive the Holy Spirit only if you are willing to do anything necessary to share the Spirit. Only if we are willing to go can we truly ask the Holy Spirit to come. Will you pray: "Come, Holy Spirit?"

 
Prayer: Father, give me zeal to light a fire on the earth (Lk 12:49).
Promise: "I give you My assurance, whatever you ask the Father, He will give you in My name." —Jn 16:23
Praise: St. Augustine watered the seed of faith in England after Queen Bertha of Kent planted it.

36 posted on 05/27/2017 6:35:55 PM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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37 posted on 05/27/2017 6:42:31 PM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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