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Catholic Caucus: Daily Mass Readings, 08-18-17
USCCB.org/RNAB ^ | 08-18-17 | Revised New American Bible

Posted on 08/17/2017 8:08:05 PM PDT by Salvation

August 18, 2017

Friday of the Nineteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading 1 Jos 24:1-13

Joshua gathered together all the tribes of Israel at Shechem,
summoning their elders, their leaders,
their judges and their officers.
When they stood in ranks before God, Joshua addressed all the people:
"Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel:
In times past your fathers, down to Terah,
father of Abraham and Nahor,
dwelt beyond the River and served other gods.
But I brought your father Abraham from the region beyond the River
and led him through the entire land of Canaan.
I made his descendants numerous, and gave him Isaac.
To Isaac I gave Jacob and Esau.
To Esau I assigned the mountain region of Seir in which to settle,
while Jacob and his children went down to Egypt.

"Then I sent Moses and Aaron, and smote Egypt with the prodigies
which I wrought in her midst.
Afterward I led you out of Egypt, and when you reached the sea,
the Egyptians pursued your fathers to the Red Sea
with chariots and horsemen.
Because they cried out to the LORD,
he put darkness between your people and the Egyptians,
upon whom he brought the sea so that it engulfed them.
After you witnessed what I did to Egypt,
and dwelt a long time in the desert,
I brought you into the land of the Amorites
who lived east of the Jordan.
They fought against you, but I delivered them into your power.
You took possession of their land, and I destroyed them,
the two kings of the Amorites, before you.
Then Balak, son of Zippor, king of Moab,
prepared to war against Israel.
He summoned Balaam, son of Beor, to curse you;
but I would not listen to Balaam.
On the contrary, he had to bless you, and I saved you from him.
Once you crossed the Jordan and came to Jericho,
the men of Jericho fought against you,
but I delivered them also into your power.
And I sent the hornets ahead of you that drove them
(the Amorites, Perizzites, Canaanites,
Hittites, Girgashites, Hivites and Jebusites)
out of your way; it was not your sword or your bow.

"I gave you a land that you had not tilled
and cities that you had not built, to dwell in;
you have eaten of vineyards and olive groves
which you did not plant."

Responsorial Psalm Ps 136:1-3, 16-18, 21-22 and 24

R. His mercy endures forever.
Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good,
for his mercy endures forever;
Give thanks to the God of gods,
for his mercy endures forever;
Give thanks to the LORD of lords,
for his mercy endures forever.
R. His mercy endures forever.
Who led his people through the wilderness,
for his mercy endures forever;
Who smote great kings,
for his mercy endures forever;
And slew powerful kings,
for his mercy endures forever.
R. His mercy endures forever.
And made their land a heritage,
for his mercy endures forever;
The heritage of Israel his servant,
for his mercy endures forever;
And freed us from our foes,
for his mercy endures forever.
R. His mercy endures forever.

Alleluia See 1 Thes 2:13

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Receive the word of God, not as the word of men,
but, as it truly is, the word of God.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel Mt 19:3-12

Some Pharisees approached Jesus, and tested him, saying,
"Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any cause whatever?"
He said in reply, "Have you not read that from the beginning
the Creator made them male and female and said,
For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother
and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh
?
So they are no longer two, but one flesh.
Therefore, what God has joined together, man must not separate."
They said to him, "Then why did Moses command
that the man give the woman a bill of divorce and dismiss her?"
He said to them, "Because of the hardness of your hearts
Moses allowed you to divorce your wives,
but from the beginning it was not so.
I say to you, whoever divorces his wife
(unless the marriage is unlawful)
and marries another commits adultery."
His disciples said to him,
"If that is the case of a man with his wife,
it is better not to marry."
He answered, "Not all can accept this word,
but only those to whom that is granted.
Some are incapable of marriage because they were born so;
some, because they were made so by others;
some, because they have renounced marriage
for the sake of the Kingdom of heaven.
Whoever can accept this ought to accept it."



TOPICS: Catholic; General Discusssion; Prayer; Worship
KEYWORDS: catholic; mt19; ordinarytime; prayer
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The Angelus 

The Angel of the Lord declared to Mary: 
And she conceived of the Holy Spirit. 

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee; blessed art thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of
our death. Amen. 

Behold the handmaid of the Lord: Be it done unto me according to Thy word. 

Hail Mary . . . 

And the Word was made Flesh: And dwelt among us. 

Hail Mary . . . 


Pray for us, O Holy Mother of God, that we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ. 

Let us pray: 

Pour forth, we beseech Thee, O Lord, Thy grace into our hearts; that we, to whom the incarnation of Christ, Thy Son, was made known by the message of an angel, may by His Passion and Cross be brought to the glory of His Resurrection, through the same Christ Our Lord.

Amen. 


"Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you" (Lk 1:28) 

 "Blessed are you among women,
 and blessed is the fruit of your womb"
(Lk 1:42). 


21 posted on 08/17/2017 8:53:13 PM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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To: Salvation
Matthew
  English: Douay-Rheims Latin: Vulgata Clementina Greek NT: Byzantine/Majority Text (2000)
  Matthew 19
3 And there came to him the Pharisees tempting him, and saying: Is it lawful for a man to put away his wife for every cause? Et accesserunt ad eum pharisæi tentantes eum, et dicentes : Si licet homini dimittere uxorem suam, quacumque ex causa ? και προσηλθον αυτω οι φαρισαιοι πειραζοντες αυτον και λεγοντες αυτω ει εξεστιν ανθρωπω απολυσαι την γυναικα αυτου κατα πασαν αιτιαν
4 Who answering, said to them: Have ye not read, that he who made man from the beginning, Made them male and female? And he said: Qui respondens, ait eis : Non legistis, quia qui fecit hominem ab initio, masculum et feminam fecit eos ? Et dixit : ο δε αποκριθεις ειπεν αυτοις ουκ ανεγνωτε οτι ο ποιησας απ αρχης αρσεν και θηλυ εποιησεν αυτους
5 For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife, and they two shall be in one flesh. Propter hoc dimittet homo patrem, et matrem, et adhærebit uxori suæ, et erunt duo in carne una. και ειπεν ενεκεν τουτου καταλειψει ανθρωπος τον πατερα [αυτου] και την μητερα και προσκολληθησεται τη γυναικι αυτου και εσονται οι δυο εις σαρκα μιαν
6 Therefore now they are not two, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let no man put asunder. Itaque jam non sunt duo, sed una caro. Quod ergo Deus conjunxit, homo non separet. ωστε ουκετι εισιν δυο αλλα σαρξ μια ο ουν ο θεος συνεζευξεν ανθρωπος μη χωριζετω
7 They say to him: Why then did Moses command to give a bill of divorce, and to put away? Dicunt illi : Quid ergo Moyses mandavit dare libellum repudii, et dimittere ? λεγουσιν αυτω τι ουν μωσης ενετειλατο δουναι βιβλιον αποστασιου και απολυσαι αυτην
8 He saith to them: Because Moses by reason of the hardness of your heart permitted you to put away your wives: but from the beginning it was not so. Ait illis : Quoniam Moyses ad duritiam cordis vestri permisit vobis dimittere uxores vestras : ab initio autem non fuit sic. λεγει αυτοις οτι μωσης προς την σκληροκαρδιαν υμων επετρεψεν υμιν απολυσαι τας γυναικας υμων απ αρχης δε ου γεγονεν ουτως
9 And I say to you, that whosoever shall put away his wife, except it be for fornication, and shall marry another, committeth adultery: and he that shall marry her that is put away, committeth adultery. Dico autem vobis, quia quicumque dimiserit uxorem suam, nisi ob fornicationem, et aliam duxerit, mœchatur : et qui dimissam duxerit, mœchatur. λεγω δε υμιν οτι ος αν απολυση την γυναικα αυτου μη επι πορνεια και γαμηση αλλην μοιχαται και ο απολελυμενην γαμησας μοιχαται
10 His disciples say unto him: If the case of a man with his wife be so, it is not expedient to marry. Dicunt ei discipuli ejus : Si ita est causa hominis cum uxore, non expedit nubere. λεγουσιν αυτω οι μαθηται αυτου ει ουτως εστιν η αιτια του ανθρωπου μετα της γυναικος ου συμφερει γαμησαι
11 Who said to them: All men take not this word, but they to whom it is given. Qui dixit illis : Non omnes capiunt verbum istud, sed quibus datum est. ο δε ειπεν αυτοις ου παντες χωρουσιν τον λογον τουτον αλλ οις δεδοται
12 For there are eunuchs, who were born so from their mother's womb: and there are eunuchs, who were made so by men: and there are eunuchs, who have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven. He that can take, let him take it. Sunt enim eunuchi, qui de matris utero sic nati sunt : et sunt eunuchi, qui facti sunt ab hominibus : et sunt eunuchi, qui seipsos castraverunt propter regnum cælorum. Qui potest capere capiat. εισιν γαρ ευνουχοι οιτινες εκ κοιλιας μητρος εγεννηθησαν ουτως και εισιν ευνουχοι οιτινες ευνουχισθησαν υπο των ανθρωπων και εισιν ευνουχοι οιτινες ευνουχισαν εαυτους δια την βασιλειαν των ουρανων ο δυναμενος χωρειν χωρειτω

22 posted on 08/18/2017 4:27:54 AM PDT by annalex (fear them not)
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To: annalex
3. The Pharisees also came to him, tempting him, and saying to him, Is it lawful for a man to put away his wife for every cause?
4. And he answered and said to them, Have you not read, that he which made them at the beginning made them male and female,
5. And said, For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife: and they two shall be one flesh?
6. Wherefore they are no more two, but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man put asunder.
7. They say to him, Why did Moses then command to give a writing of divorce, and to put her away?
8. He said to them, Moses because of the hardness of your hearts suffered you to put away your wives: but from the beginning it was not so.

CHRYS; For indeed Christ so healed men, as to do good both to themselves, and through them to many other. For these men's healing was to others the occasion of their knowledge of God; but not to the Pharisees, who were only hardened by the miracles; whence it follows; And the Pharisees came to him, tempting him, and saying, Is it lawful for a man to put away his wife for every cause?

JEROME; That they might have Him as it were between the horns of a syllogism, so that, whatever answer He should make, it would lie open to cavil. Should He allow a wife to be put away for any cause, and the marriage of another, he would seem to contradict Himself as a preacher of chastity. Should He answer that she may not be put away for any cause whatsoever, He will be judged to have spoken impiously, and to make against the teaching of Moses and of God.

CHRYS; Observe their wickedness even in the way of putting their question. The Lord had above disputed concerning this law, but they now ask Him as though He had spoken nothing thereof; supposing He had forgot what He had before delivered in this matter.

PSEUDO-CHRYS; But, as when you see one much pursuing the acquaintance of physicians, you know that he is sick, so, when you see either man or woman inquiring concerning divorce, know that that man is lustful and that woman unchaste. For chastity has pleasure in wedlock, but desire is tormented as though under a slavish bondage therein. And knowing that they had no sufficient cause to allege for their putting away their wives, save their own lewdness, they feigned many divers causes. They feared to ask Him for what cause, lest they should be tied down within the limits of fixed and certain causes; and therefore they asked if it were lawful for every cause; for they knew that appetite knows no limits, and cannot hold itself within the bounds of one marriage, but the more it is indulged the more it is kindled.

ORIGEN; Seeing the Lord thus tempted, let none of His disciples who is set to teach think it hard if he also be by some tempted. However, He replies to His tempters with the doctrines of piety.

JEROME; But He so frames His answer as to evade their snare. He brings in the testimony of Holy Writ, and the law of nature, and opposing God's first sentence to this second, He answered and said to them, Have you not read, that he which made them at the beginning made them male and female? This is written in the beginning of Genesis This teaches that second marriages are to be avoided, for He said not male and females, which was what was sought by the putting away of the first, but, male and female, implying only one tie of wedlock.

RABAN; For by the whole some design of God it was ordained that a man should have in the w omen a part of his own body, and should not look upon as separate from himself that which he knew was formed out of himself.

PSEUDO-CHRYS; If then God created the male and female out of one, to this end that they should be one, why then henceforth were not they born man and wife at one birth, as it is with certain insects? Because God created male and female for the continuance of the species, yet is He ever a lover of chastity, and promoter of continence. Therefore did He not follow this pattern in all kinds, to the end that, if any man choose to marry, he may know what is, according to the first disposition of the creation, the condition of man and wife; but if he choose not to marry, he shall not be under necessity to marry by the circumstances of his birth, lest he should by his continence be the destruction of the other who was not willing to be continent; for which same cause God forbids that after being joined in wedlock one should separate if the other be unwilling.

CHRYS. But not by the law of creation only, but also by the practice of the law, He shows that they ought to be joined one and one, and never put asunder; And he said, For this cause shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave to his wife.

JEROME; In like manner He says his wife, and not wives, and adds expressly, and they two shall be one flesh For it is the reward of marriage that one flesh, namely in the offspring, is made of two.

GLOSS; Or, one flesh, that is in carnal connection.

PSEUDO-CHRYS; If then because the wife is made of the man, and both one of one flesh, a man shall leave his father and his mother, then there should be yet greater affection between brothers and sisters, for these come of the same parents, but man and wife of different. But this is saying too much, because the ordinance of God is of more force than the law of nature. For God's precepts are not subject to the law of nature, but nature bends to the precepts of God. Also brethren are born of one, that they should seek out different roads; but the man and the wife are born of different persons, that they should coalesce in one. The order of nature also follows the appointment of God. For as is the sap in trees, so is affection in man. The sap ascends from the roots into the leaves, and passes forth into the seed. Therefore parents love their children, but are not so loved of them, for the desire of a man is not towards his parents, but towards the sons whom he has begot; and this is what is said, Therefore shall a man lease his father and his mother, and shall cleave to his wife.

CHRYS; See the wisdom of the Teacher. Being asked, Is it lawful, He said not straight, It is not lawful, lest they should be troubled, but establishes it through a proof. For God made them from the beginning male and female, and not merely joined them together, but bade them quit father and mother; and not bade the husband merely approach his wife, but be joined to her, showing by this manner of speaking the inseparable bond. He even added a still closer union, saying, And they two shall be one flesh.

AUG; Whereas Scripture witnesses that these words were said by the first man, and the Lord here declares that God spoke them, hence we should understand that by reason of the ecstasy which had passed upon Adam, he was enabled to speak this as a prophecy.

REMIG; The Apostle says that this is a mystery in Christ and the Church; for the Lord Jesus Christ left His Father when He came down from heaven to earth; and He left His mother, that is, the synagogue, because of its unbelief, and crave to His wife, that is, the Holy Church, and they two are one flesh, that is, Christ and the Church are one body.

CHRYS; When He had brought forward the words and facts of the old law, He then interprets it with authority, and lays down a law, saying, Therefore they are no more two, but one flesh. For as those who love one another spiritually are said to be one soul, And all they that believed had one heart and one soul, so husband and wife who love each other after the flesh, are said to be one flesh. And as it is a wretched thing to cut the flesh, so is it an unjust thing to put away a wife.

AUG; For they are called one, either from their union, or from the derivation of the woman, who was taken out of the side of the man.

CHRYS; He brings in God yet again, saying, What God has joined, let no man put asunder, showing that it is against both nature and God's law to put away a wife; against nature, because one flesh is therein divided; against law, because God has joined and forbidden to sunder them.

JEROME; God has joined by making man and woman one flesh; this then man may not put asunder, but God only. Man puts asunder, when from desire of a second wife the first is put away; God puts asunder, who also had joined, when by consent for the service of God we so have our wives as though we had them not.

AUG; Behold now out of the books of Moses it is proved to the Jews that a wife may not be put away. For they thought that they were doing according to the purport of Moses' law when they did put them away. This also we learn hence by the testimony of Christ Himself, that it was God who made it thus, and joined them male and female; which when the Manicheans deny, they are condemned, resisting the Gospel of Christ.

PSEUDO-CHRYS; This sentence of chastity seemed hard to these adulterers; but they could not make answer to the argument. However, they will not submit to the truth, but betake themselves for shelter to Moses, as men having a bad cause fly to some powerful personage, that where justice is not, his countenance may prevail; They say to him, Why did Moses then command to give a writing of divorcement, and to put her away?

JEROME; Here they reveal the cavil which they had prepared; but the Lord had not given sentence of Himself, but had recalled to their minds ancient history, and the commands of God.

CHRYS; Had the Lord been opposed to the Old Testament, He would not thus have contended in Moses' behalf, nor have gone about to show that what was his, was in agreement with the things of old. But the unspeakable wisdom of Christ made answer and excuse for these in this manner, He said to them, Moses for the hardness of your hearts suffered you to put away your wives. By this He clears Moses from their charge, and retorts it all upon their own head.

AUG; For how great was that hardness! When not even the intervention of a bill of divorce, which gave room for just and prudent men to endeavor to dissuade, could move them to renew the conjugal affection. And with what wit do the Manicheans blame Moses, as severing wedlock by a bill of divorce, and commend Christ as, on the contrary, confirming its force? Whereas according to their impious science they should have praised Moses for putting asunder what the devil had joined, and found fault with Christ who riveted the bonds of the devil.

CHRYS; At last, because what He had said was severe, He goes back to the old law, saying, From the beginning it was not so.

JEROME; What He says is to this purpose. Is it possible that God should so contradict Himself, as to command one thing at first, and after defeat His own ordinance by a new statute? Think not so; but, whereas Moses saw that through desire of second wives who should be richer, younger, or fairer, that the first were put to death, or treated ill, he chose rather to suffer separation, than the continuance of hatred and assassination. Observe moreover that He said not God suffered you, but, Moses; showing that it was, as the Apostle speaks, a counsel of man, not a command of God.

PSEUDO-CHRYS; Therefore said He well, Moses suffered, not commanded. For what we command, that we ever wish; but when we suffer, we yield against our will, because we have not the power to put full restraint upon the evil wills of men. He therefore suffered you to do evil that you might not do worse; thus in suffering this he was not enforcing the righteousness of God, but taking away its sinfulness from a sin; that while you did it according to His law, your sin should not appear sin.

9. And I say to you, Whosoever shall put away his wife, except it be for fornication, and shall marry another, commit adultery: and who marries her which is put away, does commit adultery.

CHRYS; Having stopped their mouths, He now set forth the Law with authority, saying, But I say to you, that whosoever shall put away his wife, except for fornication, and marries another, commits adultery.

ORIGEN; Perhaps some one will say, that Jesus in thus speaking, suffered wives to be put away for the same cause that Moses suffered them, which He says was for the hardness of the hearts of the Jews. Put to this it is to be answered, that if by the Law an adulteress is stoned, that sin is not to be understood as the shameful thing for which Moses suffers a writing of divorce; for in a cause of adultery it was not lawful to give a writing of divorce. But Moses perhaps calls every sin in a woman a shameful thing, which if it be found in her, a bill of divorce is written against her. But we should inquire, If it is lawful to put away a wife for the cause of fornication only, what is it if a woman be not an adulteress, but have done any other heinous crime; have been found a poisoner, or to have murdered her children? The Lord has explained this matter in another place, saying, who puts her away, except for the cause of fornication, makes her to commit adultery, giving her an opportunity of a second marriage.

JEROME; It is fornication alone which destroys the relationship of the wife; for when she has divided one flesh into two, and has separated herself by fornication from her husband, she is not to be retained, lest she should bring her husband also under the curse, which Scripture has spoken, He that keep an adulteress is a fool and wicked.

PSEUDO-CHRYS; For as he is cruel and unjust that puts away a chaste wife, so is he a fool and unjust that retains an unchaste; for in that he hides the guilt of his wife, he is an encourager of foulness.

AUG; For a reunion of the wedlock, even after actual commission of adultery, is neither shameful nor difficult, where there is an undoubted remission of sin through the keys of the kingdom of heaven; not that after being divorced from her husband an adulteress should be called back again, but that after her union with Christ she should no longer be called an adulteress.

PSEUDO-CHRYS; For every thing by whatever causes it is created, by the same is it destroyed. It is not matrimony but the will that makes the union; and therefore it is not a separation of bodies but a separation of wills that dissolves it. He then who puts away his wife and does not take another is still her husband; for though their bodies be not united, their wills are united. But when he takes another, then he manifestly puts his wife away; wherefore the Lord says not, Who puts away his wife, but, Who marries another, commits adultery.

RABAN; There is then but one carnal cause why a wife should be put away, that is, fornication; and but one spiritual, that is, the fear of God. But there is no cause why while she who has been put away is alive, another should be married.

JEROME; For it might be that a man might falsely charge an innocent wife, and for the sake of another woman might fasten an accusation upon her. Therefore it is commanded so to put away the first, that a second be not married while the first is yet alive. Also because it might happen that by the same law a wife would divorce her husband, it is also provided that she take not another husband; and because one who had become an adulteress would have no further fear of disgrace, it is commanded that she marry not another husband. But if she do marry another, she is in the guilt of adultery; wherefore it follows, And who marries her that is put away, commits adultery.

GLOSS; He says this to the terror of him that would take her to wife, for the adulteress would have no fear of disgrace.

10. His disciples say to him, If the case of the man be so with his wife, it is not good to marry.
11. But he said to them, All men cannot receive this saying, save they to whom it is given.
12. For there are some eunuchs, which were so born from their mother's womb: and there are some eunuchs, which were made eunuchs of men: and there be eunuchs, which have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's sake. He that is able to receive it, let him receive it.

JEROME; A wife is a grievous burden, if it is not permitted to put her away except for the cause of fornication. For what if she be a drunkard, an evil temper, or of evil habits, is she to be kept. The Apostles, perceiving this burden, express what they feel; His disciples say to him, If the case of the man be so with his wife, it is not good to marry.

CHRYS; For it is a lighter thing to contend with himself, and his own lust, than with an evil woman.

PSEUDO-CHRYS; And the Lord said not, It is good, but rather assented that it is not good. However, He considered the weakness of the flesh; But he said to them, All cannot receive this saying; that is, All are not able to do this.

JEROME; But let none think, that wherein He adds, save they to whom it its given, that either fate or fortune is implied, as though they were virgins only whom chance has led to such a fortune. For that is given to those who have sought it of God, who have longed for it, who have striven that they might obtain it.

PSEUDO-CHRYS; But all cannot obtain it because all do not desire to obtain it. The prize is before them; he who desires the honor will not consider the toil. None would ever vanquish, if all shunned the struggle. Because then some have fallen from their purpose of continence, we ought not therefore to faint from that virtue; for they that fall in the battle do not slay the rest. That He says therefore, Save they to whom it is given, shows that unless we receive the aid of grace, we have not strength. But this aid of grace is not denied to such as seek it, for the Lord says above, Ask, and you shall receive.

CHRYS; Then to show that this is possible, He says, For there are some eunuchs, which were made eunuchs of men; as much as to say, Consider, had you been so made of others, you would have lost the pleasure without gaining the reward.

PSEUDO-CHRYS; For as the deed without the will does not constitute a sin; so a righteous act is not in the deed unless the will go with it. That therefore is honorable continence, not which mutilation of body of necessity enforces, but which the will of holy purpose embraces.

JEROME; He speaks of three kinds of eunuchs, of whom two are carnal, and one spiritual. One, those who are so born of their mother's womb; another, those whom enemies or courtly luxury has made so; a third, those who have made themselves so for the kingdom of heaven, and who he might have been men, but become eunuchs for Christ. To them the reward is promised, for to the others whose continence was involuntary, nothing is due.

HILARY; The cause in one item he assigns nature; in the next violence, and in the last his own choice, in him, namely, that determined to be so from hope of the kingdom of heaven.

PSEUDO-CHRYS; For they are born such, just as others are born having six or four fingers. For if God according as He formed our bodies in the beginning, had continued the same order unchangeably, the working of God would have been brought into oblivion among men. The order of nature is therefore changed at times from its nature, that God the framer of nature may be had in remembrance.

JEROME; Or we may say otherwise. The eunuchs from their mothers' wombs are they whose nature is colder, and not prone to lust. And they that are made so of men are they whom physicians made so, or they whom worship of idols has made effeminate, or who from the influence of heretical teaching pretend to chastity, that they may thereupon claim truth for their tenets. But none of them obtain the kingdom of heaven, save he only who has become a eunuch for Christ's sake. Whence it follows, He that is able to receive it, let him receive it; let each calculate his own strength, whether he is able to fulfill the rules of virginity and abstinence. For in itself continence is sweet and alluring, but each man must consider his strength, that he only that is able may receive it. This is the voice of the Lord exhorting and encouraging on His soldiers to the reward of chastity, that he who can fight might fight and conquer and triumph.

CHRYS; When he says, Who have made themselves eunuchs. He does not mean cutting off of members, but a putting away of evil thoughts. For he that cuts off a limb is under a curse, for such an one undertakes the deeds of murderers, and opens a door to Manicheans who depreciate the creature, and cut off the same members as do the Gentiles. For to cut off members is of the temptation of demons. But by the means of which we have spoken desire is not diminished but made more urgent; for it has its source elsewhere, and chiefly in a weak purpose and an unguarded heart. For if the heart be well governed, there is no danger from the natural motions; nor does the amputation of a member bring such peacefulness and immunity from temptation as does a bridle upon the thoughts.

Catena Aurea Matthew 19
23 posted on 08/18/2017 4:28:34 AM PDT by annalex (fear them not)
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To: annalex


A Woman and a Kneeling Monk

Fra Carnevale

1440s
Pen, with brown and white wash, on reddish-coloured paper, 163 x 139 mm
Galleria degli Uffizi, Florence

24 posted on 08/18/2017 4:29:08 AM PDT by annalex (fear them not)
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To: All
Saint Louis of Toulouse

Fr. Don Miller, OFM

Saint Louis of Toulouse | unknownImage: Saint Louis of Toulouse | unknown

Saint Louis of Toulouse

Saint of the Day for August 18

(February 9, 1274 – August 19, 1297)

 

Saint Louis of Toulouse’s Story

When he died at the age of 23, Louis was already a Franciscan, a bishop and a saint!

Louis’s parents were Charles II of Naples and Sicily, and Mary, daughter of the King of Hungary. Louis was related to Saint Louis IX on his father’s side and to Elizabeth of Hungary on his mother’s side.

Louis showed early signs of attachment to prayer and to the corporal works of mercy. As a child he used to take food from the castle to feed the poor. When he was 14, Louis and two of his brothers were taken as hostages to the king of Aragon’s court as part of a political deal involving Louis’s father. At the court, Louis was tutored by Franciscan friars under whom he made great progress both in his studies and in the spiritual life. Like Saint Francis he developed a special love for those afflicted with leprosy.

While he was still a hostage, Louis decided to renounce his royal title and become a priest. When he was 20, he was allowed to leave the king of Aragon’s court. He renounced his title in favor of his brother Robert and was ordained the next year. Very shortly after, he was appointed bishop of Toulouse, but the pope agreed to Louis’s request to become a Franciscan first.

The Franciscan spirit pervaded Louis. “Jesus Christ is all my riches; he alone is sufficient for me,” Louis kept repeating. Even as a bishop he wore the Franciscan habit and sometimes begged. He assigned a friar to offer him correction—in public if necessary—and the friar did his job.

Louis’s service to the Diocese of Toulouse was richly blessed. In no time he was considered a saint. Louis set aside 75 percent of his income as bishop to feed the poor and maintain churches. Each day he fed 25 poor people at his table.

Louis was canonized in 1317 by Pope John XXII, one of his former teachers.


Reflection

When Cardinal Hugolino, the future Pope Gregory IX, suggested to Francis that some of the friars would make fine bishops, Francis protested that they might lose some of their humility and simplicity if appointed to those positions. Those two virtues are needed everywhere in the Church, and Louis shows us how they can be lived out by bishops.


The Liturgical Feast of Saint Louis of Toulouse is August 19.


25 posted on 08/18/2017 8:34:01 AM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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To: All
Information: St. Helena

Feast Day: August 18

Born: 248, Drepanum, Bithynia, Asia Minor

Died: 328, Constantinople, Roman

Major Shrine: The shrine to Saint Helena in St. Peter's Basilica

Patron of: archeologists, converts, difficult marriages, divorced people, empresses, Helena, the capital of Montana

26 posted on 08/18/2017 8:47:25 AM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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To: All

St. Jane Frances De Chantal

Feast Day: August 18
Born: 1572 :: Died: 1641

Jane was born in Dijon, in France. Her father who was a devout man brought up his children well after the death of his wife.

Jane, whom he dearly loved, married Christopher, the baron de Chantal. Jane and Christopher loved each other very much. God blessed them with six children, four of whom lived. Jane showed her love for God by loving her husband and children with her whole heart.

Then, suddenly, that happy home suddenly became sad. Baron Christopher was accidentally shot by a friend who had gone hunting with him. When he died, Jane was heart-broken. She forgave the man who had caused his death and even became his child's godmother.

St. Jane asked the Lord to send a holy priest into her life to guide her. In the meantime, she prayed and brought up her children in the love of God. She visited the poor and the sick and comforted the dying.

When she met St. Francis de Sales, she knew this was the holy man God had sent to guide her. We celebrate his feast on January 24.

Under his guidance, Jane and three other young women started the order of the Visitation. But first, she had to make sure that her children, although older, were settled.

Although she had other responsibilities and challenges, Jane tried to follow God's plan as she saw it, no matter how difficult. St. Jane faced all the difficulties with courage. She opened up many convents and prayed to God for help when she was tempted to do wrong.

St. Vincent de Paul, wrote "Despite all her suffering, her face never lost its peaceful look. And she was always faithful to God. So I consider her one of the holiest souls I have ever met." St. Jane died on December 13, 1641.


27 posted on 08/18/2017 8:55:54 AM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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CATHOLIC ALMANAC

Friday, August 18

Liturgical Color: Green

Today the Church honors St.
Helena, the mother of
Constantine. In 326 A.D., she
led a pilgrimage to the Holy
Land. While there, she located
Golgotha, the site of the
Crucifixion and found the True
Cross of Jesus Christ.

28 posted on 08/18/2017 4:50:41 PM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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To: All
Catholic Culture

Ordinary Time: August 18th

Friday of the Nineteenth Week of Ordinary Time

MASS READINGS

August 18, 2017 (Readings on USCCB website)

COLLECT PRAYER

Almighty ever-living God, whom, taught by the Holy Spirit, we dare to call our Father, bring, we pray, to perfection in our hearts the spirit of adoption as your sons and daughters, that we may merit to enter into the inheritance which you have promised. 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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» Enjoy our Liturgical Seasons series of e-books!

Old Calendar: St. Agapitus, martyr; St. Helena, widow

According to the 1962 Missal of St. John XXIII the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite, today is the feast of St. Agapitus, a martyr of Palestrina, not far from Rome. His cult, which is very ancient, was particularly popular in the eternal city where Felix III (492) caused a church to be built in his honor. Ancient inscriptions show clearly the great confidence placed in the intercession of this martyr. It is also the feast of St. Helena, empress and mother of Constantine the Great. She discovered the True Cross in a rock-cistern near Mt. Calvary.


St. Agapitus
The Office offers these legendary details: "Agapitus was only fifteen years old but already his heart was all aglow with the desire to die as a martyr. Upon orders from the Emperor Aurelian (ca. 257), he was mercilessly whipped with leaded scourges, then thrown into a vile basement to remain there four days without food. After further punishment under the lash, he was suspended head downwards over a smoldering fire so that he should die from the smoke; boiling water was dashed against him, and his jaws were battered. When wild beasts hesitated to harm him, he was beheaded with the sword."

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

Things to Do:


St. Helena
It was the pious boast of the city of Colchester, England, for many ages, that St. Helena was born within its walls; and though this honor has been disputed, it is certain that she was a British princess. She embraced Christianity late in life; but her incomparable faith and piety greatly influenced her son Constantine, the first Christian emperor, and served to kindle a holy zeal in the hearts of the Roman people. Forgetful of her high dignity, she delighted to assist at the Divine Office amid the poor; and by her alms-deeds showed herself a mother to the indigent and distressed.

In her eightieth year she made a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, with the ardent desire of discovering the cross on which our blessed Redeemer suffered. After many labors, three crosses were found on Mount Calvary, together with the nails and the inscription recorded by the Evangelists. It still remained to identify the true cross of Our Lord. By the advice of the bishop, Macarius, the three were applied successively to a woman afflicted with an incurable disease, and no sooner had the third touched her than she arose, perfectly healed. The pious empress, transported with joy, built a, most glorious church on Mount Calvary to receive the precious relic, sending portions of it to Rome and Constantinople, where they were solemnly exposed to the adoration of the faithful.

In the year 312 Constantine found himself attacked by Maxentius with vastly superior forces, and the very existence of his empire threatened. In this crisis he bethought him of the crucified Christian God Whom his mother Helena worshiped, and kneeling down, prayed God to reveal Himself and give him the victory. Suddenly, at noonday, a cross of fire was seen by his army in the calm and cloudless sky, and beneath it the words, In hoc signo vinces—"Through this sign thou shalt conquer." By divine command, Constantine made a standard like the cross he had seen, which was borne at the head of his troops; and under this Christian ensign they marched against the enemy, and obtained a complete victory. Shortly after, Helena herself returned to Rome, where she expired, 328.

Excerpted from Butler's Lives of the Saints

29 posted on 08/18/2017 5:03:24 PM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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To: All
The Word Among Us

Meditation: Matthew 19:3-12

19th Week in Ordinary Time

Not all can accept this word, but only those to whom that is granted. (Matthew 19:11)

“Is divorce ever permissible?” the Pharisees ask. Jesus reminds them that God intends for marriage to be not only permanent but transformative as well. Its goal, he answers, is that a man and a woman leave their individuality aside and come together to create a whole new unity, a family.

Hearing this exchange, his disciples offer an honest and understandable response: if it’s so hard, maybe it would be better not to marry at all. Jesus gazes at them with a sad smile. “Do you think it’s easier to make a permanent commitment to being single?” he asks. Not on your life! Neither is it easy to live single while remaining open to marriage.

The truth is, living any state of life as God intends takes commitment. Circumstances change, and we scramble to adjust. In one way or another, we all fall short of God’s ideal. We all fail God, our spouse, or our religious community from time to time. This doesn’t mean we chose the wrong vocation. It simply means that we have momentarily forgotten how much we need to depend on God’s abundant grace. Fidelity in marriage or singleness is only possible because God is faithful: faithful to guide us, faithful to sustain us, faithful to forgive us.

Look at the refrain for today’s Psalm: “His mercy endures forever.” God expresses it in many different ways at many different moments, but he is always faithful. His enduring mercy is the very thing we need in order to be faithful.

Spend some time today considering your vocation. Thank God for the call he has given you. Thank him too for being faithful to you as you strive to live out that call. Then ask him to show you one particular way to express your faithfulness today. Maybe it’s a little note of encouragement and love for your spouse. Maybe it’s a gesture of support to a priest or a sister religious who is going through a rough patch. Maybe God will show you something you are free to do because you haven’t arrived at a place of permanent commitment. Whatever it is, rejoice and do it!

“Father, you are always faithful. Thank you for inviting and enabling me to live out a noble heavenly vocation.”

Joshua 24:1-13
Psalm 136:1-3, 16-18, 21-22, 24

30 posted on 08/18/2017 5:16:41 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 August 18, 2017:

(Reader’s Tip) Start and end each day by thanking God for letting your spouse be in your life. Just a quick smile when they walk in the room tells them you care that they are near you.

31 posted on 08/18/2017 5:33:17 PM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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To: All
Regnum Christi

August 18, 2017 – From the Beginning It Was Not So…

Friday of the Nineteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Matthew 19:3-12

Some Pharisees approached Jesus, and tested him, saying, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any cause whatever?” He said in reply, “Have you not read that from the beginning the Creator made them male and female and said, For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh? So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore, what God has joined together, no human being must separate.” They said to him, “Then why did Moses command that the man give the woman a bill of divorce and dismiss her?” He said to them, “Because of the hardness of your hearts Moses allowed you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so. I say to you, whoever divorces his wife (unless the marriage is unlawful) and marries another commits adultery.” His disciples said to him, “If that is the case of a man with his wife, it is better not to marry.” He answered, “Not all can accept this word, but only those to whom that is granted. Some are incapable of marriage because they were born so; some, because they were made so by others; some, because they have renounced marriage for the sake of the Kingdom of heaven. Whoever can accept this ought to accept it.”

Introductory Prayer: Lord God, I believe in your presence here with me as I begin this moment of prayer. I hope in you. I know that you will always take care of me. I want this time with you to be a sign of my love for you. I seek only to please you, without desiring any spiritual consolation for myself.

Petition: Lord God, fill me with your grace so I can meet your lofty expectations.

1. Hardness of Their Hearts: The Pharisees heard Jesus’ teaching against divorce at the Sermon on the Mount, a teaching which contradicted the practice of the Jews. And so they sought to trap him in this instance into putting his teaching in opposition to Moses. They were hoping to discredit him. But Jesus knew their twisted intentions and grounded his teaching on God’s original plan for man and woman. He knows that they were looking to get around the will of God and carve exceptions. Jesus felt no need to pander to the crowd or offer an easier way out when challenged. His focus was on what God intended. Even today he challenges everyone to respond.

2. A New Law: Jesus’ teaching seems so counter-cultural, no less today than in his own time. How can he be so bold and ask for so much, since we still labor under the same sin, imperfection and hardness of heart as the people of Moses’ time and his time? The key is that Jesus does not simply add new laws; he brings the grace to be able to live as God intended “from the beginning,” that is, before sin entered the world. Christ can ask more of us because he himself brings the grace for us to live our lives before God in a new way. By grace we are made “new men (and women) in Christ” and transformed into children of God who are empowered to live in holiness and the full truth.

3. Never Give Up: The disciples seem to be discouraged at first, because the new teaching of Jesus is difficult to live: “then it is better not to marry.” They are seeing things through their own narrow experience and through the lens of popular opinion. Yet they must make the transforming encounter with the grace of Christ. We, too, need to believe in that grace and to communicate it to others, since it enables us to love others “as he loved us.” It is what brings the vitality and freshness to our Christian lives, and makes us able to offer something new and hopeful to the world around us.

Conversation with Christ: Jesus, give me the faith and confidence to believe with all my heart that your grace is enough for me. Teach me to believe that your commands are always supported by your grace and that I can live as a new man in you.

Resolution: I will ask for an unbreakable hope in the power of God’s grace acting in me.

32 posted on 08/18/2017 5:43:00 PM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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To: All
One Bread, One Body

One Bread, One Body

Language: English | Espa�ol

All Issues > Volume 33, Issue 5

<< Friday, August 18, 2017 >>
 
Joshua 24:1-13
View Readings
Psalm 136:1-3, 16-18, 21-22, 24 Matthew 19:3-12
Similar Reflections
 

JESUS IS GOD!

 
"I now say to you, whoever divorces his wife (lewd conduct is a separate case) and marries another commits adultery, and the man who marries a divorced woman commits adultery." �Matthew 19:9
 

Because Jesus is God:

  • His death on the cross has saved all people from their sins (see Ti 2:14).
  • He has risen from the dead and will raise us from the dead (see Rm 1:4).
  • He will come again to take us with Him (Jn 14:3).
  • He has superseded the Old Testament and has forbidden divorce (Mt 19:7-8ff).
  • He gives those celibate for God's kingdom the power to live on earth as the angels live in heaven (Lk 20:34-36; Mt 19:12).
  • He can live in us and make it possible for us to live in Him (see Jn 6:56).
  • He can change bread and wine into His Body and Blood, and then command us to receive His Body and Blood (Mt 26:26-28).
  • We must totally give our lives to Him, live for Him rather than ourselves (2 Cor 5:15), and worship Him.
  • We should risk our lives to be Jesus' witnesses (Acts 1:8).
  • We begin to realize that God is One and is Trinity, that is, three Persons in one God.
  • We are awed to live in the mystery of Jesus' divinity.
 
Prayer: Jesus, "my Lord and my God!" (Jn 20:28)
Promise: "Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good, for His mercy endures forever." �Ps 136:1
Praise: When Alice entered a Catholic church for the first time, she was overwhelmed by the presence of God. Soon she converted to the Faith.

33 posted on 08/18/2017 5:56:22 PM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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To: All

34 posted on 08/18/2017 5:57:57 PM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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