Posted on 06/15/2018 8:25:54 PM PDT by Salvation
“The New Law: But I say to you”
God gave us instructions… concerning those evil dispositions which come from our inner man (Eph 3:16). He instilled into man’s inner conscience the power to judge good and evil; he woke it from sleep; he showed the causes from which sins arise and he says to us: “The Law says, “Do not commit adultery” but I say to you, do not entertain desire. The Law says “Do no murder”, but I say, do not give way to anger.” (Mt 5:27.21) If you do entertain a fleshly desire but today you do not commit adultery, nevertheless it does not cease inwardly troubling you until it whips you into action. If you are irritated and stir up your anger against your brother there comes a time when you will speak evil against him, then plot against him and so go on little by little until you finally come to murder him.
Again the Law says: “An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth,” (Ex 21:24) but Our Lord admonishes us not only to bear patiently the blows of one who strikes us, but humbly to turn to him the other cheek. (Mt 5:39) And so the object of the Law is to teach us not to do to others what we do not wish to suffer, and therefore it cuts away our wrong-doing through our fear of suffering. But now the object must be to cast away our hatred, our love of pleasure, our vainglory and the rest of our unruly desires.
I repeat that the aim of Christ, our Master, is precisely to teach us how we come to commit all our sins; how we fall into evils. First he sets us free through holy baptism, giving us the forgiveness of our sins, then he gives us the power to do good if we desire it and no longer to be dragged down into sin, so to speak, by force.
St. Paul of the Cross
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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. "Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you" (Lk 1:28) "Blessed are you among women, |
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/religion/3575827/posts
Saint of the Day — Saint John Francis Regis
Feast Day: June 16
Born: January 31, 1597, Fontcouverte, Aude, Languedoc, France
Died: December 30, 1640, La Louvesc, Dauphine, France
Canonized: April 5, 1737, Rome by Pope Clement XII
Major Shrine: La Lovesc
Patron of: lacemakers, social workers
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June 16, 2018 (Readings on USCCB website)
O God, from whom all good things come, grant that we, who call on you in our need, may at your prompting discern what is right, and by your guidance do it. 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.ever.
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Old Calendar: St. John Francis Regis, priest (Hist); St. Benno, bishop (Hist)
Historically today is the feast of St. John Francis Regis, who was ordained into the Society of Jesus in 1630. He was gifted with a marvelous talent for missions, he labored for the conversion of the Huguenots, assisted the needy, and aided in the rescue of wayward women. Also the historical feast of St. Benno of Meissen who labored to convert the Slavs, established numerous religious edifices, and is said to have founded the cathedral of Meissen.
St. John Francis Regis
Born into a family of some wealth, John Francis was so impressed by his Jesuit educators that he himself wished to enter the Society of Jesus. He did so at age 18. Despite his rigorous academic schedule he spent many hours in chapel, often to the dismay of fellow seminarians who were concerned about his health. Following his ordination to the priesthood, he undertook missionary work in various French towns. While the formal sermons of the day tended toward the poetic, his discourses were plain. But they revealed the fervor within him and attracted people of all classes. Father Regis especially made himself available to the poor. Many mornings were spent in the confessional or at the altar celebrating Mass; afternoons were reserved for visits to prisons and hospitals.
The Bishop of Viviers, observing the success of Father Regis in communicating with people, sought to draw on his many gifts, especially needed during the prolonged civil and religious strife then rampant throughout France. With many prelates absent and priests negligent, the people had been deprived of the sacraments for 20 years or more. Various forms of Protestantism were thriving in some cases while a general indifference toward religion was evident in other instances. For three years Father Regis traveled throughout the diocese, conducting missions in advance of a visit by the bishop. He succeeded in converting many people and in bringing many others back to religious observances.
Though Father Regis longed to work as a missionary among the North American Indians in Canada, he was to live out his days working for the Lord in the wildest and most desolate part of his native France. There he encountered rigorous winters, snowdrifts and other deprivations. Meanwhile, he continued preaching missions and earned a reputation as a saint. One man, entering the town of Saint-Andé, came upon a large crowd in front of a church and was told that people were waiting for "the saint" who was coming to preach a mission.
The last four years of his life were spent preaching and in organizing social services, especially for prisoners, the sick and the poor. In the autumn of 1640, Father Regis sensed that his days were coming to a conclusion. He settled some of his affairs and prepared for the end by continuing to do what he did so well: speaking to the people about the God who loved them. On December 31, he spent most of the day with his eyes on the crucifix. That evening, he died. His final words were: "Into thy hands I commend my spirit."
He was canonized in 1737.
— Excerpted from Saint of the Day, Leonard Foley, O.F.M.
Patron: Kansas City, MO; marriage; illegitimate children
Things to Do:
St. Benno of Meissen
In the year 1066 a nobleman named Benno was made Bishop of Meissen, in Saxony. The Emperor of Germany at that time, Henry IV, was a boy of sixteen, and he was a very different kind of person from St. Henry II, who had always tried to rule the State for the good of religion and the Church. Henry IV, on the other hand, intended to try to make the Church obey the State, and one of his plans was to make the German bishops entirely dependent on him. He, and not the Pope, gave to each newly made bishop the crosier and the ring which showed his 'marriage' to the Church.
But it happened that at that time there was one of the greatest of the Popes, St. Gregory VII, who was equally determined that the Emperor should do nothing of the kind; and this led to the long struggle you read about in your history books. It was called the `Investiture Contest,' and went on for many years all over Europe to decide whether the Pope, as Head of the Church, or the ruler of the State should `invest' bishops with the symbols of their holy office.
The reason St. Benno is important among the saints of Germany is because, unlike some of the German bishops, he stood out against the Emperor, and because not even imprisonment could make him say that Henry was right. We do not know very much about his life, apart from the warfare and struggles of the time. But there is one story which has become famous. When the Pope had said that the Emperor, because he would not obey the Church, was not to be allowed to receive Holy Communion Henry hoped that the German bishops would take no notice of this `excommunication.’ He rode with his followers to Meissen and demanded entry to the cathedral. Benno realized that there was nothing he could do to keep him out unless he shut the cathedral to every one, so he ordered everything to be fastened up from the inside and then the great door locked on the outside. When this had been done, in front of all the people, he threw the key far out into the river Elbe.
Henry knew that if he gave his soldiers orders to break down the door he would have every one against him, so he rode away, vowing vengeance on the Bishop. When he had gone the question was how the cathedral could be opened again. Benno, after much prayer, told a fisherman to throw his net into the river as near as he could to where the key had fallen, and, so the story says, among the fish that were caught that day was one which had the key hanging on to one of its fins. So, among the paintings of the saints which you can see today, you can always recognize St. Benno, because he is holding a fish and a key.
He lived to be a very old man (some say that he was nearly a hundred when he died), and at the end of his life he followed the example of so many of the German saints and went to preach to the barbarians on the outskirts of the country who were still heathen. He was buried in his cathedral at Meissen, but when, at the time of the German Reformation, four hundred years later, the countryside left the Catholic Church and became Protestant his body was removed, for safety, to Munich, and from that time St. Benno has been considered the Patron Saint of that city.
Patron: Munich
Things to Do:
Common of the Blessed Virgin Mary
I will follow you. (1 Kings 19:20)
Talk about a major life change! Elisha went from following a plow to following a prophet. He was so certain that God was calling him to become a disciple of Elijah’s that he burned the wooden tools of his trade. It must have been sobering to watch his livelihood go up in flames, but this stripping away allowed Elisha to take the next step in following the Lord. His story tells us that sometimes moving forward requires sacrifice. Sometimes we need to make a break with the old to enter a new season of fruitfulness.
Elisha probably didn’t focus on what he had left behind. Instead, he likely looked ahead to God’s promise of a new beginning. Although he didn’t know what his future held, he trusted that the Lord would provide for him. It was a big sacrifice to trade plowing for preaching, but he was convinced that it didn’t matter what he was doing, as long as he was trying his best to follow God’s will.
Transitions in life can require us to undergo a similar “sacrifice of change.” Often, embracing a new opportunity means leaving something behind: leaving home to get married, leaving one job for a promotion, leaving the world of “couplehood” to welcome your first child. Even smaller changes, like changing our schedule or making a new friend, entail leaving behind some aspect of our “old life.” Like Elisha, we can look ahead and trust that God will walk with us as we cross the threshold into that something new. Because we know that God is with us, we can take that next step in faith.
Today, you will undoubtedly “leave something behind” and take up something new. You may not even realize how often you are already doing it. Just the act of starting a new day gives you that opportunity! When a “sacrifice of change” comes up, think of Elisha and his burning yoke. Imitate him and offer yourself to the Lord. Remember that you are putting your life and your gifts at his service, just as Elisha did. And every offering, large or small, brings a smile to his face.
“Here I am, Jesus! I am ready for whatever you have in store for me today.”
Psalm 16:1-2, 5, 7-10
Matthew 5:33-37
Daily Marriage Tip for June 16, 2018:
Tomorrow is Father’s Day. God bless all fathers! May they witness to God the Father’s love. And may men who desire fatherhood find ways to be fatherly to those in need around them.
Matthew 5:33-37
Jesus said to his disciples: “You have heard that it was said to your ancestors, Do not take a false oath, but make good to the Lord all that you vow. But I say to you, do not swear at all; not by heaven, for it is God’s throne; nor by the earth, for it is his footstool; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. Do not swear by your head, for you cannot make a single hair white or black. Let your ‘Yes’ mean ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No’ mean ‘No.’ Anything more is from the Evil One.”
Introductory Prayer: Father of love, source of all blessings, you have led me throughout my life and you lead me still. Thank you for your paternal care. Jesus, Son of God, you died for me on the cross to pay for my sins and manifest your unconditional love for me. Thank you for showing me the way home to the Father. Holy Spirit, sweet guest of the soul, you heal me and strengthen me and set me on fire from the most intimate depths of my soul. Thank you for your loving presence within me.
Petition: Lord, help me to be honest and sincere in my dealings with others.
1. So Help Me, God! An oath is a solemn invocation of God to witness the truth of what one asserts to be the case or the sincerity of one’s undertakings in regard to future actions. Most Christians have acknowledged the importance and appropriateness of oath-taking on occasions of great importance. We see the President take an oath of office; we see men and women of the military swear an oath to faithfully serve and defend our country; we see people who take the stand in a courtroom place their hand on the Bible, raise their right hand, and take an oath that they will tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth … and they end by saying, “So help me, God.” All of the above are calling on God to help them be true to their word because what they are swearing to do is a humanly difficult task, one which needs divine assistance in order to remain true.
2. Base Your Mutual Relationships on Truth: In Christ’s time, the making of sworn statements was so frequent and the casuistry surrounding them so intricate that the practice was being grossly abused. All this meant great disrespect for the name of God. Jesus lays down here the criterion that his disciples must apply in their lives. It is based on re-establishing mutual trust, nobility and sincerity. The devil is “the father of lies” (John 8:44). Therefore, Christ’s Church must teach that human relationships cannot be based on deceit and insincerity. God is truth, and the children of the Kingdom must, therefore, base mutual relationships on truth. Jesus consistently condemned hypocrisy in his teachings, and he praised sincerity as one of the finest of virtues: “Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile!” (spoken of Nathanael, John 1:47). Do I eschew any form of hypocrisy in my life?
3. Anything More Is from the Evil One: Would it be reading too much into the words of Our Lord — to say simply “yes” if we mean yes, and “no” if we mean no — to apply them to the origins and intentions of lying in our lives? Jesus affirms that anything obscuring what we ought to say, or anything meant to mislead, cover up or falsify by false emphasis, “comes from the Evil One”. He shows us that insincerity is how political and economic life become and remain alienated from truth, become destructive of the kingdom of God, of the kingdom of him who was, and remains, “a sign that is spoken against” (Luke 2:34). Am I honest with my family members and work colleagues?
Conversation with Christ: You see it all, Lord, and you read my heart. You look on in sorrow as I allow myself to play by the rules of the Evil One. Help me to re-commit myself to living in the light, doing away with all falsehood. From now on, my “yes” will be yes, and my “no” will be no.
Resolution: I will start today by seeking to patch up any relationship — especially my relationship with my spouse — which may have been harmed through a lack of truthfulness and sincerity.
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