Reading 1 Ex 14:21—15:1

Moses stretched out his hand over the sea,
and the LORD swept the sea
with a strong east wind throughout the night
and so turned it into dry land.
When the water was thus divided,
the children of Israel marched into the midst of the sea on dry land,
with the water like a wall to their right and to their left.

The Egyptians followed in pursuit;
all Pharaoh's horses and chariots and charioteers went after them
right into the midst of the sea.
In the night watch just before dawn
the LORD cast through the column of the fiery cloud
upon the Egyptian force a glance that threw it into a panic;
and he so clogged their chariot wheels
that they could hardly drive.
With that the Egyptians sounded the retreat before Israel,
because the LORD was fighting for them against the Egyptians.

Then the LORD told Moses, "Stretch out your hand over the sea,
that the water may flow back upon the Egyptians,
upon their chariots and their charioteers."
So Moses stretched out his hand over the sea,
and at dawn the sea flowed back to its normal depth.
The Egyptians were fleeing head on toward the sea,
when the LORD hurled them into its midst.
As the water flowed back,
it covered the chariots and the charioteers of Pharaoh's whole army
that had followed the children of Israel into the sea.
Not a single one of them escaped.
But the children of Israel had marched on dry land
through the midst of the sea,
with the water like a wall to their right and to their left.
Thus the LORD saved Israel on that day
from the power of the Egyptians.
When Israel saw the Egyptians lying dead on the seashore
and beheld the great power that the LORD
had shown against the Egyptians,
they feared the LORD and believed in him and in his servant Moses.

Then Moses and the children of Israel sang this song to the LORD:

I will sing to the LORD, for he is gloriously triumphant;
horse and chariot he has cast into the sea.

From: Exodus 14:21-15:1

Crossing the Red Sea

[21] Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea; and the Lord drove the sea
back by a strong east wind all night, and made the sea dry land, and the waters
were divided. [22] And the people of Israel went into the midst of the sea on dry
ground, the waters being a wall to them on their right hand and on their left. [23]
The Egyptians pursued, and went in after them into the midst of the sea, all Pha-
raoh’s horses, his chariots, and his horsemen. [24] And in the morning watch the
Lord in the pillar of fire and of cloud looked down upon the host of the Egyptians,
and discomfited the host of the Egyptians, clogging their chariot wheels so that
they drove heavily; and the Egyptians said, “Let us flee from before Israel; for the
Lord fights for them against the Egyptians.”

[26] Then the Lord said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand over the sea, that the
water may come back upon the Egyptians, upon their chariots, and upon their
horsemen.” [27] So Moses stretched forth his hand over the sea, and the sea re-
turned to its wonted flow when the morning appeared; and the Egyptians fled into
it, and the Lord routed the Egyptians in the midst of the sea. [28] The waters re-
turn and covered the chariots and the horsemen and all the hosts of Pharaoh that
had followed them into the sea; not so much as one of them remained. [29] But
the people of Israel walked on dry ground through the sea, the waters being a
wall to them on their right hand and on their left.

[30] Thus the Lord saved Israel that day from the hand of the Egyptians; and Is-
rael saw the Egyptians dead upon the seashore. [31] And Israel saw the great
work which the Lord did against the Egyptians, and the people feared the Lord;
and they believed in the Lord and in his servant Moses.

Song of Victory

[1] Then Moses and the people of Israel sang this song the Lord, saying, “I will
sing to the Lord, for he has triumphed gloriously; the horse and his rider he has
thrown into the sea.”

*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:

14:19-22. At the wonderful moment of the crossing of the sea, God, man and
the forces of nature play the leading role. In the person of the angel of the Lord,
God the person of the angel of the Lord, becomes more visible; he directs ope-
rations; he plays a direct part. Moses’ part consists in doing as the Lord com-
mands; he is his vicar. The sons of Israel have no active part; they benefit from
what happens. Even the forces of nature come into play: the pillar of cloud which
marked the route by day now blocks the Egyptians’ way; night, the symbol of
evil become, as in the Passover, the time God’s visitation; the warm west wind,
always feared for its harmful effects, now proves a great help; and the waters of
the sea, so often the symbol of the abyss and of evil, allow the victorious pas-
sage of the sons of Israel.

The prophets see this event as an instance of the creative power of God (cf. Is
43:1-3), and Christian writers comment along the same lines. Thus, Origen will
say: “See the goodness of God the Creator: if you submit to his will and follow
his Law, he will see to it that created things cooperate with you, against their
own nature if necessary” (”Homiliae In Exodum”, 5,5).

The book of Wisdom turns the account of the crossing of the sea into a hymn
of praise to the Lord who delivered Israel (cf. Wis 19:6-9), and St Paul sees
the waters as a figure of baptismal water: “All were baptized into Moses in the
cloud and in the sea” (1 Cor 10:2).

14:31. The main effect the miraculous crossing of the sea had on the Israelites
was the faith it gave them in the power of God and in the authority of Moses.
This section of the account of the escape from Egypt ends as it began—that is,
showing that the people’s faith (4:31) is now strengthened. So, too, Christian
faith is strengthened when we do what God desires.: “Following Jesus on his
way. You have understood what our Lord was asking from you and you have
decided to accompany him on his way. You trying to walk in his footsteps, to
clothe yourself in Christ’s clothing, to be Christ himself: well, your faith, your
faith in the light our Lord is giving you, must both operative and full of sacrifice”
(St. J. Escrivá, “Friends of God”, 198).

15:1-21. This victory anthem, along with that of Deborah (Judg 5), is one the ol-
dest hymns of Israel. It probably goes as far back as the 13th century BC, long
before the redactor of this be decided to include it as a colophon to Exodus ac-
count. It is called the “Song of Miriam” (v. 21) because, as we know from Ugarit
poems of the period (13th-9th centuries BC) it was the practice to put at the end
(not the start) the reason why the poem was written, the author’s name and the
poem’s title (vv. 18-21). It is very likely that this canticle was recited in the liturgy
and that the entire people said the response (vv, 1, 21) after each stanza was
said or sung by the choir.

It is a hymn of praise and thanksgiving which the three stages of the deliverance
of Israel are remembered—the prodigies of the Red Sea (vv. 4-10), the triumphal
pilgrimage in the desert (vv. 4-16) and the taking possession of the land of Ca-
naan (vv. 17-18).

In this poetic re-creation of these events the divine attributes are extolled one by
one (might, military power, redemption, etc); they reflect the theological implica-
tions of exodus, wilderness and land: it is God who has done all these wondrous
things; he has done them because he has chosen the people to be his very own;
he himself requires that they respond by acknowledging him to be God, Lord of
all, the only deliverer.

15:1-3. Victory over the Egyptians has revealed the glory arid might of God.
Strength, power, salvation can be taken as meaning the same thing, for the sa-
cred author does not regard the divine attributes as abstract qualities but as par-
ticular actions: only God could truly save the people.

“The Lord is a man of war”: this daring description indicates that this is a very
ancient poem. Some translations, possibly because they thought it might be
misunderstood, toned it down a little: the Samaritan Pentateuch has “powerful in
combat” and the Septuagint “he who breaks through battles”. We in our Spanish
version coincide with the RSV and the New Vulgate, retaining the blunt military
imagery, which is very descriptive of the almighty power of God: “He is the Lord
of the Universe [...]. He is master of history, governing hearts and events in kee-
ping with his will” (”Catechism of the Catholic Church”, 269).

“The Lord is his name”: literally, “his name is Yah”, using an abbreviation of
Yahweh which may have been customary in more ancient times. It may well be
that there is an echo of this name in the “Alleluia” of the Psalms.

*********************************************************************************************
Source: “The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries”. Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.

From: Matthew 12:46-50

The True Kinsmen of Jesus

[46] While He (Jesus) was still speaking to the people, behold, His mother and
His brethren stood outside, asking to speak to Him.* [48] But He replied to the
man who told Him, “Who is My mother, and who are My brethren?” [49] And
stretching out His hand toward His disciples, He said, “Here are My mother and
My brethren! [50] For whoever does the will of My Father in Heaven is My brother,
and sister and mother.”

(*Other ancient authorities insert verse 47, “Some one told Him, ‘Your mother
and Your brothers are standing outside, asking to speak to You.’”)

*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:

46-47. “Brethren”: ancient Hebrew, Aramaic and other languages had no special
words for different degrees of relationship, such as are found in more modern lan-
guages. In general, all those belonging to the same family, clan and even tribe
were “brethren”.

In the particular case we have here, we should bear in mind that Jesus had diffe-
rent kinds of relatives, in two groups—some on His mother’s side, others on St.
Joseph’s. Matthew 13:55-56 mentions, as living in Nazareth, James, Joseph, Si-
mon and Judas (”His brethren”) and elsewhere there is reference to Jesus’ “sis-
ters” (cf. Matthew 6:3). But in Matthew 27:56 we are told that James and Joseph
were sons of a Mary distinct from the Blessed Virgin, and that Simon and Judas
were not brothers of James and Joseph, but seemingly children of a brother of
St. Joseph.

Jesus, on the other hand, was known to everyone as “the son of Mary” (Mark 6:
3) or “the carpenter’s son” (Matthew 13:55).

The Church has always maintained as absolutely certain that Jesus had no bro-
thers or sisters in the full meaning of the term: it is a dogma that Mary was ever-
Virgin (cf. note on Matthew 1:25).

48-50. Jesus obviously loved His Mother and St. Joseph. He uses this episode
to teach us that in His Kingdom human ties do not take precedence. In Luke 8:
19 the same teaching is to be found. Jesus regards the person who does the
will of His Heavenly Father as a member of His own family. Therefore, even
though it means going against natural family feelings, a person should do just
that when needs be in order to perform the mission the Father has entrusted to
him (cf. Luke 2:49).

We can say that Jesus loved Mary more because of the bonds between them
created by grace than because He was her son by natural generation: Mary’s
divine motherhood is the source of all our Lady’s other prerogatives; but this
very motherhood is, in its turn, the first and greatest of the graces with which
Mary was endowed.

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.

Scripture readings from the Jerusalem Bible by Darton, Longman & Todd

Readings at Mass

Liturgical Colour: Green.

First reading
Exodus 14:21-15:1 ©

The crossing of the Red Sea

Moses stretched out his hand over the sea. The Lord drove back the sea with a strong easterly wind all night, and he made dry land of the sea. The waters parted and the sons of Israel went on dry ground right into the sea, walls of water to right and to left of them. The Egyptians gave chase: after them they went, right into the sea, all Pharaoh’s horses, his chariots, and his horsemen.

In the morning watch, the Lord looked down on the army of the Egyptians from the pillar of fire and of cloud, and threw the army into confusion. He so clogged their chariot wheels that they could scarcely make headway. ‘Let us flee from the Israelites,’ the Egyptians cried. ‘The Lord is fighting for them against the Egyptians!’

‘Stretch out your hand over the sea,’ the Lord said to Moses, ‘that the waters may flow back on the Egyptians and their chariots and their horsemen.’

Moses stretched out his hand over the sea and, as day broke, the sea returned to its bed. The fleeing Egyptians marched right into it, and the Lord overthrew the Egyptians in the very middle of the sea. The returning waters overwhelmed the chariots and the horsemen of Pharaoh’s whole army, which had followed the Israelites into the sea; not a single one of them was left. But the sons of Israel had marched through the sea on dry ground, walls of water to right and to left of them.

That day, the Lord rescued Israel from the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians lying dead on the shore. Israel witnessed the great act that the Lord had performed against the Egyptians, and the people venerated the Lord; they put their faith in the Lord and in Moses, his servant.

It was then that Moses and the sons sang this song in honour of the Lord:

Responsorial Psalm	Exodus 15 ©

I will sing to the Lord, glorious his triumph!

At the breath of your anger the waters piled high;

the moving waters stood up like a dam.

The deeps turned solid in the midst of the sea.

The enemy said: ‘I will pursue and overtake them,

I will divide my plunder, I shall have my will.

I will draw my sword, my hand shall destroy them.’

I will sing to the Lord, glorious his triumph!

You blew with your breath, the sea closed over them.

They went down like lead into the mighty waters.

You stretched forth your hand, the earth engulfed them.

I will sing to the Lord, glorious his triumph!

You will lead your people and plant them on your mountain,

the place, O Lord, where you have made your home,

the sanctuary, Lord, which your hands have made.

I will sing to the Lord, glorious his triumph!

Gospel Acclamation	1Jn2:5

Alleluia, alleluia!

Whenever anyone obeys what Christ has said,

God’s love comes to perfection in him.

Alleluia!

Or:	Jn14:23

Alleluia, alleluia!

If anyone loves me he will keep my word,

and my Father will love him,

and we shall come to him.

Alleluia!

Gospel
Matthew 12:46-50 ©

My mother and my brothers are anyone who does the will of my Father in heaven

Jesus was speaking to the crowds when his mother and his brothers appeared; they were standing outside and were anxious to have a word with him. But to the man who told him this Jesus replied, ‘Who is my mother? Who are my brothers?’ And stretching out his hand towards his disciples he said, ‘Here are my mother and my brothers. Anyone who does the will of my Father in heaven, he is my brother and sister and mother.’

Matthew
	English: Douay-Rheims	Latin: Vulgata Clementina	Greek NT: Byzantine/Majority Text (2000)
	Matthew 12
46.	As he was yet speaking to the multitudes, behold his mother and his brethren stood without, seeking to speak to him.	Adhuc eo loquente ad turbas, ecce mater ejus et fratres stabant foras, quærentes loqui ei.	ετι δε αυτου λαλουντος τοις οχλοις ιδου η μητηρ και οι αδελφοι αυτου ειστηκεισαν εξω ζητουντες αυτω λαλησαι
47.	And one said unto him: Behold thy mother and thy brethren stand without, seeking thee.	Dixit autem ei quidam : Ecce mater tua, et fratres tui foris stant quærentes te.	ειπεν δε τις αυτω ιδου η μητηρ σου και οι αδελφοι σου εξω εστηκασιν ζητουντες σοι λαλησαι
48.	But he answering him that told him, said: Who is my mother, and who are my brethren?	At ipse respondens dicenti sibi, ait : Quæ est mater mea, et qui sunt fratres mei ?	ο δε αποκριθεις ειπεν τω ειποντι αυτω τις εστιν η μητηρ μου και τινες εισιν οι αδελφοι μου
49.	And stretching forth his hand towards his disciples, he said: Behold my mother and my brethren.	Et extendens manum in discipulos suos, dixit : Ecce mater mea, et fratres mei.	και εκτεινας την χειρα αυτου επι τους μαθητας αυτου ειπεν ιδου η μητηρ μου και οι αδελφοι μου
50.	For whosoever shall do the will of my Father, that is in heaven, he is my brother, and sister, and mother.	Quicumque enim fecerit voluntatem Patris mei, qui in cælis est, ipse meus frater, et soror, et mater est.	οστις γαρ αν ποιηση το θελημα του πατρος μου του εν ουρανοις αυτος μου αδελφος και αδελφη και μητηρ εστιν

(*) in verse 47, "ζητουντες σοι λαλησαι" means "seeking to speak with thee", a translation of "λαλησαι" is also missing in Jerome's.

46. While he yet talked to the people, behold, his mother and his brethren stood without, desiring to speak with him.
47. Then one said to him, Behold, your mother and your brethren stand without, desiring to speak with you.
48. But he answered and said to him that told him, Who is my mother? and who are my brethren?
49. And he stretched forth his hand toward his disciples, and said, Behold my mother and brethren!
50. For whoever shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother.

HILARY; Because He had spoken all the aforesaid things in the power of His Father's majesty, therefore the Evangelist proceeds to tell what answer He made to one that told Him that His mother and His brethren waited for Him without; While he yet spoke to the people, his mother and his brethren stood without desiring to see him.

AUG; We are to understand without doubt that this happened close upon the foregoing; for he begins to tell it with the words, And while he yet spoke. What can that yet mean but that it was at the very time He spoke the foregoing things? Mark also follows up that which He had said concerning blasphemy against the Holy Ghost, by saying, And there came his mother and his brethren. Luke has not observed the order of action here, but has placed this earlier as he happened to recollect it.

JEROME; From this is taken one of Helvidius's propositions, on the ground that mention is made in the Gospel of the brethren of the Lord.. How says he, are they called brethren of the Lord, if they were not his brethren? But now it should be known that in divine Scripture men are said to be brethren in four different ways, by nature, by nation, by kindred, and by affection. By nature, as Esau and Jacob. By nation, as all Jews are called brethren, as in Deuteronomy, You shall not set over you a foreigner who is not your brother. They are called brethren by kindred who are of one family, as in Genesis, Abraham said to Lot, Let there not be strife between you and me, for we are brethren. Also men are called brethren by affection; which is of two kinds, special and general.

Special, as all Christians are called brethren, as the Savior says, Go tell my brethren. General, inasmuch as all men are born of one father, we are bound together by a tie of consanguinity, as in that, Say to them that hate you, you are our brethren. I ask then, after which manner these are called the Lord's brethren in the Gospel? According to nature? But Scripture said not, neither calling them sons of Mary nor of Joseph. By nation? But it is absurd that some few out of all the Jews should be called brethren, seeing that all the Jews who were there might have thus been called brethren. By affection, either of a human sort, or of the Spirit? If that be true, yet how were they more His brethren than the Apostles, whom He instructed in the inmost mysteries. Or if because they were men, and all men are brethren, it was foolish to say of them particular, Behold, your brethren seek you. It only remains then that they should be His brethren by kindred, not by affection, not by privilege of nation, not by nature.

ID; But some suspect the brethren of the Lord to be sons of another wife, following the idle fancies of apocryphal writers, who have coined a certain woman called Esca. But we understand by the brethren of the Lord, not the sons Joseph, but cousins of the Savior, sons of a sister of Mary, aunt of Our Lord, who is said to be the mother of James the Less, and Joseph, and Jude, whom in another place of the Gospel we find called the brethren of the Lord. And that cousins are called brethren, appears from every part of Scripture.

CHRYS; But mark the loftiness of His brethren, when they should have come in and hearkened with the crowd, or if they would not this, to have waited the end of His speech, and then to have approached Him - they on the contrary call Him out to them, and do this before the multitude, therein showing their superabundant love of honor and also, that with all authority they lay their commands upon Christ. This the Evangelist covertly hints when he says, While he yet spoke; as much as to say, Was there no other time? But what did they seek to say? Was it anything of the dogmas of truth? then should they have brought forth before all, that all might profit thereby. But if of other things that concerned themselves alone, they should not have called Him in such haste, whence it is plain that they did this out of vain glory.

AUG; But whatever may be decided concerning these brethren, yet concerning the holy Virgin Mary, (for the honor of Christ,) when sin in her is question, I would not have it brought into doubt. For from this only we might know that more abundant grace was conferred upon her that she should overcome sin on all sides, because she merited to conceive and bring forth Him Who it is clear had no sin. It follows; Then said one to him, Behold, your mother and your brethren stand without seeking you.

JEROME; He that delivers this message, seems to me not to do it casually and without meaning, but as setting a snare for Him, whether He would prefer flesh and blood to the spiritual work; and thus the Lord refused to go out, not because He disowned His mother and His brethren, but that He might confound him that had laid this snare for Him.

CHRYS; For He said not, Go and say to her, She is not My mother, but continues His discourse to him that had brought Him word; as it follows; But he answered and said to him that told him, Who is my mother? and who are my brethren?

HILARY; And He cannot be held to have thought meanly of His mother, seeing that in His passion He evinced the most extreme carefulness for her. CHRYS. But had He desired to disown His mother, He would have done it at the time when the Jews cast His birth in His teeth.

JEROME; He did not then, as Marcion and Manichaeus say, disown His mother, so as to be thought to be born of a phantasm, but He preferred His Apostles to His kindred, that we also in a comparison of our affections should set the spirit before the flesh.

AMBROSE; Nor does He overthrow the duty of filial submission, which is conveyed in the command, Honor your father and your mother, but shows that He owes more to the mysteries and relationship of His Father, than of His mother; as it follows, And stretching out his hand to his disciples, He said, Behold my mother and my brethren.

GREGORY; The Lord deigned to call faithful disciples His brethren, saying, Go, tell my brethren. Since then a man may be made a brother of the Lord by coming to the faith, it should be inquired how one may become also His mother. Be it known by us then, that he that by believing is made brother or sister of Christ, becomes His mother by preaching; for in pouring Him into the heart of the hearer, he may be said to beget the Lord; and he is made the Lord's mother, when by his word love of the Lord is begotten in the mind of his neighbor.

CHRYS; And besides what has been said, He taught also somewhat more, namely, that we should not neglect virtue relying on any kindred. For if it profited His mother nothing that she was such, if she had not had virtue, who is there that shall be fed by his kindred? For there is one only nobility, to do of God, and therefore it follows, Who shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother. Many women have blessed that holy Virgin and her womb, and have desired to be made such mothers. What is it then that hinders? Behold, He has set likewise; you a broad way, and not women only, but men likewise may become the mother of God.

JEROME; Let us also expound in another way. The Savior is speaking to the multitude - that is, He teaches the Gentiles the inward mysteries; His mother and His brethren, that is the synagogue and the Jewish people, stand without.

HILARY; Although they had like the rest power to come in, yet they abstain from all approach to Him, for he came to his own, and his own received him not.

GREGORY; Thus also His mother; declared to stand without, as though she was not acknowledged, because the synagogue is therefore not acknowledge by its Author, because it held to the observance of the Law, and having lost the spiritual discernment thereof, kept itself without to guard the letter.

JEROME; And when the shall have asked and inquired, and sent a messenger, they shall receive for answer, that their will is free, and that they can enter in, if they will believe.

Catena Aurea Matthew 12

July 23 - Memorial of Saint Bridget of Sweden, religious

Saint Bridget of Sweden’s Story

From age 7 on, Bridget had visions of Christ crucified. Her visions formed the basis for her activity—always with the emphasis on charity rather than spiritual favors.

She lived her married life in the court of the Swedish king Magnus II. Mother of eight children—the second eldest was Saint Catherine of Sweden—Bridget lived the strict life of a penitent after her husband’s death.

Bridget constantly strove to exert her good influence over Magnus; while never fully reforming, he did give her land and buildings to found a monastery for men and women. This group eventually expanded into an Order known as the Bridgetines.

In 1350, a year of jubilee, Bridget braved a plague-stricken Europe to make a pilgrimage to Rome. Although she never returned to Sweden, her years in Rome were far from happy, being hounded by debts and by opposition to her work against Church abuses.

A final pilgrimage to the Holy Land, marred by shipwreck and the death of her son, Charles, eventually led to her death in 1373. In 1999, Bridget, Saints Catherine of Siena and Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, were named co-patronesses of Europe.

Reflection

Bridget’s visions, rather than isolating her from the affairs of the world, involved her in many contemporary issues, whether they be royal policy or the years that the legitimate Bishop of Rome lived in Avignon, France. She saw no contradiction between mystical experience and secular activity, and her life is a testimony to the possibility of a holy life in the marketplace.

Saint Bridget of Sweden is the Patron Saint of:

Europe

franciscanmedia.org

Saint of the Day for July 23

Saint Kunigunde’s Story

When Pope John Paul II traveled to his native Poland in June 1999, he fulfilled a long-held dream to canonize Kunigunde, a Polish princess whose elevation to sainthood had been stalled for many years because of political conditions. Celebrating the momentous event with him were half a million people who gathered in a field outside the small town of Stary Sacz.

Kunigunde, or Kinga, was born in 13th-century Hungary into a royal family distinguished for its political power as well as its holy women. Her aunts included Saint Elizabeth of Hungary, Saint Hedwig, and Saint Agnes of Prague; numbered among her siblings are the Dominican Saint Margaret and Blessed Yolande.

When only 15, Kunigunde became engaged to the man who was to become the next King of Poland: Boleslaus V. Upon their marriage, the two took vows of chastity before the bishop and lived out their promises during their 40 years of married life. Meanwhile, Queen Kunigunde undertook the care of her young sister and spent many hours visiting the sick in hospitals. As the First Lady of Poland she was ever attentive to the welfare of her people and their special needs.

When King Boleslaus died in 1279, the people urged the queen to take over the reins of government, but she wished to consecrate herself wholly to God. For 13 years, she lived the simple life of a Poor Clare nun, residing at a convent she and her husband had established. Ultimately, she was elected abbess, and governed with charity and wisdom. She died a peaceful death, surrounded by her loving sisters. Many miracles are said to have occurred at her tomb.

In 1715, Pope Clement XI chose her as the special patron of Poles and Lithuanians.

Reflection

Kunigunde must have learned at home the charity that won her canonization. Perhaps it was the generosity of her sainted aunts that impressed her; more likely she picked it up from her immediate family. In any case, she cared for others’ needs even as a teenage bride. The virtue of charity, like faith, is more caught than taught. If youngsters see us responding to poverty and suffering, chances are they will follow in our footsteps.

franciscanmedia.org

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July 23 2019

Tuesday of the Sixteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading 1 Ex 14:21—15:1

Responsorial Psalm Exodus 15:8-9, 10 and 12, 17

Alleluia Jn 14:23

Gospel Mt 12:46-50

For the readings of the Optional Memorial of Saint Bridget, please go here.

Readings at Mass

July 23 - Memorial of Saint Bridget of Sweden, religious

Saint Bridget of Sweden’s Story

Reflection

Saint Bridget of Sweden is the Patron Saint of:

Saint of the Day for July 23

Saint Kunigunde’s Story

Reflection