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COME LORD JESUS, LIGHT OF THE WORLD!

PREPARE THE WAY OF THE LORD

FEAST OF IMMACULATE CONCEPTION

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FEAST OF IMMACULATE CONCEPTION HOLY DAY OF OBLIGATION DECEMBER 8

Immaculate Mary, Your praises we sing,

You reign now in heaven, With Jesus our king

Ave, Ave, Ave Maria.

BACKGROUND

The Feast of the Immaculate Conception, in its oldest form, goes back to the seventh century, when churches in the East began celebrating the Feast of Saint Anne, the mother of Mary.

The feast arrived in the West probably no earlier than the 11th century with a developing theological controversy between the West and East. In the East they believe every human being is born with original sin including Mary mother of God.

The doctrine of the Immaculate Conception was officially defined as dogma by Pope Pius IX in 1854. Dogma means that a definitive article of faith has been solemnly promulgated and is necessary for the belief of all Catholic faithful.

Pope Pius IX on December 8, 1854 promulgated,

“We declare, the most Blessed Virgin Mary, in the first instance of her conception, by a singular grace and privilege granted by Almighty God, in view of the merits of Jesus Christ, the Savior of the human race, was preserved free from all stain of original sin, is a doctrine revealed by God therefore to be believed firmly and constantly by all the faithful.”

Four years after the dogma of the Immaculate Conception was promulgated Mary appeared to a young woman in Lourdes, France 1858, Bernadette Soubirous, and announced that she is the Immaculate Conception”

I AM THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION

LOURDES 1858

COMMENTARY

According to St. Thomas Aquinas, God had sanctified Mary at the moment of her conception in His foreknowledge that the Blessed Virgin would consent to bear Christ.

In other words, she too had been redeemed—her redemption had simply been accomplished at the moment of her conception in anticipation of her Redeemer rather than as with all other Christians, in Baptism.

Mary’s soul was created in a state of original sanctity, innocence, and justice. neither stained by Original Sin, nor by consequences of that sin…clouded intellect and weakened will.

It’s important to understand what the doctrine of the Immaculate Conception is and what it is not. Some people think the term refers to Christ’s conception in Mary’s womb without the intervention of a human father; but that is called the Virgin Birth.

Others think the Immaculate Conception means Mary was conceived “by the power of the Holy Spirit,” in the way Jesus was, but that, too, is incorrect. Mary did have a human father. The Immaculate Conception means that Mary, whose conception was brought about the normal way, was conceived without original sin.

At the Annunciation, The angel Gabriel greets Mary, “Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you” This greeting “full of grace was not a result of the angel’s visit but rather, an acknowledgement that Mary, preserved from original sin, is already sanctified.

REFLECTION

The Immaculate Conception is the concrete expression of God’s love for Mary, who gave herself fully, completely, and without hesitation to His service.

Mary is exactly the human being that God meant each of us to be from the very beginning of creation. It was man’s fall that brought about sin and death.

God isn’t finished with us yet, thanks be to God. He remains patient and merciful as He calls each one of us to be the person He had in mind when He created us in our mother’s womb.

MARY IMMACULATE

PATRONESS OF UNITED STATES

John Carroll, the first bishop in the United States, had a great devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary. In 1792, he placed the diocese of Baltimore which encompassed the thirteen colonies of the young republic under her protection. U.S. bishops unanimously named Mary, under her title of the Immaculate Conception, patroness of the nation in 1846, during the Sixth Provincial Council of Baltimore.

FIRST SUNDAY OF ADVENT

THANKSGIVING DAY NOVEMBER 28, 2024

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GIVE THANKS TO THE LORD FOR HE IS GOOD,

HIS MERCY ENDURES FOREVER

PSALM 107

COMMENTARY

Every day is a day to give thanks to God. We didn’t need the Government to set aside a special day but it is nice to take a break from work and reflect on our blessings with our family and friends despite living at a moment of extraordinary division, discouragement, and uncertainty.

I am reminded of another time in our history where divisions were so severe that military warfare broke out between our states 1863 was the bloodiest year of the Civil War. By some estimates, more than 200,000 American soldiers died that year.

Our nation was wounded, deeply divided, and angry. Political leaders were distrusted and reviled, immigrants and minorities were marginalized, and religious practice was waning in many places. In the midst of this division and bloodshed, President Lincoln called for a day of Thanksgiving and repentance to Almighty God.

Writing to his divided and discouraged country, President Lincoln issued a proclamation re-calling the many blessings that Almighty God had given our nation. Lincoln recognized that the United States had been showered with “the gracious gifts of the Most High God, who, while dealing with us in our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercy.”

ABRAHAM LINCOLN’S THANKSGIVING PROCLAMATION

OCTOBER 3, 1863

“The year that is drawing towards its close, has been filled with the blessings of fruitful fields and healthful skies. To these bounties, which are so constantly enjoyed we are prone to forget the source from which they come…the watchful providence of Almighty God.

It has seemed to me fit and proper that the whole American People should solemnly, reverently and gratefully acknowledged with one heart and one voice our gratitude. I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States…., to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens…

THANKSGIVING PRAYER 2024

Father in Heaven, Creator of all, Thank you for all the graces and blessings you have bestowed upon us, both spiritual and temporal.

Thank you for friends, for health and for grace. For this beautiful earth you gave us as home. We pray that we do not diminish it by our actions.

Most Gracious God, Thank you for the blessings of the food we eat, especially for this feast today. Please send help to those who are hungry, alone, sick and suffering war and violence.

We give thanks for our family, in good times and bad times. Thank you for your comfort in our sadness, your companionship in our loneliness.

For our Mothers and Fathers, brothers, and sisters, living and dead, that helped in giving direction and guidance in our formative years. .

And For our health in good times and bad times. We willingly accept the burden of poor health to develop more trust and dependency on you, God our Father.

THANKS BE TO GOD!

FEAST OF CHRIST THE KING NOVEMBER 24, 2024

CATHOLIC FEAST DAYS

CHRISTUS VINCIT, CHRISTUS REGNAT, CHRISTUS IMPERAT

CHRIST CONQUERS, CHRIST REIGNS, CHRIST RULES.

YESTERDAY, TODAY AND TOMORROW

INTRODUCTION

We have been on a journey the past twelve months as we traveled through the Christian Church Year. The Liturgical year begins on the First Sunday of Advent, and ends today with the Feast of Christ the King.

During the Liturgical year, we re-live the life of Christ. We follow in His footsteps as he walked the dusty trails of Galilee, gathered disciples, opened blind eyes, made the lame to walk, taught the multitudes, was crucified, rose again and ascended into heaven to sit at the right hand of the Father.

The Feast of Christ the King was established by Pope Pius XI in 1925 to assert the sovereignty of Christ and His Church over all forms of government, to remind Christians of the fidelity and loyalty they owe to Christ, who by his Incarnation and sacrificial death on the cross makes us adopted children of God and future citizens and heirs of the Kingdom of Heaven

The title “Christ the King” has its roots both in the Old Testament and New Testament. In most of the Messianic prophecies given in the Old Testament books of Samuel, Isaiah, Jeremiah and Daniel, the Messiah is represented as a King.

From the very beginning of the New Testament at the Annunciation, the Angel Gabriel says to Mary, “He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High,^* and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father, and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.” Luke 1:32-33

In the Lord’s Prayer, Jesus taught us to pray: “Thy Kingdom come . . .” immediately followed by “Thy will be done.” And so, the definition of the Kingdom is “a community of people who do God’s will on earth as perfectly as it is done in heaven.”

REFLECTION

IS CHRIST THE KING, KING OF MY LIFE?

The Kingdom of God is a space. It exists in every home where parents and children love each other. It exists in every region and country that cares for its weak and vulnerable. It exists in every parish that reaches out to the needy. It exists in every work place where one is kind and patient with their fellow workers.

The Kingdom of God is a time. It happens whenever someone feeds a hungry person, shelters a homeless person, or shows care to a neglected person. It happens whenever we overturn an unjust law, or make peace instead of war

Jesus Christ is king! We belong to his Kingdom when we try to walk with him, when we try to live our lives fully in the spirit of the Gospel and when that Gospel spirit penetrates every facet of our living.

“The Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve.” Matthew 20:28 We too are called to service We too are called to be a people of service who reach out to embrace the enemy and the stranger, a people who will endlessly forgive, a people who will reach out in compassion to the poor and to the marginalized….

PRAYER

To Jesus Christ our Sovereign King

who is the world’s salvation,

All praise and homage do we bring

and thanks and adoration

Your reign extend O King benign,

to every land and nation;

For in your kingdom Lord divine

Alone do we find salvation

To you and to your Church, great King

We pledge our heart’s oblation;

Until before your throne we sing

In endless jubilation

Christ Jesus, Victor!

Christ Jesus, Ruler!

Christ Jesus, Lord and Redeemer

COME FOLLOW ME, YOUR SOVEREIGN KING

CATHOLIC CHURCH MUST REMAIN TRUE TO JESUS IN A WORLD THAT REJECTS US

CATHOLIC CHURCH TEACHING, CATHOLIC COMMENTARY

SERMON ON THE MOUNT

BLESSED ARE YOU WHEB THEY PERSECUTE YOU AND HATE YOU FOR MY SAKE

I have been thinking recently why the society I live in and the government that is there to serve the “common good” are so often unfriendly and sometimes, even threatening, to a practicing Catholic who puts God’s Law and his conscience first.

At the same time, I worry how much pressure there is in the Catholic community on the Church Magisterium to water our doctrine down to accommodate the world and other religions.

Over the last few decades some practices, centuries old, have changed. Fasting Days in the Catholic Church were reduced some time ago. Holy Days of Obligation have been reduced as well. Homilies on sin or hell are remote and spare. Today, you see in some dioceses across the globe accepting same-sex marriages, inviting divorced and remarried Catholics without an annulment invited to receive Holy Communion and Protestant spouses of Catholics invited to receive with their spouses. And the beat goes on…

I just don’t see how becoming more like every other denomination is attracting more to the Catholic Church. What must attract people to the Catholic Faith is its authenticity to the Gospel, its sacraments, and its liturgy, the Mass. A watered down Catholic Church is a “lukewarm” Church.

Jesus was counter-cultural. “You have heard it said, but I say to you.” Jesus taught with authority. His authority came from the Father. “Who sees me, sees the Father.” Jesus founded a counter-cultural Church on Peter, the Rock and promised the Holy Spirit to guide it on earth from error. Catholic Church teaching condemns abortion, contraception, divorce and remarriage, same sex marriage and gender identity theory.

All right, so we pull ourselves up, tighten our belts, and go forward as soldiers of Christ. What can we expect? Jesus gave us the answer. “If the world hates you, realize that it hated me first….. If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. John 15:18 – 23 Well that isn’t very comforting is it? But why do we expect more than our Savior who gave His all for all of us?

Hold on, there is more…Jesus also tells us what happens if we persevere

to the end. “Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you because of me Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be great in heaven, they persecuted the prophets who were before you. Matthew 5:11

]Catholicism remains the staunchest opponent to the culture of the times. Our doctrines are stubborn things, even for some inside the Church who would like to change them. The Rock of Peter, whatever the human limitations may be. By God’s own promise, the gates of Hell slam against the Rock but cannot prevail.

REFLECTION

PHILLIPIANS 2:6-12

Taking the form of a slave,

coming in human likeness;^*

and found human in appearance

he humbled himself,

becoming obedient to death, even death on a cross.^*

Because of this, God greatly exalted him

and bestowed on him the name^*

that is above every name,

That at the name of Jesus

every knee should bend,^*

of those in heaven and on earth and under the earth

And every tongue confess that

Jesus Christ is Lord,

to the glory of God the Father.

ELECTIONDAY NOVEMBER 5 2024

CATHOLIC COMMENTARY

PRAYER BEFORE AN ELECTION

King of kings, we come before you to ask for your help. Give us your wisdom to elect leaders who will stand for us and who will lead by example.

Open our eyes to see what’s good for us as a nation. Let candidates respect the dignity of each and every human life, along the long continuum from conception to natural death.

Protect us from those who want leadership for selfish reasons, for power and financial gain at the expense of developing the nation.

I pray that you may scatter any plans set by the devil to disrupt the election process.

Let the candidates accept the outcome of the elections without creating tension and violence and your Holy Spirit guide us in our decision making. Amen.

FORMING A CATHOLIC CONSCIENCE

I will put my law within them, and I will write it upon their hearts” Jeremiah 31: 33

CATHOLIC CATECHISM

CCC 1776 “Deep within his conscience, man discovers a law which he has not laid upon himself but which he must obey. For man has in his heart a natural law inscribed by God. This natural law is inscribed in every human heart and mind by God.

CCC 1782 Man has the right to act in conscience and in freedom so as personally to make moral decisions. “He must not be forced to act contrary to his conscience. Nor must he be prevented from acting according to his conscience, especially in religious matters.”

CCC 1785 The Conscience must be informed. The education of the conscience is a lifelong task. In the formation of conscience, the Word of God is the light for our path!

COMMENTARY

For the last 50 years or so, Presidential Election have been a dilemma for Catholics. In 1980 Ronald Reagan declared he was Pro-life. Now we have Donald Trump declaring himself Pro-life. Neither Ronald Reagan or Donald Trump are pro-life but may be better described as anti-abortion.

Many people who call themselves ‘pro-life’ may just be against abortions. They may not care about the already born–the rights of gays. minorities, immigrants;— they may support the death penalty, and they care very little about nuclear weapons, war, the environment, and animal rights.

I ask you to not only consider abortion but also life issues for the already born which seems a lot harder for some to support. I suggest we reflect on Cardinal Bernardin 1983 Seamless Garment protocol.

SEAMLESS GARMENT

“Those who defend the right to life of the weakest among us must be equally visible in support of the quality of life of the powerless among us: the old and the young, the hungry and the homeless, the undocumented immigrant and the unemployed worker.

Today We know that Kamala Harris and the Democrat party are aggressively, unapologetically anti-life before birth. The Democratic party has called for abortion on demand through the full term of the pregnancy.

On the Republican side, the former President continually goes about demeaning and dismissing the human dignity of those already born.

In border disputes Trump won’t let into the country as refugees those not like him. Pope Francis rebukes this practice, “People who build walls are not Christians.

If you truly live your Catholic faith, you will not find complete alignment with any political party, and that is okay. look at how each party supports human life from conception through natural death, freedom of religion, the freedom of conscience, the family, and the poor.

Finally, do vote. Pope Francis in recent airline interview 9/23 …it is generally said that not voting is ugly, it’s not good. One must vote. And one must choose the lesser evil. Which is the lesser evil? That lady or that gentleman? I don’t know; each person must think and decide according to their own conscience

“Our defense of the innocent unborn needs to be clear, firm and passionate, for at stake is the dignity of a human life, which is always sacred and demands love for each person, regardless of his or her stage of development.

In 2018 Pope Francis spoke further of Pro-Life position in Encyclical Gaudete et Exsultate

Equally sacred are those already born, the lives of the poor the destitute, the abandoned and the underprivileged, the vulnerable infirm and elderly exposed to covert euthanasia, the victims of human trafficking, new forms of slavery, and every form of rejection”

—

Our kingdom is not on earth, provided by the state, but awaits us in heaven provided by God. The State is one thing; The Church is another. The First Amendment reads in part: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof

Pope Francis Gaudete et Exsultate, #101March 2018”

Christians from the very beginning lived, believed, and practiced their faith in the most pagan of societies. We must work hard to influence public policy that they conform more to God’s Laws and Jesus’ teachings but we must not despair if state institutions and secular society are not there yet.

The journey continues, homeward bound, practicing our faith with the grace of Jesus Christ and the guidance of the Holy Spirit to the beat of the old Christian hymn.

ONWARD CHRISTIAN SOLDIERS!

Onward, Christian soldiers, marching as to war,
with the cross of Jesus going on before.
Christ, the royal Master, leads against the foe;
forward into battle see his banners go!

Onward, Christian soldiers, marching as to war, with the cross of Jesus going on before.

saint francis of assisi

CATHOLIC FEAST DAYS

FRANCIS OF ASSISI

SAINT FRANCIS OF ASSISI FEAST DAY OCTOBER 4

INTRODUCTION

Thursday October 4 is the Feast Day of St. Francis of Assisi. Most of us know in general about Francis love for God’s creation, the animals, BROTHER sun, SISTER moon, and all that God has made. Many parishes will be blessing pets today. Pets are gifts from God to lift our spirits on our journey. Thank God for our pets!

BACKGROUND

In 1182, Francis was born to a wealthy cloth merchant of Assisi, Pietro Bernardone, and his French wife, the Lady Pica. Francis was a young man of charm and wit with a consuming desire to be a knight after the fashion of his heroes, the legendary knights’ errant of the court of King Arthur and the court of Charlemagne.

In his twentieth year, Francis rides off to battle against the neighboring city of Perugia. Assisi is routed and Francis is taken prisoner. While in prison, Francis becomes ill. Francis is ransomed by his Father and released from prison.

After imprisonment and ill health, the world had lost some of its splendor for Francis. It is in this desperate desolation that Francis begins to hear new voices within his old voices of vain glory and legendary tales of courtly love. God’s voice became louder and clearer.

One day Francis hears God’s voice, “Francis! if you wish to know my will… all that now seems sweet and lovely to you will become intolerable and bitter… but all that you used to avoid will turn itself to great sweetness and exceeding joy.”

Another time while praying in the chapel of San Damiano, Francis hears, “Francis repair my house which is falling into ruin.” Francis begins selling his Father’s goods to raise money for repairs then resorts to begging for stones of the townspeople. Enraged at his son’s begging, Pietro drags his son before the Bishop.

Francis strips himself of his clothes before the Bishop and lays them at his father’s feet and utters the most dramatic words of his life,

“Listen to me everybody! Until now I have called Pietro Bernardone my father. But now that I am determined to serve God, I return not only his money but all the clothes I have from him. From now on, I can walk naked before the Lord, no longer saying “my father,” Pietro Bernardone, but, ‘our Father who art in heaven!‘

Thus begins the journey of Francis from his father’s house to the house of his heavenly Father. For Francis the Heavenly Father is fully revealed in Jesus Christ and thus the journey home is in the footsteps of Jesus Christ. .

Francis began to understand better God’s call to “rebuild his Church” was more specific vocation to rebuild the spiritual life of the Church by bearing witness in imitation of Christ to the saving power of the Gospel

FRANCIS EMBRACES LEPER

One day Francis was riding across the plains of Assisi, he perceived a leper coming straight towards him. In Francis’ day a leper had to ring a bell and shout, “Unclean.” Society had embedded in Francis an incomparable loathing for all persons afflicted with this illness.

As Francis saw the leper approach his first reaction was horror then he remembered the resolve he made to attain perfection and to be a soldier of Christ meant victory over one self. Francis dismounted his horse, kissed the leper, and gave him alms.

In this decisive moment of illumination Francis suddenly perceived in this leper the embodiment of God’s beauty, a human being to be loved and cared for tenderly.

By embracing the leper, the Saint learned to embrace all people just as Jesus did. For Francis the meaning of Creation is found in the person of Jesus Christ. It is in and through Jesus Christ that we discover the meaning of our own humanity and that of every other creature.

ST FRANCIS ASSISI PEACE PRAYER

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace:

where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
where there is sadness, joy.

O divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek

to be consoled as to console,
to be understood as to understand,
to be loved as to love.

For it is in giving that we receive,
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.

PARABLES 3

SCRIPTURE

REJOICE WITH ME FOR I HAVE FOUND MY LOST SHEEP

LUKE 15:4-10

What man among you having a hundred sheep and losing one of them would not leave the ninety-nine in the desert and go after the lost one until he finds it?

And when he does find it, he sets it on his shoulders with great joy and, upon his arrival home, he calls together his friends and neighbors and says to them, ‘Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep.’

I tell you, in just the same way there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people who have no need of repentance.

THE GOOD SHEPHERD

REFLECTION

Jesus is a master story teller. In this parable Jesus tells the unbelievable story of a shepherd leaving most of his flock to search for one missing one who has probably been eaten by a wolf. That shepherd would soon be fired. But the point of God’s love for each and every one of us is unmistakable. Praise God!

What kind of God do we have that will go after just one person…Thank God who seeks until one finds God again.

He knocks until we open the door…no matter how far away or how long…God never stops calling us home…Hear Him…Listen to Him…

Repent and be saved…the kingdom of heaven is at hand…Come home…

PARABLE OF THE TALENTS

MATTHEW 25:14-30

“It will be as when a man who was going on a journey called in his servants and entrusted his possessions to them. To one he gave five talents; to another, two; to a third, one—to each according to his ability. Then he went away.

Immediately the one who received five talents went and traded with them, and made another five. Likewise, the one who received two made another two. But the man who received one went off and dug a hole in the ground and buried his master’s money.

After a long time the master of those servants came back and settled accounts with them. The one who had received five talents came forward bringing the additional five.^* He said, ‘Master, you gave me five talents. See, I have made five more.’

His master said to him, ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. Since you were faithful in small matters, I will give you great responsibilities. Come, share your master’s joy.’

Then the one who had received two talents also came forward and said, ‘Master, you gave me two talents. See, I have made two more.’His master said to him, ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. Since you were faithful in small matters, I will give you great responsibilities. Come, share your master’s joy.’

Then the one who had received the one talent came forward and said, ‘Master, I knew you were a demanding person, harvesting where you did not plant and gathering where you did not scatter; so out of fear I went off and buried your talent in the ground. Here it is back.’

His master said to him in reply, ‘You wicked, lazy servant!^* So you knew that I harvest where I did not plant and gather where I did not scatter? Should you not then have put my money in the bank so that I could have got it back with interest on my return?

Now then! Take the talent from him and give it to the one with ten. For to everyone who has, more will be given and he will grow rich; but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. And throw this useless servant into the darkness outside, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.

REFLECTION

God gives gifts to us according to our ability/personality and according to God’s plan for salvation…Do we bury these gifts…keep them for ourselves or are we light to the world…

God created us according to His Holy will.. each different with special gifts that display God’s glory…God’s gifts are super abundant…

What are my gifts…how am I sharing them…do I bury some….do I reject some…

Do I gift others…This little light will shine, Let it shine, Let it shine

Let us hear one day, ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. Enter my kingdom