WOMEN IN THE CHURCH

CATHOLIC CHURCH TEACHING, CATHOLIC COMMENTARY

A GREAT CLOUD OF WITNESSES HEBREWS 12:1

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses,

let us rid ourselves of every burden and sin that clings to us

and persevere in running the race that lies before us.

 INTRODUCTION

 This month of August we have celebrated two feasts of Mary Mother of God.  Mary is the model to all women saints in the great cloud of witnesses.  Mary’s devotion and prayer life was exemplar!

When she asked Jesus’ assistance at Cana wedding feast fully confident that Jesus would answer her and He did with gallons and gallons of good wine.  Mary is the best intercessor with Jesus and so are many of the women in our lives Grandmothers, Mothers, Sisters, Wives, Aunts…… Our mothers are praying for us right now because that is what mothers do.

 COMMENTARY

 Where would the Church be without Mother Mary, Mother Teresa,\Therese, the Little Flower,  Faustina,  Bernadette. Joan of Arc, and Clare of Assisi to name a few women in the “cloud of witnesses.”

There are certainly passages in the Old and New Testament that could be interpreted as painting women as less than equal to men.  But that was in a culture thousands of years ago in the Middle East.  We would have a better understanding of women’s place in God’s kingdom (Church) by focusing more on Jesus’ interchanges with women in the Gospels.

Jesus, himself, did not discriminate against women but engaged them in His Public Ministry: Jesus raised the widow’s son at a funeral procession in Nain Luke 7:11; Jesus healed the woman suffering years of blood loss Mark 5:24-34; and forgave the Woman caught in adultery John 8:1-11 without any discrimination.

Breaking the sexist and racial customs of his day, Jesus spoke with the Samaritan woman at the well, offering her “living water”

John 4:5-42.

JESUS AND THE SAMARITAN WOMAN AT THE WELL

To the degree that a Christian treats women in a discriminating or exploitive way, they separate themselves from Jesus Christ.  Jesus treated women with openness, respect, acceptance, and tenderness. In this way he honored the dignity that women have always possessed according to God’s plan

WOMEN MINISTRY IN THE CHURCH OF JESUS

Over 85 percent of those responsible for altar preparation are women. Over 75 percent of adult Bible study leaders and participants are women. Over 85 percent of those who lead or assist in ministries designed to help the poor, visit the sick, comfort the grieving, and minister to the handicapped are women.  

 PAUL LETTER TO EPHESIANS

Women have had a particular problem with St. Paul’s letter to the Ephesians 5:22-25 that talks about wives being subordinate to husbands, kind of a poor way to put it for 21st century folks.  Early Church Fathers said that Scripture can be rightly interpreted in a variety of ways, but that any understanding of a passage that undermined love of God or love of neighbor ought to be rejected.

Paul is really not placing women in a slavish role to their husbands but trying to compare a marriage couple to the Church the bride, and Christ the bridegroom.  The key verse is verse 25, “Husbands love your wives, even as Christ loved the church and handed himself over for her”

The Catholic Church teaches the proper recipient of Holy Orders is a baptized male as Jesus is.  The reservation of priestly ordination to men is perhaps the grievance most often brought up by critics of the Church. The Church does not discriminate against women. Are women less holy than men, of course not, less intellectually capable, of course not?

While on earth, Jesus ordained only men, Women were among the earliest and most courageous followers of Jesus, yet he did not call them to be among the Twelve. Even his own Mother, who according to Catholic belief is the greatest human person in all of history, was not among the Twelve nor ordained a priest.

Jesus’ Church today cannot go beyond Jesus.  Some will argue it is a cultural thing.  We don’t live in First Century Middle East.  But as I stated earlier Jesus was not bound by the usual social norms and broke them all the time.  Also women priestesses of pagan gods were common place in the time of Jesus.

 CONCLUSION

The First Letter to the Corinthians (I Corinthians 12:12) indicates, just as the human body has different members and each member a different purpose, so, too, the various parts of the body of Christ have many missions, prophets, teachers, healers, helpers, administrators…, all essential, valuable, and vital for life of Church, Christ’s Body.

 The bottom line is this…. most saints in heaven are not ordained clergy. The layperson can participate actively and fully in the Church as a layperson, and may they do so with vigor and zeal! The Spirit bestows different gifts on different people. Below are just a few women saints that have gone before us and pray as intercessors.

St Monica Model of Prayer

St Monica the Mother of St. Augustine is remembered and honored for her outstanding Christian virtues of grieving mothers, difficult marriages, victims of abuse and conversion of relatives.

St Therese of Lisieux (Little Flower)

Model of Faith

 At the heart of Therese’s understanding of the spiritual life is the principle that holiness can be appreciated and accomplished not only in the performance of mighty deeds but in a willing surrender to the purposes of God as we engage the seemingly ordinary experiences of life.

Mother Theresa of Calcutta Model of Works

St Theresa did amazing works of charity…feeding the poor. nursing the sick and housing the homeless through her order, The Missionaries of Charity, for over 45 years.

 

 

 

 

 

 

MARY QUEEN OF HEAVEN FEAST DAY AUGUST 22

CATHOLIC FEAST DAYS, MARY MOTHER OF GOD

                                                              MARY CROWNED QUEEN OF HEAVEN AND EARTH

INTRODUCTION

 Centuries before the birth of Christ, Isaiah foretold the coming of the Messiah-King: “A child is born to us [he said], a son is given to us; upon his shoulder dominion rests. They name him Wonder-Counselor, God-Hero, Father-Forever, Prince of Peace”… This Messiah would be in the royal line of David, and his reign would have no end Isaiah. 9:6-7.

Jesus Christ is the Messiah, the Son of David who came to fulfill the Davidic Kingdom. The whole point of the genealogy in the beginning of Matthew’s Gospel is to show Jesus is royalty; he is the heir to David’s throne. Matthew 1:1

When the angel Gabriel appears to Mary, he explicitly links the birth of the child to the fulfillment of God’s promise to King David:

The angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus.

 He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end. Luke 1:26-33

 First century Jews would have known, under the reign of David’s royal family, the kingdom was ruled by both a King and a Queen. Unlike in modern-day kingdoms, however, the queen of Israel was not the king’s wife but his mother. She was known as the “Queen Mother.”

The pre-eminence of the king’s mother may seem odd from our modern Western perspective, In the Near East, however, most ancient Near-Eastern kings practiced polygamy. King Solomon had seven hundred wives 1 Kings.11:3

Imagine the chaos in the royal court if all seven hundred were awarded the Queen-ship! But since each king had only one mother, one can see the practical wisdom in bestowing the Queen-ship upon her. In the historical books of the Old Testament, the Queen mother holds a position of great honor.

According to the Old Testament, the Queen mother was also a powerful intercessor with her son, the king.  In Hebrew tradition, Mary is Queen Mother. Mary’s royal office is made even more explicit in Luke’s account of the Visitation. Elizabeth greets Mary with the title “the mother of my Lord” Luke 1:43. Elizabeth is recognizing the great dignity of Mary’s role as the royal mother of the king, Jesus

In the royal court language of the ancient Near East, the title “Mother of my Lord” was used to address the Queen mother of the reigning king (who himself was addressed as “my Lord”  2 Sam. 24:21.

In the last book of the Bible, Book of Revelation, we have the confirmation of what prophets and evangelists have been writing for centuries. a woman clothed with the sun and wearing a crown of stars is standing above the moon and the stars “in heaven.” Revelation 12:1

 Just as Jesus is a heavenly King who reigns over a heavenly kingdom, so Mary, Jesus’ mother, can rightly be described as Queen of the kingdom of heaven.

REFLECTION

 What God has accomplished in Mother Mary, He also wants to accomplish in us. From Heaven, Mary encourages each of us to say Yes to God’s plan for our lives just as she did so long ago.

Understanding Mary as Queen mother sheds light on her important intercessory role with Jesus, her Son. Just like the queen mother of the Davidic kingdom, Mary serves as advocate for the people in the Kingdom of God today.

Mary helps us to share in the Lord’s victory over sin. Rising above those sins, we begin to acquire self-mastery, true purity of heart, and a newfound ability to give ourselves to others in love and in service. All of this is who Mary is and why she reigns in Heaven.  There is no better intercessor than the Queen Mother! Mary awaits us! Bring us safely home, Mary! Amen!

Regina Caeli – Queen of Heaven

Queen of heaven, rejoice. Alleluia.  Pray to God for us, Alleluia.

O God, it was by the Resurrection of your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, that you brought joy to the world.

Grant through the intercession of the Virgin Mary, his Mother, we may attain the joy of eternal life.

Through Christ, our Lord. Amen.

 

FEAST OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY ASSUMPTION INTO HEAVEN

CATHOLIC FEAST DAYS, MARY MOTHER OF GOD

DORMITION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY

BACKGROUND

 The Feast of the Assumption is the oldest Marian feast of the Catholic Church, celebrated universally by the sixth century. The feast was originally celebrated in the East, where it was known as the Feast of the Dormition, a word which means “the falling asleep.”

For two centuries after the death of Christ, under pagan rule, every memory of Jesus was obliterated from the city of Jerusalem. The sites made holy by His life, death and Resurrection became pagan temples. It wasn’t until the time of Roman Emperor Constantine (c. 285-337) that Jerusalem began to be restored as a sacred city.

One of the memories about his Mother Mary centered around the “Tomb of Mary,” where she was buried, close to Mount Zion, the highest point in ancient Jerusalem.

Also on the Mount was the “Place of Dormition,” the spot of Mary’s “falling asleep,” (where she had “died.) These two sites do suggest in tradition that Mary apparently died and was buried,

At the Council of Chalcedon in 451, Emperor Marcian asked the Patriarch of Jerusalem to bring the relics of Mary to Constantinople to be enshrined in the capitol. The patriarch explained to the emperor that there were no relics of Mary in Jerusalem that “Mary had died in the presence of the apostles; but her tomb, when opened later, was found empty and so the apostles concluded that the body was taken up into heaven.”

Did Mary actually die or was she assumed into heaven alive?  We don’t have a definitive answer to that question but as Catholics we are free to believe either.

What we must believe according to the teaching authority of the Church (Magisterium) is: Mary, having completed the course of her earthly life, was assumed body and soul into heaven, without seeing corruption.

 CATHOLIC CHURCH TEACHING

The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, which we celebrate on August 15, is a defined Church dogma. In 1950, Pope Pius XII defined the dogma of the Assumption ex cathedra—that is, an authoritative teaching “from the chair” of Peter.

Pope Pius XII proclaimed the Assumption of Mary a dogma in these words, “The Immaculate Mother of God, the ever-virgin Mary, having completed the course of her earthly life, was assumed body and soul into heaven, without seeing corruption.

REFLECTION

Mary did not ascend into heaven like her Son did under His own power, but was taken up to heaven by God.  The Assumption completes God’s work in Mary since it was not fitting that the flesh that had given life to God himself should ever undergo corruption.

On this feast of Assumption, we celebrate Mary’s entrance into heaven, body and soul. Though our bodies are corrupted in death unlike Mary, one day our bodies will be restored. Our bodies, created by God, are sacred and are essential to our human nature. “….

In The Feast of the Assumption, we look to eternity.  This life on earth is temporal and for the most part filled with suffering and grief. We look forward to life after death. Thank God that this is not all there is! This feast gives us hope that we, too will follow Our Lady when our life here on earth ends.

Wherever there is an out-stretched hand in labor for others we are participating in the grace and mystery of Mary’s Assumption.  As God lifted Mary up, God awaits those we lift in our labors. and we, the lifters as well.  Our heavenly home awaits!

 At present we see indistinctly, as in a mirror, but then face to face. At present I know partially; then I shall know fully, as I am fully known. I Corinthians 13:9-13 We have made it home!

Mary’s assumption is proof of how we will be rewarded for the sacrifices we make here on earth- By giving up now on earth what we like but what is sinful, and enduring what is painful to us but pleasing to God, we shall enjoy Heaven with Jesus and Mary – body and soul – in the world to come.

PRAYER

“All-powerful and ever-living God:

You raised the sinless Virgin Mary, mother of your Son, body and soul, to the glory of heaven.

May we see heaven as our final goal and come to share her glory.”

In Jesus’ name we pray.

The Immaculate Mother of God, the ever-virgin Mary,

 having completed the course of her earthly life,

was assumed body and soul into heaven,

without seeing corruption.

POPE PIUS XII

 

 

CATHOLIC CHURCH TEACHING SOCIAL JUSTICE

CATHOLIC CHURCH TEACHING, SOCIAL JUSTICE

PROLOGUE

The Catholic Church from the time of Jesus has a long history of promoting social justice. The early Christians took care of one another in community, looked after the common good, loved each other and prayed together.

 “All who believed were together and had all things in common they would sell their property and possessions and divide them among all according to each one’s need. Every day they devoted themselves to meeting together in the temple area and to breaking bread in their homes… praising God and enjoying favor with all the people. And every day the Lord added to their number those who were being saved.”

Book of Acts 2:42-45

 SCRIPTURE

“Anyone who says I love God and hates his neighbor is a liar; for whoever does not love a brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen.” I John 4:20

What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works?…If a brother or sister has nothing to wear and has no food for the day, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, keep warm, and eat well,” but you do not give them the necessities of the body, what good is it? Faith without works is dead.” James 2:14-17

 “I give you a new commandment: love one another. As I have loved you, so you also should love one another.  This is how all will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”  John 13:34-35

 CATHECHISM OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH

 

REFLECTION

 No one person receives the same talents and gifts but all talents and gifts are present in the body of Christ so that no one is left behind materially or spiritually. In other words, Catholic Social Justice teaching calls on us the “people of God” to minister to our neighbor’s needs, to speak out against injustice, and to work for peace.

 CCC #1934 Created in the image of the one God and equally endowed with rational souls, all men have the same nature and the same origin. Redeemed by the sacrifice of Christ, all are called to participate in the same divine beatitude: all therefore enjoy an equal dignity.

 CCC #1936 On coming into this world man is not equipped with everything he needs for developing his bodily and spiritual life.  He needs others.  Talents and gifts are not distributed equally, “There are different kinds of spiritual gifts but the same Spirit; there are different forms of service but the same Lord; there are different workings but the same God who produces all of them in everyone…Corinthians chapter 12:4-7

 CCC #1937 These differences belong to God’s divine plan who wills that each receives what he needs from others and those endowed with particular talents share them with those who need them.  These differences encourage and sometimes oblige persons to practice generosity, kindness, and sharing of goods.

 COMMENTARY

 In these turbulent times I am going to focus today on the subject of Racism.  I have been a social justice advocate all my adult life. have led protests/demonstrations against racial injustice. immoral wars and to abolish the death penalty “Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me” Matthew 25:40.

In this presidential election year racism has raised its ugly head more than once. Race, ethnicity. and whether you were born in America. It reminds us of the Charlotteville march by KKK shouting Jews will not replace us! Former President Trump when asked to comment said, there were good people on both sides!

RACISM

 Racism is not merely one sin among many.  It is the Original Sin of our Country.  Our country was built on slave labor and the genocide of Native Americans. That is a fact whether we like it or not.

Racism is a radical evil that divides the human family blots out the image of God among specific members of that family, and violates the fundamental human dignity of those called to be children of the same Father.

With more and more limited resources. the poor and racial minorities are being asked to bear the heaviest burden of the new economic pressures. As economic pressures tighten, those people who are often black, Hispanic, Native American and Asian, the marginalized poor, slip further into the unending cycle of poverty, deprivation, and disease, .

REFLECTION

In Christ Jesus “there does not exist among you Jew or Greek, slave or freedom, male or female. All are one in Christ Jesus.” Galatians 3:28  No one wants to think of themselves as a racist and most people are not.  But an examination of conscience might be in order to see the extent that racial bias affects our personal attitudes and judgments.

I know over the years if I had an unpleasant experience with a person of color, I might be inclined to let that “color” my opinions leading to prejudging and perhaps avoiding such a person in the future.  Racism is insidious as it might sneak up on us before we are aware and take steps to mitigate any generalization about a race. As disciples of Jesus we do our best to influence the attitudes of others by expressly rejecting racial stereotypes, racial slurs and racial jokes.

If we want peace, we must work for justice – here at home and around the world. Lasting peace is the effect of charity. There is no real peace without forgiveness… If we want peace, we must let go of our desire for revenge, we must be willing to let old wounds heal through the saving grace of God’s love.

Prayer to Overcome Racism

We are called to be one people, sisters and brothers to each other.

Mary our Mother, we ask for your help in obtaining the grace we need to overcome the evil of racism and to build a just society.

We pray that prejudice and animosity will no longer infect our minds or hearts

but will be replaced with a love that respects the dignity of each person. Mary Mother of us all, pray for us. Amen

 

EPHESIANS CHAPTER 2-1-8;13-19

CATHOLIC LETTERS, SCRIPTURE

THE GOSPEL OF SALVATION

You were dead in your transgressions and sins….But God, who is rich in mercy, because of the great love he had for us even when we were dead in our transgressions, brought us to life with Christ* by grace you have been saved….

raised us up with him, and seated us with him in the heavens in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in his kindness to us in Christ Jesu….

For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not from you; it is the gift of God; it is not from works, so no one may boast.  For we are his handiwork, created in Christ Jesus for the good works that God has prepared in advance, that we should live in them.

One in Christ.

Now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have become near by the blood of Christ. For he is our peace… who broke down the dividing wall of enmity, through his flesh…

He came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near

for through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father.

So then you are no longer strangers and sojourners, but you are with the holy ones. members of the household of God….

REFLECTION

He came and preached peace to you who were far and near

Peace be with you! More than anything we need peace in our heart.  When we are filled with angst and distress something is wrong.  Pray to God to find it and fix it!

Amazing Grace! How Great thou Art!

Amazing grace (how sweet the sound)
that saved a wretch like me!
I once was lost, but now am found…

God shows his love for us in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us. Romans 5:8

God does not wait. Thank God we have a God who loves us so much just the way we are.  Blessed be God!

God Saves! We do not save ourselves.

There is only one Savior, Jesus Christ Incarnate.

“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 6:23

Lord, I give myself to you. I receive your forgiveness gladly and ask you to take your rightful place in my life as my Savior and Lord, fill me with your love and your life.  

PARABLES OF JESUS 1

SCRIPTURE

THE PRODIGAL SON LUKE 15:11-24

A man had two sons, and the younger son said to his father, ‘Father, give me the share of your estate that should come to me.’ So the father divided the property between them. 

After a few days, the younger son collected all his belongings and set off to a distant country where he squandered his inheritance on a life of dissipation.  When he had freely spent everything, a severe famine struck that country, and he found himself in dire need.  So he hired himself out to one of the local citizens who sent him to his farm to tend the swine. 

And he longed to eat his fill of the pods on which the swine fed, but nobody gave him any.  Coming to his senses he thought, ‘How many of my father’s hired workers have more than enough food to eat, but here am I, dying from hunger.

I shall get up and go to my father and I shall say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you.  I no longer deserve to be called your son; treat me as you would treat one of your hired workers.”‘

So he got up and went back to his father.  While he was still a long way off, his father caught sight of him, and was filled with compassion.

He ran to his son, embraced him and kissed him. His son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you; I no longer deserve to be called your son.’

But his father ordered his servants, ‘Quickly bring the finest robe and put it on him; put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet.

Take the fattened calf and slaughter it. Then let us celebrate with a feast, because this son of mine was dead, and has come to life again; he was lost, and has been found.’

REFLECTION:

‘Father, give me the share of your estate that should come to me

This son has no right to any inheritance he might receive after his father’s death.  Do we make demands for things we have no right to?

he squandered his inheritance on a life of dissipation.

Do we squander the graces we receive from God?

Coming to his senses…I shall get up and go to my father and I shall say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you

REPENT AND BELIEVE IN THE GOSPEL! Turn back to god.

While he was still a long way off, his father caught sight of him, and was filled with compassion

The Father in this parable is longing for his son’s return the same way God thirsts for us.  

the Father clothed him in the finest garment and ordered a feast for this son who was dead and has come to life again…he was lost and has been found….

so it is with God when we turn from sin and return to the Father…He places a wedding garment on our shoulders and welcomes us to the feast….

THE SOWER AND THE SEED MARK 4:2-8

In those days Jesus departed to the mountain to pray, and he spent the night in prayer to God.  When day came, he called his disciples to himself, and from them he chose Twelve. 

Jesus taught them at length in parables, and in the course of his instruction he said to them,

“Hear this!  A sower went out to sow.  And as he sowed, some seed fell on the path, and the birds came and ate it up. Other seed fell on rocky ground where it had little soil.

It sprang up at once because the soil was not deep. And when the sun rose, it was scorched and it withered for lack of roots.

 Some seed fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked it and it produced no grain. And some seed fell on rich soil and produced fruit.  It came up and grew and yielded thirty, sixty, and a hundredfold.” 

 REFLECTION:

Jesus sows the word…those sown on rocky ground receive it at once with joy… but when tribulation or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away….

Those sown among thorns are the people who hear the word, but the lure of riches, and the craving for other things intrude and choke the word, and it bears no fruit…

but those sown on rich soil are the ones who hear the word and accept it and bear fruit thirty and sixty and a hundredfold…

Does the word bear fruit in my life? … How?

What must I do to enrich my soil…that I may bear fruit?

 

FEAST OF ST, MARY MAGDALENE JULY 22

CATHOLIC FEAST DAYS

 

MARY MAGDALENE WASHES JESUS FEET

“Your faith has saved you; go in peace!” Luke 7:44-50

 In the 6th Century, Saint Pope Gregory the Great identified St. Mary Magdalen as the woman who anointed Christ’s feet with perfume in the home of Simon the Pharisee

Then he turned to the woman and said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? When I entered your house, you did not give me water for my feet, but she has bathed them with her tears and wiped them with her hair.

You did not give me a kiss, but she has not ceased kissing my feet since the time I entered. You did not anoint my head with oil, but she anointed my feet with ointment;….He said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.” The others at table said to themselves, “Who is this who even forgives sins?” But he said to the woman, your faith has saved you; go in peace!” Luke 7:44-50

 REFLECTION

 Instead of addressing His critics, Jesus addresses the repentant woman and praises her for her great love and faith and sends her on her way sanctified and redeemed.  From that moment, Mary Magdalen became a faithful disciple and witness all the way to Calvary.

REPENTANCE AND REDEMPTION

Her Faith has saved her not on her own but through the grace of God.  Pray for that faith.

Jesus asks Simon, “Do you see this woman? Jesus has told us “they have eyes but do not see and ears yet they do not hear” Mark 8:18

Pray for a discerning heart to see the world as Jesus sees it.

THE CRUCIFIXON

 …by the cross of Jesus were his mother and Mary of Magdala.

John 19:25

Mary Magdalene remained faithful all the way through the Passion of Jesus.  Can I remain faithful through pain and suffering?

 Do I embrace Jesus on the cross or avert my eyes from His passion and death?

PRAYER:

 We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you because by your holy cross you have redeemed the world. Be you imitators of Christ and walk in love, as Christ loved us and delivered himself up for us. May God have pity on us and bless us, may he let his face to shine upon us.

Mary Magdalene followed the burial of Jesus to the tomb and saw where He was buried, and came on Sunday to anoint Him. She was rewarded with His appearance and commissioned to go evangelize and spread the Good News that He is Risen! 

DO NOT CLING TO ME

John 20:17

 Jesus said to her, “Stop holding on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am going to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God. Mary then went and announced to the apostles, “I have seen the Lord, and what he told her”. John 20: 15-18

 REFLECTION

 When Jesus speaks to Mary Magdalene after the resurrection, “Do not cling to me.” John 20:17.  Jesus invites us along with Mary Magdalene to enter into the experience of faith which goes beyond what can be discovered by our “senses.”

  “Blessed are those who have not seen and believe.”  John 20:29

Mary Magdalene was the first witness to the Resurrection, and is the one who announced the event to the Apostles. “Saint Mary Magdalene is an example of true and authentic evangelization; she is an evangelist who announces the joyful central message of Easter,” He is Risen!

Do I evangelize?

Our first parents, Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden spread death where there was life.  Mary Magdalene    in the garden of the Resurrection announced life from the Holy Sepulchre, a place of death. The first spread death where there was life; the second announced life from a sepulchre, the place of death.

 

FEAST OF OUR LADY OF MOUNT CARMEL JULY 16

CATHOLIC FEAST DAYS, MARY MOTHER OF GOD

 

OUR LADY OF MOUNT CARMEL

PRAY FOR US!

 What does Mary, the Mother of God have to do with Carmel and why a feast day?  Good question.  When Jesus saw his mother* and the disciple there whom he loved, he said to his mother, “Woman, behold, your son, Then he said to the disciple, “Behold, your mother.” John 19:17 From all eternity God chose Mary as the means to bring Christ into the world. Through the maternal care of Mary, her children grow in love and the zeal for the salvation of souls. Love is the “heart” of Carmel. 

Eve, through her disobedience, brought sin into the world. Mary, through her obedience brought salvation.  On July 16, 1251, Mary appeared to St. Simon Stock, Prior of the Carmelite order. St. Simon Stock had prayed fervently to the Blessed Mother for assistance as the Order of Carmel was enduring difficulties.  Our Lady appeared to him, holding the Brown Scapular in her hands, saying to him,, “This will be the sign of the privilege that I have obtained for thee and for the children of Carmel; whoever dies clothed with this habit will be preserved from the eternal flames”

  BACKGROUND

 Mt. Carmel is located in Palestine between Tyre and Caesarea about 20 miles from Nazareth, home of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph.  The prophet Elijah witnessed God’s triumph over the pagan gods of Ba’aal.  In the Transfiguration on Mount Tabor, it was the Prophet Elijah and the lawmaker, Moses who appeared with Jesus who is the fulfillment of the Law and the Prophets.  Carmel is the place where not only prophets, Elijah and Elisha, lived and prayed but many hermits after them lived lives of prayer and sacrifice.

 

MOUNT CARMEL

ELIJAH

In the Old Testament Elijah is first mentioned in 1 Kings 17:1 and is last seen in 2 Kings 2:13 when he is taken up to heaven in a fiery chariot. Elijah was the prophet and instrument of God to preserve the true religion of Israel.  Elijah preached conversion and repentance and turning away from pagan gods.

The people of Israel had apparently become comfortable worshiping both the pagan god Baal and the Lord, perhaps assigning mutually exclusive spheres of influence to each. By claiming authority over the rain 1 Kings 17:1; 18:1, the Lord was challenging Baal’s power in Baal’s own domain. The entire drought story becomes explicit in 18:21–40 This is a struggle between the Lord and Baal for the loyalties of the people of Israel.

Ahab summoned all the Israelites and had the prophets 0f Baal together at Mount Carmel. And Elijah came near to all the people and said, “How long will you go limping between two different opinions? If the Lord is God, follow him; but if Baal, then follow him.” And the people did not answer him a word. So Elijah said to the people, “I am the only remaining prophet of the LORD, and there are four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal.

Elijah prayed to the Lord

 Answer me, LORD! that this people may know that you, LORD, are God and that you have turned their hearts back to you.”The LORD’s fire came down and devoured the burnt offering, wood, stones, and dust, and lapped up the water in the trench. Seeing this, all the people fell prostrate and said, “The LORD is God! The LORD is God! Then Elijah said to them, “Seize the prophets of Baal. Let none of them escape!

SEIZE PROPHETS OF BAAL

1 KINGS 18-20

 

Elijah is the founder patriarch of the Order of Carmel. His charism reveals a singular devotion and love for Our Lord, zeal for the salvation of souls and a deep life of prayer.  St. John the Baptist bridged the Old to the New Testament, as he lived the spirit of Carmel in the desert as a hermit.

In silence and solitude, John the Baptist prepared the way for the Lord. The Spirit of Carmel allows the love of God to increase in us, so that like St. John the Baptist, we too can say, “He must increase, I must decrease” John 3:30

 CARMELITE SPIRITUALITY

 Humility and dependence on God is central to Carmelite Spirituality. The first rule of the Carmelites was written by St. Albert Avogadro between the years 1206 – 1214. In the 16th century, St. Teresa of Jesus (Avila) and St. John of the Cross (both from Spain) inaugurated a reform of the Carmelite Order, aimed at returning to the original observance of the primitive Carmelite rule established by St. Albert.

. “Then the LORD said to Elijah: Go out and stand on the mountain before the LORD;* the LORD will pass by. There was a strong and violent wind rending the mountains and crushing rocks before the LORD—but the LORD was not in the wind; after the wind, an earthquake—but the LORD was not in the earthquake; after the earthquake, fire—but the LORD was not in the fire; after the fire, a light silent sound. When he heard this, Elijah hid his face in his cloak and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave.”

I Kings:19: 11-13

Both Sts. Teresa of Avila and John of the Cross teach us that God, the Blessed Trinity, dwells within the human person. Hence, one need not go out of self in search for God but enter progressively ever deeper within oneself to be with God who dwells at the very center of our being.  Carmelite spirituality proposes silence and solitude as necessary pre-requisites for prayer and contemplation. Silence refers not only to external noise but also to the stilling of one’s internal noises. Silence is the condition for listening attentively to the still small voice of God

 REFLECTIONS

In order to approach God more intimately, we must humbly approach Him, detached from other attachments that act as a barrier to God filling us with Himself.

What barriers do we have standing in the way of God?

Silence and special places can assist us in our prayer time to deepen our relationship with Jesus and His Father.

Do we have that silent place reserved for God and me?

Carmelite Spirituality also focuses on austerity as a means of freeing one-self from the tyranny of self-will, simplifying one’s life, and preserving all of one’s energy for journeying to God. Not my will but thy will be done! Luke 22:42

How am I imitating Jesus with his father at Gethsemane?

Carmelite spirituality is not just about self-salvation but the salvation of others as their prayers include all of us that all may be one in the Spirit and homeward bound.

I am called to evangelize.  How am I doing?

God must increase and I must decrease.

How is that happening?

Listen to that small quiet voice of the Spirit and pray for discernment.

What is that voice really telling me?   It may not be what I wanted to hear or expected.  Sometimes it even says wait awhile.

Mary is our maternal mother. Mary gave us the brown scapular that we might be clothed with Jesus as we were at our Baptisms.

Have I looked into obtaining a brown scapular?

 

 

 

 

MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD OF JESUS MONTH OF JULY

CATHOLIC FEAST DAYS

 

BEHOLD THE LAMB OF GOD

WHO TAKES AWAY THE SINS OF THE WORLD

JOHN 1:29

BACKGROUND

The next day John the Baptist saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God,* who takes away the sin of the world.  John 1:29 John points to Jesus as the one who has come to be sacrificed for our salvation.

Devotion to the Most Precious Blood of Jesus is as old as Christianity. The early Fathers say that the Church was born from the pierced side of Christ, and that the sacraments were brought forth through His Blood.

Just as Eve, the mother of all life, was taken from the side of Adam, the Church and all the life-giving sacraments flow from the pierced side of Jesus.

In the first century, Pope St. Clement I wrote “Let us fix our gaze on the Blood of Christ and realize how truly precious it is; it was poured out for our salvation and brought the grace of conversion to the whole world. This sacrifice is repeated in every Eucharistic celebration.

 REFLECTION

 The Bible regards blood as the symbol and source of life. “For the life of every creature is its blood: its blood is its life. Leviticus 17:14  The lifeblood of a sacrificial animal offered in sacrifice represented the life of the individual making atonement.

In the book of Leviticus chapter 16 we are told the story of the scapegoat. Two goats are brought to the temple high-priest for sacrifice. He sends one off into wilderness with the sins of the people to die alone and the other goat, without blemish, he will sacrifice and sprinkle its blood on the temple and on the worshippers.

God’s holiness and justice demands atonement. Atonement for our offense against God requires a perfect, spotless sacrifice.  Jesus Christ is that perfect sacrifice, human and divine… he was pierced for our sins, crushed for our iniquity. He bore the punishment that makes us whole, by his wounds we were healed. Isaiah 53:5

This is My blood, the blood of the covenant,

which is poured out for many for forgiveness of sins.” 

Matthew 26:28

PRAYER 

Lord Jesus, You became Man that you might suffer your Passion and Death

even to the draining of your most precious blood so you might prove to us your love for us. 

 Protect us, dear Jesus.  Strengthen our weak human wills so that we will not run away from the cross,

but welcome every opportunity to shed our blood in spirit in union with your Precious Blood,

so that, dying to ourselves in time, we might live with You in Eternity  Amen

 

 

 

 

EPHESIANS CHAPTER 1

SCRIPTURE

Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, to the holy ones who are [in Ephesus] faithful in Christ Jesus: grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

The Father’s Plan of Salvation. 5-6

GOD THE CREATOR

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavens, he chose us in him, before the foundation of the world, to be holy and without blemish…

In love he destined us for adoption to himself through Jesus Christ, in accord with the favor of his will, for the praise of the glory of his grace that he granted us in the beloved.

Fulfillment through Christ. 7-10                  

GOD SO LOVED THE WORLD

In him we have redemption by his blood, the forgiveness of transgressions, in accord with the riches of his grace that he lavished upon us.

In all wisdom and insight, he has made known to us the mystery* of his will in accord with his favor that he set forth in him…

Inheritance through the Spirit. 11-14

COME HOLY SPIRIT

…In him you also, have heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and have believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, which is the first installment* of our inheritance toward redemption as God’s possession, to the praise of his glory.

REFLECTION

In this first chapter of a letter to the Ephesians, Paul calls to mind the Most Blessed Trinity, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, one God in three Persons.

At the Council of Nicea 325 and Constantinople 381, the Bishops of the world declared definitively that Jesus the Word made Flesh was the same substance as the Father and that the Holy Spirit was the Lord and giver of Life proceeding from the Father and the Son

From all eternity, without beginning there is One God in three Divine Persons.  It is a mystery of our Faith that we can never fully comprehend or exhaust but we are able to speak about it.

How do you relate to the Father??? to the Son??? To the Holy Spirit???

If a man loves me, says the Lord, he will keep my word and my Father will love him and we will come to him and make our home with him, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.” John 17:21-23

Is our home (self) ready to receive the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit? If not, what house cleaning must we do?

CLOSING PRAYER

Most Holy and Blessed Trinity we acknowledge you as the central mystery of our Faith.  Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, you are one God in Three Persons.  Let this mystery of our faith not confound us but draw us into the abiding love you have for each other and for us, in Jesus’ name we pray!