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!

MIRACLES OF JESUS

MIRACLES OF JESUS, MIRACLES OF JESUS, SCRIPTURE

                             

JESUS HEALS THE PARALYTIC

MARK 2:1-12

When Jesus returned to Capernaum after some days, it became known that he was at home. Many gathered together so that there was no longer room for them, not even around the door, and he preached the word to them. They came bringing to him a paralytic carried by four men.

Unable to get near Jesus because of the crowd, they opened up the roof above him. After they had broken through, they let down the mat on which the paralytic was lying.

When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Child, your sins are forgiven.” Now some of the scribes were sitting there asking themselves, Why does this man speak that way?* He is blaspheming.

Who but God alone can forgive sins?” Jesus immediately knew in his mind what they were thinking to themselves, so he said, “Why are you thinking such things in your hearts?

Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Rise, pick up your mat and walk’?  But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority to forgive sins on earth”— he said to the paralytic, “I say to you, rise, pick up your mat, and go home.”

He rose, picked up his mat at once, and went away in the sight of everyone. They were all astounded and glorified God, saying, “We have never seen anything like this.”

REFLECTION

Many gathered around the place of Jesus so there was no room anymore…so many needs…one messiah and healer…Where there is a will there is a way…Trust in Jesus

Perseverance in prayer and faithfulness pays off in the end…when Jesus saw their faith He said, “Child your sins are forgiven.”…

WHY SINS? Why not? Sins are the cause for a fallen broken world. Nothing weighs as heavily as unrepentant sin.

Jesus left the crowd astounded and in awe of His authority Are we astounded and in awe of Jesus’ power and mercy?

MULTIPLICATION OF THE LOAVES AND FISHES

JOHN 6:5-15

When Jesus raised his eyes and saw that a large crowd was coming to him, he said to Philip, “Where can we buy enough food for them to eat?”  He said this to test him, because he himself knew what he was going to do.

Philip answered him, “Two hundred days’ wages worth of food would not be enough for each of them to have a little (bit).”  One of his disciples, Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, said to him, “There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish; but what good are these for so many?”  Jesus said, “Have the people recline.”

Now there was a great deal of grass in that place. So the men reclined, about five thousand in number. 

Then Jesus took the loaves, gave thanks, and distributed them to those who were reclining, and also as much of the fish as they wanted.  When they had had their fill, he said to his disciples, “Gather the fragments left over, so that nothing will be wasted.”  So they collected them, and filled twelve wicker baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves that had been more than they could eat.

REFLECTION

Jesus saw the needs of the people without being told…Jesus sees our needs too…do we seek Jesus when in need?

Jesus took the loaves and gave thanks…Jesus is always thankful to the Father…Jesus trusts the Father…Are we thankful each day for all God’s gifts

Those in the crowd had their fill…there was much left over…our God is a God of abundance…. give thanks to God for He is good…

Are we generous in our gifts to others…plus our time, our empathy,

THE RAISING OF LAZARUS FROM THE DEAD

JOHN 16-27

IF YOU HAD BEEN HERE!

(Jesus said to his disciples,) “Our friend Lazarus is asleep, but I am going to awaken him.”  So the disciples said to him, “Master, if he is asleep, he will be saved.” But Jesus was talking about his death, while they thought that he meant ordinary sleep.  So then Jesus said to them clearly, “Lazarus has died.  And I am glad for you that I was not there, that you may believe. Let us go to him.”…

When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went to meet him…Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.  (But) even now I know that whatever you ask of God, God will give you.” 

Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise.”  Martha said to him, “I know he will rise, in the resurrection on the last day.”  Jesus told her, “I am the resurrection and the life; whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?”  She said to him, “Yes, Lord. I have come to believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God…

Jesus said, “Take away the stone…So they took away the stone. And Jesus raised his eyes and said, “Father, I thank you for hearing me.  I know that you always hear me; but because of the crowd here I have said this, that they may believe that you sent me.”  And when he had said this, he cried out in a loud voice,

LAZARUS COME OUT

The dead man came out, tied hand and foot with burial bands, and his face was wrapped in a cloth. So Jesus said to them, “Untie him and let him go.”  Now many of the Jews who had come to Mary and Martha and seen what he had done began to believe in him. 

REFLECTION

Jesus’ friend Lazarus has died….Jesus is glad he was not there so that he can perform this miracle before witnesses that they might believe in him and him who sent him…

Jesus wants witnesses to this miracle and why not because He has come to defeat sin and death a consequence of sin, Jesus is our Redeemer and Savior….and wants everyone to believe He is the resurrection and live.

Martha believes if Jesus had been there her brother would not have died …Jesus tells her, I am the resurrection and life, whoever believes me will never die…Jesus asks Martha if she believe this…Do I believe this…

Jesus calls Lazarus out of the tomb…Lazarus comes out…and many began this day to believe in Jesus…

What does it take for me to believe in Jesus…I mean really believe and trust in Him even my prayer as I see it goes unanswered.  God hears all our prayers and will answer with what is best for me…Can I accept that!

 

WHERE IS GOD???

CATHOLIC COMMENTARY

 

WHERE ARE WE???

 INTRODUCTION

God is in the picture above.  God is everywhere. God is omnipresent!  If God was gone so would we be gone into non-existence.   God is existence itself.  (I Am).  God is in your home, at your work, in your park, and at the bowling alley…. Where are we when it comes to God?

We may be living through the most troubling times of our lives and ask ourselves, why isn’t God doing something about this? Doesn’t God care!  God does care! He watches.  He sees. He cares.

Look at the “chosen” people in the Old Testament when they turned away from God, what was the result of going on their own… famine, slavery, and exile. Not only separated from the one true God but also their homes and native lands. They needed to turn back to God and so do we.

In this world today, God has been pushed to the margins, denied, ridiculed, mocked and suppressed by man-made laws and moral relativists who make up their own truth. Is it any wonder that we who abandon God suffer the fate of going it on our own.  Consequences of sin.

God’s wrath is not of an angry person out of control but is felt as a consequence of our sins.  God is holy and the unrepentant sinner cannot endure His holiness; the sinner experiences God’s holiness as wrath.  Unrepentant sin is totally incompatible with the holiness of God.

God heard the cries of Israel enslaved in Egypt in the Book of Exodus. Back then, they were crying out for deliverance for decades.  What about our patience and perseverance?

 Let us imitate St Paul

For I am already being poured out like a libation, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have competed well; I have finished the race;f I have kept the faith.  From now on the crown of righteousness awaits me, which the Lord, the just judge, will award to me on that day, and not only to me, but to all who have longed for his appearance.2 TIMOTHY 4:7-8

ISAIAH THE PROPHET WARNS US IN OLD TESTAMENT

For Jerusalem has stumbled and Judah has fallen, because their speech and their actions are against the Lord,
To rebel against His glorious presence. Their very look bears witness against them; they boast of their sin like Sodom. They do not hide it. Woe to them! They deal out evil to themselves. Woe to them!  Happy the just, for it will go well with them, the fruit of their works they will eat.  ISAIAH 3:8

CONCLUSION.

We live in an immoral world perhaps like never before. We sacrifice our young in the womb; we approve of same sex couples marrying. God never wills evil but allows evil to happen out of respect for our free will.  We no longer live in the world that God made but the world we have made

Deep within his conscience man discovers a law which he has not laid upon himself but which he must obey. Its voice, ever calling him to love and to do what is good and to avoid evil, sounds in his heart at the right moment.  For man has in his heart a law inscribed by God, a Moral conscience (CCC #1776-1778)

 

PRAY. PRAY. PRAY

FOR OURSELVES, OUR NEIGHBOR, OUR COUNTRY

 

 

 

WHO TOUCHED ME!

SCRIPTURE

WHO TOUCHED ME?

And a woman afflicted with hemorrhages for twelve years,* who [had spent her whole livelihood on doctors and] was unable to be cured by anyone, came up behind him and touched the tassel on his cloak. Immediately her bleeding stopped.

Jesus then asked, “Who touched me?” While all were denying it, Peter said, “Master, the crowds are pushing and pressing in upon you.” But Jesus said, “Someone has touched me; for I know that power has gone out from me.” When the woman realized that she had not escaped notice, she came forward trembling.

Falling down before him, she explained in the presence of all the people why she had touched him and how she had been healed immediately. He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has saved you; go in peace.”t Luke 8:43-48

REFLECTION

In the beautiful picture above Jesus asks Who touched me? Power has gone out from Jesus…; for I know that power has gone out from me…Let us seek that power…

What released that power from Jesus? the woman fell down before Jesus and confessed her faith in Jesus… if I but touch him…How is my faith…Do I reach out to Jesus…only in crisis?

Jesus is a healer…he can’t help himself…Come unto Me all ye that are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Jesus calls on all of us to seek healing in Him. Why not?

Come without delay…there is nothing I cannot forgive and heal…

Come forth…touch me…and see…(JESUS)

 

 

 

 

 

FEAST OF SACRED HEART OF JESUS

CATHOLIC FEAST DAYS

JUNE 7, 2024

 BACKGROUND

In the eleventh and twelfth centuries we find the first indications of devotion to the Sacred Heart. It was the Benedictine and Cistercian monasteries that the devotion began. It was St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, however, who made this devotion widespread.

In Jesus’ appearance to Margaret Mary in the 17th century, June 1675, Jesus disclosed he wanted to share the wonders of His love and the treasures of His goodness to all the world.

Jesus told Margaret Mary, “Behold the Heart that has so loved men. Instead of gratitude I receive from the greater part of mankind only sacrilege, contempt, indifference and ingratitude.” Jesus asked Margaret Mary for a feast of reparation to His Most Sacred Heart.

COMMENTARY

June is the month dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. This specific feast day is celebrated the first Friday after the feast of Corpus Christi. .

The “heart” has been the symbol of love almost forever. Valentine cards are filled with hearts, boxes of candy come in heart shape boxes, so is it any surprise that Jesus divine and human wants us to focus on His heart pierced for our salvation. Jesus is the model of love, service, and compassion.

    Jesus reveals His Sacred Heart

to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque

After Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque received apparitions of the Sacred Heart of Jesus she told her Mother Superior and asked what she should do. Mother Superior advised Margaret Mary to tell the Priest in Confession and ask his advice.

The priest told Saint Margaret Mary to ask Jesus what he confessed in his last confession. Next confession the priest asked Saint Margaret what Jesus said. Margaret Mary, uncomfortably, answered, “Jesus said “I don’t know, I have forgotten them!”

 REFLECTION

In this culture of death, let us spend the month of June in Prayer to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, lifting up our Nation, indeed the whole world, to the One in whom we place all of our trust. His Heart still beats with Mercy and Love for the world.

The Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus reminds us of Jesus’ humanity as well as His divinity and the significance of His sacrifice. Jesus suffered, He felt pain, He literally laid down his life for us …. The cross is not about how much Christ suffered but how much God loves us.

Suffering (passion) is part of human condition. Love and suffering go together,You love until it hurts, just ask a caregiver caring for a loved one. And It wasn’t easy for Jesus to do the Father’s will. “Father if possible remove this cup from me, but not my will thy will be done. Luke 22:42

 PRAYER

 ADORABLE Heart of Jesus, infinitely rich in mercy, heal the wounds of our souls. We humbly prostrate ourselves before Thee to express the sorrow that fills our hearts for the coldness and indifference we have so often embraced….

JESUS MEEK AND HUMBLE OF HEART
MAKE MY HEART LIKE UNTO THINE!

ADORABLE Heart of Jesus, source of true contrition impart to our hearts the spirit of penance, and give to our eyes a fountain of tears, that we may bewail our sins now and for the rest of our days.

 ADORABLE Heart of Jesus, source of true contrition and ever merciful to the penitent sinner, impart to our hearts the spirit of penance, that we reject our sins now and for the rest of our days. Strengthen our weakness, confirm our resolutions of amendment, that nothing in life or death may ever again separate us from Thee.

AMEN

 

FEAST OF CORPUS CHRISTI THURSDAY MAY 30 2024

CATHOLIC FEAST DAYS

THIS IS THE BREAD COME DOWN FROM HEAVEN 

 INTRODUCTION

 At the Last Supper, Jesus taught his disciples to offer bread and wine in his memory. Taking the bread, he told us, “This is my body, which will be given for you; do this in memory of me”

Luke 22:19. Offering the chalice, he said, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which will be shed for you” Luke 22:20

 Before the consecration at Mass, the priest in persona Christi calls on God to send the Holy Spirit to change this bread and wine into the Body and Blood of His Son the same way the Spirit overshadowed Mary at the Annunciation.

BACKGROUND

 For 700 years and more, the Church has celebrated with great joy the Feast of Corpus Christi, the great gift of the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ, given to us at the Last Supper.

The feast of Corpus Christi was established on September 8, 1264 by Pope Urban IV as a universal feast of the Church, to be celebrated on the Thursday following Trinity Sunday.  Today, in the United States, the feast is celebrated on the following Sunday.

For centuries after the celebration was extended to the universal Church by Pope Urban IV, the feast was also celebrated with Eucharistic processions.  The faithful would venerate the Body of Christ as the procession passed by. In recent years, this practice has almost disappeared, though some parishes still hold a brief procession around the outside of the parish church.

 BREAD OF LIFE DISCOURSE

I am the living bread from heaven…whoever eats this bread will live forever…whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life and I will raise him up on the last day…whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him” John 6:48

JESUS INSTITUTES THE EUCHARIST AT THE LAST SUPPER

 Jesus took bread, said the blessing, broke it, and giving it to his disciples said, “Take and eat; this is my body.” Then he took a cup, gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you; for this is my blood of the new covenant, which will be shed on behalf of many for the forgiveness of sins.” Matthew 26:26-28.

CATECHISM OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH

1323 At the Last Supper, on the night he was betrayed, our Savior instituted the Eucharistic sacrifice of his Body and Blood. This he did in order to perpetuate the sacrifice of the cross throughout the ages until he should come again.

1360  The Eucharist is a sacrifice of thanksgiving to the Father by which the Church expresses her gratitude to God for all His blessings, for all that He has accomplished through Creation, Redemption, and Sanctification. The word Eucharist means first of all “thanksgiving.

 Accidents” are those things that appeal to our senses, touch, sight, taste, etc. The host looks like bread, tastes like bread etc. The “substance” of the Eucharist is changed (into the Body and Blood of Jesus. (transubstantiation)

The real presence of Jesus’ Body and Blood remain as long as the “accidents” remain. This is why the Blessed Sacrament may be reserved in the tabernacle for sick calls and adoration.

O Sacrament Most Holy, O Sacrament Divine,

All praise and all thanksgiving be every moment Thine

The Eucharist is one and the same sacrifice on Calvary extended through time to us at Mass. Some think Catholics say Jesus is sacrificed again and again during every Mass. No, it is the one sacrifice of Jesus on Calvary which is RE-PRESENTED through time to us in every Mass

REFLECTION

 If we want to be intimate with Jesus he tells us how, “Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him.” John 6:54

We receive the Holy Eucharist with sublime humility and gratitude.  God, in whom the fullness of power, and glory dwells, humbled Himself that He became like one of us in every way but sin that we may share in His Divinity.

When we receive the Eucharist in Holy Communion, the Priest says, “the Body of Christ” and we say “Amen.” Our “Amen” means we recognize and acknowledge the real presence, body and blood, soul and divinity of Jesus Christ.

Jesus is present in the Blessed Sacrament, in all the tabernacles of the world.  Yes, in our parish.  He awaits us. Let us go to meet him in adoration. Filled with humility and faith we pray for this world, making amends for the many sins against Him and His Church. Let our reparation for sin and adoration never cease! Let us commit to Eucharistic Revival in our lives!

TAKE AND RECEIVE,

THIS IS MY BODY, THIS IS MY BLOOD

 

MIRACLES

MIRACLES OF JESUS, SCRIPTURE

JESUS RAISES THE WIDOW’S SON FROM THE DEAD LUKE 7:11-23

Jesus journeyed to a city called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd accompanied him.  As he drew near to the gate of the city, a man who had died was being carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow. A large crowd from the city was with her. 

When the Lord saw her, he was moved with pity for her and said to her, “Do not weep.”  He stepped forward and touched the coffin; at this the bearers halted, and he said, “Young man, I tell you, arise!”    The dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother. 

Fear seized them all, and they glorified God, exclaiming, “A great prophet has arisen in our midst, “God has visited his people.”  This report about him spread through the whole of Judea and to all the surrounding region. 

REFLECTION:

God has visited His people. How often do I acknowledge this in humble prayer and thanksgiving? The Good News of God visiting his people spread throughout the region…do I spread the good news in my daily life to others…

…God is with us…Jesus raising the dead widow’s son gives us all hope that Jesus will one day raise us from death to eternal life.

JESUS WALKS ON THE SEA MATTHEW 14:25-36

During the fourth watch of the night, Jesus came toward them, walking on the sea.  When the disciples saw him walking on the sea they were terrified. “It is a ghost,” they said, and they cried out in fear. 

At once (Jesus) spoke to them, “Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid.”  Peter said to him in reply, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.”  He said, “Come.” Peter got out of the boat and began to walk on the water toward Jesus. 

But when he saw how (strong) the wind was he became frightened; and, beginning to sink, he cried out, “Lord, save me!”

 Immediately Jesus stretched out his hand and caught him, and said to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?”  After they got into the boat, the wind died down.  Those who were in the boat did him homage, saying, “Truly, you are the Son of God.” 

REFLECTION:

Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid.”  How many fears I have…how little trust in Jesus…how far do I have to sink before I cry out, Lord, save me

I hear in the silence of my soul…Oh you of little faith…Come to me you who are labored and burdened…

with Jesus anything is possible…no real harm will come to me…unless I separate myself from Jesus…

JESUS HEALS BLIND BARTIMAEUS MARK 10:46-52

As he was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a sizable crowd, Bartimaeus, a blind man, the son of Timaeus, sat by the roadside begging.

On hearing that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, “Jesus, son of David, have pity on me.” And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he kept calling out all the more, “Son of David, have pity on me.”

Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.” So they called the blind man, saying to him, “Take courage; get up, he is calling you.” He threw aside his cloak, sprang up, and came to Jesus. 

Jesus said to him in reply, “What do you want me to do for you?” The blind man replied to him, “Master, I want to see.”  Jesus told him, “Go your way; your faith has saved you.” Immediately he received his sight and followed him on the way.

REFLECTION:

A blind beggar beside the road…just like the rest of us…in need …broken…Jesus Son of David have pity on me….

Jesus asks Bartimaeus, What do you want me to do for you? …Jesus knows what we need before we ask…but He waits to hear it from our own lips…Why is that do you think?

I pray, Lord, that I may see… remove the blinders of material attachments from my heart…that I may see clearly to follow you on the way… that I may give glory to the Father…