Catholic Caucus: Daily Mass Readings, 10-17-05, Memorial, St Ignatius of Antioch, bishop & martyr

USCCB.org/New American Bible ^ | 10-17-05 | New American Bible

[Salvation]

October 17, 2005
Memorial of Saint Ignatius of Antioch, bishop and martyr

Psalm: Monday 45

Reading I
Rom 4:20-25

Brothers and sisters:
Abraham did not doubt God’s promise in unbelief;
rather, he was empowered by faith and gave glory to God
and was fully convinced that what God had promised
he was also able to do.
That is why it was credited to him as righteousness.
But it was not for him alone that it was written
that it was credited to him;
it was also for us, to whom it will be credited,
who believe in the one who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead,
who was handed over for our transgressions
and was raised for our justification.

Responsorial Psalm
Luke 1:69-70, 71-72, 73-75

R. (see 68) Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel; he has come to his people.
He has come to his people and set them free.
He has raised up for us a mighty savior,
born of the house of his servant David.
R. Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel; he has come to his people.
Through his holy prophets he promised of old
that he would save us from our enemies,
from the hands of all who hate us.
He promised to show mercy to our fathers
and to remember his holy covenant.
R. Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel; he has come to his people.
This was the oath he swore to our father Abraham:
to set us free from the hands of our enemies,
free to worship him without fear,
holy and righteous in his sight all the days of our life.
R. Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel; he has come to his people.

Gospel
Lk 12:13-21

Someone in the crowd said to Jesus,
“Teacher, tell my brother to share the inheritance with me.”
He replied to him,
“Friend, who appointed me as your judge and arbitrator?”
Then he said to the crowd,
“Take care to guard against all greed,
for though one may be rich,
one’s life does not consist of possessions.”

Then he told them a parable.
“There was a rich man whose land produced a bountiful harvest.
He asked himself, ‘What shall I do,
for I do not have space to store my harvest?’
And he said, ‘This is what I shall do:
I shall tear down my barns and build larger ones.
There I shall store all my grain and other goods
and I shall say to myself, “Now as for you,
you have so many good things stored up for many years,
rest, eat, drink, be merry!”’
But God said to him,
‘You fool, this night your life will be demanded of you;
and the things you have prepared, to whom will they belong?’
Thus will it be for the one who stores up treasure for himself
but is not rich in what matters to God.”

[Salvation]

For your reading, reflection, faith-sharing, comments, questions, discussion.

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St.Ignatius Of Antioch (A.D.110)

Saint Ignatius Of Antioch Bishop, Martyr

Ignatius of Antioch, Bishop and Martyr 17 October 107

[Salvation]

Monday, October 17, 2005
St. Ignatius of Antioch, Bishop, Martyr (Memorial)

First Reading: Psalm: Gospel:

Romans 4:20-25 Luke 1:69-75 Luke 12:13-21 O Sacred Heart of Jesus! I fly to Thee, I unite myself with Thee, I enclose myself to Thee! Receive this, my call for help, O my Saviour, as a sign of my horror of all within me contrary to Thy Holy Love. Let me rather die a thousand times than consent! Be Thou my Strength, O God: defend me, protect me. I am thine, and desire forever to be Thine! -- St Margaret Mary Alocoque

[Salvation]

Catholic Culture

Collect: All-powerful and ever-living God, you ennoble your Church with the heroic witness of all who give their lives for Christ. Grant that the victory of Saint Ignatius of Antioch may bring us your constant help as it brought him eternal glory. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Recipes: » Bread Pretzel » Lion Cake » Soft Pretzels » Whole Wheat Batter Bread more » Whole Wheat Bread less Activities: » Christmas Wheat » Namedays » Religion in the Home for Elementary School: October » Religion in the Home for Preschool: October more » St. Lucy and the Christmas Wheat » What is a Nameday? less Prayers: » Efficacious Novena to the Sacred Heart of Jesus

October 17, 2005 Memorial of Saint Ignatius of Antioch, bishop and martyr Old Calendar: St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, virgin St. Ignatius is one of the great bishops of the early Church. He was the successor of St. Peter as Bishop of Antioch. He was condemned to death by wild beasts during the Emperor Trajan's persecution. On his way to Rome, he wrote seven magnificent letters, which we still have today, concerning the Person of Christ, his love for Christ, his desire for martyrdom and on the constitution of the Church and Christian life. His sentiments before his approaching martyrdom are summed in his word in the Communion antiphon, "I am the wheat of Christ, ground by the teeth of beasts to become pure bread." Before the reform of the Roman Calendar in 1969, this was the memorial of St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, virgin. In the present calendar, her feast is an optional memorial celebrated on October 16. St. Ignatius feast was celebrated on February 1. St. Ignatius of Antioch In the Martyrology we read: "At Rome, the holy bishop and martyr Ignatius. He was the second successor to the apostle Peter in the see of Antioch. In the persecution of Trajan he was condemned to the wild beasts and sent in chains to Rome. There, by the emperor's order, he was subjected to most cruel tortures in the presence of the Senate and then thrown to the lions. Torn to pieces by their teeth, he became a victim for Christ." The bishop and martyr Ignatius occupies a foremost place among the heroes of Christian antiquity. His final journey from Antioch to Rome was like a nuptial procession and a Way of the Cross. For the letters he wrote along the way resemble seven stations of the Cross; they may also be called seven nuptial hymns overflowing with the saint's intense love for Christ Jesus and his longing to be united with Him. These letters are seven most precious jewels in the heirloom bequeathed to us by the Church of sub-apostolic times. The year of St. Ignatius' death is unknown; perhaps it occurred during the victory festivities in which the Emperor Trajan sacrificed the lives of 10,000 gladiators and 11,000 wild beasts for the amusement of the bloodthirsty populace. The scene of his glorious triumph and martyrdom was most likely the Colosseum; that mammoth structure, glittering with gold and marble, had then been just completed. "From Syria to Rome I must do battle with beasts on land and sea. For day and night I am chained to ten leopards, that is, the soldiers who guard me and grow more ferocious the better they are treated. Their mistreatment is good instruction for me, yet am I still far from justified. Oh, that I may meet the wild beasts now kept in readiness for me. I shall implore them to give me death promptly and to hasten my departure. I shall invite them to devour me so that they will not leave my body unharmed as already has happened to other witnesses. If they refuse to pounce upon me, I shall impel them to eat me. My little children, forgive me these words. Surely I know what is good for me. From things visible I no longer desire anything; I want to find Jesus. Fire and cross, wild beasts, broken bones, lacerated members, a body wholly crushed, and Satan's every torment, let them all overwhelm me, if only I reach Christ." The saint, now condemned to fight the wild beasts, burned with desire for martyrdom. On hearing the roar of the lions he cried out: "I am a kernel of wheat for Christ. I must be ground by the teeth of beasts to be found bread (of Christ) wholly pure". Excerpted from The Church's Year of Grace, Pius Parsch. Patron: Church in eastern Mediterranean; Church in North Africa; throat diseases. Symbols: Chains; lions; bishop surrounded by lions; heart with IHC; crucifix; heart. Things to Do:Find the epistles of St. Ignatius. Read and meditate upon his words; Meditate on the words of St. Ignatius in the Communion Antiphon. Are we able to accept martyrdom, either bodily death, or "white martyrdom"? Jesus Himself was the Grain of wheat who had to die to bear fruit. The fruit produced is the Mystical Body, the Church. Pius Parsch explains that: "In turn each Christian becomes a grain of wheat that matures for the mill of martyrdom! Read the Communion as if it were your own composition. I, a kernel of wheat! I, too, am destined for the mill of suffering, to be ground — not only was it true of Ignatius. What type of beasts' teeth will crush me? Persecution? Pain and suffering? Other people? It makes no difference, the kernel must die, either buried in the ground to produce another stalk or crushed to become bread. Is not this our destiny in life, to die to self or to lose ourselves in service to others?" (The Church's Year of Grace, Advent to Candlemas, The Liturgical Press, 1964) Plant some wheat to help the children visualize grains or kernels of wheat Bake a Lion Cake Bake wheat bread or make something with wheat kernels. Hot cross buns or pretzels in their traditional shape remind of us the cross which we must embrace, as St. Ignatius did.

[Salvation]

American Catholic’s Saint of the Day

October 17, 2005

St. Ignatius of Antioch

(d. 107?)

Born in Syria, Ignatius converted to Christianity and eventually became bishop of Antioch. In the year 107, Emperor Trajan visited Antioch and forced the Christians there to choose between death and apostasy. Ignatius would not deny Christ and thus was condemned to be put to death in Rome.

Ignatius is well known for the seven letters he wrote on the long journey from Antioch to Rome. Five of these letters are to Churches in Asia Minor; they urge the Christians there to remain faithful to God and to obey their superiors. He warns them against heretical doctrines, providing them with the solid truths of the Christian faith.

The sixth letter was to Polycarp, bishop of Smyrna, who was later martyred for the faith. The final letter begs the Christians in Rome not to try to stop his martyrdom. "The only thing I ask of you is to allow me to offer the libation of my blood to God. I am the wheat of the Lord; may I be ground by the teeth of the beasts to become the immaculate bread of Christ."

Ignatius bravely met the lions in the Circus Maximus.

Comment:

Ignatius's great concern was for the unity and order of the Church. Even greater was his willingness to suffer martyrdom rather than deny his Lord Jesus Christ. Not to his own suffering did Ignatius draw attention, but to the love of God which strengthened him. He knew the price of commitment and would not deny Christ, even to save his own life.

Quote:

"I greet you from Smyrna together with the Churches of God present here with me. They comfort me in every way, both in body and in soul. My chains, which I carry about on me for Jesus Christ, begging that I may happily make my way to God, exhort you: persevere in your concord and in your community prayers" (Ignatius of Antioch, Letter to the Church at Tralles).

[Ciexyz]

Faith-sharing bump.

[Salvation]

Good morning/afternoon!

[Ciexyz]

Here's another passage from the excellent book, "The Rise of Benedict XVI: The Inside Story of How the Pope Was Elected and Where He Will Take the Catholic Church" by John L. Allen Jr., Vatican correspondent for the National Catholic Reporter. This is a respectful book about the Pope's election.

WHY RATZINGER WON - The Best Campaign Staff
(Page 122-123)....despite not campaigning for the job, Ratzinger had the best campaign staff. For years, a core group of cardinals, composed of curial figures and admirers from other parts of the world, had been determined to see him elected. The new pope has talked about the future of Christianity in the West as a creative minority that has an outsized impact on the broader culture, and in miniature, that seems to have been the story of the 2005 conclave.

In June of 2004, for example, I interviewed a Latin American cardinal...his blunt comment was: "I would like very much Ratzinger." In the spring of 2003, I sat at a cafe in the Piazza of Santa Maria in...Rome with a cardinal from another part of the world....This cardinal's unambiguous view was "Ratzinger is the man the church needs as pope." Neither man works in the Roman Curia. Going into the conclave of 2005, there was no mystery that Ratzinger would have votes. During the interregnum, these cardinals were by far the most determined and organized force in the preconclave politics. One cardinal who played a key role in this regard was Schonborn, who insisted repeatedly that it was "God's will" that Ratzinger become pope. No other candidate had anything like this committed base of support.

Inside the conclave, Ratzinger's base managed to get out to a quick lead and built on it, while the possible alternatives foundered. All of which goes to show that forming a consensus isn't always a matter of crafty horse-trading, but of having the fastest horse!

[Ciexyz]

More on Cardinal Christoph Schonborn of Vienna, who author John L. Allen Jr. calls "perhaps the closest thing to a kingmaker in the conclave of 2005" (p. 100).

"By all accounts, one of the most articulate and forceful organizers of the pro-Ratzinger campaign was...Schonborn...."

Such a passion is hardly surprising, given the close ties between Schonborn and Ratzinger, which some have said is almost like a father/son dynamic. As a young Dominican theologian, Schonborn joined one of Ratzinger's seminars while completing postdoctoral work at Regensburg, and later became a regular at annual gatherings of Ratzinger's students. More than fifteen years ago, under Ratznger's patronage, Schonborn and two other priests started a residence in Rome for young men discerning a vocation to the priesthood. The young men there are steeped in the theological works of Hans Urs von Balthasar, Henri de Lubac, and Adrienne von Speyr, a visionary and lifelong collaborator with Balthasar. Over the years Ratzinger sometimes spent an evening there, and was in the habit of attending a board meeting in February. In 1987, Ratzinger named Schonborn the general editor of the new universal Catechism of the Catholic Church.

Yet no one suggests that Schonborn played the role in 2005 that his predecessor as the cardinal of Vienna, Franz Konig, played in 1978, thrusting a relatively unknown cardinal of Krakow into the limelight as a papal contender. Joseph Ratzinger was anything but unknown, especially within this electoral college, and he entered with a determined base of support that did not need Schonborn's encouragement. What Schonborn was able to provide was a passionate testimony about Ratzinger's character and heart that apparently had impact among a few fence-sitting electors.

In the week prior to the conclave, most cardinals said, the election of Joseph Ratzinger did not yet appear to them a shoo-in.

[trisham]

bttt!

[Ciexyz]

I recommend the book "The Rise of Benedict XVI": Published by Doubleday, copyright 2005 by John L. Allen, Jr., ISBN 0-385-51320-8. 249 pages. $19.95 US, $27.95 Canada

The ending of the book:

...given the inner fire that still lights those piercing eyes of Joseph Ratzinger, one imagines that he will nevertheless get up, day after day, for whatever time divine providence allots him, putting his indelible mark on the Catholic Church and on history. No one who has read this Pope, who has spoken with this Pope, no one who understands the depth of his thought and the gravity of the crisis he believes stands before him, can fail to see that his papacy will be marked by the spirit of Chicago architect Daniel Burnham: "Make no little plans," Burnham said. "They have no magic to stir men's blood."

Benedict XVI, whatever else history may eventually say of him, will not preside over a pontificate of small plans.

[Ciexyz]

From your tagline, I must ask, what's a "bupki"??? (smile)

[NYer]

THE ECCLESIOLOGY OF ST. IGNATIUS OF ANTIOCH

[trisham]

"Bupkis" -- Zero, Nothing. :)


http://www.thepocket.com/words.htm

[lightman]

I am particularly fond of the Anglican collect for this day:

Almighty God,
we praise your Name for your Bishop and martyr Ignatius of Antioch,
who offered himself as grain to be ground by the teeth of wild beasts
that he might present to you the pure bread of sacrifice.
Accept,
we pray,
the willing tribute of our lives
and give us a share in the pure and spotless offering of your Son Jesus Christ;
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God,
forever and ever.
Amen.

[SaltyJoe]

“Teacher, tell my brother to share the inheritance with me.”

This reminds me of how my sisters would ask our mom for her intervention..."Mom, please tell Joe to stop bothering us!"

In a humorous mood, once I remembered to pray for a favor to help me find a missing item. "Use a childlike faith!" I reminded myself.

And so I prayed, "Dear Jesus, please tell St. Anthony to do his job and help me find my keys! Amen."

I found my keys...but only after apologizing to St Anthony.

[fatima]

Mass bump,Thank you Salvation.

[Salvation]

Thanks for all your input about this nenw book.

[Salvation]

Great link! Thank you.