41. For whoever shall give you a cup of water to drink in my name, because you belong to Christ, verily I say to you, he shall not lose his reward.
42. And whoever shall offend one of these little ones that believe in me, it is better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he were cast into the sea.

THEOPHYL. Not only will I not forbid him who works miracles in My name, but also whosoever shall give you the smallest tithing for My name's sake, and shall receive you, not on account of human and worldly favor, but from love to Me, shall not lose his reward.

AUG. By which He shows, that he of whom John had spoken was not so far separated from the fellowship of the disciples, as to reject it, as a heretic, but as men are wont to hang back from receiving the Sacraments of Christ, and yet favor the Christian name, so as even to succor Christians, and do them service only because they are Christians. Of these He says they shall not lose their reward; not that they ought already to think themselves secure on account of this good will which they have towards Christians, without being washed with His baptism, and incorporated in His unity, but that they are already so guided by the mercy of God, as also to attain to these, and thus to go away from this life in security.

PSEUDO-CHRYS. And that no man may allege poverty, He mentions that of which none can be destitute, that is, a cup of cold water, for which also he will obtain a reward; for it is not the value of the gift, but the dignity of those who receive it, and the feelings of the giver, which makes a work worthy of reward. His words show that His disciples are to be received, not only on account of the reward, which he who receives them obtains, but also, because he thus saves himself from punishment.

There follows: And whoever shall offend one of these little ones that believe in me, it is better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he were cast into the sea: as though He would say, All who honor you for My sake have their reward, so also those who dishonor you, that is, offend you, shall receive the worst of vengeance. Further, from things which are palpable to us, He describes an intolerable torment, making mention of a millstone, and of being drowned; and He says not, let a millstone be hanged about his neck, but, it is better for him to suffer this, showing by this that some more heavy evil awaits him. But He means by little ones that believe in Me, not only those who follow Him, but those who call upon His name, those also who offer a cup of cold water, though they do not any greater works. Now He will have none of these offended or plucked away; for this is what is meant by forbidding them to call upon His name.

BEDE; And fitly the man who is offended is called a little one, for he who is great, whatever he may suffer, departs not from the faith; but he who is little and weak in mind looks out for occasions of stumbling. For this reason we must most of all look to those who are little ones in the faith, lest by our fault they should be offended, and go back from the faith, and fall away from salvation.

GREG. We must observe, however, that in our good works we must sometimes avoid the offense of our neighbor, sometimes look down upon it as of no moment. For in as far as we can do it without sin, we ought to avoid the offense of our neigh hour; but if a stumbling block is laid before men in what concerns the truth, it is better to allow the offense to arise, than that the truth should be abandoned.

GREG. Mystically by a millstone is expressed the tedious round and toil of a secular life, and by the depths of the sea, the worst damnation is pointed out. He who therefore, after having been brought to a profession of sanctity, destroys others, either by word or example, it had been indeed better for him that his worldly deeds should render him liable to death, under a secular garb, than that his holy office should hold him out as an example for others in his faults, because doubtless if he had fallen alone, his pain in hell would have been of a more endurable kind.

43. And if your hand offend you, cut it off: it is better for you to enter into life maimed, than having two hands to go into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched:
44. Where their worm dies not, and the fire is not quenched.
45. And if your foot offend you, cut it off: it is better for you to enter halt into life, than having two feet to be cast into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched:
46. Where their worm dies not, and the fire is not quenched.
47. And if your eye offend you, pluck it out: it is better for you to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye, than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire:
48. Where their worm dies not, and the fire is not quenched.
49. For every one shall be salted with fire, and every sacrifice shall be salted with salt.
50. Salt is good: but if the salt have lost his saltiness, wherewith will you season it? Have salt in yourselves, and have peace one with another.

BEDE; Because the Lord had taught us not to offend those who believe in Him, He now as next in order warns us how much we should beware of those who offend us, that is, who by their words or conduct strive to drag us into the perdition of sin; wherefore He says, And if your hand offend you, cut it off.

CHRYS. He says not this of our limbs, but of our intimate friends, whom as being necessary to us we look upon as our limbs; for nothing is so hurtful as mischievous society.

BEDE; That is, He calls by the name of hand, our intimate friend, of whose aid we daily stand in need, but if such a one should wish to do us a hurt in what concerns our soul, he is to be driven away from our society lest by choosing a portion in this life with one who is lost, we should perish together with him in that which is to come. Wherefore there follows, It is better for you to enter into life maimed, than having two hands to enter into hell.

GLOSS; By maimed He means, deprived of the help of some friend, for it is better to enter into life without a friend, than to go with him into hell.

PSEUDO-JEROME; Or else, It is better for you to enter into life maimed, that is, without the chief place, for which you have wished, than having two hands to go into eternal fire. The two hands for high station are humility and pride; cut off pride, keeping to the estate of lowliness.

PSEUDO-CHRYS. Then He introduces the witness of prophecy from the prophet Isaiah, saying, Where their worm dies not, and the fire is not quenched. He says not this of a visible worm, but He calls conscience, a worm, gnawing the soul for not having done any good thing; for each of us shall be made his own accuser, by calling to mind what he has done in this mortal life, and so their worm remains for ever.

BEDE; And as the worm is the pain which inwardly accuses, so the fire is a punishment which rages without us; or by the worm is meant the rottenness of hell, by the fire, its heat.

AUG. But those who hold that both of these, namely, the fire and the worm, belong to the pains of the soul, and not of the body, say also that those who are separated from the kingdom of God are tortured, as with fire, by the pangs of a soul, repenting too late, and hopelessly; and they not unfitly contend that fire may be put for that burning grief, as says the Apostle, Who is offended, and I burn not? They also think that by the worm must be understood the same grief, as is said: As a moth destroys a garment, and a worm wood, so grief tortures the heart of man.

All those who hesitate not to affirm that there will be pain both of body and soul in that punishment, affirm that the body is burnt by the fire. But although this is more credible, because it is absurd that there either the pains of body or of soul should be wanting, still I think that it is easier to say that both belong to the body than that neither; and therefore it seems to me that Holy Scripture in this place is silent about the pains of the soul, because it follows that the soul also is tortured in the pains of the body. Let each man therefore choose which he will, either to refer the fire to the body, the worm to the soul, the one properly, the other in a figure, or else both properly to the body; for living things may exist even in fire, in burnings without being wasted, in pain without death, by the wondrous power of the Almighty Creator.

It goes on: And if your foot offend thee, cut it off: it is better for you to enter halt into life, than having two feet to be cast into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched;

where their worm dies not, and the fire is not quenched.

BEDE; A friend is called a foot, on account of its service in going about for us, since he is as it were ready for our use. It goes on: And if your eye offend thee, pluck it out: it is better for you to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye, than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire;

where their worm dies not, and the fire is not quenched. A friend who is useful, and anxious, and sharp in perception, is called an eye.

AUG. Here truly it appears that they who do acts of devotedness in the name of Christ, even before they have joined themselves to the company of Christians, and have been washed in the Christian Sacraments, are more useful than those who though already bearing the name of Christians, by their doctrine drag their followers with themselves into everlasting punishment; whom also under the name of members of the body, He orders, as an offending eye or hand, to be torn from the body, that is, from the fellowship itself of unity, that we may rather come to everlasting life without them, than with them go into hell.

But the separation of those who separate themselves from them consists in the very circumstance of their not yielding to them, when they would persuade them to evil, that is, offend them. If indeed their wickedness becomes known to all the good men, with whom they are connected, they are altogether cut off from all fellowship, and even from partaking in the heavenly Sacraments. If however they are thus known only to the smaller number, whilst their wickedness is unknown to the generality, they are to be tolerated in such a way that we should not consent to join in their iniquity, and that the communion of the good should not be deserted on their account.

BEDE; But because the Lord had three times made mention of the worm and the fire, that we might be able to avoid this torment, He subjoins, For every one shall be salted with fire. For the stink of worms always arises from the corruption of flesh and blood, and therefore fresh meat is seasoned with salt, that the moisture of the blood may be dried off, and so it may not breed worms. And if, indeed, that which is salted with salt, keeps off the putrefying worm, that which is salted with fire, that is, seasoned again with flames, on which salt is sprinkled, not only casts off worms, but also consumes the flesh itself.

Flesh and blood therefore breed worms, that is, carnal pleasure, if unopposed by the seasoning of continence, produces everlasting punishment for the luxurious; the stink of which if any man would avoid, let him take care to chasten his body with the salt of continence, and his mind with the seasoning of wisdom, from the stain of error and vice. For salt means the sweetness of wisdom, and fire, the grace of the Holy Spirit. He says therefore, Every one shall be salted with fire, because all the elect ought to be purged by spiritual wisdom, from the corruption of carnal concupiscence. Or else, the fire is the fire of tribulation, by which the patience of the faithful is proved, that it may have its perfect work.

PSEUDO-CHRYS. Similar to this is that which the Apostle says, And the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is. Afterwards He brings in a witness from Leviticus: which says, And every oblation of your meat offering shall you season with salt.

PSEUDO-JEROME; The oblation of the Lord is the race of man, which is here salted by means of wisdom, whilst the corruption of blood, the nurse of rottenness, and the mother of worms, is being consumed, which there also shall be tried by the purgatorial fire.

BEDE; We may also understand the altar to be the heart of the elect, and the victims and sacrifices to be offered on the altar are good works. But in all sacrifices salt ought to be offered, for that is not a good work which is not purged by the salt of wisdom from all corruption of vain glory, and other evil and superfluous thoughts.

PSEUDO-CHRYS. Or else it is meant, that every gift of our victim, which is accompanied by prayer and the assisting of our neighbor, is salted with that divine fire, of which it is said, I am come to send fire on earth. Concerning which it is added: Salt is good; that is, the fire of love. But if the salt have lost his saltiness, that is, is deprived of itself, and that peculiar quality, by which it is called good, wherewith will you season it! For there is salt, which has saltiness, that is, which has the fullness of grace; and there is salt, which has no saltiness, for that which is not peaceful is salt unseasoned.

BEDE; Or the good salt is the frequent hearing of God's word, and the seasoning the hidden parts of the heart with the salt of spiritual wisdom.

THEOPHYL. For as salt preserves flesh, and suffers it not to breed worms, so also the discourse of the teacher, if it can dry up what is evil, constrains carnal men, and suffers not the undying worm to grow up in them. But if it be without saltiness, that is, if its virtue of drying up and preserving be gone, with what shall it be salted?

PSEUDO-CHRYS. Or, according to Matthew, the disciples of Christ are the salt, which preserves the whole world, resisting the rottenness which proceeds from idolatry and sinful fornication. For it may also be meant, that each of us has salt, in as far as he contains in himself the graces of God. Wherefore also the Apostle join together grace and salt, saying, Let your speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt. For salt is the Lord Jesus Christ, Who was able to preserve the whole earth, and made many to be salt in the earth, and if any of these be corrupted, (for it is possible for even the good to be changed into corruption,) they are worthy to be cast out.

PSEUDO-JEROME; Or otherwise; That salt is saltless which loves the chief place, and dares not rebuke others. Wherefore there follows, Have salt in yourselves, and have peace one with another. That is, let the love of your neighbor temper the saltiness of rebuke, and the salt of justice season the love of your neighbor.

GREG; Or this is said against those whom greater knowledge, while it raises above their neighbors, cuts off from the fellowship of others; thus the more their learning increases, the more they unlearn the virtue of concord.

GREG. He also who strives to speak with wisdom should be greatly afraid, lest by his eloquence the unity of his hearers be thrown into confusion, lest, while he would appear wise, he unwisely cut asunder the bonds of unity.

THEOPHYL. Or else, he who binds himself to his neighbor by the tie of love, has salt, and in this way peace with his neighbor.

AUG. Mark relates that the Lord said these things consecutively, and has put down some things omitted by every other Evangelist, some which Matthew has also related, others which both Matthew and Luke relate, but on other occasions, and in a different series of events. Wherefore it seems to me that our Lord repeated in this place discourses which He had used in other places, because they were pertinent enough to this saying of His, by which He prevented their forbidding miracles to be wrought in His name, even by him who followed Him not together with His disciples.

Catena Aurea Mark 9

The Dreadful Judgment

Iconographer unknown, Russia

CATHOLIC ALMANAC

Thursday, February 27

Liturgical Color: Green

Today the Church honors St. Anne Line.
St. Anne lived in England during a time
of great Catholic persecution. She
allowed Catholics to gather at her house
for Mass. St. Anne was arrested for
harboring priests and hanged on this
day in 1601.

How did the disciples come to believe Jesus was risen?

Can you be a Christian without believing in the Resurrection of Christ?

No. "If Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain" (1 Cor 15:14).

How did the disciples come to believe that Jesus is risen?

The disciples, who before had lost all hope, came to believe in Jesus' Resurrection because they saw him in a different way after his death, spoke with him, and experienced him as being alive.

The Easter events that took place in Jerusalem in the year 30 are not a made-up story. Following the death of Jesus and the defeat of their whole cause, the disciples fled ("We had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel", Lk 24:21) or else barricaded themselves behind locked doors. Only their encounter with the risen Christ freed them from their paralysis and filled them with an enthusiastic faith in Jesus Christ, the Lord of life and death. (YOUCAT questions 104-105)

Dig Deeper: CCC section (631-638) and other references here.

Part 1: The Profession of Faith (26 - 1065)

Section 2: The Profession of the Christian Faith (185 - 1065)

Chapter 2: I Believe in Jesus Christ, the Only Son of God (422 - 682)

Article 5: "He descended into hell. On the third day He rose again" (631 - 658)

631

Jesus "descended into the lower parts of the earth. He who descended is he who also ascended far above all the heavens."⁴⁷⁶ The Apostles' Creed confesses in the same article Christ's descent into hell and his Resurrection from the dead on the third day, because in his Passover it was precisely out of the depths of death that he made life spring forth: Christ, that Morning Star, who came back from the dead, and shed his peaceful light on all mankind, your Son who lives and reigns for ever and ever. Amen.⁴⁷⁷

476.

Eph 4:9-10.

477.

Roman Missal, Easter Vigil 18, Exsultet.

Paragraph 1: Christ Descended into Hell (632 - 637)

632

The frequent New Testament affirmations that Jesus was "raised from the dead" presuppose that the crucified one sojourned in the realm of the dead prior to his resurrection.⁴⁷⁸ This was the first meaning given in the apostolic preaching to Christ's descent into hell: that Jesus, like all men, experienced death and in his soul joined the others in the realm of the dead. But he descended there as Savior, proclaiming the Good News to the spirits imprisoned there.⁴⁷⁹

478.

Acts 3:15; Rom 8:11; 1 Cor 15:20; cf. Heb 13:20.

479.

Cf. 1 Pet 3:18-19.

1033
(all)

2

633

Scripture calls the abode of the dead, to which the dead Christ went down, "hell" — Sheol in Hebrew or Hades in Greek — because those who are there are deprived of the vision of God.⁴⁸⁰ Such is the case for all the dead, whether evil or righteous, while they await the Redeemer: which does not mean that their lot is identical, as Jesus shows through the parable of the poor man Lazarus who was received into "Abraham's bosom":⁴⁸¹ "It is precisely these holy souls, who awaited their Savior in Abraham's bosom, whom Christ the Lord delivered when he descended into hell."⁴⁸² Jesus did not descend into hell to deliver the damned, nor to destroy the hell of damnation, but to free the just who had gone before him.⁴⁸³

480.

Cf. Phil 2:10; Acts 2:24; Rev 1:18; Eph 4:9; Pss 6:6; 88:11-13.

481.

Cf. Ps 89:49; 1 Sam 28:19; Ezek 32:17-32; Lk 16:22-26.

482.

Roman Catechism I, 6, 3.

483.

Cf. Council of Rome (745): DS 587; Benedict XII, Cum dudum (1341): DS 1011; Clement VI, Super quibusdam (1351): DS 1077; Council of Toledo IV (625): DS 485; Mt 27:52-53.

605
(all)

634

"The gospel was preached even to the dead."⁴⁸⁴ The descent into hell brings the Gospel message of salvation to complete fulfilment. This is the last phase of Jesus' messianic mission, a phase which is condensed in time but vast in its real significance: the spread of Christ's redemptive work to all men of all times and all places, for all who are saved have been made sharers in the redemption.

484.

1 Pet 4:6.

1

635

Christ went down into the depths of death so that "the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live."⁴⁸⁵ Jesus, "the Author of life", by dying destroyed "him who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and [delivered] all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong bondage."⁴⁸⁶ Henceforth the risen Christ holds "the keys of Death and Hades", so that "at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth."⁴⁸⁷ Today a great silence reigns on earth, a great silence and a great stillness. A great silence because the King is asleep. The earth trembled and is still because God has fallen asleep in the flesh and he has raised up all who have slept ever since the world began... He has gone to search for Adam, our first father, as for a lost sheep. Greatly desiring to visit those who live in darkness and in the shadow of death, he has gone to free from sorrow Adam in his bonds and Eve, captive with him — He who is both their God and the son of Eve... "I am your God, who for your sake have become your son... I order you, O sleeper, to awake. I did not create you to be a prisoner in hell. Rise from the dead, for I am the life of the dead."⁴⁸⁸

485.

Jn 5:25; cf. Mt 12:40; Rom 10:7; Eph 4:9.

486.

Heb 2:14-15; cf. Acts 3:15.

487.

Rev 1:18; Phil 2:10.

488.

Ancient Homily for Holy Saturday: PG 43, 440A, 452C; LH, Holy Saturday, OR.

IN BRIEF ⇡

636

By the expression "He descended into hell", the Apostles' Creed confesses that Jesus did really die and through his death for us conquered death and the devil "who has the power of death" (Heb 2:14).

1

637

In his human soul united to his divine person, the dead Christ went down to the realm of the dead. He opened heaven's gates for the just who had gone before him.

Paragraph 2: On the Third Day He Rose from the Dead (638 - 658)

651
90
991
(all)

638

"We bring you the good news that what God promised to the fathers, this day he has fulfilled to us their children by raising Jesus."⁴⁸⁹ The Resurrection of Jesus is the crowning truth of our faith in Christ, a faith believed and lived as the central truth by the first Christian community; handed on as fundamental by Tradition; established by the documents of the New Testament; and preached as an essential part of the Paschal mystery along with the cross: Christ is risen from the dead!
Dying, he conquered death;
To the dead, he has given life.⁴⁹⁰

489.

Acts 13:32-33.

490.

Byzantine Liturgy, Troparion of Easter.

Catholic Culture

Daily Readings for:February 27, 2014
(Readings on USCCB website)

Collect: Grant, we pray, almighty God, that, always pondering spiritual things, we may carry out in both word and deed that which is pleasing to you. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

RECIPES

o English Eggs and Bacon

ACTIVITIES

o Fun Pretzel Project

PRAYERS

o Collect for the Feast of St. Gabriel of Our Lady of Sorrows

LIBRARY

o A Strong Sense of the Privilege and Duty of Living in Assisi | Pope Benedict XVI

· Ordinary Time: February 27th

· Thursday of the Seventh Week of Ordinary Time

Old Calendar: St. Gabriel of Our Lady of Sorrows, confessor

According to the 1962 Missal of Bl. John XXIII the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite, today is the feast of St. Gabriel of Our Lady of Sorrows who was born in Assisi on March 1, 1838, the eleventh child of Sante Possenti and Agnes Frisciotti. His father Sante was a distinguished Italian lawyer. The boy was given the name of the city's illustrious patron, St. Francis, at baptism.

St. Gabriel of Our Lady of Sorrows
On Ascension Day, 1920, Pope Benedict XV bestowed the honors of sainthood on a youth who is rightly called the Aloysius of the 19th century. He was Francis Possenti, known in religion as Gabriel of the Sorrowful Mother.

Born in Assisi, January 3, 1838, he was given the name of the city's illustrious patron, St. Francis, at baptism. As a student in neighboring Spoleto, he led a good though rather worldly kind of life until God drew him closer to Himself through an illness. The decisive step was taken while seeing the highly honored miraculous picture of our Lady in Spoleto borne about in solemn procession. As his eyes followed our Blessed Mother, Francis felt the fire of divine love rising in his heart and almost at once made the resolve to join the Passionists, a religious congregation dedicated to the veneration of and meditation on the passion of Jesus Christ (1856).

After overcoming many difficulties, he carried out his resolution and received the religious name, Gabriel of the Mother of Sorrows. Even as a novice, he was regarded as a model of perfect holiness both within and beyond the cloister.

Saint Gabriel did not stand out from his community in any extraordinary way — his heroism lay in his obedient attitude. He conformed himself to his community in complete humility. Little is known of his life - only that he was blessed with an excellent memory and other gifts that made him an outstanding student. He also had a great devotion to the Passion of Christ and the Sorrows of Mary. Pius X and Leo XIII especially desired that he be the patron saint of young people and novices in religious orders, as their model in the interior life. He died in the year 1862.

Saint Gabriel Possenti wrote: "Love Mary!... She is loveable, faithful, constant. She will never let herself be outdone in love, but will ever remain supreme. If you are in danger, she will hasten to free you. If you are troubled, she will console you. If you are sick, she will bring you relief. If you are in need, she will help you. She does not look to see what kind of person you have been. She simply comes to a heart that wants to love her. She comes quickly and opens her merciful heart to you, embraces you and consoles and serves you. She will even be at hand to accompany you on the trip to eternity."

Patron: Abruzzi region of Italy; Catholic Action; clerics; students; young people in general.

Things to Do:

For more information about this Passionist saint visit: here, EWTN and the Passionist nuns.
For prayers to St. Gabriel visit here.

The Word Among Us

Meditation: Mark 9:41-50

7th Week in Ordinary Time

If your hand causes you to sin … (Mark 9:43)

In today’s Gospel reading, Jesus offers words of hope to repeat offenders—that’s all of us who fall into the same sins again and again. We may not recognize it as a hopeful word, though, unless we hit the “pause” button right here in the middle of verse 9:43 (and in verses 45 and 47). So before racing on to what Jesus says about amputating wayward hands, feet, and eyes, let’s linger over that verb: to cause to sin.

In the Greek in which the Gospel was written, this phrase means to place an obstacle that causes someone to stumble. That sounds like something an enemy would do, doesn’t it? But as we have all experienced, we do it to ourselves. By the way we act (symbolized by the hand), the places we go (the feet), and the things we let into our lives (the eyes, the windows to the soul), we often sabotage our best intentions and go astray from God’s plan.

We don’t have to remain in this conflicted state! Jesus wants us to know the joy and peace that come from living with integrity—with every part of us working together and open to God’s grace. Despite harsh-sounding words like “cut it off” and “pluck it out,” he is not telling us to mutilate or abuse our bodies. The human body is his Father’s handiwork, and Jesus spent his life restoring people’s bodies to wholeness! Remember, he has just healed a withered hand, paralyzed feet, and blind eyes (Mark 3:1-6; 2:1-11; 8:22-26).

So why does Jesus use such strong language? Because he wants to jolt us into getting the message: Sin is deadly. It separates you from the love and life God offers you. Take action! That action might be a small thing, like cutting short a conversation that is tending toward gossip. Or it might involve radical self-denial, a spiritual amputation that’s necessary to save a life. Whatever it is, Jesus stands ready to help us see and do the next thing that will bring us closer to him. Let’s do it!

“Jesus, your word says, ‘Present yourselves to God as raised from the dead to life and the parts of your bodies to God as weapons for righteousness’ (Romans 6:13). Show me how to live that out today.”

James 5:1-6; Psalm 49:14-20

Marriage=One Man and One Woman 'Til Death Do Us Part

Daily Marriage Tip for February 27, 2014:

Personality is like eye color – there’s not a right or wrong kind. It’s also not crucial that couples be the same. Often, however, arguments start when we expect our spouse to think and act just like us. If you’ve never taken a personality inventory, try the audit on this website.

Vultus Christi

A Lover of the Pierced Heart of Jesus

Thursday, 27 February 2014 07:57

Blessed Marie de Jésus Deluil–Martiny

Today, besides being, in our monastery, Feast of Reparation for Offenses Committed Against the Most Holy Sacrament, is also the feast of Saint Gabriel of the Addolorata, and the dies natalis and liturgical memorial of Blessed Marie de Jésus Deluil Martiny. Born to upper middle class parents on May 28, 1841 in Marseille, Marie Deluil Martiny was the eldest of five children. She belongs to the vast family of saints and blesseds surrounding the Wounded Side and Sacred Heart of Jesus. Marie’s own spiritual genealogy included her great grand–aunt, the Venerable Anne–Madeleine Rémuzat (1696–1730), a Visitandine like Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque (1647–1690) and, like the saint of Paray–le–Monial, an ardent apostle of the Sacred Heart.

The Guard of Honour of the Sacred Heart

The vocation of Marie Deluil Martiny unfolded in two phases. In the first, she dedicated herself to propagating the Guard of Honour of the Sacred Heart, a movement of reparation and of perpetual adoration of the Heart of Jesus present in the Most Holy Sacrament of the altar. Marie du Sacré–Coeur, a Visitandine of the monastery of Bourg–en–Bresse launched the Guard of Honour on March 13, 1863. The following year the bishop of Belley recognized the movement as a confraternity, and in 1878 Pope Leo XIII elevated it to the rank of an archconfraternity in France and Belgium.

In the beginning, the movement obliged its members to spend an hour in adoration and reparation to the Heart of Jesus before the tabernacle. The hours of the day and night were so distributed among the members as to offer the Eucharistic Heart of Jesus an uninterrupted presence of reparation and adoring love. Later on, the manner of carrying out one’s assigned hour was modified: no longer was a physical presence before the tabernacle required. One could participate in the Guard of Honour without interrupting one’s daily activities, simply by offering an hour of one’s day in the spirit of adoration and reparation to the Sacred Heart.

The Wound of the Divine Heart

Marie Deluil–Martiny explains the movement in these words:

The Guard [of Honour of the Sacred Heart], the Work in itself, was placed by the Infinite Love of our Master at the entrance of the Wound of His Divine Heart. There, it calls souls, unites them, calls them together, preaches to them, if one may say so, pushes them, and draws them into the interior of the Divine Wound . . . it leads them there, and introduces them therein, after having, so to speak, opened to them the door of this sacred refuge . . . Souls, entering this safe abode are sprinkled, washed, whitened, purified, healed, and supernaturalised, by a most efficacious application of the Blood and Water that came forth from the Divine Wound. But Jesus wants even more: this is the new step that Our Lord desires to make the souls He chose to this end take: they must enter by the gate of the City of God, that is into the Heart of Jesus by the Divine Wound; therein will be their world, their dwelling, their place of rest.

Foundress of A New Religious Family

The second phase of Marie Deluil Martiny’s life was a flowering of the first. After a long preparation in prayer, she opened the first house of the Society of the Daughters of the Heart of Jesus at Berchem near Anvers in Belgium on June 20, 1873. The new foundation was characterized by a burning desire to console the Heart of Jesus and by a mystical participation in His victimal priesthood, patterned after that of His Holy Mother at the foot of the Cross.

Mother Marie de Jésus wrote:

They will from that life of suffering love that was the intimate life of the Heart of Jesus; they will penetrate the most tender secrets of His love: the Eucharist, the Church, His divine jealousy for sacerdotal and consecrated souls. . . . What a calling! The Work must give to Christ souls who offer themselves as a sacrifice of Love, these will be the victims of Love that Jesus asks for, by the Holy Eucharist. The Host has become indispensable to my life; I should wish never to leave it for the sake of sacerdotal souls [priests]. Too many of them are satisfied with being Sacrificers and exercise their sacred functions without steeping them enough in the Priestly Spirit, that is, without themselves becoming truly Victims at the same time as Sacrificers, and so God wills that legions of souls who are truly Victims offer themselves as humble supplements for what certain priests are lacking in the Priestly Spirit. Their example is Mary, the Mother of Jesus.

The Blessed Virgin Mary United to the Victimal Priesthood of Her Son

Marie Deluil Martiny presents the Blessed Virgin Mary as the Mother of Christ the Victim Priest and of all who are called to follow Him in the way of His Victimal Priesthood. The Blessed Virgin Mary is, by virtue of her most intimate and perfect participation in the Victimal Priesthood of her Son, both Coredemptrix and Mediatrix.

Violent Death and Glory

On February 27, 1884, Mother Marie de Jésus was murdered by an anticlerical anarchist in the garden of the monastery she had founded at La Servianne, her family property. Her last words were, “I forgive him . . . for the Work,” that is, for the Institute she founded. She was forty–three years old.

“Our Lord,” she said, “has put into my soul that the souls of the future institute will be like that parcel of the Host that melts in the chalice; they will all melt and disappear in the Blood of Jesus.” The Congregation she founded, the Daughters of the Heart of Jesus, continue her charism of liturgical prayer, reparation, and adoration, with a particular solicitude for priests. Mother Deluil Martiny was beatified by Pope John Paul II on October 22, 1989.

The life and writings of Blessed Marie de Jésus bore fruit in the life of Father Willie Doyle, S.J. Our good friend Pat Kenny writes of the connection between the French victim soul for priests and the holy Irish Jesuit. You can read about it here.

Vultus Christi

Day of Great Reparation

Thursday, 27 February 2014 08:47

In her meditations for the Feast of Reparation, solemnized on the Thursday of Sexagesima week, Mother Mectilde de Bar reflects on the sins of those who serve in the sanctuaries of the Lord.

The Church, in her desolation, cries, O you who have some love for me, you who know all the glory that my Bridegroom deserves, see and consider if there be any sorrow like unto mine. O you, ministers of the Lord and friends of the Bridegroom, the Bride address these laments to you. Hasten to relieve her pain by making reparation for the affronts to Jesus Christ; give Him the glory that others would strip from Him.

Having once shown the disorders of the children of Israel to the prophet Jeremias, the Lord led him to the entrance of the temple; He ordered him to pierce an opening in its wall, and to look upon what was going on inside. The prophet obeyed, and says that therein he saw even greater abominations.

Who, alas, does not grasp that this is but a figure? Who does not know that the sanctuary is the theatre par excellence of the Lord’s ignominies? Who does not know that, alongside of priests who are fervent and truly divine, there are priests who are lukewarm and indifferent, priests who are wicked [...]? And so, the Church, in calling [us] to reparation, begs us not to forget the outrages made against the glory of her Divine Spouse by His own ministers. Yours it is, she says, to expiate the sins of the Sanctuary; yours it is to bear the weight of the sins of the priesthood.

Let us enter into these intentions of the Church, and united in spirit with what remains on earth of fervent Christians, and of priests pressed by the charity of Jesus Christ, let us strive to repair the outrages of indifference and impiety; let us lift up the throne of the Lord, and offer Him the tribute of homage that, by so many titles, He deserves.

Mother Mectilde de Bar, Meditations for the Day of Great Reparation

Vultus Christi

Saint Gabriel of the Addolorata

Thursday, 27 February 2014 11:39

Saint Gabriel of the Addolorata died on February 27, 1862 at twenty-four years of age. Pope Benedict XV canonized him on May 13, 1920.

The Rich Young Man

Saint Mark (10:17-27) describes in vivid detail Jesus’ encounter with a youthful seeker. The Gospel does not say that the man is young, but his gesture and his discourse suggest the kind of spiritual idealism that rarely survives middle age. He is eager, spontaneous, and perhaps a little hasty. Our Lord seems to find these traits endearing. The Gospel does tell us that he is rich.

A Word With Jesus

He runs up to Jesus. Why does he run to him at the last minute? Was something holding him back? Fear perhaps? Does he realize that this may be his one opportunity to have a word with Jesus? He kneels before him: a gesture of reverence and humility. Only then does he blurt out his question: “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” (Mk 10:17).

O Good Jesus!

Our Lord tests him. He answers the question with another question: “Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone” (Mk 10:18). Jesus does not deny that he is good. He identifies goodness with God alone. He treats the young man as he treated the Samaritan woman at the well. “If you but knew the gift of God, and who it is that is speaking to you” (cf. Jn 4:10). Jesus is no mere teacher of goodness; he is goodness itself. Saint Bruno, tasting the sweetness of God, used to exclaim, O Bonitas! O Goodness! If only the rich young man knew whom he was calling good!

They Shall See God

Jesus reviews the commandments for him. One comes to the knowledge of the goodness of God by imitating it. The commandments lead to purity of heart, and purity of heart leads to the vision of God. “Blessed are the pure in heart,” says Jesus, “for they shall see God” (Mt 5:8).

And Jesus Loved Him

The young man’s answer is candid: “Teacher, all these I have observed from my youth” (Mk 10:20). Looking into his heart, Jesus sees that he is ready for more. One of the most striking lines in Saint Mark’s Gospel follows: “And Jesus looking upon him loved him” (Mk 10:21). The eyes of Jesus shine divine light upon him. And the light of his eyes is love. The Latin version of this Gospel says that Jesus looked into him and loved him. “Iesus autem intuitus eum dilexit eum” (Mk 10:21).

A Great Sorrow

Then Jesus reveals the way forward. “You lack one thing; go, sell what you have, and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me” (Mk 10:21). This is not what the young man expected to hear. “At that saying his countenance fell, and he went away sorrowful; for he had great possessions” (Mk 10:22). Note that the young man says nothing more. There is no discussion, no attempt to negotiate. He understands that it is all or nothing. He cannot give all and he is not yet ready to accept that having nothing will gain him everything. He goes away sorrowful, with the Face of Jesus engraved in his memory. “Jesus looking upon him loved him” (Mk 10:21). We are not told the rest of the story, but we can be certain of one thing: the memory of that look of love followed him for the rest of his days.

His Face and His Heart

Even in the face of our refusals, even when we remain possessed by our possessions, Christ “stands at the gate, and knocks” (Rev 3:20). His Face reveals the unchanging, unconditional love of his Heart. He is ready, at every moment, to change our sorrow into joy. “All that the Father gives me will come to me; and him who comes to me I will not cast out” (Jn 6:37). It is never too late to retrace our steps, to go in search of the Face that looked upon us and loved us, and to offer a humble and contrite “Yes” of reparation.

Another Rich Young Man

Francesco Possenti said “Yes” without hesitating. A native of Assisi, he was, like the other Francis, the Poverello, in every way the rich young man. Handsome and clever, he loved dancing, hunting, stylish clothes, and the theatre. For Francesco Possenti the love of Christ was mediated through the gaze of the Virgin Mother. During a procession in honour of the Addolorata, Our Lady of Sorrows, the icon of the Virgin spoke to his heart, echoing the words of her Son to the rich young man.

Gabriel of the Addolorata

Francesco responded. On September 21, 1856 he received the habit of the Congregation of the Passion and the name Gabriel of the Sorrowful Mother. Gabriel’s love for the Virgin Mary was tender and ardent. Practicing a ceaseless prayer of the heart based on the repetition of the Hail Mary, he lived in communion with the Mother of Jesus, meditating her sorrows and her compassion at the foot of the Cross. Ravaged by tuberculosis, he died before he could be ordained a priest. He was twenty-four years old and had worn the Passionist habit for six years.

The Costly “Yes” to Love

Saint Gabriel of the Sorrowful Mother encourages us to say the “Yes” we have been putting off, the “Yes” we have been afraid to say, the “Yes” that we judge too costly. He invites us to meet the gaze of Jesus who, looking into each of us, sees us as we are, and loves us. And he shows us that for one who keeps company with the Mother of Jesus, meditating her sorrows and sharing in her compassion, there will be, in the end, a joy that no one can take away. “You have sorrow now, but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice” (Jn 16:22).

Vultus Christi

The only spotless priest without sin

Thursday, 27 February 2014 13:02

The Proper Mass of the Feast of Reparation for Offenses Committed Against the Most Holy Sacrament (Thursday after Sexagesima) contains the following beautiful Preface:

It is very meet and right,
just and availing unto salvation,
that always and everywhere we should give thanks unto Thee,
O Lord, holy Father, almighty, everlasting God,
through Jesus Christ our Lord:
Who is the true and eternal Pontiff,
the only spotless priest without sin,
by whose Blood the hearts of the faithful are cleansed:
Whom, by His own institution, we do immolate
not only through offerings for the sins of the people,
but also for our own offenses.
Through Whom the Angels praise,
the Dominations adore,
the Powers fear Thy majesty.
The Heavens and the Heavenly Virtues
and the blessed Seraphim
together sing Thy praise with exultation.
With whom, we beseech Thee,
Bid that our voices also be admitted,
humbly praising Thee, and saying:
Holy, Holy Holy.

Vultus Christi

Only one thing is necessary

Thursday, 27 February 2014 23:11

Before bowing out of the ongoing discussions on liturgical reform, I should like to clarify three points.

1. My reflections on the 1965 Missale Romanum — not really an edition at all, but rather, as Dr Joseph Shaw has pointed out, an application of the Instruction Inter Oecumenici to the existing Missal — aimed at arguing that it would have been better all around if it had been kept in place for several generations or, at least, until the intentions and prescriptions of Sacrosanctum Concilium were clarified and sorted out. Certain of them would have certainly fallen by the wayside. This did not happen. Instead, by a wonderful disposition of God’s Providence, Pope Benedict XVI gave us Summorum Pontificum which, after a manner of speaking, cleared the field and so affords the Church a much needed spatium in which to recover from the liturgical traumas of the past fifty years.

2. I laud and support the brilliant achievements of individual parish priests and of groups that use the so–called Ordinary Form or Novus Ordo Missae with dignity, beauty, and reverence. I am thinking, in particular, of the stellar Communauté de Saint–Martin, and of various abbeys and Oratories. For myself, I can no longer spend my energies in that particular labour. As I explained elsewhere, I seem to hear Our Lord chiding me, saying: “How many cares and troubles thou hast! But only one thing is necessary; and Mary has chosen for herself the best part of all, that which shall never be taken away from her” (Luke 10:41–41).

3. I maintain that the real difficulty with the current reformed Missal is that its flawed infrastructure cannot bear the weight of continual wear and tear. It is a modular liturgy which, because of the multiplicity of options inherent in it, makes unrealistic demands on both priest and people. One finds oneself occupied and preoccupied with assembling and disassembling the various modular elements that make it up. The liturgy is not something that men fashion for various occasions and venues; it is the mystery, ancient and ever new, wherein the Church is fashioned and re–fashioned by the gentle and mighty action of the Holy Spirit.

Regnum Christi

Price of the Kingdom

| SPIRITUAL LIFE | SPIRITUALITY

Thursday of the Seventh Week in Ordinary Time

Father Edward Hopkins, LC

Mark 9:41-50

Jesus said to his disciples: “Anyone who gives you a cup of water to drink because you bear the name of Christ will by no means lose their reward. If any of you put a stumbling block before one of these little ones who believe in me, it would be better for you if a great millstone were hung around your neck and you were thrown into the sea. If your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life maimed than to have two hands and to go to hell, to the unquenchable fire. And if your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life lame than to have two feet and to be thrown into hell. And if your eye causes you to stumble, tear it out; it is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and to be thrown into hell, where their worm never dies, and the fire is never quenched. For everyone will be salted with fire. Salt is good; but if salt has lost its saltiness, how can you season it? Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with one another.”

Introductory Prayer:Lord Jesus, I believe in your presence in my life. I believe that you consider those around me your children and that you ardently desire to possess them with love for all eternity. I trust that you will help me treat others as your brothers and sisters. I love you now with my prayer. May this prayer increase my desire to honor and serve you with my life.

Petition: Jesus, help me to set a good example for others out of love.

1. You Are Priceless: Jesus leaves us with no doubt: We are valuable. We all carry within us a God-given dignity. And this dignity is identified and enhanced when we bear his name. Every human being has an intrinsic dignity because every human being is created in God’s image. But this image of God is perfectly incarnated in Christ, God made man. So a baptized Christian—a Christ bearer—carries a more perfect image: Christ, in whom we are made children of God. It is little wonder, then, that Jesus assures a reward to anyone who serves us for his sake!

2. Every Little One Is Priceless: To carry his image is also a responsibility. We must live up to this dignity and show to others a life worthy of the image we carry within. Others may be “little” due to their age, the newness and immaturity of their Christian life, or even their weakness and struggle. We put a stumbling block in their way, we scandalize them, when our behavior causes them to doubt or become discouraged about living the ideals of faith. A “millstone” suggests that anything would be better for us than this. How damaging then are my bad examples given to “little ones”! Damaging for them and for me! What can I do to avoid such scandal? On the other hand, what a great reward awaits those who do the contrary, giving these little ones good example! If I loved “these little ones” just half as much as Jesus does, would it not be much easier to avoid giving bad example?

3. Better to Lose Anything Else: In today’s world, the value of something is measured in comparison to other items of the same kind: stocks, food, clothes, even music and films are judged against each other. Yet, there are some things that have absolute value: the value of a soul. Nothing compares! Jesus paints this total non-comparison in terms of cutting off whatever becomes an obstacle. You are so valuable that you must be ready to deny, subdue, silence and even sacrifice your own body, or any of its members, rather than risk losing your soul. Do I value my immortal soul, my vocation to eternal life? If so, do I show this by the self-denial I exert in controlling what makes me (and eventually others through me) stumble? How often do I prefer my “things” to the loved ones who depend on my example of Christ? How radical is my faith?

Conversation with Christ: Lord Jesus, open my eyes to understand a little more just how valuable I am to you, how priceless my eternal life is. Make me sensitive to value each and every person in my life. I know you want me to help save them. Never allow me to become a stumbling block for anyone. If I have, may my love and efforts of faith be used by you now to restore what was lost.

Resolution: I will repair a past act of “scandal” (outburst of anger, foul language, gossip or slander, dishonesty, etc.) with a period of quality time given to the “little ones” so as to rebuild the trust and Christ-like behavior they expect from me.

Homily of the Day

February 27, 2014

To sin is to fail to live up to be the person we are meant to be by God. If we consider becoming what God wants us to be as the target in a firing range, then not to hit it is to sin. Because of our brokenness, we may think our near misses or venial sins are of little importance. However if the target is as immense as God is infinite goodness, then to miss the target is really unthinkable. In the light of this we would then be able to understand the reason for the seemingly cruel imagery used by our Lord to emphasize the true reality of sin and its effect on us and the world around us. It is only because of God’s infinite love and mercy that our sins whether great or small are forgiven. For some of us who are seen to be serving in church, the scandalous effect of even our minor indiscretions may be much greater and will last longer than the sin itself. We may already have repented of the sin and be forgiven but its harmful effects may last a very long time.

With this understanding of what it means each time we fall into sin, let us ask ourselves why we still sin over and over again and reflect more deeply on the immensity of our Father’s love and mercy for each one of us.

One Bread One Body

One Bread, One Body

Language: English | Español

All Issues > Volume 30, Issue 2

<< Thursday, February 27, 2014 >>

James 5:1-6
View Readings

Psalm 49:14-20

Mark 9:41-50
Similar Reflections

MAIN-LINE

"If your foot is your undoing, cut it off!" —Mark 9:45

Jesus commands us to gouge out an eye or cut off a hand or foot under two circumstances. Jesus does not mean for us to literally maim ourselves, but He emphasizes that we should go to great extremes to resist temptations, especially temptations to sin sexually (Mt 5:28-29) or to oppose another's ministry (Mk 9:39-47).

Most of us are surprised by these emphases because we don't think an impure glance or a negative reaction to another's ministry the worst sins imaginable. However, we must lay aside our ideas and take on Jesus' priorities. We must not even mention or allude to sexual sin. Our "holiness forbids this" (Eph 5:3). In addition, we should never hinder, criticize, or gossip about the ministries of other Christians, even if they are from a different denomination or theological background. We must oppose heresies but always encourage those ministering in the name of Jesus, even if not of our company (Mk 9:38ff). We should be more willing to cut out our tongues and maim our physical bodies than to maim the body of Christ by saying a discouraging word about another Christian ministry.

Prayer: Father, may I maim my physical body before I would maim the body of Christ.

Promise: "God will redeem me from the power of the nether world by receiving me." —Ps 49:16

Praise: Theresa's quiet acceptance of her suffering transformed her nursing home.

Yes, God will always choose life,

not abortion!