Feast Day: March 10

Died: 320 AD, Sebaste

St. Simplicius

Feast Day: March 10
Died: 483

St. Simplicius was the son of Castinus a citizen of Tivoli in Italy and was elected to succeed St. Hilary as pope in 468. He was raised up by God to comfort and support his Church through very difficult times caused by the fall of Rome in his eighth year as pope.

Sometimes he felt that he was all alone trying to correct evils that were everywhere. Barbarians had taken over most of Italy. Even Rome itself was occupied by invaders. The people were hungry and poor and had lost all happiness. They had been taxed and robbed by former Roman officials.

Pope Simplicius tried in every way to uplift his people and to work for their good. He was always there for them, no matter how small his efforts seemed to him. And because he was holy, he never gave up. More than by words, he taught with the example of his holy life.

Besides spending his time comforting the suffering, Pope Simplicius was busy sowing the seeds of the Catholic faith among the barbarians. Like the experienced pilot he was, he guided the Church through the troubled waters of a stormy sea.

St. Simplicius suffered because some of his own Christians stubbornly held on to wrong beliefs. With great sorrow, St. Simplicius had to put them out of the Church. When he corrected people who were doing wrong, he was kind and humble.

St. Simplicius built four churches in Rome and set up many useful rules for the Church to follow during his reign. Simplicius was pope for fifteen years and eleven months. Then the Lord called him to heaven to receive the reward of his labors. St. Simplicius died in 483 and was buried in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome.

Day 92 - Why does God want there to be a Church?

Why does God want there to be a Church?

God wills the Church because he wants to redeem us, not individually, but together. He wants to make all mankind his people.

No one gets to heaven by the asocial route. Someone who thinks only about himself and the salvation of his own soul is living a-socially. That is impossible both in heaven and on earth. God himself is not a-social; he is not a solitary, self-sufficient being. The Triune God in himself is "social", a communion, an eternal exchange of love. Patterned after God, man also is designed for relationship, exchange, sharing, and love. We are responsible for one another. (YOUCAT question 122)

Dig Deeper: CCC section (758-762) and other references here.

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

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

Chapter 3: I Believe in the Holy Spirit (683 - 1065)

Article 9: "I believe in the Holy Catholic Church" (748 - 975)

Paragraph 1: The Church in God's Plan (751 - 780)

II. THE CHURCH'S ORIGIN, FOUNDATION, AND MISSION ⇡

257
(all)

758

We begin our investigation of the Church's mystery by meditating on her origin in the Holy Trinity's plan and her progressive realization in history.

A plan born in the Father's heart ⇡

1655
293
(all)

759

"The eternal Father, in accordance with the utterly gratuitous and mysterious design of his wisdom and goodness, created the whole universe and chose to raise up men to share in his own divine life,"¹⁵⁰ to which he calls all men in his Son. "The Father ... determined to call together in a holy Church those who should believe in Christ."¹⁵¹ This "family of God" is gradually formed and takes shape during the stages of human history, in keeping with the Father's plan. In fact, "already present in figure at the beginning of the world, this Church was prepared in marvelous fashion in the history of the people of Israel and the old Alliance. Established in this last age of the world and made manifest in the outpouring of the Spirit, it will be brought to glorious completion at the end of time."¹⁵²

150.

LG 2.

151.

LG 2.

152.

LG 2.

The Church- foreshadowed from the world's beginning ⇡

294
309
(all)

760

Christians of the first centuries said, "The world was created for the sake of the Church."¹⁵³ God created the world for the sake of communion with his divine life, a communion brought about by the "convocation" of men in Christ, and this "convocation" is the Church. The Church is the goal of all things,¹⁵⁴ and God permitted such painful upheavals as the angels' fall and man's sin only as occasions and means for displaying all the power of his arm and the whole measure of the love he wanted to give the world: Just as God's will is creation and is called "the world," so his intention is the salvation of men, and it is called "the Church."¹⁵⁵

153.

Pastor Hermae, Vision 2,4,1:PG 2,899; cf. Aristides, Apol. 16,6; St. Justin, Apol. 2,7:PG 6,456; Tertullian, Apol. 31,3; 32,1:PL 1,508-509.

154.

Cf. St. Epiphanius, Panarion 1,1,5:PG 41,181C.

155.

Clement of Alex., Pæd. 1,6,27:PG 8,281.

The Church — prepared for in the Old Covenant ⇡

55
(all)

761

The gathering together of the People of God began at the moment when sin destroyed the communion of men with God, and that of men among themselves. The gathering together of the Church is, as it were, God's reaction to the chaos provoked by sin. This reunification is achieved secretly in the heart of all peoples: "In every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable" to God.¹⁵⁶

156.

Acts 10:35; cf. LG 9; 13; 16.

122
522
60
64
(all)

762

The remote preparation for this gathering together of the People of God begins when he calls Abraham and promises that he will become the father of a great people.¹⁵⁷ Its immediate preparation begins with Israel's election as the People of God. By this election, Israel is to be the sign of the future gathering of All nations.¹⁵⁸ But the prophets accuse Israel of breaking the covenant and behaving like a prostitute. They announce a new and eternal covenant. "Christ instituted this New Covenant."¹⁵⁹

157.

Cf. Gen 12:2; 15:5-6.

158.

Cf. Ex 19:5-6; Deut 7:6; Isa 2:2-5; Mic 4:1-4.

159.

LG 9; cf. Hos 1; Isa 1:2-4; Jer 2; 31:31-34; Isa 55:3.

Matthew
	English: Douay-Rheims	Latin: Vulgata Clementina	Greek NT: Byzantine/Majority Text (2000)
	Matthew 25
31.	And when the Son of man shall come in his majesty, and all the angels with him, then shall he sit upon the seat of his majesty.	Cum autem venerit Filius hominis in majestate sua, et omnes angeli cum eo, tunc sedebit super sedem majestatis suæ :	οταν δε ελθη ο υιος του ανθρωπου εν τη δοξη αυτου και παντες οι αγιοι αγγελοι μετ αυτου τοτε καθισει επι θρονου δοξης αυτου
32.	And all nations shall be gathered together before him, and he shall separate them one from another, as the shepherd separateth the sheep from the goats:	et congregabuntur ante eum omnes gentes, et separabit eos ab invicem, sicut pastor segregat oves ab hædis :	και συναχθησεται εμπροσθεν αυτου παντα τα εθνη και αφοριει αυτους απ αλληλων ωσπερ ο ποιμην αφοριζει τα προβατα απο των εριφων
33.	And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on his left.	et statuet oves quidem a dextris suis, hædos autem a sinistris.	και στησει τα μεν προβατα εκ δεξιων αυτου τα δε εριφια εξ ευωνυμων
34.	Then shall the king say to them that shall be on his right hand: Come, ye blessed of my Father, possess you the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.	Tunc dicet rex his qui a dextris ejus erunt : Venite benedicti Patris mei, possidete paratum vobis regnum a constitutione mundi :	τοτε ερει ο βασιλευς τοις εκ δεξιων αυτου δευτε οι ευλογημενοι του πατρος μου κληρονομησατε την ητοιμασμενην υμιν βασιλειαν απο καταβολης κοσμου
35.	For I was hungry, and you gave me to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave me to drink; I was a stranger, and you took me in:	esurivi enim, et dedistis mihi manducare : sitivi, et dedistis mihi bibere : hospes eram, et collegistis me :	επεινασα γαρ και εδωκατε μοι φαγειν εδιψησα και εποτισατε με ξενος ημην και συνηγαγετε με
36.	Naked, and you covered me: sick, and you visited me: I was in prison, and you came to me.	nudus, et cooperuistis me : infirmus, et visitastis me : in carcere eram, et venistis ad me.	γυμνος και περιεβαλετε με ησθενησα και επεσκεψασθε με εν φυλακη ημην και ηλθετε προς με
37.	Then shall the just answer him, saying: Lord, when did we see thee hungry, and fed thee; thirsty, and gave thee drink?	Tunc respondebunt ei justi, dicentes : Domine, quando te vidimus esurientem, et pavimus te : sitientem, et dedimus tibi potum ?	τοτε αποκριθησονται αυτω οι δικαιοι λεγοντες κυριε ποτε σε ειδομεν πεινωντα και εθρεψαμεν η διψωντα και εποτισαμεν
38.	And when did we see thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and covered thee?	quando autem te vidimus hospitem, et collegimus te : aut nudum, et cooperuimus te ?	ποτε δε σε ειδομεν ξενον και συνηγαγομεν η γυμνον και περιεβαλομεν
39.	Or when did we see thee sick or in prison, and came to thee?	aut quando te vidimus infirmum, aut in carcere, et venimus ad te ?	ποτε δε σε ειδομεν ασθενη η εν φυλακη και ηλθομεν προς σε
40.	And the king answering, shall say to them: Amen I say to you, as long as you did it to one of these my least brethren, you did it to me.	Et respondens rex, dicet illis : Amen dico vobis, quamdiu fecistis uni ex his fratribus meis minimis, mihi fecistis.	και αποκριθεις ο βασιλευς ερει αυτοις αμην λεγω υμιν εφ οσον εποιησατε ενι τουτων των αδελφων μου των ελαχιστων εμοι εποιησατε
41.	Then he shall say to them also that shall be on his left hand: Depart from me, you cursed, into everlasting fire which was prepared for the devil and his angels.	Tunc dicet et his qui a sinistris erunt : Discedite a me maledicti in ignem æternum, qui paratus est diabolo, et angelis ejus :	τοτε ερει και τοις εξ ευωνυμων πορευεσθε απ εμου οι κατηραμενοι εις το πυρ το αιωνιον το ητοιμασμενον τω διαβολω και τοις αγγελοις αυτου
42.	For I was hungry, and you gave me not to eat: I was thirsty, and you gave me not to drink.	esurivi enim, et non dedistis mihi manducare : sitivi, et non desistis mihi potum :	επεινασα γαρ και ουκ εδωκατε μοι φαγειν εδιψησα και ουκ εποτισατε με
43.	I was a stranger, and you took me not in: naked, and you covered me not: sick and in prison, and you did not visit me.	hospes eram, et non collegistis me : nudus, et non cooperuistis me : infirmus, et in carcere, et non visitastis me.	ξενος ημην και ου συνηγαγετε με γυμνος και ου περιεβαλετε με ασθενης και εν φυλακη και ουκ επεσκεψασθε με
44.	Then they also shall answer him, saying: Lord, when did we see thee hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister to thee?	Tunc respondebunt ei et ipsi, dicentes : Domine, quando te vidimus esurientem, aut sitientem, aut hospitem, aut nudum, aut infirmum, aut in carcere, et non ministravimus tibi ?	τοτε αποκριθησονται και αυτοι λεγοντες κυριε ποτε σε ειδομεν πεινωντα η διψωντα η ξενον η γυμνον η ασθενη η εν φυλακη και ου διηκονησαμεν σοι
45.	Then he shall answer them, saying: Amen I say to you, as long as you did it not to one of these least, neither did you do it to me.	Tunc respondebit illis, dicens : Amen dico vobis : Quamdiu non fecistis uni de minoribus his, nec mihi fecistis.	τοτε αποκριθησεται αυτοις λεγων αμην λεγω υμιν εφ οσον ουκ εποιησατε ενι τουτων των ελαχιστων ουδε εμοι εποιησατε
46.	And these shall go into everlasting punishment: but the just, into life everlasting.	Et ibunt hi in supplicium æternum : justi autem in vitam æternam.	και απελευσονται ουτοι εις κολασιν αιωνιον οι δε δικαιοι εις ζωην αιωνιον

31. When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory:
32. And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats:
33. And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left.
34. Then shall the King say to them on his right hand, Come, you blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:
35. For I was an hungry, and you gave me meat: I was thirsty, and you gave me drink: I was a stranger, and you took me in:
36. Naked, and you clothed me: I was sick, and you visited me: I was in prison, and you came to me.
37. Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we you hungry, and fed you? Or thirsty, and gave you drink?
38. When saw we you a stranger, and took you in? or naked, and clothed you?
39. Or when saw we you sick, or in prison, and came to you?
40. And the King shall answer and say to them, Verily I say to you, Inasmuch as you have done it to one of the least of these my brethren, you have done it to me.
41. Then shall he say also to them on the left hand, Depart from me, you cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:
42. For I was an hungry, and you gave me no meat: I was thirsty, and you gave me no drink:
43. I was a stranger, and you took me not in: naked, and you clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and you visited me not.
44. Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we you hungered, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister to you?
45. Then shall he answer then, saying, Verily I say to you, Inasmuch as you did it not to one of the least of these, you did it not to me.

RABAN. After the parables concerning the end of the world the Lord proceeds to describe the manner of the judgment to come.

CHRYS. To this most sweet section of Scripture which we cease not continually to ponder, let us now listen with all attention and compunction of spirit, for Christ does indeed clothe this discourse with more terrors and vividness. He does not accordingly say of this as of the others, The kingdom of heaven is like, but shows of Himself by direct revelation, saying, When the Son of man shall come in his majesty.

JEROME; He who was within two days to celebrate the Passover, to be delivered to the cross, and mocked by men, fitly now holds out the glory of His triumph, that He may overbalance the offenses that were to follow by the promise of reward. And it is to be noted, that He who shall be seen in majesty is the Son of Man.

AUG. The wicked and they also who shall be set on His light hand shall see Him in human shape, for He shall appear in the judgment in that form which He took on Him from us; but it shall be afterwards that He shall be seen in the form of God, for which all the believers long.

REMIG. These words overthrow the error of those who said that the Lord should not continue in the same form of a servant. By his majesty, He means His divinity, in which He is equal to the Father and the Holy Spirit.

ORIGEN; Or, He shall come again with glory, that His body may be such as when He was transfigured on the mount. His throne is either certain of the more perfect of the Saints, of whom it is written, For there are set thrones in judgment; or certain Angelic Powers of whom it is said, Thrones or dominions.

AUG. He shall come down with the Angels whom He shall call from heavenly places to hold judgment.

CHRYS. For all his Angels shall be with him to bear witness to the things wherein they have administered to men's salvation at His bidding.

AUG. Or, by Angels here He means men who shall judge with Christ; for Angels are messengers, and such we rightly understand all who have brought tidings of heavenly salvation to men.

REMIG. And all nations shall be gathered before Him. These words prove that the resurrection of men shall be real.

AUG. This gathering shall be executed by the ministry of Angels, as it is said in the Psalm, Gather to him his saints.

ORIGEN; Or, we need not understand this of a local gathering together, but that the nations shall be no more dispersed in divers and false dogmas concerning Him. For Christ's divinity shall be manifested so that not even sinners shall any longer be ignorant of Him. He shall not then show Himself as Son of God in one place and not in another; as He sought to express to us by the comparison of the lightning. So as long as the wicked know neither themselves nor Christ, or the righteous see through a glass darkly, so long the good are not severed from the evil, but when by the manifestation of the Son of God all shall come to the knowledge of Him, then shall the Savior sever the good from the evil; for then shall sinners see their sins, and the righteous shall see clearly to what end the seeds of righteousness in them have led. They that are saved are called sheep by reason of that mildness which they have learnt of Him who said, Learn of me, for I am meek and lowly, and because they are ready to go even to death in imitation of Christ, who was led as a sheep to the slaughter. The wicked, are called goats, because they climb rough and rugged rocks, and walk in dangerous places.

CHRYS. Or, He calls the one sheep and the other goats, to denote the unprofitableness of the one, and the fruitfulness of the other, for sheep are greatly productive in fleece, milk, and lambs.

GLOSS. Under the figure of a sheep in Scripture is signified simplicity and innocence. Beautifully then in this place are the elect denoted by sheep.

JEROME; Also the goat is a salacious animal, and was the offering for sins in the Law, and He says not 'she goats' which can produce young, and come up shorn from the washing.

CHRYS. Then He separates them in place.

ORIGEN; For the Saints who have wrought right works , shall receive in recompense of their right works the King's right hand, at which is rest and glory; but the wicked for their evil and sinister deeds have fallen to the left hand, that is, into the misery of torments. Then shall the King say to those who are on his right hand, Come, that in whatever they are behind they may make it up when they are more perfectly united to Christ. He adds, you blessed of my Father, to show how eminently blessed they were, being of old blessed of the Lord, which made heaven and earth.

RABAN. Or, they are called blessed, to whom an eternal blessing is due for their good deserts. He calls it the kingdom of His Father, ascribing the dominion of the kingdom to Him by whom Himself the King was begotten. For by His royal power, with which He shall be exalted alone in that day, He shall pronounce the sentence of judgment, Then shall the King say.

CHRYS. Observe that He says not 'Receive', but possess, or inherit, as due to you from of old.

JEROME; This prepared for you from the foundation of the world, is to be understood as of the foreknowledge of God, with whom things to come are as already done.

AUG. Besides that kingdom of which He will say in the end, Inherit the kingdom prepared for you, though in a very inferior manner, the present Church is also called His kingdom, in the which we are yet in conflict with the enemy until we come to that kingdom of peace, where we shall reign without an enemy.

ID. But one will say, I desire not to reign, it is enough for me that I he saved. Wherein they are deceived, first, because there is no salvation for those whose iniquity abounds; and, secondly, because if there be any difference between those that reign, and those that do not reign, yet must all be within the same kingdom, lest they be esteemed for foes or aliens, and perish while the others reign. Thus all the Romans inherit the kingdom of Rome, though all do not reign in it.

CHRYS. For what the Saints obtain the boon of this heavenly kingdom He shows when He adds, I was hungered, and you gave me to eat.

REMIG. And it is to be noted, that the Lord here enumerates six works of mercy which who shall study to accomplish shall be entitled to the kingdom prepared for the chosen from the foundation of the world.

RABAN. Mystically, He who with the bread of the word and the drink of wisdom refreshes the soul hungering and thirsting after righteousness, or admits into the home of our mother the Church him who is wandering in heresy or sin, or who strengthens the weak in faith, such an one discharges the obligations of true love.

GREG. These, to whom as they stand on His right hand the Judge at His coming shall say, I was hungered &c. are they who are judged on the side of the elect, and who reign; who wash away the stains of their life with tears; who redeem former sins by good deeds following; who, whatever unlawful thing they have at any time done, have covered it from the Judge's eyes by a cloak of alms. Others indeed there are who are not judged, yet reign, who have gone even beyond the precepts of the Law in the perfection of their virtue.

ORIGEN; It is from humility that they declare themselves unworthy of any praise for their good deeds, not that they are forgetful of what they have done. But He shows them His close sympathy with His own.

RABAN. Lord, when saw we you &c. This they say not because they distrust the Lord's words, but they are in amaze at so great exaltation, and at the greatness of their own glory; or because the good which they have done will seem to them to be so small according to that of the Apostle, For the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared to the glory that shall be revealed in us.

JEROME; It were indeed free to us to understand that it is Christ in every poor man whom we feed when he is hungry, or give drink to when he is thirsty, and so of other things;

but when He says, In that you have done it to one of the least of these my brethren, He seems to me not to speak of the poor generally, but of the poor in spirit, those to whom He pointed and said, Whoever shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother.

CHRYS. But if they are His brethren, why does He call them the least? Because they are lowly, poor, and outcast. By these He means not only the monks who have retired to the mountains, but every believer though he should be secular, though hungered, or the like, yet He would have him obtain merciful succors, for baptism and communication of the Divine mysteries makes him a brother.

ORIGEN; As He had said to the righteous, Come you, so He says to the wicked, Depart you, for they who keep God's commandment are near to the Word, and are called that they may be made more near; but they are far from it, though they may seem to stand hard by, who do not His commands ; therefore it is said to them, Depart you, that those who seemed to be living before Him, might be no more seen. It should be remarked, that though He had said to the Saints, you blessed of my Father, He says not now, You cursed of my Father, because of all blessing the Father is the author, but each man is the origin of his own curse when he does the things that deserve the curse. They who depart from Jesus fall into eternal fire, which is of a very different kind from that fire which we use. For no fire which we have is eternal, nor even of any long continuance. And note, that He does not say, 'the kingdom prepared for the Angels,' as He does say everlasting fire prepared for the Devil and his Angels; because He did not, as far as in Him lay, create men to perdition, but sinners yoke themselves to the Devil, so that as they that are saved are made equal to the holy Angels, they that perish are made equal with the Devil's Angels.

AUG. It is hence clear, that the same fire will be appropriated to the punishment of men and of demons. If then it inflicts pain by corporeal touch, so as to produce bodily torment, how will there be in it any punishment for the evil spirits, unless the demons have, as some have thought, bodies composed of gross and fluid air. But if any man asserts that the demons have no bodies, we would not pugnaciously contend the point. For why may we not say, that truly, though wonderfully, even incorporeal spirit can feel pain of corporeal fire? If the spirits of men, though themselves incorporeal, can be now enclosed in bodily limbs, they can then be inseparably attached to the bonds of body. The demons then will be united to a body of material fire, though themselves immaterial, drawing punishment from their body, not giving life to it. And that fire being material will torture such bodies as ours with their spirits; but the demons are spirits without bodies.

ORIGEN; Or it may be that fire is of such nature that it can burn invisible substances, being itself invisible, as the Apostle speaks, The things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal? Wonder not when you hear that there is a fire which though unseen has power to torture, when you see that there is an internal fever which comes upon men, and pains them grievously. It follows, I was hungry, and you gave me no meat.

It is written to the believers, You are the body of Christ. As then the soul dwelling in the body, though it hungers not in respect of its spiritual substance, yet hungers for the food of the body, because it is yoked to the body; so the Savior suffers whatever His body the Church suffers, though He Himself be impassable. And observe how in speaking to the righteous He reckons up their good deeds under their several kinds, but to the unrighteous He cuts short the description under the one head, I was sick and in prison, and you visited me not, because it was the part of a merciful Judge to enlarge and dwell upon men's good deeds, but to pass lightly and cursorily over their evil deeds.

CHRYS. Observe how they had failed in mercifulness, not in one or; two respects only, but in all; not only did they not feed Him when He was hungry, but they did not even visit Him when He was sick, which was easier. And look how light things He enjoins; He said not, I was in prison, and you did not set me free, but, and you visited me not. Also His hunger required no costly dainties, but necessary food. Each of these counts then is enough for their punishment. First, the slightness of His prayer, viz. for bread; secondly, the destitution of Him who sought it, for He was poor; thirdly, the natural feelings of compassion, for He was a man; fourthly, the expectation of His promise, for He promised a kingdom; fifthly, the greatness of Him who received, for it is God who receives in the poor man; sixthly, the preeminent honor, in that He condescended to take of men; and seventhly, the righteousness of so bestowing it, for what He takes from us is our own. But avarice blinds men to all these considerations.

GREG. They to whom this is said are the wicked believers, who are judged and perish; others, being unbelievers, are not judged and perish; for there is no examination of the condition of such as appear before the face of an impartial Judge already condemned by their unbelief; but those who hold the profession of the faith, but have not the works of their profession, are convicted that they may be condemned. These at least hear the words of their Judge, because they have at least kept the words of His faith. The others hear no words of their Judge pronouncing sentence of condemnation, because they have not paid Him honor even in word. For a prince who governs an earthly kingdom punishes after a different manner the rebellion of a subject and the hostile attempts of an enemy; in the former case, he recurs to his prerogative; against an enemy he takes arms, and does not ask what penalty the law attaches to his crime.

CHRYS. Thus convicted by the words of the Judge, they make answer submissively, Lord, when saw we you &c.

ORIGEN; Mark how the righteous dwell upon each word, while the unrighteous answer summarily, and not going through the particular instances; for so it becomes the righteous out of humility to disclaim each individual generous action, when imputed to them publicly; whereas bad men excuse their sins, and endeavor to prove them few and venial. And Christ's answer conveys this. And to the righteous He says, In that you did it to my brethren, to show the greatness of their good deeds; to the sinners He says only, to one of the least of these, not aggravating their sin. For they are truly His brethren who are perfect; and a deed of mercy shown to the more holy is more acceptable to God than one shown to the less holy; and the sin of overlooking the less holy is less than of overlooking the more holy.

AUG. He is now treating of the last judgment, when Christ shall come from heaven to judge the quick and dead. This day of the Divine judgment we call the Last Day, that is, the end of time; for we cannot tell through how many days that judgment will be prolonged; but day, as is the use of holy Scripture, is put for time. And we therefore call it the last or latest judgment, because He both now judges and has judged from the beginning of the human race, when He thrust forth the first man from the tree of life, and spared not the Angels that sinned. But in that final judgment both men and Angels shall be judged together, when the Divine power shall bring each man's good and evil deeds in review before his memory, and one intuitive glance shall present them to the perception, so that at once we shall be condemned or acquitted in our consciences.

46. And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.

AUG. Some deceive themselves, saying, that the fire indeed is called everlasting, but not the punishment. This the Lord foreseeing, sums up His sentence in these words.

ORIGEN; Observe that whereas He put first the invitation, Come, you blessed, and after that, Depart, you cursed, because it is the property of a merciful God to record the good deeds of the good, before the bad deeds of the bad; He now reverses the order, describing first the punishment of the wicked, and then the life of the good, that the terrors of the one may deter us from evil, and the honor of the other incite us to good.

GREG. If he who has not given to others is visited with so heavy a punishment, what shall he get who is convicted of having robbed others of their own.

AUG. Eternal life is our chief good, and the end of the city of God, of which the Apostle speaks, And the end everlasting life. But because eternal life might be understood by those who are not well versed in Holy Scripture, to mean also the life of the wicked because of the immortality of their souls, or because of the endless torments of the wicked; therefore we must call the end of this City in which the chief good shall be attained, either peace in life eternal, or life eternal in peace, that it may be intelligible to all.

ID. That which the Lord spoke to His servant Moses, I am that I am, this we shall contemplate when we shall live in eternity. For thus the Lord speaks This is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God. This contemplation is promised to us as the end of all action, and the eternal perfection of our joys, of which John speaks, We shall see him as he is.

JEROME; Let the thoughtful reader observe that punishments are eternal, and that that continuing life has thenceforward no fear of fall.

GREG. They say that He held out empty terrors to deter them from sin. We answer, if He threatened falsely to check unrighteousness, then He promised falsely to promote good conduct. Thus while they go out of the way to prove God merciful, they are not afraid to charge Him with fraud. But, they urge, finite sin ought not to be visited with infinite punishment; we answer, that this argument would be just, if the righteous Judge considered men's actions, and not their hearts. Therefore it belongs to the righteousness of an impartial Judge, that those whose heart would never be without sin in this life, should never be without punishment.

AUG. And the justice of no law is concerned to provide that the duration of each man's punishment should be the same with the sin which drew that punishment upon him. There never was any man, who held that the torment of him, who committed a murder or adultery, should be compressed within the same space of time as the commission of the act. And when for any enormous crime a man is punished with death, does the law estimate his punishment by the delay that takes place in putting him to death, and not rather by this, that they remove him for ever from the society of the living? And fines, disgrace, exile, slavery, when they are inflicted without any hopes of mercy, do they not seem like eternal punishments in proportion to the length of this life? They are only therefore not eternal, because the life which suffers them is not itself eternal. But they say, flow then is that true which Christ says, With what measure you mete, it shall be measured to you again, if temporal sin is punished with eternal pain? They do not observe that this is said with a view, not to the equality of the period of time, but of the retribution of evil, i.e. that he that has done evil should suffer evil. Man was made worthy of everlasting evil, because he destroyed in himself that good which might have eternal.

GREG. But they say, no just man takes pleasure in cruelties, and the guilty servant was scourged to correct his fault. But when the wicked are given over to hell fire, to what purpose shall they burn there for ever? We reply, that Almighty God, seeing He is good, does not delight in the torments of the wretched; but forasmuch as He is righteous, He ceases not from taking vengeance on the wicked; yet do the wicked burn not without some purpose, namely, that the righteous may acknowledge how they are debtors for eternity to Divine grace, when they see the wicked suffering for eternity misery, which themselves have escaped only by the assistance of that Divine grace.

AUG. But, they assert, nobody can be at once capable of suffering pain, and incapable of death. It must be that one live in pain, but it need not be that pain kill him; for not even these mortal bodies die from every pain; but the reason that some pain causes their death is, that the connection between the soul and our present body is such that it gives way to extreme pain. But then the soul shall be united to such a body, and in such a way, that no pain shall be able to overcome the connection. There will not then be no death, but an everlasting death, the soul being unable to live, as being without God, and equally unable to rid itself of the pains of body by dying. Among these impugners of the eternity of punishment,

ORIGEN is the most merciful, who believed that the Devil himself and his Angels, after sufferings proportioned to their deserts, and a long endurance, should be delivered from those torments, and associated with the holy Angels. But for these and other things he was not undeservedly rebuked by the Church, because even his seeming mercy was thrown away, making for the saints real pains in which their sins were to be expiated, and fictitious blessedness, if the joys of the good were not to be secure and endless. In quite another way does the mercy of others err through their humane sympathies, who think that the sufferings of those men who are condemned by this sentence will be temporal, but that the happiness of those who are set free sooner or later will be eternal. Why does their charity extend to the whole race of man, but dries up when they come to the angelic race?

GREG. But they say, How can they be called Saints, if they shall not pray for their enemies whom they see shell burning? They do not indeed pray for their enemies, so long as there is any possibility of converting their hearts to a profitable penitence, but how shall they pray for them when any change from their wickedness is no longer possible?

AUG. So some there are who hold out liberation from punishment not to all men, but to those only who have been washed in Christ's Baptism, and have been partakers of His Body, let them have lived as they will; because of that which the Lord speaks, If any man eat of this bread, he shall not die eternally. Again, others promise this not to all who have Christ's sacrament, but to Catholics only, however in their lives, who have eaten Christ's Body, not in sacrament only, but in verity, (inasmuch as they are set in the Church, which is His Body,) even though they should afterwards have fallen into heresy or idolatry of the Gentiles. And others again, because of what is written above, He that shall endure to the end, the same shall be saved, promise this only to those who persevere in the Catholic Church, that by the worthiness of their foundation, that is, of their faith, they shall be saved by fire. All these the Apostle opposes when he says, The works of the flesh are manifest, which are these, uncleanness, fornication, and the like; of which I tell you before, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. Whoever in his heart prefers temporal things to Christ, Christ is not his foundation, though he seem to have the faith of Christ. How much more then is he, who has committed things unlawful, convicted of not preferring Christ, but preferring other things to Him? I have also met with some who thought that only those would burn in eternal torments who neglected to give alms proportioned to their sins; and for this reason they think that the Judge Himself here mentions nothing else that He shall make inquiry of, but of the giving or not giving alms. But whoever gives alms worthily for his sins, first begins with himself; for it were unmeet that he should not do that to himself which he does to others when he has heard the words of God, You shall love your neighbor as yourself, and hears likewise, Be merciful to your soul in pleasing God? He then who does not to his own soul this alms of pleasing God, how can he be said to give alms meet for his sins? Why we are to give alms then is only that when we pray for mercy for sins past, we may be heard; not that we may purchase thereby license for continuing in sin. And the Lord forewarns us that He will put alms done on the right hand, and on the left alms not done, to show us how mighty are alms to do away former sins, not to give impunity to a continuance in sin.

ORIGEN; Or, It is not one kind of righteousness only that is rewarded, as many think. In whatsoever matters any one does Christ's commands, he gives Christ meat and drink, Who feeds ever upon the truth and righteousness of His faithful people. So do we weave raiment for Christ when cold, when taking wisdom's web, we inculcate upon others, and put upon them bowels of mercy. Also when we make ready with divers virtues our heart for receiving Him, or those who are His, we take Him in a stranger into the home of our bosom. Also when we visit a brother sick either in faith or in good works, with doctrine, reproof, or comfort, we visit Christ Himself. Moreover, all that is here, is the prison of Christ, and of them that are His, who live in this world, as though chained in the prison of natural necessity. When we do a good work to these, we visit them in prison, and Christ in them.

Catena Aurea Matthew 25

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The Last Judgment Polyptych

Rogier van der Weyden

1446-52
Oil on wood, 215 x 560 cm
Musée de l'Hôtel Dieu, Beaune

CATHOLIC ALMANAC

Monday, March 10

Liturgical Color: Violet

Pope Pius VII returned to Rome on this
day in 1814. Because of his resistance
to French intrusion into Church affairs,
Napoleon had the Pope arrested and
held in exile for 5 years. He was
released when Napoleon’s empire
collapsed.

Catholic Culture

Daily Readings for:March 10, 2014
(Readings on USCCB website)

Collect: Convert us, O God our Savior, and instruct our minds by heavenly teaching, that we may benefit from the works of Lent. 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 Yellow Split Pea Soup

ACTIVITIES

o Christ the Sower: Lenten Seed Sowing

o Pretzels for God: Lent and the Pretzel

o The Kaleidoscope of Lent

PRAYERS

o Prayer for the First Week of Lent

o Novena to St. Joseph

o Lent Table Blessing 1

o Book of Blessings: Blessing Before and After Meals: Lent (2nd Plan)

o Novena to St. Joseph II

o Traditional Novena Prayer to St. Joseph

· Lent: March 10th

· Monday of the First Week of Lent

Old Calendar: The Forty Holy Martyrs

According to the 1962 Missal of Bl. John XXIII the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite, today is the feast of the Forty Holy Martyrs of Sebaste, a group of forty soldiers who suffered a martyr's death for their steadfast faith in Christ, by freezing in a lake near Sebaste, in the former Lesser Armenia (now Sivas in central-eastern Turkey).

Stational Church

The Forty Holy Martyrs of Sebaste
The Forty Martyrs were soldiers quartered at Sebaste in Armenia, about the year 320. When their legion was ordered to offer sacrifice to idols, they refused to betray the faith of their baptism, and replied to all persuasive efforts, “We are Christians!” When neither cajolings or threats could change them, after several days of imprisonment they were chained together and taken to the site of execution. It was a cruel winter, and they were condemned to lie without clothing on the icy surface of a pond in the open air until they froze to death.

The forty, not merely undismayed but filled with joy at the prospect of suffering for Jesus Christ, said: “No doubt it is difficult to support so acute a cold, but it will be agreeable to go to paradise by this route; the torment is of short duration, and the glory will be eternal. This cruel night will win for us an eternity of delights. Lord, forty of us are entering combat; grant that we may be forty to receive the crown!”

There were warm baths close by, ready for any among them who would deny Christ. One of the confessors lost heart, renounced his faith, and went to cast himself into the basin of warm water prepared for that intention. But the sudden change in temperature suffocated him and he expired, losing at once both temporal and eternal life. The still living martyrs were fortified in their resolution, beholding this scene.

Then the ice was suddenly flooded with a bright light; one of the soldiers guarding the men, nearly blinded by the light, raised his eyes and saw Angels descend with forty crowns which they held in the air over the martyrs’ heads; but the fortieth one remained without a destination. The sentry was inspired to confess Christ, saying: “That crown will be for me!” Abandoning his coat and clothing, he went to replace the unfortunate apostate on the ice, crying out: “I am a Christian!” And the number of forty was again complete. They remained steadfast while their limbs grew stiff and frozen, and died one by one.

Among the forty there was a young soldier named Meliton who held out longest against the cold, and when the officers came to cart away the dead bodies they found him still breathing. They were moved with pity, and wanted to leave him alive, hoping he would still change his mind. But his mother stood by, and this valiant woman could not bear to see her son separated from the band of martyrs. She exhorted him to persevere, and lifted his frozen body into the cart. He was just able to make a sign of recognition, and was borne away, to be thrown into the flames with the dead bodies of his brethren. Their bones were cast into the river, but they floated and were gathered up by the faithful.

Excerpted from Little Pictorial Lives of the Saints, a compilation based on Butler’s Lives of the Saints and other sources by John Gilmary Shea (Benziger Brothers: New York, 1894); Vie des Saints pour tous les jours de l’année, by Abbé L. Jaud (Mame: Tours, 1950).

Things to Do:

Learn more about the Forty Holy Martyrs here.
Read St. Basil's Homily on their festival.

The Station today is at St. Peter in Chains. The church was one of the tituli, Rome's first parish churches, known as the Titulus Eudoxiae or the Eudoxiana. It was built over the ruins of an Imperial villa in 442 (or possibly 439), to house the chains that had bound St. Peter in prison in Jerusalem.

· March 10 is nine days before the Solemnity of St. Joseph, and the day to begin a novena to St. Joseph for his feast day.

The Word Among Us

Meditation: Leviticus 19:1-2, 11-18

1st Week of Lent

You shall love your neighbor as yourself. (Leviticus 19:18)

We are familiar with what Jesus calls the “two great commandments” of the Law: “You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart… . You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22:37, 39). But these commandments can seem so vague that we may not know how to observe them.

Here in Leviticus, where these words first appear, there are plenty of specifics. Don’t steal or cheat. Don’t take advantage of the poor. Don’t disparage those with disabilities or make things more difficult for them. Don’t stand by idly when you could be helping someone in need. Instead of hanging on to resentment or seeking revenge, tell your neighbor what he’s done wrong, and then let him resolve it with the Lord.

Jesus is just as specific. We may sometimes wonder how we can love a Messiah who is invisible and who lives up in heaven. He can seem so distant to us, so different from the people we encounter every day.

Or is he? If you want to see Jesus, look into the eyes of someone who is poor, hungry, homeless, sick, or imprisoned. Look into the eyes of a friend or family member who is suffering in some way. Listen carefully to what this person is saying—and is not saying. Stay long enough to find Jesus, so that you will end up treating him or her as you would treat the Lord.

This can seem overwhelming, especially when we think about how limited our own resources are. How can I possibly show this person real love? The key comes in God’s word to the Israelites: “I am the Lord” (Leviticus 19:18). It is as if Jesus is telling us, Here I am, looking through the eyes of this man’s homelessness, that woman’s poverty, this child’s woundedness. They are all “these least brothers of mine,” and when you look at them, you see me. When you serve them, you serve me. When you love them, you are loving me.

Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta would often say that it was a privilege to care for the poorest of the poor because they offered her so many opportunities to meet Jesus. May we all find this same privilege as we minister to the needy ones among us—even those in our own families!

“Jesus, open my eyes so that I can see you and love you in my neighbor.”

Psalm 19:8-10, 15; Matthew 25:31-46

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

Daily Marriage Tip for March 10, 2014:

Where is your church? Perhaps it’s closer than you think. A family is “the most basic way in which the Lord gathers us, forms us, and acts in the world. The early Church [called] the Christian family a domestic church or church of the home.” (Follow the Way of Love). Pray at home today.

Regnum Christi

Holiness and Community

| SPIRITUAL LIFE | SPIRITUALITY

Monday of the First Week of Lent

Father Alex Yeung, LC

Matthew 25:31-46

"When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit upon his glorious throne, and all the nations will be assembled before him. And he will separate them one from another, as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will place the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. Then the king will say to those on his right, ´Come, you who are blessed by my Father. Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, a stranger and you welcomed me, naked and you clothed me, ill and you cared for me, in prison and you visited me.´ Then the righteous will answer him and say, ´Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? When did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? When did we see you ill or in prison, and visit you?´ And the king will say to them in reply, ´Amen, I say to you, whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.´ Then he will say to those on his left, ´Depart from me, you accursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, a stranger and you gave me no welcome, naked and you gave me no clothing, ill and in prison, and you did not care for me.´ Then they will answer and say, ´Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or ill or in prison, and not minister to your needs?´ He will answer them, ´Amen, I say to you, what you did not do for one of these least ones, you did not do for me.´ And these will go off to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life."

Introductory Prayer: Lord Jesus, you are my Savior and Redeemer. I place all my hope and trust in your divine heart. United to you, all things are possible — even my holiness. With childlike faith and trusting you without limits, I know that I will experience the triumph of your grace in my life. I wish to grow in holiness today, so that I will love you, my God, above all else. Amen.

Petition: Lord, help me to appreciate that growth in holiness occurs within a Christian community.

1. Essentially, Holiness is Seeking the Good of Others: The Catechism of the Catholic Church states that “charity is the soul of the holiness to which all are called: it ‘governs, shapes and perfects all the means of sanctification.’” And quoting St. Therese of Lisieux, it reminds us:

If the Church was a body composed of different members, it couldn´t lack the noblest of all; it must have a heart, and a heart burning with love. And I realized that this love alone was the true motive force which enabled the other members of the Church to act; if it ceased to function, the apostles would forget to preach the Gospel, the martyrs would refuse to shed their blood. (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 826).

In today’s Gospel Jesus grants eternal life to those who did good to others, whom he identifies as his very self. Contrariwise, he sends to eternal damnation those who did nothing to help others, whom he identifies as his very self.

2. Holiness Necessarily Entails a Dedication to the Christian Mission: Hand-in-hand with genuine charity is our sense of Christian mission. There is no genuine holiness apart from a radical orientation toward the spiritual and material good of others. In a word: there is no holiness without mission. As Blessed Pope John Paul II reminds us:

The universal call to holiness is closely linked to the universal call to mission. Every member of the faithful is called to holiness and to mission. This was the earnest desire of the [Second Vatican] Council, which hoped to be able “to enlighten all people with the brightness of Christ, which gleams over the face of the Church, by preaching the Gospel to every creature.” The Church´s missionary spirituality is a journey toward holiness … (Encyclical Letter Redemptoris Missio, 90).

Our times cry out for this kind of holiness, one enflamed by the ardent determination to bring as many of our brothers and sisters as possible to Christ.

3. Holiness Occurs Within the Christian Community: This universal call to holiness and mission is meant to be fostered within the context of a Christian community. We are meant to spur each other on by our devotion, good example, generosity and encouragement.

Dear brothers and sisters: let us remember the missionary enthusiasm of the first Christian communities. Despite the limited means of travel and communication in those times, the proclamation of the Gospel quickly reached the ends of the earth. And this was the religion of a man who had died on a cross, ‘a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles’! (I Corinthians 1:23). Underlying this missionary dynamism was the holiness of the first Christians and the first communities (Encyclical Letter Redemptoris Missio, 90).

Do I strive to build up my family and Christian community with missionary awareness? Do I value the example and help I receive, and do I strive to help others along this same path of holiness?

Conversation with Christ: Lord, make my holiness real. Let it be characterized by a heartfelt, growing and universal love for all people. Let my heart beat in unison with yours. Open my eyes to all the good that I can do for my brothers and sisters, and don’t allow me to walk away from any opportunity to show this world your love. Amen.

Resolution: I will take some time today to examine my conscience and honestly assess the spontaneity, depth and extension of my charity towards others, especially those I supposedly love the most.

Homily of the Day

March 10, 2014

“I tell you the truth” Jesus says,” when you gave food, when you offered a drink, when you clothed someone, when you visited the sick, when you visited those in prison you did it to me.”

Jesus tells us, shows us who in reality he is who is God, how to find and be one with him, this God who is truly alive, this God called Emmanuel And the Lord warns us, that even the good and saintly people would have difficulty recognizing him in their day to day life.

Today, everyday, anywhere, everywhere, he comes to us in the guise of the poorest of the poor, of the suffering unwanted brethren of ours, asking for our help, most of the time not even daring to beg for help from us. Do you see, do you sense? The thought that it is Emmanuel in front of me makes heaven and earth tremble. It makes me tremble. ”Extend! Extend! Extend! The king of Siam commands in the movie, The King and I. God literally commands us to “Extend! Extend! Our hands, our hearts, our whole being, if we want the Lord to “welcome us into his kingdom on the last judgment.

Lord, Emmanuel, may I help you here? Now?

One Bread One Body

One Bread, One Body

Language: English | Español

All Issues > Volume 30, Issue 2

<< Monday, March 10, 2014 >>

Leviticus 19:1-2, 11-18
View Readings

Psalm 19:8-10, 15

Matthew 25:31-46
Similar Reflections

LOVE IS FORGIVENESS

"You shall love your neighbor as yourself." —Leviticus 19:18

Jesus surprised the religious leaders of His day by teaching that an obscure commandment in Leviticus was the second greatest commandment and, together with the first commandment, was the basis of the whole law and the prophets (Mt 22:35-40).

The Biblical context for the second greatest commandment is another commandment: "Take no revenge and cherish no grudge against your fellow countrymen" (Lv 19:18). Consequently, when Jesus commands us to love our neighbor as ourselves, He is telling us to hold no unforgiveness. Thus, love as expressed in forgiveness indicates whether or not we truly love God with all our hearts. A forgiving love is part of the basis of the whole law and the prophets.

When we understand the Biblical context of the second greatest commandment, we see forgiveness not only as an aspect of Christianity but as the essence of it. This helps us understand why Jesus taught us to pray: "Forgive us the wrong we have done as we forgive those who wrong us" (Mt 6:12). In the light of Leviticus, we can better appreciate one of Jesus' last words on the cross: "Father, forgive them; they do not know what they are doing" (Lk 23:34).

When God says: "Love," He means first of all: "Forgive." God is Love, and they who abide in forgiveness abide in God and God in them (see 1 Jn 4:16).

Prayer: Father, may I forgive 70 x 7 times. Give me a life of forgiving and love.

Promise: "I assure you, as often as you did it for one of My least brothers, you did it for Me." —Mt 25:40

Praise: Charles forgave his brother — again.

Pray for an end to abortion and the conversion of America to a culture of life.