Posted on 06/17/2014 9:49:13 PM PDT by Salvation
June 18, 2014
Wednesday of the Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time
Reading 1 2 Kgs 2:1, 6-14
When the LORD was about to take Elijah up to heaven in a whirlwind,
he and Elisha were on their way from Gilgal.
Elijah said to Elisha, “Please stay here;
the LORD has sent me on to the Jordan.”
“As the LORD lives, and as you yourself live,
I will not leave you,” Elisha replied.
And so the two went on together.
Fifty of the guild prophets followed and
when the two stopped at the Jordan,
they stood facing them at a distance.
Elijah took his mantle, rolled it up
and struck the water, which divided,
and both crossed over on dry ground.
When they had crossed over, Elijah said to Elisha,
“Ask for whatever I may do for you, before I am taken from you.”
Elisha answered, “May I receive a double portion of your spirit.”
“You have asked something that is not easy,” Elijah replied.
“Still, if you see me taken up from you,
your wish will be granted; otherwise not.”
As they walked on conversing,
a flaming chariot and flaming horses came between them,
and Elijah went up to heaven in a whirlwind.
When Elisha saw it happen he cried out,
“My father! my father! Israel’s chariots and drivers!”
But when he could no longer see him,
Elisha gripped his own garment and tore it in two.
Then he picked up Elijah’s mantle that had fallen from him,
and went back and stood at the bank of the Jordan.
Wielding the mantle that had fallen from Elijah,
Elisha struck the water in his turn and said,
“Where is the LORD, the God of Elijah?”
When Elisha struck the water it divided and he crossed over.
Responsorial Psalm Ps 31:20, 21, 24
R. (25) Let your hearts take comfort, all who hope in the Lord.
How great is the goodness, O LORD,
which you have in store for those who fear you,
And which, toward those who take refuge in you,
you show in the sight of the children of men.
R. Let your hearts take comfort, all who hope in the Lord.
You hide them in the shelter of your presence
from the plottings of men;
You screen them within your abode
from the strife of tongues.
R. Let your hearts take comfort, all who hope in the Lord.
Love the LORD, all you his faithful ones!
The LORD keeps those who are constant,
but more than requites those who act proudly.
R. Let your hearts take comfort, all who hope in the Lord.
Gospel Mt 6:1-6, 16-18
Jesus said to his disciples:
“Take care not to perform righteous deeds
in order that people may see them;
otherwise, you will have no recompense from your heavenly Father.
When you give alms, do not blow a trumpet before you,
as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets
to win the praise of others.
Amen, I say to you, they have received their reward.
But when you give alms,
do not let your left hand know what your right is doing,
so that your almsgiving may be secret.
And your Father who sees in secret will repay you.
“When you pray, do not be like the hypocrites,
who love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on street corners
so that others may see them.
Amen, I say to you, they have received their reward.
But when you pray, go to your inner room, close the door,
and pray to your Father in secret.
And your Father who sees in secret will repay you.
“When you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites.
They neglect their appearance,
so that they may appear to others to be fasting.
Amen, I say to you, they have received their reward.
But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face,
so that you may not appear to others to be fasting,
except to your Father who is hidden.
And your Father who sees what is hidden will repay you.”
Day 185 - Does the Church still practice exorcism? // How important is so-called "popular piety"?
Does the Church still practice exorcism?
At every Baptism a so-called simple exorcism is performed, a prayer in which the person being baptized is taken away from the devil and is strengthened against the "principalities and powers" that Jesus overcame. Major exorcism is a prayer offered by Jesus' authority and in his strength through which a baptized Christian is delivered from the influence and power of the devil; the Church rarely uses this prayer, and only after the most rigorous examination.
The depiction of "exorcisms" in Hollywood films for the most part does not reflect the truth about Jesus and the Church. It was often reported about Jesus that he drove out demons. He had power over evil principalities and powers and could deliver men from them. To the apostles Jesus gave "authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every disease and every infirmity" (Mt 10:1). The Church does the same today whenever an authorized priest pronounces the prayer of exorcism over a person who requests it. First, however, the possibility must be excluded that the phenomenon is psychological in nature (a psychiatrist is competent in such matters). An exorcism wards off spiritual temptation and oppression and delivers from the power of the evil one.
How important is so-called "popular piety"?
Popular piety, which is expressed in veneration for relics, processions, pilgrimages, and devotions, is an important way in which the faith becomes inculturated. It is good as long as it is in and of the Church, leads to Christ, and does not try to "earn" heaven by works, apart from God's grace. (YOUCAT questions 273, 274)
Dig Deeper: CCC section (1674-1676) and other references here.
Part 2: The Celebration of the Christian Mystery (1066 - 1690)
Section 2: The Seven Sacraments of the Church (1210 - 1690)
Chapter 4: Other Liturgical Celebrations (1667 - 1690)
Article 1: Sacramentals (1667 - 1679)
Popular piety ⇡
Besides sacramental liturgy and sacramentals, catechesis must take into account the forms of piety and popular devotions among the faithful. The religious sense of the Christian people has always found expression in various forms of piety surrounding the Church's sacramental life, such as the veneration of relics, visits to sanctuaries, pilgrimages, processions, the stations of the cross, religious dances, the rosary, medals,180 etc.
180.
Cf. Council of Nicaea II: DS 601; 603; Council of Trent: DS 1822.
These expressions of piety extend the liturgical life of the Church, but do not replace it. They "should be so drawn up that they harmonize with the liturgical seasons, accord with the sacred liturgy, are in some way derived from it and lead the people to it, since in fact the liturgy by its very nature is far superior to any of them."181
181.
SC 13 § 3.
Pastoral discernment is needed to sustain and support popular piety and, if necessary, to purify and correct the religious sense which underlies these devotions so that the faithful may advance in knowledge of the mystery of Christ.182 Their exercise is subject to the care and judgment of the bishops and to the general norms of the Church.
At its core the piety of the people is a storehouse of values that offers answers of Christian wisdom to the great questions of life. The Catholic wisdom of the people is capable of fashioning a vital synthesis. ... It creatively combines the divine and the human, Christ and Mary, spirit and body, communion and institution, person and community, faith and homeland, intelligence and emotion. This wisdom is a Christian humanism that radically affirms the dignity of every person as a child of God, establishes a basic fraternity, teaches people to encounter nature and understand work, provides reasons for joy and humor even in the midst of a very hard life. For the people this wisdom is also a principle of discernment and an evangelical instinct through which they spontaneously sense when the Gospel is served in the Church and when it is emptied of its content and stifled by other interests.183
181.
SC 13 § 3.
182.
Cf. John Paul II, CT 54.
183.
CELAM, Third General Conference (Puebla, 1979), Final Document § 448 (tr. NCCB, 1979); cf. Paul VI, EN 48.
Daily Readings for:June 18, 2014
(Readings on USCCB website)
Collect: O God, strength of those who hope in you, graciously hear our pleas, and, since without you mortal frailty can do nothing, grant us always the help of your grace, that in following your commands we may please you by our resolve and our deeds. 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
ACTIVITIES
PRAYERS
o Litany of Reparation In Honor of the Blessed Sacrament
· Ordinary Time: June 18th
· Wednesday of the Eleventh Week of Ordinary Time
Old Calendar: St. Ephrem, deacon, confessor and doctor; Sts. Mark & Marcellianus, martyrs
The virtues of gratitude, confidence and love, stimulated and motivated by the Holy Eucharist, are especially necessary in the modern world. Today gratitude has become a forgotten virtue; confidence in God has been replaced by arrogant self-reliance; love for God and for mankind has been driven from the hearts of many by a spirit of pagan selfishness.
Catholics must strive to revive these virtues and shall have the special help of Our Lord in the Holy Eucharist. If we cultivate a deep and persevering devotion to Him who dwells among us under the humble appearances of bread and wine, particularly if we receive Holy Communion frequently and fervently, we cannot but make progress in the spirit of gratitude, in unwavering confidence in God's assistance, and in ardent love both for God and for our fellowmen.
According to the 1962 Missal of St. John XXIII the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite, today is the feast of St. Ephrem. His feast in the Ordinary Form of the Roman Rite is celebrated on June 9. It is also the feast of the martyrs, Sts. Mark and Marcellianus.
Sts. Mark & Marcellianus
Saint Marcus and Saint Marcellianus were twin brothers of an illustrious family in Rome, who had been converted to the Faith in their youth and were honorably married.
When Diocletian ascended the imperial throne in 284, the pagans raised persecutions; the brothers were then thrown into prison and condemned to be beheaded. Their friends obtained a delay of the execution for thirty days, that they might prevail on them to worship the false gods. Tranquillinus and Martia, their afflicted pagan parents, accompanied by their sons’ wives and their little babes, endeavored to move them by the most tender entreaties and tears. But Saint Sebastian, an officer of the emperor’s household, arriving in Rome soon after their confinement, daily visited and encouraged them.
The issue of the conferences was the happy conversion of the father, mother, and wives, also of Nicostratus, the public stenographer, and soon afterwards of Chromatius, the judge, who set the Saints at liberty and abdicating the magistracy, retired into the country. Marcus and Marcellianus were concealed by a Christian officer of the imperial household, in his apartments in the palace, but they were betrayed by an apostate and reimprisoned. Fabian, a judge who had succeeded Chromatius, condemned them to be bound to two pillars, their feet nailed to them. In this posture they remained a day and a night, and on the following day were stabbed with lances. Their martyrdom occurred in the year 286. Their tomb and that of their father, Saint Tranquillinus, was found in Rome, in 1782, in the church of Saint Cosmas and Saint Damian, adjoining that of the martyred pope, Saint Felix II. They are honored particularly in Spain, where the city of Badajoz escaped destruction by their intercession.
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).
11th Week in Ordinary Time
Where is the Lord, the God of Elijah? (2 Kings 2:14)
From Esau and Jacob to the prodigal son, stories about inheritance run throughout the Scriptures. In this passage, however, the focus is on a spiritual rather than a material inheritance. When Elisha asked Elijah for a double portion of his spirit, he was asking for the honor of being his spiritual son. And at the end of the passage, we find Elisha stepping into his new role.
It seems simple, doesn’t it? Just pick up the prophet’s mantle, and miracles will flow. But that’s not exactly how it happened. Elisha was able to do all he did because he had spent many days, months, and years with Elijah, learning from his mentor. He saw the man of God in action; he heard him preach; he prayed and fasted with him; he endured the same persecutions and challenges Elijah did. In the end, when he parted the Jordan River, it wasn’t because he had Elijah’s magical cloak. It was because he had taken on Elijah’s heart.
In a similar way, you share in Christ’s inheritance. The Holy Spirit lives in you in all his fullness. But just as Elisha walked every day with Elijah and learned to be like him, you too need to walk with Jesus every day so that you can take on his heart. That’s what releases the power of the Spirit in your life!
Whether you realize it or not, you are probably already spending a lot of time with the Lord. Do you go to Mass? Pray for your friends and family? Read Scripture? Talk to the Lord at home or at work? Every second spent with him counts! That’s because, as hard as you may be trying to please him, he is working so much more in you. He always takes the little we give him and multiplies it immensely—just as he multiplied five loaves and two fishes!
Where is the Lord, the God of Elijah? He’s in your heart! Try to follow Elijah’s—and Elisha’s—example and take a step of faith today. Encourage a downcast friend. Go out of your way to help a family member. If there is an opportunity to share your faith, take it. Then watch the Lord pour out his grace!
“Thank you, Jesus, for paving the way for me to share in your inheritance.”
Psalm 31:20-21, 24; Matthew 6:1-6, 16-18
Daily Marriage Tip for June 18, 2014:
(Readers Tip) If you do something wrong, dont say, Im sorry, which doesnt need a response. Say, Will you forgive me? The other spouse has to say yes or no. If no, you need to talk.
The Danger of Vanity. 2014-06-18 |
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All Issues > Volume 30, Issue 4
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Matthew | |||
English: Douay-Rheims | Latin: Vulgata Clementina | Greek NT: Byzantine/Majority Text (2000) | |
Matthew 6 |
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1. | TAKE heed that you do not your justice before men, to be seen by them: otherwise you shall not have a reward of your Father who is in heaven. | Attendite ne justitiam vestram faciatis coram hominibus, ut videamini ab eis : alioquin mercedem non habebitis apud Patrem vestrum qui in cælis est. | προσεχετε την ελεημοσυνην υμων μη ποιειν εμπροσθεν των ανθρωπων προς το θεαθηναι αυτοις ει δε μηγε μισθον ουκ εχετε παρα τω πατρι υμων τω εν τοις ουρανοις |
2. | Therefore when thou dost an almsdeed, sound not a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be honoured by men. Amen I say to you, they have received their reward. | Cum ergo facis eleemosynam, noli tuba canere ante te, sicut hypocritæ faciunt in synagogis, et in vicis, ut honorificentur ab hominibus. Amen dico vobis, receperunt mercedem suam. | οταν ουν ποιης ελεημοσυνην μη σαλπισης εμπροσθεν σου ωσπερ οι υποκριται ποιουσιν εν ταις συναγωγαις και εν ταις ρυμαις οπως δοξασθωσιν υπο των ανθρωπων αμην λεγω υμιν απεχουσιν τον μισθον αυτων |
3. | But when thou dost alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doth. | Te autem faciente eleemosynam, nesciat sinistra tua quid faciat dextera tua : | σου δε ποιουντος ελεημοσυνην μη γνωτω η αριστερα σου τι ποιει η δεξια σου |
4. | That thy alms may be in secret, and thy Father who seeth in secret will repay thee. | ut sit eleemosyna tua in abscondito, et Pater tuus, qui videt in abscondito, reddet tibi. | οπως η σου η ελεημοσυνη εν τω κρυπτω και ο πατηρ σου ο βλεπων εν τω κρυπτω αυτος αποδωσει σοι εν τω φανερω |
5. | And when ye pray, you shall not be as the hypocrites, that love to stand and pray in the synagogues and corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men: Amen I say to you, they have received their reward. | Et cum oratis, non eritis sicut hypocritæ qui amant in synagogis et in angulis platearum stantes orare, ut videantur ab hominibus : amen dico vobis, receperunt mercedem suam. | και οταν προσευχη ουκ εση ωσπερ οι υποκριται οτι φιλουσιν εν ταις συναγωγαις και εν ταις γωνιαις των πλατειων εστωτες προσευχεσθαι οπως αν φανωσιν τοις ανθρωποις αμην λεγω υμιν οτι απεχουσιν τον μισθον αυτων |
6. | But thou when thou shalt pray, enter into thy chamber, and having shut the door, pray to thy Father in secret: and thy Father who seeth in secret will repay thee. | Tu autem cum oraveris, intra in cubiculum tuum, et clauso ostio, ora Patrem tuum in abscondito : et Pater tuus, qui videt in abscondito, reddet tibi. | συ δε οταν προσευχη εισελθε εις το ταμιειον σου και κλεισας την θυραν σου προσευξαι τω πατρι σου τω εν τω κρυπτω και ο πατηρ σου ο βλεπων εν τω κρυπτω αποδωσει σοι εν τω φανερω |
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16. | And when you fast, be not as the hypocrites, sad. For they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast. Amen I say to you, they have received their reward. | Cum autem jejunatis, nolite fieri sicut hypocritæ, tristes. Exterminant enim facies suas, ut appareant hominibus jejunantes. Amen dico vobis, quia receperunt mercedem suam. | οταν δε νηστευητε μη γινεσθε ωσπερ οι υποκριται σκυθρωποι αφανιζουσιν γαρ τα προσωπα αυτων οπως φανωσιν τοις ανθρωποις νηστευοντες αμην λεγω υμιν οτι απεχουσιν τον μισθον αυτων |
17. | But thou, when thou fastest anoint thy head, and wash thy face; | Tu autem, cum jejunas, unge caput tuum, et faciem tuam lava, | συ δε νηστευων αλειψαι σου την κεφαλην και το προσωπον σου νιψαι |
18. | That thou appear not to men to fast, but to thy Father who is in secret: and thy Father who seeth in secret, will repay thee. | ne videaris hominibus jejunans, sed Patri tuo, qui est in abscondito : et Pater tuus, qui videt in abscondito, reddet tibi. | οπως μη φανης τοις ανθρωποις νηστευων αλλα τω πατρι σου τω εν τω κρυπτω και ο πατηρ σου ο βλεπων εν τω κρυπτω αποδωσει σοι |
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