Posted on 07/09/2014 9:26:21 PM PDT by Salvation
July 10, 2014
Thursday of the Fourteenth Week in Ordinary Time
Reading 1 Hos 11:1-4, 8e-9
Thus says the LORD:
When Israel was a child I loved him,
out of Egypt I called my son.
The more I called them,
the farther they went from me,
Sacrificing to the Baals
and burning incense to idols.
Yet it was I who taught Ephraim to walk,
who took them in my arms;
I drew them with human cords,
with bands of love;
I fostered them like one
who raises an infant to his cheeks;
Yet, though I stooped to feed my child,
they did not know that I was their healer.
My heart is overwhelmed,
my pity is stirred.
I will not give vent to my blazing anger,
I will not destroy Ephraim again;
For I am God and not man,
the Holy One present among you;
I will not let the flames consume you.
Responsorial Psalm Ps 80:2ac and 3b, 15-16
R. (4b) Let us see your face, Lord, and we shall be saved.
O shepherd of Israel, hearken.
From your throne upon the cherubim, shine forth.
Rouse your power.
R. Let us see your face, Lord, and we shall be saved.
Once again, O LORD of hosts,
look down from heaven, and see:
Take care of this vine,
and protect what your right hand has planted,
the son of man whom you yourself made strong.
R. Let us see your face, Lord, and we shall be saved.
Gospel Mt 10:7-15
Jesus said to his Apostles:
“As you go, make this proclamation:
‘The Kingdom of heaven is at hand.’
Cure the sick, raise the dead,
cleanse the lepers, drive out demons.
Without cost you have received; without cost you are to give.
Do not take gold or silver or copper for your belts;
no sack for the journey, or a second tunic,
or sandals, or walking stick.
The laborer deserves his keep.
Whatever town or village you enter, look for a worthy person in it,
and stay there until you leave.
As you enter a house, wish it peace.
If the house is worthy,
let your peace come upon it;
if not, let your peace return to you.
Whoever will not receive you or listen to your words --
go outside that house or town and shake the dust from your feet.
Amen, I say to you, it will be more tolerable
for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment
than for that town.”
Day 209 - On what principles does a society build? // What is the basis for authority?
On what principles does a society build?
Every society builds on a hierarchy of values that is put into practice through justice and love.
No society can last unless it is based on a clear orientation toward values that are reflected in a just ordering of relationships and an active implementation of this justice. Thus man may never be made into a means to an end of societal action. Every society needs constant conversion from unjust structures. Ultimately this is accomplished only by love, the greatest social commandment. It respects others. It demands justice. It makes conversion from inequitable conditions possible.
What is the basis for authority in society?
Every society relies on a legitimate authority to ensure that it is orderly, cohesive, and smooth-running and to promote its development. It is in keeping with human nature, as created by God, that men allow themselves to be governed by legitimate authority.
Of course an authority in society must never originate in the raw usurpation of power but must have legitimacy under law. Who rules and what form of government is appropriate are left to the will of the citizens. The Church is not committed to particular forms of government but only says that they must not contradict the common good. (YOUCAT questions 324-325)
Dig Deeper: CCC section (1895-1902) and other references here.
Part 3: Life in Christ (1691 - 2557)
Section 1: Man's Vocation Life in the Spirit (1699 - 2051)
Chapter 2: The Human Community (1877 - 1948)
Article 1: The Person and Society (1878 - 1896)
IN BRIEF ⇡
Society ought to promote the exercise of virtue, not obstruct it. It should be animated by a just hierarchy of values.
Where sin has perverted the social climate, it is necessary to call for the conversion of hearts and appeal to the grace of God. Charity urges just reforms. There is no solution to the social question apart from the Gospel (cf. CA 3, 5).
Article 2: Participation in Social Life (1897 - 1927)
I. AUTHORITY ⇡
"Human society can be neither well-ordered nor prosperous unless it has some people invested with legitimate authority to preserve its institutions and to devote themselves as far as is necessary to work and care for the good of all."15
By "authority" one means the quality by virtue of which persons or institutions make laws and give orders to men and expect obedience from them.
15.
John XXIII, PT 46.
Every human community needs an authority to govern it.16 The foundation of such authority lies in human nature. It is necessary for the unity of the state. Its role is to ensure as far as possible the common good of the society.
16.
Cf. Leo XIII, Immortale Dei; Diuturnum illud.
The authority required by the moral order derives from God: "Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore he who resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment."17
17.
Rom 13:1-2; cf. 1 Pet 2:13-17.
The duty of obedience requires all to give due honor to authority and to treat those who are charged to exercise it with respect, and, insofar as it is deserved, with gratitude and good-will. Pope St. Clement of Rome provides the Church's most ancient prayer for political authorities:18 "Grant to them, Lord, health, peace, concord, and stability, so that they may exercise without offense the sovereignty that you have given them. Master, heavenly King of the ages, you give glory, honor, and power over the things of earth to the sons of men. Direct, Lord, their counsel, following what is pleasing and acceptable in your sight, so that by exercising with devotion and in peace and gentleness the power that you have given to them, they may find favor with you."19
18.
Cf. as early as 1 Tim 2:1-2.
19.
St. Clement of Rome, Ad Cor. 61:SCh 167,198-200.
If authority belongs to the order established by God, "the choice of the political regime and the appointment of rulers are left to the free decision of the citizens."20
The diversity of political regimes is morally acceptable, provided they serve the legitimate good of the communities that adopt them. Regimes whose nature is contrary to the natural law, to the public order, and to the fundamental rights of persons cannot achieve the common good of the nations on which they have been imposed.
20.
GS 74 § 3.
Authority does not derive its moral legitimacy from itself. It must not behave in a despotic manner, but must act for the common good as a "moral force based on freedom and a sense of responsibility":21 A human law has the character of law to the extent that it accords with right reason, and thus derives from the eternal law. Insofar as it falls short of right reason it is said to be an unjust law, and thus has not so much the nature of law as of a kind of violence.22
21.
GS 74 § 2.
22.
St. Thomas Aquinas, STh I-II,93 3, ad 2.
Daily Readings for:July 10, 2014
(Readings on USCCB website)
Collect: O God, who in the abasement of your Son have raised up a fallen world, fill your faithful with holy joy, for on those you have rescued from slavery to sin you bestow eternal gladness. 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
o How Sanctity Does Not Come Easily
PRAYERS
o July Devotion: The Precious Blood
o Novena to Our Lady of Mount Carmel
LIBRARY
o Daniel-Rops and the Holiness of History | Justine Krug Buisson
o How Old Is Your Church? | Unknown
· Ordinary Time: July 10th
· Thursday of the Fourteenth Week of Ordinary Time
Old Calendar: Seven Holy Brothers, martyrs and Sts. Rufina and Secunda, virgins and martyrs
According to the 1962 Missal of St. John XXIII for the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite, today is the feast of the Seven Brothers and Sts. Rufina and Secunda. The Roman widow Felicitas and her seven sons were martyred in about the year 162. Pope Gregory the Great said of this widow, "She was more than a martyr, for seeing her seven children martyred before her eyes, she was in some sort a martyr in each of them." A century later, Rufina and Secunda, daughters of a wealthy Roman, refused to marry two suitors who had apostatized from the Christian religion. They were scourged and beheaded.
Seven Holy Brothers
During the persecution decreed by Emperor Marcus Aurelius (161-168), seven brothers, sons of the saintly Felicitas, were tempted to renounce their Christian faith; the prefect Publius first used flattery, then resorted to atrocious torments. But they remained steadfast, and their mother encouraged them in confessing Christ. Different types of death were allotted them. Januarius died under the scourge; Felix and Philip were beaten with clubs; Silanus was cast from a rock; Alexander, Vitalis and Martial were beheaded. Four months later their mother, too, suffered martyrdom. Burial took place in different cemeteries. During the eighth century Silanus and his mother were taken to the Church of St. Susanna at Rome, where they still rest. Alexander came into the possession of the abbey church of Farfa.
Excerpted from The Church's Year of Grace, Pius Parsch
Sts. Rufina and Secunda
Rufina and Secunda were sisters and virgins of Rome. Their parents had betrothed them to Armentarius and Verinus, but they refused to marry, saying that they had consecrated their virginity to Jesus Christ. They were, therefore, apprehended during the reign of the Emperors Valerian and Gallienus. When Junius, the prefect, saw he could not shake their resolution either by promises or by threats, he first ordered Rufina to be beaten with rods. While she was being scourged, Secunda thus addressed the judge: "Why do you treat my sister thus honorably, but me dishonorably? Order us both to be scourged, since we both confess Christ to be God." Enraged by these words, the judge ordered them both to be cast into a dark and fetid dungeon; immediately a bright light and a most sweet odor filled the prison. They were then shut up in a bath, the floor of which was made red-hot; but from this also they emerged unhurt. Next they were thrown into the Tiber with stones laid to their necks, but an angel saved them from the water, and they were finally beheaded ten miles out of the city on the Aurelian Way. Their bodies were buried by a matron named Plautilla, on her estate, and were afterwards translated into Rome, where they now repose in the Basilica of Constantine near the baptistery.
Excerpted from The Liturgical Year, Abbot Gueranger O.S.B.
Symbols: Broken images or pottery.
14th Week in Ordinary Time
My heart is overwhelmed. (Hosea 11:8)
Tradition has it that as St. John neared the end of his life, people flocked to the Island of Patmos to celebrate the Sunday Eucharist with him. John was old and frail, and he had to be carried out to the people each Sunday, but it never stopped him from giving them the same message week after week: “Little children, God loves you. Love him and love one another.” That’s all John ever said, but the people still came. When asked why he kept repeating the same words, he answered, “Because that’s what the Master kept saying.”
Today’s first reading shows us that the prophet Hosea might well have said the same thing! Speaking in the name of the Lord, the prophet recounts Israel’s infidelity and sins—and yet he insists that God has never stopped loving them. In a moving poem, he shows that God’s love is eternal, intimate, unconditional, and immutable. And when this love is poured out on his people, it’s called mercy.
Just like St. John, Hosea wanted his people to experience this mercy, not just hear about it. It sounds so attractive, doesn’t it? But to quote Pope Francis, “It is not easy to entrust oneself to God’s mercy because it is an abyss beyond comprehension. But we must!” “Oh Father, if you knew my life, you would not say that to me!” “Why, what have you done?” “Oh, I am a great sinner!” “All the better! Go to Jesus: he likes you to tell him these things… . He forgets, he kisses you, he embraces you, and he simply says to you, ‘Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more.’ That is the only advice he gives you.”
Or consider God’s revelation to St. Faustina, a Polish sister who lived just prior to World War II: “I am love itself. My heart overflows with great mercy for souls, especially poor sinners. Let no one fear to draw near to me, even though their sins be as scarlet. My mercy is greater than all your sins.”
God loves you. Believe it! No matter what you have done, no matter what anyone has done to you, he hasn’t rejected you. Let him show you his love. Let him tell you over and over again, “I love you. Love me and love one another. I love you!”
“Father, I love you!”
Psalm 80:2-3, 15-16; Matthew 10:7-15
Daily Marriage Tip for July 10, 2014:
Absence makes the heart grow fonder BUT out of sight, out of mind. Which adage resonates with you more? Do you need to make any adjustments to balance your alone vs. together time?
Absence makes the heart go wander.
I’ve heard that one too.
Matthew | |||
English: Douay-Rheims | Latin: Vulgata Clementina | Greek NT: Byzantine/Majority Text (2000) | |
Matthew 10 |
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7. | And going, preach, saying: The kingdom of heaven is at hand. | Euntes autem prædicate, dicentes : Quia appropinquavit regnum cælorum. | πορευομενοι δε κηρυσσετε λεγοντες οτι ηγγικεν η βασιλεια των ουρανων |
8. | Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out devils: freely have you received, freely give. | Infirmos curate, mortuos suscitate, leprosos mundate, dæmones ejicite : gratis accepistis, gratis date. | ασθενουντας θεραπευετε λεπρους καθαριζετε δαιμονια εκβαλλετε δωρεαν ελαβετε δωρεαν δοτε |
9. | Do not possess gold, nor silver, nor money in your purses: | Nolite possidere aurum, neque argentum, neque pecuniam in zonis vestris : | μη κτησησθε χρυσον μηδε αργυρον μηδε χαλκον εις τας ζωνας υμων |
10. | Nor scrip for your journey, nor two coats, nor shoes, nor a staff; for the workman is worthy of his meat. | non peram in via, neque duas tunicas, neque calceamenta, neque virgam : dignus enim est operarius cibo suo. | μη πηραν εις οδον μηδε δυο χιτωνας μηδε υποδηματα μηδε ραβδους αξιος γαρ ο εργατης της τροφης αυτου εστιν |
11. | And into whatsoever city or town you shall enter, inquire who in it is worthy, and there abide till you go thence. | In quamcumque autem civitatem aut castellum intraveritis, interrogate, quis in ea dignus sit : et ibi manete donec exeatis. | εις ην δ αν πολιν η κωμην εισελθητε εξετασατε τις εν αυτη αξιος εστιν κακει μεινατε εως αν εξελθητε |
12. | And when you come into the house, salute it, saying: Peace be to this house. | Intrantes autem in domum, salutate eam, dicentes : Pax huic domui. | εισερχομενοι δε εις την οικιαν ασπασασθε αυτην |
13. | And if that house be worthy, your peace shall come upon it; but if it be not worthy, your peace shall return to you. | Et siquidem fuerit domus illa digna, veniet pax vestra super eam : si autem non fuerit digna, pax vestra revertetur ad vos. | και εαν μεν η η οικια αξια ελθετω η ειρηνη υμων επ αυτην εαν δε μη η αξια η ειρηνη υμων προς υμας επιστραφητω |
14. | And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear your words: going forth out of that house or city shake off the dust from your feet. | Et quicumque non receperit vos, neque audierit sermones vestros : exeunte foras de domo, vel civitate, excutite pulverem de pedibus vestris. | και ος εαν μη δεξηται υμας μηδε ακουση τους λογους υμων εξερχομενοι της οικιας η της πολεως εκεινης εκτιναξατε τον κονιορτον των ποδων υμων |
15. | Amen I say to you, it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrha in the day of judgment, than for that city. | Amen dico vobis : Tolerabilius erit terræ Sodomorum et Gomorrhæorum in die judicii, quam illi civitati. | αμην λεγω υμιν ανεκτοτερον εσται γη σοδομων και γομορρων εν ημερα κρισεως η τη πολει εκεινη |
Go, Spread the Kingdom. | ||
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July 10, 2014. Thursday of the Fourteenth Week in Ordinary Time
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Matthew 10:7-15 Jesus sent out the Twelve with the following instructions, “As you go, make this proclamation: ´The kingdom of heaven is at hand.´ Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, drive out demons. Without cost you have received; without cost you are to give. Do not take gold or silver or copper for your belts; no sack for the journey, or a second tunic, or sandals, or walking stick. The laborer deserves his keep. Whatever town or village you enter, look for a worthy person in it, and stay there until you leave. As you enter a house, wish it peace. If the house is worthy, let your peace come upon it; if not, let your peace return to you. Whoever will not receive you or listen to your words -- go outside that house or town and shake the dust from your feet. Amen, I say to you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah on the Day of Judgment than for that town.” Introductory Prayer: Lord, in your presence I break away from the spiritual laziness and indifference that deprives me of the fruit of this prayer which I need so much. I know my poverty, and you are immensely rich in all that I need. I am so slow to give, whereas you are prompt and total in your gifts to me. I offer you this unruly heart of mine to do all that you wish of me today. Petition: Lord, please grant me the grace to be a better apostle today than I was yesterday. 1. Go Out: The command is “Go.” The Kingdom cannot be spread while sitting in an easy chair. We cannot wait for the world that needs Christ to come to our door. Letting opportunities where we can serve pass by, hoping someone else will take the initiative, is simply a “no” to Christ’s command. “Go” means sensitizing our heart and eyes to those who are hungry for Christ, seeing in the faces of our family members and co-workers a hunger for his power and grace. In this culture that is sick and waning, “go” means reaching out to those who need to know Christ, so that his Kingdom will expand. We cannot take the easy route of preaching to the choir; we must reach out to those professions and fields of study that have lost all sense of the dignity of the human person – especially medicine, law, politics and education. This is what the King is asking. What is the response which I am giving to my King? 2. “Nobody Gives What He Doesn’t Possess”: Christ’s command is to give from what we have received. If every day we make ourselves more aware of the gifts we have been given through Christ’s power, we will be better at giving Christ to others. As apostles, we go not with our own power; rather, we carry Christ’s power to heal, save and conquer evil. It is he who drives the mission, who makes the apostles a team. How often do I calculate what I can contribute to the mission based only on the strength of my human qualities? How often do I give only from what is just me, rather than from the graces I have received from the Holy Spirit? Moreover, do I measure my effectiveness solely from an individual perspective, rather than from that of the whole body of the Church, in which other apostles are locked arm-in-arm with me for the cause of Christ? God’s saving power is found where obedience and unity are, not where only natural talents, gifts and abilities are at play. 3. Failures and Disappointments: Christ affirms that when we reach an impasse in our lives, this is, in and of itself, no sign of the lack of the authenticity of our mission. Its results are tied to the free-will choices of others, as well as to a plan where apparent barrenness is part of God’s economy of salvation. A period of few fruits in the mission can be a period of consolidation of our commitment to follow him in season and out of season. Take this time to repel all discouragement and doubt and to prove how authentic our “yes” is. A pure “yes” will seek God’s will and the mission at hand simply because he wants it, not for any easy or short-term results. Conversation with Christ: Jesus, I wish to ignite my own zeal for your Kingdom from the furnace of divine love which burns in your heart. I offer you the promise of a soldier in combat: to be courageous, honorable, persevering, and worthy of the name I bear – “Apostle of the Kingdom of Christ.” I work aware of the fact that I have only one life to live on this earth. Not one minute must be wasted in comfort-seeking and selfishness. My heart is ready for the mission, Lord; please sustain it today with the strength of your own. Resolution: Today I will review my daily and weekly time commitments before Christ, and I will ensure that I am using my time as fruitfully as I can to expand his Kingdom in the world. |
July 10, 2014
Traveling is something we all do. We pack a bag for our journey. Some pack next to nothing, while others pack too much. In addition to packing the things that we will actually use, sometimes we like to bring extra for what we might use. Or we think of everything we could possibly use and bring all these. And then after checking in, we realize we have to leave some luggage behind or else pay a large sum.
Our Lord tells us today to rely on God’s great providence. He does not tell us not to prepare, but he tells us that God will provide all we need if we are willing to do His work. The gospel reminds us that if we provide too much for ourselves, we may end up forgetting who provides all we need. God’s task for us is to bring His message of love and peace to the places we go to and the people we meet, even if they do not “deserve it.” Our focus is our mission. The other things – financial concerns, fear of rejection, fear of what might happen – are excess baggage that obscures our goal.
What is our excess baggage that gets in the way of our trust in the Lord? Do we have room to carry God’s love with us wherever we go? Do we have faith even in uncertainty?
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