24th Sunday of Ordinary Time

 

The Exaltation of the cross

Today is the Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross;

For many people the cross is something to be avoided not exalted. 

Yet the cross is embedded in the very DNA of our lives. 

For Nothing valuable 

Nothing precious;

Nothing worthwhile ever takes place without a cross 

No achievement has ever been won without the cross of hard work. 

No love has ever been experienced without the cross of sacrifice. 

No Peace has ever endured without the cross of forgiveness. 

If we dare to attempt greatness

Or love or Peace, or anything of value 

it will entail the cross. 

Every cross we carry while difficult bears fruit;

There in lies the victory;

The exaltation of the cross. 

What cross are you carrying today?

Ask yourself what fruit you want to come of it?

Jesus had His cross 

And it bore the fruit of Eternal Life. 

None of our crosses are in vain;

They all bear fruit

If we carry them with Faith. 

Thursday 24th Week of Ordinary Time

The Central message 1 Cor. 15:1-11

What is the central message of the Gospel?

If we do not get that right then the rest of the Gospel message will be lost. 

According to St. Paul it is that,

Christ died for our sins;

Was buried;

And raised on the Third Day. 

Therefore we must acknowledge our sins.  

And that Christ died for them. 

That He was buried like all of us will be one day. 

And that He was raised from the dead

And we will too if we believe in Him. 

It is a simple message of the reality of sin;

The inevitability of death. 

And the Promise of everlasting life. 

Saturday 23rd week

 The Name of Mary

    In fine, "thy name, O Mother of God, is filled with divine graces and blessings," as St. Methodius says. So much so, that St. Bonaventure declares, "that thy name, O Mary, cannot be pronounced without bringing some grace to him who does so devoutly.". . grant, O Lady, that we may often remember to name thee with love and confidence; for this practice either shows the possession of divine grace, or else is a pledge that we shall soon recover it. 

Let us conclude with the tender prayer of St. Bonaventure:

"I ask thee, O Mary, for the glory of thy name, to come and meet my soul when it is departing from this world, and to take it in thine arms." 

The Name of Mary

When the Angel Gabriel came to Nazareth she said,

Hail Mary!

In those two simple words, Gabriel was greeting 

The Mother of God;

The Spouse of the Holy Spirit. 

The Daughter of the Father. 

For Mary was chosen by the Father to be the Mother of His Son,

By the power of the Holy Spirit. 

This is why we call upon her Name at the hour of death to pray for us,

For there is nothing the Father would deny His daughter 

Nor the Son His Mother,

Nor the Holy Spirit His Spouse. 

Sinners that we are!

Thursday 23rd week of Ordinary Time

 Put on Christ Col. 3:12-17

Every morning we check the weather,

In order to know what to put on. 

Is it cold or hot?

Snow or rain?

Are we going to work or play?

How much more should we check our life!

Is it going to be easy Or stressful?

Are we going to run into friends or enemies?

Sickness or health?

If we put on Christ and His love, compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience then we will be ready for whatever life throws at us !

Wednesday 23rd Week of Ordinary Time

Blessings and Woes Lk. 6:20-26

There are 2 Kingdoms;

The Kingdom of Heaven and the kingdom of the world. 

While in this world, it appears that the rich, the filled, the happy and the praised have it all. 

In the Kingdom of Heaven they will not. 

In the kingdom of Heaven the rich will be poor;

The filled will be hungry;

The happy will weep. 

While the poor will be rich,

The hungry will be filled

The sad will rejoice. 

In other words, in the Kingdom of Heaven 

Those blessed in this world will find their blessings turned into Woes,

While those who experience Woes in this world will find them turned into blessings. 

Take heart therefore,

The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!

Monday 23rd Week of Ordinary Time

 Feast of St. Peter Claver

St. Peter left the luxury of Spain for Columbia in 1610

And became the “slave of slaves”

The daily life of St. Peter Claver consisted of hurrying to the slave ships when they arrived Carrying  baskets of oranges, lemons, sweet biscuits.  Large numbers of the sick were always lying on wet ground or rather in puddles of mud. To prevent excessive dampness, they would build up a mound with a mixture of tiles and broken pieces of bricks. This was their couch, a very uncomfortable one not only for that reason, but especially because they were naked, without any clothing to protect them.  Then using his own cloak he covered them. 

We haven’t really come too far. 

The slavery that existed in our country;

 continues to haunt us. 

Human beings continue to be sold and trafficked in many parts of the world for sex, body parts and labor. 

And  then there is the slavery to sin to which everyone struggles to become free. 

We must Pray and work

 that all people may know the freedom of being a child of God.