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Home , Bartholomew the Apostle, Mark the Evangelist, Saint Matthias, Thomas the Apostle

BREAKING THE BREAD OF THE WORD

A LECTIO DIVINA Approach to the Weekday Liturgy

PROPER OF

January 25: Conversion of Paul, Apostle (n. 109) January 25: Saints Timothy and Titus (n. 110) February 22: Chair of (n. 111) 25: Saint Mark Evangelist (n. 112) May 1: Saint the Worker (n. 113) May 14: , Apostle (n. 114) : Saint , Apostle (n. 115) July 3: Saint (n. 116) July 22: Saint (n. 117) July 25: Saint James, Apostle (n. 118) June 19: Saint Mary Magdalene (n. 119) August 10: Saint Lawrence (n. 120) August 24: Saint Bartholomew, Apostle (n. 121) August 29: Passion of (n. 122) September 8: Nativity of Blessed Mary (n. 123) September 15: Our Lady of Sorrows (n. 124) September 21: Saint Matthew, Apostle and Evangelist (n. 125) September 29: Saints , and , (n. 126) October 2: Guardian (n. 127) October 18: Saint Luke Evangelist (n. 128) October 28: Saints Simon and Jude, Apostles (n. 129) November 30: Saint Andrew, Apostle (n. 130) December 12: (n. 131)

Prepared by Sr. Mary Margaret Tapang, PDDM

*** Text of the Cover Page ends here. ***

A Lectio Divina Approach to the Weekday Liturgy

BREAKING THE BREAD OF THE WORD (n. 109) January 25: CONVERSION OF PAUL, APOSTLE “ SAVIOR: He Transforms His Persecutor Saul into an Apostle”

BIBLE READINGS :3-16 or :1-22 // Mk 16:15-18

I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO

The feast of the Conversion of Saint Paul provides wonderful insights into his spiritual journey. Paul’s spiritual journey was a spiritual experience that produced a transformation and impelled him to assume a mission of evangelization. The converted Paul thus became an apostle of to the nations. On the road to , Saul of Tarsus had a profound, dynamic spiritual experience. It was God’s initiative, grace, and compassion that brought about Paul’s encounter with the Risen Lord. It was an experience of light – of revelation – of who Christ really is for Paul. Christ revealed himself not as an enemy, but as a personal Savior. Moreover, on the road to Damascus, it was revealed that Jesus of lives on in his Body, the – the suffering Church. It was a knocked-down experience that left Paul vulnerable, defenseless and open to grace. He could not help but welcome the loving initiative of God. Saint Paul is a model for us of total receptivity and openness to grace.

The mystical and transforming experience of Saint Paul is replicated in the lives of many people through time and space. Here is a modern-day example (cf. Nathaniel Hurd, “Former Atheist Recounts His Journey to the ” in Our Sunday Visitor, December 1, 2013, p. 22).

“These crazy Catholics are going to trample me to get to their bread”, I thought as the crowds pressed forward. It was Easter Sunday Mass 1998, outdoors in St. Peter’s Square. I was traveling with my friend Chris. He was a Catholic and a . I was an unbaptized atheist and a tourist. Chris saw priests in cassocks and surplices, distributing the Body and Blood of Christ. I saw men in dresses, carrying bread. Fourteen years later, on October 11, 2012, I stood in that same square as a Catholic. Emeritus Benedict XVI was the celebrant for the Mass starting the Year of Faith. I was preparing to receive Holy Communion, because seven years earlier, I had finally, fully accepted the gift of faith.

In my years as an atheist, agnostic and Episcopalian, I surprisingly remembered almost everything from that earlier Easter: Walking into St. Peter’s Square, thinking it was like two hands cupped together, waiting for people to fill it. Standing ahead of hundreds of thousands of people. Seeing flags from so many countries. Kenyans dancing when Pope John Paul II said “Happy Easter” in Swahili.

There is only one other sacred experience from my atheist years that I remembered so completely. My parents and I visited a cloistered convent when I was a teenager and heard the sing evening prayer behind a screen. The prayer ended, and I sat transfixed. I thought it was only the beauty that moved me.

How did this atheist come to see the supernatural behind and beyond the beauty? First, Catholic friends modeled and shared the Faith. They answered my questions with respect and reason, not simplistic brush-offs. They stressed that they were sharing the teachings that Christ entrusted to his Church, not personal opinion. These friendships moved me to finally open the door to the divine.

God also provided moments of Grace. The first was during a run on Dec. 23, 2001. My thoughts were on the snow that covered the cornstalks, the river to my left and road under my feet. Although I had been thinking about faith over the past few years, I had not focused on . That moment I recognized the reality of one God in three Persons – Father, and the Son who lived, died and rose for my sins. It was the start of seeing.

Easter 2002, I was baptized Episcopalian. However, I was a lazy who took no responsibility for responding to the Lord. I eventually began to wonder if he was calling me to more than what I was receiving from my faith community. I stopped going to church.

On Good Friday two years later, a Catholic friend and colleague invited me to a “Way of the Cross” walk across the Brooklyn Bridge. It was the first Good Friday that the Passion was real and painful for me. The force of Christ’s challenge – “I did this for you. What are you doing daily for me?” – of the faith of the faithful around me, of the whole experience, overwhelmed and lifted me to an Easter Vigil Mass. I sat in back but felt as if I was in front on the altar experiencing Christ’s sacrifice. The power of the liturgy moved me to return for Easter Sunday and reconsider why I had been closed to Catholicism.

The more I learned the “what” and “why” of the Church and its teaching, the more it was clear that my original understanding had been based on stereotypes and misinformation. Only the Catholic Church seemed to be the sure way for me to know what Christ taught, how he wanted me to live and where I should go for whatever I needed to do. Only the Church seemed to be preserving and promoting the fullness of the and the teachings of the apostles since .

I entered a parish Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults program … I was received into with the Church and received first Holy Communion at the Easter Vigil 2005. I was struggling to understand some of the teachings of the Church, but my faith in Christ, the Holy Spirit and the Church was strong.

God protected me during many trials. My mother threatened to cut off any communication with me. My father objected to the Church’s teaching that there is one Church and one way. For two years, my parents forbade me from visiting during Christmas and later banned me from using their car to go to Mass when I saw them.

Other obstacles were internal. I delayed going to daily Mass, thinking that I wanted to avoid “too much, too soon”. When I started going, I discovered what I had missed, what no one had explained to me: it is impossible to encounter God too much and too early. My personal and professional life changed. Daily Mass led to regular confession. When I returned to , I returned as a Catholic. At St. Peter’s tomb, I made sure to pray for Christian unity.

II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO

Do we see the mystical experience as an important element in the conversion of Saint Paul and in our own personal conversion?

III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO (cf. Opening Prayer, Mass of the Feast of the Conversion of Saint Paul)

God our Father, you taught the to all the world through the preaching of Paul your apostle. May we who celebrate his conversion to the faith follow him in bearing witness to your truth. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.

IV. INTERIORIZATION OF THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the CONTEMPLATIO

The following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the day. Please memorize it.

“Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” (Acts 9:4)

V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO

As we celebrate today the feast of the Conversion of Saint Paul, resolve to be more open to the grace of his presence, especially in the Letters of Saint Paul, and to find ways to make people interested in them.

*** Text of Conversion of Saint Paul ends here. ***

A Lectio Divina Approach to the Weekday Liturgy

BREAKING THE BREAD OF THE WORD (n. 110) January 26: SAINTS TIMOTHY AND TITUS, “JESUS SAVIOR: He Is the of Pastoral Ministry”

BIBLE READINGS First: Reading: II Tm 1:1-8 or Ti 1:1-5

I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO

In the First Reading (II Tm 1:1-8), Saint Paul underlines the obligations of Christian faith. Paul was martyred at Rome in the year 67. His second letter to Timothy represented his last will and testament. Paul exhorts the young pastor, Timothy, to exercise serving faith. The “gift of God” that Timothy received at ordination implies dutiful service to the faith community. Paul reminds Timothy that the divine gift received through “imposition of hands” needs to be continually exercised and rekindled for the common good. Timothy is likewise called to an enduring faith. Timothy needs to give witness to our Lord. He must endure sufferings for the Gospel with the strength that comes from God.

The following inspiring article illustrates what it means to remain “in the faith and love that are ours in union with Christ Jesus” and how a Christian disciple could exercise a serving faith and an enduring faith in today’s world (cf. Aquije, “The Bicycle Disciple” in Maryknoll, April 2010, p. 24-31). Fr. McCahill manifests his faith and shares this wonderful gift as he serves the sick poor in Bangladesh.

The day Maryknoll Father Robert McCahill arrived in Narail it was raining. The thin, 72-year old priest was physically exhausted and tired of looking for the place where he could begin a new phase of mission. Narail “was kind of miserable”, says the missioner, who for more than 35 years has been living in different villages of Bangladesh, one of the poorest countries in the world, with a population of 150 million in a land the size of Iowa. Narail, a small, underdeveloped village without infrastructure in the southeast of the country, seemed to the missioner like “a good place to make a mark of Christianity, not for the purpose of conversion but simply for the idea of showing what a Christian is and does.”

McCahill was one of five Maryknoll priests who arrived in Bangladesh in 1975 to begin a ministry of Christian witness. For eight years, the missioners lived together, forming a Christian fraternity in Tangail, near Dhaka, the capital. Afterward, McCahill focused his mission on traveling to the interior of the country to help people, particularly children, who were in urgent need of medical assistance. Finding a place to begin his next stay can take McCahill months of research. He has his own criteria: the place should be poor, have no other foreigners or Christians and some of the people must be willing to allow him free use of a small piece of land where he can build his own shack.

A disciple of our times, McCahill arrives alone – with only a bag with a change of clothing and the essential elements to celebrate his own Mass – in any community where he might live for the next three years. There he sits in any tea shop – “tea stalls” he calls them – where men generally congregate to drink cha, sweet tea with milk that is the national drink, the way coffee is in the United States. Noting the presence of a foreigner, the rustic shop quickly fills up with people and McCahill responds honestly to all their questions. “ Brother Bob, a Christian ”, the priest from Goshen, Indiana, tells them. “I am here to serve seriously sick people who are poor.” In the predominantly Muslim nation with a large Hindu minority, the questions that McCahill receives are many: has he come to convert, how does he finance the help he offers and why had he no family? He responds that the medical help he offers depends completely on the financial donations of his extended family and not on an organization; that his purpose is to live among people who are not Christian and treat them with love, respect and brotherhood; and that his family is all of humanity. McCahill describes the three years that he lives in each town this way: “The first year many are suspicious of me. The second year trust begins to build. The third year people’s affection is felt. They say, ‘He said he only came to do good and that is what he does’.”

In Narail, a short while before finishing his three years, McCahill continues getting up very early in the morning to dedicate time for prayer and meditation before beginning his mission work. This morning in October, he leaves his shack of jute-stick walls, a dirt floor and a corrugated roof and mounts his bicycle that will carry him over windy dirt roads through the beautiful countryside of Bangladesh’s fertile farmland, where ironically millions of people live in extreme poverty. The missioner pedals some miles to the next village of Bolorampur, where he visits Mehenaz, a 3-year-old girl who suffers from cerebral palsy as a result of a poorly handled delivery by a midwife in the village. Mehenaz’ grandmother brings the girl out of her hut and puts a mat on the ground. The missioner squats down in the style of the Bangladeshis and observes and assists the grandmother with the recommended physical therapy for the child. The girl’s mother isn’t there and McCahill is happy that someone else in the family has learned the exercises.

Afterward, amid the songs of wild birds and the smell of burning firewood, McCahill again mounts his bicycle and pedals several more miles to the village of Buramara. In Buramara, McCahill visits Liza, a 2-year-old who suffered serious burns on her left arm before her first birthday. The burns were so grave that her entire hand was fused to her forearm. McCahill was able to take the girl to a hospital in Dhaka where surgeons separated her hand from the forearm. Liza wears a brace so that the hand stays straight. The missioner explains that the child needs another surgery to straighten out two fingers that are bent. Liza cries easily and McCahill thinks it is because she is still in pain, but he tries to console her and make her laugh.

That is McCahill’s ministry. He mounts his bicycle and rides miles to his destination. It doesn’t matter if the roads are full of mud during the monsoon season in this tropical Asian land, east of , on the Bay of Bengal. He arrives in a village and looks to help people who would otherwise be disabled and burdened for a lifetime by their physical conditions. With a small camera he takes photos of their conditions: cerebral palsy, burns, muscular dystrophy, cleft lips, hernias, tumors and broken bones caused by accidents. Every week he goes to Dhaka, traveling the same as the poor, in the old buses that are part of the complicated and dangerous Bengali transportation system. At a hospital in the capital, McCahill shows the photos to doctors who make their provisional diagnosis. With this information the missioner arranges for free treatment at one of the government hospitals in the city and eventually makes the eight- or nine- hour trip again with the children and their parents. “Not a great expense”, McCahill says. “I afford them their tickets. I usually provide the medicine. It’s not a matter of money; it’s a matter of love, the heart.”

Because he lives in a poor and predominantly Muslim country, McCahill relies on only a modest budget that comes from donations from his extended family for his ministry. “If I had lots of funds at hand to use, and lived apart (in a parish), people’s attitude to me would differ”, he says, adding the people would be tempted to wheedle money out of him. “People here understand I’m using more money for their needs than I use for my own needs. No one can look at my life of service and say ‘he can only do that because he’s a rich American’.” For that reason McCahill shares the donations he receives through Maryknoll with other Christian communities that serve the poor in Bangladesh, especially communities of apostolic Sisters.

His is a life of service that he says began on Oct. 31, 1956. He was 19 years old and was interested in a career in political science. But that day as he was returning home from Seattle University, where he was studying, “I received – I can’t even describe it – an attraction to God like I had never felt before nor have needed since. The motivation I received in that moment was sufficient to keep me for life, as long as I continue to remember it.”

For years, McCahill has described his mission in a journal that he types every month on an antique Olivetti typewriter and shares with friends and family. “My mission”, he says, “is to show the love of Christ, the love of God for all people of all faiths; to be with them as a brother, to establish brotherhood by being a brother to them.” ***

In the alternative First Reading (Ti 1:1-5) we hear from Saint Paul’s letter to Titus, a Gentile convert to Christianity, who became a fellow worker and helper in missionary work. Titus is Paul’s young legate in the island of Crete. Paul underlines his authority as a and an apostle of Jesus Christ. Paul has been chosen by God and sent to promote the faith of the God’s chosen people. Such a task will be accomplished through the help of Titus, Paul’s “loyal child in faith” who is faithful to his teaching. Paul charges Titus with the task of organizing the church in Crete. Such pastoral action is necessitated by the disruption caused by false teachers. In view of a more efficacious pastoral ministry, Paul’s invocation of blessing upon Titus becomes meaningful. He prays: “May God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior give you grace and peace.”

Saint Paul’s relationship with the Church leader, Titus, is inspiring. The following modern-day account gives insight into the bond of charity and unity of faith that fellow workers in the Lord share (cf. Francis, Xavier Nguyen Van Thuan, Testimony of Hope, Boston: Pauline Books and Media, 2000, p. 111),

I would like to remember for a moment the “kingdom of the wretched”, as one deportee called it, the prison camp in the Solovetsky Islands of Russia. One deported remembered an image of love in the midst of that great hell:

Uniting their efforts, a Catholic who was still young worked together with an emaciated old man – an Orthodox bishop with a white beard, ancient in days but strong in spirit, who energetically pushed the load … Any of us who would one day have the good fortune of returning to the world, would have to testify to what we have seen here and now. What we saw was the rebirth of pure and authentic faith of the early Christians: the union of Churches in the persons of the Catholic and Orthodox bishops who participated unanimously in the duties, united in love and humility.

This happened in Solovetsky, “alma mater” of the Soviet prison camps.

II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO

Do we endeavor to rekindle the gift of faith we have received at baptism and when ordained for a special service to the faith community? Do we endeavor to remain in the faith and love that are ours as Christians united with Christ Jesus?

III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO

O gracious God, faith is your gift – your offer of eternal life. Thank you for your goodness! Through the intercession of Saints Timothy and Titus, bishops, let our faith response be marked with strength of hope and service of love. May our Christian discipleship be known for its serving and enduring faith. We adore you and give you praise, now and forever. Amen.

IV. INTERIORIZATION OF THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the CONTEMPLATIO

The following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the day. Please memorize it.

“Bear your share of hardship for the Gospel.” (II Tm 1:8) or “Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our savior” (I Ti 1:4)

V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO

Make an effort today to spread the Good News to the people around you. Pray that our Christian discipleship may be an authentic sign of an enduring and serving faith.

*** Text of Saints Timothy and Titus ends here. ***

A Lectio Divina Approach to the Weekday Liturgy

BREAKING THE BREAD OF THE WORD (n. 111) February 22: THE CHAIR OF SAINT PETER THE APOSTLE “JESUS SAVIOR: He Cares for God’s Flock”

BIBLE READINGS First Reading: I Pt 5:1-4

I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO

The feast of the Chair of Peter, apostle, underlines Peter’s special role among the apostles and in the first generation Church, as well as the pastoral role of his successor, the Pope – the Bishop of Rome. In today’s first reading (I Pt 5:1-4), Saint Peter presents himself as a fellow elder and as a witness of Christ’s sufferings and sharer in the glory to be revealed. He exhorts his fellow elders to be true shepherds of God’s flock in their midst. Their mission is to give it a shepherd’s care. Their ministry is to be carried out with eager service, with noble and never selfish, mercenary motives. In their exercise of leadership, they should be supportive and not authoritarian. They should be models of devotion, service and generosity so that when the chief Shepherd comes they will share in his eternal glory.

The following article gives us insight into the pastoral ministry of our Holy Father Pope Francis and of the entire Church (cf. “Francis Begins a Revolution” in ALIVE!, December 2013, p. 7).

Pope Francis may yet bring about a far bigger revolution in the Church than any of us even suspect. Until now the media have focused on the pope’s surprising gestures, like his choice of name, his arrival in Lampedusa, his letter to an Italian newspaper. Then there is the watching to see how he may reform Vatican bureaucracy and the silly hope that he may turn out to be, in fact, a Protestant.

But from his first homily as pope, in the , he signaled where the real revolution will come. There he raised the question of what the Church and all her institutions are for. And he wants all those institutions, Vatican offices, diplomatic service, relief agencies, Catholic schools, local youth groups, media, hospitals, etc., asking the same question: what are we here for?

And Francis is in no about the answer. “The Church is not a shop, she is not a humanitarian agency, she is not an NGP”, he said repeatedly. Rather, she exists to announce Christ, to proclaim the joy of salvation.

That has to be the primary aim of every Catholic group, be it family, a St. Vincent de Paul society, the Knights of Columbus, a parish bereavement service or a teacher-training college. Mary is the model for each individual and group. When visiting Elizabeth, “she brought not only material help but also Jesus, who was already alive in her womb. Bringing Jesus into the house meant bringing joy, the fullness of joy.”

Were the Church to fail in this regard, “were she not to bring Jesus, she would be a dead Church”. Francis could hardly make the point more bluntly. As groups open up to the Pope’s call and honestly question how they are fulfilling this mission and begin to measure everything in terms of evangelization, then we can expect a true revolution in the Church. Exciting times ahead.

II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO

How do I express my love and respect for the Pope and the other pastors of the Church? Do I pray for them and collaborate with them in caring for God’s flock?

III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO (Cf. Roman Missal, Opening Prayer of the Mass: Chair of Peter)

All-powerful Father, you have built your Church on the rock of St. Peter’s confession of faith. May nothing divide or weaken our unity in faith and love. Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.

IV. INTERIORIZATION OF THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the CONTEMPLATIO

The following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the week. Please memorize it.

“God’s flock is in your midst; give it a shepherd’s care.” (I Pt 5:2)

V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO

Let your pains, trials and sacrifices of these days be offered for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon the pastoral Church as it embarks on the task of a renewed evangelization.

*** Text of Chair of Saint Peter ends here. ***

A Lectio Divina Approach to the Weekday Liturgy

BREAKING THE BREAD OF THE WORD (n. 112) : SAINT MARK, EVANGELIST “JESUS SAVIOR: Saint Mark Proclaims Him to All Creation”

BIBLE READINGS I Pt 5:5b-14 // Mk 16:15-20

I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO

A. Gospel Reading (Mk 16:15-20): “Make known the Good News to every creature.”

In the Gospel reading (Mk 16:15-20) we hear that the Risen Lord is present in the lives of his apostles and strengthens them in the missionary mandate: “Go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature.” The Church’s have nothing to fear because the glorified Christ is with them in their preaching. He confirms their message with special signs of his protection and power. Indeed, our celebration of the Easter mystery is a call to actively spread the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. The “Gospel” to be proclaimed to every creature refers not to a doctrine, but to the very person of Jesus. With the Risen Lord Jesus as the content of the proclamation, the apostles of then and now are empowered by the Holy Spirit in their task of evangelization.

Saint Mark, the evangelist, is a sterling example of one who has used the oral tradition and written form to spread the Easter Good News. The following prize-winning story by an eighth-grader at St. John Vianney School in San Jose, California, illustrates how we can use the means of social communication and other means to make the Good News alive in our own time (cf. Clarissa Vokt, “Good News Alive Today” in Maryknoll, May/June 2011, p. 47-49).

The ways that I share the Good News are posting and reading articles on the social network websites about men and women doing good deeds in our community, to encourage others to do the same. I also send messages to others telling them to go to church on Sunday to celebrate the Eucharist, and learn all about the Good News.

I spread the Good News almost all the time when I help out at places in my community. Sometimes I volunteer to help at the park, where I help clean up after the animals and wash their feeding bowls so they always have clean water, because they are also God’s creation and should be treated so.

If I am not doing community service, then usually I will go around the house and search for items that we no longer use, and donate them to organizations such as The Salvation Army to help those in poverty who do not have the luxuries we take for granted each day.

I experience the Good News being spread when I listen to the radio. There is a radio station called Catholic Radio that my mother and I listen to almost every day, and it is always talking about the Gospel, answering questions about our beliefs, and telling us about campaigns and upcoming Catholic events in our community.

One such campaign is called “40 Days for Life”. This campaign draws attention to the evils of abortion with a three-point program including prayer and , constant vigil and community outreach. My family joined this campaign together and we have blue wristbands we wear to show our support and spread the Good News everywhere we go.

Catholic Radio has expanded my knowledge of the Gospel and inspired me to share this Good News with my friends and neighbors. This radio station has their own page on Facebook, so I decided to join it and share the Good News with my friends on the social network, who did the same.

The Good News is being spread everywhere, from the radio to popular websites, and through community service, and is spread by everyone, including teenagers and older men and women. The ways in which the Good News is being spread may have changed over the past 100 years, but the meaning still stays the same, and today it is as alive as ever.

B. First Reading (I Pt 5:5-14): “My son, Mark, sends you greetings.”

The First Reading (I Pt 5:5-14) is from the concluding part of Saint Peter’s first letter to Christians scattered throughout the northern part of Minor. The main purpose of the letter is to encourage those who are experiencing persecution and suffering for their faith. The persecution is referred to as an attack from the Devil who prowls like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Saint Peter encourages them to resist by being solid in their faith. They are to put their total trust in God who cares for them. Indeed, the loving God is powerful and trustworthy. No adversary can withstand God – not sin, nor death, nor . The suffering of the Christians is a sign of communion with of Christ. It is a privileged manifestation of the “true grace” of God who will bring them to their eternal glory in Jesus Christ after this momentary affliction. The present suffering is likewise a communion in “the brotherhood of believers” undergoing the same experience.

In his final greeting, Saint Peter extends the greeting from “the church of Babylon” and Mark’s greeting. “Babylon” is a cryptic name for Rome, which has taken the classic characteristics of a world power hostile to God – just like the Babylonian empire, whose king destroyed and the Temple in 587 B.C. The persecuted Church in the West is united with the suffering Church in the East. The “Mark” mentioned in the letter, presumably , the evangelist, is in communion with them as they share in the passion of Christ and in Risen Lord’s gift of love and peace.

The following article, circulated on the Internet, gives us a glimpse of the spiritual and apostolic power that animated Saint Mark, whose feast we celebrate today.

Mark the Evangelist is the traditional author of the . He is one of the and the founder of the Church of , one of the four main Episcopal sees of Christianity. (…) When Jesus explained that his flesh was “real food” and his blood was “real drink”, many disciples left him, presumably including Mark. He was later restored to faith by the apostle Peter. He then became Peter’s interpreter, wrote the Gospel of Mark, founded the church of , and became the bishop of Alexandria.

According to of Caesaria, I, in his first year of reign over the whole (41 AD), killed James, son of and arrested Peter, planning to kill him after the . Peter was saved miraculously by angels, and escaped out of the realm of Herod. Peter went to , then through Asia Minor (visiting the churches in , , , Asia and , as mentioned in I Pet 1:1), and arrived in Rome in the second year of Emperor . Somewhere on the way, Peter picked up Mark and took him as travel companion and interpreter. wrote down the of Peter, thus composing the Gospel according to Mark, before he left for Alexandria in the third year of Claudius.

In 49 AD, about 19 years after the , Mark traveled to Alexandria and founded the , which today is part of the Coptic . Aspects of the Coptic liturgy can be traced back to Mark himself. He became the first bishop of Alexandria and he is honored as the founder of . (…)

According to the Coptic Church, Saint Mark was born in Cyrene, a city in the Pentapolis (now ). This tradition adds that he returned to Pentapolis later in life, after being sent by Saint Paul to , and serving with him in Rome; from Pentapolis, he made his way to Alexandria. When Mark returned to Alexandria, the pagans of the city resented his efforts to turn the Alexandrians away from the worship of their traditional gods. In 68 AD they placed a rope around his neck and dragged him through the streets until he was dead.

His feast day is celebrated on April 25, and his symbol is the winged lion.

II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO

Do we imitate the apostolic zeal of Saint Mark to proclaim the Gospel and his desire to share the saving Word to all generations?

III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO (cf. Opening Prayer, Mass of St. Mark, evangelist)

Father, you gave St. Mark the privilege of proclaiming your gospel. May we profit by his wisdom and follow Christ more faithfully. Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.

IV. INTERIORIZATION OF THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the CONTEMPLATIO

The following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the day. Please memorize it.

“Go into the world and proclaim the good news to all creation.” (Mk 16:15)

V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO

St. Mark is patron of , of , and of notaries. Offer special prayers for these and for those engaged in the evangelization through the printed and digital media. By your kind words and charitable deeds, let the Gospel be proclaimed in a “living” way to the people around you.

*** Text of Saint Mark Evangelist ends here. ***

A Lectio Divina Approach to the Weekday Liturgy

BREAKING THE BREAD OF THE WORD (n. 113) May 1: THE WORKER “JESUS SAVIOR: He Is Known as the Carpenter’s Son”

BIBLE READINGS Gospel Reading: Mt 13:54-58

I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO

Today we commemorate Saint Joseph the Worker and all working people. In 1955 Pope Pius XII instituted this special feast to emphasize the dignity of labor and bring a spiritual dimension to labor unions and legislation. The Gospel reading (Mt 13:54-58) tells us that Jesus of Nazareth is the “carpenter’s son”. As he learns and practices the carpentry trade of his foster father Joseph, Jesus brings dignity to human work and especially manual labor. As Joseph and Jesus ply their trade at the workbench, human work becomes a living participation in the mystery of redemption. Indeed, through the example of Joseph and Jesus, work becomes an expression of love, an instrument of sanctification, and an efficacious means to follow the saving will of God, the Creator and Redeemer.

The following story gives a glimpse into the work ethic and sterling virtues that adorn the relationship of Jesus and his foster father Joseph, the worker-carpenter (cf. Richard Edgington, “You Break It, You Fix It” in Country, February/March 2012, p. 54- 55).

I knew I was in a hot water clear up to my neck! I waited for Dad to come, wondering what my fate would be. I had a wild hope that maybe he wouldn’t see the window. But when he drove up, opened the car door halfway and stopped, I knew he’d seen it. Would I get yelled at, or maybe get my britches fanned? He walked over to where I sat.

“Well”, he said, “you learned how to break a window. Now, you’ll learn how to fix one.” I followed him to the barn. “Get the stepladder”, he said. He handed me a pair of his high-top gloves, which were a half-dozen sizes too big. I climbed up a couple of steps on the ladder, wishing I had three hands so I could hold on with the two and work with the third. “Be careful, and work out the rest of the glass”, Dad said. He showed me how to measure for a new piece of glass with his folding ruler – the one I never get to touch. Then he said, “Let’s go to town.” I climbed down and we went to Pohlman’s Hardware in Spencerville. I told Mr. Pohlman the dimensions of the glass I wanted. He cut it and wrapped it in newspaper. (…)

After supper we went out to the barn, and Dad taught me how to fix the window. Dad could have been my buddy and fixed the window for me, but he didn’t. He was my dad, and he made me fix it. In 70 years, I’ve repaired many windows, but I’ve never forgotten that first one. It reminds me of all the wonderful things I learned from my dad. So. All you dads out there, don’t be your boy’s buddy. The next time you hear the sharp crack of an errant baseball going through the window, make your son fix it. It will pay big dividends

II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO

Do we thank the Lord for the gift of Saint Joseph to the Church? Do we promote the dignity and rights of workers and the importance of human toil in salvation history and the progress of nations?

III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO (“The Worker’s Prayer” by Blessed James Alberione)

Jesus, divine Laborer and Friend of workers, deign to look benignly down upon the working world. We present to you the needs of all who carry on intellectual, moral or physical work. See amid what fatigue, sufferings and snares we live our hard days. See the physical and moral sufferings! Repeat the cry of your Heart: “I have compassion on these people.” Comfort us, through the merits and intercession of Saint Joseph, model of workers and artisans.

Grant us the wisdom, virtue and love which sustained you in your toil=filled days. Inspire us with thoughts of faith, peace, moderation and thrift, so that together with our daily bread, we will always seek spiritual goods and . Save us from those who deceitfully try to deprive us of the gift of faith and confidence in your providence. Deliver us from all exploiters who do not recognize the rights and dignity of the human person. Inspire social laws which are in conformity with the Church’s teaching. May charity and justice reign together, through the sincere cooperation of all members of society. May everyone consider the Vicar of Christ the teacher of the only social doctrine which assures the worker of a gradual social betterment, and of of heaven, the inheritance of the poor in spirit. Amen.

IV. INTERIORIZATION OF THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the CONTEMPLATIO

The following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the day. Please memorize it.

“Isn’t this the carpenter’s son?” (Mt 13:55)

V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO

Be deeply conscious of the dignity and fruitfulness of the daily toil you carry out on behalf of your family, the family of nations and the family of creation. Do what you can to promote the dignity and rights of workers.

*** Text of Saint Joseph the Worker ends here. ***

A Lectio Divina Approach to the Weekday Liturgy

BREAKING THE BREAD OF THE WORD (n. 114) May 14 - SAINT MATTHIAS, APOSTLE “JESUS SAVIOR: He Chooses Matthias as His Apostle”

BIBLE READINGS :15-17, 20-26 // Jn 15:9-17

I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO

A. Gospel Reading (Jn 15:9-17): “I shall no longer call you servants. I call you my friends.”

As Christian disciples, we nurture the Easter blessings we receive from God the Father. We are called to live a life of loving obedience to his saving will in imitation of Jesus, his Son-Servant. At the level of service, we are “slaves” since we follow the way of the Servant of Yahweh. Serving with love is deeply rewarding and exalting. At the level of intimacy, we are not “slaves” “because a slave does not know what his master is doing” (Jn 15:15), but “friends”. Our Lord Jesus Christ tells us: “I have called you friends, because I have told you everything I have heard from my Father” (Jn 15:15).

The love of Christ moves us to love one another. The fact that God loves us into a new existence in Jesus and that we are no longer slaves but friends, empowers us to follow Christ’s command: “Love one another as I love you” (Jn 15: 12). Christian love, moreover, involves a mandate to go and bear lasting fruit. Attached to the life-giving vine, Jesus Christ, we are impelled to go to the ends of the earth, proclaim the Gospel and bear abiding fruits of conversion and faith.

Today we celebrate the feast of Saint Matthias. A witness of Christ’s public ministry and resurrection, he replaced as one of the twelve apostles. The eleven apostles felt unworthy to choose the “twelfth” of their own accord and prayed to God for guidance. The divine sign was revealed at the casting of lots. St. Matthias is privileged to be chosen by God to share in the apostolic mission of giving witness to Christ’s resurrection. In his personal relationship and service, St. Matthias is a friend- slave of Jesus. According to one tradition, he preached the Gospel in Jerusalem, Egypt and and suffered martyrdom in (modern ) at the hands of “meat eaters” or cannibals. Another tradition says he died by stoning in Jerusalem. Through his Gospel service and martyrdom, the apostle St. Matthias became totally configured to Christ, our Lord and Savior.

B. First Reading (Acts 1:15-17, 20-26): “The Lot fell to Matthias and he was numbered with the eleven Apostles.”

Today’s First Reading (Acts 1:15-17, 20-26) depicts the early life of the Church after the Lord’s Ascension and before the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. The election of Judas’ replacement to fill up the college of apostles is prepared by the ministry of prayer of the apostles, of Mary and other women, and of Jesus’ relatives. They are gathered in the upper room in continuous prayer.

The rules for Judas’ replacement require choosing “someone” who has been with the apostles during Jesus’ public ministry, beginning from the baptism of John until the day on which Jesus was taken up to heaven. Above all, this “someone” is one who has been a witness to Christ’s resurrection. Only “someone” who knew Jesus before his death could witness that the risen Jesus is the same one who died. The group of apostles, reduced to eleven by the betrayal and death of Judas, feels it necessary to restore its full complement of twelve. Guided by the scriptural directive, May another take his office (Ps 109:8), the early Christian community of “about one hundred and twenty persons”, a symbolic allusion to the restored twelve tribes of Israel (12 tribes multiplied by ten – the perfect number), gathers in one place to select a successor to Judas Iscariot. The symbolism of “twelve” apostles is vital for it indicates the new representatives of the house of Israel (cf. Lk 22:30), and evokes the twelve foundation stones of the “new Jerusalem” (cf. Rev 21:14). The “twelve” are tasked to lead the community of about 120 disciples (12 x 10), a symbolic number representing the core of the Spirit-filled Israel at Pentecost.

As Jesus prayed to the Father for guidance in his messianic ministry, and as he especially prayed for his disciples when the time of sacrifice was drawing near, the early Christian community prays for guidance in selecting Judas’ successor in the apostolic ministry. They propose two candidates: Joseph called “Barsabbas”, also known as “Justus”, and Matthias. The community agrees that these two men fulfill the requirements for joining the Twelve, but the final choice among the two is left to God. The discernment for the person chosen by God for the apostolic ministry is made in prayer and in great trust of God’s omnipotent wisdom. After praying, they draw lots, and the lot falls upon Matthias who is listed as one of the twelve apostles. The appointment of Matthias to the apostolic college underlines that one does not arrogate the ministry to oneself: God and the Church call one to it.

God continues to choose ministers who will serve him according to his heart. The following article gives insight into some factors that favor response to the divine call to ministry (cf. “US Villages Produce Record Number of Priests and Nuns” in Alive! December 2014, p. 2).

The New York Times recently did a story on two Catholic villages in Michigan which have given the Church an unusual number of priests. The piece was triggered by the ordination of Todd and Gary Koenigsknecht, 26-year-old identical twins, the previous Saturday.

The twins, from a family of 10, grew up on an organic dairy farm, had no TV in their home and prayed the family rosary each night. Their younger brother, aged 19, is also studying to be a priest.

“The community naturally fosters priestly vocations”, said Fr. Todd. “It’s in the air.” For the Times, “this rural patch of Clinton County offers a case study in the science and mystery of the call to priesthood.” It reported that the twins’ village, Fowler, with a population of 1,224, had produced 22 priests, with the same number coming from Westphalia, a village just eight miles away, with a population of 938.

The houses in the two villages, according to the Times, are orderly, with Virgin Mary statues in front yards, American flags on porches and unlocked doors. “Faith is the center of life; those who live here say: Everyone is Catholic; everyone is related and everyone shows up at Mass. The youth groups are active. “Nearly all the students attending the prom in the villages begin the festivities by attending a regularly scheduled 4:30 p.m. Mass, dressed in their party attire.”

A positive attitude towards vocations is also important. Agnes, the new priests’ mother, explained: “They’re not ours to keep. How can you hold them back?”

Meanwhile, the parish has a weekly prayer hour dedicated to religious vocations and an annual fundraiser to help cover tuition; it contributed more than $10,000 to each Koenigsknecht twin. “If the families are open to God’s calling them, then the seminarian will come”, said Jerry Wohlfert, a shop-owner in Fowler. For such tiny places, the villages have also produced a remarkable number of vocations among young women, 37 from Westphalia and 43 from Fowler. (…)

One boy told the New York Times he had felt attracted to the priesthood watching his parish priest. “I was observing how close he gets to God, and I thought it would be so cool if I could become that close to God”, he said.

II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO

1. What is our relationship with Jesus Christ at the level of intimacy and at the level of service? Do we endeavor to go out and bear lasting fruits?

2. Do we fully trust in the Lord God who knows the hearts of all? Do we allow God to work freely in the acts of discernment that we make day by day? Do we ask his guiding help in making decisions that will have an impact on our community and the people around us?

III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO (Cf. Opening Prayer – Mass of the Feast of St. Matthias, Apostle)

Father, you called Saint Matthias to share in the mission of the apostles. By the help of his prayers may we receive with joy the love you share with us and be counted among those you have chosen. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.

IV. INTERIORIZATION OF THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the CONTEMPLATIO

The following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the day. Please memorize it.

“The lot fell upon Matthias, and he was counted with the Eleven Apostles.” (Acts 1:26) //“I have called you friends.” (Jn 15:15)

V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO

Spend some quiet moments in church, preferably before the Blessed Sacrament, to deepen your spirit of listening and intimacy with the Divine Master. Look around and see how you could share the joy of the Gospel with the people around you.

*** Text of Saint Matthias Apostle ends here. ***

A Lectio Divina Approach to the Weekday Liturgy

BREAKING THE BREAD OF THE WORD (n. 115) June 11- SAINT BARNABAS, APOSTLE “JESUS SAVIOR: He Sets Apart Barnabas and Saul for a Specific Mission”

BIBLE READINGS First Reading: :21b-16; 13:1-3

I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO

Today we celebrate the memorial of Saint Barnabas, apostle. Born in Cyprus and named Joseph, he was converted shortly after Pentecost. He gave up all his possessions and was nicknamed Barnabas (“Son of Consolation”) because of his helpful, optimistic nature. In today’s reading (Acts 11:21b-26), he is described in glowing terms as “a good man, filled with the Holy Spirit and faith”. Sent by the mother Church in Jerusalem to Antioch to verify the phenomenon of conversion there, he is true to his optimistic nature. He sees the grace of God at work in this nascent . He rejoices and encourages them to remain faithful to the Lord. He brings many people to the Lord. He even goes to Tarsus to look for Saul to help him teach and nourish the fledging Christian community in Antioch. Together with Saul of Tarsus, Joseph Barnabas of Cyprus is chosen by the Holy Spirit for a special missionary journey to proclaim the Gospel to the nations.

Saint Barnabas is faithful to his apostolic mandate even unto death. The following, circulated on the Internet, is an account of his martyrdom.

Church tradition developed outside of the canon of the describes the martyrdom of many saints, including the legend of the martyrdom of Barnabas. It relates that certain Jews coming to and Salamis, where Barnabas was then preaching the gospel, being highly exasperated at his extraordinary success, fell upon him as he was disputing in the synagogue, dragged him out, and, after the most inhumane tortures, stoned him to death. His kinsman, John Mark, who was a spectator of this barbarous action, privately interred his body.

According to the History of the Cyprus Church, in 478 Barnabas appeared in a dream to the Archbishop of Constantia (Salamis, Cyprus) Anthemios and revealed to him the place of his sepulcher beneath a carob tree. The following day Anthemios found the tomb and inside it the remains of Barnabas with a manuscript of Matthew's Gospel on his breast. Anthemios presented the Gospel to Zeno at and received from him the privileges of the Greek Orthodox Church of Cyprus, that is, the purple cloak which the Greek Archbishop of Cyprus wears at festivals of the church, the imperial scepter and the red ink with which he affixes his signature.

Anthemios then placed remains of Barnabas in a church which he founded near the tomb. Excavations near the site of a present day church and monastery have revealed an early church with two empty tombs, believed to be that of St. Barnabas and Anthemios. St. Barnabas is venerated as the of Cyprus.

II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO

Do we believe that like Saint Barnabas and Saint Paul, we too have been set apart for a special mission in the Church? How does Saint Barnabas, described us “a good man, filled with the Holy Spirit and faith”, inspire us?

III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO (Cf. Opening Prayer – Mass of the Memorial of St. Barnabas, Apostle)

God the Father, you filled Saint Barnabas with faith and the Holy Spirit and sent him to convert the nations. Help us to proclaim the Gospel by word and deed. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.

IV. INTERIORIZATION OF THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the CONTEMPLATIO

The following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the day. Please memorize it.

“Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” (:2)

V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO

Spend some quiet moments before the Blessed Sacrament to thank God for the Church in mission, as exemplified by the work of Saint Barnabas and Saint Paul. Do what you can to promote priestly and religious vocations in today’s world. Pray for the Barnabite missionaries that they may have a more efficacious ministry.

*** Text of Saint Barnabas Apostle ends here. ***

A Lectio Divina Approach to the Weekday Liturgy

BREAKING THE BREAD OF THE WORD (n. 116) July 3- SAINT THOMAS, APOSTLE “JESUS SAVIOR: His Church Is Built Upon the Foundation of Apostles and Prophets””

BIBLE READINGS Eph 2:19-22// Jn 20:24-29

I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO

A. Gospel Reading (Jn 20:24-29): “My Lord and my God!” (Gospel Reflection by Sr. Mary Gemma Victorino, PDDM)

St. Thomas put conditions to the apostles before he would profess his faith in the Risen Lord. He wanted to touch and see the marks of Jesus' crucifixion and cause of death. And the Risen Lord gave in to his conditions. A week after the first apparition to the apostles, Jesus came again and invited Thomas: "Put your finger here and see my hands, and bring your hand and put it into my side, and do not be unbelieving, but believe." He who wanted to touch Jesus was in turn touched by him and exclaimed: "My Lord and my God!"

There is a “” in each of us. It is but normal that in our life of faith we oftentimes seek confirmation from the Lord, even through our bodily faculties. We like to see, hear, touch, even taste and smell the presence and the goodness of the Lord especially in our “down moments”. Otherwise, we fluctuate and falter in our following of the Master.

Our Lord, in his goodness, gives in to these 'faith tests' now and then. I had one such experience lately. May 31 was the opening of our new PDDM Apostolic Center in Davao City, Southern . I came all the way from Manila to participate in this joyful event but, in the rush of preparations, I had a freak accident and suffered a second degree ankle sprain which left me immobile at the moment of the blessing of the center. As I was languishing in my pain and wondering how I could proceed to the new Center and join in the celebration, lo and behold, a poor parishioner who came around in his wheelchair saw me at that very moment. He offered his "special seat" just so I could be where my heart and body wanted to be. I was so touched by the gesture that I couldn't help thinking it was Jesus himself who came to console me.

The “doubting” Thomas became a loving, committed apostle of the Lord. In :16, he professed his commitment by boldly saying: "Let us also go to die with him." Indeed he followed the Lord and witnessed to his love for him to the farthest bounds of the earth. In the middle of the VI century, an merchant wrote how in southern India he unexpectedly met a group of Christians who informed him that they had been evangelized by the Apostle St. Thomas.

B. First Reading (Eph 2:19-22): “You are part of the building built on the foundation of the apostles.”

Today’s First Reading (Eph 2:19-22) underlines the familial and harmonious character of the Church as members of the family of God and as fellow citizens with God’s people. The Church is a community of “flesh and blood” believers, that is, the dwelling place of God in the Spirit. The construction of the Church depends on Christ, first and foremost, but it also requires the apostolic witnessing and the ministry of the prophets for viability and growth. Jesus Christ is the Church’s capstone, its crowning glory. The service of the apostles and prophets make known God’s wisdom and the saving Gospel to the ends of the earth.

Today as we celebrate the feast of Saint Thomas, we are filled with thanksgiving for the marvels God has done to build up the Church through the instrumentality of this apostle. In the following profile presented on the Internet by Wikipedia, we contemplate the growth and expansion of the Church through the evangelizing work and martyrdom of Saint .

Saint Thomas the Apostle, also called “Doubting Thomas” or Didymus (meaning “Twin”) was one of the twelve apostles of Jesus Christ. He is best known for questioning Jesus’ resurrection after death when first told of it, followed by his confession of faith as both “My Lord and my God” on seeing and touching Jesus’ tangible and physical wounded body in the Gospel of Saint John (20:28). Traditionally he is said to have traveled outside the to preach the Gospel, traveling as far as India. He is often regarded as the Patron Saint of India. (…)

An early third century Syriac work known as the connects the apostle’s Indian ministry with two kings, one in the north and the other in the south. According to one of the legends in the Acts, Thomas was at first reluctant to accept the mission, but the Lord appeared to him in a night vision and said, “Fear not, Thomas. Go away to India and proclaim the Word. My grace shall be with you.” But the Apostle sill demurred, so the Lord overruled the stubborn disciple by ordering circumstances so compelling that he was forced to accompany an “Indian” merchant, Abbanes, as a slave to his native place in northwest “India”, where he found himself in the service of the Indo-Parthian king, Gondophares. According to the Acts of Thomas, the apostle’s ministry resulted in many conversions throughout the kingdom, including the king and his brother.

Remains of his buildings, influenced by Greek architecture, indicate that he was a great builder. According to the legend, Thomas was a skilled carpenter and was bidden to build a palace for the king. However, the Apostle decided to teach the king a lesson by devoting the royal grant to acts of charity and thereby laying up treasure for the heavenly abode. (…)

The Acts of Thomas identifies his second mission in India with a kingdom ruled by King Mahadwa, one of the rulers of a first-century dynasty in southern India. It is most significant that, aside from a small remnant of the in Kurdistan, the only other church to maintain a distinctive identity is the Saint Thomas Christian congregation along the of State in southwest India. According to the most ancient tradition of this church, Thomas evangelized this area and then crossed to the Coromandel Coast of southeast India, where, after carrying out a second mission, he died near Madras (= ). (…)

He reputedly preached to all classes of people and had about 17,000 converts, including members of the four principal castes. Later, stone crosses were erected at the places where churches were founded, and they became pilgrimage centers. In accordance with apostolic custom, Thomas ordained teachers and leaders or elders, who were reported to be the earliest ministers of the Malabar church. (…)

Saint Thomas was killed in India in 72 A.D., attaining martyrdom at Saint Thomas Mount near (part of Chennai, capital of ). He was buried on the site of Chennai’s Saint Thomas Basilica in the Diocese of Saint Thomas of Mylapore … The tradition is that Thomas, having aroused the hostility of the local priests by making converts, fled to Saint Thomas’ Mount four miles (6 km) southwest of Mylapore. He was supposedly followed by his persecutors, who transfixed him with a lance as he prayed kneeling on a stone. His body was brought to Mylapore and buried inside the church he had built. The present Basilica is on this spot. It was first built in the 16th century and rebuilt in the 19th.

Few are still kept in the church at Mylapore, Tamil Nadu, India. According to tradition, in 232 A.D., the greater part of relics of the Apostle Thomas are said to have been sent by an Indian king and brought from India to the city of () on which occasion the Syriac Acts of Thomas were written. On 27 September 2006, Pope Benedict recalled that “an ancient tradition claims that Thomas first evangelized Syria and Persia, then went on to Western India, from where also he finally reached southern India.”

II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO

1. Do we act like “doubting Thomas” in low points of our life, and challenge the Lord God to give us a reason for belief in him? Do we surrender ourselves more deeply in faith to God and thus merit the beatitude: “Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed”?

2. What role did Saint Thomas the Apostle play in the building up and growth of the Church? What is your personal contribution in the building up and growth of the Church?

III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO (Cf. Opening Prayer – Mass of the Feast of Saint Thomas)

Almighty Father, as we honor Thomas the apostle, let us always experience the help of his prayers. May we have eternal life by believing in Jesus, whom Thomas acknowledged as Lord, for he lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.

IV. INTERIORIZATION OF THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the CONTEMPLATIO

The following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the day. Please memorize it.

“He said to him, ‘My Lord and my God!’” (Jn 20:28) // “In him you are also being built together into a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.” (Eph 2:19-22)

V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO

Let us renew our faith in the Risen Lord, especially in the “down moments” of our life and say to him, “My Lord and my God!” Pray for the Church in India, especially the Syro-Malabar Church whose foundation is attributed to the apostolic works of Saint Thomas. Let every kind word and deed that you do be a part of the Church’s action of building together a “dwelling place of God in the Spirit”.

*** Text of Saint Thomas Apostle ends here. ***

A Lectio Divina Approach to the Weekday Liturgy

BREAKING THE BREAD OF THE WORD (n. 117) July 22: SAINT MARY MAGDALENE “JESUS SAVIOR: He Makes Us Messengers of His Resurrection”

BIBLE READINGS Gospel Reading: Jn 20:1-2, 11-18

I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO

Today we celebrate the memorial of Saint Mary Magdalene. The Gospel reading (Jn 20:1-2, 11-18) presents her as the first witness of the resurrection and as the first one commissioned by Jesus to proclaim the Easter message to his disciples. Mary Magdalene, who ministered to Jesus in his public ministry and stood by him at his crucifixion, is now depicted as weeping by the tomb and seeking for the dead body of Jesus whom she thought had been taken away. She fails to recognize the Risen Lord who appears to her, but like one of his sheep, she recognizes him when she hears him calling her name. Mary clings to him, but Jesus makes her understand that he must not be hindered from completing the full extent of his glorification. The Risen Lord assures her that from now on he and his disciples are inseparable. Through his glorification, they have become children of the one Father and God, begotten by his own blood, shed on the cross. Jesus commissions her to bear the good news of the Easter event – though she is a woman. Mary Magdalene, therefore, has the honor of being the “apostle to the apostles”.

In his apostolic letter, Mulieris Dignitatem (“On the Dignity and Vocation of Women”), Saint John Paul II wrote: “The also emphasizes the special role of Mary Magdalene. She is the first to meet the Risen Christ … Hence she came to be called the apostle to the apostles. Mary Magdalene was the first eyewitness of the Risen Christ and for this reason she was also the first to bear witness to him before the apostles. This event, in a sense, crowns all that has been said previously about Christ entrusting divine truths to women as well as men.” Indeed, Mary Magdalene becomes a significant part of the “new creation” that springs forth in the Easter morn. The glorification of Christ ushers in a “Christological creation” in which there is no difference between Jews and Gentiles, between slaves and free men, between men and women (cf. Gal 3:28).

Tradition and fancy have developed regarding the ministry of Mary Magdalene, a privileged witness of Christ’s resurrection. The following Wikipedia article, circulated on the Internet, gives an example.

For centuries, it has been the custom of many Christians to share dyed and painted eggs, particularly on Easter Sunday, to represent new life, and Christ bursting forth from the tomb. Among Easter Orthodox Christians this sharing is accompanied by the proclamation "Christ is risen!”

One tradition concerning Mary Magdalene says that, following the death and , she used her position to gain an invitation to a banquet given by the Roman Emperor . When she met him, she held a plain egg in her hand and exclaimed, "Christ is risen!" The Emperor laughed, and said that Christ rising from the dead was as likely as the egg in her hand turning red while she held it. Before he finished speaking, the egg in her hand turned a bright red, and she continued proclaiming the Gospel to the entire imperial house.

Another version of this story can be found in popular belief, mostly in Greece. It is believed that after the Crucifixion, Mary Magdalene and the Virgin Mary put a basket full of eggs at the foot of the cross. There, the eggs were painted red by the blood of the Christ. Then, Mary Magdalene brought them to Tiberius Caesar.

II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO

Like Mary Magdalene are we willing to stand by the cross of Christ and at the tomb of his resurrection? Are we willing to proclaim the joyful news of his resurrection?

III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO (Cf. Opening Prayer, Mass: Memorial of Saint Mary Magdalene)

Father, your Son first entrusted to Mary Magdalene the joyful news of his resurrection. By her prayers and example may we proclaim Christ as our living Lord and one day see him in glory, for he lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.

IV. INTERIORIZATION OF THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the CONTEMPLATIO

The following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the day. Please memorize it.

“Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, ‘I have seen the Lord’.” (Jn 20:18)

V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO

Make an effort to bring God’s forgiving love and the good news of Christ’s resurrection to them.

*** Text of Saint Mary Magdalene ends here. ***

A Lectio Divina Approach to the Weekday Liturgy

BREAKING THE BREAD OF THE WORD (n. 118) July 25: SAINT JAMES, APOSTLE “JESUS SAVIOR: His Apostles Share in His Passion and Are the Earthen Vessels of His Grace”

BIBLE READINGS II Cor 4:7-15 // Mt 20:20-28

I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 20:20-28): “You shall indeed drink my cup.”

The meaning of today’s Gospel account (Mt 20:20-28) can be understood if we consider the prophecy of the passion that precedes it (verses 12-19). The request of James and John to sit at Jesus’ right and left in glory is totally inappropriate in the context of the prediction regarding his imminent passion as the Suffering Servant. The Divine Master responds to their obtuseness by challenging them: “Can you drink the cup that I am going to drink?” (Mt 20:22). Since the image of the cup is a symbol of his forthcoming passion and death, we can deduce that Jesus is inviting them to participate in his paschal destiny. Indeed, discipleship is an intimate sharing in his role as the suffering Servant of Yahweh. Through this the Christian disciples share in his glory.

The apostle James, whose feast we celebrate today, has drunk the “cup” of passion and participated in Christ’s paschal destiny. The following notes about this saint, circulated on the Internet, are very interesting.

St. James the Greater was one of the twelve apostles of Jesus, a son of Zebedee. He and his older brother John were called by Jesus while fixing their nets at the Lake of Genesaret. They received from Christ the name "Boanerges," meaning "sons of thunder," for their impetuosity. The gospel relates that James was present for the of Jairo's daughter, the Transfiguration, and later with Jesus during His Agony in the Garden of Gethsemane.

The relates that the Apostles dispersed to different regions to take the Good News to the people of God. Sister Maria de Jesus de Agreda was a Franciscan religious who received revelations from Jesus. It was revealed to her that St. James the Greater went to Spain to evangelize. He went first to Galicia, where he established a Christian community, and later to the Roman city of Cesar Augusto, today known as Zaragoza. It is believed that on January 2nd, in the year 40 A.D., St. James and his disciples were resting on the shore of the Egro River when they started to hear sweet voices singing. They saw the sky fill up with light and many angels coming near them. The angels were carrying a throne on which the Queen of Heaven and earth was sitting. This was extraordinary, for Mary was living at that time in Jerusalem, making her appearance to them in Spain a bilocation. The Blessed Virgin told St. James to build a sanctuary where God would be honored and glorified, and gave him a pillar with her image to be placed in the sanctuary. The Blessed Virgin also told St. James that the sanctuary would remain until the end of time and that she would bless all the prayers offered devoutly in this place. At the end of the apparition, Our Lady said to St. James that when the sanctuary was finished, he should return to Palestine where he would die.

St. James fulfilled the desires of the Blessed Virgin Mary and constructed the first Christian Church in the entire world. St. James returned to Palestine, where he was decapitated by order of Herod on the 25th of March during a persecution of the Church in Jerusalem. According to tradition, the accuser of St. James, who led him to judgment, was so moved by St. James’ confession before his death that he converted and was willingly beheaded with the Apostle. His disciples recovered his body and transported it to Galicia without anyone’s knowledge in a miraculous boat guided by God.

In the , constructed an altar for God naming it Bethel, which means "House of God" (Gen. 35:7). Jacob is a Greek name, and translated to Spanish, the name means James. Jacob constructed the "House of God” and St. James parallels his namesake with the construction of the first "House of God” of the New Covenant.

St. James' tomb was forgotten for over 800 years. Under the rule of Alfonso II (789-842), a hermit named Pelagio received a vision revealing the tomb of St. James. On July 25th, 812, the spot where the tomb was revealed to be was filled with a bright light. Because of this, it has since been known as Campostela, which means "Field of Light." The bishop of Iria Flavia, Theodomir, after investigating, declared that these were truly the remains of St. James in the tomb. In 1884 Pope Leo XIII, in a Papal Bull, declared that the remains of St. James were at Campostela.

St. James the Greater is also known as "Matamoros," Spanish for “killer of the Moors.” It is known that his intercession helped the people on various occasions against the threat of the Moors, especially in 1492 when Spain was re-conquered.

B. First Reading (II Cor 4:7-15): “We carry always in our bodies the death of Jesus.”

In today’s First Reading (II Cor 4:7-15), Saint Paul underlines the reality of human frailty and weakness and its limpid capacity to manifest the power of God. In the context of his experience with the contentious Corinthian community, the apostle is truly an “earthen vessel” because of his limitations. His critics despise him as not qualified for the apostolic task. Thus Paul, whose qualifications for the apostolate come from God and not from human origin, both concedes his poverty and underlines the divine power at work in that very poverty. He admits he is an “earthen vessel” – yes - but a treasure- bearing “earthen vessel”. In spite of our human limitations, God choose us to be bearers of his spiritual treasure. He wills to manifest through us the supreme power that belongs to him alone.

The apostle Paul then underlines what it means to be a treasure-bearing “earthen vessel”. He was afflicted but not constrained, perplexed but not driven to despair, persecuted but not abandoned, struck down but not destroyed. Death-dealing situations seek to overwhelm him, but never succeed because he is totally united with Jesus in his life-giving passion. In union with the Christ’s paschal mystery, Paul’s ministry is bearing fruit in the believing Corinthians. Indeed, God the Father who raised the Lord Jesus will also raise us with him. This will cause thanksgiving to overflow for the glory of God.

Like the apostles Paul and James, we are called to be “earthen vessels” of God’s grace. The following personal account is an example of what it means to be Christ’s “earthen vessels” in today’s world (cf. Fr. Emmet Murphy, “The Franciscan Journey” in The Anthonian, Winter 2012-2013, p. 29-30).

Although I was raised at St. Agnes in Arlington, Mass., a parish staffed by diocesan priests, I was one of the nine candidates who joined the Franciscans of Holy Name in 1951. St. Anthony’s in downtown Boston happened to be my first contact with the friars. Their joy and ministry immediately impressed me. After working for ten years as a salesman in Boston, I entered the Franciscan Brothers training program. (…)

All in all, I spent 13 fruitful and happy years at St. Francis Church, but my journey with the friars was not without its heartaches and pitfalls. Along the way I had neglected my early lessons in discipline and prayer and developed an addiction to alcohol, which completely unraveled my religious life. I was urged to take a leave of absence in order to bring peace to my chaotic life.

After an absence of two years, I was readmitted to the life of a friar and asked to consider entering into a new apostolate to help poor people in Philadelphia with Father Roderic Petrie, OFM. Soon, Father Robert Struzynski, OFM, joined us. After surveying the needs, we searched for a building in the impoverished Kensington section of the city that was to become St. Francis Inn. We bought an old tavern below the Market Frankford elevated train line for $9,000 and immediately set out to renovate the building. The first floor was the kitchen and dining room, the second floor to be rooms for the friars.

On December 16, 1979, the first day we opened this ministry to the poor so dear to the heart of St. Francis, we fed 29 people. Since then St. Francis Inn has been open every day of the year, and last year the permanent staff of four friars, two Franciscan Sisters and three dedicated laywomen plus a host of volunteers served nearly 150,000 hot, nourishing meals to families and to single men and women – some unemployed but most of them retired persons who cannot survive on their fixed incomes – and to others trapped by addictions, as I had been.

It was in Philly that I felt called to priesthood. I enrolled at St. Francis College for philosophy studies and Pope John XXIII for theology. I was ordained to the priesthood in 1986 at the ripe age of 52. Last June, at age 78, I took up residence at St. Anthony Friary in Butler, N.J., after having spent almost four years in the large, very active Franciscan parish in Raleigh, N.C. I served as one of the North Carolina State prison chaplains, ministering to death row and general population inmates. I found the Raleigh’s Catholic community warm and friendly as they opened their homes and hearts to me.

My current priestly ministry has been in the Ministry of the Word; that is, preaching parish missions and leading Twelve Steps retreats. At times, I am also called to help out in neighboring parishes.

As I look back, I consider my life a blessed and incredulous journey … I would do it all over again!

II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO

Are we willing to drink the cup of Christ’s passion that we might have a share in his glory?

III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO

Almighty Father, by the martyrdom of St. James you blessed the work of the early Church. May his profession of faith give us courage and his prayers bring us strength. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.

IV. INTERIORIZATION OF THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the CONTEMPLATIO

The following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the day. Please memorize it.

“Can you drink the cup that I am going to drink?” (Mt 20:22)

V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO

Pray for the strength to drink the cup of passion and salvation. In today’s secularized world, be ready to give witness to your Catholic faith when you are challenged.

*** Text of Saint James ends here. ***

A Lectio Divina Approach to the Weekday Liturgy

BREAKING THE BREAD OF THE WORD (n. 119) July 29: SAINT “JESUS SAVIOR: He Is the Living Word and Eternal Life”

BIBLE READINGS

Gospel Reading: Jn 11:19-27 or Lk 10:38-42

I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO

A, Gospel Reading (Lk 10:38-42): “Martha, Martha, you worry and fret about so many things.”

One thing I have in common with Sr. Mary Adele, a remarkable Sister born in a small scenic town close to Naples, is a love for pasta. One day as we were enjoying a delicious, hot serving of spaghetti cooked “al dente” and topped with dense rich tomato sauce and grated Parmesan cheese, she narrated to me a modern version of the Gospel story of Martha and Mary.

Jesus entered a village where a woman whose name was Martha welcomed him. She had a sister named Mary who sat beside the Lord at his feet listening to him speak. Martha, burdened with much serving, came to him and said, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me by myself to do the serving? Tell her to help me.” The Lord said to her in reply, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and worried about many things. A plate of pasta and a glass of wine will do.”

In today’s alternative Gospel text (Lk 10:38-42) for the memorial of Saint Martha, Jesus, in the course of his paschal journey to Jerusalem, stops to rest in the home of Martha and Mary. The sisters receive him with solicitude and hospitality. Martha’s type of hospitality, however, is anxious and her intense concern misdirected. Martha’s “over- reacting” hospitality thus provokes a good-natured reproach from Jesus. He cautions her not to be anxious. It is the same advice that Jesus gives to his other disciples as they journey towards the cross and Easter glory. Indeed, Martha’s endeavor to prepare a perfect meal and her preoccupation for the “details of hospitality” detract her from the essential and primordial: to welcome Jesus in his life-giving Word.

B. Alternative Gospel Reading (Jn 11:19-27): “I have believed that you are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

The missionary tale in Maryknoll magazine (December 2004, p.5) narrated by Joseph G. Healey, M.M. is about a little girl who escaped the clutches of death and lived. This interesting story of a Tanzanian girl’s rescue gives us a glimpse of the marvelous work of Jesus in saving his beloved friend, Lazarus from death and bringing him back to life.

One morning when Father Joseph Brannigan went to say Mass at a mission chapel in Shinyanga, Tanzania, he discovered an inert baby lying in front of the altar. The mother, explaining that the little girl was dead, asked if the priest could say Mass for her. Just then, the bundle moved. “She’s still alive,” Brannigan declared. “But she’s sick and I have no money for medicine. She’ll be dead soon anyway,” the mother replied. Giving the mother 10 shillings, the missionary sent her to the hospital with the baby. Seven years later a woman stopped Brannigan on the road. Breathlessly she explained, “My little girl lived. Here’s your 10 shillings. I’ve spent a long time looking for you.”

Today’s alternative Gospel reading (Jn 11:19-27) is also about the triumph of life over death. The raising of Lazarus from the tomb is a “sign” for it reveals Christ’s messianic and divine identity as the resurrection and life. The theological center of today’s account is found in Jn 11:25-26: “I am the resurrection and the life; whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live; and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?”Martha, the sister of the deceased Lazarus, responds fully to Jesus’ words and declares: “Yes, Lord. I have come to believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, the one who is coming into the world.” Formerly an over anxious hostess who has no time and leisure to welcome Jesus in his life-giving word, Martha has progressed deeply in her discipleship. Today’s episode shows her as listening to the words of Jesus and responding with full faith to Christ’s offer of eternal life.

***

Today, the memorial of Saint Martha, the following poem composed by Angela O’Donnell gives important insights into the saint’s personality (cf. America, February 9, 2009, p. 35).

ST. MARTHA

“She had a sister called Mary, who was seated at the Lord’s feet, listening to His word.” (Lk 10:39)

A silly child she ever always was – our mother said so a thousand times – her quick eye caught by the flight or buzz of some pretty creature’s mastering wings. Lazarus tried to keep her out of sight, to spare his clever sister women’s tasks. I hauled the water, rose before first light, set bread upon the board before they asked. The day You came to us our prayers were granted. My hands obeyed the rhythms of my labor while Mary sat beside You like a man, embraced within the circle of Your favor.

I stood apart, Your beauty kept from me, and only when You left us did I see.

II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO

Are we hospitable? Why or why not? In what ways are we Martha? In what ways are we Mary? Is our Christian discipleship characterized by receptivity and true listening to the word of God? // Is our response to Christ’s faith assurance: “I am the resurrection and the life” (Jn 11:25) like that of Martha, the sister of Lazarus? Are we willing to be a “sign” of resurrection in the death-dealing situations of today’s wounded world?

III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO (Cf. Opening Prayer of Mass – Memorial of Saint Martha)

Father, your Son honored Saint Martha by coming to her home as a guest. By her prayers may we serve Christ in our brothers and sisters and be welcomed by you into heaven, our true home. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.

IV. INTERIORIZATION OF THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the CONTEMPLATIO

The following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the day. Please memorize it.

“Mary has chosen the better part and it will not be taken from her.” (Lk 10:42) // “I am the resurrection and the life … Do you believe this?” (Jn 11:25-26)

V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO

Introduce the laudable practice of Lectio Divina to your family members and friends. Carry out your daily tasks with personal dedication and with a loving spirit drawn out from the love of Jesus.

*** Text of Saint Martha ends here. ***

A Lectio Divina Approach to the Weekday Liturgy

BREAKING THE BREAD OF THE WORD (n. 120) August 10: SAINT LAWRENCE, , “JESUS SAVIOR: He Is the Grain of Wheat that Dies and Bears Fruit … He Is a Cheerful Giver”

BIBLE READINGS II Cor 9:6-10 // Jn 12:24-26

I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO

Jesus is the “grain of wheat” that falls to the ground and dies to produce abundant fruit. God reveals and accomplishes his saving plan through him. Jesus’ “hour” of glorification entails a death and birthing process similar to that of a germinating seed. Eternal life is offered to the world by his passion and death. Buried like a seed and lifted up on the cross, Jesus draws all to himself and produces a rich spiritual harvest.

The destiny of the Master is also the destiny of the disciples. Today’s Gospel (Jn 12:24-26) is an invitation to walk with him the path to glory by imitating the sacrificial love of Christ. Readiness to suffer for the Gospel is part of the challenge of Christian discipleship. Saint Lawrence replicates the paschal destiny of the “grain of wheat”.

Today’s First Reading (II Cor 9:6-10) as we celebrate the feast of Saint Lawrence is an excellent description of his life. He is a cheerful giver. He sows the spirit of love bountifully and reaps its fruits bountifully. He gives to the poor and his righteousness endures. Saint Lawrence manifests his good-natured and cheerful self-giving even in martyrdom.

The following notes circulated on the Internet will help us understand that, like Jesus, Saint Lawrence is a “grain of wheat” that falls on the ground and dies to bear abundant fruit and that he is a “cheerful giver”.

Lawrence of Rome (: Laurentius, Lit, “Laurelled”: c. 225–258) was one of the seven of ancient Rome serving under Pope St. Sixtus, who were martyred during the persecution of Valerain in 258. After the death of Sixtus, the prefect of Rome demanded that Lawrence turn over the riches of the Church. is the earliest source for the tale that Lawrence asked for three days to gather together the wealth. Lawrence worked swiftly to distribute as much Church property to the poor as possible, so as to prevent its being seized by the prefect. On the third day, at the head of a small delegation, he presented himself to the prefect, and when ordered to give up the treasures of the Church, he presented the poor, the crippled, the blind and the suffering, and said, “Behold in these poor persons the treasures which I promised to show you; to which I will add pearls and precious stones, those widows and consecrated virgins, which are the Church’s crown.”

The prefect was so angry that he had a great gridiron prepared, with coals beneath it, and had Lawrence’s body placed on it (hence St. Lawrence’s association with a gridiron). After the martyr had suffered the pain for a long time, he made his famous cheerful remark: “It is well done. Turn me over!”

Lawrence is one of the most widely venerated saints of the Roman Catholic Church. Devotion to him was widespread by the fourth century. St Lawrence is especially honored in the city of Rome, where he is one of the city's patrons. There are several churches in Rome dedicated to him, including San Lorenzo in Panisperna, traditionally identified as the place of his execution. He is invoked by librarians, archivists, cooks, and tanners as their patron. His celebration on August 10 has the rank of feast throughout the entire Catholic world. On this day, the reliquary containing his burnt head is displayed in the Vatican for veneration.

II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO

1. Like Jesus, the “grain of wheat”, are we willing “to die” in order to live anew and bear abundant fruits? Are we willing to use our gifts and resources for the service of others? As Christian disciples, are we willing to share in the “hour” of Jesus’ passion and glorification and make it a personal experience of healing and redemption?

2. Are we cheerful givers?

III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO

O God, Saint Lawrence shared in your Son’s paschal destiny as a “grain of wheat that falls to the ground and dies to produce much fruit”. He showed forth the fire of his love for you, both by his faithful service and glorious martyrdom. Help us to be like him in loving you and doing your work. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.

*** Father, we thank you for Saint Lawrence and his witness of cheerful giving. Your gifts are infinite. Teach us to open our hearts to your bounty. Give us the grace to sow generously the seeds of goodness wherever we go. Make us cheerful even when self-giving hurts and comfort us with the thought of the abundant harvest of righteousness. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

IV. INTERIORIZATION OF THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the CONTEMPLATIO

The following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the week. Please memorize it.

“But if it dies, it produces much fruit.” (Jn 12:24) //“God loves a cheerful giver.” (II Cor 9:7)

V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO

Pray for all deacons in the Church that they may imitate Saint Lawrence, deacon and martyr, in his life of holiness and service to the poor. Let every moment of your life, especially the daily trials, be a participation in the paschal mystery of Christ. // When things are rough and challenging, especially with regards to caring for others, try to smile and be a cheerful giver.

*** Text of Saint Lawrence ends here. ***

A Lectio Divina Approach to the Weekday Liturgy

BREAKING THE BREAD OF THE WORD (n. 121) August 24: SAINT BARTHOLOMEW, APOSTLE “JESUS SAVIOR: He Promises Greater Things … His Apostle Bartholomew Is a Foundation Stone of the Church”

BIBLE READINGS Rv 21:9b-14 // Jn 1:45-51

I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO

A. Gospel Reading (Jn 1:45-51): “There is a true Israelite in whom there is no deceit.”

Today’s Gospel (Jn 1:45-51) is a beautiful example of “vocation recruitment”. When Philip becomes convinced that Jesus of Nazareth is the Messiah foretold by the Law and the Prophets, he shares this discovery with his friend, Nathanael of . Although Nathanael reacts rather cautiously by commenting “Can anything good from Nazareth?” he does not close himself to Philip’s “Come and see” invitation. When Jesus sees Nathanael coming toward him, he utters a statement of praise about his integrity: “Here is a true Israelite. There is no duplicity in him”. Integrity and critical open- mindedness are the remarkable attributes of Nathanael, a man in quest of truth.

Nathanael is overwhelmed by Jesus’ power to read hearts: “Before Philip called you I saw you under the fig tree.” Jesus knows that Nathanael has been studying the under the fig tree, something that a true and perfect Israelite is expected to do. Nathanael spontaneously proclaims his faith in Jesus as the Son of God and the King of Israel. Jesus responds by promising “greater things than this” to Nathanael, who will see the vision of “angels ascending and descending on the Son of Man”. In Jesus is the embodiment of salvation. In his public ministry and in his paschal mystery of death and resurrection, the glory of God is revealed. Like the angels on Jacob’s ladder, Jesus will join to himself the “above” and the “below”, that is, the heavenly and the earthly. Nathanael, who is also known as the apostle Bartholomew, will be a witness to this.

B. First Reading (Rv 21:9b-14): “On the foundations are the names of the twelve Apostles of the Lamb.”

The reading (Rv 21:9b-14) gives us a vision of the New Jerusalem, which represents the ultimate bliss. It also symbolizes the Church in its final and ultimate glory. Saint John’s end-time vision of the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God inspires us to strive for the fullness of light and life resulting from God’s presence. The wall of this city is built on twelve foundation stones, on which are written the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. This detail is very meaningful as we celebrate the feast of Saint . It reminds us that the Church, the New City of Jerusalem, is built on the foundation of apostolic witnessing. The preaching of the apostles and prophets constitutes the Church. Saint Bartholomew is one of the twelve foundation stones of the Church. His name is inscribed in the beautiful and radiant city of the New Jerusalem. Saint Bartholomew now participates in the glory of the eternal city of light and life together with the victorious Lamb, Jesus Christ.

The following biographical sketch gives us an idea why Saint Bartholomew is an important foundation stone of the Church (cf. Wikipedia on the Internet).

Bartholomew the Apostle: He is one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus and is usually identified with Nathanael, who is mentioned in the gospel of John. “Bartholomew” comes from the “bar Tolmay”, meaning “son of Tolmay” or “son of the furrows” (perhaps a ploughman).

In the gospel of John, Nathanael is introduced as a friend of Philip. He is described as initially being skeptical about the Messiah coming from Nazareth, saying: “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?”, but nonetheless, follows Philips’s invitation. Jesus immediately characterizes him as “Here is a man in whom there is no deception.” Some scholars hold that Jesus’ quote “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you”, is based on a Jewish figure of speech referring to studying the Torah. Nathanael recognizes Jesus as “the Son of God” and “the King of Israel”. He reappears at the end of John’s gospel as one of the disciples to whom Jesus appeared at the Sea of after the Resurrection.

Eusebius of Caesarea’s Ecclesiastical History states that after the Ascension, Bartholomew went on a missionary tour to India where he left behind a copy of the . (…) The studies of Fr. A.C. Perumalil SJ and Moraes hold that the Bombay region on the Konkan coast, a region which may have been known as the ancient city Kalyan, was the field of Saint Bartholomew’s missionary activities.

Along with his fellow apostle Jude, Bartholomew is reputed to have brought Christianity to in the first century. Thus both saints are considered the patron saints of the Armenian Apostolic Church. He is said to have been martyred in Albanopolis in Armenia. According to one account, he was beheaded, but a more popular tradition holds that he was flayed alive and crucified, head downward. He is said to have converted Polymius, the king of Armenia, to Christianity. Astyages, Polymius’ brother, consequently ordered Bartholomew’s execution (…)

The existence of relics at , a small island off the coast of , in the part of Italy controlled by Constantinople, was explained by by his body having miraculously washed up there … Of the many performed by Bartholomew before and after his death, two very popular ones are known by the townsfolk of the small island of Lipari.

The people of Lipari celebrated his feast annually. The tradition of the people was to take the solid silver and gold statue from inside the Cathedral of St. Bartholomew and carry it through the town. On one occasion, when taking the statue down the hill towards the town, it suddenly got very heavy and had to be set down. When the men carrying the statue regained their strength they lifted it a second time. After a few seconds, it got even heavier. They set it down and attempted once more to pick it up. They managed to lift it but had to put it down one last time. Within seconds, a wall further downhill collapsed. If the statue had been able to be lifted, all the townspeople would have been killed.

During World War II, the Fascist regime looked for ways to finance their activities. The order was given to take the silver statue of St. Bartholomew and melt it down. The statue was weighed, and it was found to be only a few grams. It was returned to its place in the Cathedral of Lipari. In reality, the statue is made from many kilograms of silver and it is considered a miracle that it was not melted down. St. Bartholomew is credited with many other miracles having to do with the weight of objects.

II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO

1. Do we believe that, like Saint Bartholomew, we will see the “sky opened and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man”?

2. Do we value the apostolic witness and martyrdom of Saint Bartholomew? How do we imitate his commitment to Christ and his service to the Gospel?

III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO

Lord Jesus, we thank you for the apostle Saint Bartholomew, a man of integrity and a true seeker of truth. He followed you in your paschal destiny and witnessed to the nations that you are indeed the point of encounter between God and man. Through his intercession, may we have the grace to go out to the whole world and proclaim to all peoples that you are indeed the Son of God and the Messiah. You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

*** (Cf. Opening Prayer, Mass on the Feast of St. Bartholomew the Apostle) Lord, sustain within us the faith which made St. Bartholomew ever loyal to Christ. Let your Church be the sign of salvation for all the nations of the world. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.

IV. INTERIORIZATION OF THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the CONTEMPLATIO

The following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the week. Please memorize it.

“You will see the sky opened and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.” (Jn 1:51) //“The wall of the city had twelve courses of stones as its foundation, on which were inscribed the twelve names of the twelve Apostles of the Lamb.” (Rv 21:14)

V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO

Pray for the Church in Armenia and India that it may be strengthened in its Christian witnessing. Imitate Saint Bartholomew in his quest for truth and in his integrity. In any way you can, continue to promote the Gospel witness of the apostles.

*** Text of Saint Bartholomew ends here. ***

A Lectio Divina Approach to the Weekday Liturgy

BREAKING THE BREAD OF THE WORD (n. 122) August 29: THE PASSION OF JOHN THE BAPTIST “JESUS SAVIOR: His Death Is Prefigured in the Passion of John the Baptist”

BIBLE READINGS Gospel Reading: Mk 6:17-29

I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO

Today we recall the martyrdom of John the Baptist – his beheading by King Herod, who was tricked into it by his sister-in-law and wife, . It was made possible by her daughter ’s delightful dance that elicited a grandiose oath from the king, “I will grant you whatever you ask of me, even to half of my kingdom.” Through the Gospel account (Mk 6:17-29), we realize how evil gains increasing momentum in Herod’s soul, inciting him from sensuousness to murder.

John the Baptist is the precursor of Christ in birth and death. Saint the Venerable comments: “There is no doubt that blessed John suffered imprisonment and chains as a witness to our Redeemer, whose forerunner he was, and gave his life for him. His persecutor had demanded not that he should deny Christ, but only that he should keep silent about the truth. Nevertheless he died for Christ. Does Christ not say: I am the truth? Therefore, because John shed his blood for the truth, he surely died for Christ. Through his birth, preaching and baptizing, he bore witness to the coming birth, preaching and baptism of Christ, and by his own suffering he showed that Christ also would suffer.”

The persecution of Christians in today’s world results in the blood bath and the sacrificial passion of modern (cf. “Mob Murders Christian Couple” in Alive! December 2014, p. 3).

A Christian couple had been burnt alive by a mob in Pakistan after a Muslim mullah claimed they had desecrated the Koran. The married couple, in their twenties, had three children.

The owner of the brick factory where they worked is said to have locked them in an office so that they could not escape. Loudspeaker announcements from mosques in nearby villages branded them as “blasphemous”, saying they had burnt verses from the Koran and should be killed. A senior police officer said that at least 1,200 people gathered, broke their legs to prevent them from running away, then threw them into the factory furnace.

The killings have left Pakistan’s tiny Christian minority in fear and demanding the repeal of the “blasphemy laws”.

II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO

Are we willing to give witness to Christ even to the point of sacrifice? How does the courageous witnessing of John the Baptist impact our own witnessing in today’s world?

III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO

God our Father, you called John the Baptist to be the herald of your Son’s birth and death. As he gave his life in witness to truth and justice, so may we strive to profess our faith in your Gospel. Help us to show to the world that your “foolishness” is wiser than human wisdom and that your “weakness” is stronger than human strength. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.

IV. INTERIORIZATION OF THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the CONTEMPLATIO

The following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the day. Please memorize it.

“Herod feared John, knowing him to be a righteous and holy man.” (Mk 6:20)

V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO

Inspired by John the Baptist’s life witnessing, endeavor to live fully the Christian virtues in today’s world. Pray that the Christians in the modern world may have the wisdom, courage and strength to proclaim Christ crucified. In any way you can, assist the persecuted Christians in today’s world.

*** Text of the Passion of John the Baptist ends here. ***

A Lectio Divina Approach to the Weekday Liturgy

BREAKING THE BREAD OF THE WORD (n. 123) September 8: THE NATIVITY OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY “JESUS SAVIOR: His Mother Mary’s Birth Is a Prelude to Salvation”

BIBLE READINGS Mi 5:1-4a or Rom 8:28-30 // Mt 1:1-16, 18-23

I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO

Today we celebrate the birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Her birth means that the coming of Jesus Savior is near. Her coming into the world is the dawn of salvation. Saint Andrew of Crete, bishop, remarks: “This radiant and manifest coming of God to men most certainly needed a joyful prelude to introduce the great gift of salvation to us. The present , the birth of the Mother of God, is the prelude, while the final act is the foreordained union of the Word with flesh. Today the Virgin is born, tended and formed, and prepared for her role as Mother of God, who is the universal King of the ages … Therefore, let all creation sing and dance and unite to make worthy contribution to the celebration of this day … The creature is newly prepared to be a divine dwelling for the Creator.”

Just like the Christ Child, the Child Mary is a promise of salvation. The birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary is likewise a sign of salvation. In view of the redemptive mission of the Christ Child, Mary’s birthday ushers in the fulfillment of the divine promise. The following story narrated by Sue Kidd in an old issue of Guideposts magazine gives us an idea of the redemptive role not only of the Christ Child, but also of the Mother of God, who also became a child for us.

In 1977, the Baptist Church in Melba, a rural American town, was about to close its doors forever. Over the years, churchgoing had dropped off alarmingly. Some hurts and misunderstandings had divided and shattered the congregation. All that remained was about a dozen people on the verge of giving up. That handful of people gathered in the church one Sunday to vote whether to continue services or close down for good. Their meeting was interrupted when a child appeared – a child of only seven years – who wanted to join the Sunday school and the church service. Angela, for that was her name, returned the next Sunday, and the next and the next. That child became the reason for the Melba Baptist Church to go on. They struggled to live in order to nurture a young spirit from one Sunday to the next. Angela was their glimmer of hope. She was their future. The child’s appearance saved the congregation from extinction and sure death. The Melba Baptist Church has become renovated and increased in membership. As far as they are concerned, the little girl who came alone to the church that long-ago Sunday was sent by God.

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 1:1-16, 18-23): “She has conceived what is in her by the Holy Spirit.”

Steven Gemmen’s story, “Where Love Grows” in Guideposts magazine (October 2004, cf. p. 44-48) is a touching account of how he welcomed into his life the child conceived by his wife, Heather, a victim of sexual assault. Steve narrates how his anger at the rapist found its outlet in the baby. In the sixth month of his wife’s rape-pregnancy, however, Steve was given the grace to understand that the little creature in his wife’s womb had nothing to do with the crime of the father, an unidentified African-American young man who broke into their home. Steve accepted the baby as his own although there were bad times. Steve remarks: “Our lives haven’t been the same since that terrible night. They never will be. I’d thought nothing could make me love this child. That’s true. Nothing can make us love anyone or anything. Love is not a choice. It is the sovereign gift of God. And it was his gift that the child who stirred within Heather would make the unbearable not just bearable but miraculous.”

Steve’s compassionate stance towards his wife and the baby gives insight into the goodness of Joseph, foster-father and guardian of Jesus, born of Mary. Today’s Gospel story concerns the birth of Jesus (Mt 1:18-24) and delineates the important role of Mary and Joseph in salvation history. In the fulfillment of the messianic mission and divine saving plan, Mary and Joseph, the righteous man to whom she is betrothed, play a vital part. Joseph of Nazareth enables Jesus to be born into the royal line of David by assuming the legal obligations of paternity. Mary’s virginal conception and birth of Jesus underlines the divine origin of the Son and of the absolute newness that now breaks forth in the history of human beings.

The Venerable Bede (c. 673-735) contemplates the role of Mary as the ever virgin mother of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ: “It is indeed fitting in every respect that when God decided to become incarnate for the sake of the whole human race none but a virgin should be his mother, and that, since a virgin was privileged to bring him into the world, she should bear no other son but the son who is God …And so Mary gave birth to her firstborn son, the child of her own flesh and blood. She brought forth the God who had been born of God before creation began, and who, in his created humanity, rightfully surpassed the whole creation.”

B. First Reading (Mi 5:1-4): “This is the time when she who is labor is to give birth.”

Today’s Old Testament reading (Mi 5:1-4) helps define the character of the child that is in Mary’s womb – the ruler of Israel of which she is the bearer. foretells of an ideal messianic king who will inaugurate a new era after Israel’s period of exile. The mission of this highly idealized ruler is characterized as a who protects his flock and keeps them from being scattered. This new king will be great and he himself will be peace. Prophesying in the late eighth century at about the same time as , Micah pronounces an oracle that seems to identify Bethlehem as the city of a yet unborn ruler’s birth. This fascinating oracle contributes to a profound vision of Jesus as Messiah. As we celebrate the nativity of Mary, we extol her as the one who gives birth to Jesus, the King-Shepherd of the house of David who will bring justice and peace. The Blessed Mother is an intimate collaborator of the divine Savior in bringing forth a new people of God.

The following story of a young wife’s journey to the Catholic faith helps us appreciate the role of Mary in the divine work of salvation (cf. Rebecca Lengenfelder, “One in Faith” in Amazing Grace for Survivors, ed. Jeff Cavins, et. al., West Chester: Ascension Press, 2008, p. 70-72).

Little by little, the Catholic faith started to make sense to me … There was still one major hurdle I could not get over – Mary. I longed to be completely one with Kris, but I could not fully share his faith if it meant idolatry. I understood that Catholics ask Mary to take their intentions to her Son, Jesus, who is the one they worship, but years of having it impressed upon me that this was idolatry, blocked me from accepting a devotion to Mary.

I was raised with the idea of putting out a fleece. (Gideon does this in Judges 6:36-40) as a way of asking for a sign. Whether or not there was dew on the fleece in the morning determined his answer from God.) So I said: “OK, Lord, I want you to send me an unmistakable sign that could only come from you, that this Catholic devotion to Mary is right and that the Catholic religion is the true faith.” If he sent me that sign, I would become Catholic.

Two weeks before my due date, I began praying this daily. Instead of another long labor, the scheduled C-section would be more predictable. I was given an epidural in the delivery room. While lying on the table after the epidural, I suddenly felt very sick. Darkness clouded my brain as if I was on the verge of losing consciousness, and there was ringing in my ears. I gasped for breath, but I felt like a two-hundred-pound weight was crushing my lungs. Everyone was busy around the room, not noticing my crisis. Suddenly, my mind flashed to the doctor’s dire prediction that both the baby and I would likely die.

I tried to tell someone that I could not breathe, but no words came out. The only thing that came was tears. One of the student nurses, Risa, a friend from nursing school, noticed me crying. I finally expressed to her that I could not breathe. My heartrate skyrocketed, and the monitors started going crazy. This is it, I thought, I’m dying. All of a sudden, I started praying the Rosary. One mystery after another, I knew them and prayed out loud. Kris entered the room after washing up and putting on a gown. I had an oxygen mask on by then. He could tell I was praying, but did not realize it was the Rosary.

Once I started praying the Rosary, a restful calm surged through me and vanquished all fear. The tears kept streaming, but now they were tears of joy. It was my sign! I had never learned how to pray the Rosary! I never read about it or listened to one being prayed. I always left the room when Kris or his family began the Rosary. But suddenly, as if through a divine infusion, I knew each mystery from the joyful, sorrowful and glorious mysteries, just as they are taken from the life of Jesus in the Gospel.

My spirit soared! God had answered my prayers and let me know that I could become a Catholic. It was okay to honor Our Blessed Mother and ask for her intercession. As my second baby daughter, Alexandria (Ali), was lifted up for me to see, I was giddy with excitement and joy. Ali, my little girl, was joining a family that would be completely one. (…)

On April 15, 1995, three days before Ali’s first birthday, I was confirmed and welcomed into the Catholic Church. Kris bought me a new diamond for my wedding ring and we had it blessed to mark this occasion. When we look back, Kris and I still felt dumbfounded that we ever gave each other a chance but now, we thank God that we did.

C. Alternative First Reading (Rom 8:28-30): “Those whom God knew beforehand and predestined.”

In the alternative reading (Rom 8:28-30), Saint Paul assures the Romans that all things work for good for those who love God. He stimulates their zeal and enthusiasm in the midst of difficulties and persecution by reminding them that God’s plan of salvation leads to the glory that is their destiny. Called to be conformed to the image of his Son, nothing will ever happen to them that has not been foreseen by God and directed to their greater good from all eternity. God is in control of everything. The ultimate goal is to be configured to Jesus Christ, who in his paschal sacrifice, is totally glorified. On this feast of the birthday of Mary, we contemplate the Virgin Mother as one whom God has set apart, called for a specific purpose and glorified with and in her Son Jesus Christ.

Immaculee Ilibagiza, a great Marian devotee, survived the genocide on her native Rwanda. In the following incident, we realize the truth that all things work for good for those who love God (cf. Immaculee Ilibagiza, “The Road to the Rebels” in Amazing Grace for Survivors, ed. Jeff Cavins, et. al., West Chester: Ascension Press, 2008, p. 40- 41).

“Dear God”, I prayed, walking as fast as I could and holding my father’s rosary tightly in my hand. “Only You can save me. You promised to take care of me, God – well, I really need taking care of right now. There are devils and vultures at my back, Lord. Please protect me. Take the evil from the hearts of these men, and blind their hatred with Your holy love.”

I walked without looking at my feet, not knowing if I was about to stumble over rocks or bodies, putting all my trust in God to guide me to safety. We were moving very briskly, but the killers were all around us now, circling us, slicing the air with their machetes. We were defenseless, so why were they waiting to strike?

“If they kill me, God, I ask You to forgive them. Their hearts have been corrupted by hatred, and they don’t know why they want to hurt me.”

After walking a half a mile like that, I heard Jean Paul say, “Hey, they’re gone … they’re gone!”

I looked around, and it was true. The killers had left us. Jean Paul said later that it was probably because they knew the RPF soldiers were close by, but I knew the real reason, and I never stopped thanking God for saving us on the road. A few minutes later we saw an RPF roadblock and several dozen tall, lean, stone-faced Tutsi soldiers standing guard. I broke into an all-out run and dropped to my knees in front of them. I closed my eyes and sang their praises.

“Thank God, thank God, we’re saved! Thank God you’re here. Bless you! Bless you all!”

II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO

What is the meaning of the birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary? Why is her birth a sign of salvation? Just like Jesus and Mary, are we willing to be “signs” of God’s love and compassion in today’s world?

III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO (Cf. Opening Prayer of the Mass “Birth of Mary”)

Father of mercy, give your people help and strength from heaven. The birth of the Virgin Mary’s Son was the dawn of salvation. May this celebration of her birthday bring us closer to lasting peace. Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.

IV. INTERIORIZATION OF THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the CONTEMPLATIO

The following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the day. Please memorize it.

“This child has been conceived in her.” (Mt 1: 20)

V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO

To celebrate the Blessed Virgin Mary’s birthday, thank God immensely for her deep collaboration in salvation history and offer acts of mercy and kindness in her honor.

*** Text of the Nativity of the BVM ends here. ***

A Lectio Divina Approach to the Weekday Liturgy

BREAKING THE BREAD OF THE WORD (n. 124) September 15: OUR LADY OF SORROWS “JESUS SAVIOR: His Mother Shared in His Sorrowful Passion”

BIBLE READINGS Gospel Reading: Jn 19:25-27 or Lk 2:33-35

I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO

Today’s feast, which comes after the feast of the Exultation of the Cross, reminds us that the Blessed Virgin Mary, standing by the cross, shares in her Son’s passion and suffering (cf. Jn 19:25-27). Like her Son, the King of martyrs, the Mother is a martyr in spirit. A sword has pierced he heart (cf. Lk 2:33-35). Saint Bernard remarks: “The martyrdom of the Virgin is set forth both in the prophecy of and in the actual story of the Lord’s passion. The holy old man said of the infant Jesus: He has been established as a sign which will be contradicted. He went on to say to Mary: And your own heart will be pierced by a sword. Truly, O Blessed Mother, a sword has pierced your heart. For only by passing through your heart could the sword enter the flesh of your Son … Then the violence of sorrow has cut through your heart, and we rightly call you more than martyr, since the effect of compassion in you has gone beyond the endurance of physical suffering.”

Any parent is bound to suffer, but Mary’s suffering is more intense than any other. She is the Mother of Christ, the Redeemer. Because of her spiritual closeness to her child, her sorrow is more acute. And because of her sinless nature, she is more sensitive to other people’s sufferings, especially that of her Son. The ancient hymn “Stabat Mater” beautifully depicts the pathos at the foot of the cross and Mary’s poignant sorrow: “At the cross her station keeping, stood the mournful Mother weeping, close to Jesus to the last. Through her heart his sorrow sharing, all his bitter anguish bearing, now at length the sword had passed. (…) Bruised, derided, cursed, defiled, she beheld her tender Child, all with bloody scourges rent. For the sins of his own nation saw him hang in desolation, till his spirit forth he sent.”

As Mary shared in the sufferings of her Son, we too are called to participate in the passion of Christ … in the passion of the world … in the lot of our suffering brothers and sisters. The following charming story tells us of the compassion and spiritual communion experienced by two , both cancer victims, when they met in Lourdes, France (cf. Jill Paris, “Miracle Seeker” in Saturday Evening Post, March-April 2012, p. 46-47).

“Is this your first time at Lourdes?” I look up at a frail-looking pilgrim just beside me in the line for the sacred grotto. “Yes”, I say. The woman’s name is Selam. She has come from Vancouver, Canada, but originally hails from Ethiopia. She is 40 years old. Within seconds we are swapping war stories. “Melanoma, Stage III”, I say. “Colon cancer … I’ve been given six months to live”, she whispers.

I let her step in front of me and study how she grazes the grayish stone that leads to the niche with her left hand, stopping every few feet to kiss the rock. A white rosary entwined in her right hand swings gently from side to side. I begin to copy her every move. If she makes the sign of the cross, I do, too. If she pats the water droplets that trickle from the cave-like surface and touches her face, I do the same. It is as if she’s been sent to me as a personal guide. Nearing the sacred spot, she begins to weep. I stroke her back the way a mother would soothe a child with a skinned knee.

She kneels before the statue of Mary resting high in an alcove. Dabbing moisture from the stone, my hand presses the gash on my upper left arm, but I forget to ask Mary for anything because of a deep concern for my new companion. Selam’s despairing sobs grow louder – agonizing wails echoing in an already hushed enclave. Minutes later, she rises and turns toward me. I open my arms wide and she collapses against me. We hold each other in a long embrace as though lifelong friends. “I want you to have this”, I say, reaching into my bag for a vintage religious medal of Bernadette that a dear friend sent with me for luck. “Pin it over your heart. It will protect you.” “Oh, thank you, my love”, she says. “I prayed I would meet someone here.”

Who knew my presence alone would answer a dying woman’s prayers? (…) Six months later, after a chest X-ray, I am classified as disease-free. I harbor much hope, but there is always my next scan. Upon returning from Europe, I would speak with Selam twice. Her cancer had rapidly spread, and she was bravely undergoing extreme bouts of experimental chemotherapy. Her last words to me were, “I’ll call you next week, my love.” That was several months ago. Just recently I have signed up with Hospitality North American Volunteers to become one of the thousands of companion caregivers that Selam and I had seen.

II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO

How does the presence of Mary, at the foot of the cross affect you personally? How do you participate in the passion of Christ … in the passion of the world … in the sufferings of your brothers and sisters?

III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO

Father, as your Son was raised on the cross, his mother Mary stood by him, sharing his sufferings. May your Church be united with Christ in his suffering and death and so come to share in his rising to new life, where he lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.

IV. INTERIORIZATION OF THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the CONTEMPLATIO

The following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the day. Please memorize it.

“Standing by the cross of Jesus was his mother …” (Jn 19:25)

V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO

Offer a decade of the Rosary: “The Crucifixion and Death of Jesus on the Cross” for today’s persecuted Christians. If possible, share a meal with a poor and needy member of your parish community.

*** Text of Our Lady of Sorrows ends here. ***

A Lectio Divina Approach to the Weekday Liturgy

BREAKING THE BREAD OF THE WORD (n. 125) September 21: SAINT MATTHEW, APOSTLE, EVANGELIST “JESUS SAVIOR: He Calls Matthew to Follow Him … He Is the Source of Gifts to Build Up the Church”

BIBLE READINGS Eph 4:1-7, 11-13 // Mt 9:9-13

I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 9:9-13): “Follow me. And standing up, he followed him.”

The Fresno-based Poverello House is a nonprofit, nondenominational organization whose mission is to enrich the lives and spirits of all who pass their way, to feed the hungry, offer focused rehabilitation programs, temporary shelter, medical, dental and other basic services to the poor, the homeless, the disadvantaged, without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, age, sex or disability through Providential and community support. Its founder is Mike McGarvin, a man who had experienced God’s mercy and transforming compassion through a saintly Franciscan priest, Fr. Simon Scanlon. They met at the “Poverello Coffee House” which Fr. Simon opened in San Francisco’s Tenderloin district, notorious for its poverty, prostitution and violence. Mike narrates: “Gradually my life of self-indulgent destruction was being replaced by a life of service … I began seeing people through Father Simon’s eyes. He, in turn, saw people through Christ’s eyes, and he deeply believed that Jesus walked among the poor and the outcast. It was a revelation to me. The more I got to know the people who came to Poverello, the more compassion I felt for them.”

Today’s Gospel reading (Mt 9:9-13) is not only a concise presentation of Matthew’s vocation story, but also a powerful theology of the Christ, as full of compassion and mercy. The liturgical scholar, Adrian Nocent explains: “St. Matthew records his own calling in a simple, straightforward way … Christ chooses and calls; the person chosen and called immediately leaves everything and follows Jesus … Jesus comes to dine with Matthew and the other disciples in Matthew’s house at ; they are joined at table by many tax collectors and sinners, to whose ranks Matthew belonged until now. It is easy to see the point Matthew wants to make, namely, that Jesus has come into the world to save not only the Jews but others as well, including sinners. When Jesus is challenged for eating with sinners, we observe that he does not justify himself but simply speaks of himself as a physician. A physician does not have to justify his presence among the sick; neither does Jesus. Matthew is thus, once again, offering us a theology of the Christ. Jesus is characterized by mercy, because his Father is mercy itself and he, Jesus, has been sent in order to communicate God’s mercy.”

B. First Reading: Eph 4:1-7, 11-13: “It was his gift that some should be apostles, others evangelists.”

Today’s First Reading (Eph 4:1-7, 11-13) is about the unity and growth in the Body of Christ and the various gifts received from Christ for the building up of the Church. Saint Paul urges the believers to live a life worthy of their Christian calling. The Holy Spirit, the single inner source of Christian life, moves all members toward what promotes peace and harmony. Within this basic unity, there are gifts from the Risen Christ so that each member may contribute in a unique way to the growth and progress of the Church. The one who “gave gifts to mankind” has appointed some to be apostles, others to be prophets, others to be evangelists, others to be pastors and teachers. Saint Matthew is an example of those whose roles are essential to the life of the Church. The giftedness of the Church is in view of the unity in our faith and the growth in the knowledge of Christ. We endeavor to become mature people, reaching to the very height of Christ’s stature.

The following profile of a parishioner shows how one’s “gifts” are used for Church ministry and the building of the Body of Christ (cf. Jessi Emmert, “Francis O’Brien: Constant Fixture at His Parish” in Our Sunday Visitor, December 30, 2012, p. 12).

Francis O’Brien, a retired military officer, is a vital part of St. Catholic Church in Roswell, Georgia. He leads the Rosary before the 8:00 a.m. daily Mass, serves as a lector when needed and is secretary of the parish’s pro- life committee. “He’s the type of person who is quiet”, said Yakaly Fernandez, a fellow parishioner. “He will do things without anybody knowing, and that’s what I think is amazing.” O’Brien is a fixture in the parish. “He’s there every single morning”, Fernandez said.

O’Brien loves his parish because of its active and vibrant culture. “We have perpetual Eucharistic adoration, which is a great thing for a parish”, he said. “I take part in that.”

O’Brien’s wife, Judy, is also involved at St. Peter Chanel and serves on the pro- life committee with him. The parish is the closest one to the couple’s home, and they have been attending since the parish began in 1998. O’Brien described how they have seen the church grow throughout the years. “In the beginning, Mass was being held in school gymnasiums and so on, then to the temporary sanctuary, and now we’re in the permanent church”, he said.

O’Brien is also involved in a Catholic outreach, “The Society of St. Francis and St. Therese” that sends out postcards to the public, offering a free course in Catholicism. He has used his retirement in a beautiful way that gives back to the Church. His passion for stewardship, evangelization, service and commitment to life represent the qualities of a strong and focused parishioner.

O’Brien is a symbol of the countless men and women who serve in parishes around the world. While they may not have an official title in the Church, their dedication and servants’ hearts make the ministry of the Catholic Church possible. Their silent but steadfast work may often go unnoticed, but they deserve a standing ovation for their loyalty and love.

II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO

1. What is our response to Jesus’ call addressed personally to each of us, “Follow me”? Are we willing to welcome fully into our hearts Jesus and the gift of divine mercy that he brings?

2. How do we promote the unity and vitality of the Church? What are the “gifts” we have received from the Risen Christ and how do we use them for the building up of the Church?

III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO

Lord Jesus, you are kind and merciful. In calling Matthew, and in dining with sinners and tax collectors, you reveal that you are truly the divine physician who comes to heal our sickness and infirmities. Help us to cling to your words: “I desire mercy, not sacrifice. I did not come to call the righteous but sinners.” You live and reign, forever and ever. Amen.

*** Loving Father, we are many parts of the one body. We thank you for the oneness and fullness that you give us through Christ in the Spirit. May the “gifts” we have received be wisely used for service and to build up the Body of Christ. We give you glory and praise, now and forever. Amen.

IV. INTERIORIZATION OF THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the CONTEMPLATIO

The following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the week. Please memorize it.

“Follow me.” (Mt 9:9) //“But grace was given to each of us.” (Eph 4:7)

V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO

By your vocation, ministry and compassionate acts of mercy, resound in today’s world God’s call to Matthew and to us all: “Follow me!” // Identify your “gifts” received from the Risen Christ and, in imitation of Saint Matthew, put them to use for the building up of Christ’s Body, the Church.

*** Text of Saint Matthew ends here. ***

A Lectio Divina Approach to the Weekday Liturgy

BREAKING THE BREAD OF THE WORD (n. 126) September 29: MONDAY – SAINTS MICHAEL, GABRIEL, AND RAPHAEL, ARCHANGELS “JESUS SAVIOR: He Is Supreme Over All the Angels”

BIBLE READINGS Dn 7:9-10, 13-14 or Rv 12:7-12a // Jn 1:47-51

I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO

A. Gospel Reading (Jn 1:47-51): “Above the Son of Man you will see the angels of God ascending and descending.”

In today’s Gospel reading (Jn 1:47-51), Jesus promises Nathanael a vision of angels: “You will see the sky opened and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.” The angelic revelation that Jesus proposes to his would-be disciple Nathanael evokes the vision of Jacob in the . In a dream, the Jacob sees a stairway to heaven and God’s messengers going up and down. There is an interchange between heaven and earth. Like the angels on Jacob’s ladder, Jesus will join the above and the below, the heavenly and the earthly. Since Jesus Christ is supreme over all the angels, his unifying function surpasses that of the angels. The Son of Man is the shekinah, the dwelling place of God and the locus of divine glory. Jesus is thus the connecting point of heaven and earth. In his very person, God is revealed and in Jesus we have access to God.

The angels are at the service of God and his saving plan. Today’s feast of the archangels helps us to contemplate their role in salvation history. The homily of Saint Gregory the Great that is read at the Office of the Readings gives interesting insight into the ministry of the archangels Michael, Gabriel and Raphael.

The word denotes a function … They can only be called angels when they deliver some message … Those who proclaim messages of supreme importance are called archangels. And so it was that not merely an angel but the archangel Gabriel was sent to the Virgin Mary. It was only fitting that the highest angel should come to announce the greatest of all messages.

Some angels are given proper names to denote the service they are empowered to perform … Thus Michael means “Who is like God?”; Gabriel is “The Strength of God”, and Raphael is “God’s Remedy”.

Whenever some act of wondrous power must be performed, Michael is sent, so that his action and his name make it clear that no one can do what God does by his superior power. So also our ancient foe desired in his pride to be like God, saying: “I will ascend into heaven; I will exalt my throne above the stars of heaven; I will be like the Most High.” He will be allowed to remain in power until the end of the world when he will be destroyed in the final punishment. Then, he will fight with the archangel Michael, as we are told by John: “A battle was fought with Michael the archangel.”

So too Gabriel, who is called God’s strength, was sent to Mary. He came to announce the One who appeared as a humble man to quell the cosmic powers. Thus God’s strength announced the coming of the Lord of the heavenly powers, mighty in battle.

Raphael means, as I have said, God’s remedy, for when he touched Tobit’s eyes in order to cure him, he banished the darkness of his blindness. Thus, since he is to heal, he is rightly called God’s remedy.

B. First Reading (Dn 7:9-10, 13-14): “Countless thousands ministered to him.”

In the Old Testament reading (Dn 7:9-10, 13-14), ’s vision of the “son of man” coming on the clouds of heaven and receiving dominion, glory and kingship originally represented the vindication of the persecuted people of Israel. The image of the human figure enthroned in glory, however, later came to be applied to the expected Messiah. Christians see the fulfillment of this apocalyptic vision in the person of Jesus Christ.

The prophet’s vision of the “son of man” is preceded by that of the “Ancient One” or “the One who has been living forever”. His clothes are white as snow and his hair like pure wool. He sits on a throne that blazes with fire. Thousands and thousands are ministering to him. As we celebrate the feast of Saints Michael, Gabriel and Raphael, we imagine these archangels as leading the throng of those who lovingly serve God, the “Ancient One”. The archangels and the other ministering angels in heaven, by God’s compassionate plan, bless us with their “presence” and assistance.

The following personal account gives insight into the reality of angelic protection (cf. Joan Wester Anderson, “Invisible Guardians” in Chicken Soup for Christian Soul, ed. Jack Canfield, et. al., Deerfield: Health Communications, Inc., 1997, p. 168-171).

In 1980, 25-year old Dave Carr of Bangor, Maine, started to feel one of those inner urges that defy logic and reason. He had a strong impulse to open a gathering place for the homeless or people down on their luck. (…) Finally Dave drove to downtown Bangor about 10:00 one September evening. It wouldn’t hurt to at least look at possible sites … He parked and walked through the neighborhoods, looking at abandoned buildings. Some possibilities, but nothing definite.

At 1:00 A.M. Dave was ready to call it quits. But he hadn’t investigated Brewer yet, the city that lies across the Penobscot River from Bangor. He would look at a few sites there, then head home. The street was deserted as Dave started walking up the bridge. Then a car approached from Brewer. As its headlights caught him, the car slowed. Uneasily Dave realized that there were three men inside. Despite the cool night air, their windows were rolled down. “Let’s throw him over!” Dave heard one of them say. The car stopped, its doors opened, and all three jumped out and came toward him.’

Horrified, Dave suddenly recalled the murder of the street person. It had been on this bridge! Had these men done it? He would be no match for them; he knew his only option was to pray that he survived the icy water. But as he looked down, he realized that the tide had gone out, and only rocks and dirt were directly below him. “God, help me”, Dave murmured.

Immediately he felt a presence near him, something unseen but definitely there. A warm safe feeling flooded him, His fear vanished, and he knew, without knowing how he knew, that he was not alone.

Now the men were almost upon Dave. All three were large, muscular – and leering. “Get him!” one shouted.

Suddenly they stopped. “They all stared at me, then looked to the right and left of me”, Dave says. “They seemed terrified. One said, ‘Oh, my God!’ They turned and began shoving one another to get back to the car. And when they sped away – it sounded like they tore the transmission right out – I could still hear them cursing and yelling, ‘Run, run!’”

Dave stood for a moment on the deserted bridge, basking in the warmth that still surrounded him. What was it? What had the men seen? Whatever it was, it had shielded him from certain death. “Thank you, God”, he whispered.

He felt exalted, so buoyant that he decided to go on to Brewer and finish his search. As he crossed the rest of the bridge, Danny, a friend of his, drove by, honked at him, and kept going, unmindful of Dave’s narrow escape. Dave waved, still surrounded by peace. (…)

The next day he ran into Danny again. “Sorry I didn’t stop for you last night on the bridge”, Danny said. “But I had passengers and I never could have fit all of you in my car, too.” “All of us?” Dave asked, puzzled. “Those three huge guys walking with you”, Danny explained. “They were the biggest people I had ever seen. One must have been at least seven feet tall!”

Dave never resisted a heavenly nudge again. He opened and founded a Bangor coffeehouse in 1986, which is still running today under a friend’s management. At least 100 people are fed every night, with coffee, hugs – and the word of the Lord.

C. Alternative First Reading (Rv 12:7-12ab): “Michael and his angels battled with the dragon.”

The alternative First Reading (Rv 12:7-12ab) underlines the role of the archangel Michael in the victorious battle in heaven against Satan and his followers. Michael’s heavenly victory symbolizes his permanent dominion over satanic forces. The hymn of victory that follows celebrates Michael’s victory over Satan. The same primordial victory won by the archangel Michael will be won by God’s people on earth against the “huge dragon, the ancient serpent, who is called the Devil and Satan”. The Church faces a “vanquished enemy” and the Christian life, although a trial, is a radical victory by God’s faithful people, washed in the Blood of the Lamb, Jesus Christ.

The following anecdotes circulated on the Internet concerning two ’ experience of the Archangel Michael’s assistance are very interesting.

Rome, 600 A.D.: During a plague which greatly depopulated the city of Rome, (Gregory the Great) ordered a penitential procession in which he himself carried a statue of the Blessed Virgin. As the procession reached the bridge across the Tiber, the singing of angels was heard. Suddenly Gregory saw an apparition of a gigantic archangel, Michael, descending upon the mausoleum of Emperor Hadrian. In his right hand, Michael held a sword, which he thrust into its scabbard. Gregory took the vision as an omen that the plague would stop, which it did, and so he renamed the mausoleum the Castel Sant' Angelo (Castle of the Holy Angel) in Michael's honor.

The Vatican, 1902: One day, after celebrating Mass, the aged Pope Leo XIII was in conference with the Cardinals when suddenly he sank to the floor in a deep swoon. Physicians who hastened to his side could find no trace of his pulse and feared that he had expired. However, after a short interval the Holy Father regained consciousness and exclaimed with great emotion: "Oh, what a horrible picture I have been permitted to see!" He had been shown a vision of the activities of evil spirits and their efforts against the Church. But in the midst of the horror the archangel Michael appeared and cast Satan and his legions into the abyss of hell. Soon afterwards the pope composed the following prayer to Saint Michael: Holy Michael, the archangel, defend us in battle. Be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the devil. May God rebuke him, we humbly pray: and do you, O Prince of the heavenly host, by the divine power, thrust into hell Satan and all the other evil spirits who wander through the world seeking the ruin of souls.

The Pope ordered this prayer to be recited daily after Low Mass in all the churches throughout the Christian world. And so it was. However this practice was swept away in the 1960s by liturgical changes made in the wake of the Second Vatican Council, except in a few churches (for example in the Archdiocese of Boston the traditional Low Mass in Latin, followed by the prayer to Saint Michael in English, is still said in the Holy Trinity Church at 140 Shawmut Ave., Boston, on Sundays starting at 12:00 noon).

II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO

Do we thank God for the ministry of the archangels Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael, and do we invoke their protection and assistance in our needs? Do we imitate the goodness of the angels and their function to connect the earthly and the heavenly?

III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO (cf. Concluding Prayer – Liturgy of the Hours, September 29: Feast of the Archangels)

God our Father, in a wonderful way you guide the work of angels and men. May those who serve you constantly in heaven keep our lives safe from all harm on earth. Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.

IV. INTERIORIZATION OF THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the CONTEMPLATIO

The following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the day. Please memorize it.

“You will see the sky opened and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.” (Jn 1:51)

V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO

Imitate Saint Michael in his ministry to manifest the supreme power of God. Imitate Saint Gabriel in his ministry to proclaim the good news about Christ. Imitate Saint Raphael in his ministry of healing and providing remedy to the afflicted.

*** Text of the Archangels ends here. ***

A Lectio Divina Approach to the Weekday Liturgy

BREAKING THE BREAD OF THE WORD (n. 127) October 2: THURSDAY – THE HOLY GUARDIAN ANGELS “JESUS SAVIOR: He Entrusts Us to Guardian Angels and He Is Our Redeemer”

BIBLE READINGS Gospel Reading: Mt 18:1-5, 10

I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO

Jesus continues to teach his disciples not to despise the little ones. They are so important to God that he has given his angels charge over them. If children need angelic guardians, we can safely assume that adults need them. The Catechism of the Catholic Church, number 336, asserts about angels: “From its beginning until death, human life is surrounded by their watchful care and intercession. Beside each believer stands an angel as protector and shepherd leading him to life.” Angels, who are pure spiritual creatures, live constantly in the presence of God and convey God’s will to us and his protection. Like the angels, we are intelligent beings created by God to glorify him and be happy with him in heaven.

The famed Mother Angelica of EWTN has this to say about angels (cf. Mother Angelica’s Answers, Not Promises, Mother Angelica with Christine Allison, New York: Pocket Books, 1987, p. 197-199).

I will never forget an incident that happened when I was ten or eleven years old. I was still living in Canton, Ohio, and had gone to the town square in the early evening to run some errands for my mother. There was a parking lot in the middle of the square, and for some reason it was blocked off by a big chain that day so cars could not enter. I blithely strolled across the street when I suddenly heard someone screaming, and I looked around only to see a pair of headlights coming at me. I was temporarily blinded, and then felt two hands pick me up and swing me over the chain barricade.

The car had run a red light and sped on. Slowly I realized what had happened. Dozens of people ran up to ask how I had leaped over the chain. I had no idea how I had gotten there.

I ran home and burst into the house looking for my mother. I was pale and trembling and started crying. “Mother, I almost got killed tonight.” Then she, too, started crying and said, “I know, Rita, I know.”

Later, I learned that my mother had sensed somehow that I was in danger earlier that afternoon and had knelt down to pray, asking God to save my life. Clearly, God had sent my angel to do just that. I will never forget that odd sensation of being lifted up, literally lifted, by two hands over a chain that separated me from death.

You and I, and everyone who ever lived, all have guardian angels. They are powerful friends, probably the most powerful friends you will ever have. I don’t know about you, but I’ve always needed all the friends I could get, and therefore have been on very close terms with my angel since the day of near-tragedy. I call my angel Fidelis, which is Latin for faithful, and faithful he has been, for I know I’ve been on tough assignments. (…)

God loves you so much that he gave you a guardian angel, a friend who prays for you, cheering you on, concerned for your salvation. If you’ve been overcome by loneliness, you should remember the friend God has given you as part of your birthright. He is with you every moment of the day.

II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO

Do I believe in the presence of an angel who is ever at my side to light and guard, to protect and guide me?

III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO

God our Father, in your loving providence you send your holy angels to watch over us. Hear our prayers, defend us always by their protection and let us share your life with them forever. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.

IV. INTERIORIZATION OF THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the CONTEMPLATIO

The following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the day. Please memorize it.

“Their angels in heaven always look upon the face of my heavenly Father.” (Mt 18:10)

V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO

Pray the beautiful prayer “Angel of God, my guardian dear …” and if you have not done it yet, give a name to your guardian angel. By your kind deeds and compassionate acts, be an “angel” to the people around you.

*** Text of the Guardian Angels ends here. ***

A Lectio Divina Approach to the Weekday Liturgy

BREAKING THE BREAD OF THE WORD (n. 128) October 18: SAINT LUKE EVANGELIST “JESUS SAVIOR: He Calls Us to Proclaim the of God’s Kingdom … He Gives Strength to His Missionaries”

BIBLE READINGS 2Tm 4:10-17b // Lk 10:1-9

I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO

A. Gospel Reading (Lk 10:1-9): “The harvest is plentiful but the laborers are few.”

This happened in November of 1984 in Bombay, India. I accompanied our Italian Superior to a cemetery where hundreds of Italian soldiers, who died during World War II, were buried. A special memorial service was held for them. Italian citizens and members of the diplomatic corps attended the celebration, which was graced by the presence of the Italian Minister of Finance, the Honorable Signor Spadolini. After the laying of the floral wreath, a Mass followed. Two good-looking young men were actively participating in the Mass. Probably, the sons of some diplomats, I thought. After the Mass, the two were introduced to us as members of Chiara Lubich’s Focolare Movement. They were residing and working in the slums of Bombay. As we hitched a ride back home, a Sister was reciting a litany of miseries. She cynically asked, “Where is the Kingdom of God, tell me!” One of the two Focolare missionaries answered, “The Kingdom of God is within you!” She sobered up.

The Gospel reading (Lk 10:1-9) depicts the mission of Christian disciples to be bearers of peace and the Gospel joy as they move from village to village, proclaiming the coming of God’s kingdom. The image of the “rich harvest” signifies the peoples of the whole world that need to be gathered into the kingdom of God. In order to be more efficacious in gathering the people of God as in a “rich harvest”, Jesus gives his disciples remarkable directives. They are to travel light and not to carry any moneybag, sack or sandals. The detachment from material goods would enable them to uphold the absolute priority of preaching the Good News. The spirit of detachment would also help them to trust more deeply in Divine Providence and oblige them to rely humbly on the hospitality of those who are receptive to the Gospel. The mission of the Christian disciples is urgent. Hence, they are enjoined not to greet anyone on the way. Above all, they need to persevere. Even if not always welcomed, they are to continue to bring the peace of Christ and the Good News of the Kingdom. Their power to heal the sick would reinforce their message that the Kingdom of God is at hand.

B. First Reading (II Tm 4: 10-17b): “Luke alone is with me.”

As we celebrate the feast of Saint Luke, Evangelist, the First Reading (II Tm 4:10-17b) underlines the loneliness that Christian disciples may experience in their apostolic ministry. Saint Paul speaks of being abandoned, but in the midst of a general disloyalty he is consoled by the loyalty of some faithful apostolic workers. He remarks that “Luke is the only one with me”. Paul also requests Timothy to come and to bring with him Mark, who is helpful to Paul in his ministry. Noteworthy is the apostle’s avowal of faith and the meaning of his mission: “The Lord stood by me and gave me strength, so that through me the proclamation might be completed and all the Gentiles might hear it.”

In Paul’s apostolic ministry he has Saint Luke as one of his eminent fellow workers. Considered as patron saint of artists, physicians, surgeons, students and butchers, Saint Luke authored the third Gospel and the Acts of the Apostles. These works give important information about Christ and the early Church. Below are some excerpts from EWTN’s article on Saint Luke that can be accessed on the Internet.

St. Luke was a native of Antioch, the metropolis of Syria, a city famous for the agreeableness of its situation, the riches of its traffic, its extent, the number of its inhabitants, the politeness of their manners, and their learning and wisdom. Its schools were the most renowned in all Asia, and produced the ablest masters in all arts and sciences. St. Luke acquired a stock of learning in his younger years, which we are told he improved by his travels in some parts of Greece and Egypt. St. assures us he was very eminent in his profession, and St. Paul, by calling him his most dear physician, seems to indicate that he had not laid it aside.

Besides his abilities in physics, he is said to have been very skillful in painting. The Menology of the Emperor Basil, compiled in 980, Nicephorus, Metaphrastes, and other modern Greeks quoted by Gretzer in his dissertation on this subject, speak much of his excelling in this art, and of his leaving many pictures of Christ and the Blessed Virgin. Though neither the antiquity nor the credit of these authors is of great weight, it must be acknowledged, with a very judicious critic, that some curious anecdotes are found in their writings. In this particular, what they tell us is supported by the authority of Theodorus Lector, who lived in 518, and relates that a picture of the Blessed Virgin painted by St. Luke was sent from Jerusalem to the Empress Pulcheria, who placed it in the church of Hodegorum which she built in her honour at Constantinople. Moreover, a very ancient inscription was found in a vault near the Church of St. Mary in via lata in Rome, in which it is said of a picture of the Blessed Virgin Mary discovered there, "One of the seven painted by St. Luke." Three or four such pictures are still in being; the principal is that placed by Paul V in the Barghesian chapel in St. Mary Major. About the year 56 St. Paul sent St. Luke with St. Titus to Corinth with such high commendation that his praise in the gospel resounded throughout all the churches. St. Luke attended him to Rome, whither he was sent prisoner from Jerusalem in 61. The apostle remained there two years in chains; but was permitted to live in a house which he hired, though under the custody of a constant guard; and there he preached to those who daily resorted to hear him. St. Luke was the apostle's faithful assistant and attendant during his confinement, and had the comfort to see him set at liberty in 63, the year in which this evangelist finished his Acts of the Apostles.

St. Luke did not forsake his master after he was released from his confinement. That apostle in his last imprisonment at Rome writes that the rest had all left him, and that St. Luke alone was with him. St. Epiphanius says that after the martyrdom of St. Paul, St. Luke preached in Italy, Gaul, Dalmatia, and Macedon. By Gaul some understand Cisalpine Gaul, others Galatia. Fortunatus and Metaphrastus say he passed into Egypt and preached in Thebais. St. Hippolytus says St. Luke was crucified at Elaea in Peloponnesus near Achaia. The modern Greeks tell us he was crucified on an olive tree. The ancient African of the fifth age gives him the titles of Evangelist and Martyr.

II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO

1. Do we follow Jesus’ instructions to his disciples, especially with regards to the sense of urgency, spirit of trust and detachment, and absolute commitment that the mission of the Gospel entails? Do we take to heart Jesus’ exhortation: “The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few; so ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest” (Lk 10:2)?

2. How does the life and ministry of Saint Luke inspire you? Do you believe that God, who has strengthen Saint Paul, Saint Luke and the other apostles-disciples, will also stand by you and give you strength?

III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO (Cf. Opening Prayer of the Mass on the Feast of Saint Luke)

Father, you chose to reveal by preaching and writing the mystery of your love for the poor. Unite in one heart and spirit all who glory in your name. Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.

IV. INTERIORIZATION OF THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the CONTEMPLATIO

The following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the week. Please memorize it.

“The kingdom of God is at hand for you.” (Lk 10:9) // “The Lord stood by me and gave me strength.” (II Tm 4:17)

V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO

In your daily life and by your acts of charity, especially to the poor and needy, be bearers of the joy of the Gospel. Make an effort to study prayerfully the Gospel of Saint Luke and the Acts of the Apostles.

*** Text of Saint Luke ends here. ***

A Lectio Divina Approach to the Weekday Liturgy

BREAKING THE BREAD OF THE WORD (n. 129) October 28: SAINTS SIMON AND JUDE, APOSTLES “JESUS SAVIOR: He Chooses the Apostles … He Builds the Church upon the Apostolic Witnessing”

BIBLE READINGS Eph 2:19-22 // Lk 6:12-16

I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO

In today’s Gospel (Lk 6:12-16), we hear that Jesus goes up to the mountain to pray and he spends the night in prayer to God. The night is fascinating. It can be a moment of deep commune with God and a time of profound prayer. Once again, before making a decisive decision crucial to his messianic mission, Jesus prays. When the day comes, he calls his disciples to himself and chooses the twelve apostles, who represent the “twelve” tribes of the New Israel, the Church. Among the “Twelve” are Simon called the “Zealot” and Jude Thaddeus. Prayer is likewise an important element in the life of the apostles. By the help of prayer, they are able to learn the wisdom of the cross and to fully embrace Christ’s paschal mystery.

As we celebrate the feast of Saints Simon and Jude, apostles, today’s First Reading (Eph 2:19-22) underlines that we are built upon the foundation laid down by the apostles and the prophets whose saving message is centered on the Christ-event. Through the power of Christ, we grow into a spiritual temple sacred in the Lord. We are no longer strangers or sojourners. Because of the reconciling activity of Jesus Christ, we have become fellow citizens with God’s people and his family members. The Gospel proclamation and apostolic witnessing are very important for the growth of the Church, whose glorious capstone and binding force is Jesus Christ himself.

The apostolic message goes out through all the earth. Saints Simon and Jude have carried the “light of faith” to the ends of the world, as the following biographical sketches show (cf. Wikipedia in the Internet).

Simon the Zealot is one of the most obscure among the apostles of Jesus. Little is recorded of him aside from his name. The name of Simon occurs in all of the synoptic and Acts that give a list of apostles. He is called “zealot” because, in seeing the miracle at Cana, Simon left his home, parents and his bride and followed Christ. It is also said that after Pentecost, his mission was in a place called Mauretania in Africa.

In later tradition, Simon is often associated with St. Jude, as an evangelizing team. They share their feast day on 28 October. The most widespread tradition is that after evangelizing in Egypt, Simon joined Jude in Persia and Armenia or Beirut, Lebanon, where both were martyred in 65 A.D. This version is found in the .

He is buried in the same tomb as St. Jude Thaddeus, in the left transept of the St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome, under the altar of St. Joseph. In art, Simon has the identifying attribute of a saw because according to legend, he was put to death by a saw.

***

Jude was one of the twelve apostles of Jesus. He is generally identified with Thaddeus. The Armenian Catholic Church honors Thaddeus along with Saint Bartholomew as its patron saints. In the Roman Catholic Church he is the patron saint of desperate cases or lost causes.

Saint Jude’s attribute is a club. He is also often shown in with a flame around his head. This represents his presence at Pentecost, when he received the Holy Spirit with the other apostles. Another common attribute is Jude holding an image of Jesus Christ. In some instances he may be shown with a scroll or a book or holding a carpenter’s rule.

The legend reports that Saint Jude was born into a Jewish family in Panea, a town in Galilee later rebuilt by the Romans and renamed Caesarea Philippi. In all probability he spoke both Greek and Aramaic, like most of his contemporaries in that area, and was a farmer by trade. According to the legend, Saint Jude was a son of and his wife Mary, a cousin of the Virgin Mary. Tradition has it that Jude’s father, Clopas, was martyred because of his forthright and outspoken devotion to the Risen Christ.

Tradition holds that Saint Jude preached the Gospel in Judea, , Idumaea, Syria, Mesopotamia and Libya. He is also to have visited Beirut and Edessa. The apostles Jude and Bartholomew are traditionally believed to have been the first to bring Christianity to Armenia, and are therefore venerated as the patron saints of the Armenian Catholic Church. In his History Ecclesiastica, Eusebius relates that King Abgar of Edessa (now Sanhurfa in Turkey) sent a letter to Jesus seeking a cure for an illness afflicting him. With the letter he sent his envoy Hannan, the keeper of the archives, offering his own home city to Jesus as a safe dwelling place. The envoy painted a likeness of Jesus with choice paints (or alternatively, impressed with Abgar’s faith, Jesus pressed his face into a cloth and gave it to Hannan) to take to Abgar with his answer. Upon seeing Jesus’ image, the king placed it with great honor in one of his palatial houses. After Christ’s execution, Thomas the Apostle sent Jude to King Abgar and the king was cured. Astonished, he converted to Christianity, along with many people under his rule.

According to tradition, after his martyrdom, pilgrims came to his grave to pray and many of them experienced the powerful intercession of Saint Jude and thus the title, “The Saint for the Hopeless and the Desperate”. Saint Bridget of Sweden and Saint Bernard had visions from God asking each to accept Saint Jude as “The Patron Saint of the Impossible”.

Here is a novena to Saint Jude: “O Holy Saint Jude! Apostle and Martyr, great in virtue and rich in miracles, near kinsman of Jesus Christ, faithful intercessor for all who invoke you, special patron in time of need; to you I have recourse from the depth of my heart, and humbly beg you, to whom God has given such great power, to come to my assistance; help me now in my urgent need and grant my earnest petition. I will never forget thy graces and favors you obtain for me and I will do my utmost to spread devotion to you. Amen.”

II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO

What does it mean personally to be a community of faith based on “the foundation of the Apostles and the prophets?

III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO (cf. Opening Prayer of the Mass – feast of Sts. Simon and Jude)

Father, you revealed yourself to us through the preaching of your apostles Simon and Jude. By their prayers, give your Church continued growth and increase the number of those who believe in you. Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.

IV. INTERIORIZATION OF THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the CONTEMPLATIO

The following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the day. Please memorize it.

“You are built upon the foundation of the Apostles and the prophets.” (Eph 2:20)

V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO

Continue the apostolic witnessing and the Gospel proclamation in today’s world by living a life of Christian charity that is manifested in compassion and care for the poor and vulnerable.

*** Text of Saints Simon and Jude ends here. ***

A Lectio Divina Approach to the Weekday Liturgy

BREAKING THE BREAD OF THE WORD (n. 130) November 30, 2012: FRIDAY – SAINT ANDREW, apostle “JESUS SAVIOR: Andrew Is His First-Called … His Apostle Andrew Proclaimed His Saving Word”

BIBLE READINGS Rom 10:9-18 // Mt 4:18-22

I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO

A. Gospel Reading (Mt 4:18-22): “Immediately they left their nets and followed him.”

The call of the first disciples (Peter and Andrew, James and John) is part of the prophetic fulfillment of the “great light” dispelling the gloom of darkness. Jesus, the “great light”, offers the gift of ministry to the fishermen by the lake: “Come after me, and I will make you ”. In effect, he invites them to share in his mission of radiating the life-giving light of God. He summons them to follow him who is the light of life and to abide by his light. He calls them to share intimately in his life and messianic mission of being light to the nations. The response of the fishermen is immediate and decisive. They left their nets, boats, and relations to follow Christ. Through the grace of vocation, these disciples are rendered capable of being fishers of men and of spreading the light of Christ to the world.

We too are called to be fishers of men and to spread the light of the Gospel. The apostle Andrew, honored in the Eastern Church with the title “Protoclete” or “First- Called”, is a model of total response to this call. Saint Andrew, the apostle, shows to us what it entails to proclaim the Gospel and to enable people of all nations to hear and respond to the word of faith. Here is his biographical profile taken from the Internet’s Wikipedia.

The New Testament states that Andrew was the brother of Simon Peter, by which it is inferred that he was likewise a son of John or . He was born in the village of on the . Both he and his brother Peter were fishermen by trade, hence the tradition that Jesus called them to be his disciples by saying that he will make them “fishers of men”. At the beginning of Jesus’ public life, they were said to have occupied the same house at Capernaum.

The Gospel of John states that Andrew was a disciple of John the Baptist, whose testimony first led him and another unnamed disciple of John the Baptist to follow Jesus. Andrew at once recognized Jesus as the Messiah, and hastened to introduce him to his brother. Thenceforth, the two brothers were disciples of Christ. On a subsequent occasion, prior to the final call to the apostolate, they were called to a closer companionship, and then they left all things to follow Jesus.

In the gospels, Andrew is referred to as being present on some important occasions as one of the disciples more closely attached to Jesus. Andrew told Jesus about the boy with the loaves and fishes (:8), with Philip told Jesus about the Greeks seeking him, and was present at the .

Eusebius in his Church History 3,1 quotes as saying Andrew preached in Scythia. The Chronicle of Nestor adds that the preached along the Black Sea and the Dnieper River as far as Kiev, and from there he traveled to Novgorod. Hence, he became a patron saint of Ukraine, Romania and Russia. According to tradition, he founded the See of Byzantium (Constantinople) in 38 A.D., installing Stachys as bishop. According to , he preached in Thrace, and his presence in Byzantium is also mentioned in the apocryphal “Acts of Andrew”, written in 2nd century. Basil of Seleucia also knew of Apostle Andrew’s mission in Thrace, as well as Scythia and Achaia. This diocese would later develop into the of Constantinople. Andrew is recognized as its patron saint.

Andrew is said to have been martyred by crucifixion at the city of Patras in Achaea, on the northern coast of the Peloponnese. Early texts, such as “Acts of Andrew” known to Gregory of Tours, describe Andrew as bound, not nailed, to a Latin cross of the kind on which Jesus is said to have been crucified; yet a tradition developed that Andrew has been crucified on a cross of the form Crux decussata (X-shaped cross or “saltire”), now commonly known as a “Saint Andrew’s Cross” – supposedly at his own request, as he deemed himself unworthy to be crucified on the same type of cross as Jesus had been.

Cypriot tradition holds that a ship which was transporting Saint Andrew went off course and ran aground. Upon coming ashore, Andrew struck the rocks with his staff at which point a spring of healing waters gushed forth. Using it, the sight of the ship’s captain, who had been blind in one eye, was restored. Thereafter, the site became a place of pilgrimage … Other pilgrimages are more recent. The story is told that in 1895, the son of a Maria Greogiou was kidnapped. Seventeen years later, Saint Andrew appeared to her in a dream, telling her to pray for her son’s return at the monastery. Living in , she embarked on the crossing to Cyprus on a very crowded boat. Telling her story during the journey, one of the passengers, a young Dervish priest became more and more interested. Asking if her son had any distinguishing marks, he stripped off his clothes to reveal the same marks and mother and son were thus reunited.

B. First Reading (Rom 10:9-18): “Faith comes from what is heard and what is heard comes from the preaching of Christ.”

Today’s First Reading deals with the confession of faith of Christian believers. Our faith in Jesus Christ must be expressed fully in our words and actions, indeed, by our very lives. Our inner conviction must be confessed and our faith in the Risen Lord must be witnessed to all. The authors of the Days of the Lord, vol. 2, explain: “Paul is speaking of the word of faith, the object of apostolic preaching that announces Jesus dead and risen. To profess on the lips and from the heart that God has raised Jesus from the dead brings righteousness and gives access to salvation: none of those who have this faith will regret it at a time of judgment … To call on the name of Jesus is, therefore, a total act of faith in the Risen Lord who saves. It is an unconditional welcome to his power of resurrection, his strength for salvation … Such a path to salvation is open to all.”

The following testimony of a young lady physician gives insight into the meaning and challenges of making a confession of faith in today’s world – a faith confession already made by Saint Andrew in his life of ministry and martyrdom (cf. Cailin O’Reilly, “What God Means to Me” in Alive! September 2015, p. 10).

When I was younger I felt embarrassed about displaying my faith. One memory I still laugh at is the first day I moved into my halls in the University. I was so frightened about leaving home for the first time, and I decided to bring along my picture of the Sacred Heart. It was too big to fit into my luggage so I had to carry it into halls. Every person I met along the way stared at me as if I had three heads. I felt so mortified at the time as I thought everyone would make fun of me. They didn’t, thank God.

My picture of the Sacred Heart reminded me of the presence of God I my heart, and this is what gave me the inner strength to work for my dream of becoming a doctor. I have four brothers, one of them my twin, and I grew up in Armagh City. We are a very close family. I did my medical degree in University College Dublin, graduating in June 2014.

Mother Teresa once said: “Spread love everywhere you go. Let no one ever come to you without leaving happier.” These words epitomize what God means to me – he is love. He is reflected in how we choose to treat others and how we choose our lives. God has always been there to guidew me in very choice I make. (…)

In Today’s society it is hard to keep God where he should be, t the very heart of our lives. It is so worth it if we try. He will help us through life which, as we all know, can be a struggle at times. When I struggle or stress, with every tear I say a prayer to God, Our Lady, my guardian angel. They carry me over every obstacle I hit.

It was caring for my beloved Nanny Mullen after her diagnosis with a brain tumor that inspired me to follow my vocation to care for the sick. Working alongside the hardworking nurses and dedicated members of the medical team, I am so blessed to be able to help the lives of those struggling with illnesses.

II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO

1. Like Saint Andrew, do you respond positively to the call of Christ to participate in his saving mission as the ? What do you do to spread the Gospel and facilitate the people’s response to Christ, “the light to the nations”?

2. Do we imitate Saint Andrew in his zeal to proclaim the Gospel and in his sacrifice for the Gospel? Are we awed by the many people he touched by proclaiming the saving Word?

III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO

Loving Father, we thank you for the miracle of vocation and the grace of faithful response to that call. We thank you for the prompt and radical response of Peter and Andrew, James and John to the call addressed to them by Jesus: “Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men”. Their intimate participation in the saving love of Jesus transformed them into bearers of light and torchbearers of faith. O dear Father! Let the light of Christ shine upon us. Fill us with the warmth of his compassion and the flame of his apostolic zeal. Let us replicate in today’s troubled world the saving event that happened in the Galilee of the Gentiles, when the people of gloom had seen a great light. Help us to imitate Saint Andrew, the “First-Called”, in radiating the light of the Gospel to the nations on earth. You live and reign, now and forever. Amen.

*** Lord, in your kindness hear our petitions. You called to preach the gospel and guide your Church in faith. May he always be our friend in your presence to help us with his prayers. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.

IV. INTERIORIZATION OF THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the CONTEMPLATIO

The following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the week. Please memorize it.

“At once they left their nets and followed him.” (Mt 4:20) //“Faith comes from what is heard and what is heard comes through the word of Christ.” (Rom 10:17)

V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO

By your words and example, and by material and spiritual means, promote priestly and religious vocations in the Church. Imitate Saint Andrew in his zeal to spread the Gospel. // Today resolve to share a kindly word with those around you and, in any way you can, let them hear the word of faith proclaimed with passion and devotion.

*** Text of Saint Andrew ends here. ***

A Lectio Divina Approach to the Weekday Liturgy

BREAKING THE BREAD OF THE WORD (n. 131) December 12: FRIDAY – OUR LADY OF GUADALUPE “JESUS SAVIOR: The Woman Clothed with the Sun Foretells His Final Advent”

BIBLE READINGS Zec 2:14-17 or Rv 11:19a; 12:1-61, 10ab // Lk 1:26-38 or Lk 1:39-47

I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO

Today’s First Reading from the (11:19a; 12:1-61, 10ab) depicts a “great sign in the sky” – a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon beneath her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. She was with child and wailed aloud in pain as she labored to give birth. The image of a woman in childbirth is used to describe creative acts that involve time and sacrifice in order to be brought to full maturity. The heavenly vision of the woman in labor in the Book of Revelation evokes the painful and challenging process of the birth of Christ in the hearts of the faithful, as well as Mary’s vital role in the birthing of the Church. Moreover, the vision of “the woman clothed with the sun” foretells the final and victorious conflict and the glorious Advent of Jesus Savior at the end time.

The authors of the Days of the Lord, vol. 7, remark: “Because of her role in relationship to her Son, the faithful, and the community, Mary is the image of the Church that is still giving faithful birth to believers, and which is already in glory in heaven with God … The joy of the Virgin of Bethlehem is inseparable from the pain of the mother who watched her Son die on the cross at Calvary. She followed a path that led to the paschal climax quite similar to that of her Son.”

Today in the countries of the Americas, we celebrate the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe which recalls the apparitions of Mary at the hill of Tepeyac from December 9- 12, 1531, to Juan Diego, a native convert. The image of an expectant mother, “clothed with the sun, with the moon beneath her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars” was miraculously impressed in the cloak of Juan Diego. The following account is from a report by Don Antonio Valeriano, a Native American author of the 16th Century.

At daybreak one Saturday morning in 1531, on the very first days of the month of December, an Indian named Juan Diego was going from the village where he lived to Tlatelolco in order to take part in divine worship and listen to God’s commandments. When he came near the hill Tepeyac, dawn had already come, and Juan Diego heard someone calling him from the very top of the hill: “Juanito, Juan Dieguito”.

He went up the hill and caught sight of a lady of unearthly grandeur whose clothing was as radiant as the sun. She said to him in words both gentle and courteous: “Juanito, the humblest of my children, know and understand that I am the ever virgin Mary, Mother of the true God through whom all things live. It is my ardent desire that a church be erected here so that in it I can show and bestow my love, compassion, help, and protection to all who inhabit this land and to those others who love me, that they might call upon and confide in me. Go to the Bishop of Mexico to make known to him what I greatly desire. Go and put all your efforts into this.”

When Juan Diego arrived in the presence of the Bishop Fray Juan de Zumarraga, a Franciscan, the latter did not seem to believe Juan Diego and answered: “Come another time, and I will listen at leisure.”

Juan Diego returned to the hilltop where the Heavenly Lady was waiting and he said to her: “My Lady, my maiden, I presented your message to the Bishop, but it seemed that he did not think it was true. For this reason I beg you to entrust your message to someone more illustrious who might convey it in order that they might believe it, for I am only an insignificant man.”

She answered: “Humblest of my sons, I ask that tomorrow you again go to see the Bishop and tell him that I, the ever virgin holy Mary, Mother of God, am the one who personally sent you.”

But on the following day, Sunday, the Bishop again did not believe Juan Diego and told him that some sign was necessary so that he could believe that it was the Heavenly Lady herself who sent him. And then he dismissed Juan Diego.

On Monday Juan Diego did not return. His uncle, Juan Bernardino, became very ill, and at night asked Juan to go to Tlatelolco at daybreak to call a priest to hear his confession.

Juan Diego set out on Tuesday, but he went around the hill and passed on the other side, toward the east, so as to arrive quickly in Mexico City to avoid being detained by the Heavenly Lady. But she came out to meet him on that side of the hill and said to him: “Listen and understand, my humblest son. There is nothing to frighten and distress you. Do not let your heart be troubled, and let nothing upset you. Is it not I, your Mother, who is here? Are you not under my protection? Are you not, fortunately, in my care? Do not let you uncle’s illness distress you. It is certain that he has already been cured. Go up to the hilltop, my son, where you will find flowers of various kinds. Cut them, and bring them into my presence.”

When Juan Diego reached the peak, he was astonished that so many Castilian roses had burst forth at a time when the frost was severe. He carried the roses in the folds of his tilma (mantle) to the Heavenly Lady. She said to him: “My son, this is the proof and the sign which you will bring to the Bishop so that he will see my will in it. You are my ambassador, very worthy of trust.”

Juan Diego set out on his way, now content and sure of succeeding. On arriving in the Bishop’s presence, he told him: “My lord, I did what you asked. The Heavenly Lady complied with your request and fulfilled it. She sent me to the hilltop to cut some Castilian roses and told me to bring them to you in person. And this I am doing, so that you can see in them the sign you seek in order to carry out her will. Here they are; receive them.”

He immediately opened up his white mantle, and as all the different Castilian roses scattered to the ground, there was drawn on the cloak and suddenly appeared the precious image of the ever Virgin Mary, Mother of God, in the same manner as it is today and is kept in her shrine of Tepeyac.

The whole city was stirred and came to see and admire her venerable image and to offer prayers to her; and following the command which the same Heavenly Lady gave to Juan Bernardino when she restored him to health, they called her by the name she herself had used: “the ever virgin holy Mary of Guadalupe”.

II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO

How does the sign of “a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon beneath her feet and wearing a crown of twelve stars” affect you? What message can you glean from the image of a woman in labor to give birth to a child? What Marian image do you find most significant?

III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO (Pope John Paul II’s Prayer to Our Lady of Guadalupe)

O Immaculate Virgin, Mother of the true God and Mother of the Church! You, who from this place revealed your clemency and your pity to all those who ask for your protection: hear the prayer that we address to you with filial trust, and present it to your Son Jesus, our sole Redeemer. Mother of Mercy, Teacher of hidden and silent sacrifice, to you, who come to meet us sinners, we dedicate on this day, all our being and all our love. We also dedicate to you our life, our work, our joys, our infirmities, and our sorrows. Grant peace, justice and prosperity to our peoples; for we entrust to your care all that we have and all that we are, our Lady and Mother. We wish to be entirely yours and to walk with you along the way of complete faithfulness to Jesus Christ in His Church: hold us always with your loving hand. Virgin of Guadalupe, Mother of the Americas, we pray to you for all the bishops, that they may lead the faithful along paths of intense Christian life, of love and humble service of God and souls. Contemplate this immense harvest, and intercede with the Lord that He may instill a hunger for holiness in the whole People of God, and grant abundant vocations of priests and religious, strong in faith and zealous dispensers of God’s mysteries. Grant to our homes the grace of loving and respecting life in its beginnings, with the same love with which you conceived in your womb the life of the Son of God. Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of Fair Love, protect our families, so that they may always be united, and bless the upbringing of our children. Our hope, look upon us with compassion, teach us to go continually to Jesus and, if we fall, help us to rise again, to return to Him, by means of the confession of our faults and sins in the Sacrament of Penance, which gives peace to the soul. We beg you to grant us a great love for all the holy Sacraments, which are, as it were, the signs that your Son left on earth. Thus, Most Holy Mother, with the peace of God in our conscience, with our hearts free from evil and hatred, we will be able to bring to all true joy and true peace, which comes to us from your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, who with God the Father and the Holy Spirit, lives and reigns forever and ever. Amen.

IV. INTERIORIZATION OF THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the CONTEMPLATIO

The following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the day. Please memorize it.

“A great sign appeared in the sky, a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars.” (Rv 12:1)

V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO

By our acts of charity and sacrifice for the poor and vulnerable, let us participate with Mary, Our Lady of Guadalupe, in the ongoing mystery of the “birthing of the Church”.

*** Text of Our Lady of Guadalupe ends here. ***