Heavenly Father,
Thou hast given us the gift of freedom
to love and to follow in Thy ways and commands.
Some parents choose to abuse this freedom
by destroying the gift of life
which Thou hast given to their offspring.
Please forgive those who destroy human life
by aborting their unborn babies.
Give these unborn children the opportunity
to enjoy Thee for all eternity,
if it according to Thy ordinance.
Assist me in being one in solidarity with Thy little ones …
Author: WebDept ParishAdmin
There is Nothing I Shall Want
Desire: it can often be geared towards holy and beautiful things, but how often do our desires become absorbed in the culture around us? Do we let the world convince us of what should be most important? My anxiety spirals as I ponder my own life in comparison to that of others. I get lost in thought and before I know it I have lost sight of God’s love and goodness, and all the blessings He has provided in my life amidst all circumstances.
Since the Fall, doubt has entered the human heart and led to sin. Sin occurs when we doubt God: instead of trusting the Father we try to take control. Doubt and lack of trust in God causes us to search for happiness, something that is fleeting. Joy in the Lord is a constant, no matter where we are in the journey of life. Doubt, comparison, and coveting steal this joy that God intends to freely share with us.
How can we combat this comparison and coveting that we experience to live in true freedom in God? There are several ways that can provide peace and comfort when these anxious thoughts seem to attack the heart. Time with Jesus in Adoration is a significant means of offering these doubts to Christ, laying them at His feet. The Litany of Humility is another way of taking time to be with God and putting Him first. Also, meditating upon the experiences of the saints gives us a great perspective of how Christ can and will help us overcome. Finally, accepting our failings and bringing them to God throughout the day in the ordinary moments can lead to deeper trust and intimacy with the Lord. When we recognize we are nothing without God it helps us to shift our perspective to what really matters.
Intimacy with Christ in Adoration, prayer, and communion with the saints lead to a strengthening of our joy, an increase in devotion to Him that is the source and summit of our faith. When we make the conscious choice to ask for God’s help in putting Him first, He will answer. Trust and have joy, brothers and sisters!
“If we find ourselves with a desire that nothing in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that we were made for another world.” C.S. Lewis
Nathalie Shultz is a joyful convert to the Catholic faith and a competitive swimmer with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD). She loves to share her passion for Catholicism with others, including her conversion story and how God continues to work miracles in her life through her OCD. She is the Director of Religious Education for the North Allegan Catholic Collaborative of parishes. Nathalie is married to her best friend, Tommy Shultz. Her favorite saints include St. Peter the Apostle, St. Teresa of Calcutta, and St. John Paul II. She is also a huge fan of C.S. Lewis. If you have any questions for Nathalie, or just want her to pray for you, you can email her at rodzinkaministry@gmail.com.
Feature Image Credit: Exe Lobaiza, https://www.cathopic.com/photo/3484-santisimo-sacramento-
St. Agnes: Saint of the Day for Thursday, January 21, 2021
St. Agnes of Rome was born in 291 AD and raised in a Christian family. Agnes was very beautiful and belonged to a wealthy family. Her hand in marriage was highly sought after, and she had many high ranking men chasing after her. However, Agnes made a promise to God never to stain her purity. Her love for the Lord was great and she hated sin even more than death!
Whenever a man wished to marry Agnes, she would always say, “Jesus Christ is my only Spouse.”
According to legend, the young men …
A Prayer for Friends and Benefactors: Prayer of the Day for Thursday, January 21, 2021
O God, bountiful in forgiving,
and lovingly desirous of man’s salvation,
we humbly beseech Thy mercy in behalf of our friends,
relations and benefactors,
who have passed from this world, that,
through the intercession of Blessed Mary ever Virgin
and all the Saints,
Thou wouldst permit them to come
to the full participation of everlasting happiness.
Through the same Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Wednesday of the Second Week in Ordinary Time
Reading I Heb 7:1-3, 15-17
Melchizedek, king of Salem and priest of God Most High,
met Abraham as he returned from his defeat of the kings
and blessed him.
And Abraham apportioned to him a tenth of everything.
His name first means righteous king,
and he was also “king of Salem,” that is, king of peace.
Without father, mother, or ancestry,
without beginning of days or end of life,
thus made to resemble the Son of God, he remains a priest forever.
It is even more obvious if another priest is raised up
after the likeness of Melchizedek, who has become so,
not by a law expressed in a commandment concerning physical descent
but by the power of a life that cannot be destroyed.
For it is testified:
You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.
Responsorial Psalm 110:1, 2, 3, 4
R. (4b) You are a priest for ever, in the line of Melchizedek.
The LORD said to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand
till I make your enemies your footstool.”
R. You are a priest for ever, in the line of Melchizedek.
The scepter of your power the LORD will stretch forth from Zion:
“Rule in the midst of your enemies.”
R. You are a priest for ever, in the line of Melchizedek.
“Yours is princely power in the day of your birth, in holy splendor;
before the daystar, like the dew, I have begotten you.”
R. You are a priest for ever, in the line of Melchizedek.
The LORD has sworn, and he will not repent:
“You are a priest forever, according to the order of Melchizedek.”
R. You are a priest for ever, in the line of Melchizedek.
Alleluia See Mt 4:23
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Jesus preached the Gospel of the Kingdom
and cured every disease among the people.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel Mk 3:1-6
Jesus entered the synagogue.
There was a man there who had a withered hand.
They watched Jesus closely
to see if he would cure him on the sabbath
so that they might accuse him.
He said to the man with the withered hand,
“Come up here before us.”
Then he said to the Pharisees,
“Is it lawful to do good on the sabbath rather than to do evil,
to save life rather than to destroy it?”
But they remained silent.
Looking around at them with anger
and grieved at their hardness of heart,
Jesus said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.”
He stretched it out and his hand was restored.
The Pharisees went out and immediately took counsel
with the Herodians against him to put him to death.
- Readings for the Optional Memorial of Saint Sebastian, martyr
- Readings for the Optional Memorial of Saint Fabian, pope and martyr
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Lectionary for Mass for Use in the Dioceses of the United States, second typical edition, Copyright © 2001, 1998, 1997, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine; Psalm refrain © 1968, 1981, 1997, International Committee on English in the Liturgy, Inc. All rights reserved. Neither this work nor any part of it may be reproduced, distributed, performed or displayed in any medium, including electronic or digital, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.
Choosing Not To Choose Is Choosing
There is a battle going on in today’s Gospel, but Jesus is the only one who speaks! The Pharisees don’t need to open their mouths – in fact, they willfully remain silent – because Jesus is battling for their hearts. But their hearts are hardened. They are not there to hear Jesus teach or even to hear the Scripture. They are only there to watch Jesus, hoping to catch him in the act of doing something “so that they might accuse him.”
Jesus knows this. He has sparred with them before. He knows what they are about. And so he calls them out, gives them the opportunity to engage, to discuss, to reconsider. He calls up the man with the withered hand and asks the Pharisees one of those brilliant “Jesus questions”; they can make a choice for truth or continue in their untruth. They must choose what is true or say what is untrue! But they know that no matter how they answer, they won’t get their way, because they can’t have it both ways! They are unwilling to make the choice and so they remain silent. They refuse to answer.
Choosing not to choose is choosing.
What is Jesus’ response? He is angry and grieved. The Greek words used to describe his reaction are unique in the New Testament. His anger is synonymous with the wrath of God; but Jesus’ grief is described with the intensive form of the verb “to be sorry or grieve.” Jesus is displeased with their blindness, and filled with sorrow at their willful hardness of heart, because he has come to save them too. But they cannot rejoice with those who have been healed and set free from sin. They cannot see the Messiah restoring all that has been injured by sin, and calling them into his glorious kingdom. They have closed themselves to what is happening right in their midst.
It is not enough for them to ignore him or dismiss him or even talk against him. It is not enough for them to refuse to hear the beauty of his words or the freedom that he teaches. They must destroy him. Rather than allow themselves to be moved by the good, they harden themselves against this thorn in their side and determine to kill him!
This is a fitting Gospel for the saint of today: St. Sebastian was one of the many martyrs executed during the persecutions of Diocletian. As a Roman soldier, Sebastian was found to be a Christian and did not back down at the threat of death from those who had hardened their hearts against the truth. Like Christ, he stood firm even as they shot him full of arrows because he was determined to obey God and his conscience rather than men, as the Collect for today’s Mass reminds us.
St. Sebastian, intercede for us, that we might remain open to Good and stand firmly in the Truth, no matter the cost!
Kathryn Mulderink, MA, is married to Robert, Station Manager for Holy Family Radio. Together they have seven children (including newly ordained Father Rob and seminarian Luke ;-), and two grandchildren. She is a Secular Discalced Carmelite and has published five books and many articles. Over the last 25 years, she has worked as a teacher, headmistress, catechist, Pastoral Associate, and DRE. Currently, she serves the Church as a writer and voice talent for Catholic Radio, by publishing and speaking, and by collaborating with the diocesan Office of Catechesis, various parishes, and other ministries to lead others to encounter Christ and engage their faith. Her website is https://www.kathryntherese.com/.
Feature Image Credit: Marcos Paulo Prado, https://unsplash.com/photos/Iv0mvJx9uLM
St. Fabian: Saint of the Day for Wednesday, January 20, 2021
Eusebius, born just a few years after Fabian’s death, tells us how Fabian came to Rome after Pope Anteros died in 236. A layperson, and not a very important one, he may have come for the same reason many still come to Rome today during a papal election: concern for the future of the faith, curiosity about the new pope, a desire to grieve for the pope who had passed. Seeing all the important people gathered to make this momentous decision must have been overwhelming. Which one would be the new …
Come, Holy Ghost: Prayer of the Day for Wednesday, January 20, 2021
Come, Holy Ghost,
fill the hearts of Thy faithful
and kindle in them the fire of Thy love.
V. Send forth Thy Spirit and they shall be created;
R. And Thou shalt renew the face of the earth.
Let us pray.
O God, who didst teach the hearts of Thy faithful people
by sending them the light of Thy Holy Spirit,
grant us by the same Spirit
to have a right judgment in all things,
and evermore to rejoice in His holy comfort.
Through Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Tuesday of the Second Week in Ordinary Time
Reading I Heb 6:10-20
Brothers and sisters:
God is not unjust so as to overlook your work
and the love you have demonstrated for his name
by having served and continuing to serve the holy ones.
We earnestly desire each of you to demonstrate the same eagerness
for the fulfillment of hope until the end,
so that you may not become sluggish, but imitators of those who,
through faith and patience, are inheriting the promises.
When God made the promise to Abraham,
since he had no one greater by whom to swear, he swore by himself,
and said, I will indeed bless you and multiply you.
And so, after patient waiting, Abraham obtained the promise.
Now, men swear by someone greater than themselves;
for them an oath serves as a guarantee
and puts an end to all argument.
So when God wanted to give the heirs of his promise
an even clearer demonstration of the immutability of his purpose,
he intervened with an oath,
so that by two immutable things,
in which it was impossible for God to lie,
we who have taken refuge might be strongly encouraged
to hold fast to the hope that lies before us.
This we have as an anchor of the soul,
sure and firm, which reaches into the interior behind the veil,
where Jesus has entered on our behalf as forerunner,
becoming high priest forever
according to the order of Melchizedek.
Responsorial Psalm 111:1-2, 4-5, 9 and 10c
R. (5) The Lord will remember his covenant for ever.
or:
R. Alleluia.
I will give thanks to the LORD with all my heart
in the company and assembly of the just.
Great are the works of the LORD,
exquisite in all their delights.
R. The Lord will remember his covenant for ever.
or:
R. Alleluia.
He has won renown for his wondrous deeds;
gracious and merciful is the LORD.
He has given food to those who fear him;
he will forever be mindful of his covenant.
R. The Lord will remember his covenant for ever.
or:
R. Alleluia.
He has sent deliverance to his people;
he has ratified his covenant forever;
holy and awesome is his name.
His praise endures forever.
R. The Lord will remember his covenant for ever.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Alleluia See Eph 1:17-18
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
May the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ
enlighten the eyes of our hearts,
that we may know what is the hope
that belongs to our call.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel Mk 2:23-28
As Jesus was passing through a field of grain on the sabbath,
his disciples began to make a path while picking the heads of grain.
At this the Pharisees said to him,
“Look, why are they doing what is unlawful on the sabbath?”
He said to them,
“Have you never read what David did
when he was in need and he and his companions were hungry?
How he went into the house of God when Abiathar was high priest
and ate the bread of offering that only the priests could lawfully eat,
and shared it with his companions?”
Then he said to them,
“The sabbath was made for man, not man for the sabbath.
That is why the Son of Man is lord even of the sabbath.”
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Lectionary for Mass for Use in the Dioceses of the United States, second typical edition, Copyright © 2001, 1998, 1997, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine; Psalm refrain © 1968, 1981, 1997, International Committee on English in the Liturgy, Inc. All rights reserved. Neither this work nor any part of it may be reproduced, distributed, performed or displayed in any medium, including electronic or digital, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.
Hope
There is a light snow falling as I write. It covers the dulled yellow and green grasses that are still visible here in West Michigan, making things look fresh. Snow on roadways can be quite treacherous. There are many who forget that traction, and a wet or snowy surface, can result in sliding, slipping, spinning, and much greater stopping distances.
If you’ve ever been in mud, on a dirt road, caught a patch of ice or snow, in a way you didn’t intend, with a vehicle or on foot, you know what I mean. Suddenly you can lose all sense of direction or feel caught in slow motion while being out of control of the situation. I kinda feel like that when looking at what has been going on in our country, on so many levels and in so many situations. It can be overwhelming to know where to focus. The readings today can help.
“We earnestly desire each of you to demonstrate the same eagerness for the fulfillment of hope until the end…hold fast to the hope that lies before us”, is a directive from the First Reading. The Gospel acclamation calls out, “May the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ enlighten the eyes of our hearts, that we may know what is the hope that belongs to our call.”
My focus is on hope. It’s the hope and promise of God. The Lord of the sabbath is my hope. I am to be His hands, his body, hope and love in this world. It is my charge, given through the waters of baptism.
“Hope has two beautiful daughters. Their names are anger and courage. Anger that things are the way they are. Courage to make them the way they ought to be.” St. Augustine of Hippo
Please spend some time with the links you find here. My prayer is that you too may find hope to do what is yours to do to keep hope alive in this world as Joyce Rupp so beautifully said,
Faithful Companion,
in this new year I pray:
to live deeply, with purpose,
to live freely, with detachment,
to live wisely, with humility,
to live justly, with compassion
to live lovingly, with fidelity,
to live mindfully, with awareness,
to live gracefully, with generosity,
to live fully, with enthusiasm.
Help me to hold this vision and to daily renew it in my heart,
becoming ever more one with You, and my truest self. Amen
You Keep Hope Alive
Beth Price is part of the customer care team at Diocesan. She brings a unique depth of experience to the group due to her time spent in education, parish ministries, sales and the service industry over the last 25 yrs. She is a practicing spiritual director as well as a Secular Franciscan (OFS). Beth is quick to offer a laugh, a prayer or smile to all she comes in contact with. Reach her here bprice@diocesan.com.
Feature Image Credit: Jessica Ruscello, https://unsplash.com/photos/lUtPqjz5D5k