O most holy heart of Jesus, fountain of every blessing, I adore you, I love you, and with lively sorrow for my sins I offer you this poor heart of mine. Make me humble, patient, pure and wholly obedient to your will. Grant, Good Jesus, that I may live in you and for you. Protect me in the midst of danger. Comfort me in my afflictions. Give me health of body, assistance in my temporal needs, your blessing on all that I do, and the grace of a holy death. Amen.
Author: WebDept ParishAdmin
Faithfulness, Repentance, and Salvation / Fidelidad, Arrepentimiento y Salvación
The First Reading today can be a little confusing for those of us who haven’t been reading the book of Isaiah in context. Isaiah is a prophet of God who is constantly calling God’s people to repent of their wicked ways and return to the Lord.
In this excerpt, Isaiah is sent by God to speak to Ahaz, the King of Judah. Ahaz and his people are fearful because their land is under attack. Their hearts trembled, “as the trees of the forest tremble in the wind.” But God sends Isaiah to tell the King and his people to be courageous and remain tranquil. Through the words of Isaiah, God reveals to Ahaz that their enemies will not triumph over them, but stipulates that Ahaz must be faithful to God. “Unless your faith is firm,” Isaiah tells him, “you will not be firm.” The book of Isaiah goes on to show that Ahaz and the people of Judah are not faithful to the Lord! Judah is eventually conquered by the Babylonians and taken into captivity.
In the New Testament, God the Father sends not just a prophet, but his only son Jesus Christ to make it clear to all of us that we can be delivered from all of our fears—we can experience safety and freedom—if only we will respond with faith. Not the kind of faith that merely says, “I believe,” but the kind of faith that God wanted from Ahaz. A faith that demonstrates our willingness to forsake our own misguided ways and faithfully follow the One, true God.
In today’s Gospel passage from the book of Matthew, we see that Jesus is clearly expecting a radical response to the miracles he has performed which so often accompany His invitation to repentance and salvation. “Jesus began to reproach the towns where most of his mighty deeds had been done, since they had not repented. ‘Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida!… I tell you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom on the day of judgment than for you.’”
Jesus couldn’t be more clear. Life and death are hanging in the balance for the people of Chorazin and Bethdsaida. The same choice is given to us. What do we want? Life or death? Will we repent? Will we demonstrate that we believe by returning to the worship and service of the One true God?
It is God’s mercy that speaks to us in these passages of scripture. Let’s truly repent of our sin, while there is yet time, and allow the Holy Spirit to renew us and change us. By choosing God’s ways over our own ways we can live in freedom from fear and experience authentic peace and eternal salvation.
La Primera Lectura de hoy puede ser un poco confusa para los que no han estado leyendo el libro de Isaías en contexto. Isaías es un profeta de Dios que llama constantemente al pueblo de Dios a arrepentirse de su maldad y volver al Señor.
En este pasaje, Dios lo envia a Isaías a hablar con Acaz, el Rey de Judá. Acaz y su pueblo tienen miedo porque su tierra está bajo ataque. Sus corazones temblaron, “como los árboles del bosque se estremecen con el viento”. Pero Dios envía a Isaías a decirle al Rey y a su pueblo que sean valientes y permanezcan tranquilos. A través de las palabras de Isaías, Dios le revela a Acaz que sus enemigos no triunfarán sobre él, pero estipula que Acaz debe ser fiel a Dios. “Si tu fe no es firme”, le dice Isaías, “no serás firme”. El libro de Isaías continúa mostrando que Acaz y el pueblo de Judá no son fieles al Señor. Al final, los babilonios conquistan a Judá y lo llevan al cautiverio.
En el Nuevo Testamento, Dios Padre envía no a un profeta, sino a su único hijo Jesucristo para dejarnos claro a todos que podemos ser liberados de todos nuestros temores, podemos experimentar seguridad y libertad, si tan solo lo respondamos con fe. No el tipo de fe que simplemente dice: “Creo”, sino el tipo de fe que Dios quería de Acaz. Una fe que demuestra nuestra disposición de abandonar nuestros propios comportamientos equivocados y seguir fielmente al Único Dios verdadero.
En el pasaje evangélico de hoy del libro de Mateo vemos claramente que Jesús espera una respuesta radical de los milagros que ha realizado que frecuentemente acompañan su invitación al arrepentimiento y a la salvación. “Jesús comenzó a reprochar a los pueblos donde había hecho la mayor parte de sus grandes obras, ya que todavía no se habían arrepentido. ‘¡Ay de ti, Corazín! ¡Ay de ti, Betsaida!… Te digo que será más tolerable para la tierra de Sodoma en el día del juicio que para ustedes.’”
Jesús habla muy claramente. La vida y la muerte penden de un hilo para la gente de Chorazin y Bethdsaida. Nos da la misma decisión a nosotros. ¿Qué queremos? ¿la vida o la muerte? ¿Nos arrepentiremos? ¿Demostraremos que creemos volviendo a la adoración y al servicio del Único Dios verdadero?
Es la misericordia de Dios la que nos habla en estos pasajes de las Escrituras. Arrepintámonos verdaderamente de nuestro pecado, mientras aún haya tiempo, y permitamos que el Espíritu Santo nos renueve y nos cambie. Al elegir los caminos de Dios sobre los nuestros, podemos vivir libres del temor y experimentar la paz auténtica y la salvación eterna.
Christine Hanus is a thwarted idealist who, nevertheless, lives quite happily in Upstate NY. She is a wife and mother of five grown children.
Feature Image Credit: Jon Tyson, unsplash.com/photos/CYswOLYDUXY
St. John Gaulbert, Abbot: Saint of the Day for Tuesday, July 12, 2022
Saint John Gaulbert, Abbot – Feast day is July 12th The city of Florence gave to the world Saint John Gaulbert. Although he enjoyed the benefits of an early Christian education, his youthful heart was soon attracted to the vanities of the world. A painful incident was the means God made use of, to open his eyes. Hugo, his only brother, had been murdered and St. John had resolved to avenge his death. On a certain Good Friday he met his enemy in a place where there was no escape for the latter. …
Make Me an Instrument of Your Peace, Saint Francis Prayer: Prayer of the Day for Tuesday, July 12, 2022
Lord, make me an instrument of Your peace. Where there is hatred, let me sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; where there is sadness, joy.
O, Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console; to be understood as to understand; to be loved as to love; For it is in giving that we receive; it is in pardoning that we are pardoned; it is in dying that we are born again to …
Loving God First / Amar a Dios Primero
This Gospel is challenging. Loving anyone more than I love my family feels impossible. It is hard thinking that God gave me these people to journey through life with only to say “love them but love me more.”
But that’s exactly how it is. It’s true I love him by loving them, but my goal is to be with him in heaven. We help each other grow in holiness and the goal of marriage is to help your spouse get to heaven but we must always put God first. He even says that if we love our parents or children more than him, we are not worthy of him.
This isn’t an exhortation to not love my family but an affirmation of how important it is to love God. My heavenly Father must be first in my heart because he ordained it to be that way. In loving God we fulfill our reason for existing. We were created to freely love him and that is where we find true joy and peace.
Yes, we love our husbands and children but we must love God more. We receive the grace to do this through the sacraments. We receive Jesus in Holy Communion and we are reconciled to him in confession. God knows our weaknesses and he sent us his Son to teach us how to love him more. Jesus is a loving and gentle teacher and if we entrust ourselves to him, he will show us how to put our Father first in all we do and are.
Where in your life do you need to put God first?
Jesus, please teach me how to love you more. Help me to put you first in everything.
Este Evangelio es un reto. Amar a alguien más que amar a la familia parece imposible. Es difícil pensar que Dios me dio a estas personas para viajar por la vida con solo decir “ámalos pero ámame más”.
Pero así es. Es verdad que amo a Dios amándolos a ellos, pero mi meta es estar con él en el cielo. Nos ayudamos los unos a los otros a crecer en la santidad y el objetivo del matrimonio es ayudar al cónyuge a llegar al cielo, pero siempre debemos poner a Dios primero. Incluso dice que si amamos a nuestros padres o hijos más que a él, no somos dignos de él.
Esto no es una exhortación a no amar a la familia, sino una afirmación de cuán importante es amar a Dios. Mi Padre celestial debe ser primero en mi corazón porque así lo ordenó. Al amar a Dios cumplimos nuestra razón de existir. Fuimos creados para amarlo libremente y ahí es donde encontramos el verdadero gozo y la paz.
Sí, amamos a nuestros esposos e hijos, pero debemos amar más a Dios. Recibimos la gracia de hacer esto a través de los sacramentos. Recibimos a Jesús en la Sagrada Comunión y nos reconciliamos con él en la confesión. Dios conoce nuestras debilidades y nos envió a su Hijo para enseñarnos a amarlo más. Jesús es un maestro amoroso y dulce y si nos encomendamos a él, nos mostrará cómo poner a nuestro Padre en primer lugar en todo lo que hacemos y somos.
¿En qué parte de tu vida necesitas poner a Dios primero?
Jesucristo, por favor, enséñame a amarte más. Ayúdame a ponerte primero en todo.
Merridith Frediani loves words and is delighted by good sentences. She also loves Lake Michigan, dahlias, the first sip of hot coffee in the morning, millennials, and playing Sheepshead with her husband and three kids. She writes for Catholic Mom, Diocesan.com, and her local Catholic Herald. Her first book Draw Close to Jesus: A Woman’s Guide to Adoration is available at Our Sunday Visitor and Amazon. You can learn more at merridithfrediani.com.
Feature Image Credit: R K, unsplash.com/photos/ngE9ekbCQ-Y
St. Benedict of Nursia: Saint of the Day for Monday, July 11, 2022
St. Benedict is believed to have been born around 480, as the son to a Roman noble of Norcia and the twin to his sister, Scholastica.
In the fifth century, the young Benedict was sent to Rome to finish his education with a nurse/housekeeper. The subject that dominated a young man’s study then was rhetoric — the art of persuasive speaking. A successful speaker was not one who had the best argument or conveyed the truth, but one who used rhythm, eloquence, and technique to convince. The power …
Infant Jesus of Prague Novena Prayer: Prayer of the Day for Monday, July 11, 2022
O Miraculous Infant Jesus, we prostrate before Your Image and beseech You to cast your merciful look on our troubled hearts.
Let Your tender Heart, so inclined to pity, be softened by our prayers and grant us that grace for which we ardently implore You.
[Mention your request]
Take from us all despair, all trials and misfortunes with which we are laden.
For Your Sacred Infancy’s sake, hear our prayers and send us consolation and aid that we may praise You, with the Father and the …
Silence is a Treasure / El Silencio es Un Tesoro
As a young adult fresh out of missionary life, I used to listen frequently to Christian music. I found inspiration and fervor singing along to all the CD’s I had purchased after picking out my favorite tunes on the radio. Certain songs I listened to over and over again, due to their relevance in my life at the time.
As the seasons of my life changed and I became a wife and mother to a brood of little ones, I realized how precious silence was and stepped away from listening to music. I never turn on the radio anymore and never pop in CD’s. I don’t have a Pandora app on my phone and don’t go to concerts. Any moment of silence is now a treasure.
But I recently started a new job and my coworker enjoys playing Christian music in the background while we work and I realized once again how enriching music can be. For the past few days I have been singing to myself: “All I know is I’m not home yet, this is not where I belong. Take this world and give me Jesus. This is not where I belong…” (song by Building 429) It reminds me over and over again that the only truly important thing in my life is my Lord and my God.
Today’s readings are full of many such reminders: Moses reminded the people in today’s First Reading: “If only you would heed the voice of the LORD, your God, and keep his commandments and statutes that are written in this book of the law, when you return to the LORD, your God, with all your heart and all your soul.” The Psalm Response proclaims: “Turn to the Lord in your need and you will live.” The Second Reading states: “Christ Jesus is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For in him were created all things in heaven and on earth, the visible and the invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers; all things were created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. He is the head of the body, the church.” And finally, the Gospel reminds us “You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your being, with all your strength, and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.”
All of these words from Sacred Scripture point toward one thing. God is God and I am not. He has everything in the palm of His hand. He’s got this. No matter how messy life gets (or how noisy), He’s got this.
I pray that each of you may find a few moments of silence to cherish today, and may they be spent in His presence. Who knows, maybe you will even find yourself singing “Take this world and give me Jesus. This is not where I belong…”
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Como adulta joven que recién había salido de la vida misionera, solía escuchar música cristiana con frecuencia. Encontraba inspiración y fervor cantando todos los CDs que había comprado después de elegir mis canciones favoritas en la radio. Ciertas canciones las escuchaba una y otra vez, por su relevancia en mi vida en aquel momento.
A medida que esta época de mi vida se iba cambiando y me convertí en esposa y madre de varios pequeños, me di cuenta de lo precioso que era el silencio y dejé de escuchar música. Ya nunca enciendo la radio y nunca pongo CDs. No tengo una app de Pandora en mi teléfono y no voy a conciertos. Ahora considero cualquier momento de silencio un tesoro.
Pero recientemente comencé un nuevo trabajo y mi compañera de trabajo disfruta escuchar música cristiana mientras trabajamos y me di cuenta una vez más de lo enriquecedora que puede ser la música. Durante los últimos días me he estado cantando a mí mismo: “Todo lo que sé es que todavía no estoy en casa, no pertenezco en este lugar. Toma este mundo y dame a Jesús. No pertenezco en este lugar…” (canción por Building 429) Me recuerda una y otra vez que lo único que es verdaderamente importante en mi vida es mi Señor y mi Dios.
Las lecturas de hoy están llenas de muchos recordatorios de este tipo: Moisés le recordó al pueblo en la Primera Lectura de hoy: “Si tan solo escucharan la voz de Jehová su Dios, y guardaran sus mandamientos y estatutos que están escritos en este libro de la ley, cuando vuelven al SEÑOR, tu Dios, con todo tu corazón y con toda tu alma”. El Salmo Responsorial proclama: “Vuelva al Señor en tu necesidad y vivirás”. La Segunda Lectura dice: “Cristo Jesús es la imagen del Dios invisible, el primogénito de toda la creación, porque en él fueron creadas todas las cosas en el cielo y en la tierra, lo visible y lo invisible, sean tronos o dominios o principados o potestades; todas las cosas fueron creadas por medio de Él y para Él. Él es antes de todas las cosas, y todas las cosas subsisten en Él. Él es la cabeza del cuerpo que es la iglesia”. Y finalmente, el Evangelio nos recuerda: “Amarás al Señor, tu Dios, con todo tu corazón, con todo tu ser, con todas tus fuerzas y con toda tu mente, y a tu prójimo como a ti mismo”.
Todas estas palabras de la Sagrada Escritura señalan una sola cosa. Dios es Dios y yo no. Él tiene todo en la palma de Su mano. Él lo tiene. No importa cuán desordenada se ponga la vida (o cuán ruidosa), Él lo tiene.
Espero que cada uno de ustedes pueda encontrar unos momentos de silencio para atesorar hoy, y que los pase en Su presencia. Quién sabe, tal vez incluso te encuentres cantando “Toma este mundo y dame a Jesús. No pertenezco en este lugar…”
Tami Urcia grew up in Western Michigan, a middle child in a large Catholic family. She spent early young adulthood as a missionary in Mexico, studying theology and philosophy, then worked and traveled extensively before finishing her Bachelor’s Degree in Western Kentucky. She loves tackling projects, finding fun ways to keep her little ones occupied, quiet conversation with the hubby and finding unique ways to love. She works at for Christian Healthcare Centers, is a guest blogger on CatholicMom.com and BlessedIsShe.net, runs her own blog at https://togetherandalways.wordpress.com and has been doing Spanish translations on the side for over 20 years.
Feature Image Credit: Amy Tran, unsplash.com/photos/nHRjqkRIuTE
Bl. Emmanuel Ruiz: Saint of the Day for Sunday, July 10, 2022
Martyr with eleven companions in Lebanon. A Spanish Franciscan, Emmanuel and the others were caught up in the rising of the Druses in Lebanon. The Franciscan community, eight in number, and three Maronite laymen were slain by the Islamic rebels. He was beatified in 1926.
Prayer to Our Lady of the Sacred Heart: Prayer of the Day for Sunday, July 10, 2022
Remember, Our Lady of the Sacred Heart,
what ineffable power Thy divine Son hath given Thee
over His own adorable Heart.
Full of trust in Thy merits,
we come before Thee and beg Thy protection.
O heavenly Treasurer of the Heart of Jesus,
that Heart which is the inexhaustible source of all graces,
which Thou mayest open to us at Thy good pleasure,
in order that from it may flow forth upon mankind
the riches of love and mercy,
light and salvation,
that are contained therein; …