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P.O. Box 378, Walkerville, 1876
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28 August 2016
The Twenty-Second Sunday in Ordinary Time (Luke 14:1, 7-14)
In this week's Gospel Jesus invites us to be humble. If our main concern is to be noticed and honoured by others, we will ultimately end up suffering humiliation. If we only invite people over for dinner so that they will return the favour, we will have no repayment awaiting us at the resurrection of the just.
As fallen sinners, we unfortunately must fight to resist temptations to seek admiration or favours from others. The fact is, the more I try to put others in the place of honour, or strive to make others feel important, the more deserving of honour I will be in the eyes of God. This is what will make me truly happy, and my reward will be awaiting me in heaven.
St. Faustina received the following advice from one of her confessors, and it is valuable advice for each one of us as well: "You are in the good hands of a very good God. (...) Be faithful to God's will and carry it out. As to your duties, always do what you are told to do and as you are told to do it, no matter how humiliating or toilsome it might be. Always choose the last place, and then they themselves will say to you, 'Go up higher.' In spirit and in your demeanor, consider yourself the least in the whole house and in the entire Congregation. In everything and at all times, be most faithful to God." (Diary 506).
Prayer: Merciful Lord Jesus, You do not despise a humbled heart. Have mercy on me for the times I have sought praise and recognition for myself, instead of trying to make my brothers and sisters feel important and loved. Give me the grace I need to put myself in the last place, as the servant of all. Amen.
21 August 2016
The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Luke 1:39-56)
In today's Gospel we hear Mary's elderly cousin Elizabeth greeting the Blessed Mother in a way that most cousins don't normally greet their younger relatives: "Blessed are you among women and blessed is the fruit of your womb! (...) And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfilment of what was spoken to her from the Lord." Elizabeth is praising Mary for believing and acting on the Angel Gabriel's words that "all things are possible with God." And Mary's response is to turn around and give God all the glory, bursting out with her beautiful hymn The Magnificat, to glorify the Lord with her whole heart and soul.
Happy the soul that has trusted in Your goodness
And has abandoned herself completely to Your mercy.
Her soul is filled with the peace of love.
You defend her everywhere as Your own child. (Diary 1652)
Prayer: Merciful Lord Jesus, grant me that special grace to trust in Your goodness, and to abandon myself completely to Your mercy. May I, like Mary and St. Faustina, truly make You the centre of my life. Help me to do everything for Your glory, so that I may live in peace as Your beloved child. Amen.
14 August 2016
The Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time (Luke 12:49-53)
Today Jesus speaks to us of the anguish He experiences on awaiting the completion of His mission. He wants to lay down His life for us, and until he has done so, He can know no peace. He wants to give us His all, and until he has done so, He can find no relief. How He longs for the fire of His love to catch flame and burn in our hearts! How He longs for us to open our hearts to receive His graces and mercy!
Jesus told St. Faustina: "The flames of mercy are burning Meâclamoring to be spent; I want to keep pouring them out upon souls; souls just don't want to believe in My goodness" (Diary 177). Here is Jesus, on the one hand, suffering because he wants to shed every drop of His Blood for my salvation, because He wants to pour His mercy upon me without measure, and here I am, on the other hand, so closed and so lukewarm. I am reminded in today's second reading that I don't truly struggle against sin; no, I "have not yet resisted to the point of shedding blood" (Heb 12:4).
Not only does Jesus set us up to perform works of mercy each day, but He also wants us to give Him a rundown afterward on how things went. He will make it easier and easier for us to be merciful if we share with Him openly about the difficulties we face. Perhaps we aren't convinced that the "needy" are truly in need; maybe we're afraid of catching a disease from them; or we could just be so attached to our own riches that it is hard for us to offer something from our abundance. When we bring our issues to the Lord, He will give us all the graces we need to overcome whatever it is preventing us from fulfilling His command to be merciful.
Prayer: Merciful Lord Jesus, Who have given and continue to give all You have for unworthy me, help me, in return, to give all that I have for You. Allow me, my Lord, to resist sin even to the point of shedding blood. May I suffer real anguish until I have truly given You all I have and all I am. I trust in You! Amen.
7 August 2016
The Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time (Luke 12:32-42)
In today's Gospel Jesus reminds us of the need to be vigilant at all times. We need to remain always in a state of grace and ready to meet our Maker, for "the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect." It's not enough to examine our conscience once a year, five minutes before we make our annual confession. If that is as often as we reflect on how we live, we could actually be in a state of mortal sin without even knowing it. The book of Proverbs tells us the just man sins seven times a day. So we need to reflect every day on the way we have lived, and acknowledge our sinfulness before the Lord.
St. Faustina knew how easy it is to fall into sin, especially when one is having a bad day. She wrote in her Diary: "I must be on my guard, especially today, because I am becoming over-sensitive to everything. Things I would not pay any attention to when I am healthy bother me today. O my Jesus, my shield and my strength, grant me Your grace that I may emerge victorious from these combats. O my Jesus, transform me into Yourself by the power of Your love..." (Diary 783). Let us try to follow her example and keep watch, lest we offend the Lord through sin.
Prayer: Merciful Lord Jesus, I'm so lukewarm when it comes to rooting out my sins. I don't even try to acknowledge they exist. Grant me the light of Your Holy Spirit, that I may see all my hidden faults. Show me what I need to change in order to become more pleasing to You. I trust in You! Amen.