Memorial of Saint Teresa of Jesus, Virgin and Doctor of the Church

I am not ashamed of the Gospel. It is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: for Jew first, and then Greek. For in it is revealed the righteousness of God from faith to faith; as it is written, “The one who is righteous by faith will live.”

We should never be ashamed of our faith or proclaiming the Gospel. We should be overjoyed to bring the Good News into the world through our thoughts, words, and works. We should want to embody righteousness for all we meet, friends and enemies. We should not be afraid to be criticized by others for our beliefs, nor should we apologize for our choice in faith. If we want to be worthy of eternal life, then we must choose to live the Christ-like life. A life founded on the commandments of our Heavenly Father, formed around the teachings of Jesus, and crowned with the sanctifying inspirations of the Holy Spirit.

Are we ashamed by our faith? If not, then what do we do to proclaim it in thoughts, words, or works? How can we become more righteous by faith?

O Lord, we will never be ashamed to proclaim the Gospel.

Amen.

Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time

But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me has not been ineffective. Indeed, I have toiled harder than all of them; not I, however, but the grace of God that is with me. Therefore, whether it be I or they, so we preach and so you believed.

We are Christians by the grace of God. Some of us were born into the faith, others came to the faith later in life. However, all of us are in need of deeper conversion. Just like Paul, we all are called to proclaim the Gospel in our own unique ways. It is up to each of us to accept our vocation and to toil harder than we ever imagined to bring the Way, the Truth, and the Life into the world. So, let us all preach in our own way, by thoughts, words, and works and show those around us we are worthy of the name Christians and true heirs of the Kingdom of God.

Do we think, speak, and act like Christians in all things? How can we live out our vocation to know, love, and serve God and His children with all our hearts, souls, minds, and strengths? How can we toil harder to bring the Good News to others?

O Lord, by your grace we can become good and faithful servants to you forever and ever.

Amen.

Feast of Saint Luke, evangelist

At my first defense no one appeared on my behalf, but everyone deserted me. May it not be held against them! But 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.

There will be some times in our lives when we feel betrayed or abandoned. We might feel alone in the world. However, Paul reminds us we are not ever really alone if we stand firm in our faith. God stands beside us through good times and bad. He lends us His Strength when we need it. He lends us His Light when we are lost and alone. He lends us His Word to encourage and enlighten us. He lends us everything we need to conquer the obstacles that the world throws in our way. He does all of this because He loves us and He wants us to fulfill His Will so all the world might hear His Good News through us.

Do we feel abandoned or betrayed? How can we learn to trust God even when the night is darkest and the world is grim? How can we become God’s Strength, Light, and Word to those who need it?

O Lord, may the proclamation of your Gospel be completed through us.

Amen.

Fifth Sunday of Ordinary Time

If I preach the gospel, this is no reason for me to boast, for an obligation has been imposed on me, and woe to me if I do not preach it! If I do so willingly, I have a recompense, but if unwillingly, then I have been entrusted with a stewardship.

We are all called to preach the gospel through our thoughts, words, and works. Sometimes preaching the gospel comes naturally to us through acts of charity and mercy. Other times we may not want to proclaim the gospel, especially to those whom we dislike. We might not want to do the right thing for the person or persons who always hurt us... and yet, they are exactly the people we are called to preach the gospel to. It may not be easy to put aside our personal feelings, but that is why God gave us the example of Jesus showing compassion even for those who were persecuting him. If we follow his example, like Paul, then we will have a recompense... graces and consolations that will help us. If we still find it difficult, then we must remember we have been entrusted with the stewardship of the Word of God. We have an obligation to do what we don’t want to do because it is what God wants. But hopefully, we shall accept the sacrifice that comes with proclaiming the Good News... otherwise, woe to us!

Are we preaching the gospel with our whole hearts, minds, souls, and strengths? Do we do so even for those whom we find it most difficult to love? How can we become better preachers of the Good News in thought, word, and work?

O Lord, give us the grace to proclaim your gospel faithfully.

Amen.

Thirty-Fourth Friday of Ordinary Time

Consider the fig tree and all the other trees. When their buds burst open, you see for yourselves and know that summer is now near; in the same way, when you see these things happening, know that the Kingdom of God is near. Amen, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things have taken place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.

Jesus’ words will not pass away. His Truth will triumph over ignorance and deception. His commandments to know, love, and serve God and His children will always remain. His promise of life after death for those who follow him will never go unfulfilled. His words of forgiveness and mercy will echo throughout eternity. Everything Jesus said was to enlighten us and lead us to a never-ending life with him in heaven. We would do well in this life to remember his Good News and live it out to our fullest.

Have we listened to and learned from God’s words in scripture? Are we listening to God’s inspirations through the Holy Spirit? How can we make the gospel message of Christ into the source, center, and summit of our lives?

O Lord, may we be incarnations of your divine word.

Amen.

Thursday in the Octave of Easter

“Thus it is written that the Christ would suffer and rise from the dead on the third day and that repentance, for the forgiveness of sins, would be preached in his name to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things.”

We are all witnesses to Christ’s sacrifice, resurrection, and the forgiveness of sins and as witnesses we are called upon to proclaim this Good News to all nations. How we do that is up to us. Sometimes we will proclaim the gospel through our thoughts, prayers, and inspirations. Other times we will proclaim the gospel through our words of encouragement, forgiveness, and love. We will also proclaim the gospel through our works of fasting, charity, and mercy. Even our daily activities and chores can proclaim the gospel when they are done in God’s name and in a spirit of love. Some of us will witness to the message of Christ by becoming priests or religious, others will become husbands, wives, and parents. Still others will live as single people devoted to God, but living in the world. Each of these ways of sharing our faith, hope, and love with God and others have their unique challenges and advantages. The important part is to discern which one God is calling us to and living it out with all our hearts, souls, minds, and strengths.

How do our lives proclaim the Good News of Christ’s life, the need for our repentance, and the forgiveness of sins? In what ways can we become better witnesses to these things? What lifestyle of witnessing is God calling us to take up?

O Lord, make us better witnesses to your Good News.

Amen.

Feast of the Conversion of Saint Paul, Apostle

Jesus appeared to the Eleven and said to them: “Go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved; whoever does not believe will be condemned. These signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will drive out demons, they will speak new languages. They will pick up serpents with their hands, and if they drink any deadly thing, it will not harm them.  They will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.”

Each of us is called to a deeper conversion of spirit by God. This process of purification and sanctification will last throughout our lives. We are asked by God to go into the world and proclaim the Gospel to everyone. The conviction to do this work, in spite of the opposition from the world, comes from our faith in God, Our Heavenly Father. The example of Jesus Christ gives us the model of how to undertake this task in a spirit of self-sacrifice. The inspiration and strength to accomplish this vocation flows from the Holy Spirit. Together, the Holy Trinity gives us every grace we need to transform ourselves into lights of love, instruments of peace, and fonts of mercy. We manifest God’s Compassion for all His children as faithful followers of His Church and active members of the One Mystical Body of Christ.

Do our lives proclaim the Gospel to those around us? Do we manifest the conviction, charity, and motivation to do God’s Will without reservation or complaint? What can we do to become more deeply converted?

O Lord, give us the graces to go into the world and proclaim your Gospel to every creature.

Amen.

Memorial of Saint John of the Cross, Priest and Doctor of the Church

“I shall ask you one question, and if you answer it for me, then I shall tell you by what authority I do these things. Where was John’s baptism from? Was it of heavenly or of human origin?” They discussed this among themselves and said, “If we say ‘Of heavenly origin,’ he will say to us, ‘Then why did you not believe him?’  But if we say, ‘Of human origin,’ we fear the crowd, for they all regard John as a prophet.” So they said to Jesus in reply, “We do not know.” He himself said to them, “Neither shall I tell you by what authority I do these things.”

Where was Jesus’ authority from? This is the question the chief priests and elders put to Jesus, but it is also the question at the center of our faith lives. In our lives, we will eventually have to answer if we believe that Jesus’ authority is of heavenly or human origin. If we truly believe Christ's authority is heavenly, then we will choose to live our lives in accord with his gospel message and imitate him in everything we do. Without a faith in Jesus’ divine authority, we have nothing firm to hold onto in our lives. If Jesus is just a man, then there would be no Savior of the World and no life everlasting. Thankfully, we believe Jesus is not only man, but divine, too. His authority isn’t just a human one, but an eternal one. This is why we are called to trust in him, put aside our doubts, and live out his gospel message.

Do we believe Jesus’ authority is from heaven? If so, then how has that effected the way we live our lives? What do we do to live out the gospel message Jesus gave to us through the New Testament?

O Lord, your authority is divine. Help us to respect and bow to it always.

Amen.

Twenty-Second Tuesday of Ordinary Time

He taught them on the sabbath, and they were astonished at his teaching because he spoke with authority.

When someone speaks with authority about a subject we tend to listen to them. So why then, do we have such trouble listening to the Lord and putting into practice the gospel messages He has given us? Perhaps it is because we are distracted by worldly things or do not understand the meaning and responsibilities of His good news. It can be difficult to keep ourselves open to the workings of God. However, we cannot give up. We must continually strive to know, love, and serve God with all of our hearts, souls, minds, and strengths. What Jesus is asking of us may be amazing and seemingly impossible for us to do, but his authority reassures us that as long as we place our trust in him, then all things are possible, even those we feel the least comfortable with.

Do we listen to God? Are we putting into practice his gospel message? Do we believe that with God all things are possible?

O Lord, your authority calls us to go beyond ourselves and make our lives a living, “Yes!” to your will.

Amen.

Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

“Stop murmuring among yourselves. No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draw him, and I will raise him on the last day. It is written in the prophets: They shall all be taught by God.”

Just as the people murmured and complained against God and Moses in the desert, they also do the same to Jesus. How could he be the bread that came down from heaven? Don’t they know his family? What gives him the authority to teach his message? However, their grumbling deafens them to the underlying message of Jesus. He has come to feed the world with a gospel of love, mercy, and grace that promises those who partake in it everlasting life. We should keep in mind the muttering crowd whenever we feel like complaining about something to God. Jesus asks for us to accept his word with all our hearts, souls, minds, and strengths. We cannot do that if we are focused on what’s wrong in our lives.

What do we complain about? How can we foster a spirit of resignation in regards to these problems in our lives so that they do not interfere with God’s message of love, mercy, and grace? What lessons have we learned from the life of Jesus?

O Lord, draw me to yourself and your teachings.

Amen.

Seventeenth Thursday of Ordinary Time

The Kingdom of heaven is like a net thrown into the sea, which collects fish of every kind. When it is full they haul it ashore and sit down to put what is good into buckets. What is bad they throw away.

The net of the gospel and its commandments is all around us. There is no escape and we should not be looking for one. Instead, we should look at the commandments of God as leading us to a greater purpose. They help us to conform ourselves to the gospel. They keep us away from the sin. If we live lives that are good and holy, then in the end we will end up in Heaven with our Lord and God. If we seek only worldly things and sin without remorse, then we shall be tossed away. These are our only choices in this life: to be good and saved through the aid of the Holy Spirit or to be evil and damned through a snares of the Devil. There is no middle ground. And refusing to make this choice is a choice all the same.

Are we the good fish or the bad? Do we conform our lives to the gospel’s message or deny it? Do we live our lives as if we will be caught up in the net of Kingdom of Heaven at any time or think ourselves invincible?

O Lord, draw us to you and help us to be good and faithful servants.

Amen.

Fifth Sunday of Easter

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vine grower. He takes away every branch in me that does not bear fruit, and every one that does he prunes so that it bears more fruit. You are already pruned because of the word that I spoke to you.”

Jesus’ message to us today is simple. He is calling us to bear fruit and in order for us to do this we must listen to the message of the Gospel and carry out the works it asks us to perform. Our calling to do good and accept the sacrifices God has prepared for us is one Jesus makes clear not only through his words, but also his Life, Passion, Death, and Resurrection. Sometimes we will need to undergo our own passions and deaths in order to be resurrected into the life of Christ. The next time we suffer, we should try to remember Jesus suffered, died, and was buried for our sins so that one day we might look at his example and say, “Yes, I am ready to bear fruit.”

What are the things in our lives which distract or keep us from bearing fruit? What do we need pruned from our lives so that they might be more fruitful? How do we accept and live out our calling to be spiritual abundant people?

O Lord, you are the vine and we are the branches. Cultivate our souls so that we might bear much fruit.

Amen.

Second Saturday of Easter

But they went forth and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the word through accompanying signs.

The Lord works with us. He gives us every grace we need to think, say, and do the right and good thing. Wherever we are lacking, he takes up the slack. We need to remember this the next time we face a seemingly impossible or very difficult task. We grow in our faith by risking ourselves for Christ, by being willing to go forth and preach the Gospel through our words and works. Let us be not afraid to be a sign of God’s love for His children. We may not cast out demons, speak in tongues, or anything else overtly special, but whenever we commit an act of charity or mercy, we perform a miracle. We should make sure we perform these miracles in the name of the Lord. When we do that we make ourselves and our actions into sacramental signs of God’s Love.

Do we go forth and preach the Gospels in our lives? In what ways do we recognize all the help God has given us? How can we be better signs of God’s Love, Mercy, and Grace?

O Lord, work with us to go forth and preach your Most Holy Word.

Amen.

Saturday in the Octave of Easter

He said to them, “Go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature.”

Jesus tells the Apostles to do this after he rebukes them for not believing he had been raised. He understands human frailty in the face of doubt. Sometimes our faith falters and we fail to live up to what Christ calls us to be. However, he always challenges us to go back into the world and proclaim the Gospel. He gives us every opportunity to be a person of good words and works. We have only to trust in what he tells us through the Church, the scriptures, and the Holy Spirit.

What don’t we believe about our faith? How can we learn to trust the teachings of the Church? In what ways do we go into the world and proclaim the Gospel?

O Lord, constantly remind us of our calling to proclaim the Gospel to the whole world.

Amen.

Third Wednesday of Lent

Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have come not to abolish but to fulfill.

Jesus fulfills the law and prophets through his Gospel and sacrifice. The law and prophets were necessary before Jesus, because mankind needed them. However, Christ completes them through his priestly, prophetic, and kingly mission to the world. His words build upon the law and transfigure it into the Gospel message we have today. His actions complete the foreseen future of the prophets. This is why we as Christians do not depend merely upon the law or prophets of the Jewish people. We give them due acknowledgement, but there is something more than the law and the prophets in Christ. He calls us to follow his Way, Truth, and Life and in order to do that we must look past the letter of the law and the signs of the prophets to the spirit of the law and the sign of our salvation.

Do we live our lives according to the spirit of the Gospels? Do we focus our every thought, word, and work on the goal of saving souls, including our own? What are the sacrifices we are willing to make to follow God’s commandments?

O Lord, we want to fulfill your Gospel message and become prophets of your love.

Amen.

Second Friday of Ordinary Time

Jesus went up the mountain and summoned those whom he wanted and they came to him.

Jesus summons the Twelve to join him in as co-bearers of the Gospel. He sends them forth to preach the Good News and grants them the authority to drive out demons. They are made missionaries of Christ’s message of love. He does not call perfect people to serve him, but rather sinners like Peter (who denies him) and Judas (who betrays him). We too are imperfect followers of Christ, but we must not let our sins keep us from fulfilling our mission to know, love, and serve God and his children. We should preach the Gospel through our words and works, and although we might not drive out demons we can however cast out those things which keep us from being good and faithful servants.

How do our actions proclaim the Good News? What are the sins we commit that deny or betray our mission of love? When we do fail, how can we let God pick us off the ground and get us back on track?

O Lord, we have been summoned to serve you and your children. Grant us the grace to come follow you.

Amen.

First Tuesday of Ordinary Time

The people were astonished at his teaching, for he taught them as one having authority and not as the scribes.

Authority is a very important concept in faith teaching. When we are taught about our faith we need to believe in the authority of our teacher or at least in the material he is teaching otherwise we will doubt everything they claim. The scribes and Pharisees drew their teaching authority from their scriptures and the traditional interpretations of them. When they spoke it was with the authority of the Old Testament. However, Jesus speaks with his own authority and this astonishes his crowds because he does not depend upon the Old Testament. This is because Jesus Christ is the embodiment of the New Testament. He fulfills the old and grants new insights into it through his teachings. His authority challenges the long held beliefs of those who hear him just as it challenges us today.

Who is the authority we turn to in the midst of the world? Is it Jesus Christ and His message of the Gospel or is it ourselves and our sometimes misguided interpretations of the Good News? What can we do to internalize and externalize the authority of God in our lives?

O Lord, you teach the Gospel with authority. Help us to receive your teaching with an open heart and willing spirit.

Amen.