Feast of Saint Bartholomew, Apostle

"Come here. I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb." He took me in spirit to a great, high mountain and showed me the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God. It gleamed with the splendor of God. Its radiance was like that of a precious stone, like jasper, clear as crystal. It had a massive, high wall, with twelve gates where twelve angels were stationed and on which names were inscribed, the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel.

God wants us all to be able to join Him in His Kingdom. He gives us every grace to lead holy lives. He gives us every warning against sin and indifference. He offers us mercy and forgiveness for when we fall. He provides us with examples of good and faithful servants in the blessed and the saints of the Church. He has given us the Blessed Virgin Mary as an intercessor and His Beloved Son as a teacher and a model. He has supplied us with every advantage in our spiritual lives. If we want to be good and holy, then we have no excuse not to be so. And if we do remain pure and faithful, then one day we shall join Him in Heaven and feast with Him for all eternity.

Are we taking advantage of all the graces God has given us? What are we doing to follow in the footsteps of Jesus Christ, his mother, and all the saints? How can we remain good and faithful servants in a world that tempts us to evil and selfishness?

O Lord, we desire to be with you forever and ever.

Amen.

Eighteenth Tuesday in Ordinary Time

City shall be rebuilt upon hill, and palace restored as it was. From them will resound songs of praise, the laughter of happy men. I will make them not few, but many; they will not be tiny, for I will glorify them.

We all need a bit of rebuilding every now and then. When we fall into sin or indifference, we need to restore ourselves in mind and spirit. When we are sick or injured, we need to return our bodies to health. When we have suffered a loss of some sort—be it job, loved one, or something else—we strive to rebuild our lives as best we can. If we do this in a spirit of trust in God's Goodness, then we shall find that no matter what befalls us, He will raise us up again. He will put songs of praise and glory on our lips and laughter in our hearts. We shall be able to restore ourselves and become even stronger in faith, hope, and love.

What areas of our lives need to be rebuilt to become more perfectly God's dwelling place? How can we put the graces God has given us to good and fruitful use in restoring our lives to purity? In what ways can we glorify God for all He has done for us?

O Lord, rebuild us in your image and likeness.

Amen.

Seventeenth Friday in Ordinary Time

If you disobey me, not living according to the law I placed before you and not listening to the words of my servants the prophets, whom I send you constantly though you do not obey them, I will treat this house like Shiloh, and make this the city to which all the nations of the earth shall refer when cursing another.

When we fail to live according to God’s Commandments, choose sin over virtue, act with indifference to the needs of others, and turn a deaf ear to the Holy Spirit, then we become accursed. When we allow our hearts to swell with pride or believe ourselves to be holier than others, then we will be humbled by God and shown just how imperfect we are in His eyes. We are constantly faced with a choice to either listen to God, believe, and live the Way, the Truth, and the Life... or to ignore Him and suffer the consequences. There is no middle ground, not choosing is a choice that leads to destruction just as much as sinning does because lukewarm souls have no place at the table of the Lord. The only souls who do have a place are those who allow themselves to be lit on fire with the Holy Spirit and bear the light of Christ into the world with all their hearts, souls, minds, and strengths.

Are we failing to live according to God’s Commandments? How can we be more faithful to listening to the inspirations of the Holy Spirit? What can we do to bring blessing to others and ourselves?

O Lord, make us a blessing, not a curse.

Amen.

Fifteenth Saturday in Ordinary Time

Woe to those who plan iniquity, and work out evil on their couches; In the morning light they accomplish it when it lies within their power. They covet fields, and seize them; houses, and they take them; They cheat an owner of his house, a man of his inheritance. Therefore thus says the LORD: Behold, I am planning against this race an evil from which you shall not withdraw your necks; Nor shall you walk with head high, for it will be a time of evil.

The evil we do will be repaid. The only question is whether it is repaid through the sacrament of reconciliation and time in Purgatory or in the fires of Hell. These are our only options and, in the end, we will choose one or the other... and if we fail to choose, we will pay for our indifference with eternal torment. Therefore, let us choose what is right and good... to confess our sins with humble and contrite hearts, to do penance, to avoid temptations, and sin no more.

What evils have we plotted and done? How can we repay God and those whom we’ve harmed? Are we ready to amend our lives and be good and faithful servants of God and all His children?

O Lord, uproot our sins and purify our hearts.

Amen.

Fourteenth Saturday in Ordinary Time

Then one of the seraphim flew to me, holding an ember that he had taken with tongs from the altar. He touched my mouth with it and said, "See, now that this has touched your lips, your wickedness is removed, your sin purged." Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, "Whom shall I send? Who will go for us?" "Here I am," I said; "send me!"

Here I am, send me. These are the words all of us should have on our lips at all times. And, like Isaiah, we also need to be cleansed of our sins if we want to be able to succeed in our mission. We must be purged of all those fears, doubts, evils, and indifferences that keep us from being good and faithful servants to God. Yes, we can do good even as sinners, but we do a greater good if we can perform our works of charity and mercy while in a state of grace. Just as a bell rings out louder when it is unmuffled, so too our thoughts, words, and deeds ring truer and have greater effect when they are untarnished by our sins and imperfections. So, let us allow God to purge us of our sins through the sacrament of reconciliation so we might be better prophets of His Holy Word.

Do we take advantage of our opportunities to receive the sacrament of reconciliation? Are we willing to allow God to send us where He needs us? What can we do to become better prophets of the Good News?

O Lord, purge us from our sins.

Amen.

Fourteenth Thursday in Ordinary Time

My heart is overwhelmed, my pity is stirred. I will not give vent to my blazing anger, I will not destroy Ephraim again; For I am God and not man, the Holy One present among you; I will not let the flames consume you.

We disappoint God in many ways, through our failures to do good and our sins against Him and others. We turn our backs on Him in wickedness, indifference, and weakness. We fail Him when we let our fears, doubts, passions, and selfishness keep us from doing His Will. Thankfully, God is loving and forgiving. He is willing to look past our faults and give us many opportunities to confess our sins, do penance, choose what is right, and sin no more. He has pity on us and puts aside His righteous anger. As our Heavenly Father, he does not wish us to perish and so He opens His arms to us and says, "Come to me." It is up to us to accept this invitation and become faithful children.

In what ways are we disappointing God? How can we rid ourselves of those things that keep us from doing God's Will? What can we do to give thanks to God for His Divine Mercy?

O Lord, look past our faults and failings and help us to grow in grace and love.

Amen.

Third Friday of Easter

"Saul, my brother, the Lord has sent me, Jesus who appeared to you on the way by which you came, that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit."  Immediately things like scales fell from his eyes and he regained his sight. He got up and was baptized, and when he had eaten, he recovered his strength. He stayed some days with the disciples in Damascus, and he began at once to proclaim Jesus in the synagogues, that he is the Son of God.

Distractions, indifference, and sin can leave us blinded to what is right. However, if we seek God’s Forgiveness in the sacrament of reconciliation and accept His Mercy, then our spiritual sight will be restored and we will once again know that is good. Our consciences will be cleansed and we shall see clearly what God wants us to do. And what is that? To accept His gifts, talents, and strengths and proclaim Jesus in our lives. We might not do this from the pulpit or a soapbox, but we should constantly be spreading the Good News through our thoughts, words, and works. If we do everything, great and small, with faith, hope, and love, then we shall be effective witnesses to the Way, the Truth, and the Life that will set people free.

Where are our spiritual blind spots? How can we remove the scales of distraction, indifference, and sin from our eyes? How can we spread the Gospel message to others, like Paul?

O Lord, grant us your sight and the fullness of the Holy Spirit.

Amen.

Divine Mercy Sunday

For the love of God is this, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome, for whoever is begotten by God conquers the world. And the victory that conquers the world is our faith. Who indeed is the victor over the world but the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God? This is the one who came through water and blood, Jesus Christ,
not by water alone, but by water and blood.

If we love God, then we will do everything we can to keep His commandments. This means knowing, loving, and serving Him with all our hearts, souls, minds, and strengths and loving our neighbors as God loves them. These are not burdensome commandments. In truth, if everyone lived according to these commandments we would find our lives a lot less burdensome. It is by living these commandments faithfully that we can conquer the world, resisting its temptations, distractions, and indifferences. Equally important to remember is that following these commandments isn’t a bloodless affair. There will be times when doing the right and holy thing will require a sacrifice from us and even leave us wounded in some way. But just like Christ, we must be willing to pay the cost of living out faith.

What do we do to ensure we are living out God’s Commandments? How can we resist those temptations, distractions, and indifferences that lead us away from our faith? Are we willing to come through the grace of water and the sacrifice of blood just as Jesus did?

O Lord, we love you and want only to keep your commandments.

Amen.

Twenty-Ninth Thursday of Ordinary Time

“I have come to set the earth on fire, and how I wish it were already blazing! There is a baptism with which I must be baptized, and how great is my anguish until it is accomplished! Do you think that I have come to establish peace on the earth? No, I tell you, but rather division.

It can be tempting to never rock the boat and never challenge ourselves and others to be better than what they are. We can be tempted to avoid conflict with others and seek to appease them in spite of what our hearts, minds, and morals might say. We are tempted to cover our ears against evil words, but do not rebuke the person using them. We are tempted to turn our eyes away from evil instead of doing something about it. We are tempted to remain silent when we know the truth instead of speaking out against it. We keep the Holy Spirit's Fire at arm's length because if we let it into our hearts we know that it will set our lives ablaze. However, who benefits from our indifference, inaction, and fears? Not those whom God is calling us to confront, for without someone to give voice to the truth, how can they have a chance to know it? Not the people who are affected by our inaction. And certainly not us, because we prove time and time again that we are disciples in hiding, just like those who abandoned Jesus during his Passion, Crucifixion, and Death. But if we do open ourselves to the fires of the Holy Spirit, our hearts shall be enkindled and we shall blaze like the Son of Man. Then, and only then, can we fulfill God's Will and become signs of contradiction to the world.

Are we indifferent, inactive, or afraid of what it means to be signs of contradiction? Are we willing to let the Holy Spirit enkindle our hearts with the fires of faith, hope, and love? Who are the people in our lives who need to be contradicted, not out of a sense of superiority, but out of a sense of true compassion?

O Lord, set our hearts ablaze.

Amen.

The Twenty-Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time

There was a rich man who dressed in purple garments and fine linen and dined sumptuously each day. And lying at his door was a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, who would gladly have eaten his fill of the scraps that fell from the rich man's table. Dogs even used to come and lick his sores. When the poor man died, he was carried away by angels to the bosom of Abraham. The rich man also died and was buried, and from the netherworld, where he was in torment, he raised his eyes and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side.

We should never pass up an opportunity to act in charity and mercy. Our faith is founded upon the corporeal and spiritual acts of mercy. These acts should be at the heart of our faith. There should be no questions, no doubts, nor hesitation to provide aid to those in need. When we die, we shall be judged by what we have done to the least of God's children and if we are found wanting we shall suffer torment for our trespasses. However, if we choose to act virtuously, then we will feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, clothe the naked, visit the sick, shelter the homeless, visit the imprisoned, and bury the dead. In addition, we will instruct the ignorant, counsel the doubtful, admonish the sinner, bear wrongs patiently, forgive wrongs willingly, comfort the afflicted, and pray for the living and the dead. These actions might seem imposing, but they are equally rewarding to those who are willing to undertake them and make their lives a service to God and His children. It is our choice whether we choose love and mercy or selfishness and indifference. Hopefully, we shall choose the former and then when we die, we shall be carried away to paradise and know the joy of Lazarus.

In what areas of our lives are we selfish and indifferent? How can we overcome these temptations and become more loving and merciful? What can we do to avoid the fate of the rich man and enjoy the rewards of the poor man?

O Lord, help us to act more and more like you and less and less like the selfish rich man.

Amen.