Solemnity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of God

May God bless us in his mercy. May God have pity on us and bless us; may he let his face shine upon us. So may your way be known upon earth; among all nations, your salvation.

We all need God’s pity and blessing. None of us are without sins and imperfections. None of us are strong enough to resist all temptation. God knows this and that is why He sent His Beloved Son to become one of us and offer himself as a sacrifice for our failings. It is God’s pity that brings us blessing, but it is God’s Love that brings us His pity. It is His Divine Love that makes His face shine upon us and leads us to salvation. Truly, we are blessed in His Mercy and we would do well to be merciful ourselves for we will be judged as we treated others, for good and ill. Better for us if our thoughts, words, and works are weighed more towards selflessness and good than toward selfishness and evil.

Do we thank God for His Mercy and Blessings? How can we be as merciful as God is toward us? Do our thoughts, words, and works make known God’s Way of Love to others?

O Lord, bless us in your mercy.

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.

Memorial of Saint John Chrysostom, Bishop and Doctor of the Church

Jesus journeyed to a city called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd accompanied him. As he drew near to the gate of the city, a man who had died was being carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow. A large crowd from the city was with her. When the Lord saw her, he was moved with pity for her and said to her, “Do not weep.”

God is constantly moved with pity for us. Whenever we are suffering or in trouble, his heart goes out to us. He wants us to stop weeping or suffering and through the Holy Spirit he offers us the graces we need to overcome our trials. He gives us consolation and compassion in our times of need. In return he asks us to do the same when we see others weeping or suffering. Like the crowd around the widow of Nain, we should be with those who are weeping or sorrowful. We should comfort them to the best of our abilities and make God present to others through our acts of love and mercy.

Do we show pity to others like Jesus? Are we compassionate and merciful? How do we make God present to those who are in need?

O Lord, move us to pity others and act mercifully toward them.

Amen.

Memorial of Saint Clare, Virgin

"Now when his fellow servants saw what had happened, they were deeply disturbed, and went to their master and reported the whole affair. His master summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you your entire debt because you begged me to. Should you not have had pity on your fellow servant, as I had pity on you?’ Then in anger his master handed him over to the torturers until he should pay back the whole debt. So will my heavenly Father do to you, unless each of you forgives his brother from his heart.”

Jesus is willing to forgive us our entire debt. He is willing to wipe our slates clean of all our imperfections, iniquities, sins, and omissions. And yet, how often do we hold grudges or debts against others over much smaller things? We let our pride and selfishness convince us that someone else owes us something: an apology, money, time, work, help, etc. Instead of having pity on those who we perceive owe us something or acting with patience, we often demand immediate payment. When we do this, we act not like Christ, but like the wicked servant who after being forgiven his debt only thinks about his own personal gain. He does not respond to forgiveness with forgiveness, but with avarice. As followers of Christ, we need to conform our lives to him and this means cultivating compassionate hearts. If we do not do this, then we shall suffer the same fate as the wicked servant. But if we forgive our family, friends, and neighbors from our hearts, then we shall be freed of our worldly concerns and discover the spiritual riches of being merciful.

Are we willing to forgive the debts of others? Do we show pity on others when they ask for it? How can we transform our hearts into the Merciful Heart of Christ?

O Lord, give us the graces we need to show pity to others and forgive them their debts to us.

Amen.

Eighteenth Wednesday of Ordinary Time

And behold, a Canaanite woman of that district came and called out, “Have pity on me, Lord, Son of David! My daughter is tormented by a demon.” But he did not say a word in answer to her. His disciples came and asked him, “Send her away, for she keeps calling out after us.” He said in reply, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” But the woman came and did him homage, saying, “Lord, help me.” He said in reply, “It is not right to take the food of the children and throw it to the dogs.” She said, “Please, Lord, for even the dogs eat the scraps that fall from the table of their masters.”

We would do well to keep in mind the persistence and words of the Canaanite woman whenever we are faced with difficulties. We should not be so prideful that we do not seek God’s help first and foremost. None of us is perfect. We are all sinners. However, we should also never feel so unworthy of God’s Love that we fail to ask for His Mercy. God loves both saints and sinners, those who are worthy and unworthy, and He will not rest until He has given all His children every opportunity to love Him in return. It is in the virtue of humility that we find the sense of worth that we need to approach God, persist in our faith, and the willingness to accept any graces, great or small, that God might offer us in our times of need.

How often do we ask God to have pity on us? How often do we turn to God for help? Are we willing to do what it takes to cultivate the virtue of humility?

O Lord, give us the faith to seek you out constantly and with humble, persistent hearts.

Amen.

First Friday of Advent

As Jesus passed by, two blind men followed him, crying out, “Son of David, have pity on us!”  When he entered the house, the blind men approached him and Jesus said to them, “Do you believe that I can do this?” “Yes, Lord,” they said to him. Then he touched their eyes and said, “Let it be done for you according to your faith.” And their eyes were opened. Jesus warned them sternly, “See that no one knows about this.” But they went out and spread word of him through all that land.

After the blind men ask Jesus to have pity on them, Jesus asks them if they believe he can heal them. They both respond with “Yes, Lord.” This is the spirit of faith and hope we all need to have in the midst of the sufferings of our lives. We need to believe God is able to help us out of whatever trials we are undergoing. Our hearts, souls, minds, and strengths must say with one voice, “Yes, Lord, we do believe.” Then our eyes will be open to God’s love, mercy, and grace and we will be able to see His helping hand actively aiding us every day of our lives. What a comfort it is to know our God is interceding for us in our every need. He is ready to heal us of any ill if we but ask Him to have pity on us and believe He will respond to our pleas.

Do we ask God to have pity on us when we are in the midst of our trials? Do we believe He will help us? Have our eyes been open to the love, mercy, and grace God shows us every day?

O Lord, have pity on us and heal us.

Amen.

Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time

As Jesus was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a sizable crowd, Bartimaeus, a blind man, the son of Timaeus, sat by the roadside begging. On hearing that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, "Jesus, son of David, have pity on me." And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he kept calling out all the more, "Son of David, have pity on me." Jesus stopped and said, "Call him." So they called the blind man, saying to him, "Take courage; get up, Jesus is calling you."

Bartimaeus gives us an example of how we should call out to Jesus in our daily lives. We may not be physically blind, but our sins can make us spiritually blind. When this happens all we can do is seek out Jesus and ask him to have pity on us. Just as Bartimaeus, we will face rebukes by friends, families, and neighbors who won’t understand our desire for God’s help. However, if we persist in our belief in Jesus and trust in his mercy, then we will be called to God and He will answer our prayers. Then we will be able to take courage and know God will grant us what we need in order to do His Will in all things.

Do we call out to God when we are in need? Do we allow others to intimidate us into not living out our faith? How can we take courage in Christ?

O Lord, we call upon you, have mercy on us.

Amen.

Eighteenth Monday of Ordinary Time

When Jesus heard of the death of John the Baptist, he withdrew in a boat to a deserted place by himself. The crowds heard of this and followed him on foot from their towns. When he disembarked and saw the vast crowd, his heart was moved with pity for them, and he cured their sick.

Sometimes when we want to be alone, we cannot get away from others. We are forced by circumstances beyond our control to put our retreat from the world on hold and take care of others. Jesus does this in today’s gospel and models for us the proper response when things don’t go to plan. Instead of complaining about the crowd ruining his plans or running away from them, he takes pity on the crowd, cures them, and even feeds them. We, too, need to cultivate a spirit of compassion within us and be willing to set aside, even good things, for the better things in life, namely loving our neighbors.

What is our reaction when our plans don’t go well? How do we treat people who interrupt us? How are we building up the virtuous habit of compassion towards others?

O Lord, help us to be messengers of your mercy, especially to those who distract, hound, or annoy us as we attempt to know, love, and serve you.

Amen.

Fourteenth Tuesday of Ordinary Time

At the sight of the crowds, his heart was moved with pity for them because they were troubled and abandoned, like sheep without a shepherd.

Jesus takes pity on all of us. He is moved by our every suffering, illness, setback, and trial. He becomes our shepherd through his proclamation of the gospel and his sacrifice on the cross. He cures us of our sins so we can walk his Way, he preaches the Truth to us, and he teaches us how to live our lives as children and heirs of God. We may feel troubled and abandoned at times, but we are never alone. Jesus is always at our side wanting us to turn to him and ask for his aid. When we do this, he gives it abundantly and without reservation. His compassion and forgiveness are unfathomable and we are blessed to have him with us on this earth. Let us hope we will be good and faithful servants so that we can spend the rest of eternity in his good graces.

What are we troubled about? Do we feel abandoned by God? How can we remind ourselves that Jesus is with us?

O Lord, show pity on us and lead your poor sheep through the heavenly gate.

Amen.