The Angels Of God

Annunciation, Andrei Rublev, 1410

Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him and said of him,

“Here is a true child of Israel.

There is no duplicity in him.”

Nathanael said to him, “How do you know me?”

Jesus answered and said to him,

“Before Philip called you, I saw you under the fig tree.”

Nathanael answered him,

“Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the King of Israel.”

Jesus answered and said to him,

“Do you believe

because I told you that I saw you under the fig tree?

You will see greater things than this.”

And he said to him, “Amen, amen, I say to you,

you will see heaven opened

and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.”

-John 1: 47-51

She Put In More

When Jesus looked up he saw some wealthy people
putting their offerings into the treasury
and he noticed a poor widow putting in two small coins.
He said, "I tell you truly,
this poor widow put in more than all the rest;
for those others have all made offerings from their surplus wealth,
but she, from her poverty, has offered her whole livelihood."

-Luke 21:1-4

Proclaim The Gospel To Every Creature

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.”

-Mark 16:15-18

O God, Be Merciful To Me A Sinner

Jesus addressed this parable
to those who were convinced of their own righteousness
and despised everyone else.
“Two people went up to the temple area to pray;
one was a Pharisee and the other was a tax collector.
The Pharisee took up his position and spoke this prayer to himself,
‘O God, I thank you that I am not like the rest of humanity —
greedy, dishonest, adulterous — or even like this tax collector.
I fast twice a week,
and I pay tithes on my whole income.’
But the tax collector stood off at a distance
and would not even raise his eyes to heaven
but beat his breast and prayed,
‘O God, be merciful to me a sinner.’
I tell you, the latter went home justified, not the former;
for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled,
and the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”

                -Luke 18:9-14

The Harvest is Abundant but the Laborers are Few

Today is the feast of St. Luke the Evangelist, so it is quite appropriate that we read from the Gospel of Luke at Mass today. As you meditate on the reading below, reflect on how God is calling you, personally, to be a missionary.

The Lord Jesus appointed seventy-two disciples
whom he sent ahead of him in pairs
to every town and place he intended to visit.
He said to them,
"The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few;
so ask the master of the harvest
to send out laborers for his harvest.
Go on your way;
behold, I am sending you like lambs among wolves.
Carry no money bag, no sack, no sandals;
and greet no one along the way.
Into whatever house you enter,
first say, 'Peace to this household.'
If a peaceful person lives there,
your peace will rest on him;
but if not, it will return to you.
Stay in the same house and eat and drink what is offered to you,
for the laborer deserves payment.
Do not move about from one house to another.
Whatever town you enter and they welcome you,
eat what is set before you,
cure the sick in it and say to them,
'The Kingdom of God is at hand for you.'"(Lk 10:1-9)

I Desire Mercy, Not Sacrifice

As Jesus passed by,
he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the customs post.
He said to him, "Follow me."
And he got up and followed him.
While he was at table in his house,
many tax collectors and sinners came
and sat with Jesus and his disciples.
The Pharisees saw this and said to his disciples,
"Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?"
He heard this and said,
"Those who are well do not need a physician, but the sick do.
Go and learn the meaning of the words,
I desire mercy, not sacrifice.
I did not come to call the righteous but sinners.

Matthew 9: 9-13

These words are from the Gospel today, as the Church celebrates the feast of St. Matthew, Apostle and Evangelist.

The “Divine Physician” called Matthew to Himself, and He reaches out to us in the same way. So that we can be perfectly fulfilled in Oneness with Him.

St. Matthew, please pray for us, that we may be as open as you to the fullness of Christ. 

The miracle of God's love

Last Sunday, Pope Benedict XVI addressed the Gospel message from Mark’s chapter 6. In the passage, Jesus discovers that the people of His own country do not believe in His divinity. In fact, they are scandalized that the carpenter’s son is now travelling about, preaching like a prophet.

Pope Benedict said that the unbelief amongst the people of Nazareth was understandable, “because their human familiarity made it hard for them to go further and open themselves to the divine dimension. It was difficult for them to believe that this son of a carpenter was the Son of God."

Because of this unbelief, he went on to say:

Jesus 'could do no deeds of power there, except that he laid his hands on a few sick people and cured them'. Indeed, the miracles of Christ were not a show of power, but signs of God's love, which is realised wherever it finds reciprocity in the faith of man.

...The man Jesus of Nazareth is the transparency of God, God dwells in Him fully and, while we always seek other signs, other prodigies, we do not realise that the true sign is Him, God made flesh. He is the greatest miracle of the universe: all the love of God contained in a human heart and a human face.

And until we realize that Jesus is the true sign, we will not be ready for Him to heal us, teach us, and prepare us for the Kingdom of Heaven.

So let us pray for the grace to reciprocate God’s love in faith, and let us pray for the courage to proclaim the miracle of Christ to those around us.

The Fourth Glorious Mystery: The Assumption

The Most Blessed Virgin Mary, when the course of her earthly life was completed, was taken up body and soul into the glory of heaven, where she already shares in the glory of her Son's Resurrection, anticipating the resurrection of all members of his Body (CCC, 974).

Remember in the Gospel of Luke, when Mary exclaims, "Henceforth all generations will call me blessed; for he who is mighty has done great things for me" (1:48-49)? Mary is so pure, so blessed, so holy, so lovely—that every part of her was swept up into the Kingdom of Heaven when her life on earth was complete. She is now united with her Son, and every day she lovingly protects His Church as a shining example and powerful intercessor.

While meditating on Mary’s Assumption into Heaven, say one Our Father, 10 Hail Mary’s, and a Glory Be.

There's no formula for the New Evangelization

Last Sunday, Pope Benedict XVI urged Christians to be steadfast in their faith and to actively participate in the New Evangelization. During morning Mass in Tuscany, he said:

Be ferment in society, be present as Christians, be active and coherent…The whole Church is sent out into the world to preach the Gospel and salvation.

Preaching the Gospel is our responsibility. The New Evangelization calls upon the whole Church to bring Christ to the world. It is a re-evangelization of sorts, in which Christians are first invited to re-discover their identity in Christ and then share this unique experience with the people around them. This is described in the lineamenta prepared for the October Synod for the New Evangelization:

…the Christian must never forego a sense of boldness in proclaiming the Gospel and seeking every positive way to provide avenues for dialogue, where people's deepest expectations and their thirst for God can be discussed.

This is a serious calling, and it can be intimidating. Thoughts of inadequacy creep into many hearts as people wonder who it is they can reach out to and how effective they can be with little knowledge of the faith.

Happy Feast of St. Mark, Evangelist

Today is the feast of St. Mark—fellow missionary to St. Paul, disciple of St. Peter, and founder of the church of Alexandria. Without his commitment to spreading the Word of God, we wouldn’t have the second book of the New Testament: The Gospel According to Mark.

St. Mark, who allowed the Holy Spirit to work through you and bring the story of Jesus’ life and resurrection to light for future generations, pray for us.