Author name: sanjose

11th Sunday in Ordinary Time

First Reading: Ex 19:2-6a

In those days, the Israelites came to the desert of Sinai and pitched camp.
While Israel was encamped here in front of the mountain,
Moses went up the mountain to God.
Then the LORD called to him and said,
“Thus shall you say to the house of Jacob;
tell the Israelites:
You have seen for yourselves how I treated the Egyptians
and how I bore you up on eagle wings
and brought you here to myself.
Therefore, if you hearken to my voice and keep my covenant,
you shall be my special possession,
dearer to me than all other people,
though all the earth is mine.
You shall be to me a kingdom of priests, a holy nation.”

Responsorial Psalm: Ps 100:1-2, 3, 5

Response– We are his people: the sheep of his flock

Sing joyfully to the LORD, all you lands;
serve the LORD with gladness;
come before him with joyful song.
R– We are his people: the sheep of his flock

Know that the LORD is God;
he made us, his we are;
his people, the flock he tends.
R– We are his people: the sheep of his flock

The LORD is good:
his kindness endures forever,
and his faithfulness to all generations.
R– We are his people: the sheep of his flock

Second Reading: Romans 5:6-11

Brothers and sisters:
Christ, while we were still helpless,
yet died at the appointed time for the ungodly.
Indeed, only with difficulty does one die for a just person,
though perhaps for a good person
one might even find courage to die.
But God proves his love for us
in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us.
How much more then, since we are now justified by his blood,
will we be saved through him from the wrath.
Indeed, if, while we were enemies,
we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son,
how much more, once reconciled,
will we be saved by his life.
Not only that,
but we also boast of God through our Lord Jesus Christ,
through whom we have now received reconciliation.

Alleluia:

Alleluia, alleluia. The kingdom of God is at hand.
Repent and believe in the Gospel. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel: Matthew 9:36-10:8

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Matthew

At the sight of the crowds, Jesus’ heart was moved with pity for them
because they were troubled and abandoned,
like sheep without a shepherd.
Then he said to his disciples,
“The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few;
so ask the master of the harvest
to send out laborers for his harvest.”

Then he summoned his twelve disciples
and gave them authority over unclean spirits
to drive them out and to cure every disease and every illness.
The names of the twelve apostles are these:
first, Simon called Peter, and his brother Andrew;
James, the son of Zebedee, and his brother John;
Philip and Bartholomew, Thomas and Matthew the tax collector;
James, the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddeus;
Simon from Cana, and Judas Iscariot who betrayed him.

Jesus sent out these twelve after instructing them thus,
“Do not go into pagan territory or enter a Samaritan town.
Go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
As you go, make this proclamation: ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’
Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, drive out demons.
Without cost you have received; without cost you are to give.”

The Readings and Gospel were sourced from:

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Proverbs 4:27

Sources:

“Do not turn to the right or the left; keep your foot from evil.” - Proverbs 4:27

Prayer For Strength To Resist Temptations

Dear Lord Jesus, I ask for Your strength and help to resist ungodly temptations and not to give in, knowing that to do is not to glorify You and does me nothing but emotional and spiritual harm.

Help me to take every tempting thought captive and hand it over to You before it takes a hold of me and does harm to me or to other people. Help me in my weakness to know You as my strength, and help me in my foolishness to know You as my wisdom. Help me I pray, to resist all forms of temptation and give me the strength to say no and walk away from temptation, especially when there are others involved, who directly or indirectly, willingly or unknowingly. are encouraging my downfall. And deliver me Lord I pray, from habits that are entrapping and enslaving me in actions that are detrimental to my spiritual health and walk.

Replace the thoughts that tempt and tease me with those that turn my focus on Jesus, and help me in all things and learn to say, "Thy will not mine be done." In Jesus' name I pray,

Amen.

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Saint Gregorio Barbarigo

Saint Gregorio Giovanni Gaspare Barbarigo was born in 1625 in Venice. His ancestors included the two Venetian doges Marco Barbarigo and Agostino Barbarigo. His father instructed him in philosophical studies and in mathematics while preceptors taught him Latin and Greek; he also received the rudiments of music.

In 1643 he accompanied as secretary the Venetian ambassador Aloise Contarini to Münster for the negotiations to prepare for the Peace of Westphalia which was signed on 24 October 1648. In July 1648 he returned to Venice and continued his studies in Padua. In 1650 he was elected as a member of the Collegio dei Savi and initiated his political career which he did not find to be good for him. In the winter in 1653 he went to Rome to ask the advice of Cardinal Chigi who recommended that he not retire as a hermit but follow the ecclesiastical career and begin obtaining a doctorate in law.

Saint Barbarigo obtained a doctorate in “utroque iure” both canon law and civil law on 25 September 1655 and received his ordination to the priesthood on 21 December 1655. On 9 June 1665 he was given a canonicate in the cathedral chapter of Padua without the requirement of residence and in 1656 – at the request of the pope – he organized the assistance to the Romans in the Trastevere area who had been stricken with the plague. He oversaw the care of the mothers and their children and the funerals of the deceased in this work. He nursed the sick, buried to dead, and comforted those frightened and in mourning

Cardinal Barbarigo fostered catechetical instruction and he travelled to each village in his diocese in order to teach and to preach to the people. His compassion to the poor was well known for he gave his household goods and his clothes to the poor for their comfort. He even sold his bed on one occasion to help them. He became noted as a scholar for his distinguished learning and as an able pastor for his careful attention to pastoral initiatives and frequent parish visitations.

Barbarigo died after a brief illness on 18 June 1697 in Padua where he was interred in the diocesan cathedral.

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Saint Hervé

Saint Hervé, also known as Harvey, was born blind. When he was seven years old, he was placed with a learned hermit who lived in the forest. At about fourteen years of age, he went to study at the monastic school at Plouvien, where his maternal uncle, Gourvoyed was abbot. Hervé grew up to become a teacher and minstrel.

With his disciple Guiharan, Hervé lived near Plouvien as a hermit and bard. He had the power to cure animals and was accompanied by a domesticated wolf. His wolf devoured the ox or donkey Hervé used in plowing. Hervé then preached a sermon that was so eloquent that the wolf begged to be allowed to serve in the ox’s stead. Hervé’s wolf pulled the plow from that day on.

He was joined by disciples and refused any ordination or earthly honour, accepting only to be ordained as an exorcist. He died in 556 AD and was buried at Lanhouarneau.

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Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus

First Reading: Dt 7:6-11

Moses said to the people:
"You are a people sacred to the LORD, your God;
he has chosen you from all the nations on the face of the earth
to be a people peculiarly his own.
It was not because you are the largest of all nations
that the LORD set his heart on you and chose you,
for you are really the smallest of all nations.
It was because the LORD loved you
and because of his fidelity to the oath he had sworn your fathers,
that he brought you out with his strong hand
from the place of slavery,
and ransomed you from the hand of Pharaoh, king of Egypt.
Understand, then, that the LORD, your God, is God indeed,
the faithful God who keeps his merciful covenant
down to the thousandth generation
toward those who love him and keep his commandments,
but who repays with destruction a person who hates him;
he does not dally with such a one,
but makes them personally pay for it.
You shall therefore carefully observe the commandments,
the statutes and the decrees that I enjoin on you today."

Responsorial Psalm: Ps 103:1-2, 3-4, 6-7, 8, 10

Response– The Lord's kindness is everlasting to those who fear him

Bless the LORD, O my soul;
all my being, bless his holy name.
Bless the LORD, O my soul;
and forget not all his benefits.
R– The Lord's kindness is everlasting to those who fear him

He pardons all your iniquities,
heals all your ills.
He redeems your life from destruction,
crowns you with kindness and compassion.
R– The Lord's kindness is everlasting to those who fear him

Merciful and gracious is the LORD,
slow to anger and abounding in kindness.
Not according to our sins does he deal with us,
nor does he requite us according to our crimes.
R– The Lord's kindness is everlasting to those who fear him

Second Reading: 1 Jn 4:7-16

Beloved, let us love one another,
because love is of God;
everyone who loves is begotten by God and knows God.
Whoever is without love does not know God, for God is love.
In this way the love of God was revealed to us:
God sent his only Son into the world
so that we might have life through him.
In this is love:
not that we have loved God, but that he loved us
and sent his Son as expiation for our sins.
Beloved, if God so loved us,
we also must love one another.
No one has ever seen God.
Yet, if we love one another, God remains in us,
and his love is brought to perfection in us.

This is how we know that we remain in him and he in us,
that he has given us of his Spirit.
Moreover, we have seen and testify
that the Father sent his Son as savior of the world.
Whoever acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God,
God remains in him and he in God.
We have come to know and to believe in the love God has for us.

God is love, and whoever remains in love
remains in God and God in him.

Alleluia:

Alleluia, alleluia. Take my yoke upon you, says the Lord; and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel: Mt 11:25-30

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Matthew

At that time Jesus exclaimed:
"I give praise to you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth,
for although you have hidden these things
from the wise and the learned
you have revealed them to little ones.
Yes, Father, such has been your gracious will.
All things have been handed over to me by my Father.
No one knows the Son except the Father,
and no one knows the Father except the Son
and anyone to whom the Son wishes to reveal him.

"Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened,
and I will give you rest.
Take my yoke upon you and learn from me,
for I am meek and humble of heart;
and you will find rest for yourselves.
For my yoke is easy, and my burden light."

The Readings and Gospel were sourced from:

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2 Corinthians 6:14

Verse:

“Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness?” - 2 Corinthians 6:14

Prayer For A Closer Walk With God

Dear Heavenly Father, Your Word tells us that eternal life is knowing You and the Lord Jesus Christ Whom You have sent to be our Lord and Savior, and Father, I want to know more of You.

Help me to know You more and to love You better, and I pray that I may learn to spend more time simply sitting at Your feet, listening to Your Word and communing with You in Your presence.

I pray that You will capture my heart, teach me Your ways and draw me every closer to Yourself, so that I may learn more of You and the eternal truths of Your precious Word.

Give me a child-like anticipation and joy of coming into Your presence each day, an ever deepening awareness of the future inheritance that you have prepared for me in heaven that will never fade or spoil. Give me a closer walk with You I pray, and may my daily fellowship with You become my dearest priority in life. This I ask in Jesus' name,

Amen.

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Saint Lutgardis

Saint Lutgardis, also known as Lutgardis of Aywieres, was born in Tongeren (Tongren) and entered monastic life at the age of twelve. She is a saint from the medieval Low Countries. She is considered as one of the leading mystics of the 13th century.

She was admitted into the Benedictine monastery of St. Catherine near Sint-Truiden at the age of twelve. She lived in the convent for several years without having much interest in religious life. She could come and go and receive visitors as she pleased.

She was visited with a vision of Jesus Christ showing her his wounds, and at age twenty she made her solemn vows as a Benedictine. Over the next dozen years, she had many visions of Christ, Mary and St. John the Evangelist. Accounts of her life state that she experienced ecstasies, levitated, and dripped blood from her forehead and hair when entranced. She refused the honor of serving as abbess. However, in 1205, she was chosen to be prioress of her community.

Saint Lutgardis was one of the great precursors of the devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. The first recorded mystic revelation of Christ’s heart is that of Saint Lutgardis. During this time she is known to have shown gifts of healing and prophecy, and was an adept at teaching the Gospels. She was blind for the last eleven years of her life, and died of natural causes at Aywières. According to tradition, she experienced a vision in which Christ informed her of her forthcoming death. She died on June 16, 1246, the day after the Feast of the Holy Trinity, at the age of 64.

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Saint Methodius I

Saint Methodius I of Constantinople was born to wealthy parents. Methodios was sent as a young man to Constantinople to continue his education and hopefully attain an appointment at court. But instead he entered a monastery in Bithynia, eventually becoming abbot.

In 815, Methodios went to Rome, perhaps as an envoy of the deposed Patriarch Nikephorοs. Upon his return in 821 he was arrested and exiled as an iconodule by the Iconoclast regime of Emperor Michael II. Methodios was released in 829 and assumed a position of importance at the court of the even more fervently iconoclast Emperor Theophilos.

The influential minister Theoktistos secured the appointment of Methodios as his successor, bringing about the end of the iconoclast controversy. A week after his appointment and after the Council of Constantinople (843), Methodios made a triumphal procession from the church of Blachernae to Hagia Sophia on March 11, 843, restoring the icons to the church. This heralded the restoration of Catholic orthodoxy, and became a holiday in the Byzantine Church, celebrated every year on the First Sunday of Great Lent, and known as the “Triumph of Orthodoxy”.

Throughout his short patriarchate, Methodios tried to pursue a moderate line of accommodation with members of the clergy who were formerly Iconoclasts. This policy was opposed by extremists. To rein in the extremists, Methodios was forced to excommunicate and arrest some of the more persevering monks.

Methodios was indeed well-educated; engaged in both copying and writing of manuscripts. His individual works included polemica, hagiographical and liturgical works, sermons and poetry.

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Matthew 16:25

Verse:

 “For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it.” - Matthew 16:25

A Prayer For The Testing Of Our Faith

Thank You, Father, that You have promised that the testing of our faith produces perseverance and steadfastness, which in time will bring forth the beautiful Christlike character that You so desire in all Your children, but which all too often I personally seek to avoid, or regard as a time of bitter struggle. Help me Lord, to embrace any trials that You see fit to enter my life. Help me to look at the difficulties that engulf me with Your eyes, and give me an eternal perspective on all the problems I may be called upon to face, so that I may count it all joy when I am confronted with various trials, knowing that the testing of my faith produces the godly fruit of patience. Help me Lord, to use those times of testing as an opportunity to grow in grace, and as a springboard to develop a deeper and more secure relationship with You.

Lord, it is not alway easy to align our minds with the mind of Christ. It is often very hard to see trials in a positive light, and to embrace the various testings we have to go through as a thing to be highly prized, and yet Your Word tells us that life's difficulties sharpen our faith, while developing our trust in the Lord, which is more precious to You than much fine gold. Give me a heart that understands and chooses to look at trials and tests from Your perspective, so that the testing of my faith may bring forth the righteous fruit or patience and grace. I ask this in the name of Jesus,

Amen.

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