Readings & Reflections: Wednesday of the Second Week in Ordinary Time & Day of Prayer for the Legal Protection of Unborn Children & St. Vincent of Zaragossa, January 22,2020
In all the dioceses of the United States of America, January 22 (or 23, when January 22 falls on a Sunday) shall be observed as a particular day of prayer for the full restoration of the legal guarantee of the right to life and of penance for violations to the dignity of the human person committed through acts of abortion. The liturgical celebrations for this day may be the Mass “For Giving Thanks to God for the Gift of Human Life” (no. 48/1 of the Masses and Prayers for Various Needs and Occasions), celebrated with white vestments, or the Mass “For the Preservation of Peace and Justice” (no. 30 of the Masses and Prayers for Various Needs and Occasions), celebrated with violet vestments (General Instruction of the Roman Missal, no. 373).read more
Readings & Reflections: Tuesday of the Second Week in Ordinary Time & St. Agnes, January 21,2020
Agnes was a virgin martyred during the Diocletian persecution around the year 304 A.D. She has been hailed throughout Church history as one of the holy virgin martyrs who gave up their lives out of love for Christ, the Bridegroom. In Greek, her name means “pure, chaste.” In Latin, Agnes suggests agnus, meaning “lamb.” Her cult is of ancient standing, and two churches in Rome commemorate her witness. Agnes is invoked in the canon of the Mass (Eucharistic Prayer I). Of Agnes, the great Doctor Saint Jerome wrote, “The life of Agnes is praised in the literature and speech of all peoples, especially in the Churches, she who overcame both her age and the tyrant, and consecrated by her martyrdom her claim to chastity.” Since the 6thcentury, artists have depicted Agnes with a lamb in her arms, evoking her humility, purity, and innocence. On the feast of Saint Agnes, two lambs are presented in Rome. From their wool are woven the palliums sent to newly consecrated archbishops “from the body of Blessed Peter,” a sign of their communion with the Pope.read more
Readings & Reflections: Monday of the Second Week in Ordinary Time & St. Sebastian, January 20,2020
Probably a native of Milan, Sebastian is said to have been a member of the Roman Army and was martyred around the year 300 A.D. during the Diocletian persecutions. His remains were buried in a basilica on the Appian Way that bears his name. Renaissance painters portraying Sebastian focused on the story that he was found out to be a Christian and shot with arrows repeatedly by his fellow soldiers. He is said to have survived this torture, nursed back to health by Saint Irene. When he confronted Diocletian, clubbing killed him. Because Sebastian’s many wounds evoked the physiognomy of plague victims, he was invoked against that scourge. He is invoked as the patron of soldiers, policemen and those who organize neighborhood watch programs also call upon him. Later, he was called upon as a patron saint of physicians.read more
Readings & Reflections with Cardinal Tagle’s Video: Second Sunday in Ordinary Time A & Santo Niño Feast Day & St. Fabian, January 19,2020
Why are there only few attendance at mass today? What is there in the mass that is an agent of change to all of us? In the mass, we say, “Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world, have mercy on us.” This prayer comes from today’s gospel passage (Jn 1:29), when John the Baptist points out Jesus to his followers and calls him “the Lamb of God.” Where did this image come from, and what does it tell us about Jesus and his impact on our lives? John was thinking of the Passover, the great saving event of the Jewish people, when God rescued them from Egypt and slavery. On the night of their deliverance, the Israelites smeared the blood of a lamb on their doorposts and were spared by the angel of death, who killed the first-born of the Egyptians. The lamb had saved them from destruction (cf. Exodus 11-13). John saw in Jesus the one who had come to save his people and take away their sins. And we know, even better than John did how true his vision was. For Jesus went to the cross and shed his blood so that our sins might be forgiven. His victory over sin and death is celebrated in the Book of Revelation: “I looked… and heard the voices of many angels… and they cried out in a loud voice: ‘Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches, wisdom and strength, honor and glory and blessing.’ Then I heard every creature… cry out. ‘To the one who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor, glory and might, for ever and ever’” (Rev 5:11-13).read more
Readings & Reflections: Saturday of the First Week in Ordinary Time & St. Charles of Sezze, January 18,2020
In today’s Gospel Jesus says to Levi, “Follow me.” Christ “makes a blessing” of former sinners whom he enlists “to call sinners.” What Samuel says to the newly anointed Saul is true of every apostle: “You are to save them from the group of their enemies.” In the Lord’s strength we are glad.
AMDG+
Opening Prayer
Heavenly Father, we may have missed the essential quality of being a true follower of your Son. No matter how many times and in how many different ways we have received the message of Jesus to love one another and to act lovingly toward one another, we continue to fail in loving our neighbor. As anointed followers of Jesus, bless us with the grace to be able to invite and welcome the stranger, the lonely, and the one who seems different and in some way unacceptable. Remind us always that we are not commissioned to judge, ostracize or disparage anyone. Amen.read more
Readings & Reflections: Friday of the First Week in Ordinary Time & St. Anthony of Egypt, January 17,2020
Born around 251 A.D. in Upper Egypt, Anthony responded wholeheartedly to the words of Christ in Matthew 19:21: “If you wish to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” Anthony sold his family estate, and sought out a solitary life in the Nitrian Desert, then later at Pispir, on the banks of the Nile. His followers lived in nearby hermitages, and this primitive organized life earned Anthony the name “father of monasticism.” His erudite sayings formed a spiritual touchstone for succeeding generations of ascetics, including Saint Benedict.read more
Readings & Reflections: Thursday of the First Week in Ordinary Time & St. Berard and Companions, January 16,2020
Beaten Israel asks, “Why has the Lord permitted us to be defeated?” The leper probably asked himself the same question. But if he had not been “defeated” by leprosy, he never would have attracted the attention and the pity of Jesus. “Our woe and oppression” disposes us to God’s mercy.
AMDG+
Opening Prayer
Heavenly Father, You have guided us directly through our consciences! You have invited us to listen and to respond to your call yet we have been cold and indifferent. Lord God, give us the grace to soften our hearts and enable us to re-arrange our busy schedules and priorities to include regular rhythms of withdrawal and retreat from activity to be in silence and solitude with You. Amen.read more
Readings & Reflections: Wednesday of the First Week in Ordinary Time & St. Paul the Hermit, January 15,2020
The mercy Simon’s sick mother-in-law received from Jesus is what we wait for. Oh Lord, approach me, grasp me by the hand, help me up. Find me among the countless crowd gathered at your door in longing. I have heard you calling me in the night. Here I am, Lord! By your grace, the heat of my fever will become fervor for waiting on others.
AMDG+
Opening Prayer
“Lord Jesus Christ, you have all power to heal and to deliver. There is no trouble nor bondage you cannot overcome. Set me free to serve you joyfully and to love and serve others generously. May nothing hinder me from giving myself wholly to you and to your service.” In your Mighty Name, I pray. Amen.read more
Readings & Reflections: Tuesday of the First Week in Ordinary Time & St. Gregory Nazianzen, January 14,2020
Hannah, in her “deep sorrow and misery,” long for the authority that amazes the people in the synagogue. For the divine power at work in Jesus “raises the needy from the dust” and makes “the barren wife” fertile. Our astonishment moves us to beg, “Remember me, do not forget me.”
AMDG+
Opening Prayer
Lord, enable me to respond with my whole heart with to the question: “How shall I make a return to the Lord for all the good He has done for me?” Enable me to reciprocate in my service for You and your people. In your Name, I pray. Amen.read more
Readings & Reflections: Monday of the First Week in Ordinary Time & St. Hilary, January 13,2020
Born into a pagan family, Hilary is said to have studied his way into the Church, meditating in part on the prologue to John’s Gospel. In 353 A.D. he was chosen bishop of Poitier, France. Only three years after being elected bishop of Poitiers, France. Hilary was sent into exile in Phrygia, present-day Turkey by the emperor, professed Arian, because he refused to condemn Athanasius. There Hilary composed his great doctrinal work On the Trinity. “Anyone who fails to see that Christ Jesus was at once true God and truly man is blind to his own life: to deny Christ Jesus, or God the Spirit, or our own flesh, is equally perilous,” he wrote. Hilary governed his diocese from afar, thwarted only the slow mail delivery. He returned to Poitiers and died in 367 A.D. Hilary was dubbed the “Athanasius of the West” because, like the great doctor from Alexandria, he worked tirelessly to uphold the truth of the divinity of the Son of God in an age dominated by the Arian heresy. Hilary was hailed by Saint Augustine as “the most illustrious doctor of the churches.”read more
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