To the source you will come, the light itself you will see



Saint Augustine of Hippo
Bishop and Great Western Father of the Church

An excerpt from his Treatise on John, 35.

Tuesday of the Thirty-fourth Week in Ordinary Time

We Christians are the light, at least by comparison with unbelievers. Thus the Apostle says: For once you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord; walk then as sons of the light. And elsewhere he says: The night is far spent, the day is drawing near. Let us therefore lay aside the works of darkness and put on the armor of light; let us walk uprightly as in the day.

Nevertheless, since the days in which we are now living are still dark compared to the light which we shall see, hear what the apostle Peter says. He speaks of a voice that came from the Supreme Glory and said to the Lord Christ: You are my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased. This voice, he says, we heard coming from heaven, when we were with him on the holy mountain. Because we ourselves were not present there and did not hear the voice from heaven, Peter says to us: And we possess a more certain prophetic word to which you do well to attend, as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.

When, therefore, our Lord Jesus Christ shall come and, as the apostle says, bring to light things hidden in darkness and make plain the secrets of the heart, so that everyone may receive his commendation from God, then lamps will no longer be needed. When that day is at hand, the prophet will not be read to us, the book of the Apostle will not be opened, we shall not require the testimony of John, we shall have no need of the Gospel itself. Therefore all Scriptures will be taken away from us, those Scriptures which in the night of this world burned like lamps so that we might not remain in darkness.

When all these things are removed as no longer necessary for our illumination, and when the men of God by whom they were ministered to us shall themselves together with us behold the true and dear light without such aids, what shall we see? With what shall our minds be nourished? What will give joy to our gaze? Where will that gladness come from which eye has not seen and ear has not heard, which has not even been conceived by the heart of man? What shall we see?

I implore you to live with me and, by believing, to run with me; let us long for our heavenly country, let us sigh for our heavenly home, let us truly feel that here we are strangers. What shall we then see? Let the gospel tell us: In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God. You will come to the fountain, with whose dew you have already been sprinkled. Instead of the ray of light which was sent through slanting and winding ways into the heart of your darkness, you will see the light itself in all its purity and brightness. It is to see and experience this light that you are now being cleansed. Dearly beloved, John himself says, we are the sons of God, and it has not yet been disclosed what we shall be; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is.

I feel that your spirits are being raised up with mine to the heavens above; but the body which is corruptible weighs down the soul, and this earthly tent burdens the thoughtful mind. I am about to lay aside this book, and you are soon going away, each to his own business. It has been good for us to share the common light, good to have enjoyed ourselves, good to have been glad together. When we part from one another, let us not depart from him.


Glory to the Father
and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and will be forever. Amen

 






"Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom."

εὐαγγελίζω (euaggelizo)
“to announce the Good News of victory in battle”

“Now one of the criminals hanging there reviled Jesus, saying,
“Are you not the Christ (ὁ χριστός, ho Christos)?
Save (σῶσον, soson) Yourself and us.”
The other, however, rebuking him, said in reply,
“Have you no fear of God,
for you are subject to the same condemnation?
And indeed, we have been condemned justly,
for the sentence we received corresponds to our crimes,
but this Man has done nothing criminal.” Then he said,
“Jesus, remember (μνήσθητι, mnesthsti) me
when You come into your kingdom.”
He replied to him, “Amen, I say to you,
today you will be with me in Paradise.”


θεωρέω (theoreo)
(“to perceive, discover, ponder a deeper meaning”)

As the term synoptic expresses, there are certainly notable similarities among the sacred Gospel Texts known as Mark, Matthew and Luke. From the start of Jesus’ Public Ministry through His Passion, Death and Resurrection the Evangelists, Saints Mark, Matthew and Luke, present the deeds and words of Jesus through the lens of a single or ‘same eye.’ The ‘other eye’ though sees unique aspects of Jesus’ Public Ministry that makes Evangelist distinct in the presented portrait of the Person, Jesus Christ. Attention to these distinctive Gospel elements can be an occasion to draw one more deeply into the heart of the Paschal Mystery, more deeply into the very life of Jesus, King of the Universe.


In a manner so characteristic of Saint Luke, he records the words and deeds of Jesus as a journey from Galilee to Jerusalem marked by moving moments of table fellowship, offering all who come to His table hospitality. More than mere ‘niceness,’ Jesus’ hospitality not only nourishes and sustains body and soul but also reconciles one to His Father and one another. When encountering Jesus at the table, “enemies speak to each other again, adversaries join hands and peoples seek to meet together.” In addition, at His table “hatred is overcome by love, revenge gives way to forgiveness and discord is changed to mutual respect (Eucharistic Prayer for Reconciliation II).” Even when gasping for breath, Jesus continuously offers His unique hospitality that reconciles each person with and to His Father as the ‘Good Thief’ marvelously discovered.

The irony of the episode is that the ‘other’ crucified man asks a question that gets to the heart of faith: “Are You not the Christ?” At face value the question is ambiguous, devoid of any attitude or disposition. It is the “rebuke” of the ‘Good Thief’ that colors the question and initiates a conversation that extends the promise of Paradise, the ultimate act of hospitality. Saint Leo comments in Sermon 53: “Until now, one [thief] was the equal in all things of his companion. He was a robber on the roads and always a danger to the safety of people. Deserving the cross, he suddenly becomes a confessor of Christ…. “Remember me, Lord, when you enter into your kingdom.” … Then came the gift in which faith itself received a response. Jesus said to him, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise.” This promise surpasses the human condition, because it did not come so much from the wood of a cross as from a throne of power. From that height, he gives a reward to faith. There he abolishes the debt of human transgression, because the “form of God” did not separate itself from the “form of a servant.” Even in the middle of this punishment, both the inviolable divinity and the suffering human nature preserved its own character and its own oneness.”

“In the middle of this punishment,” the plea “remember me?” The direct word of the ‘other thief’ appears on target: “Save yourself and us!” His word to Jesus is an imperative: short, blunt and to the point. σώζω (sozo), the Greek verb that means “to save,” “to deliver from danger to safety” or “to protect,” is an essential element to describe the biblical experience of “salvation.” Is not the request for “salvation” a proper one, especially on the lips of a sinner seeking reconciliation from Jesus? Absolutely. But it seems (and ‘seems’ is extremely important here because human language can never express a limit to the Father’s mercy) that the ‘other thief’ has missed the point. He literally wants to be delivered from danger: suffering and death that will come from crucifixion. The ‘Good Thief’ wants to be “remembered,” a request that may sound odd to the western ear.

Steeped within the rich experience of Israel’s covenant relationship with God, “remembering” is a crucial response to the Covenant. zakar (זָכַר) is the Hebrew verb translated into English as “to remember.” For the Israelites, the act of “remembering” was far more than a neurological event of recalling a fact. zakar expresses “remembering” in the sense of ‘re-connecting,’ ‘re-joining,’ re-establishing.’ More than mental activity, zakar involves the whole person – body and soul – being ‘re-membered’ to a body. In a rather graphic way, zakar is the re-attaching of limbs that have been severed from the body. Once attached, the limbs ‘come to life’ and serve the needs of the whole. The ‘Good Thief’ is making the proper request – ‘graft me onto You, Jesus Who are the Christ.’ Even more remarkable is the additional meaning conveyed by the Greek verb μιμνήσκω (mimnesko). Translated here as “remember,” the Greek verb μιμνήσκω (mimnesko) not only reflects the Old Testament sense of zakar, it is also related to another Greek verb, very important in Johannine theology: μένω (meno), translated “to remain,” the Johannine expression of ‘abiding presence.’

Thus the Good Thief’s request is more than ‘spot-on,’ it expresses the very essence of Jesus’ ministry. His was and continues to be a work to ‘re-connect’ each of us with His Father in a way that the Divine Persons continuously abide within each, animating and infusing each of us with such a life and love that our only way of living is gracious, charitable service to Our Lord and to one another. Eyes riveted on Jesus Christ, King of the Universe, puts all of life in a proper perspective. With all that Jesus did for each one of us, how can I and we not sing and live, “Jesus – remember me when You come into Your Kingdom!” awaiting the most wonderful words any of us can hear, “Amen, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.”







Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe



“He replied to him, “Amen, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.”” (Luke 23:43.)

Pope Saint Leo the Great comments on this verse from the First Reading proclaimed at Mass today:

“Until now, one [thief] was the equal in all things of his companion. He was a robber on the roads and always a danger to the safety of people. Deserving the cross, he suddenly becomes a confessor of Christ. “Remember me, Lord, when you enter into your kingdom.” Then came the gift in which faith itself received a response. Jesus said to him, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise.” This promise surpasses the human condition, because it did not come so much from the wood of a cross as from a throne of power. From that height, he gives a reward to faith. There he abolishes the debt of human transgression, because the “form of God” did not separate itself from the “form of a servant.” Even in the middle of this punishment, both the inviolable divinity and the suffering human nature preserved its own character and its own oneness.

This cross of Christ holds the mystery of its true and prophesied altar. There, through the saving victim, a sacrifice of human nature is celebrated. There the blood of a spotless lamb dissolved the pact of that ancient transgression. There the whole perversity of the devil’s mastery was abolished, while humility triumphed as conqueror over boasting pride. The effect of faith was so swift that one of the two thieves crucified with Christ who believed in the Son of God entered paradise justified.

Who could explain the mystery of such a great gift? Who could describe the power of such a marvelous transformation? In a brief moment of time, the guilt of a longstanding wickedness was abolished. In the middle of the harsh torments of a struggling soul, fastened to the gallows, that thief passes over to Christ, and the grace of Christ gives a crown to him, someone who incurred punishment for his own wickedness.” (Sermon 53 and Sermon 55)




Collect
Almighty ever-living God,
Whose will is to restore all things
in Your beloved Son,
the King of the universe,
grant, we pray,
that the whole creation,
set free from slavery,
may render Your majesty service
and ceaselessly proclaim Your praise.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son,
Who lives and reigns with You
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.





Glory to the Father
and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and will be forever. Amen


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Saturday of the Thirty-thrid Week in Ordinary Time



““Teacher, Moses wrote for us, ‘If someone’s brother dies leaving a wife but no child, his brother must take the wife and raise up descendants for his brother.’” (Luke 20:28.)

Saint Cyril of Alexandria comments on this verse from the Gospel proclaimed at Mass today:

“The Savior also demonstrated the great ignorance of the Sadducees by bringing forward their own leader Moses, who was clearly acquainted with the resurrection of the dead. He set God before us saying in the bush, “I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.” Of whom is he God, if, according to their argument, these have ceased to live? He is the God of the living. They certainly will rise when his almighty right hand brings them and all that are on the earth there.

For people not to believe that this will happen is worthy perhaps of the ignorance of the Sadducees, but it is altogether unworthy of those who love Christ. We believe in him who says, “I am the resurrection and the life.” He will raise the dead suddenly, in the twinkling of an eye, and at the last trumpet. It shall sound, the dead in Christ shall rise incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For Christ our common Savior will transfer us into incorruption, glory and to an incorruptible life.” (Commentary on Luke, Homily 136)



Collect
Grant us, we pray, O Lord our God,
the constant gladness
of being devoted to You,
for it is full and lasting happiness
to serve with constancy
the Author of all that is good.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son,
Who lives and reigns with You
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.



Glory to the Father
and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and will be forever. Amen


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I shall be satisfied when your glory is seen



Saint Thomas Aquinas
Priest and Doctor of the Church

An excerpt from a Conference

Saturday of the Thirty-third Week in Ordinary Time

It is fitting that the end of all our desires, namely eternal life, coincides with the words at the end of the creed, “Life everlasting. Amen.”

The first point about eternal life is that man is united with God. For God himself is the reward and end of all our labors. I am your protector and your supreme reward. This union consists in seeing perfectly: At present we are looking at a confused reflection in a mirror, but then we shall see face to face.

Next it consists in perfect praise, according to the words of the prophet: Joy and happiness will be found in it, thanksgiving and words of praise.

It also consists in the complete satisfaction of desire, for there the blessed will be given more than they wanted or hoped for. The reason is that in this life no one can fulfill his longing, nor can any creature satisfy man’s desire. Only God satisfies, he infinitely exceeds all other pleasures. That is why man can rest in nothing but God. As Augustine says: You have made us for yourself, Lord, and our heart can find no rest until it rests in you.

Since in their heavenly home the saints will possess God completely, obviously their longing will be satisfied, and their glory will be even greater. That is why the Lord says: Enter in the joy of your Lord. Augustine adds: The fullness of joy will not enter into those who rejoice, but those who rejoice will enter into joy. I shall be satisfied when your glory is seen, and again: He who satisfies your desire with good things.

Whatever is delightful is there in superabundance. If delights are sought, there is supreme and most perfect delight. It is said of God, the supreme good: Boundless delights are in your right hand.

Again, eternal life consists of the joyous community of all the blessed, a community of supreme delight, since everyone will share all that is good with all the blessed. Everyone will love everyone else as himself, and therefore will rejoice in another’s good as in his own. So it follows that the happiness and joy of each grows in proportion to the joy of all.

Glory to the Father
and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and will be forever. Amen

 







Memorial of Saint Cecilia, Virgin and Martyr



“Jesus entered the temple area and proceeded to drive out those who were selling things...” (Luke 19:22.)

Saint Augustine of Hippo comments on this verse from the Gospel proclaimed during today’s Mass:

“In another place, when I said the following about our Lord Jesus Christ, “He did nothing by force but everything by persuasion and admonition,” I forgot that he threw out the sellers and buyers from the temple by flogging them. What does this matter to us? How is it important if he also cast out demons from people against their will, not by persuasive words but by force of his power?” (Retractions, 12.)




Collect
O God, Who gladden us each year
with the feast day
of Your handmaid Saint Cecilia,
grant, we pray,
that what has been devoutly handed
down concerning her
may offer us examples to imitate
and proclaim
the wonders worked in His servants
by Christ your Son.
Who lives and reigns with You
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.



Glory to the Father
and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and will be forever. Amen



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Sing to God with songs of joy



Saint Augustine of Hippo
Bishop and Great Western Father of the Church

An excerpt from his Discourse on Psalm 32

Memorial of Saint Cecilia, Virgin and Martyr

Praise the Lord with the lyre, make melody to him with the harp of ten strings! Sing to him a new song. Rid yourself of what is old and worn out, for you know a new song. A new man, a new covenant—a new song. This new song does not belong to the old man. Only the new man learns it: the man restored from his fallen condition through the grace of God, and now sharing in the new covenant, that is, the kingdom of heaven. To it all our love now aspires and sings a new song. Let us sing a new song not with our lips but with our lives.

Sing to him a new song, sing to him with joyful melody. Every one of us tries to discover how to sing to God. You must sing to him, but you must sing well. He does not want your voice to come harshly to his ears, so sing well, brothers!

If you were asked, “Sing to please this musician,” you would not like to do so without having taken some instruction in music, because you would not like to offend an expert in the art. An untrained listener does not notice the faults a musician would point out to you. Who, then, will offer to sing well for God, the great artist whose discrimination is faultless, whose attention is on the minutest detail, whose ear nothing escapes? When will you be able to offer him a perfect performance that you will in no way displease such a supremely discerning listener?

See how he himself provides you with a way of singing. Do not search for words, as if you could find a lyric which would give God pleasure. Sing to him “with songs of joy.” This is singing well to God, just singing with songs of joy.

But how is this done? You must first understand that words cannot express the things that are sung by the heart. Take the case of people singing while harvesting in the fields or in the vineyards or when any other strenuous work is in progress. Although they begin by giving expression to their happiness in sung words, yet shortly there is a change. As if so happy that words can no longer express what they feel, they discard the restricting syllables. They burst out into a simple sound of joy, of jubilation. Such a cry of joy is a sound signifying that the heart is bringing to birth what it cannot utter in words.

Now, who is more worthy of such a cry of jubilation than God himself, whom all words fail to describe? If words will not serve, and yet you must not remain silent, what else can you do but cry out for joy? Your heart must rejoice beyond words, soaring into an immensity of gladness, unrestrained by syllabic bonds. Sing to him with jubilation.



Glory to the Father
and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and will be forever. Amen

 






Memorial of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary



“As he drew near, he saw the city and wept over it...” (Luke 19:41.)

Origen of Alexandria (part 2 of Pope Benedict’s reflections on Origen) comments on these verses from the Gospel proclaimed at Mass today:

“When our Lord and Savior approached Jerusalem, he saw the city and wept.… By his example, Jesus confirms all the Beatitudes that he speaks in the Gospel. By his own witness, he confirms what he teaches. “Blessed are the meek,” he says. He says something similar to this of himself: “Learn from me, for I am meek.” “Blessed are the peacemakers.” What other man brought as much peace as my Lord Jesus, who “is our peace,” who “dissolves hostility” and “destroys it in his own flesh”?18 “Blessed are those who suffer persecution because of justice.”

No one suffered such persecution because of justice as did the Lord Jesus, who was crucified for our sins. The Lord therefore exhibited all the Beatitudes in himself. For the sake of this likeness, he wept, because of what he said, “Blessed are those who weep,” to lay the foundations for this beatitude as well. He wept for Jerusalem “and said, ‘If only you had known on that day what meant peace for you! But now it is hidden from your eyes,’” and the rest, to the point where he says, “Because you did not know the time of your visitation.”” (Homily on the Gospel of Luke, 38.)



Collect
As we venerate the glorious memory
of the most holy Virgin Mary,
grant, we pray, O Lord, through her intercession,
that we, too, may merit to receive
from the fullness of Your grace.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son,
Who lives and reigns with You
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.


Glory to the Father
and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and will be forever. Amen








Wednesday of the Thirty-third Week in Ordinary Time



“While they were listening to him speak, he proceeded to tell a parable because he was near Jerusalem and they thought that the kingdom of God would appear there immediately.” (Luke 19:11.)

Saint Cyril of Alexandria comments on this verse from the Gospel proclaimed at Mass today:

“The scope of the parable briefly represents the whole meaning of the dispensation that was for us and of the mystery of Christ from the beginning even to the end. The Word, being God, became man. He was made in the likeness of sinful flesh, because of this he is also called a servant. He is and was free born, because the Father unspeakably begot him. He is also God, transcending all in nature and in glory and surpassing the things of our estate, or rather even the whole creation, by his incomparable fullness.

By nature God, he is said to have received from the Father the name that is above every name when he became man. We might then believe in him as God and the King of all, even in the flesh that was united to him.

When he had endured the passion on the cross for our sakes and had abolished death by the resurrection of his body from the dead, he ascended to the Father and became like a man journeying to a far country. Heaven is a different country from earth, and he ascended so that he might receive a kingdom for himself…. How does he who reigns over all with the Father ascend to him to receive a kingdom? The Father also gives this to the Son according to his becoming man. When he ascended into heaven, he sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high,1 waiting until his enemies are put under his feet.” (Commentary on Luke, Homily 128)



Collect
Grant us, we pray, O Lord our God,
the constant gladness
of being devoted to You,
for it is full and lasting happiness
to serve with constancy
the Author of all that is good.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son,
Who lives and reigns with You
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.



Glory to the Father
and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and will be forever. Amen


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The heart of the just man will rejoice in the Lord



Saint Augustine of Hippo
Bishop and Great Western Father of the Church

An excerpt from Sermon 21

Wednesday of the Thirty-third Week in Ordinary Time

The just man will rejoice in the Lord and put his hope in him; the hearts of all good men will be filled with joy. We must surely have sung these words with our hearts as well as with our voices. Indeed, the tongue of the Christian expresses his deepest feelings when it addresses such words to God. The just man will rejoice, not in the world, but in the Lord. Light has dawned for the just, Scripture says in another place, and joy for the upright of heart. Were you wondering what reason he has for joy? Here you are told: The just man will rejoice in the Lord. Another text runs: Delight in the Lord, and he will give you your heart’s desires.

What are we instructed to do then, and what are we enabled to do? To rejoice in the Lord. But who can rejoice in something he does not see? Am I suggesting that we see the Lord then? No, but we have been promised that we shall see him. Now, as long as we are in the body, we walk by faith, for we are absent from the Lord. We walk by faith, and not by sight. When will it be by sight? Beloved, says John, we are now the sons of God; what we shall be has not yet been revealed, but we know that when it is revealed we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. When this prophecy is fulfilled, then it will be by sight.

That will be the great joy, the supreme joy, joy in all its fullness. Then we shall no longer drink the milk of hope, but we shall feed on the reality itself. Nevertheless, even now, before that vision comes to us, or before we come to that vision, let us rejoice in the Lord; for it is no small reason for rejoicing to have a hope that will some day be fulfilled.

Therefore, since the hope we now have inspires love, the just man rejoices, Scripture says, in the Lord; but because he does not yet see, it immediately goes on to say, and hopes in him.

Yet already we have the first-fruits of the Spirit, and have we not also other reasons for rejoicing? For we are drawing near to the one we love, and not only are we drawing near—we even have some slight feeling and taste of the banquet we shall one day eagerly eat and drink.

But how can we rejoice in the Lord if he is far from us? Pray God he may not be far. If he is, that is your doing. Love, and he will draw near; love, and he will dwell within you. The Lord is at hand; have no anxiety. Are you puzzled to know how it is that he will be with you if you love? God is love.

“What do you mean by love?” you will ask me. It is that which enables us to be loving. What do we love? A good that words cannot describe, a good that is for ever giving, a good that is the Creator of all good. Delight in him from whom you have received everything that delights you. But in that I do not include sin, for sin is the one thing that you do not receive from him. With that one exception, everything you have comes from him.

Glory to the Father
and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and will be forever. Amen

 






Tuesday of the Thirty-third Week in Ordinary Time



“Now a man there named Zacchaeus, who was a chief tax collector and also a wealthy man...” (Luke 19:2.)

Saint Augustine of Hippo comments on this verse from the Gospel proclaimed during today’s Mass:

“Zacchaeus climbed away from the crowd and saw Jesus without the crowd getting in his way.

The crowd laughs at the lowly, to people walking the way of humility, who leave the wrongs they suffer in God’s hands and do not insist on getting back at their enemies. The crowd laughs at the lowly and says, “You helpless, miserable clod, you cannot even stick up for yourself and get back what is your own.” The crowd gets in the way and prevents Jesus from being seen. The crowd boasts and crows when it is able to get back what it owns. It blocks the sight of the one who said as he hung on the cross, “Father, forgive them, because they do not know what they are doing.” He ignored the crowd that was getting in his way. He instead climbed a sycamore tree, a tree of “silly fruit.” As the apostle says, “We preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block indeed to the Jews, [now notice the sycamore] but folly to the Gentiles.” Finally, the wise people of this world laugh at us about the cross of Christ and say, “What sort of minds do you people have, who worship a crucified God?” What sort of minds do we have? They are certainly not your kind of mind. “The wisdom of this world is folly with God.” No, we do not have your kind of mind. You call our minds foolish. Say what you like, but for our part, let us climb the sycamore tree and see Jesus. The reason you cannot see Jesus is that you are ashamed to climb the sycamore tree.

Let Zacchaeus grasp the sycamore tree, and let the humble person climb the cross. That is little enough, merely to climb it. We must not be ashamed of the cross of Christ, but we must fix it on our foreheads, where the seat of shame is. Above where all our blushes show is the place we must firmly fix that for which we should never blush. As for you, I rather think you make fun of the sycamore, and yet that is what has enabled me to see Jesus. You make fun of the sycamore, because you are just a person, but “the foolishness of God is wiser than men.”

The Lord, who had already welcomed Zacchaeus in his heart, was now ready to be welcomed by him in his house. He said, “Zacchaeus, hurry up and come down, since I have to stay in your house.” He thought it was a marvelous piece of good luck to see Christ. While imagining it was a marvelous piece of luck quite beyond words to see him passing by, he was suddenly found worthy to have him in his house. Grace is poured out, and faith starts working through love. Christ, who was already dwelling in his heart, is welcomed into his house. Zacchaeus says to Christ, “Lord, half my goods I give to the poor, and if I have cheated anyone of anything, I am paying back four times over.” It is as if he were saying, “The reason I am keeping back half for myself is not in order to have it, but to have something from which to pay people back.”

There you are. That is really what welcoming Jesus means, welcoming him into your heart. Christ was already there. He was in Zacchaeus and spoke through him. The apostle says that this is what it means, “For Christ to dwell by faith in your hearts.” (Sermon 174)




Collect
Look upon us, O God,
Creator and ruler of all things,
and, that we may feel the working of Your mercy,
grant that we may serve You with all our heart.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son,
Who lives and reigns with You
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.


Glory to the Father
and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and will be forever. Amen








Behold, your king is coming to you, the Holy One, the Savior



Saint Andrew of Crete
Bishop

An excerpt from Oration 9: On the Palm Branches

Tuesday of the Thirty-third Week in Ordinary Time

Let us say to Christ: Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, the king of Israel. Let us wave before him like palm branches the words inscribed above him on the cross. Let us show him honor, not with olive branches but with the splendor of merciful deeds to one another. Let us spread the thoughts and desires of our hearts under his feet like garments, so that entering with the whole of his being, he may draw the whole of our being into himself and place the whole of his in us. Let us say to Zion in the words of the prophet: Have courage, daughter of Zion, do not be afraid. Behold, your king comes to you, humble and mounted on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.

He is coming who is everywhere present and pervades all things; he is coming to achieve in you his work of universal salvation. He is coming who came to call to repentance not the righteous but sinners, coming to recall those who have strayed into sin. Do not be afraid then: God is in the midst of you, and you shall not be shaken.

Receive him with open, outstretched hands, for it was on his own hands that he sketched you. Receive him who laid your foundations on the palms of his hands. Receive him, for he took upon himself all that belongs to us except sin, to consume what is ours in what is his. Be glad, city of Zion, our mother, and fear not. Celebrate your feasts. Glorify him for his mercy, who has come to us in you. Rejoice exceedingly, daughter of Jerusalem, sing and leap for joy. Be enlightened, be enlightened, we cry to you, as holy Isaiah trumpeted, for the light has come to you and the glory of the Lord has risen over you.

What kind of light is this? It is that which enlightens every man coming into the world. It is the everlasting light, the timeless light revealed in time, the light manifested in the flesh although hidden by nature, the light that shone round the shepherds and guided the Magi. It is the light that was in the world from the beginning, through which the world was made, yet the world did not know it. It is that light which came to its own, and its own people did not receive it.

And what is this glory of the Lord? Clearly it is the cross on which Christ was glorified, he, the radiance of the Father’s glory, even as he said when he faced his passion: Now is the Son of Man glorified, and God is glorified in him, and will glorify him at once. The glory of which he speaks here is his lifting up on the cross, for Christ’s glory is his cross and his exaltation upon it, as he plainly says: When I have been lifted up, I will draw all men to myself.



Glory to the Father
and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and will be forever. Amen

 






He who overcomes shall not be harmed by the second death



Saint Fulgentius of Ruspe
Bishop

An excerpt from Against Fabianus

Monday of the Thirty-third Week in Ordinary Time

In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye as the final trumpet sounds, for the trumpet shall indeed sound, the dead shall rise incorruptible and we shall be changed. In saying “we,” Paul is indicating that the gift of that future change will also be given to those who during their time on earth are united to him and his companions by upright lives within the communion of the Church. He hints at the nature of the change when he says: This corruptible body must put on incorruptibility, this mortal body immortality. In order, then, that men may obtain the transformation which is the reward of the just, they must first undergo here on earth a change which is God’s free gift. Those who in this life have been changed from evil to good are promised that future change as a reward.

Through justification and the spiritual resurrection, grace now effects in them an initial change that is God’s gift. Later on, through the bodily resurrection, the transformation of the just will be brought to completion, and they will experience a perfect, abiding, unchangeable glorification. The purpose of this change wrought in them by the gifts of both justification and glorification is that they may abide in an eternal, changeless state of joy.

Here on earth they are changed by the first resurrection, in which they are enlightened and converted, thus passing from death to life, sinfulness to holiness, unbelief to faith, and evil actions to holy life. For this reason the second death has no power over them. It is of such men that the Book of Revelation says: Happy the man who shares in the first resurrection; over such as he the second death has no power. Elsewhere the same book says: He who overcomes shall not be harmed by the second death. As the first resurrection consists of the conversion of the heart, the second death consists of unending torment.

Let everyone, therefore, who does not wish to be condemned to the endless punishment of the second death now hasten to share in the first resurrection. For if any during this life are changed out of fear of God and pass from an evil life to a good one, they pass from death to life and later they shall be transformed from a shameful state to a glorious one.


Glory to the Father
and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and will be forever. Amen

 






Thirty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time



“Before all this happens, however, they will seize and persecute you, they will hand you over to the synagogues and to prisons, and they will have you led before kings and governors because of my name ...” (Luke 21:12.)

Saint Cyril of Alexandria comments on this verse from the Gospel proclaimed at Mass today:

“Jesus gives them clear and evident signs of the time when the consummation of the world draws near. He says that there will be wars, turmoil, famines and epidemics everywhere. There will be terrors from heaven and great signs. As another Evangelist says, “All the stars shall fall, and the heaven be rolled up like a scroll, and its powers will be shaken.”

In the middle of this, the Savior places what refers to the capture of Jerusalem. He mixes the accounts together in both parts of the narrative. Before all these things, he says, “They will lay their hands on you and persecute you, delivering you up to synagogues and to prisons and bringing you before kings and rulers for my name’s sake. This will be a witness to you.” Before the times of consummation, the land of the Jews was taken captive, and the Roman armies overran it. They burned the temple, overthrew their national government, and stopped the means for legal worship. They no longer had sacrifices, now that the temple was destroyed. The country of the Jews together with Jerusalem itself was totally laid waste. Before these things happened, they persecuted the blessed disciples. They imprisoned them and had a part in unendurable trials. They brought the disciples before judges and sent them to kings. Paul was sent to Rome to Caesar.

Christ promises, however, that he will deliver them certainly and completely. He says that a hair of your head will not perish.” (Commentary on Luke, Homily 139)



Collect
Grant us, we pray, O Lord our God,
the constant gladness
of being devoted to You,
for it is full and lasting happiness
to serve with constancy
the Author of all that is good.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son,
Who lives and reigns with You
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.



Glory to the Father
and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and will be forever. Amen


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Let us not resist the first coming, so that we may not dread the second



Saint Augustine of Hippo
Bishop and Great Western Father of the Church

An excerpt from his On The Psalms (Psalm 95), 14-15.

Thirty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time

All the trees of the forest will exult before the face of the Lord, for he has come, he has come to judge the earth. He has come the first time, and he will come again. At his first coming, his own voice declared in the gospel: Hereafter you shall see the Son of Man coming upon the clouds. What does he mean by hereafter? Does he not mean that the Lord will come at a future time when all the nations of the earth will be striking their breasts in grief? Previously he came through his preachers, and he filled the whole world. Let us not resist his first coming, so that we may not dread the second.

What then should the Christian do? He ought to use the world, not become its slave. And what does this mean? It means having, as though not having. So says the Apostle: My brethren, the appointed time is short: from now on let those who have wives live as though they had none; and those who mourn as though they were not mourning; and those who rejoice as though they were not rejoicing; and those who buy as though they had no goods; and those who deal with this world as though they had no dealings with it. For the form of this world is passing away. But I wish you to be without anxiety. He who is without anxiety waits without fear until his Lord comes. For what sort of love of Christ is it to fear his coming? Brothers, do we not have to blush for shame? We love him, yet we fear his coming. Are we really certain that we love him? Or do we love our sins more? Therefore let us hate our sins and love him who will exact punishment for them. He will come whether we wish it or not. Do not think that because he is not coming just now, he will not come at all. He will come, you know not when; and provided he finds you prepared, your ignorance of the time of his coming will not be held against you.

All the trees of the forest will exult. He has come the first time, and he will come again to judge the earth; he will find those rejoicing who believed in his first coming, for he has come.

He will judge the world with equity and the peoples in his truth. What are equity and truth? He will gather together with him for the judgment his chosen ones, but the others he will set apart; for he will place some on his right, others on his left. What is more equitable, what more true than that they should not themselves expect mercy from the judge, who themselves were unwilling to show mercy before the judge’s coming. Those, however who were willing to show mercy will be judged with mercy. For it will be said to those placed on his right: Come, blessed of my Father, take possession of the kingdom which has been prepared for you from the beginning of the world. And he reckons to their account their works of mercy: For I was hungry and you gave me to eat; I was thirsty and you gave me to drink.

What is imputed to those places on his left side? That they refused to show mercy. And where will they go? Depart into the everlasting fire. The hearing of this condemnation will cause much wailing. But what has another psalm said? The just man will be held in everlasting remembrance; he will not fear the evil report. What is the evil report? Depart into the everlasting fire, which was prepared for the devil and his angels. Whoever rejoices to hear the good report will not fear the bad. This is equity, this is truth.

Or do you, because you are unjust, expect the judge not to be just? Or because you are a liar, will the truthful one not be true? Rather, if you wish to receive mercy, be merciful before he comes; forgive whatever has been done against you; give of your abundance. Of whose possessions do you give, if not from his? If you were to give of your own, it would be largess; but since you give of his, it is restitution. For what have you that you have not received? These are the sacrifices most pleasing to God: mercy, humility, praise, peace, charity. Such as these, then, let us bring and, free from fear, we shall await the coming of the judge who will judge the world in equity and the peoples in his truth.



Glory to the Father
and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and will be forever. Amen

 






Saturday of the Thirty-second Week in Ordinary Time



“Then he told them a parable about the necessity for them to pray always without becoming weary. He said...” (Luke 18:1.)

Origen of Alexandria (part 2 of Pope Benedict’s reflections on Origen) comments on this verse from the Gospel proclaimed at Mass today:

“He prays for those who pray and appeals with those who appeal. He does not, however, pray for servants who do not pray continuously through him. He will not be the Advocate with God for his own if they are not obedient to his instructions that they always should pray and not lose heart. It says, “And he told them a parable to the effect that they should always pray and not lose heart. In a certain city there was a judge, etc.” … Who would hesitate a moment to be persuaded to pray if he believes that the mouth of Jesus cannot lie, when he says, “Ask, and it will be given you … for everyone who asks, receives”?” (On Prayer, 10.)




Collect
Almighty and merciful God,
graciously keep from us all adversity,
so that, unhindered in mind and body alike,
we may pursue in freedom of heart
the things that are Yours.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son,
Who lives and reigns with You
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.




Glory to the Father
and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and will be forever. Amen


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Our salvation depends on the integrity of our lives



Anonymous author, second century
(Ancient Christian Writer)
An excerpt from A Homily

Saturday of the Thirty-second Week in Ordinary Time

Let us be sure that when the day of judgment comes, our place will be among those who give thanks to God and have served him, and not with the ungodly who face condemnation. As for myself, I am only a sinner, not yet beyond the reach of temptation; but even amidst all the devil’s machinations, I still strive to make progress and hope to attain at least some virtue, for I fear the judgment that awaits me.

My brothers and sisters, you have heard the word of God who is the very fountainhead of truth. Therefore, I now read you an appeal to heed what is written, and thereby save both yourselves and your reader. The reward I ask is that you repent with your whole heart, to save yourselves and find life. If we do this, we shall set an example for all young people, for whom the glory and goodness of God is a challenge to be generous in his service.

Let me say also that when we are given a warning and corrected for doing something wrong, we should not be so foolish as to take offense and be angry. There are times when we are unconscious of the sins we commit because our hearts are fickle, lacking in faith. Futile desires becloud our minds. We need to pull ourselves up, therefore, because our very salvation is at stake. Those who keep God’s commandments will have reason to rejoice. For a short time in this world they may have to suffer, but they will rise again and their reward will endure for ever. No one who holds God in reverence should grieve over the hardships of this present time, for a time of blessedness awaits him. He will live again in heaven in the company of all those who have gone before him; for all eternity he will rejoice, never to know sorrow again.

So do not be disturbed at the sight of wicked men possessing great wealth while the servants of God suffer want. We, my brothers and sisters, must have faith. Competing as we are in the arena of the living God, we are receiving the training in this present life that will make us worthy to be crowned in the life to come. No honest man becomes rich overnight; he has to wait for the reward of his labors. If God gave virtue an immediate recompense, we should straightway find ourselves engaging in commerce, instead of perfecting ourselves in his service. Although to all outward appearance we might be irreproachable, we should not be seeking God, but our own advantage, and bringing down on our sinful souls the divine judgment that would soon make us feel the full weight of our chains.

To the one invisible God, the Father of truth, who sent forth the Savior, the author of immortality, and through him revealed to us the truth and the heavenly life—to him be glory throughout all ages, for ever and ever. Amen.



Glory to the Father
and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and will be forever. Amen

 





Memorial of Saint Albert the Great, Bishop and Doctor of the Church



“As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be in the days of the Son of Man...” (Luke 17:26.)

Saint Cyril of Alexandria comments on this verse from the Gospel proclaimed at Mass today:

“To show that he will appear unexpectedly and with no one knowing it, the Lord says that the end of the world will come and be as it was in the days of Noah and Lot. He says, “They were eating and drinking, and were taking wives and being made the wives of men. They were selling and buying and building,” but the coming of the waters destroyed the one, while the others were the prey and food of fire and brimstone. What does this signify? It signifies that he requires us to be always watchful and ready to make our defense before the tribunal of God.

The Savior was speaking of the last day, that is, the end of this world. Strengthening them to recall the last day and the end time, he commands them to disregard all earthly and temporary matters and look only to one end, the duty of everyone saving his soul. He says, “He that is on the housetop, do not let him go down to the house to carry away his goods.” In these words, he apparently means the one who is at ease, living in wealth and worldly glory. Those that stand on the housetops are always conspicuous in the eyes of those who are around the house.” (Commentary on Luke, 117-118)


Collect
O God,
Who made the Bishop Saint Albert
great by his joining
of human wisdom to divine faith, grant, we pray,
that we may so adhere to the truths he taught,
that through progress in learning we may come
to a deeper knowledge and love of You.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
Who lives and reigns with You
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.



Glory to the Father
and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and will be forever. Amen


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He was a shepherd and doctor who built up the body of Christ



Saint Albert the Great
Bishop and Doctor of the Church (Video from Catholic.org)

Memorial of Saint Albert the Great,Bishop and Doctor of the Church

An excerpt from Commentary on the Gospel of Luke

Do this in remembrance of me. Two things should be noted here. The first is the command that we should use this sacrament, which is indicated when he says: Do this. The second is that this sacrament commemorates the Lord’s going to death for our sake.

Do this. Certainly he would demand nothing more profitable, nothing more pleasant, nothing more beneficial, nothing more desirable, nothing more similar to eternal life. We will look at each of these qualities separately.

This sacrament is profitable because it grants remission of sins; it is most useful because it bestows the fullness of grace on us in this life. The Father of spirits instructs us in what is useful for our sanctification. And his sanctification is in Christ’s sacrifice, that is, when he offers himself in this sacrament to the Father for our redemption, to us for our use. I consecrate myself for their sakes. Christ, who through the Holy Spirit offered himself up without blemish to God, will cleanse our consciences from dead works to worship the living God.

Nor can we do anything more pleasant. For what is better than God manifesting his whole sweetness to us. You gave them bread from heaven, not the fruit of human labor, but a bread endowed with all delight and pleasant to every sense of taste. For this substance of yours revealed your kindness toward your children, and serving the desire of each recipient, it changed to suit each one’s taste.

He could not have commanded anything more beneficial, for this sacrament is the fruit of the tree of life. Anyone who receives this sacrament with the devotion of sincere faith will never taste death. It is a tree of life for those who grasp it, and blessed is he who holds it fast. The man who feeds on me shall live on account of me.

Nor could he have commanded anything more lovable, for this sacrament produces love and union. It is characteristic of the greatest love to give itself as food. Had not the men of my tent exclaimed: Who will feed us with his flesh to satisfy our hunger? as if to say: I have loved them and they have loved me so much that I desire to be within them, and they wish to receive me so that they may become my members. There is no more intimate or more natural means for them to be united to me, and I to them.

Nor could he have commanded anything which is more like eternal life. Eternal life flows from this sacrament because God with all sweetness pours himself out upon the blessed.


Glory to the Father
and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and will be forever. Amen

 






Memorial of Saint Frances Xavier Cabrini



“And when he saw them, he said, “Go show yourselves to the priests.”” (Luke 17:14.)

Saint Cyril of Alexandria comments on this verse from the Gospel proclaimed at Mass today:

“Why did he not say, “I will, be cleansed,”1 as he did in the case of another leper, instead of commanding them to show themselves to the priests? It was because the law gave directions to this effect to those who were delivered from leprosy.2 It commanded them to show themselves to the priests and to offer a sacrifice for their cleansing. He commanded them to go as being already healed so that they might bear witness to the priests, the rulers of the Jews and always envious of his glory. They testified that wonderfully and beyond their hope, they had been delivered from their misfortune by Christ’s willing that they should be healed. He did not heal them first but sent them to the priests, because the priests knew the marks of leprosy and of its healing.” (Commentary on Luke, Homilies 113-116)


Collect
God our Father,
who called Saint Frances Xavier Cabrini from Italy
to serve the immigrants of America,
by her example,
teach us to have concern for the stranger,
the sick, and all those in need,
and by her prayers help us to see Christ
in all the men and women we meet.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
Who lives and reigns with You
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.




Glory to the Father
and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and will be forever. Amen


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A humble woman who lived a virtuous life



Pope Pius XII
Bishop of Rome

An excerpt from Homily at the Canonization of Saint Frances Xavier Cabrini

Memorial of Saint Frances Xavier Cabrini

Inspired by the grace of God, we join the saints in honoring the holy virgin Frances Xavier Cabrini. She was a humble woman who became outstanding not because she was famous or rich or powerful, but because she lived a virtuous life. From the tender years of her youth, she kept her innocence as white as a lily and preserved it carefully with the thorns of penitence; as the years progressed, she was moved by a certain instinct and supernatural zeal to dedicate her whole life to the service and greater glory of God.

She welcomed delinquent youths into safe homes, and taught them to live upright and holy lives. She consoled those who were in prison, and recalled to them the hope of eternal life. She encouraged prisoners to reform themselves, and to live honest lives.

She comforted the sick and the infirm in the hospitals, and diligently cared for them. She extended a friendly and helping hand especially to immigrants, and offered them necessary shelter and relief, for having left their homeland behind, they were wandering about in a foreign land with no place to turn for help. Because of their condition, she saw that they were in danger of deserting the practice of Christian virtues and their Catholic faith.

Undoubtedly she accomplished all this through the faith which was always so vibrant and alive in her heart; through the divine love which burned within her; and finally, through constant prayer by which she was so closely united with God from whom she humbly asked and obtained whatever her human weakness could not obtain. Although her constitution was very frail, her spirit was endowed with such singular strength that, knowing the will of God in her regard, she permitted nothing to impede her from accomplishing what seemed beyond her strength.



Glory to the Father
and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and will be forever. Amen

 






Memorial of Saint Josaphat, Bishop and Martyr



“Jesus replied, “Who among you would say to your servant who has just come in from plowing or tending sheep in the field, ‘Come here immediately and take your place at table’?”” (Luke 17:7.)

Saint Ambrose of Milan offers the following insight on this verse from today’s Gospel proclamation:

“You do not say to your servant, “Sit down,” but require more service from him and do not thank him. The Lord also does not allow only one work or labor for you, because so long as we live we must always work. Know that you are a servant overwhelmed by very much obedience. You must not set yourself first, because you are called a son of God. Grace must be acknowledged, but nature not overlooked. Do not boast of yourself if you have served well, as you should have done. The sun obeys, the moon complies, and the angels serve. Let us not require praise from ourselves nor prevent the judgment of God and anticipate the sentence of the Judge but reserve it for its own time and Judge.” (Exposition of the Gospel of Luke, 8)


Collect


Stir up in Your Church, we pray, O Lord,
the Spirit that filled Saint Josaphat
as he laid down his life for the sheep,
so that through his intercession
we, too, may be strengthened by the same Spirit
and not be afraid
to lay down our life for others.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son
Who lives and reigns with You
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.



Glory to the Father
and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and will be forever. Amen









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