Daily Reading and Reflection for March 13, 2014 March 13, 2014 ------------------------------------------------------- Thursday of the First Week in Lent Receive Lord, all my liberty, my memory, my understanding and my whole will. You have given me all that I have, all that I am, and I surrender all to your divine will, that you dispose of me. Give me only your love and your grace. With this I am rich enough, and I have no more to ask. -- St. Ignatius Loyola A SAINT A DAY ------------------------------ ST. EUPHRASIA Virgin Information: Feast Day: March 13 Born: 380 Died: 420 Virgin, b. in 380; d. after 410. She was the daughter of Antigonus, a senator of Constantinople, and a relation of Emperor Theodosius. Her father died shortly after her birth, and her mother, also Euphrasia, devoted her life thenceforth exclusively to the service of God. To carry out this ideal she abandoned the capital, and, with her seven-year-old daughter, repaired to Egypt, where she dwelt on one of her estates, near a convent, and adopted the nuns austere mode of life. This example aroused in her daughter the desire to enter the convent, and her mother gave her into the care of the superior, that she might be trained in the ascetic life. After her mothers death she declined an offer of marriage made, by the Emperor Theodosius, on behalf of a senators son, transferred to the emperor her entire fortune, to be used for charitable purposes, and took up, with a holy ardour, the rigorous practices of Christian perfection. She was about thirty when she died. Her feast is celebrated in the Greek Church on 25 July, and in the Latin Church on 13 March. She is mentioned by St. John Damascene, in his third Oratio de imaginibus. STS. RODERIC AND SALOMON Martyrs of Spain Information: Feast Day: March 13 Born: 9th century southern Spain Died: 857 Roderic, also called Rudericus and Rodrigo, was a priest at Cabra who was assaulted by his two brothers, one a Muslim and the other a lapsed Catholic. He was denounced by the Muslim brother and imprisoned for falling away from the Islamic faith. Roderic proclaimed that he had always been a Christian but was charged with apostasy. In prison, he met Salomon, a man under the same charge. They were beheaded at Cordoba after a long period of imprisonment. (Taken from Catholic Encyclopedia) FAVOURITE QUOTES FOR DADS ------------------------------ Glory to the Father give, God in whom we move and live; Childrens prayers He deigns to hear, Childrens songs delight His ear. -- James Montgomery FAVOURITE QUOTES FOR MOMS ------------------------------ In the beginning there was my mother. A shape. A shape and a force, standing in the light. You could see her energy; it was visible in the air. Against any background she stood out. -- Marilyn Krysl 1ST READING (Esther C:12, 14-16, 23-25) ------------------------------ I am sure there has been at least one time in our lives when we have been afraid, for one reason or another, to do what we know we should do in a particular situation. If so, then we can sympathize with Esther, who knows she must take her life in her hands and appeal to her husband for the sake of her people. The stakes are enormous — the welfare of a nation on one hand and her own life on the other. Let us pray for the grace to always do what we know to be the right thing. GOSPEL ACCLAMATION ------------------------------ A clean heart create for me, God; give me back the joy of your salvation. GOSPEL (Matthew 7:7-12) ------------------------------ If at first you do not succeed, try and try again. Perseverance is a great trait that enables us to follow God’s call in the midst of our struggles and trials. We can be sure that we will encounter difficulties. This should not cause us to lose heart but see it as an opportunity to deepen our trust and faith in God’s promises. REFLECTION ------------------------------ Thursday (March 13): How much more will your Father in heaven give! Meditation: Do you expect God to hear your prayers? Esther’s prayer on behalf of her people is a model for us. She prayed for help according to God’s promise to be faithful to his people. God wants us to remember his promises and to count on his help when we pray. Jesus wanted to raise the expectations of his disciples when he taught them how to pray. Jesus’ parable of the father feeding his son illustrates the unthinkable! How could a loving father refuse to give his son what is good; or worse, to give him what is harmful? In conclusion Jesus makes a startling claim: How much more will the heavenly Father give to those who ask! Our heavenly Father graciously gives beyond our expectations. Jesus taught his disciples to pray with confidence because the Heavenly Father in his goodness always answers prayers. That is why we can boldly pray: Give us this day our daily bread. Those who know and trust in Gods love, pray with great boldness. Listen to what John Chrysostom, a 5th century church father, has to say about the power of prayer: “Prayer is an all-efficient panoply [i.e. a full suit of armor or splendid array], a treasure undiminished, a mine never exhausted, a sky unobstructed by clouds, a haven unruffled by storm. It is the root, the fountain, and the mother of a thousand blessings. It exceeds a monarch’s power. ..I speak not of the prayer which is cold and feeble and devoid of zeal. I speak of that which proceeds from a mind outstretched, the child of a contrite spirit, the offspring of a soul converted – this is the prayer which mounts to heaven. ..The power of prayer has subdued the strength of fire, bridled the rage of lions, silenced anarchy, extinguished wars, appeased the elements, expelled demons, burst the chains of death, enlarged the gates of heaven, relieved diseases, averted frauds, rescued cities from destruction, stayed the sun in its course, and arrested the progress of the thunderbolt. In sum prayer has power to destroy whatever is at enmity with the good.” Prayer flows from the love of God; and the personal love we show to our neighbor is fueled by the love that God has poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit (Romans 5:5). Jesus concludes his discourse on prayer with the reminder that we must treat our neighbor in the same way we wish to be treated by God and by others. We must not just avoid doing harm to our neighbor, we must actively seek his or her welfare. In doing so, we fulfill the law and the prophets, namely what God requires of us – loving God with all that we have and are and loving our neighbor as ourselves. The Holy Spirit is every ready to transform our lives in Jesus’ way of love. Do you thirst for holiness and for the fire of God’s love? PRAYER ------------------------------ Let me love you, my Lord and my God, and see myself as I really am – a pilgrim in this world, a Christian called to respect and love all whose lives I touch, those in authority over me or those under my authority, my friends and my enemies. Help me to conquer anger with gentleness, greed by generosity, apathy by fervor. Help me to forget myself and reach out towards others. (Prayer attributed to Clement XI of Rome) -------------------------------------------------------- Lectionary for Mass is from the USCCB website located at: usccb.org/bible/readings/ -------------------------------------------------------- This reflection is courtesy of Don Schwager, whose website is located at: rc.net/wcc/readings/ -------------------------------------------------------- You can also visit mobilegabriel/ for the complete readings and reflections for the whole month. -------------------------------------------------------- A Saint A Day courtesy of EWTN Global Catholic Network at: ewtn/saintsHoly/ -------------------------------------------------------- Inspirational message courtesy of EWTN Global Catholic Network at: ewtn/Devotionals/
Posted on: Thu, 13 Mar 2014 07:16:41 +0000
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