“Do you think that because these Galileans suffered in this way they were greater sinners than all other Galileans? By no means! But I tell you, if you do not repent, you will all perish as they did!" (Luke 13: 2 - 3).
Saturday 24th October 2020, 29th Week in Ordinary Time is the feast of St Anthony Mary Claret (1807 - 1870). Spanish missionary and Archbishop of Santiago, Cuba. He founded the Missionary Sons of the Immaculate Heart of Mary (Claretians).
St Anthony Mary Claret was no stranger to the type of cruelty Pilate perpetrated on the Jews in the Gospel Reading for today's Liturgy. The Jews reported to Jesus how Pontius Pilate massacred the Jews inside the Temple. They expected great sympathy from Jesus but He said:
“Do you think that because these Galileans suffered in this way they were greater sinners than all other Galileans? By no means! But I tell you, if you do not repent, you will all perish as they did! Or those eighteen people who were killed when the tower at Siloam fell on them—do you think they were more guilty than everyone else who lived in Jerusalem? By no means! But I tell you, if you do not repent, you will all perish as they did!” (Luke 13: 2 - 5).
Jesus took the opportunity of this encounter with the Jews to teach a necessary lesson to them and to us: We must always be READY to die any moment. Death can come suddenly without warning like a thief in the night.
How do we prepare ourselves for sudden and unexpected death?
#1 Constant prayer is the best and perhaps the only means of vigilance. St Alphonsus Liguori says that he who prays is saved. He who does not pray is lost.
Added to prayer as a means of vigilance is daily word of God and Sacrament of Reconciliation. Since one may not be able to partake of the Sacrament of Reconciliation daily, the daily examination of conscience is a necessity. 1 Corinthians 13: 4 - 7 is a short Examen one can use every day.
To learn more about the Examination of Conscience, click the link below:
http://seekfirstcommunity.com/2020/09/a-good-examination-of-conscience.html
Daily Bible Verse @ SeekFirstcommunity.com
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