FEAST OF ST ALBERT THE GREAT, BISHOP AND DOCTOR OF THE CHURCH.
HOW VITAL IS PRAYER FOR YOU?
"Jesus told his disciples a parable about the necessity for them to pray always without becoming weary.
He said, “There was a judge in a certain town who neither feared God nor respected any human being.
And a widow in that town used to come to him and say,
‘Render a just decision for me against my adversary.’
For a long time the judge was unwilling,
but eventually he thought, ‘While it is true that I neither fear God nor respect any human being,
because this widow keeps bothering me I shall deliver a just decision for her lest she finally come and strike me.’”
The Lord said,
“Pay attention to what the dishonest judge says.
Will not God then secure the rights of his chosen ones who call out to him day and night?
Will he be slow to answer them?
I tell you, he will see to it that justice is done for them speedily.
But when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?” (Luke 18: 1 - 8).
Saturday 15th November 2025 in the 32nd week in Ordinary Time is the feast of St Albert the Great OP, Bishop and Doctor of the Church.
(1206 - 1280) German.
St Albert belongs to the Order of Preachers (Dominicans).
He is an eminent theologian and scientist and Doctor of the Church.
Albert the Great combined his human wisdom and divine faith to advance knowledge and science.
St Albert wrote a great deal on Divine Providence. One of the most comforting is this quote below:
“The greater and more persistent your confidence in God, the more abundantly you will receive all that you ask.”
Another precious quote from St Albert:
"Banish, therefore, from thy heart the distractions of earth and turn thine eyes to spiritual joys, that thou mayest learn at last to repose in the light of the contemplation of God."
St Albert the Great is the patron saint of scientists.
Pray for us St Albert the Great.
In the Gospel of today,
"Jesus told his disciples a parable about the necessity for them to pray always without becoming weary."
The Widow in today's Gospel proves that even with God, persistence breaks resistance.
So pray always. Pray everywhere. Pray about everything.
God hears the prayers of the widow, the orphan and the immigrant.
He hears the prayers of all who call on Him in faith and persistence.
"Wait for the LORD; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the LORD!" (Psalm 27: 14).
"Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer." (Romans 12: 12).
St Augustine teaches that "God wills that our desire should be exercised in prayer, that we may be able to receive what He is prepared to give."
It is important to persevere in prayer because if we do, God will not simply answer the prayer, He will reveal His will to us - this is much more important.
Perseverance in prayer reveals the quality of our faith.
James says, "I will show you my faith by my works" (James 2:18).
( Anonymous.)
God could NEVER say NO to any prayer.
God promises:
"Ask and you will be given. Seek and you will find. Knock and the door will be opened to you."
Then God adds: "Whoever asks shall receive..."
In another passage God promises that
"Whatever you ask for shall be given you..."
For God to say No to a Prayer will be DIVINE INJUSTICE. God is not capable of being unjust. It is one of the greatest lies of Satan to convince us that God is a Liar. He never answers all our prayers, the Great Liar says.
In the Parable of the Persistent Widow in Luke 18: 1 - 8, Jesus calls failure to answer prayers by God an act of injustice. Read the text below:
"Because this widow keeps bothering me I shall deliver a just decision for her lest she finally come and strike me.’” 6 The Lord said, “Pay attention to what the dishonest judge says. 7 Will not God then secure the rights of his chosen ones who call out to him day and night? Will he be slow to answer them? 8 I tell you, he will see to it that justice is done for them speedily."
Jesus reveals the power of the Holy Rosary Prayer to a Benedictine mystic:
"There are no sufferings that cannot be borne peacefully, so long as a soul is praying the Rosary. Through the Rosary, all the grace and power of My mysteries passes through My Mother’s Immaculate Heart into the hearts of the little ones who invoke her, repeating the angel’s “Ave” over and over again. There are illnesses that can be cured through the Rosary. There are clouds of darkness and confusion that only the Rosary can disperse, and this because it is My Mother’s favourite prayer, a prayer that originated in the heights of heaven and was carried to earth by My Archangel, a prayer echoed and amplified in the Church through the ages, a prayer loved by all My saints, a prayer of disarming power and of immense depth." (IN SINU JESU, Tuesday, December 2, 2014).
November is the Month we pray for the Souls in PURGATORY.
“Purgatory is simply the place where already saved souls are cleansed of the temporal effects of sin before they are allowed to see the holy face of Almighty God.
Revelation 21:27 tells us that “...nothing unclean will enter [Heaven].”
For Catholic Church teaching on the Souls in PURGATORY and how to help them, click the link below:
WHOEVER SEEKS TO PRESERVE HIS LIFE WILL LOSE IT.
"Jesus said to his disciples:
“As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be in the days of the Son of Man;
they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage up to the day that Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all.
Similarly, as it was in the days of Lot:
they were eating, drinking, buying, selling, planting, building;
on the day when Lot left Sodom, fire and brimstone rained from the sky to destroy them all.
So it will be on the day the Son of Man is revealed.
On that day, someone who is on the housetop and whose belongings are in the house must not go down to get them,
and likewise one in the field must not return to what was left behind.
Remember the wife of Lot.
Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it, but whoever loses it will save it.
I tell you, on that night there will be two people in one bed; one will be taken, the other left.
And there will be two women grinding meal together; one will be taken, the other left.”
They said to him in reply, “Where, Lord?”
He said to them, “Where the body is, there also the vultures will gather.” (Luke 17: 26 - 37).
Our key Scripture for today from Luke 17: 26 - 37 is a sobering message from Jesus. In one word, History Repeats Itself.
In the times of Noah, people lived with abandon. The world is ours. No fear, no worry, no doubt about tomorrow.
But the truth is that this world is not our home. We are pilgrims passing by.
What is your attitude? A permanent resident in the world or a temporary resident?
As temporary residents, we must be in a Waiting mode.
How do we wait? "Be watchful! Be alert! You do not know when the time will come." (Mark 13: 33).
In order to be fully awake and take full advantage of all the blessings that God has prepared for those who wait for His time and season, we must be vigilant about our daily devotions:
Prayer, Word of God, Eucharist, Adoration, Penance, etc.
“Beware that your hearts do not become drowsy from carousing and drunkenness and the anxieties of daily life, and that day catch you by surprise like a trap." (Luke 21: 34).
November is the Month we pray for the Souls in PURGATORY.
Origen:
“If a man departs this life with lighter faults, he is condemned to fire which burns away the lighter materials, and prepares the soul for the…"
For Catholic Church teaching on the Souls in PURGATORY and how to help them, click the link below:
THE MEMORIAL OF ST FRANCES CABRINI, VIRGIN AND FOUNDRESS.
"Asked by the Pharisees when the Kingdom of God would come, Jesus said in reply, “The coming of the Kingdom of God cannot be observed, and no one will announce,
‘Look, here it is,’ or, ‘There it is.’ For behold, the Kingdom of God is among you.”
Then he said to his disciples,
“The days will come when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, but you will not see it.
There will be those who will say to you,
‘Look, there he is,’ or ‘Look, here he is.’
Do not go off, do not run in pursuit.
For just as lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one side to the other, so will the Son of Man be in his day.
But first he must suffer greatly and be rejected by this generation.” (Luke 17: 20 - 25).
Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it, but whoever loses it will save it." (Luke 17: 33).
Thursday 13th November 2025, 32nd Week in Ordinary Time is the feast of St Frances Xavier Cabrini. (1850 - 1917). Virgin. Italian. Patroness of Immigrants.
We glorify Jesus when we honor any of His saints.
Each of His saints reflects an aspect of the beautiful character of Jesus as encoded in the Scriptures.
What aspect of the word of God does St Frances Cabrini personify?
"Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it, but whoever loses it will save it." (Luke 17: 33).
Before she came to the United States as a missionary to serve immigrants, Frances was terrified of water.
But once she heard the call of Christ which came to her through Pope Leo XIII, she plunged into the waters and arrived at New York to start a very fruitful missionary service to immigrants in America.
God in His economy of Salvation made immigration a necessity for humanity.
Abraham, Jacob, Joseph, Mary and Jesus were all immigrants.
America is populated by immigrants.
The life of the immigrant is not easy. At least in the first few years.
So God gave a strict order in the Scriptures not to molest these vulnerables: widows, orphans and migrants.
Our saint for today overcame the first obstacle to her vocation: fear of drowning to serve the immigrants.
She founded the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus to serve immigrants in schools, hospitals and parishes.
Before she died in 1917, St Frances Xavier Cabrini had traversed the seas about 30 times planting missionary services to the vulnerable in many countries of the world.
Jesus Christ chose St Frances Xavier Cabrini to be a symbol of His tender care for immigrants. This is why the Church honors her today.
In honoring her, we glorify Jesus Christ, the Good Shepherd of all immigrants.
November is the Month we pray for the Souls in PURGATORY.
St. Alphonsus Liguori: “The clients of this most merciful Mother (Mary) are very fortunate. She helps them both in this life and in the next, consoling them and sponsoring their cause in Purgatory… See how important it is then to have devotion to this good Lady, because she never forgets her servants as long as they suffer in these flames.”
For Catholic Church's teaching on the Souls in PURGATORY and how to help them, click the link below:
THE MEMORIAL OF ST JOSAPHAT, BISHOP AND MARTYR.
"As Jesus continued his journey to Jerusalem, he traveled through Samaria and Galilee.
As he was entering a village, ten lepers met him.
They stood at a distance from him and raised their voice, saying,
“Jesus, Master! Have pity on us!”
And when he saw them, he said,
“Go show yourselves to the priests.”
As they were going they were cleansed.
And one of them, realizing he had been healed, returned, glorifying God in a loud voice; and he fell at the feet of Jesus and thanked him.
He was a Samaritan.
Jesus said in reply, “Ten were cleansed, were they not? Where are the other nine?
Has none but this foreigner returned to give thanks to God?”
Then he said to him, “Stand up and go; your faith has saved you.” ( Luke 17: 11 - 19).
Thursday 12th November 2025, 32nd Week in Ordinary Time is the feast of St Josaphat. (1580 - 1623). Bishop and Martyr.
Born in Poland, St Josaphat ministered and was martyred in Ukraine.
Josaphat spent his life working for the reconciliation and unity of the Orthodox and Roman Catholic Church.
He paid the supreme price for this with his life.
Our Gospel of today from (Luke 17: 11 - 19) is perhaps one of the most dramatic healing stories of Jesus.
Healing one leper is dramatic enough, especially if you understand the disease of leprosy and the social taboo it attracts at the time of Jesus.
Today, Jesus heals 10 lepers at once with a single word of command.
Another famous leprosy healing in the Bible is that of Naaman the Leper. (2 Kings 5: 1 - 19).
Naaman's leprosy did not threaten his career. Naaman was a highly valued 4-star General.
Yet he wanted to get rid of the accursed disease by any means.
With the backing of his king, he traveled to Israel in search of healing.
God's merciful Providence smiled upon him and he was healed by the Prophet Elisha.
Read of the gold, silver, expensive garments Naaman brought for thanksgiving.
The Ten Lepers in today's story are in a worse predicament.
Be this as it may, the real essence of the Healing of the Ten Lepers is a lesson on Thanksgiving, Gratitude, Eucharist ein (Thanksgiving).
Are you a thankful person?
Everything you have: family, health, money, job, food, friends, every possession from the smallest to the largest is a gift from God.
How do you render thanks for the gifts you enjoy?
Do you know the source of your gifts?
Do you know that God expects you to render thanks?
"A sacrifice of thanksgiving honors me." (Psalm 50: 23).
This means that God is most delighted if you honor Him with the Sacrifice of the Mass (Eucharist = Thanksgiving).
November is the Month we pray for the Souls in PURGATORY.
“For the souls in purgatory there is great joy as well as pain as they know for certain they are bound for Heaven!” - St. Catherine of Genoa.
For Catholic Church teaching on the Souls in PURGATORY and how to help them, click the link below:
THE MEMORIAL OF ST MARTIN OF TOURS, BISHOP.
"Jesus said to the Apostles: “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’?
Would he not rather say to him, ‘Prepare something for me to eat. Put on your apron and wait on me while I eat and drink. You may eat and drink when I am finished’?
Is he grateful to that servant because he did what was commanded?
So should it be with you. When you have done all you have been commanded, say, ‘We are unprofitable servants; we have done what we were obliged to do.’” (Luke 17: 7 - 10).
Tuesday 11th November 2025, 32nd Week in Ordinary Time is the feast of St Martin of Tours. (316 - 397).
St Martin was a Bishop. He was born of pagan parents in modern day Hungary.
Martin was a soldier in the imperial army of Rome.
After he encountered Jesus Christ, he became a Christian and a man of peace.
Today is also Veterans Day in the USA, Armistice Day in other countries. November 11 served in the past as a day of memorial of signing peace treaties.
The treaty to end World War 1 was signed on the Feast of St Martin of Tours, November 11th. Hail Jesus Christ, Prince of Peace. Happy Veterans Day!
In the Entrance Antiphon on the Feast of St Martin of Tours, the Lord made Martin a faithful priest who embraced God's will in everything.
Martin founded a monastery in France and was consecrated later as the Bishop of Tours.
He sent missionaries to evangelize France. France is one of the earliest Christian countries in the world and is known as the Elder Daughter of the Church.
St Martin de Tours can help us appreciate the truth that God's gracious and mysterious will is our peace and prosperity.
What is the essence of today's Gospel?
Today's Scripture elevates our conception, knowledge of who God is. In this Parable, the Master is Jesus and the servant is you and me.
Why did God create man? An older Catechism puts it beautifully:
God created man to know Him, to love Him and serve Him.
Why? So that man will enjoy eternity with God.
God is kind and merciful. But He is not your buddy. You must give Him full honors and reverential fear at all times.
Give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God.
Trust, obedience, humility and submission to God's will is what belongs to God.
November is the Month we pray for the Souls in PURGATORY.
St. Bernadette:
“In our prayers, let us not forget sinners and the poor souls in Purgatory, especially our poor relatives.”
For Catholic Church's teaching on the Souls in PURGATORY and how to help them, click the link below:
MEMORIAL OF ST LEO THE GREAT. POPE & DOCTOR OF THE CHURCH.
"Jesus said to his disciples, “Things that cause sin will inevitably occur, but woe to the one through whom they occur. It would be better for him if a millstone were put around his neck and he be thrown into the sea than for him to cause one of these little ones to sin. Be on your guard! If your brother sins, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him. And if he wrongs you seven times in one day and returns to you seven times saying, ‘I am sorry,’ you should forgive him.”
And the Apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith.” The Lord replied, “If you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you would say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.” (Luke 17: 1 - 6).
Monday 10th November 2025 in the 32nd Week in Ordinary Time is the Memorial of a giant of our faith: St Leo the Great. (+ 461). Pope. Italian. Doctor of the Church.
Leo was from a Roman aristocratic family. He was the first of three popes in the history of the Church to be called "the Great."
Pope Benedict XVI said that Leo's papacy "was undoubtedly one of the most important in Church history."
Leo is remembered in history for many things. Here are the two things that stand out:
#1 Leo put his stamp on the authoritative definition of who Jesus Christ is: Jesus Christ is true God (100%) and true Man (100%).
#2 In 452, Pope Leo confronted Attila the Hun and persuaded the conqueror of the whole of the Italian Peninsula from sacking and torching Rome, the capital of the Roman empire.
St Leo, Doctor of the Church had his teachings in volume of tomes. Here is a quote from St Leo that I like:
"Recall how you had been wrested from the power of darkness and brought into the kingdom of God (Col 1:13). Through the sacrament of baptism you were made a temple of the Holy Spirit. Do not drive away such a dweller by your wicked actions and subject yourself again to servitude under the devil, because your price is the very blood of Christ, because he will judge you in truth who has redeemed you in mercy." (St Leo the Great).
St Leo the Great taught decisively that after His Ascension, Jesus Christ ordained that we encounter Him in an imminent manner in the Eucharist and other Sacraments.
Our key Scripture deals with the all important question of faith.
"And the Apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith.”
"The Lord replied, “If you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you would say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.”
"What is faith? It is the confident assurance that something we want is going to happen. It is the certainty that what we hope for is waiting for us, even though we cannot see it up ahead." (Hebrews 11: 1 TLB).
FAITH COMES FROM HEARING THE WORD OF GOD AND PLEADING BOLDLY FOR FAITH.
I pray for increase in faith every day. I thank our Lord Jesus for the mustard size faith that I have.
Because of this small faith, I am today who I am . Everything I enjoy in life such as the Eucharist, Reconciliation, Sunday leisure, even this Blog, etc comes from faith.
Once upon a time, I heard this word of God from Psalm 103: 1 - 5, in the depth of my heart and said to myself:
This is exactly what I need. Then I believed that this word is a personal Rhema for me. I believed it. Today, I still believe in this promise.
"Praise the LORD, my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name. who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's." (Psalm 103: 1 - 5).
In the 11th Chapter of Hebrews, we see the portrait of faith drawn from the key characters of the Hebrew Scriptures. For example: Abraham, David, Elijah, etc.
We may add to this list: Mary, John the Baptist, John the Evangelist, Mary Magdalene, Paul, etc.
All these people and All the Saints we celebrate in the Roman Missal lived by faith and fulfilled the spiritual law that "the just man shall live by faith." (Cf Habakkuk 2: 4, Romans 1: 17, Galatians 3: 11, Hebrews 10: 38).
How do we get faith?
"So faith comes from hearing, and what is heard comes by the [preaching of the] message concerning Christ." (Romans 10: 17 AMP).
Faith comes too by asking for, pleading, praying for faith like the Apostles: "Lord increase our faith."
Do you believe the message below?
"God so loved the world that he gave his Only Begotten Son, so that all who believe in him may not perish, but may have eternal life." (John 3: 16).
If you believe this Scripture, you have faith. Fan it into flame.
Jesus speaks below of faith in His Presence in the Eucharist and the Blessed Sacrament.
"Why do you think I have spoken to you so often of My Eucharistic Face? It is because “face” signifies “presence.” The devotion to My Eucharistic Face is the remedy to the loss of faith in My real presence that has swept through My Church at every level, extinguishing the fire of Eucharistic charity and causing even My elect, My priests, to grow cold and distant from Me. This is My word to you tonight and this is why I brought you to this place. Any loneliness you may feel is an invitation to seek Me out in the Sacrament of My divine friendship and to console My Eucharistic Heart." (IN SINU JESU, Sunday, October 19, 2008 Saint Paul of the Cross).
November is the Month we pray for the Souls in PURGATORY.
“One of the holiest works, one of the best exercises of piety, which we can practice in this world, is to offer sacrifices, alms and prayer for the dead.” (St John Chrysostom, Doctor of the Church.
For Catholic Church teaching on the Souls in PURGATORY and how to help them, click the link below:
