“Let the children come to me, and do not prevent them; for the Kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” After he placed his hands on them, he went away." (Matthew 19: 13 - 15).
Saturday 14th August, eve of the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the 19th week in Ordinary Time is the feast of St Maximilian Kolbe (1894 - 1941), Polish. Priest and Martyr.
Maximilian is known for his profound love for the Blessed Virgin Mary. He founded the "City of the Immaculate." An avid evangelizer, he used the press and the written word to propagate the Gospel. He was a missionary in Japan. Arrested by the Gestapo in Poland, Kolbe was sent to Auschwitz. St Maximilian took the place of a young father who was condemned for execution by the Gestapo. St Maximilian exhibited a greater love for his co-prisoner who cried about his wife and children who would miss him. The Gestapo executed St Maximilian Kolbe and made him a martyr.
In the Gospel for today the disciples rebuked children and their mothers who prayed that Jesus might lay His hands on them. But Jesus said,
“Let the children come to me, and do not prevent them; for the Kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” Maximilian Kolbe understood this and lived like a little child.
St Maximilian Mary Kolbe loved deeply the Blessed Virgin Mary as a Mother, a Teacher and a Queen. Mary returned the love abundantly. No surprise Kolbe died on the eve of the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. He was canonized in 1982 by Pope St John Paul II, Polish like St Maximilian Kolbe and a great Marian Saint.
Daily Bible Verse @ Seekfirstcommunity.com
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