Feast of St Louis of France and St Joseph Calasanz.

WHY DO WE HONOR THE SAINTS? THEY REIGN WITH JESUS IN HEAVEN. THROUGH THE LITURGY OF THE MASS, JESUS INSTRUCTS US THAT WHEN WE HONOR THE SAINTS, WE GLORIFY HIM.

"Jesus said to his disciples: “Stay awake! For you do not know on which day your Lord will come. Be sure of this: if the master of the house had known the hour of night when the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and not let his house be broken into. So too, you also must be prepared, for at an hour you do not expect, the Son of Man will come.

“Who, then, is the faithful and prudent servant, whom the master has put in charge of his household to distribute to them their food at the proper time?

"Blessed is that servant whom his master on his arrival finds doing so. Amen, I say to you, he will put him in charge of all his property.

"But if that wicked servant says to himself, ‘My master is long delayed,’ and begins to beat his fellow servants, and eat and drink with drunkards, the servant’s master will come on an unexpected day and at an unknown hour and will punish him severely and assign him a place with the hypocrites, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.” (Matthew 24 :42 - 51).

Thursday 25th August 2022 of the  21st Week of Ordinary Time.  We celebrate the lives of two saints. Remember that in honoring these two saints, we are in fact glorifying our Lord Jesus Christ who is King of all the saints.  He promised that those who follow Him will reign forever with Him. And those who honor the saints glorify Him. Never miss an opportunity to glorify Jesus through honoring the saints on their feast day.

St Louis of France (1214 - 1270). He lived a simple life characterized by prayer and penance. God was pleased with Louis and raised him from the cares of earthly rule to the glory of heavenly kingdom.

We celebrate also today:
St Joseph Calasanz (1557 - 1648). Spanish Priest who dedicated his life in charity and patience to the education of poor children.

What is the common factor between King Louis and Father Joseph? They were separated by nearly 300 years. The key is in today's Gospel:
"Blessed is that servant whom his master on his arrival finds doing so. Amen, I say to you, he will put him in charge of all his property."

St Louis the king of France had eleven children. As king of a great European power in the 13th century, Louis lived a life of penance and prayer and treated the French people as his children.

St Joseph Calasanz dedicated his life in charity and patience to the education of poor children. He founded a religious order to cater for the poor and the abandoned children of Rome. It is reported of him that he founded the first free primary education for poor children. St Joseph Calasanz died in Rome in August 25th 1648 and was canonized in 1767 by Pope Clement XIII.

What is the central message in today's Gospel? Jesus teaches the absolute necessity of being Always Ready! Always Prepared! For what? For the Time of Fulfillment to answer your prayers or for the Hour to meet
your God. God decided in His mighty, merciful and mysterious Providence not to reveal the precise time He visits us.
The moment may come like a thief in the night. Very suddenly!

How do we prepare?
#1. Form a habit of daily prayer.
#2. Form a habit of daily feeding on the word of God.

Be always prepared!

Daily Bible Verse @ Seekfirstcommunity.com