AND YOU? WHO DO YOU SAY THAT I AM?

WHO DO YOU SAY THAT I AM? 

"Jesus and his disciples set out for the villages of Caesarea Philippi.

"Along the way he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that I am?” They said in reply, “John the Baptist, others Elijah, still others one of the prophets.” 

"And he asked them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter said to him in reply, “You are the Christ.” 

"He began to teach them

that the Son of Man must suffer greatly and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes,

and be killed, and rise after three days.

"He spoke this openly.

"Then Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him.

"At this he turned around and, looking at his disciples,

rebuked Peter and said, "Get behind me, Satan.

You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do."

"He summoned the crowd with his disciples and said to them,

"Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself,

take up his cross, and follow me.

“For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it,

but whoever loses his life for my sake

and that of the gospel will save it." (Mark 8: 27 - 35).

Sunday 15th September 2024, in the 24th Week in Ordinary Time. 

What happened in Caesarea Philippi in today's Gospel marks a pivotal moment in the ministry of Jesus. The Apostles have been with Jesus about three years. Now the ministry of Jesus is coming to a close. How much do they know about their Leader after three years? 

To Jesus' question: “Who do people say that I am?” The Apostles answered:  “John the Baptist, others Elijah, still others one of the prophets.” From their response we know that the people think highly of Jesus because Elijah and John the Baptist were two important prophets in the history of Israel. 

But who do you say Jesus is? You who are reading this? You are probably a baptized Christian. Who is Jesus to you? 

Every year we read this Gospel, we are supposed to show growth in our knowledge of Jesus.

When I was a child, Paul would say, I answered like a child. But today I answer thus: Jesus is my Savior, who reconciles me again and again with the Father after my sins.

Jesus is Emmanuel who promised to be with me always and I know He keeps this promise.

 I am also updating my answer with this fact: Jesus is faithful to His promises as we expect God to be. 

Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life. 

Jesus is the God who heals me. He answers every prayer regardless of the lies of the Devil to the contrary. 

Peter answered correctly, “You are the Christ.” The same Peter got the rebuke below for thinking like the world. If you think like the world, you will act like the world. 

“Get behind me, Satan. You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do.”

"If you could have heard the urgency and sorrow of My plea to Peter, James, and John! I did not merely ask them to watch and pray, I begged them to do so. I needed their prayer at that hour, just as I need the prayer of all My priests in this final hour that is coming and that is already upon My Church." (IN SINU JESU page 233).

In September, the Church honors the Sorrowful Heart of Mary. May the Blessed Virgin Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows obtain for us  mercies from her Son Jesus. 

For Prayers of Consecration to the Immaculate and Sorrowful Heart of Mary, Litany, Promises of Mary to those who say the Holy Rosary, etc click the link below:

http://seekfirst.blogspot.com/2023/06/immaculate-heart-of-mary-consecration.html?m=10 

THE FEAST OF THE EXALTATION OF THE CROSS.

The Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross. 

"Jesus said to Nicodemus:

“No one has gone up to heaven except the one who has come down from heaven, the Son of Man. 

"And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.”

"For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him.” (John 3: 13 - 17). 

Saturday 14th September 2024 in the 23rd Week in Ordinary Time is the great feast of the Exaltation of the Cross.

Why celebrate the feast of the Exaltation of the Cross?

#1 There is a divine necessity for the Son of Man to be lifted up on the Cross in order to save mankind. 

#2 The crucifixion, death and resurrection of Jesus transformed the Cross into a true sign of salvation. The Cross transformed our trials into possibilities of triumphs and testimonies. This is the Full Truth of the Gospel. 

#3  "Christ crucified is thus "the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men." It is in Christ's Resurrection and exaltation that the Father has shown forth "the immeasurable greatness of his power in us who believe" (CCC 272)

#4. "It is suffering, more than anything else, which clears the way for the grace which transforms human souls. Suffering, more than anything else, makes present in the history of humanity the powers of the Redemption." (Pope St John Paul II, ON the Christian Meaning of Suffering - Salvifici Doloris #27). 

#5. We exalt the cross whenever we embrace 

our trials and tribulations and understand that God's holy will is the means of peace and joy in our lives. 

The Cross has become a synonym for the trials of life. Jesus says: "If you want to follow Me, pick up your own cross and follow Me." Hence we find plastic cross, gold cross, silver cross, wooden cross, etc. We find crosses in homes, cars, schools, hospitals, churches, cemeteries.

We find crosses in every country in the world. The ubiquitous presence of the Cross everywhere is significant and providential. It signifies that grace and mercy are everywhere we accept trials and situations we can not avoid.

We are baptized with the sign of the Cross: In the Name of the Father and of the Son and the Holy Spirit. This reminds us of the Trinitarian character of our faith.

As the catechumens are reminded in the RCIA Rite of Acceptance,  embracing our cross is embracing the will of God. It is the most assured route to sanctity and the good life. The will of God is our shalom, our peace. Peace is the first and greatest gift of the Resurrection. 

"Father, in Your will is our peace." 

Man has always rejected the Cross as we see in the first Reading (Numbers 21: 4 - 9).

"With their patience worn out by the journey, the people complained against God and Moses, “Why have you brought us up from Egypt to die in this desert, where there is no food or water? We are disgusted with this wretched food!” (Numbers 21: 4 - 5).

If like Jesus, we humble ourselves under the mighty hands of God and accept our crosses, in the fullness of time, God will lift us up. (Cf 1 Peter 5: 6).

Jesus came to undo the disobedience of Adam and Eve by embracing the prescribed means of salvation by the Father.

"When I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw everyone to myself, says the Lord." (John 12: 32)

We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you, because by your Cross you have redeemed the world.

September is the month we celebrate the feast of the Exaltation of the Cross. It is also the month the Church honors the Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary.

Mary embraced her 7 Crosses (Sorrows). May the Blessed Virgin Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows obtain for us  mercies from her Crucified Son Jesus. 

For Prayers of Consecration to the Immaculate and Sorrowful Heart of Mary, Litany, Promises of Mary to those who say the Holy Rosary, etc click the link below:

http://seekfirst.blogspot.com/2023/06/immaculate-heart-of-mary-consecration.html?m=10

MEMORIAL OF ST JOHN CHRYSOSTOM, BISHOP AND DOCTOR OF THE CHURCH.

MEMORIAL OF A GREAT ARCHBISHOP: ST JOHN CHRYSOSTOM, BISHOP AND DOCTOR OF THE CHURCH. 

"Jesus told his disciples a parable: “Can a blind person guide a blind person? Will not both fall into a pit? 

"No disciple is superior to the teacher; but when fully trained, every disciple will be like his teacher. 

"Why do you notice the splinter in your brother’s eye, but do not perceive the wooden beam in your own? 

“How can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, let me remove that splinter in your eye,’ when you do not even notice the wooden beam in your own eye? You hypocrite! Remove the wooden beam from your eye first; then you will see clearly to remove the splinter in your brother’s eye.” (Luke 6: 39 - 42).

Friday 13th September 2024 in the 23rd Week in Ordinary Time is the feast of St John Chrysostom, 

 Archbishop of Constantinople and Doctor of the Church. (349 - 407).  Syrian.

As the Archbishop of Constantinople, John Chrysostom could have chosen a quiet, comfortable and non controversial life. Not Chrysostom, a great admirer of St Paul the Apostle. He worked very hard for the cause of the poor and the marginalized people in his See.

"When fully trained, every disciple will be like his teacher." (Luke 6: 40).  John Chrysostom was fully trained and became a great preacher and teacher in addition to his other ministries.

"Blessed are you who are poor, for the Kingdom of God is yours."

Bishop Chrysostom is known for his spirit of poverty and patience. His patience was shown in great suffering in the course of his life. He left us an example of invincible courage and patience. He died on his way to his last exile. We continue to enjoy today the vast writings he left behind.

Below is what St John Chrysostom wrote on the Eucharist:

"O miracle! O goodness of God! He that sits above with the Father…gives himself to all who desire to embrace and receive him. At that moment all do this with the eyes of faith."

St John Chrysostom is the patron saint of preachers.

St John Chrysostom pray for us.

Who did Jesus call the blind in today's Gospel?

"Let them alone; they are blind guides (of the blind). If a blind person leads a blind person, both will fall into a pit.” (Matthew 15: 14).

Do you know any  Pharisees in your community? 

"I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings." (Hosea 6: 6).

When a blind judge guides another blind judge, will not the two judges fall into the ditch? Jesus defines His mission thus:

"I was born and came into the world for this one purpose, to speak about the truth. Whoever belongs to the truth listens to me." (John 18: 37).

We all have tendencies to pharasaical attitude of being overbearing in our scrutiny and criticism of other people. Use the Sacrament of Reconciliation to erode the inclination to criticism, complaining and condemnation of our neighbors. No criticism. No complaints. No condemn. Say: NO CCC when tempted to say or think of anything negative of another person. 

"Many priests do not have a real and practical faith in My Eucharistic presence. Do they not know that the Eucharist encloses within itself all the merits of My Passion? Let them recover the faith of their childhood. Let them come to find Me there where I am waiting for them and I, for My part, shall work miracles of grace and holiness in them." (IN SINU JESU Monday, October 29, 2007). 

In September, the Church honors the Sorrowful Heart of Mary. May the Blessed Virgin Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows obtain for us  mercies from her Son Jesus. 

For Prayers of Consecration to the Immaculate and Sorrowful Heart of Mary, Litany, Promises of Mary to those who say the Holy Rosary, etc click the link below:

http://seekfirst.blogspot.com/2023/06/immaculate-heart-of-mary-consecration.html?m=10

THE FEAST OF THE MOST HOLY NAME OF MARY.

THE FEAST OF THE MOST HOLY NAME OF MARY. 

"Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful." (Luke 6: 36).

Thursday 12th September 2024, 23rd Week in Ordinary Time is the feast of the Most Holy Name of Mary.

Almost back to back on the celebration of the Birthday of Mary (September 8th) is the feast of her Most Holy Name. The Church in her teaching authority interpretes for us the role of Mary in the economy of salvation. Here is what the Church teaches about the feast of today, the Most Holy Name of Mary:

"God the Father is glorified by the exalted role in salvation of the Blessed Virgin Mary." Thus her name is a name of honor, to be venerated and called upon with filial trust and devotion." (Roman Missal). 

What the Saints say about the Most Holy Name of Mary:

1.  “The invocation of the sacred names of Jesus and Mary is a short prayer which is as sweet to the mind, and as powerful to protect those who use it against the enemies of their salvation, as it is easy to remember.” (Thomas à Kempis). 

2. “In every danger of forfeiting divine grace, we should think of Mary, and invoke her name, together with that of Jesus; for these two names always go together." (St Alphonsus Liguori, Bishop and Doctor of the Church). 

A great way to do this is a quick Hail Mary. 

3.  “Blessed is the man who loves thy name, O Mary. Yes, truly blessed is he who loves thy sweet name, O Mother of God! For thy name is so glorious and admirable, that no one who remembers it has any fears at the hour of death.” (St Bonaventure, OFM Bishop and Doctor of the Church). 

Our Daily Bible Verse for the day is from the Gospel of Luke 6: 27 - 38. How can we be merciful as the Father is merciful?

What is mercy? The dictionary defines mercy as: "compassion or forgiveness shown toward someone whom it is within one's power to punish or harm." In other words, mercy is a gratuitous forgiveness of an offense where the offender is rightly waiting the hammer to strike.

God's mercy is called Hesed /Chesed in the Bible. Completely unmerited favor flowing from the powerful and merciful Providence of God. 

In my opinion, one of the greatest example of mercy in the Gospels is in the Parable of the Unforgiving Servant. The servant owes his master millions of dollars which he could never repay. His master would sell his entire family and all his possessions, put him into slave work for the rest of his life to recover a tiny portion of his debt. Then the miracle happened. He was forgiven everything by his master. The servant did not forgive his fellow servant who owed him a tiny amount.

"You wicked servant! I forgave you your entire debt because you begged me to.  Should you not have had pity on your fellow servant, as I had pity on you?’" (Matthew 18: 32 - 33).

"Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful." (Luke 6: 36). Jesus teaches us that the merciful Heart of God is unfathomable. Like a bottomless ocean. There are many examples of this in the Old Testament. Covenant after Covenant was shredded by His ungrateful People. Yet when they suffer the consequences of their sins, one cry to God and He is at their side, forgiving them all and ready to start all over again.

Divine Mercy Devotion is Jesus' gift to the Church. Jesus revealed His intention through St Maria Faustina. He desires that no man should be ignorant of the infinite mercy of God. The heart of the Devotion is as simple as ABC and is summarized by the ABC of Mercy:

A: Ask for Mercy.

B: Be Merciful.

C: Completely trust Jesus for Mercy.

The ABC of Mercy is how we can be merciful as our Father is merciful.

"Above all, I renew for you the words I uttered for Saint John from the Cross: “Behold your Mother.” Live in her presence. Honour her at every occasion and in every way possible. Every time you show love and devotion to My most holy Mother, you honour the words I spoke from the Cross, and you put them into practice. “Behold your Mother.” She desires nothing more than to look after you, just as if you were her only son. Her attention for you is not divided, nor is it in any way impaired by the attention she gives to the vast multitude of her children through the ages. Trust in her care for you. Pray her Rosary. Honour her as you have been doing." (IN SINU JESU, Thursday, January 31, 2008).

In September, the Church honors the Sorrowful Heart of Mary. May the Blessed Virgin Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows obtain for us  mercies from her Son Jesus. 

For Prayers of Consecration to the Immaculate and Sorrowful Heart of Mary, Litany, Promises of Mary to those who say the Holy Rosary, etc click the link below:

http://seekfirst.blogspot.com/2023/06/immaculate-heart-of-mary-consecration.html?m=10

JESUS REVEALS THE BEATITUDES.

WOE TO YOU IF PEOPLE PRAISE YOU. 

"Raising his eyes toward his disciples Jesus said:

"Blessed are you who are poor, for the Kingdom of God is yours.

"Blessed are you who are now hungry, for you will be satisfied.

"Blessed are you who are now weeping, for you will laugh.

"Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude and insult you,

and denounce your name as evil on account of the Son of Man.

"Rejoice and leap for joy on that day!

Behold, your reward will be great in heaven.

"But woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation.

"But woe to you who are filled now, for you will be hungry.

"Woe to you who laugh now, for you will grieve and weep.

"Woe to you when all speak well of you, for their ancestors treated the false prophets in this way." (Luke 6: 20 - 26).

St Luke gives his version of the Beatitudes in Luke 6: 20 - 26).

The Beatitude is a faithful portrait of the character of Jesus the Messiah, the Faithful Servant. It begins with a key attribute: material poverty.  Jesus was born of poor parents in a manger. He lived in a poor neighborhood of Nazareth. After he attained the age of puberty, He became an apprentice carpenter in His father's workshop. Jesus died a poor man. 

When Jesus began His teaching with "Congratulations to you who are materially poor..." His audience would have been delighted. Let us head to the Catechism to see what the Church teaches us on the Beatitudes.

"The Beatitudes reveal the goal of human existence, the ultimate end of human acts: God calls us to his own beatitude. This vocation is addressed to each individual personally, but also to the Church as a whole, the new people made up of those who have accepted the promise and live from it in faith." (CCC 1719).

Man does not live on bread alone. Man does not live on money alone. There is life for man in every word that comes from the mouth of God. (Cf Matthew 4: 4).

"God put us in the world to know, to love, and to serve him, and so to come to paradise. Beatitude makes us "partakers of the divine nature" and of eternal life. With beatitude, man enters into the glory of Christ and into the joy of the Trinitarian life." (CCC 1721)

The Beatitude is the blueprint of our Journey of Faith.  Follow it as faithfully as you follow the GPS and it will lead you to our true Homeland.

In September, the Church honors the Sorrowful Heart of Mary. May the Blessed Virgin Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows obtain for us  mercies from her Son Jesus. 

For Prayers of Consecration to the Immaculate and Sorrowful Heart of Mary, Litany, Promises of Mary to those who say the Holy Rosary, etc click the link below:

http://seekfirst.blogspot.com/2023/06/immaculate-heart-of-mary-consecration.html?m=10

THE CHOICE AND CALL OF THE TWELVE.

THE CHOICE AND CALL OF THE TWELVE. 

"Jesus went up to the mountain to pray, and he spent the night in prayer to God.

"When day came, he called his disciples to himself, and from them he chose Twelve, whom he also named Apostles:

"Simon, whom he named Peter, and his brother Andrew, James, John, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, Simon who was called a Zealot, and Judas the son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor." 

"And he came down with them and stood on a stretch of level ground.

"A great crowd of his disciples and a large number of the people from all Judea and Jerusalem and the coastal region of Tyre and Sidon

came to hear him and to be healed of their diseases;

and even those who were tormented by unclean spirits were cured.

"Everyone in the crowd sought to touch him

because power came forth from him and healed them all. (Luke 6: 12 - 19).

Jesus called the 12 after a  night spent in prayer to His heavenly Father. 

He chose twelve men who had been with Him from the Baptism of John. 

He chose them to become the pillar and foundation of the truth, the Church. (CF 1 Timothy 3: 15).

Jesus built His worldwide Church on the foundation of the Apostles and prophets. 

The message of the Apostles still goes out throughout the world.

It is the mind of Christ that the Church He founded be built on the foundation of the Apostles and Prophets. What are the characteristics of this Church by which she can be recognized all over the world?

There are four marks. We profess every Sunday in the Apostles' Creed that the Church is One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic. What do these words mean?

#1 One:  One faith, one Baptism, one Shepherd.

#2 Holy: The Holy Spirit that indwells the Church is the source of her holiness. The Holy Spirit continually cleanses the Bride of Christ from defilements.

#3 Catholic:  Universal. Found in all the countries of the United Nations and every other place of human habitation.

#4 Apostolic:  Every Bishop is directly traceable to the original 12 Apostles who were constituted in today's Gospel. 

In September, the Church honors the Sorrowful Heart of Mary. May the Blessed Virgin Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows obtain for us  mercies from her Son Jesus. 

For Prayers of Consecration to the Immaculate and Sorrowful Heart of Mary, Litany, Promises of Mary to those who say the Holy Rosary, etc click the link below:

http://seekfirst.blogspot.com/2023/06/immaculate-heart-of-mary-consecration.html?m=10

MEMORIAL OF ST PETER CLAVER, SJ.

THE MEMORIAL OF ST PETER CLAVER, SJ. 

JESUS HEALS THE MAN WITH THE WITHERED HAND ON THE SABBATH. 

"On a certain sabbath Jesus went into the synagogue and taught, and there was a man there whose right hand was withered.

"The scribes and the Pharisees watched him closely to see if he would cure on the sabbath so that they might discover a reason to accuse him. 

"But he realized their intentions and said to the man with the withered hand, “Come up and stand before us.” And he rose and stood there. 

"Then Jesus said to them, “I ask you, is it lawful to do good on the sabbath rather than to do evil, to save life rather than to destroy it?”

"Looking around at them all, he then said to him, “Stretch out your hand.” He did so and his hand was restored. But they became enraged and discussed together what they might do to Jesus." (Luke 6: 6 - 11).

Monday September 9th in the 23rd Week in Ordinary Time is the feast of St Peter Claver of the Society of Jesus.   (1580 - 1654). A Spanish Priest, Religious and Missionary. 

St Peter Claver served for over 40 years African slaves dumped at the South American seaport of Cartagena now Colombia. During 40 years, he fed the slaves, cared for the sick and dying. He preached the Good News to them and baptized over 300,000.

It would be humanly impossible for the slaves and Peter Claver to heed these words of Jesus and obey it: 

“To you who hear I say, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you." (Matthew 5: 43 - 48). 

But grace overcame nature and the slaves taught by St Peter Claver loved their persecutors as Jesus did from the Cross.

St Peter Claver is called the "Slave of slaves." God gave him great love and patience for the suffering slaves. Peter took many of them with him to heaven. 

The Gospel of today is another Sabbath controversy which Jesus seems to relish.

For the opponents of Jesus, the Scribes and Pharisees almost no work is permitted on the Sabbath. 

On this point, Jesus asked them:

“I ask you, is it lawful to do good on the sabbath rather than to do evil, to save life rather than to destroy it?”

The scribes and Pharisees refused to answer the question. Jesus then turned to the man with the withered hand and said to him, “Stretch out your hand.” He did so and his hand was restored."

The Scribes and Pharisees distorted God's original plan for the Sabbath. Jesus came not to abolish the Mosaic Law but to complete it. 

The Sabbath was made for man and not man for the Sabbath. While it true that the primary purpose of the Sabbath is Rest and Worship, it is a day of Rest above all. What type of Rest? Rest that restores human body and mind from the wears and tears of labor. 

For the Sabbath is a Rehearsal for Eternal life. One day, there will be no work when Jesus Christ restores All Things in Himself. Jesus observed the Sabbath during His few years of ministry. For centuries, the Magisterium of the Catholic Church has stressed the importance of the Sabbath Rest. 

In September, the Church honors the Sorrowful Heart of Mary. May the Blessed Virgin Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows obtain for us  mercies from her Son Jesus. 

For Prayers of Consecration to the Immaculate and Sorrowful Heart of Mary, Litany, Promises of Mary to those who say the Holy Rosary, etc click the link below:

http://seekfirst.blogspot.com/2023/06/immaculate-heart-of-mary-consecration.html?m=10