THE FEAST OF ST RAYMOND PENAFORT, OP. PRIEST.
THE FEAST OF ST RAYMOND PENAFORT, OP. PRIEST.
THE GOSPEL:
"When Jesus saw the vast crowd, his heart was moved with pity for them, for they were like sheep without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many things.
"By now it was already late and his disciples approached him and said, “This is a deserted place and it is already very late. Dismiss them so that they can go to the surrounding farms and villages and buy themselves something to eat.”
"He said to them in reply, “Give them some food yourselves.”
"But they said to him, “Are we to buy two hundred days’ wages worth of food and give it to them to eat?”
"He asked them, “How many loaves do you have? Go and see.”
"And when they had found out they said, “Five loaves and two fish.”
"So he gave orders to have them sit down in groups on the green grass. The people took their places in rows by hundreds and by fifties.
"Then, taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he said the blessing, broke the loaves, and gave them to his disciples to set before the people; he also divided the two fish among them all.
"They all ate and were satisfied. And they picked up twelve wicker baskets full of fragments and what was left of the fish. Those who ate of the loaves were five thousand men." (Mark 6: 34 - 44).
Tuesday January 7th 2025, in the Season of Christmas is the feast of St Raymond Peñafort. (1175 - 1275). Spanish Dominican Priest. Raymond was very erudite and he advanced the knowledge of Canon Law. St Raymond was a contemporary of the great St Thomas Aquinas also a Dominican priest. He studied Arabic in order to study the Koran so that he could evangelize the Moslems.
St Raymond Peñafort did a great deal to secure the freedom of Christians during the Crusade. He died at the age of 100.
Raymond is known in history for two key contributions: Like the Curé of Ars, he had an extraordinary charism in the Sacrament of Reconciliation.
Ask Jesus to lead you to such a priest. One confession is all you need to turn around your life. Raymond wrote volumes which are part of the Canon Law.
Our Scripture for today proclaims: "They all ate and were satisfied." (Mark 6: 42). What does this mean?
This points to the immense generosity of God. Jesus fed 5000 men and there were 12 baskets of leftover.
Remember the story of the manna in the desert where a whole nation ate of the heavenly food for years. Both the manna and today's incident of the Multiplication of loaves point to the Eucharist.
The Eucharist today is a daily food. Food for our journey to Heaven. Day after day, millions are fed all over the world. "They all ate and were satisfied." (Mark 6: 42).
The Multiplication of Loaves is such an important incident that it appears in all four Gospels.
The Church honors the Most Holy Name of Jesus in January.
Jesus, Son of the living God
have mercy on us
Jesus, splendor of the Father
have mercy on us
Jesus, brightness of everlasting light
have mercy on us
For the Litany of the Most Holy Name of Jesus and prayer intentions click the link below:
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