Many who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake some shall live forever others shall be an everlasting horror & disgrace. PrepareforMass 13 hours ago
Next Sunday is the Solemnity of Christ the King Year B
BENEDICT XVI
ANGELUS
Saint Peter's Square
Sunday, 26 November 2006
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
On this last Sunday of the liturgical year we are celebrating the Solemnity of Christ the King. Today's Gospel proposes to us anew part of the dramatic questioning to which Pontius Pilate subjected Jesus when he was handed over to him, accused of usurping the title, "King of the Jews".
Jesus answered the Roman governor's questions by declaring that he was a king, but not of this world (cf. Jn 18: 36). He did not come to rule over peoples and territories but to set people free from the slavery of sin and to reconcile them with God. And he added: "For this I was born, and for this I have come into the world, to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears my voice" (Jn 18: 37).
But what is the "truth" that Christ came into the world to witness to? The whole of his life reveals that God is love: so this is the truth to which he witnessed to the full with the sacrifice of his own life on Calvary.
The Cross is the "throne" where he manifested his sublime kingship as God Love: by offering himself in expiation for the sin of the world, he defeated the "ruler of this world" (Jn 12: 31) and established the Kingdom of God once and for all. It is a Kingdom that will be fully revealed at the end of time, after the destruction of every enemy and last of all, death (cf. I Cor 15: 25-26). The Son will then deliver the Kingdom to the Father and God will finally be "everything to everyone" (I Cor 15: 28).
The way to reach this goal is long and admits of no short cuts: indeed, every person must freely accept the truth of God's love. He is Love and Truth, and neither Love nor Truth are ever imposed: they come knocking at the doors of the heart and the mind and where they can enter they bring peace and joy. This is how God reigns; this is his project of salvation, a "mystery" in the biblical sense of the word: a plan that is gradually revealed in history.
The Virgin Mary was associated in a very special way with Christ's kingship. God asked her, a humble young woman of Nazareth, to become Mother of the Messiah and Mary responded to this request with her whole self, joining her unconditional "yes" to that of her Son, Jesus, and making herself obedient with him even in his sacrifice. This is why God exalted her above every other creature and Christ crowned her Queen of Heaven and earth.
Let us entrust the Church and all humanity to her intercession, so that God's love can reign in all hearts and his design of justice and peace be fulfilled.
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Wisdom 18: 14 - 16; 19: 6 - 9 14 For while gentle silence enveloped all things, and night in its swift course was now half gone, 15 thy all-powerful word leaped from heaven, from the royal throne, into the midst of the land that was doomed, a ...
Wisdom 13: 1 - 9 1 For all men who were ignorant of God were foolish by nature; and they were unable from the good things that are seen to know him who exists, nor did they recognize the craftsman while paying heed to his works; 2 but ...
Wisdom 7: 22 -- 8:1 22 for wisdom, the fashioner of all things, taught me. For in her there is a spirit that is intelligent, holy, unique, manifold, subtle, mobile, clear, unpolluted, distinct, invulnerable, loving the good, keen, irresistible, 23 beneficent, humane, steadfast, sure, free from anxiety, all-powerful, ...
Wisdom 6: 1 - 11 1 Listen therefore, O kings, and understand; learn, O judges of the ends of the earth. 2 Give ear, you that rule over multitudes, and boast of many nations. 3 For your dominion was given you from the Lord, and your ...
Wisdom 2: 23 - 24:9 -- 3:9 23 for God created man for incorruption, and made him in the image of his own eternity, 24 but through the devil's envy death entered the world, and those who belong to his party experience it. 3:1 But the souls ...
Ezekiel 47: 1 - 2, 8 - 9, 12 1 Then he brought me back to the door of the temple; and behold, water was issuing from below the threshold of the temple toward the east (for the temple faced east); and the water was flowing down from below the ...
1 Kings 17: 10 - 16 10 So he arose and went to Zar'ephath; and when he came to the gate of the city, behold, a widow was there gathering sticks; and he called to her and said, "Bring me a little water in a vessel, that I may drink." ...
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Tuesday of the Fifth Week of Lent – For if you do not believe that I AM,
you will die in your sins….But the one who sent me is true, and what I heard from him I tell the world.”
They did not realize that he was speaking to them of the Father. So Jesus said to them, “When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will realize that I AM,
Responsorial Psalm – Ps 102:2
O Lord, hear my prayer, and let my cry come to you.
God instructed Moses to mount a sepent on a pole and those who were bitten by a serpent looked at it and lived. Today we might look at the image of Jesus on a crucifix and say O Lord, hear my prayer, and let my cry come to you. In the holy Eucharist, in faith, we see the risen savior and we know he is truly present; his Body, Blood Soul and Divinity before us.
Prepare for Mass – Daily for Lent
3/30/2009
Monday of the Fifth Week of Lent – Let those without sin cast the first stone. – Jn 8:1-11
The account of Susanna and the Two Elders is found in Daniel 13 of Catholic bibles. She was a pious woman living in Bablyon married to a man named Joakim. The elders met a Joakim’s house and while they were meeting Susanna retreated to her garden. Two of the elders took note and began to lust after her. The two elders went to the garden and they wanted to have their way with her. If she refused, they would accuse her of adultry with a young man which would result in her being stoned. She refused and that led to her facing trial for adultry. A young man named Daniel succeeded in halting the proceedings and insisted on each of the elders pleading their cases separately. There was a contradiction in each of their stories. So, instead, the elders were accused and they ended up facing the same punishment as Susanna would have faced and that is “stoning”.
Jesus comes along and there was a woman being accused of adultry. Whether she did it or not was not his point. He came to call not the righteous, but sinners. We are all sinners in need of mercy. He tells us to “go and sin no more”. Jesus wrote a message in the sand for his accusers and said:
(Jn 8: 7-11) “Let the one among you who is without sin
be the first to throw a stone at her.”
Again he bent down and wrote on the ground.
And in response, they went away one by one,
beginning with the elders.
So he was left alone with the woman before him.
Then Jesus straightened up and said to her,
“Woman, where are they?
Has no one condemned you?”
She replied, “No one, sir.”
Then Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you.
Go, and from now on do not sin any more.”
Go, and from now on do not sin any more. Whoever follows Jesus will not walk in darkness. Psalm 23:4 Even though I walk in the dark valley I fear no evil; for you are at my side
Is 50:4-7
Ps 22:8-9, 17-18, 19-20, 23-24
Phil 2:6-11
Mk 14:1—15:47
The servant of the Lord is one who knows and accepts God’s will for him….
…even while under the test.
And I have not rebelled, have not turned back.
I gave my back to those who beat me, my cheeks to those who plucked my beard;
My face I did not shield from buffets and spitting.
The Lord GOD is my help, therefore I am not disgraced;
I have set my face like flint, knowing that I shall not be put to shame.
Responsorial Psalm: My God, my God, why have you abandoned me? – Ps 22:2a
Christ Jesus, though he was in the form of God,
did not regard equality with God something to be grasped.
Rather, he emptied himself,taking the form of a slave……he humbled himself, becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.
Because of this, God greatly exalted him and bestowed on him the name which is above every name…
…that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow…
…of those in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and every tongue confess that…
Jesus Christ is Lord
…to the glory of God the Father.
A woman broke an alabaster jar filled with expensive perfumed oil and poured it on Jesus head.
Some asked…Why has there been this waste of perfumed oil?
They were infuriated with her.
Jesus said, Let her alone.
Why do you make trouble for her?
She has done a good thing for me.
The poor you will always have with you,
and whenever you wish you can do good to them,
but you will not always have me.
She has done what she could.
There’s a betrayer among you…
Peter cuts off the ear of a guard.
..and just as Jesus foretold Peter denies him three times before the cock crowed.
Jesus handed over to Pilate.
Pilate to Jesus: Are you the King of the Jews?
Jesus to Pilate: You say I am…
Pilate to the crowd: What do you want me to do…release the king of the Jews?
Prepare for Mass – Daily for Lent
3/28/2009
Saturday of the Fourth Week of Lent – There was confusion. Some knew that Jesus was the Christ. Others weren’t so sure. The Pharisees thought that the guards had been deceived for not handing Jesus over to be arrested. In all this confusion, in the Lord I take refuge.
