Tag: evangelio del dia

“My house shall be a house of prayer.” | Memorial of Saint Cecilia, Virgin and Martyr

From the responsorial psalm: “How sweet to my palate are your promises, sweeter than honey to my mouth! How sweet to my taste is your promise!”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke (Lk 19:45-48)

Jesus entered the temple area and proceeded to drive out those who were selling things, saying to them, “It is written, My house shall be a house of prayer, but you have made it a den of thieves.” And every day he was teaching in the temple area. The chief priests, the scribes, and the leaders of the people, meanwhile, were seeking to put him to death, but they could find no way to accomplish their purpose because all the people were hanging on his words.

The religious leaders who close in on Jesus are frustrated as he teaches every day in the temple area and one day drives out those who are selling things. Just as the scroll in the first reading is sour to swallow, so are the words of Jesus to those who oppose him because of the people who hear his words and hang on them. Taken in, the the words of Jesus are sweet. “How sweet to my taste is your promise!” the psalmist sings. Yet, taking in the words sometimes puts us in bitter opposition to people and the rulers of the world who seek to impose their purpose, which is to put to death the Word made flesh. Hearing and following his voice, we remain in him.

God, help me understand what it means to “take and swallow” your word. Jesus, the Word incarnate, is present body and blood, soul and divinity, in the Eucharist. How sweet is the promise of Christ, fulfilled through his death and resurrection, and given every time I receive the Eucharist. To take and eat is not to envelop myself in a supernatural shield but to be strengthened to confront suffering and sorrow with divine sustenance and help. Give me the grace, Lord, to listen out for you and follow your voice; if I fail in that effort, stir in me the desire to recognize my state and turn again to you. Saint Cecilia, pray for us!

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Maximilian Kolbe Shrine—Blessed Sacrament

Memorial of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Although foes press on—I myself a sinner among them—open my eyes today to what I can easily lose sight of through hard-heartedness and lack of faith. Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world, have mercy on us.

From the responsorial psalm: “Let the faithful exult in glory; let them sing for joy upon their couches; Let the high praises of God be in their throats. This is the glory of all his faithful. Alleluia. The Lamb has made us a kingdom of priests to serve our God.”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke (Lk 19:41-44)

As Jesus drew near Jerusalem, he saw the city and wept over it, saying, “If this day you only knew what makes for peace—but now it is hidden from your eyes. For the days are coming upon you when your enemies will raise a palisade against you; they will encircle you and hem you in on all sides. They will smash you to the ground and your children within you, and they will not leave one stone upon another within you because you did not recognize the time of your visitation.”

Not seeing the time of the visitation of the Lord, the people of Jerusalem rejected the Messiah, the true temple. They would see a few decades after the crucifixion of Jesus the destruction of the temple stone by stone under the Roman emperor Titus. Recognizing the consequences of the people’s rejection of him, Jesus weeps—not because of personal rejection but because of the people’s hardness of heart and inability to see the author of peace standing among them. Blind to the visitation of God and his divine authority in our lives, we are weak to the attack of enemies who seek to hem us in on all sides. Jesus, the worthy Lamb in the Book of Revelation, is alive in the Eucharist, commanding us as he commanded the Apostles: “Take and eat; this is my body.”

God, help me know you by the fruit of the Holy Spirit that Jesus desired for Jerusalem. Help me recognize that the person of Christ is what makes for peace. Even as the enemies within and without block my sight of you, you are there, waiting as I redirect my gaze. Although foes press on—I myself a sinner among them—open my eyes today to what I can easily lose sight of through hard-heartedness and lack of faith. Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world, have mercy on us. Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world, grant us peace. Mary, Tabernacle of the Most High, pray for us!

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Maximilian Kolbe Shrine—Blessed Sacrament

“He called ten of his servants and gave them ten gold coins.” | Wednesday of the Thirty-third Week in Ordinary Time

From the responsorial psalm: “Praise the LORD in his sanctuary, praise him in the firmament of his strength. Praise him for his mighty deeds, praise him for his sovereign majesty. Holy, holy, holy Lord, mighty God!”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke (Lk 19:11-28)

“A nobleman went off to a distant country to obtain the kingship for himself and then to return. He called ten of his servants and gave them ten gold coins and told them, ‘Engage in trade with these until I return.’ His fellow citizens, however, despised him and sent a delegation after him to announce, ‘We do not want this man to be our king.’”

In response to the people’s belief that the kingdom of God would appear in Jerusalem on Jesus’ approach to it, Jesus tells a parable about a nobleman who travels to a distant country to become king and then return. He gives ten servants each a gold coin to invest while he is away. Upon his return, the nobleman rewards the servants who made a profit with positions of authority, while the servant who hid his coin is punished. Not a parable about making wise financial decisions and how to achieve power, the parable Jesus tells expresses the gifts God gives us and how we respond to these spiritual realities. Just as the servants make the best of the gold coins they are given, so too Jesus invites us to make the best of our unique gifts in the present moment—returning to God what he gave us first.

God, help me today be faithful and diligent in serving you with the gifts and talents you have given me. Many priorities cry out for attention when only one thing is necessary. As the elders in heaven say, “Worthy are you, Lord our God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things; because of your will they came to be and were created.” Give me the grace to call to mind that your kingdom is yet to come but is already here. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done. Amid the practical realities of the day, help me remember that the day itself a gift of your supreme love, and more will be given. As I strive to do your will, I hope to hear at the end of every day, “Well done, good servant!” Teach me, Lord, to serve you well.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Maximilian Kolbe Shrine—Blessed Sacrament

“Today salvation has come to this house.” | Tuesday of the Thirty-third Week in Ordinary Time

From the responsorial psalm: “He who walks blamelessly and does justice; who thinks the truth in his heart and slanders not with his tongue. I will seat the victor beside me on my throne.”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke (Lk 19:1-10)

But Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord, “Behold, half of my possessions, Lord, I shall give to the poor, and if I have extorted anything from anyone I shall repay it four times over.” And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house because this man too is a descendant of Abraham. For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save what was lost.”

Before witnesses who grumble against Zacchaeus, calling him a sinner, Jesus invites Zacchaeus to come down from the sycamore. Because he was short, he couldn’t see Jesus because of the crowd, yet the desire to see him pass by was so strong that he climbed a tree to catch sight of him. Jesus sees this desire and invites him down, saying, “Zacchaeus, come down quickly, for today I must stay at your house.” We hear the same voice of the Lord in the first reading from the Book of Revelation: “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, then I will enter his house and dine with him, and he with me.” In both accounts, Jesus comes to visit the repentant soul “to seek and to save what was lost.”

God, help me hear throughout the day the knock of Jesus at my door. What he said to Zacchaeus and in the Book of Revelation, he says to me: “come down quickly, for today I must stay at your house.” Help me see the opportunities you set before me so that I follow the invitation to hear your voice and open the door. Lord, grant me peace in knowing that as I face the burdens and challenges of the day, it is not about how well I perform but in seeking like, Zacchaeus, to see who Jesus is. Stay with me, Lord; come under my roof. Jesus, I trust in you!

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Perpetual adoration live stream Kolbe Shrine.

“Jesus, Son of David, have pity on me!” | Monday of the Thirty-third Week in Ordinary Time

From the responsorial psalm: “Blessed the man who follows not the counsel of the wicked Nor walks in the way of sinners, nor sits in the company of the insolent, But delights in the law of the LORD and meditates on his law day and night. Those who are victorious I will feed from the tree of life.”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke (Lk 18:35-43)

As Jesus approached Jericho a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging, and hearing a crowd going by, he inquired what was happening. They told him, “Jesus of Nazareth is passing by.” He shouted, “Jesus, Son of David, have pity on me!” The people walking in front rebuked him, telling him to be silent, but he kept calling out all the more, “Son of David, have pity on me!”

The blind man in today’s Gospel is a model of persistent prayer and expressing it in a way that catches God’s attention. It is also a model of evangelization. The blind man shouts and calls out to Jesus to be heard. Although initially rebuking him, on seeing the blind man healed and giving glory to God, the same crowd who rebuked him turn around and give praise to God. The healing that takes place through his faith is a kind of multiplication of the loaves, where shared among others it multiplies many times over. A prerequisite for the blind man’s healing is his lack of sight, his desire to see. This speaks to every person who lacks something in faith that love and repentance restore so that we can try again. As the Lord says in the first reading: “you have lost the love you had at first. Realize how far you have fallen. Repent, and do the works you did at first.” The blind man gains sight; in his faith and miraculous healing, he gives us cause to give praise to God.

God, help me understand today’s Gospel in light of the Gospel acclamation: “I am the light of the world, says the Lord; whoever follows me will have the light of life.” Every day, Lord, there is reason to call out to you; I lose sight of you and stumble in the dark, realizing more and more that I am dependent on you for every good gift. In giving all thanks and glory to you for restoring in me the light of your love time after time—in prayer, at Mass, and in the sacraments—help make my faith in you a witness to others and a cause for them to give you praise.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Perpetual adoration live stream Kolbe Shrine.

“My words will not pass away.” | Thirty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time

From the responsorial psalm: “O LORD, my allotted portion and my cup, you it is who hold fast my lot. I set the LORD ever before me; with him at my right hand I shall not be disturbed. You are my inheritance, O Lord!”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Mark (Mk 13:24-32)

“Amen, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things have taken place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away. “But of that day or hour, no one knows, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.”

Jesus speaks to the disciples about the coming in glory of the Son of Man. At his coming, the stars will fall, the moon will no longer give light, and “the powers in the heavens will be shaken.” Echoing Daniel, who describes in apocalyptic language a “time unsurpassed distress,” Jesus conveys his return powerfully but also tenderly in terms of the fig tree branches becoming tender and sprouting leaves. “And then,” Jesus tells the disciples, “they will see ‘the Son of Man coming in the clouds’ with great power and glory” and that although heaven and earth pass away, his words—our inheritance of eternal life—will not pass away.

Father in heaven, teach me to be vigilant at all times for the return of your Son on a day and time I cannot know. In times of tribulation, help me call to mind your constant, tender care in leading me to you. In your presence is the path to life and the fullness of joy. Throughout the moments of this day, keep me in your presence and under your protection, as when we hear the priest say during the Mass after the Lord’s Prayer: “Deliver us, Lord, we pray, from every evil, graciously grant peace in our days, that, by the help of your mercy, we may be always free from sin and safe from all distress, as we await the blessed hope and the coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ.”

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Perpetual adoration live stream Kolbe Shrine.

“Will he be slow to answer them?” | Saturday of the Thirty-second Week in Ordinary Time

From the responsorial psalm: “Blessed the man who fears the LORD, who greatly delights in his commands. His posterity shall be mighty upon the earth; the upright generation shall be blessed. Blessed the man who fears the Lord.”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke (Lk 18:1-8)

“For a long time the judge was unwilling, but eventually he thought, ‘While it is true that I neither fear God nor respect any human being, because this widow keeps bothering me I shall deliver a just decision for her lest she finally come and strike me.’” The Lord said, “Pay attention to what the dishonest judge says. Will not God then secure the rights of his chosen ones who call out to him day and night? Will he be slow to answer them?”

In the parable of the persistent widow, Jesus emphasizes the importance of persevering in prayer. Jesus uses the example of a dishonest judge who is initially indifferent but ultimately grants the widow justice because of her constant pleading. This illustrates that even if God seems slow to respond, our persistent prayer will eventually be answered by our loving Father. The parable concludes with a question about the strength of our faith in our experience of God’s justice and mercy. “But when the Son of Man comes,” Jesus says, “will he find faith on earth?”

God, help me see what today’s Gospel and psalm reveal about your justice and its work in the lives of those who act justly. To pray always and not become weary requires persistence and faith in your justice and mercy. “Pay attention to what the dishonest judge says,” Jesus tells the disciples. As I recognize the limitations of human justice, give me the grace to depend more strongly on you for my daily needs and for the constant need of my soul, which seeks union with you whether or not it recognizes that. As Saint Gertrude did, let me be thankful, Lord, for your mercy in preparing me to know the infinite mystery of your justice manifested through the passion, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ your Son. Saint Gertrude, pray for us!

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Perpetual adoration live stream Kolbe Shrine.

“So it will be on the day the Son of Man is revealed.” | Friday of the Thirty-second Week in Ordinary Time

From the responsorial psalm: “Open my eyes, that I may consider the wonders of your law. Blessed are they who follow the law of the Lord!”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke (Lk 17:26-37)

“As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be in the days of the Son of Man; they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage up to the day that Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all. Similarly, as it was in the days of Lot: they were eating, drinking, buying, selling, planting, building; on the day when Lot left Sodom, fire and brimstone rained from the sky to destroy them all. So it will be on the day the Son of Man is revealed.”

Jesus continues to tell the disciples about the coming of God’s kingdom—that it is already among them and is yet to come in the final judgment. He stresses constant vigilance for that day when one who is in the field “must not return to what was left behind.” Similar to what we hear in today’s psalm, Jesus asks the disciples to open their eyes to the awesome majesty of the coming of God’s kingdom in its full glory. The particular way that Jesus guides the disciples rests on salvation history in his retelling of the story of Noah and the wife of Lot, who became a pillar of salt as she looked back at Sodom, a place of sinfulness and corruption. Jesus invites us to turn our eyes on the kingdom of God already present and to be vigilant for the return of Christ and the final judgment.

Father in heaven, you see what I have before me today and know my desire to make the best of your gifts of time and opportunity. Amid the day’s activities, let me not forget that all of these things I am attached to can suddenly be taken from me. All that I see and can respond to means nothing unless I respond in love to the love with which you first loved us. As John says in the first reading, if I walk according to your commandment to love one another, I remain in Christ’s teaching, the teaching of the Father and the Son. Lord, take the little faith that I have and bless me as I seek to do all that you command.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Perpetual adoration live stream Kolbe Shrine.

“Do not go off, do not run in pursuit.” | Thursday of the Thirty-second Week in Ordinary Time

From the responsorial psalm: “The LORD secures justice for the oppressed, gives food to the hungry. The LORD sets captives free. Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob.”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke (Lk 17:20-25)

Then he said to his disciples, “The days will come when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, but you will not see it. There will be those who will say to you, ‘Look, there he is,’ or ‘Look, here he is.’ Do not go off, do not run in pursuit.”

Jesus is asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God will come. He tells them that the kingdom of God cannot be announced and is not here or there but among them. Perhaps privately, Jesus then tells the disciples that they will long to see the days of the Son of Man as they had been even as they look for the coming of the kingdom in the fullness of time. Speaking to the Pharisees, Jesus responds in kind to their question about the coming of the kingdom. To the disciples and warning them not to pursue what is false, he reveals that as the Son of Man, he brings down from heaven the kingdom to gather us as one to the eternal kingdom in heaven.

God, help me understand today’s readings. You remain outside of space and time. The words of Jesus your Son express the interconnectedness of time—what has been, what is, and what will be—so that no one hesitates to wait for you to appear. Although invisible and not be found in my surroundings, give me the grace to realize and respond to your gift of the kingdom that is already here in the present moment. As I move throughout the day, let me ask you to remind me of every opportunity you give me to remain in your kingdom even as I long to see it come. “I am the vine, you are the branches, says the Lord: whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit.”

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Perpetual adoration live stream Kolbe Shrine.

“We have done what we were obliged to do.” | Memorial of Saint Josaphat, Bishop and Martyr

Free me, Lord, from the snares of self-glorification as I look to act out of love for you rather than submission to any agenda whose aim is exalting myself. “For You alone are the Holy One, You alone are the Lord, You alone are the Most High, Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit, in the glory of the Father.”

From the responsorial psalm: “Trust in the LORD and do good, that you may dwell in the land and be fed in security. Take delight in the LORD, and he will grant you your heart’s requests. The salvation of the just comes from the Lord.”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke (Lk 17:7-10)

“When you have done all you have been commanded, say, ‘We are unprofitable servants; we have done what we were obliged to do.’”

In the parable from today’s Gospel, Jesus uses the relationship between a master and a servant to teach the Apostles about humility and duty. The servant, having worked all day, is expected to continue serving the master without expectation of thanks or reward. Although difficult to hear and put into action, the emphasis is on fulfilling one’s obligations, which does not call for special recognition; it is what is expected of a servant. By conveying this message to all of us, Jesus steers us away from seeking attention and praise and toward humility, service to God and others, gratitude, and faithfulness. Whatever makes possible the fulfilment of duties in a way that gives glory not to self for the shoring up of external validation but in service to God and obedience to his will—whatever that is, which God makes evident—ask God for the grace to accomplish it.

God, help me pay close attention to decisions I make throughout the day and why I make them. Am I doing things for the sake of recognition and reward, or am I quietly doing what you have called me to do in service to your holy will? Free me from the snares of self-glorification as I look to act out of love for you rather than submission to any agenda whose aim is exalting myself. “For You alone are the Holy One, You alone are the Lord, You alone are the Most High, Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit, in the glory of the Father.” Saint Josaphat, pray for us!

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Perpetual adoration live stream Kolbe Shrine.