Tag: healing

“Those who are well do not need a physician, but the sick do.” | Saturday of the First Week in Ordinary Time

From the responsorial psalm: “The fear of the LORD is pure, enduring forever; The ordinances of the LORD are true, all of them just. Your words, Lord, are Spirit and life.”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Mark (Mark 2:13-17)

Some scribes who were Pharisees saw that Jesus was eating with sinners and tax collectors and said to his disciples, “Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?” Jesus heard this and said to them, “Those who are well do not need a physician, but the sick do. I did not come to call the righteous but sinners.”

Jesus calls Levi (Matthew) to follow him. Matthew invites Jesus to dine at his house along with many tax collectors and sinners. When the Scribes and Pharisees see them dining together, they are critical of Jesus, questioning why he would eat with sinners. After Jesus hears their remarks, his response reveals the purpose of his mission and how he came to choose Matthew as one of the apostles: the sick need the Divine Physician, and Jesus calls sinners to him. Saint Paul recognizes the dependence we have on the grace and mercy Jesus offers when he says, “No creature is concealed from him, but everything is naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must render an account.”

Father in heaven, help me now and throughout the day receive your grace through Jesus Christ your Son. Let the words of Saint Paul remind me what it means to respond as Saint Matthew did on hearing the words “Follow me.” It means that in approaching the throne of grace, I have the sympathy and compassion of Jesus. Give me the grace to do as Paul urges in saying, “So let us confidently approach the throne of grace to receive mercy and to find grace for timely help.” Blessed Virgin Mary, mother of the Divine Physician, show me the way to your Son. Pray for us, O Holy Mother of God. That we may be made worthy of the promises of 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.

“Your sins are forgiven.” | Memorial of Saint Anthony, Abbot

From the responsorial psalm: “What we have heard and know, and what our fathers have declared to us, we will declare to the generation to come, The glorious deeds of the LORD and his strength. Do not forget the works of the Lord!”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Mark (Mark 1:40-45)

Jesus immediately knew in his mind what they were thinking to themselves, so he said, “Why are you thinking such things in your hearts? Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Rise, pick up your mat and walk’? But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority to forgive sins on earth”—he said to the paralytic, “I say to you, rise, pick up your mat, and go home.” He rose, picked up his mat at once, and went away in the sight of everyone.

Mark tells us that so many people came to see Jesus when he returned to Capernaum, that there was not enough room for them as they crowded around the home where he was staying. As he taught them, friends of a paralyzed man brought him to Jesus but were unable to get to Jesus because of the crowd. They resorted to climbing the roof, breaking through it, and lowering the man down on a mat. “When Jesus saw their faith,” Mark tells us, “he said to him, ‘Child, your sins are forgiven.’” Jesus knew what the scribes were thinking and responded to them, making clear that as the Son of God, he is able to heal the sick and forgive sins. The miracle takes place before astounded witnesses who glorify God and say, “We have never seen anything like this.”

God, you know me better than I know myself. You know that I am sometimes subject to paralyzing fear and anxiety in discerning the next best step in daily life. Help me call to mind—to bring into the present moment—that the place to let my hope rest is in you: “That they too may rise and declare to their sons that they should put their hope in God. . . . Do not forget the works of the Lord!” The people who witness the paralyzed man rise and walk have never seen anything like it. To see is to know, to witness is to trust in what is seen. Give me the grace to see without the benefit of sight, trusting that Jesus sees my faith. At the end of the day, I want to say of the works he performs in my life: “I have never seen anything like this.” Saint Anthony, 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.

“And he was made clean.” | Thursday of the First Week in Ordinary Time

From the responsorial psalm: “Come, let us bow down in worship; let us kneel before the LORD who made us. For he is our God, and we are the people he shepherds, the flock he guides. If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Mark (Mark 1:40-45)

The man went away and began to publicize the whole matter. He spread the report abroad so that it was impossible for Jesus to enter a town openly. He remained outside in deserted places, and people kept coming to him from everywhere.

The man with leprosy who comes to Jesus and drops to his knees says, “If you wish, you can make me clean.” Jesus tells him, “I to will it. Be made clean.” He is healed immediately, and Jesus tells him not to tell anybody, but the man tells everybody he knows. Word of Jesus spreads, and it is impossible for him to go anywhere unrecognized. He remains outside of towns in deserted places, yet people come to him from everywhere for his healing. By the time Saint Paul writes the Letter to the Hebrews, the risen Jesus is present in the “today” of people’s lives and until he comes again. “We have become partners of Christ,” Paul says, “if only we hold the beginning of the reality firm until the end.”

God, work with me today as I call to mind that one and all come to Jesus for healing and wholeness. They come as unrepeatable, unique people and as a people who seek to see the face of God and drop to their knees, presenting every need imaginable. Help me, Lord, come to you first for everything today, if only by saying your name and bringing you into the midst of everything I do. “And people kept coming to him from everywhere.” Why is that? 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.

“They brought to him all who were ill.” | Wednesday of the First Week in Ordinary Time

From the responsorial psalm: “Give thanks to the LORD, invoke his name; make known among the nations his deeds. Sing to him, sing his praise, proclaim all his wondrous deeds. The Lord remembers his covenant for ever.”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Mark (Mark 1:29-39)

When it was evening, after sunset, they brought to him all who were ill or possessed by demons. The whole town was gathered at the door. He cured many who were sick with various diseases, and he drove out many demons, not permitting them to speak because they knew him.

Mark describes a series of events in the early ministry of Jesus. After leaving the synagogue where he taught and exorcised a man with an unclean spirit, Jesus goes to the house of Simon and Andrew and heals Simon’s mother-in-law, who lays sick with a fever. That same evening, people come to Jesus, and he cures them of their illnesses and casts out demons of those who are possessed. The next morning before dawn he rises and goes off to pray, and Simon and the others find him and tell him that everyone is looking for him. “So he went into their synagogues,” Mark tells us, “preaching and driving out demons throughout the whole of Galilee.” In his compassion, Jesus acts as both healer and teacher in his mission to bring salvation and hope to humanity. He continues to do that today.

God, help me trust in your mercy and take comfort in Jesus’ saving mission as I consider the words of Saint Paul: “Because he himself was tested through what he suffered, he is able to help those who are being tested.” Through the mystery of suffering, let me learn my complete dependence on you for all that is good. Let my weaknesses be a means of giving glory to you, Lord, who through your Son destroyed death. “Look to the LORD in his strength,” the psalmist prays, “seek to serve him constantly.” Grasp me by the hand and help me always be mindful of doing your will.

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.

“I do will it. Be made clean.” | Friday after Epiphany

From the responsorial psalm: “He has granted peace in your borders; with the best of wheat he fills you. He sends forth his command to the earth; swiftly runs his word! Praise the Lord, Jerusalem.”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke (Luke 5:12-16)

It happened that there was a man full of leprosy in one of the towns where Jesus was; and when he saw Jesus, he fell prostrate, pleaded with him, and said, “Lord, if you wish, you can make me clean.” Jesus stretched out his hand, touched him, and said, “I do will it. Be made clean.” And the leprosy left him immediately.

Luke relates a story of Jesus healing a man with leprosy. Taking place in one of the towns Jesus visits, Luke tells us that “It happened that there was a man full of leprosy.” In healing the man, and in the account of this that spread all the more so that Jesus would cure great crowds of all kinds of illnesses, it is not at all circumstantial. Jesus came to all people to proclaim the Gospel and to cure every disease among them. “Lord, if you wish.” Asking for healing in this manner, the man with full of leprosy is emptied of it only to be filled with the Lord’s healing and grace. “I do will it,” Jesus says. “Be made clean.” What Jesus wills is to please the Father in giving us abundant life. As we hear from John in the first reading: “God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.”

God, there is no accident in Jesus’ encounter with the man who has leprosy. If not leprosy, there is always some other physical or mental or spiritual illness. The great crowds came to Jesus to listen to him but also to be cured of their illnesses. Give me the grace, Lord, to understand that you do as you will and that your will is to bring healing and wholeness to those in most need of your mercy. Help me know peace today, Lord; fill me with the best of wheat. I know you will it.

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.

“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.

“Where are the other nine?” | Memorial of Saint Frances Xavier Cabrini, Virgin

Keep me in your care, Lord. Give me the grace to give you thanks always for being at my side to give me courage as I move through every moment of the day. Saint Frances Xavier Cabrini, pray for us!

From the responsorial psalm: “He guides me in right paths for his name’s sake. Even though I walk in the dark valley I fear no evil; for you are at my side With your rod and your staff that give me courage. The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke (Lk 17:11-19)

As they were going they were cleansed. And one of them, realizing he had been healed, returned, glorifying God in a loud voice; and he fell at the feet of Jesus and thanked him.

Lepers see Jesus as he travels through Samaria and Galilee. The ten lepers remain at a distance and call out loudly to him, “Jesus, Master! Have pity on us!” In a few words, Jesus heals them, saying, “Go show yourselves to the priests.” As the lepers go, they are miraculously healed of their leprosy as they obey Jesus’ command through their faith and action. But only one leper—a Samaritan, a foreigner—returns to thank Jesus, falling to his knees. Jesus says, “Stand up and go; your faith has saved you.” Through his faith and gratitude, the leper receives complete healing in mind, body, and soul. As the day progresses, will there be time to stop and thank God for the work he accomplishes through us as we do his will.

God, let me consider the Gospel acclamation: “In all circumstances, give thanks, for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus.” I am sure that throughout the day I will experience what I believe are dark valleys, paths that appear to lead to no good end. Even in those circumstances, stir up in me the desire to take comfort in you, knowing you are present with your rod and your staff to guide and protect me. Keep me in your care, Lord. Give me the grace to give you thanks always for being at my side to give me courage as I move through every moment of the day. Saint Frances Xavier Cabrini, 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.