DAILY GOSPEL: 12/01/2011
«Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.» John 6,68
Wednesday of the First week in Ordinary Time
Letter to the Hebrews 2:14-18.
Now since the children share in blood and flesh, he likewise shared in them, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil,
and free those who through fear of death had been subject to slavery all their life.
Surely he did not help angels but rather the descendants of Abraham;
therefore, he had to become like his brothers in every way, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest before God to expiate the sins of the people.
Because he himself was tested through what he suffered, he is able to help those who are being tested.
Psalms 105(104):1-2.3-4.6-7.8-9.
Give thanks to the LORD, invoke his name; make known among the peoples his deeds!
Sing praise, play music; proclaim all his wondrous deeds!
Glory in his holy name; rejoice, O hearts that seek the LORD!
Rely on the mighty LORD; constantly seek his face.
You descendants of Abraham his servant, offspring of Jacob the chosen one!
The LORD is our God who rules the whole earth.
He remembers forever his covenant, the pact imposed for a thousand generations,
Which was made with Abraham, confirmed by oath to Isaac,
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Mark 1:29-39.
On leaving the synagogue Jesus entered the house of Simon and Andrew with James and John.
Simon's mother-in-law lay sick with a fever. They immediately told him about her.
He approached, grasped her hand, and helped her up. Then the fever left her and she waited on them.
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.
Rising very early before dawn, he left and went off to a deserted place, where he prayed.
Simon and those who were with him pursued him
and on finding him said, "Everyone is looking for you."
He told them, "Let us go on to the nearby villages that I may preach there also. For this purpose have I come."
So he went into their synagogues, preaching and driving out demons throughout the whole of Galilee.
Now since the children share in blood and flesh, he likewise shared in them, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil,
and free those who through fear of death had been subject to slavery all their life.
Surely he did not help angels but rather the descendants of Abraham;
therefore, he had to become like his brothers in every way, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest before God to expiate the sins of the people.
Because he himself was tested through what he suffered, he is able to help those who are being tested.
Psalms 105(104):1-2.3-4.6-7.8-9.
Give thanks to the LORD, invoke his name; make known among the peoples his deeds!
Sing praise, play music; proclaim all his wondrous deeds!
Glory in his holy name; rejoice, O hearts that seek the LORD!
Rely on the mighty LORD; constantly seek his face.
You descendants of Abraham his servant, offspring of Jacob the chosen one!
The LORD is our God who rules the whole earth.
He remembers forever his covenant, the pact imposed for a thousand generations,
Which was made with Abraham, confirmed by oath to Isaac,
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Mark 1:29-39.
On leaving the synagogue Jesus entered the house of Simon and Andrew with James and John.
Simon's mother-in-law lay sick with a fever. They immediately told him about her.
He approached, grasped her hand, and helped her up. Then the fever left her and she waited on them.
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.
Rising very early before dawn, he left and went off to a deserted place, where he prayed.
Simon and those who were with him pursued him
and on finding him said, "Everyone is looking for you."
He told them, "Let us go on to the nearby villages that I may preach there also. For this purpose have I come."
So he went into their synagogues, preaching and driving out demons throughout the whole of Galilee.
Mc 1,29-39
5th century homily on prayer
Wrongly attributed to Saint John Chrysostom ; PG 64, 461
"He went off to a deserted place, where he prayed"
Prayer, familiar intercourse with God, is our greatest good... Prayer is the light of the soul, true knowledge of God, mediator between God and man. Through it the soul is raised to heaven and holds God inexpressibly in tight embrace. Like a child crying out to its mother, it expresses the eagerness of its desire. It gives voice to its deepest longings and receives in return gifts surpassing all visible nature. For prayer presents itself as a powerful ambassador, rejoicing and pacifying the soul.
When I speak of prayer you should not imagine it to be a question of words. It is a reaching out towards God, an indescribable love, not of human origin, of which the apostle Paul speaks when he says: «We do not know how to pray as we ought, but the Spirit itself intercedes with inexpressible groanings» (Rm 8,26). If God grants someone such prayer as this, it becomes for him an everlasting source of wealth and a heavenly food that fills the soul. The one who has tasted it is seized with an eternal longing for our Lord like a devouring fire that sets his heart ablaze.
When I speak of prayer you should not imagine it to be a question of words. It is a reaching out towards God, an indescribable love, not of human origin, of which the apostle Paul speaks when he says: «We do not know how to pray as we ought, but the Spirit itself intercedes with inexpressible groanings» (Rm 8,26). If God grants someone such prayer as this, it becomes for him an everlasting source of wealth and a heavenly food that fills the soul. The one who has tasted it is seized with an eternal longing for our Lord like a devouring fire that sets his heart ablaze.
St Marguerite Bourgeoys (1620-1700)
ST MARGUERITE BOURGEOYS
1620-1700
Foundress of the Sisters
of the Congregation of Notre-Dame
1620-1700
Foundress of the Sisters
of the Congregation of Notre-Dame
Marguerite Bourgeoys was born in Troyes, in the province of Champagne (France), on Good Friday, April 17, 1620. She was baptized on the same day in the church of Saint-Jean, a church that was located near her home. Marguerite was the sixth child in a family of twelve. Her parents were Abraham Bourgeoys and Guillemette Gamier, and she was privileged to grow up in a milieu that was middle class and thoroughly Christian.
Marguerite was nineteen years of age when she lost her mother. In the following year, 1640, in the course of a procession held on October 7 in honor of Our Lady of the Rosary, she had an unforgettable experience. Her eyes rested on a statue of the Blessed Virgin, and at that moment she felt inspired to withdraw from the world and to consecrate herself to the service of God. With that unchanging fidelity to what she believed to be God's will for her, a fidelity that characterized her life thenceforth, she set about to discern her specific vocation.
She registered, at once, as a member of the extern Congregation of Troyes, an association of young girls devoted to the charitable work of teaching children in the poor districts of the
town. While engaged in this apostolate she learned about the foundation of Ville Marie (Montreal) in Canada. The year was 1642, and at that time she sensed a first call to missionary life. This call was rendered concrete in 1652 when she met Monsieur de Maisonneuve, founder and governor of the settlement begun in New France, who was in search of someone who would volunteer her services for the gratuitous instruction of the French and Indian children. Our Lady confirmed the call addressed to her: "Go, I will not forsake you", she said. Thus assured, Marguerite left Troyes in February, 1653, in a spirit of complete detachment. She arrived in Montreal on the following 16th of November, and without delay she set to work to promote the best interests of the colony. She is rightly considered co-foundress of Montreal, with the nurse, Jeanne Mance, and the master designer, Monsieur de Maisonneuve.
In order to encourage the colonists in their faith expression, she arranged for the restoration of the Cross on Mount Royal after it has been destroyed by hostile Indians, and she undertook the construction of a chapel dedicated to Notre-Dame de Bon Secours. Convinced of the importance of the family in the building of this new country, and perceiving the significance of the role to be exercised by women, she devoted herself to the task of preparing those whose vocation it would be to preside in a home. In 1658, in a stable which had been given to her by the governor for her use, she opened the first school in Montreal. She also organized an extern Congregation, patterned after the one which she had known in Troyes but adapted to the actual needs. In this way, she could respond to the needs of the women and young girls on whom much depended as far as the instruction of children was concerned. In 1659, she began receiving girls who were recommended by "les cures" in France, or endowed by the King, to come to establish homes in Montreal, and she became a real mother to them. Thus were initiated a school system and a network of social services which gradually extended through the whole country, and which led people to refer to Marguerite as "Mother of the Colony".
On three occasions, Marguerite Bourgeoys made a trip to France to obtain help. As of
1658, the group of teachers who associated themselves with her in her life of prayer, of heroic poverty, and of untiring devotedness to the service of others, presented the image of a religious institute. The group was inspired by the "vie voyagere" of Our Lady, and desired to remain uncloistered, the concept of an uncloistered community being an innovation at that time. Such a foundation occasioned much suffering and the one who took the initiative was not spared. But the work progressed. The Congregation de Notre-Dame received its civil charter from Louis XIV in 1671, and canonical approbation by decree of the Bishop of Quebec in 1676. The Constitutions of the Community were approved in 1698.
The foundation having been assured, Sister Bourgeoys could leave the work to others. She died in Montreal on January 12, 1700, acknowledged for her holiness of life. Her last generous act was to offer herself as a sacrifice of prayer for the return to health of a young Sister. Forty memberg of the Congregation de Notre-Dame were there to continue her work.
The educative and apostolic efforts of Marguerite Bourgeoys continue through the commitment of the members of the community that she founded. More than 2,600 Sisters of the Congregation de Notre-Dame work in fields of action according to the needs of time and place - from school to college or university, in the promotion of family, parish and diocesan endeavours. They are on mission in Canada, in the United States, in Japan, in Latin America, in Cameroon, and most recently they have established a house in France.
On November 12, 1950 Pope Pius XII beatified Marguerite Bourgeoys. Canonizing her this October 31, 1982, Pope John Paul II gives the Canadian Church its first woman saint.
No hay comentarios:
Publicar un comentario