Words of the Holy Father- to make use of our poverty to proclaim his richness-09-05-24

 Words of the Holy Father- to make use of our poverty to proclaim his richness-09-05-24

“We toiled all night and took nothing” (v. 5), says Simon. How often, we too are left with a sense of defeat while disappointment and bitterness arise in our hearts. Two very dangerous seeds. So what does the Lord do? He chooses to climb into our boat. He wants to proclaim the Gospel from there. It is precisely that empty boat, the symbol of our incapacity, that becomes Jesus’ “cathedra”, the pulpit from which he proclaims the Word. And this is what the Lord loves to do — the Lord is the Lord of surprises, of miracles in surprises — to climb into the boat of our lives when we have nothing to offer him; to enter our emptiness and fill it with his presence; to make use of our poverty to proclaim his richness, of our miseries to proclaim his mercy. (…) With Jesus, we sail the sea of life without fear, without giving in to disappointment when one catches nothing, and without giving up and saying “there is nothing more that can be done”. Always, in personal life as well as in the life of the Church and society, there is something beautiful and courageous that can be done, always. We can always start over — the Lord always invites us to get back on our feet because he opens up new possibilities. (Angelus, 6 February 2022)

Thursday of the Twenty-second Week in Ordinary Time

Gospel and Thought for the Day - Vatican News https://www.vaticannews.va/en/word-of-the-day.html 

Gospel in Art: Leave me, Lord; I am a sinful man https://www.indcatholicnews.com/news/50566 

Words of the Holy Father- a doctor both of souls and of bodies-09-04-24

 Words of the Holy Father- a doctor both of souls and of bodies-09-04-24

Preaching and healing: this was Jesus’ principle activity in his public ministry. With his preaching he proclaims the Kingdom of God, and with his healing he 

shows that it is near, that the Kingdom of God is in our midst. Entering the house of Simon Peter, Jesus sees that his mother-in-law is in bed with a fever; he immediately takes her by the hand, heals her, and raises her. After sunset, since the Sabbath is over the people can go out and bring the sick to Him; He heals a multitude of people afflicted with maladies of every kind: physical, psychological, and spiritual. Having come to earth to proclaim and to realize the salvation of the whole man and of all people, Jesus shows a particular predilection for those who are wounded in body and in spirit: the poor, the sinners, the possessed, the sick, the marginalized. Thus, He reveals Himself as a doctor both of souls and of bodies, the Good Samaritan of man. He is the true Saviour: 

Jesus saves, Jesus cures, Jesus heals. (Angelus, 8 February 2015)

Wednesday of the Twenty-second Week in Ordinary Time

Gospel and Thought for the Day - Vatican News https://www.vaticannews.va/en/word-of-the-day.html 

Gospel in Art: They asked Jesus to do something for her https://www.indcatholicnews.com/news/50557

Words of the Holy Father- the great certainty-God loves me; Jesus gave his life for me!-09-03-24

 Words of the Holy Father- the great certainty-God loves me; Jesus gave his life for me!-09-03-24

God’s holiness is an expanding force, and we ask that the barriers in our world be quickly broken down. When Jesus begins to preach, the first to pay the consequences is precisely the evil that afflicts the world. The evil spirits curse: “What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, the Holy One of God” (Mk 1:24). Such holiness had never been seen before: not concerned with itself but radiating outward. A holiness — that of Jesus — that expands in concentric circles, as when one throws a stone into a pond. The evil one’s days are numbered — evil is not eternal; evil can no longer harm us: the strong man has arrived to take possession of his house (cf. Mk 3:23-27). And this strong man is Jesus, who gives us, too, the strength to take possession of our inner house.

Prayer drives away all fears. The Father loves us; the Son lifts up his arms to support ours; the Spirit works secretly for the redemption of the world. And we? We do not waver in uncertainty; for we have one great certainty: God loves me; Jesus gave his life for me! The Spirit is within me. This is the great certainty. And the evil one? He is afraid. And this is good. (General audience, 27 February 2019)

Memorial of Saint Gregory the Great, Pope and Doctor of the Church

Gospel and Thought for the Day - Vatican News https://www.vaticannews.va/en/word-of-the-day.html 

St. Gregory the Great, pope and Doctor of the Church - Information on the Saint of the Day - Vatican News https://www.vaticannews.va/en/saints/09/03/st--gregory-the-great--pope-and-doctor-of-the-church.html 

St Gregory the Great https://www.indcatholicnews.com/saint/256 

Pope at Mass in Indonesia: Dare to dream of fraternity! - Vatican News

 Pope at Mass in Indonesia: Dare to dream of fraternity! - Vatican News https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2024-09/pope-to-indonesian-faithful-always-dare-to-dream-of-fraternity.html

Pope at Mass in Indonesia: Dare to dream of fraternity!

On the third day of his Apostolic Journey to Indonesia, Pope Francis celebrates Mass in Jakarta, and reminds the faithful of the need to listen to and live the Word proclaimed by Jesus.

By Christopher Wells

“Listening to the Word and living the Word” are “two fundamental attitudes that enable us to become Jesus’ disciples,” Pope Francis said on Thursday, at the Holy Mass, the final public event of his Apostolic Visit to Indonesia.

Reflecting on the Gospel reading for the feast of St. Teresa of Calcutta, the Holy Father noted that “the human heart is always searching for a truth that can feed its desire for happiness.” That truth, he said, cannot be found in merely human words, but only in the Word of God, “the only true compass for our journey, which alone is capable of leading us back to the true meaning of life amid so much woundedness and confusion.”

Allow yourself to be challenged by the Word

Pope Francis reminded the faithful that our first task as disciples is to listen to the Word of God, as Peter did when Jesus began to preach from his fishing boat. “Our life of faith begins,” the Pope said, “when we humbly welcome Jesus into the boat of our lives, make room for Him, listen to His Word, and allow ourselves to be questioned, challenged, and changed by it.”

At the same time, the Pope continued, we are called not only to listen to Jesus’ Word, but to live it. Peter trusted the Lord when He called him to “put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch,” and we, too, are called to trust in Jesus by “courageously casting the nets of the Gospel into the sea of the world.”

Recognizing that we can always find excuses to refuse the call, Pope Francis invited the faithful to embrace the humility and faith of Peter, who obeyed the Lord’s call even after a night of failure and disappointment. He recalled the words of St Teresa, who used to say, “When we have nothing to give, let us give that nothing. And even if you reap nothing, never tire of sowing.”

Dreaming and building a civilization of peace

“Brothers and sisters,” Pope Francis concluded, “I would also like to say to you, to this nation, to this wonderful and varied archipelago, do not grow weary of setting sail and casting your nets, do not grow weary of dreaming and building again a civilization of peace!”

“Always dare to dream of fraternity!”

“Always dare to dream of fraternity!” he continued, encouraging them “to sow seeds of love, confidently tread the path of dialogue, continue to show your goodness and kindness with your characteristic smile.”

Words of the Holy Father-the Word of God today-he power of the Spirit, is today 09-02-24

 Words of the Holy Father-the Word of God today-he power of the Spirit, is today 09-02-24

And Jesus begins by saying: “Today this scripture has been fulfilled”. Let us dwell on this today. (…) The Word of God is always “today”. (…)  Isaiah’s prophecy dates back to earlier centuries, but Jesus, “in the power of the Spirit”, makes it relevant and, above all, brings it to fulfilment, and shows how to 

receive the Word of God: today. (…)  It speaks to your heart today. Jesus’ fellow countrymen are struck by his word. Even though, clouded by prejudice, they do not believe him, they realize that his teaching is different from that of the other teachers: they sense that there is more to Jesus. What is there? There is the anointing of the Holy Spirit. Sometimes it happens that our sermons and our teachings remain generic, abstract; they do not touch the soul and the life of the people. And why? Because they lack the power of this today; what Jesus “fills with meaning” in the power of the Spirit, is today. He is speaking to you today. (Angelus, 23 January 2022)

Monday of the Twenty-second Week in Ordinary Time

Gospel and Thought for the Day - Vatican News https://www.vaticannews.va/en/word-of-the-day.html 

Gospel in Art: Jesus went into the synagogue as he usually did https://www.indcatholicnews.com/news/50542

St Zeno, with his two sons Concordius and Theodore, suffered martyrdom under Julian the Apostate. Julian had rejected Christianity, and attempted to restore paganism as the official religion of the Roman Empire. The execution of Zeno and his sons is related in an ancient Latin passio. https://lnkd.in/gsCpBpq

Words of the Holy Father-Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also-09-01-24

 Words of the Holy Father-Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also-09-01-24

Jesus (…) emphasizes the primacy of interiority, that is, the primacy of the “heart”: it is not the external things that make us holy or unholy, but 

the heart which expresses our intentions, our choices and the will to do all for the love of God. External behaviour is the result of what we decide in the heart, and not the contrary: with a change in external behaviour, but not a change of heart, we are not true Christians. The boundary between good and evil does not pass outside of us, but rather within us. We could ask ourselves: where is my heart? Jesus said: “Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also”. What is my treasure? Is it Jesus, is it his teaching? If so, then the heart is good. Or is my treasure something else? Thus it is a heart which needs purification and conversion. (Angelus, 30 August 2015)

Twenty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time

Gospel and Thought for the Day - Vatican News https://www.vaticannews.va/en/word-of-the-day.html 

Gospel in Art: There are many observances which have been handed down https://www.indcatholicnews.com/news/50533

Pope's Message for World Day of Prayer for Care of Creation

 Pope's Message for World Day of Prayer for Care of Creation https://www.indcatholicnews.com/news/50534