Friday, June 13, 2014

PRAYER OF THE DAY

Litany of Saint Anthony of Padua

Lord,
have mercy on us.
Christ,
have mercy on us.
Lord,
have mercy on us.
Christ,
hear us.
Christ,
graciously hear us.

God, the Father of Heaven,
have mercy on us.
God, the Son, Redeemer of the world,
have mercy on us.
God, the Holy Spirit,
have mercy on us.
Holy Trinity, one God,
have mercy on us.

Holy Mary,
Saint Anthony of Padua,
Saint Anthony,
glory of the Friars Minor,
Saint Anthony,
ark of the testament,
Saint Anthony,
sanctuary of heavenly wisdom,
Saint Anthony,
destroyer of worldly vanity,
Saint Anthony,
conqueror of impurity,
Saint Anthony,
example of humility,
Saint Anthony,
lover of the Cross,
Saint Anthony,
martyr of desire,
Saint Anthony,
generator of charity,
Saint Anthony,
zealous for justice,
Saint Anthony,
terror of infidels,
Saint Anthony,
model of perfection,
Saint Anthony,
consoler of the afflicted,
Saint Anthony,
restorer of lost things,
Saint Anthony,
defender of innocence,
Saint Anthony,
liberator of prisoners,
Saint Anthony,
guide of pilgrims,
Saint Anthony,
restorer of health.
Saint Anthony,
performer of miracles,
Saint Anthony,
restorer of speech to the mute,
Saint Anthony,
restorer of hearing to the deaf,
Saint Anthony,
restorer of sight to the blind,
Saint Anthony,
disperser of devils,
Saint Anthony,
reviver of the dead.
Saint Anthony,
tamer of tyrants,

From the snares of the devil,
Saint Anthony deliver us.
From thunder, lightning and storms,
Saint Anthony deliver us.
From all evil of body and soul,
Saint Anthony deliver us.
Through your intercession,
Saint Anthony protect us.
Throughout the course of life,
Saint Anthony protect us.

Lamb of God, 
who takes away the sins of the world,
spare us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, 
who takes away the sins of the world,
graciously hear us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, 
who takes away the sins of the world,
have mercy on us.

V. Saint Anthony, pray for us.
R. That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

O my God,
may the pious commemoration of Saint Anthony,
your Confessor and Proctor,
give joy to your Church,
that she may ever be strengthened with your spiritual assistance and merit to attain everlasting joy.
Through Christ our Lord.

Amen.

DAILY MASS READINGS

Memorial of Saint Anthony of Padua
Priest and Doctor of the Church

Reading
1 KGS 19:9A, 11-16

At the mountain of God, Horeb,
Elijah came to a cave, where he took shelter.
But the word of the LORD came to him,
“Go outside and stand on the mountain before the LORD;
the LORD will be passing by.”
A strong and heavy wind was rending the mountains
and crushing rocks before the LORD—
but the LORD was not in the wind.
After the wind there was an earthquake—
but the LORD was not in the earthquake.
After the earthquake there was fire—
but the LORD was not in the fire.
After the fire there was a tiny whispering sound.
When he heard this,
Elijah hid his face in his cloak
and went and stood at the entrance of the cave.
A voice said to him, “Elijah, why are you here?”
He replied, “I have been most zealous for the LORD,
the God of hosts.
But the children of Israel have forsaken your covenant,
torn down your altars,
and put your prophets to the sword.
I alone am left, and they seek to take my life.”
The LORD said to him,
“Go, take the road back to the desert near Damascus.
When you arrive, you shall anoint Hazael as king of Aram.
Then you shall anoint Jehu, son of Nimshi, as king of Israel,
and Elisha, son of Shaphat of Abel-meholah,
as prophet to succeed you.”


Responsorial Psalm
PS 27:7-8A, 8B-9ABC, 13-14

R. I long to see your face, O Lord.

Hear, O LORD, the sound of my call;
have pity on me, and answer me.
Of you my heart speaks; you my glance seeks.

R. I long to see your face, O Lord.

Your presence, O LORD, I seek.
Hide not your face from me;
do not in anger repel your servant.
You are my helper: cast me not off.

R. I long to see your face, O Lord.

I believe that I shall see the bounty of the LORD
in the land of the living.
Wait for the LORD with courage;
be stouthearted, and wait for the LORD.

R. I long to see your face, O Lord.


Gospel
MT 5:27-32

Jesus said to his disciples:

“You have heard that it was said, You shall not commit adultery.
But I say to you,
everyone who looks at a woman with lust
has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
If your right eye causes you to sin,
tear it out and throw it away.
It is better for you to lose one of your members
than to have your whole body thrown into Gehenna.
And if your right hand causes you to sin,
cut it off and throw it away.
It is better for you to lose one of your members
than to have your whole body go into Gehenna.

“It was also said,
Whoever divorces his wife must give her a bill of divorce.
But I say to you,
whoever divorces his wife (unless the marriage is unlawful)
causes her to commit adultery,
and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.”

SAINT OF THE DAY

June 13

St. Anthony of Padua (1195-1231)

The gospel call to leave everything and follow Christ was the rule of Anthony’s life.
Over and over again God called him to something new in his plan.
Every time Anthony responded with renewed zeal and self-sacrificing to serve his Lord Jesus more completely.

His journey as the servant of God began as a very young man when he decided to join the Augustinians in Lisbon, giving up a future of wealth and power to be a servant of God. Later, when the bodies of the first Franciscan martyrs went through the Portuguese city where he was stationed, he was again filled with an intense longing to be one of those closest to Jesus himself: those who die for the Good News.

So Anthony entered the Franciscan Order and set out to preach to the Moors. But an illness prevented him from achieving that goal. He went to Italy and was stationed in a small hermitage where he spent most of his time praying, 
reading the Scriptures and doing menial tasks.

The call of God came again at an ordination where no one was prepared to speak. The humble and obedient Anthony hesitantly accepted the task. The years of searching for Jesus in prayer, of reading sacred Scripture and of serving him in poverty, chastity and obedience had prepared Anthony to allow the Spirit to use his talents. Anthony’s sermon was astounding to those who expected an unprepared speech and knew not the Spirit’s power to give people words.

Recognized as a great man of prayer and a great Scripture and theology scholar, Anthony became the first friar to teach theology to the other friars. Soon he was called from that post to preach to the Albigensians in France, using his profound knowledge of Scripture and theology to convert and reassure those who had been misled by their denial of Christ's divinity and of the sacraments..

After he led the friars in northern Italy for three years, he made his headquarters in the city of Padua. 
He resumed his preaching and began writing sermon notes to help other preachers.

OFFICE OF READINGS

O Lord, open my lips,
and my mouth will proclaim Your Praise!

Invitatory Psalm
Psalm 94 (95)

The Lord is the source of all wisdom:
come, let us adore him.

Come, let us rejoice in the Lord,
let us acclaim God our salvation.
Let us come before him proclaiming our thanks,
let us acclaim him with songs.

The Lord is the source of all wisdom:
come, let us adore him.

For the Lord is a great God,
a king above all gods.
For he holds the depths of the earth in his hands,
and the peaks of the mountains are his.
For the sea is his: he made it;
and his hands formed the dry land.

The Lord is the source of all wisdom:
come, let us adore him.

Come, let us worship and bow down,
bend the knee before the Lord who made us;
for he himself is our God and we are his flock,
the sheep that follow his hand.

The Lord is the source of all wisdom:
come, let us adore him.

If only, today, you would listen to his voice:
“Do not harden your hearts
as you did at Meribah,
on the day of Massah in the desert,
when your fathers tested me –
they put me to the test,
although they had seen my works.”

The Lord is the source of all wisdom:
come, let us adore him.

“For forty years they wearied me,
that generation.
I said: their hearts are wandering,
they do not know my paths.
I swore in my anger:
they will never enter my place of rest.”

The Lord is the source of all wisdom:
come, let us adore him.

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.

The Lord is the source of all wisdom:
come, let us adore him.


Hymn

When God of old came down from heaven,
In power and wrath he came.
Before his feet the clouds were riven,
Half darkness and half flame;
But when he came the second time,
He came in power and love.
Softer than gale at morning prime
Hovered his holy Dove.
The fires that rushed on Sinai down
In sudden torrents dread,
Now gently light, a glorious crown,
On every sainted head.
And when the Spirit of our God
Came down his flock to find,
A voice from heaven was heard abroad,
A rushing, mighty wind.
It fills the Church of God, it fills
The sinful world around;
Only in stubborn hearts and wills
No place for it is found.
Come Lord, come Wisdom, Love and Power,
Open our ears to hear.
Let us not miss the accepted hour!
Save, Lord, by love or fear.


Psalm 37 (38)
The plea of a sinner in great peril

Do not punish me, Lord, in your rage.

Lord, do not rebuke me in your wrath,
do not ruin me in your anger:
for I am pierced by your arrows
and crushed beneath your hand.
In the face of your anger
there is no health in my body.
There is no peace for my bones,
no rest from my sins.
My transgressions rise higher than my head:
a heavy burden, they weigh me down.

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.

Do not punish me, Lord, in your rage.


Psalm 37 (38)

O Lord, you know all my longing.

My wounds are corruption and decay
because of my foolishness.
I am bowed down and bent,
bent under grief all day long.
For a fire burns up my loins,
and there is no health in my body.
I am afflicted, utterly cast down,
I cry out from the sadness of my heart.
Lord, all that I desire is known to you;
my sighs are not hidden from you.
My heart grows weak, my strength leaves me,
and the light of my eyes – even that has gone.
My friends and my neighbours
keep far from my wounds.
Those closest to me keep far away,
while those who would kill me set traps,
those who would harm me make their plots:
they plan mischief all through the day.

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.

O Lord, you know all my longing.


Psalm 37 (38)

I confess my guilt to you, Lord;
do not forsake me, my savior.

But I, like a deaf man, do not hear;
like one who is dumb, I do not open my mouth.
I am like someone who cannot hear,
in whose mouth there is no reply.
For in you, Lord, I put my trust:
you will listen to me, Lord, my God.
For I have said, “Let them never triumph over me:
if my feet stumble, they will gloat.”
For I am ready to fall:
my suffering is before me always.
For I shall proclaim my wrongdoing:
I am anxious because of my sins.
All the time my enemies live and grow stronger;
they are so many, those who hate me without cause.
Returning evil for good they dragged me down,
because I followed the way of goodness.
Do not abandon me, Lord:
my God, do not leave me.
Hurry to my aid,
O Lord, my savior.

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 confess my guilt to you, Lord;
do not forsake me, my savior.


My eyes are weary with longing for your salvation
– and for your words of justice.


First Reading
Joshua 10:1-14,11:15-17

Now it happened that Adoni-zedek the king of Jerusalem was told that Joshua had conquered Ai and put the town under a ban, dealing with Ai and its king as he had dealt earlier with Jericho and its king; and also that the inhabitants of Gibeon had made their peace with Israel and entered their community. There was consternation at this, since Gibeon was as important a town as one of the royal towns themselves, and larger than Ai, while all its citizens were fighting men. Then Adoni-zedek the king of Jerusalem sent word to Hoham the king of Hebron, Piram the king of Jarmuth, Japhia the king of Lachish and Debir the king of Eglon, ‘Join me and help me to conquer Gibeon, because it has made peace with Joshua and the Israelites.’ The five Amorite kings joined forces and set off together, that is, the king of Jerusalem, the king of Hebron, the king of Jarmuth, 
the king of Lachish and the king of Eglon, they and all their armies with them; 
they besieged Gibeon and attacked it.

The men of Gibeon sent word to Joshua in the camp at Gilgal, ‘Do not desert your servants; come up here quickly to save us and help us, because all the Amorite kings living in the mountains have allied themselves against us.’ Joshua came up from Gilgal in person, bringing all the fighting men and all the bravest of his army with him. The Lord said to Joshua, ‘Do not be afraid of these men; I have delivered them into your power; not one of them will be able to stand against you.’ 
Having marched from Gilgal throughout the night, Joshua caught them unawares.

The Lord drove them headlong before Israel, defeating them completely at Gibeon; furthermore, he pursued them towards the descent of Beth-horon and harassed them as far as Azekah, and as far as Makkedah. And as they fled from Israel down the descent of Beth-horon, the Lord hurled huge hailstones from heaven on them all the way to Azekah, which killed them. More of them died under the hailstones than at the edge of Israel’s sword. Then Joshua spoke to the Lord, 
the same day that the Lord delivered the Amorites to the Israelites. Joshua declaimed:

‘Sun, stand still over Gibeon,
and, moon, you also, over the Vale of Aijalon.’

And the sun stood still, and the moon halted, till the people had vengeance on their enemies.

Is this not written in the Book of the Just? 
The sun stood still in the middle of the sky and delayed its setting for almost a whole day.

What the Lord had ordered his servant Moses, Moses in turn had ordered Joshua, and Joshua carried it out, leaving nothing unaccomplished that the Lord had ordered Moses. Thus Joshua mastered the whole country: the highlands, 
the whole Negeb and the whole land of Goshen, the lowlands, the Arabah, the highlands and the lowlands of Israel.

From Mount Halak, which rises towards Seir, to Baal-gad in the Vale of Lebanon below Mount Hermon, 
he captured all their kings, struck them down and slaughtered them.


Responsory

Rescued from every kingdom,
recovered from every land,
I will bring back my sheep to their own country;
they shall have pasture on the hillsides of Israel,
by its watercourses, in the resting-places of their home.

I myself will tend my flock,
I myself will pen them in their fold:
they shall have pasture on the hillsides of Israel,
by its watercourses, in the resting-places of their home.


Second Reading
A sermon
by St Antony of Padua

Actions speak louder than words

The man who is filled with the Holy Spirit speaks in different languages. These different languages are different ways of witnessing to Christ, such as humility, poverty, patience and obedience; we speak in those languages when we reveal in ourselves these virtues to others. Actions speak louder than words; let your words teach and your actions speak. We are full of words but empty of actions, and therefore are cursed by the Lord, since he himself cursed the fig tree when he found no fruit but only leaves. 
Gregory says: “A law is laid upon the preacher to practise what he preaches.” 
It is useless for a man to flaunt his knowledge of the law if he undermines its teaching by his actions.

But the apostles spoke as the Spirit gave them the gift of speech. Happy the man whose words issue from the Holy Spirit and not from himself! For some men speak as their own character dictates, but steal the words of others and present them as their own and claim the credit for them. The Lord refers to such men and others like them in Jeremiah: So, then, I have a quarrel with the prophets that steal my words from each other. I have a quarrel with the prophets, says the Lord, who have only to move their tongues to utter oracles. I have a quarrel with the prophets who make prophecies out of lying dreams, who recount them and lead my people astray with their lies and their pretensions. I certainly never sent them or commissioned them, 
and they serve no good purpose for this people, says the Lord.

We should speak, then, as the Holy Spirit gives us the gift of speech. Our humble and sincere request to the Spirit for ourselves should be that we may bring the day of Pentecost to fulfilment, insofar as he infuses us with his grace, by using our bodily senses in a perfect manner and by keeping the commandments. Likewise we shall request that we may be filled with a keen sense of sorrow and with fiery tongues for confessing the faith, 
so that our deserved reward may be to stand in the blazing splendor of the saints and to look upon the triune God.


Responsory

The saint will blossom like the lily;
he will flourish for ever in the presence of our God.

He will be praised by all God’s people;
he will flourish for ever in the presence of our God.

Let us pray.

Almighty, ever-living God,
you gave Saint Antony of Padua to your people
as a preacher of great power and a patron in their needs.
Grant that, with his help,
we may follow a Christian way of life,
and feel your aid in all our trials.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
Amen.

Let us praise the Lord.
– Thanks be to God.