GLORIA IN EXCELSIS DEO

PRAYER OF THE DAY

2012-02-20T08:22:00.001-05:00

To Our Lady of Fatima

Queen of the Rosary,

sweet Virgin of Fatima,

who hast deigned to appear in the land of Portugal and hast brought peace,

both interior and exterior,

to that once so troubled country,

we beg of thee to watch over our dear homeland and to assure its moral and spiritual revival.

Bring back peace to all nations of the world,

so that all,

and our own nation in particular,

may be happy to call thee their Queen and the Queen of Peace.

Our Lady of the Rosary,

pray for our country.

Our Lady of Fatima,

obtain for all humanity a durable peace.

Amen.

DAILY MASS READINGS

2012-02-20T08:20:00.003-05:00

Monday, February 20

Reading

James 3: 13 - 18

Who is wise and understanding among you? By his good life let him show his works in the meekness of wisdom.

But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast and be false to the truth.

This wisdom is not such as comes down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, devilish.

For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice.

But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, without uncertainty or insincerity.

And the harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.

Rsponsorial Psalm

Psalms 19: 8 - 10, 15

The precepts of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes;

The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring for ever; the ordinances of the LORD are true, and righteous altogether.

MMore to be desired are they than gold, even much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and drippings of the honeycomb.

Gospel

Mark 9: 14 - 29

When they came to the disciples, they saw a great crowd about them, and scribes arguing with them.

And immediately all the crowd, when they saw him, were greatly amazed, and ran up to him and greeted him.

He asked them,

"What are you discussing with them?"

One of the crowd answered him, "Teacher, I brought my son to you, for he has a dumb spirit;

and wherever it seizes him, it dashes him down; and he foams and grinds his teeth and becomes rigid; and I asked your disciples to cast it out, and they were not able."

He answered them,

"O faithless generation, how long am I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you? Bring him to me."

They brought the boy to him; and when the spirit saw him, immediately it convulsed the boy, and he fell on the ground and rolled about, foaming at the mouth.

Jesus asked his father,

"How long has he had this?"

And he said, "From childhood.

It has often cast him into the fire and into the water, to destroy him; but if you can do anything, have pity on us and help us."

Jesus said to him,

"If you can! All things are possible to him who believes."

Immediately the father of the child cried out and said, "I believe; help my unbelief!"

When Jesus saw that a crowd came running together, he rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it,

"You dumb and deaf spirit, I command you, come out of him, and never enter him again."

And after crying out and convulsing him terribly, it came out, and the boy was like a corpse; so that most of them said, "He is dead."

But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him up, and he arose.

When he had entered the house, his disciples asked him privately, "Why could we not cast it out?"

He said to them,

"This kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer."

SAINT OF THE DAY

2012-02-20T08:10:00.002-05:00

February 20

Blessed Jacinta and Francisco Marto (1910-1920; 1908-1919)

Between May 13 and October 13, 1917, three children, Portuguese shepherds from Aljustrel, received apparitions of Our Lady at Cova da Iria, near Fatima, a city 110 miles north of Lisbon. At that time, Europe was involved in an extremely bloody war. Portugal itself was in political turmoil, having overthrown its monarchy in 1910; the government disbanded religious organizations soon after.

At the first appearance, Mary asked the children to return to that spot on the thirteenth of each month for the next six months. She also asked them to learn to read and write and to pray the rosary “to obtain peace for the world and the end of the war.” They were to pray for sinners and for the conversion of Russia, which had recently overthrown Czar Nicholas II and was soon to fall under communism. Up to 90,000 people gathered for Mary’s final apparition on October 13, 1917.

Less than two years later, Francisco died of influenza in his family home. He was buried in the parish cemetery and then re-buried in the Fatima basilica in 1952. Jacinta died of influenza in Lisbon, offering her suffering for the conversion of sinners, peace in the world and the Holy Father. She was re-buried in the Fatima basilica in 1951. Their cousin, Lucia dos Santos, became a Carmelite nun and was still living when Jacinta and Francisco were beatified in 2000. Sister Lucia died five years later. The shrine of Our Lady of Fatima is visited by up to 20 million people a year.

OFFICE OF READINGS

2012-02-20T08:09:00.000-05:00

O Lord, open my lips.

And my mouth will proclaim your praise.

Invitatory Psalm

Psalm 99 (100)

Let us come before the Lord and proclaim our thanks.

– Let us come before the Lord and proclaim our thanks.

Rejoice in the Lord, all the earth,

and serve him with joy.

Exult as you enter his presence.

– Let us come before the Lord and proclaim our thanks.

Know that the Lord is God.

He made us and we are his

– his people, the sheep of his flock.

– Let us come before the Lord and proclaim our thanks.

Cry out his praises as you enter his gates,

fill his courtyards with songs.

Proclaim him and bless his name;

for the Lord is our delight.

His mercy lasts for ever,

his faithfulness through all the ages.

– Let us come before the Lord and proclaim our thanks.

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.

– Let us come before the Lord and proclaim our thanks.

Hymn

Our limbs refreshed with slumber now,

And sloth cast off, in prayer we bow;

And while we sing thy praises dear,

O Father, be thou present here.

To thee our earliest morning song,

To thee our hearts’ full powers belong;

And thou, O Holy One prevent

Each following action and intent.

As shades at morning flee away,

And night before the star of day;

So each transgression of the night

Be purged by thee, celestial light!

Cut off, we pray Thee, each offence,

And every lust of thought and sense;

That by their lips who thee adore

Thou mayst be praised forevermore.

Grant this, O Father ever One

With Christ, thy sole-begotten Son,

And Holy Ghost, whom all adore,

Reigning and blest forevermore.

Psalm 49 (50)

True reverence for the Lord

Our God comes openly, he keeps silence no longer.

The Lord, the God of gods has spoken:

he has summoned the whole earth, from east to west.

God has shone forth from Zion in her great beauty.

Our God will come, and he will not be silent.

Before him, a devouring fire;

around him, a tempest rages.

He will call upon the heavens above, and on the earth, to judge his people.

“Bring together before me my chosen ones, who have sealed my covenant with sacrifice.”

The heavens will proclaim his justice; for God is the true judge.

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.

Our God comes openly, he keeps silence no longer.

Psalm 49 (50)

Pay your sacrifice of thanksgiving to God.

Listen, my people, and I will speak;

Israel, I will testify against you.

I am God, your God.

I will not reproach you with your sacrifices,

for your burnt offerings are always before me.

But I will not accept calves from your houses,

nor goats from your flocks.

For all the beasts of the forests are mine,

and in the hills, a thousand animals.

All the birds of the air – I know them.

Whatever moves in the fields – it is mine.

If I am hungry, I will not tell you;

for the whole world is mine, and all that is in it.

Am I to eat the flesh of bulls,

or drink the blood of goats?

Offer a sacrifice to God – a sacrifice of praise;

to the Most High, fulfil your vows.

Then you may call upon me in the time of trouble:

I will rescue you, and you will honour me.

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.

Pay your sacrifice of thanksgiving to God.

Psalm 49 (50)

I want love, not sacrifice; knowledge of God, not holocausts.

To the sinner, God has said this:

Why do you recite my statutes?

Why do you dare to speak my covenant?

For you hate what I teach you,

and reject what I tell you.

The moment you saw a thief, you joined him;

you threw in your lot with adulterers.

You spoke evil with your mouth,

and your tongue made plans to deceive.

Solemnly seated, you denounced your own brother;

you poured forth hatred against your own mother’s son.

All this you did, and I was silent;

so you thought that I was just like you.

But I will reprove you –

I will confront you with all you have done.

Understand this, you who forget God;

lest I tear you apart, with no-one there to save you.

Whoever offers up a sacrifice of praise gives me true honour;

whoever follows a sinless path in life will be shown the salvation of God.

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 want love, not sacrifice; knowledge of God, not holocausts.

Listen, my people, and I shall speak.

– I am God, your God.

Reading

Ecclesiastes 2:1-3,12-26

I thought to myself, ‘Very well, I will try pleasure and see what enjoyment has to offer.’ And there it was: vanity again! This laughter, I reflected, is a madness, this pleasure no use at all. I resolved to have my body cheered with wine, my heart still devoted to wisdom; I resolved to embrace folly to see what made mankind happy, and what men do under heaven in the few days they have to live.

My reflections then turned to wisdom, stupidity, folly. For instance, what can the successor of a king do? What has been done already. More is to be had from wisdom than from folly, as from light than from darkness; this, of course, I see:

The wise man sees ahead,

the fool walks in the dark.

No doubt! But I know, too, that one fate awaits them both. ‘The fool’s fate’ I thought to myself ‘will be my fate too. Of what use my wisdom, then? This, too,’ I thought ‘is vanity.’ Since there is no lasting memory for wise man or for fool, and in the days to come both will be forgotten; wise man, alas, no less than fool must die. Life I have come to hate, for what is done under the sun disgusts me, since all is vanity and chasing of the wind. All I have toiled for and now bequeath to my successor I have come to hate; who knows whether he will be a wise man or a fool? Yet he will be master of all the work into which I have put my efforts and wisdom under the sun. That, too, is vanity. And hence I have come to despair of all the efforts I have expended under the sun. For so it is that a man who has laboured wisely, skilfully and successfully must leave what is his own to someone who has not toiled for it at all. This, too, is vanity and great injustice; for what does he gain for all the toil and strain that he has undergone under the sun? What of all his laborious days, his cares of office, his restless nights? This, too, is vanity.

There is no happiness for man but to eat and drink and to be content with his work. This, too, I see as something from God’s hand, since plenty and penury both come from God; wisdom, knowledge, joy, he gives to the man who pleases him; on the sinner lays the task of gathering and storing up for another who is pleasing to God. This, too, is vanity and chasing of the wind.

Responsory

Wisdom, knowledge, joy, God gives to the man who pleases him;

on the sinner he lays the task of gathering and storing up for another.

This, too, is vanity and chasing of the wind.

The love of money is the root of all evils,

and there are some who, pursuing it,

have involved themselves in a world of sorrows.

This, too, is vanity and chasing of the wind.

Reading

A sermon on Ecclesiastes by St Gregory of Nyssa

Christ is our head, and the wise man keeps his eyes upon him

We shall be blessed with clear vision if we keep our eyes fixed on Christ, for he, as Paul teaches, is our head, and there is in him no shadow of evil. Saint Paul himself and all who have reached the same heights of sanctity had their eyes fixed on Christ, and so have all who live and move and have their being in him.

As no darkness can be seen by anyone surrounded by light, so no trivialities can capture the attention of anyone who has his eyes on Christ. The man who keeps his eyes upon the head and origin of the whole universe has them on virtue in all its perfection; he has them on truth, on justice, on immortality and on everything else that is good, for Christ is goodness itself.

The wise man, then, turns his eyes toward the One who is his head, but the fool gropes in darkness. No one who puts his lamp under a bed instead of on a lamp-stand will receive any light from it. People are often considered blind and useless when they make the supreme Good their aim and give themselves up to the contemplation of God, but Paul made a boast of this and proclaimed himself a fool for Christ’s sake. The reason he said, We are fools for Christ’s sake was that his mind was free from all earthly preoccupations. It was as though he said, “We are blind to the life here below because our eyes are raised toward the One who is our head.”

And so, without board or lodging, he travelled from place to place, destitute, naked, exhausted by hunger and thirst. When men saw him in captivity, flogged, shipwrecked, led about in chains, they could scarcely help thinking him a pitiable sight. Nevertheless, even while he suffered all this at the hands of men, he always looked toward the One who is his head and he asked: What can separate us from the love of Christ, which is in Jesus? Can affliction or distress? Can persecution, hunger, nakedness, danger or death? In other words, “What can force me to take my eyes from him who is my head and to turn them toward things that are contemptible?”

He bids us follow his example: Seek the things that are above, he says, which is only another way of saying: “Keep your eyes on Christ.”

Responsory

See how the eyes of servants are fixed on the hands of their masters.

Our eyes, too, are fixed on the Lord our God,

waiting for some sign of his mercy.

I am the light of the world:

he who follows me will not be walking in the dark;

he will have the light of life.

Our eyes, too,

are fixed on the Lord our God,

waiting for some sign of his mercy.

Let us pray.

Grant, almighty God,

that with our thoughts always on the things of the Spirit

we may please you in all that we say and do.

We make our prayer through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,

who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,

God for ever and ever.

Amen.

Let us bless the Lord.

– Thanks be to God.

PRAYER OF THE DAY

2012-02-19T09:36:00.000-05:00

The Jesus Prayer

O Lord Jesus Christ,

Son of God,

have mercy on me,

a sinner.

DAILY MASS READINGS

2012-02-19T09:34:00.006-05:00

Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time

Reading 1

Is 43:18-19, 21-22, 24b-25

Thus says the LORD:

Remember not the events of the past,

the things of long ago consider not;

see, I am doing something new!

Now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?

In the desert I make a way,

in the wasteland, rivers.

The people I formed for myself,

that they might announce my praise.

Yet you did not call upon me, O Jacob,

for you grew weary of me, O Israel.

You burdened me with your sins,

and wearied me with your crimes.

It is I, I, who wipe out,

for my own sake, your offenses;

your sins I remember no more.

Responsorial Psalm

Ps 41:2-3, 4-5, 13-14

R. Lord, heal my soul, for I have sinned against you.

Blessed is the one who has regard for the lowly and the poor;

in the day of misfortune the LORD will deliver him.

The LORD will keep and preserve him;

and make him blessed on earth,

and not give him over to the will of his enemies.

R. Lord, heal my soul, for I have sinned against you.

The LORD will help him on his sickbed,

he will take away all his ailment when he is ill.

Once I said, "O LORD, have pity on me;

heal me, though I have sinned against you."

R. Lord, heal my soul, for I have sinned against you.

But because of my integrity you sustain me

and let me stand before you forever.

Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel,

from all eternity. Amen. Amen.

R. Lord, heal my soul, for I have sinned against you.

Reading 2

2 Cor 1:18-22

Brothers and sisters:

As God is faithful,

our word to you is not "yes" and "no."

For the Son of God, Jesus Christ,

who was proclaimed to you by us, Silvanus and Timothy and me,

was not "yes" and "no, " but "yes" has been in him.

For however many are the promises of God, their Yes is in him;

therefore, the Amen from us also goes through him to God for glory.

But the one who gives us security with you in Christ

and who anointed us is God;

he has also put his seal upon us

and given the Spirit in our hearts as a first installment.

Gospel

Mk 2:1-12

When Jesus returned to Capernaum after some days,

it became known that he was at home.

Many gathered together so that there was no longer room for them,

not even around the door,

and he preached the word to them.

They came bringing to him a paralytic carried by four men.

Unable to get near Jesus because of the crowd,

they opened up the roof above him.

After they had broken through,

they let down the mat on which the paralytic was lying.

When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic,

"Child, your sins are forgiven."

Now some of the scribes were sitting there asking themselves,

"Why does this man speak that way? He is blaspheming.

Who but God alone can forgive sins?"

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.

They were all astounded

and glorified God, saying, "We have never seen anything like this."

SAINT OF THE DAY

2012-02-19T09:32:00.000-05:00

February 19

St. Conrad of Piacenza (1290-1350)

Born of a noble family in northern Italy, Conrad as a young man married Euphrosyne, daughter of a nobleman.

One day while hunting he ordered attendants to set fire to some brush in order to flush out the game. The fire spread to nearby fields and to a large forest. Conrad fled. An innocent peasant was imprisoned, tortured to confess and condemned to death. Conrad confessed his guilt, saved the man’s life and paid for the damaged property.

Soon after this event, Conrad and his wife agreed to separate: she to a Poor Clare monastery and he to a group of hermits following the Third Order Rule. His reputation for holiness, however, spread quickly. Since his many visitors destroyed his solitude, Conrad went to a more remote spot in Sicily where he lived 36 years as a hermit, praying for himself and for the rest of the world.

Prayer and penance were his answer to the temptations that beset him. Conrad died kneeling before a crucifix. He was canonized in 1625.

OFFICE OF READINGS

2012-02-19T09:30:00.004-05:00

O Lord, open my lips.

And my mouth will proclaim your praise.

Invitatory Psalm

Psalm 23 (24)

Come, let us rejoice in the Lord: let us acclaim God our salvation, alleluia.

– Come, let us rejoice in the Lord: let us acclaim God our salvation, alleluia.

The Lord’s is the earth and its fullness,

the world and all who live in it.

He himself founded it upon the seas

and set it firm over the waters.

– Come, let us rejoice in the Lord: let us acclaim God our salvation, alleluia.

Who will climb the mountain of the Lord?

Who will stand in his holy place?

The one who is innocent of wrongdoing and pure of heart,

who has not given himself to vanities or sworn falsely.

He will receive the blessing of the Lord

and be justified by God his saviour.

This is the way of those who seek him,

seek the face of the God of Jacob.

– Come, let us rejoice in the Lord: let us acclaim God our salvation, alleluia.

Gates, raise your heads. Stand up, eternal doors,

and let the king of glory enter.

Who is the king of glory?

The Lord of might and power.

The Lord, strong in battle.

– Come, let us rejoice in the Lord: let us acclaim God our salvation, alleluia.

Gates, raise your heads. Stand up, eternal doors,

and let the king of glory enter.

Who is the king of glory?

The Lord of hosts

– he is the king of glory.

– Come, let us rejoice in the Lord: let us acclaim God our salvation, alleluia.

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.

– Come, let us rejoice in the Lord: let us acclaim God our salvation, alleluia.

Hymn

Hail, day! whereon the One in Three

First formed the earth by sure decree,

The day its Maker rose again,

And vanquished death, and burst our chain.

Away with sleep and slothful ease!

We raise our hearts and bend our knees,

And early seek the Lord of all,

Obedient to the Prophet’s call:

That he may hearken to our prayer,

Stretch forth his strong right arm to spare,

And, every past offence forgiven,

Restore us to our home in heaven.

Assembled here this holy day,

This holiest hour we raise the lay;

And, O, that he to whom we sing,

May now reward our offering!

Most Holy Father, hear our cry,

Through Jesus Christ our Lord most High

Who, with the Holy Ghost and thee

Doth live and reign eternally.

Psalm 144 (145)

The greatness and goodness of God

I will bless you day after day, O Lord. Alleluia.

I will praise you to the heights, O God, my king –

I will bless your name for ever and for all time.

I will bless you, O God, day after day –

I will praise your name for ever and all time.

The Lord is great, to him all praise is due –

he is great beyond measuring.

Generation will pass to generation the praise of your deeds,

and tell the wonders you have done.

They will tell of your overwhelming power,

and pass on the tale of your greatness.

They will cry out the story of your great kindness,

they will celebrate your judgements.

The Lord takes pity, his heart is merciful,

he is patient and endlessly kind.

The Lord is gentle to all –

he shows his kindness to all his creation.

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 will bless you day after day, O Lord. Alleluia.

Psalm 144 (145)

Your kingdom, Lord, is an everlasting kingdom, alleluia.

Let all your creatures proclaim you, O Lord,

let your chosen ones bless you.

Let them tell of the glory of your reign,

let them speak of your power –

so that the children of men may know what you can do,

see the glory of your kingdom and its greatness.

Your kingdom stands firm for all ages,

your rule lasts for ever and ever.

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 kingdom, Lord, is an everlasting kingdom, alleluia.

Psalm 144 (145)

The Lord is faithful in all his words and loving in all his deeds. Alleluia.

The Lord is faithful in all his words,

the Lord is holy in all his deeds.

The Lord supports all who are falling,

the Lord lifts up all who are oppressed.

All look to you for help,

and you give them their food in due season.

In your goodness you open your hand,

and give every creature its fill.

The Lord is just in all his ways,

the Lord is kind in all that he does.

The Lord is near to those who call on him,

to all those who call on him in truth.

For those that honour him,

he does what they ask,

he hears all their prayers,

and he keeps them safe.

The Lord keeps safe all who love him,

but he dooms all the wicked to destruction.

My mouth shall tell the praises of the Lord.

Let all flesh bless his holy name,

for ever and ever.

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 faithful in all his words and loving in all his deeds. Alleluia.

My son, listen to my words.

– Turn your ear to what I am saying.

Reading

Ecclesiastes 1:1-18

The words of Qoheleth son of David, king in Jerusalem. Vanity of vanities, Qoheleth says. Vanity of vanities. All is vanity! For all his toil, his toil under the sun, what does man gain by it?

A generation goes, a generation comes, yet the earth stands firm for ever. The sun rises, the sun sets; then to its place it speeds and there it rises. Southward goes the wind, then turns to the north; it turns and turns again; back then to its circling goes the wind. Into the sea all the rivers go, and yet the sea is never filled, and still to their goal the rivers go. All things are wearisome. No man can say that eyes have not had enough of seeing, ears their fill of hearing. What was will be again; what has been done will be done again; and there is nothing new under the sun. Take anything of which it may be said, ‘Look now, this is new.’ Already, long before our time, it existed. Only no memory remains of earlier times, just as in times to come next year itself will not be remembered.

I, Qoheleth, have reigned in Jerusalem over Israel. With the help of wisdom I have been at pains to study all that is done under heaven; oh, what a weary task God has given mankind to labour at! I have seen everything that is done under the sun, and what vanity it all is, what chasing of the wind!

What is twisted cannot be straightened,

what is not there cannot be counted.

I thought to myself, ‘I have acquired a greater stock of wisdom than any of my predecessors in Jerusalem. I have great experience of wisdom and learning. Wisdom has been my careful study; stupidity, too, and folly. And now I have come to recognise that even this is chasing of the wind.

Much wisdom, much grief,

the more knowledge, the more sorrow.

Responsory

I have seen everything that is done under the sun,

and what vanity it all is,

what chasing of the wind!

Naked from his mother’s womb a man comes;

as naked as he comes he will depart again,

nothing to take away with him.

We brought nothing into the world,

and we can take nothing out of it.

Naked from his mother’s womb a man comes;

as naked as he comes he will depart again,

nothing to take away with him.

Reading

A treatise on Charity by St Maximus the Confessor

Without love everything is in vain

Charity is a right attitude of mind which prefers nothing to the knowledge of God. If a man possesses any strong attachment to the things of this earth, he cannot possess true charity. For anyone who really loves God prefers to know and experience God rather than his creatures. The whole set and longing of his mind is ever directed toward him.

For God is far superior to all his creation, since everything which exists has been made by God and for him. And so, in deserting God, who is beyond compare, for the inferior works of creation, a man shows that he values God, the author of creation, less than creation itself.

The Lord himself reminds us: Whoever loves me will keep my commandments. And this is my commandment: that you love one another. So the man who does not love his neighbour does not obey God’s command. But one who does not obey his command cannot love God. A man is blessed if he can love all men equally. Moreover, if he truly loves God, he must love his neighbour absolutely. Such a man cannot hoard his wealth. Rather, like God himself, he generously gives from his own resources to each man according to his needs.

Since he imitates God’s generosity, the only distinction he draws is the person’s need. He does not distinguish between a good man and a bad one, a just man and one who is unjust. Yet his own goodness of will makes him prefer the man who strives after virtue to the one who is depraved.

A charitable mind is not displayed simply in giving money; it is manifested still more by personal service as well as by the communication of God’s word to others: In fact, if a man’s service toward his brothers is genuine and if he really renounces worldly concerns, he is freed from selfish desires. For he now shares in God’s own knowledge and love. Since he does possess God’s love, he does not experience weariness as he follows the Lord his God. Rather, following the prophet Jeremiah, he withstands every type of reproach and hardship without even harbouring an evil thought toward any man.

For Jeremiah warns us: Do not say: “We are the Lord’s temple.” Neither should you say: “Faith alone in our Lord Jesus Christ can save me.” By itself faith accomplishes nothing. For even the devils believe and shudder.

No, faith must be joined to an active love of God which is expressed in good works. The charitable man is distinguished by sincere and long-suffering service to his fellow man: it also means using things aright.

Responsory

I give you a new commandment: love one another as I have loved you.

Anyone who loves his brother lives in the light.

We can be sure that we know Christ only by keeping his commandments.

Anyone who loves his brother lives in the light.

Hymn

Te Deum

God, we praise you; Lord, we proclaim you!

You, the Father, the eternal –

all the earth venerates you.

All the angels, all the heavens, every power –

The cherubim, the seraphim –

unceasingly, they cry:

“Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God of Hosts:

heaven and earth are full of the majesty of your glory!”

The glorious choir of Apostles –

The noble ranks of prophets –

The shining army of martyrs –

all praise you.

Throughout the world your holy Church proclaims you.

– Father of immeasurable majesty,

– True Son, only-begotten, worthy of worship,

– Holy Spirit, our Advocate.

You, Christ:

– You are the king of glory.

– You are the Father’s eternal Son.

– You, to free mankind, did not disdain a Virgin’s womb.

– You defeated the sharp spear of Death, and opened the kingdom of heaven to those who believe in you.

– You sit at God’s right hand, in the glory of the Father.

– You will come, so we believe, as our Judge.

And so we ask of you: give help to your servants, whom you set free at the price of your precious blood.

Number them among your chosen ones in eternal glory.

Bring your people to safety, Lord, and bless those who are your inheritance.

Rule them and lift them high for ever.

Day by day we bless you, Lord: we praise you for ever and for ever.

Of your goodness, Lord, keep us without sin for today.

Have mercy on us, Lord, have mercy on us.

Let your pity, Lord, be upon us, as much as we trust in you.

In you, Lord, I trust: let me never be put to shame.

Let us pray.

Grant, almighty God,

that with our thoughts always on the things of the Spirit

we may please you in all that we say and do.

We make our prayer through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,

who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,

God for ever and ever.

Amen.

Let us bless the Lord.

– Thanks be to God.

PRAYER OF THE DAY

2012-02-18T08:40:00.002-05:00

Prayer to Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque

Saint Margaret Mary,

thou who wast made a partaker of the divine treasures of the Sacred Heart of Jesus,

obtain for us, we beseech thee,

from this adorable Heart,

the graces we need so sorely.

We ask these favors of thee with unbounded confidence.

May the divine Heart of Jesus be pleased to bestow them upon us through thy intercession,

so that once again He may be loved and glorified through thee.

Amen.

V. Pray for us, O blessed Margaret;

R. That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

Let us pray.

O Lord Jesus Christ,

who didst wondrously open the unsearchable riches of Thy Heart to blessed Margaret Mary,

the virgin:

grant unto us,

by her merits and our imitation of her,

that we may love Thee in all things and above all things,

and may be worthy to have our everlasting dwelling in the same Sacred Heart:

who livest and reignest,

world without end.

Amen.

DAILY MASS READINGS

2012-02-18T08:36:00.003-05:00

Saturday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading

Jas 3:1-10

Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers and sisters,

for you realize that we will be judged more strictly,

for we all fall short in many respects.

If anyone does not fall short in speech, he is a perfect man,

able to bridle the whole body also.

If we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us,

we also guide their whole bodies.

It is the same with ships:

even though they are so large and driven by fierce winds,

they are steered by a very small rudder

wherever the pilot's inclination wishes.

In the same way the tongue is a small member

and yet has great pretensions.

Consider how small a fire can set a huge forest ablaze.

The tongue is also a fire.

It exists among our members as a world of malice,

defiling the whole body

and setting the entire course of our lives on fire,

itself set on fire by Gehenna.

For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature,

can be tamed and has been tamed by the human species,

but no man can tame the tongue.

It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.

With it we bless the Lord and Father,

and with it we curse men

who are made in the likeness of God.

From the same mouth come blessing and cursing.

My brothers and sisters, this need not be so.

Responsorial Psalm

Ps 12:2-3, 4-5, 7-8

R. You will protect us, Lord.

Help, O LORD! for no one now is dutiful;

faithfulness has vanished from among the children of men.

Everyone speaks falsehood to his neighbor;

with smooth lips they speak, and double heart.

R. You will protect us, Lord.

May the LORD destroy all smooth lips,

every boastful tongue,

Those who say, "We are heroes with our tongues;

our lips are our own; who is lord over us?"

R. You will protect us, Lord.

The promises of the LORD are sure,

like tried silver, freed from dross, sevenfold refined.

You, O LORD, will keep us

and preserve us always from this generation.

R. You will protect us, Lord.

Gospel

Mk 9:2-13

Jesus took Peter, James, and John

and led them up a high mountain apart by themselves.

And he was transfigured before them,

and his clothes became dazzling white,

such as no fuller on earth could bleach them.

Then Elijah appeared to them along with Moses,

and they were conversing with Jesus.

Then Peter said to Jesus in reply,

"Rabbi, it is good that we are here!

Let us make three tents:

one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah."

He hardly knew what to say, they were so terrified.

Then a cloud came, casting a shadow over them;

then from the cloud came a voice,

"This is my beloved Son. Listen to him."

Suddenly, looking around, the disciples no longer saw anyone

but Jesus alone with them.

As they were coming down from the mountain,

he charged them not to relate what they had seen to anyone,

except when the Son of Man had risen from the dead.

So they kept the matter to themselves,

questioning what rising from the dead meant.

Then they asked him,

"Why do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?"

He told them,

"Elijah will indeed come first and restore all things,

yet how is it written regarding the Son of Man

that he must suffer greatly and be treated with contempt?

But I tell you that Elijah has come

and they did to him whatever they pleased,

as it is written of him."

SAINT OF THE DAY

2012-02-18T08:34:00.001-05:00

February 18

Blessed John of Fiesole (c. 1400-1455)

The patron of Christian artists was born around 1400 in a village overlooking Florence. He took up painting as a young boy and studied under the watchful eye of a local painting master. He joined the Dominicans at about age 20, taking the name Fra Giovanni. He eventually came to be known as Fra Angelico, perhaps a tribute to his own angelic qualities or maybe the devotional tone of his works.

He continued to study painting and perfect his own techniques, which included broad-brush strokes, vivid colors and generous, lifelike figures. Michelangelo once said of Fra Angelico: “One has to believe that this good monk has visited paradise and been allowed to choose his models there.” Whatever his subject matter, Fra Angelico sought to generate feelings of religious devotion in response to his paintings. Among his most famous works are the Annunciation and Descent from the Cross as well as frescoes in the monastery of San Marco in Florence.

He also served in leadership positions within the Dominican Order. At one point Pope Eugenius approached him about serving as archbishop of Florence. Fra Angelico declined, preferring a simpler life. He died in 1455.

OFFICE OF READINGS

2012-02-18T08:32:00.005-05:00

O Lord, open my lips.

And my mouth will proclaim your praise.

Invitatory Psalm

Psalm 66 (67)

Let us listen for the Lord’s voice, so that we can reach his place of rest.

– Let us listen for the Lord’s voice, so that we can reach his place of rest.

O God, take pity on us and bless us,

and let your face shine upon us,

so that your ways may be known across the world,

and all nations learn of your salvation.

– Let us listen for the Lord’s voice, so that we can reach his place of rest.

Let the peoples praise you, O God,

let all the peoples praise you.

Let the nations be glad and rejoice,

for you judge the peoples with fairness

and you guide the nations of the earth.

– Let us listen for the Lord’s voice, so that we can reach his place of rest.

Let the peoples praise you, O God,

let all the peoples praise you.

The earth has produced its harvest:

may God, our God, bless us.

May God bless us,

may the whole world revere him.

– Let us listen for the Lord’s voice, so that we can reach his place of rest.

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.

– Let us listen for the Lord’s voice, so that we can reach his place of rest.

Hymn

Great God of boundless mercy, hear!

Thou Ruler of this earthly sphere;

In substance one, in Persons three,

Dread Trinity in Unity!

Do thou in love accept our lays

Of mingled penitence and praise;

And set our hearts from error free,

More fully to rejoice in thee.

Our reins and hearts in pity heal,

And with thy chastening fires anneal;

Gird thou our loins, each passion quell,

And every harmful lust expel.

Now as our anthems, upward borne,

Awake the silence of the morn,

Enrich us with thy gifts of grace,

From heaven, thy blissful dwelling place!

Hear thou our prayer, almighty King;

Hear thou our praises, while we sing,

Adoring with the heavenly host

The Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

Psalm 135 (136)

A paschal hymn

The Lord alone has wrought marvellous works, for his love endures for ever.

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good,

for his love is for ever.

Give thanks to the God of gods,

for his love is for ever.

Give thanks to the Lord of lords,

for his love is for ever.

He alone works wonders,

for his love is for ever.

In his wisdom he made the heavens,

for his love is for ever.

He set the Earth upon the waters,

for his love is for ever.

He created the great lights,

for his love is for ever.

The sun, to rule over the day,

for his love is for ever.

The moon and stars, to rule over the night,

for his love is for ever.

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 alone has wrought marvellous works, for his love endures for ever.

Psalm 135 (136)

He brought Israel out from Egypt, with arm outstretched, with power in his hand.

He struck down the first-born of Egypt,

for his love is for ever.

He led Israel out from their midst,

for his love is for ever.

With a strong hand and an outstretched arm,

for his love is for ever.

He divided the Red Sea in two,

for his love is for ever.

He led Israel out through the sea,

for his love is for ever.

He overthrew Pharaoh and his army,

for his love is for ever.

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.

He brought Israel out from Egypt, with arm outstretched, with power in his hand.

Psalm 135 (136)

To the Lord of heaven give thanks: he set us free from our foes.

He led his people through the wilderness,

for his love is for ever.

He struck down great kings,

for his love is for ever.

Sihon, king of the Amorites,

for his love is for ever.

And Og, the king of Bashan,

for his love is for ever.

He gave their land to his people,

for his love is for ever.

A heritage for Israel his servant,

for his love is for ever.

He remembered us in our affliction,

for his love is for ever.

He rescued us from our enemies,

for his love is for ever.

He gives food to all creatures that live,

for his love is for ever.

Give thanks to the God of heaven,

for his love is for ever.

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.

To the Lord of heaven give thanks: he set us free from our foes.

Lord, show me your ways,

– and teach me your paths.

Reading

Proverbs 31:10-31

A perfect wife – who can find her?

She is far beyond the price of pearls.

Her husband’s heart has confidence in her,

from her he will derive no little profit.

Advantage and not hurt she brings him

all the days of her life.

She is always busy with wool and with flax,

she does her work with eager hands.

She is like a merchant vessel

bringing her food from far away.

She gets up while it is still dark

giving her household their food,

giving orders to her serving girls.

She sets her mind on a field, then she buys it;

with what her hands have earned she plants a vineyard.

She puts her back into her work

and shows how strong her arms can be.

She finds her labour well worth while;

her lamp does not go out at night.

She sets her hands to the distaff,

her fingers grasp the spindle.

She holds out her hand to the poor,

she opens her arms to the needy.

Snow may come, she has no fears for her household,

with all her servants warmly clothed.

She makes her own quilts,

she is dressed in fine linen and purple.

Her husband is respected at the city gates,

taking his seat among the elders of the land.

She weaves linen sheets and sells them,

she supplies the merchant with sashes.

She is clothed in strength and dignity,

she can laugh at the days to come.

When she opens her mouth, she does so wisely;

on her tongue is kindly instruction.

She keeps good watch on the conduct of her household,

no bread of idleness for her.

Her sons stand up and proclaim her blessed,

her husband, too, sings her praises:

‘Many women have done admirable things,

but you surpass them all!’

Charm is deceitful, and beauty empty;

the woman who is wise is the one to praise.

Give her a share in what her hands have worked for,

and let her works tell her praises at the city gates.

Responsory

She girds her loins with strength and makes her arms strong, and so her lamp will never be extinguished.

God will help her at the dawning of the day; God is with her, she cannot be shaken, and so her lamp will never be extinguished.

Reading

An address by Pope Pius XII to newly married couples

The wife - the radiant sun of the family

The family is illuminated by its own radiant sun, which is the wife. Of her Scripture says, with feeling:

The grace of a wife will charm her husband,

her accomplishments will make him the stronger.

A silent wife is a gift from the Lord,

no price can be put on a well-trained character.

A modest wife is a boon twice over,

a chaste character cannot be weighed on scales.

Like the sun rising over the mountains of the Lord

is the beauty of a good wife in a well-kept house.

The wife and mother is indeed like the sun shining in the family. She shines by her generosity and the way she gives herself to others. She shines by her alertness and watchfulness and by her wise and gentle providing of all that can give joy to her husband and children. She radiates light and warmth.

A marriage will prosper if each partner goes into it not for his own happiness but the other’s happiness – but although it belongs to both partners, this emotion, this goal is particularly a quality of the woman. Her very nature as a mother entails it. Her wisdom and prudence mean that even if she encounters troubles she will respond to them with joy; if she is belittled, she will respond with unaltered dignity and respect. She is like the sun that brightens a cloudy morning with the dawn; the sun that illuminates the shower-clouds at dusk.

The wife is like the sun shining in the family with the brightness of her glance and the ardour of her speech. Her looks and words enter into the souls of her family, softening them, touching them, raising them up from the tumult of emotion. They recall her husband to joy in good things and delight in family life after his uninterrupted and often heavy work of the day, whether in an office, in the fields, in trade or in industry.

The wife is like the sun shining in the family by her unforced, transparent sincerity, by her simple dignity, by her decent Christian behaviour; by her inward thoughts and her upright heart; and also by the appropriateness of her dress and bearing, adorned by her open and honest way of life. Subtle signs of feeling, shades of expression, silences and unmalicious smiles, little nods of approval – all these give her the grace of an exquisite but simple flower opening its petals to reflect the colours of sunlight.

If only you could know the full depth of the feelings of love and gratitude that such a perfect wife and mother inspires in her husband and children!

Responsory

The grace of a wife will charm her husband.

A modest wife is a two-fold boon.

Like the sun rising over the mountains of the Lord is the beauty of a good wife in a well-kept house.

A modest wife is a two-fold boon.

Let us pray.

To those who love you, Lord,

you promise to come with your Son

and make your home within them.

Come, then, with your purifying grace

and make our hearts a place where you can dwell.

We make our prayer through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,

who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,

God for ever and ever.

Amen.

Let us bless the Lord.

– Thanks be to God.

PRAYER OF THE DAY

2012-02-17T06:59:00.002-05:00

Prayer to Saint James the Apostle

O glorious Apostle, St. James,

who by reason of thy fervent and generous heart wast chosen by Jesus to be a witness of His glory on Mount Tabor,

and of His agony in Gethsemane;

thou, whose very name is a symbol of warfare and victory:

obtain for us strength and consolation in the unending warfare of this life,

that,

having constantly and generously followed Jesus,

we may be victors in the strife and deserve to receive the victor's crown in heaven.

Amen.

DAILY MASS READINGS

2012-02-17T06:57:00.003-05:00

Friday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading

Jas 2:14-24, 26

What good is it, my brothers and sisters,

if someone says he has faith but does not have works?

Can that faith save him?

If a brother or sister has nothing to wear

and has no food for the day,

and one of you says to them,

"Go in peace, keep warm, and eat well,"

but you do not give them the necessities of the body,

what good is it?

So also faith of itself,

if it does not have works, is dead.

Indeed someone might say,

"You have faith and I have works."

Demonstrate your faith to me without works,

and I will demonstrate my faith to you from my works.

You believe that God is one.

You do well.

Even the demons believe that and tremble.

Do you want proof, you ignoramus,

that faith without works is useless?

Was not Abraham our father justified by works

when he offered his son Isaac upon the altar?

You see that faith was active along with his works,

and faith was completed by the works.

Thus the Scripture was fulfilled that says,

Abraham believed God,

and it was credited to him as righteousness,

and he was called the friend of God.

See how a person is justified by works and not by faith alone.

For just as a body without a spirit is dead,

so also faith without works is dead.

Responsorial Psalm

Ps 112:1-2, 3-4, 5-6

R. Blessed the man who greatly delights in the Lord's commands.

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.

R. Blessed the man who greatly delights in the Lord's commands.

Wealth and riches shall be in his house;

his generosity shall endure forever.

Light shines through the darkness for the upright;

he is gracious and merciful and just.

R. Blessed the man who greatly delights in the Lord's commands.

Well for the man who is gracious and lends,

who conducts his affairs with justice;

He shall never be moved;

the just man shall be in everlasting remembrance.

R. Blessed the man who greatly delights in the Lord's commands.

Gospel

Mk 8:34?9:1

Jesus summoned the crowd with his disciples and said to them,

"Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself,

take up his cross, and follow me.

For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it,

but whoever loses his life for my sake

and that of the Gospel will save it.

What profit is there for one to gain the whole world

and forfeit his life?

What could one give in exchange for his life?

Whoever is ashamed of me and of my words

in this faithless and sinful generation,

the Son of Man will be ashamed of

when he comes in his Father's glory with the holy angels."

He also said to them,

"Amen, I say to you,

there are some standing here who

will not taste death

until they see that the Kingdom of God

has come in power."

SAINT OF THE DAY

2012-02-17T06:54:00.001-05:00

February 17

Blessed Luke Belludi (1200-c. 1285)

In 1220, St. Anthony was preaching conversion to the inhabitants of Padua when a young nobleman, Luke Belludi, came up to him and humbly asked to receive the habit of the followers of St. Francis. Anthony liked the talented, well-educated Luke and personally recommended him to St. Francis, who then received him into the Franciscan Order.

Luke, then only 20, was to be Anthony's companion in his travels and in his preaching, tending to him in his last days and taking Anthony's place upon his death. He was appointed guardian of the Friars Minor in the city of Padua. In 1239 the city fell into the hands of its enemies. Nobles were put to death, the mayor and council were banished, the great university of Padua gradually closed and the church dedicated to St. Anthony was left unfinished. Luke himself was expelled from the city but secretly returned. At night he and the new guardian would visit the tomb of St. Anthony in the unfinished shrine to pray for his help. One night a voice came from the tomb assuring them that the city would soon be delivered from its evil tyrant.

After the fulfillment of the prophetic message, Luke was elected provincial minister and furthered the completion of the great basilica in honor of Anthony, his teacher. He founded many convents of the order and had, as Anthony, the gift of miracles. Upon his death he was laid to rest in the basilica that he had helped finish and has had a continual veneration up to the present time.

OFFICE OF READINGS

2012-02-17T06:53:00.002-05:00

O Lord, open my lips.

And my mouth will proclaim your praise.

Invitatory Psalm

Psalm 94 (95)

The Lord is our delight: come, bless his name.

– The Lord is our delight: come, bless his name.

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 our delight: come, bless his name.

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 our delight: come, bless his name.

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 our delight: come, bless his name.

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 our delight: come, bless his name.

“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 our delight: come, bless his name.

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 our delight: come, bless his name.

Hymn

O Three in One, and One in Three,

Who rulest all things mightily,

Bow down to hear the songs of praise

Which, freed from bonds of sleep, we raise.

While lingers yet the peace of night,

We rouse us from our slumbers light;

That might of instant prayer may win

The healing balm for wounds of sin.

If, by the wiles of Satan caught,

This night-time we have sinned in aught,

That sin thy glorious power today,

From heaven descending, cleanse away.

Let naught impure our bodies stain,

No laggard sloth our souls detain,

No taint of sin our spirits know,

To chill the fervour of their glow.

Wherefore, Redeemer, grant that we

Fulfilled with thine own light may be:

That, in our course, from day to day,

By no misdeed we fall away.

Grant this, O Father ever One

With Christ, thy sole-begotten Son,

And Holy Ghost, whom all adore,

Reigning and blest for evermore.

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 saviour.

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 saviour.

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 saviour.

My eyes are weary with longing for your salvation

– and for your words of justice.

Reading

Proverbs 15:8-9,16-17,25-26,29,33,16:1-9,17:5

The sacrifice of the wicked is abhorrent to the Lord,

dear to him is the prayer of honest men.

The conduct of the wicked is abhorrent to the Lord,

but he loves the man who makes virtue his goal.

Better to have little and with it fear of the Lord

than to have treasure and with it anxiety.

Better a dish of herbs when love is there

than a fattened ox and hatred to go with it.

The Lord pulls down the house of the proud,

but he keeps the widow’s boundaries intact.

Wicked scheming is abhorrent to the Lord,

but words that are kind are pure.

The Lord stands far from the wicked,

but he listens to the prayers of the virtuous.

The fear of the Lord is a school of wisdom,

humility goes before honour.

Man’s heart makes the plans,

the Lord gives the answer.

A man’s conduct may strike him as pure,

the Lord, however, weighs the motives.

Commend what you do to the Lord,

and your plans will find achievement.

The Lord made everything for its own purpose,

yes, even the wicked for the day of disaster.

The arrogant heart is abhorrent to the Lord,

be sure it will not go unpunished.

By kindliness and loyalty atonement is made for sin;

with the fear of the Lord goes avoidance of evil.

Let the Lord be pleased with a man’s way of life

and he makes his very enemies into friends.

Better have little and with it virtue,

than great revenues and no right to them.

A man’s heart plans out his way

but it is the Lord who makes his steps secure.

To mock the poor is to insult his creator,

he who laughs at distress shall not go unpunished.

Responsory

Take heed lest you forget the Lord,

who brought you out of the land of Egypt.

You shall fear the Lord your God,

and you shall serve him alone.

The fear of the Lord is instruction in wisdom,

and humility goes before honour.

You shall fear the Lord your God,

and you shall serve him alone.

Reading

From the Tractates on the first letter of John by Saint Augustine, bishop

Our heart longs for God

We have been promised that we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. By these words, the tongue has done its best; now we must apply the meditation of the heart. Although they are the words of Saint John, what are they in comparison with the divine reality? And how can we, so greatly inferior to John in merit, add anything of our own? Yet we have received, as John has told us, an anointing by the Holy One which teaches us inwardly more than our tongue can speak. Let us turn to this source of knowledge, and because at present you cannot see, make it your business to desire the divine vision.

The entire life of a good Christian is in fact an exercise of holy desire. You do not yet see what you long for, but the very act of desiring prepares you, so that when he comes you may see and be utterly satisfied.

Suppose you are going to fill some holder or container, and you know you will be given a large amount. Then you set about stretching your sack or wineskin or whatever it is. Why? Because you know the quantity you will have to put in it and your eyes tell you there is not enough room. By stretching it, therefore, you increase the capacity of the sack, and this is how God deals with us. Simply by making us wait he increases our desire, which in turn enlarges the capacity of our soul, making it able to receive what is to be given to us.

So, my brethren, let us continue to desire, for we shall be filled. Take note of Saint Paul stretching as it were his ability to receive what is to come: Not that I have already obtained this, he said, or am made perfect. Brethren, I do not consider that I have already obtained it. We might ask him, “If you have not yet obtained it, what are you doing in this life?” This one thing I do, answers Paul, forgetting what lies behind, and stretching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the prize to which I am called in the life above. Not only did Paul say he stretched forward, but he also declared that he pressed on toward a chosen goal. He realised in fact that he was still short of receiving what no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man conceived.

Such is our Christian life. By desiring heaven we exercise the powers of our soul. Now this exercise will be effective only to the extent that we free ourselves from desires leading to infatuation with this world. Let me return to the example I have already used, of filling an empty container. God means to fill each of you with what is good; so cast out what is bad! If he wishes to fill you with honey and you are full of sour wine, where is the honey to go? The vessel must be emptied of its contents and then be cleansed. Yes, it must be cleansed even if you have to work hard and scour it. It must be made fit for the new thing, whatever it may be.

We may go on speaking figuratively of honey, gold or wine – but whatever we say we cannot express the reality we are to receive. The name of that reality is God. But who will claim that in that one syllable we utter the full expanse of our heart’s desire? Therefore, whatever we say is necessarily less than the full truth. We must extend ourselves toward the measure of Christ so that when he comes he may fill us with his presence. Then we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.

Responsory

If you find your delight in the Lord,

he will grant your heart’s desire.

Commit your life to the Lord and trust in him:

he will grant your heart’s desire.

Let us pray.

To those who love you, Lord,

you promise to come with your Son

and make your home within them.

Come, then, with your purifying grace

and make our hearts a place where you can dwell.

We make our prayer through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,

who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,

God for ever and ever.

Amen.

Let us bless the Lord.

– Thanks be to God.

PRAYER OF THE DAY

2012-02-16T07:30:00.002-05:00

The Magnificat

My soul doth magnify the Lord

And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Savior.

For He hath regarded the low estate of

His handmaiden. For behold, from henceforth

all generations will call me blessed;

for He who is mighty hath

done great things for me,

and holy is His name.

And His mercy is on them that fear Him

throughout all generations.

He hath shown strength with His arm;

He hath scattered the proud

in the imagination of their hearts;

He hath put down the mighty

from their thrones,

and exalted the humble and meek;

He hath filled the hungry with good things,

and the rich He hath sent empty away.

He hath helped His servant Israel,

in remembrance of His mercy,

as He spake to our forefathers,

to Abraham and his seed forever.

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.

Luke 1:46-55

DAILY MASS READINGS

2012-02-16T07:28:00.005-05:00

Thursday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading

Jas 2:1-9

My brothers and sisters, show no partiality

as you adhere to the faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ.

For if a man with gold rings and fine clothes

comes into your assembly,

and a poor person with shabby clothes also comes in,

and you pay attention to the one wearing the fine clothes

and say, "Sit here, please,"

while you say to the poor one, "Stand there," or "Sit at my feet,"

have you not made distinctions among yourselves

and become judges with evil designs?

Listen, my beloved brothers and sisters.

Did not God choose those who are poor in the world

to be rich in faith and heirs of the Kingdom

that he promised to those who love him?

But you dishonored the poor.

Are not the rich oppressing you?

And do they themselves not haul you off to court?

Is it not they who blaspheme the noble name that was invoked over you?

However, if you fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture,

You shall love your neighbor as yourself, you are doing well.

But if you show partiality, you commit sin,

and are convicted by the law as transgressors.

Responsorial Psalm

Ps 34:2-3, 4-5, 6-7

R. The Lord hears the cry of the poor.

I will bless the LORD at all times;

his praise shall be ever in my mouth.

Let my soul glory in the LORD;

the lowly will hear me and be glad.

R. The Lord hears the cry of the poor.

Glorify the LORD with me,

let us together extol his name.

I sought the LORD, and he answered me

and delivered me from all my fears.

R. The Lord hears the cry of the poor.

Look to him that you may be radiant with joy,

and your faces may not blush with shame.

When the poor one called out, the LORD heard,

and from all his distress he saved him.

R. The Lord hears the cry of the poor.

Gospel

Mk 8:27-33

Jesus and his disciples set out

for the villages of Caesarea Philippi.

Along the way he asked his disciples,

"Who do people say that I am?"

They said in reply,

"John the Baptist, others Elijah,

still others one of the prophets."

And he asked them,

"But who do you say that I am?"

Peter said to him in reply,

"You are the Christ."

Then he warned them not to tell anyone about him.

He began to teach them

that the Son of Man must suffer greatly

and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes,

and be killed, and rise after three days.

He spoke this openly.

Then Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him.

At this he turned around and, looking at his disciples,

rebuked Peter and said,

"Get behind me, Satan.

You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do."

SAINT OF THE DAY

2012-02-16T07:26:00.000-05:00

February 16

St. Daniel (d. 309)

He and four companions, Elias, Isaias, Jeremy and Samuel were Egyptians who visited Christians condemned to work in the mines of Cilicia during Maximus persecution, to comfort them.

Apprehended at the gates of Caesarea, Palestine, they were brought before the governor, Firmilian and accused of being Christians. They were all tortured and then beheaded.

When Porphyry, a servant of St. Pamphilus demanded that the bodies be buried, he was tortured and then burned to death when it was found he was a Christian. Seleucus witnessed his death and applauded his constancy in the face of his terrible death; whereupon he was arrested by the soldiers involved in the execution, borught before the governor and was beheaded at Firmilian's order.

OFFICE OF READINGS

2012-02-16T07:23:00.005-05:00

O Lord, open my lips.

And my mouth will proclaim your praise.

Invitatory Psalm

Psalm 99 (100)

Let us exult in the Lord’s presence.

– Let us exult in the Lord’s presence.

Rejoice in the Lord, all the earth,

and serve him with joy.

Exult as you enter his presence.

– Let us exult in the Lord’s presence.

Know that the Lord is God.

He made us and we are his

– his people, the sheep of his flock.

– Let us exult in the Lord’s presence.

Cry out his praises as you enter his gates,

fill his courtyards with songs.

Proclaim him and bless his name;

for the Lord is our delight.

His mercy lasts for ever,

his faithfulness through all the ages.

– Let us exult in the Lord’s presence.

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.

– Let us exult in the Lord’s presence.

Hymn

The dusky veil of night hath laid

The varied hues of earth in shade;

Before thee, righteous Judge of all,

We contrite in confession fall.

Take far away our load of sin,

Our soiled minds make clean within:

Thy sovereign grace, O Christ, impart,

From all offence to guard our heart.

For lo! our mind is dull and cold,

envenomed by sin’s baneful hold:

Fain would it now the darkness flee

And seek, Redeemer, unto thee.

Far from it drive the shades of night,

Its inmost darkness put to flight;

Till in the daylight of the Blest

It joys to find itself at rest.

Almighty Father, hear our cry

Through Jesus Christ, our Lord most high,

Who with the Holy Ghost and thee

Doth live and reign eternally.

Psalm 43 (44)

In time of defeat

It was you who saved us, Lord: we will praise your name without ceasing.

Our own ears have heard, O God,

and our fathers have proclaimed it to us,

what you did in their days, the days of old:

how with your own hand you swept aside the nations

and put us in their place,

struck them down to make room for us.

It was not by their own swords that our fathers took over the land,

it was not their own strength that gave them victory;

but your hand and your strength,

the light of your face,

for you were pleased in them.

You are my God and my king,

who take care for the safety of Jacob.

Through you we cast down your enemies;

in your name we crushed those who rose against us.

I will not put my hopes in my bow,

my sword will not bring me to safety;

for it was you who saved us from our afflictions,

you who set confusion among those who hated us.

We will glory in the Lord all the day,

and proclaim your name for all ages.

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.

It was you who saved us, Lord: we will praise your name without ceasing.

Psalm 43 (44)

Spare us, Lord, do not let your people be put to shame.

But now, God, you have spurned us and confounded us,

so that we must go into battle without you.

You have put us to flight in the sight of our enemies,

and those who hate us plunder us at will.

You have handed us over like sheep sold for food,

you have scattered us among the nations.

You have sold your people for no money,

not even profiting by the exchange.

You have made us the laughing-stock of our neighbours,

mocked and derided by those who surround us.

The nations have made us a by-word,

the peoples toss their heads in scorn.

All the day I am ashamed,

I blush with shame

as they reproach me and revile me,

my enemies and my persecutors.

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.

Spare us, Lord, do not let your people be put to shame.

Psalm 43 (44)

Arise, Lord! Redeem us because of your love.

All this happened to us,

but not because we had forgotten you.

We were not disloyal to your covenant;

our hearts did not turn away;

our steps did not wander from your path;

and yet you brought us low,

with horrors all about us:

you overwhelmed us in the shadows of death.

If we had forgotten the name of our God,

if we had spread out our hands before an alien god —

would God not have known?

He knows what is hidden in our hearts.

It is for your sake that we face death all the day,

that we are reckoned as sheep to be slaughtered.

Awake, Lord, why do you sleep?

Rise up, do not always reject us.

Why do you turn away your face?

How can you forget our poverty and our tribulation?

Our souls are crushed into the dust,

our bodies dragged down to the earth.

Rise up, Lord, and help us.

In your mercy, redeem 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.

Arise, Lord! Redeem us because of your love.

Lord, to whom shall we go?

– You have the words of eternal life.

Reading

Proverbs 10:6-32

The blessings of the Lord are on the head of the virtuous man,

premature mourning stops the mouths of the wicked.

The virtuous man is remembered with blessings,

the wicked man’s name rots away.

The heart that is wise is obedient to instruction,

the gabbling fool is heading for ruin.

He walks secure whose ways are honourable,

but he who follows crooked ways is soon discovered.

A wink of the eye, and a man makes trouble,

a bold rebuke, and a man makes peace.

The mouth of the virtuous man is a life-giving fountain,

violence lurks in the mouth of the wicked.

Hatred provokes disputes,

love covers over all offences.

On the lips of a discerning man is wisdom found,

on the back of a fool, the stick.

Wise men store up knowledge,

but the mouth of a fool makes ruin imminent.

The rich man’s wealth is his stronghold,

poverty is the poor man’s undoing.

The virtuous man’s wage affords him life,

but destruction is all the wicked man earns.

The path of life is to abide by discipline,

and he who ignores correction goes astray.

The lips of just men silence hatred,

he who voices slander is a fool.

A flood of words is never without its fault,

he who has his lips controlled is a prudent man.

The virtuous man’s tongue is purest silver,

the heart of the wicked is of trumpery value.

The lips of the virtuous man nourish a multitude,

but fools die in poverty.

The blessing of the Lord is what brings riches,

to this hard toil has nothing to add.

The joy of the fool lies in doing wrong,

but the joy of the man of discernment in acquiring wisdom.

What the wicked man fears overtakes him,

what the virtuous desires comes to him as a present.

When the storm is over, the wicked man is no more,

but the virtuous stands firm for ever.

As vinegar to the teeth, smoke to the eyes,

so the sluggard to the one who sends him.

The fear of the Lord adds length to life,

the years of the wicked will be cut short.

The hope of virtuous men is all joy,

the expectations of the wicked are frustrated.

The Lord is a stronghold for the man of honest life,

for evildoers nothing but ruin.

The virtuous man will never be moved from his own place,

but the land will offer no home for the wicked.

The mouth of the virtuous man utters wisdom,

the deceitful tongue shall be torn out.

The lips of the virtuous man drip with kindness,

the mouth of the wicked with deceit.

Responsory

The just man’s mouth utters wisdom and his lips speak what is right;

the law of his God is in his heart.

The just man will be remembered for ever; he has no fear of evil news.

The law of his God is in his heart.

Reading

From the Explanations of the Psalms by Saint Ambrose, bishop

Open your lips, and let God's word be heard

We must always meditate on God’s wisdom, keeping it in our hearts and on our lips. Your tongue must speak justice, the law of God must be in your heart. Hence Scripture tells you: You shall speak of these commandments when you sit in your house, and when you walk along the way, and when you lie down, and when you get up. Let us then speak of the Lord Jesus, for he is wisdom, he is the word, the Word indeed of God.

It is also written: Open your lips, and let God’s word be heard. God’s word is uttered by those who repeat Christ’s teaching and meditate on his sayings. Let us always speak this word. When we speak about wisdom, we are speaking of Christ. When we speak about virtue, we are speaking of Christ. When we speak about justice, we are speaking of Christ. When we speak about peace, we are speaking of Christ. When we speak about truth and life and redemption, we are speaking of Christ.

Open your lips, says Scripture, and let God’s word be heard. It is for you to open, it is for him to be heard. So David said: I shall hear what the Lord says in me. The very Son of God says: Open your lips, and I will fill them. Not all can attain to the perfection of wisdom as Solomon or Daniel did, but the spirit of wisdom is poured out on all according to their capacity, that is, on all the faithful. If you believe, you have the spirit of wisdom.

Meditate, then, at all times on the things of God, and speak the things of God, when you sit in your house. By house we can understand the Church, or the secret place within us, so that we are to speak within ourselves. Speak with prudence, so as to avoid falling into sin, as by excess of talking. When you sit in your house, speak to yourself as if you were a judge. When you walk along the way, speak, so as never to be idle. You speak along the way if you speak in Christ, for Christ is the way. When you walk along the way, speak to yourself, speak to Christ. Hear him say to you: I desire that in every place men should pray, lifting holy hands without anger or quarrelling. When you lie down, speak so that the sleep of death may not steal upon you. Listen and learn how you are to speak as you lie down; I will not give sleep to my eyes or slumber to my eyelids until I find a place for the Lord, a dwelling place for the God of Jacob.

When you get up or rise again, speak of Christ, so as to fulfil what you are commanded. Listen and learn how Christ is to awaken you from sleep. Your soul says: I hear my brother knocking at the door. Then Christ says to you: Open the door to me, my sister, my spouse. Listen and learn how you are to awaken Christ. Your soul says: I charge you, daughters of Jerusalem, awaken or reawaken the love of my heart. Christ is that love.

Responsory

God gave us all Christ Jesus to be our wisdom,

our justification,

our sanctification, and our atonement,

so that the scripture might be fulfilled.

If anyone boasts, let him make his boast in the Lord.

We have all received something out of his abundance,

grace answering to grace,

so that the scripture might be fulfilled.

If anyone boasts, let him make his boast in the Lord.

Let us pray.

To those who love you, Lord,

you promise to come with your Son

and make your home within them.

Come, then, with your purifying grace

and make our hearts a place where you can dwell.

We make our prayer through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,

who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,

God for ever and ever.

Amen.

Let us bless the Lord.

– Thanks be to God.

PRAYER OF THE DAY

2012-02-15T06:55:00.001-05:00

Prayer of Saint Claude de la Colombiere

Lord, I am in this world to show Your mercy to others.

Other people will glorify You

by making visible the power of Your grace

by their fidelity and constancy to You.

For my part I will glorify You

by making known how good You are to sinners,

that Your mercy is boundless

and that no sinner no matter how great his offences

should have reason to despair of pardon.

If I have grievously offended You, My Redeemer,

let me not offend You even more

by thinking that You are not kind enough to pardon Me.

Amen.

DAILY MASS READINGS

2012-02-15T06:54:00.006-05:00

Wednesday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading

Jas 1:19-27

Know this, my dear brothers and sisters:

everyone should be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger

for anger does not accomplish

the righteousness of God.

Therefore, put away all filth and evil excess

and humbly welcome the word that has been planted in you

and is able to save your souls.

Be doers of the word and not hearers only, deluding yourselves.

For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer,

he is like a man who looks at his own face in a mirror.

He sees himself, then goes off and promptly forgets

what he looked like.

But the one who peers into the perfect law of freedom and perseveres,

and is not a hearer who forgets but a doer who acts;

such a one shall be blessed in what he does.

If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue

but deceives his heart, his religion is vain.

Religion that is pure and undefiled before God and the Father is this:

to care for orphans and widows in their affliction

and to keep oneself unstained by the world.

Responsorial Psalm

Ps 15:2-3a, 3bc-4ab, 5

R. Who shall live on your holy mountain, O Lord?

He who walks blamelessly and does justice;

who thinks the truth in his heart

and slanders not with his tongue.

R. Who shall live on your holy mountain, O Lord?

Who harms not his fellow man,

nor takes up a reproach against his neighbor;

By whom the reprobate is despised,

while he honors those who fear the LORD.

R. Who shall live on your holy mountain, O Lord?

Who lends not his money at usury

and accepts no bribe against the innocent.

He who does these things

shall never be disturbed.

R. Who shall live on your holy mountain, O Lord?

Gospel

Mk 8:22-26

When Jesus and his disciples arrived at Bethsaida,

people brought to him a blind man

and begged Jesus to touch him.

He took the blind man by the hand

and led him outside the village.

Putting spittle on his eyes

he laid his hands on the man and asked,

"Do you see anything?"

Looking up the man replied,

"I see people looking like trees and walking."

Then he laid hands on the man's eyes

a second time and he saw clearly;

his sight was restored and he could see everything distinctly.

Then he sent him home and said,

"Do not even go into the village."

SAINT OF THE DAY

2012-02-15T06:51:00.001-05:00

February 15

St. Claude la Colombière (1641-1682)

This is a special day for the Jesuits, who claim today’s saint as one of their own. It’s also a special day for people who have a special devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus—a devotion Claude la Colombière promoted, along with his friend and spiritual companion, St. Margaret Mary Alacoque. The emphasis on God’s love for all was an antidote to the rigorous moralism of the Jansenists, who were popular at the time.

Claude showed remarkable preaching skills long before his ordination in 1675. Two months later he was made superior of a small Jesuit residence in Burgundy. It was there he first encountered Margaret Mary Alacoque. For many years after he served as her confessor.

He was next sent to England to serve as confessor to the Duchess of York. He preached by both words and by the example of his holy life, converting a number of Protestants. Tensions arose against Catholics and Claude, rumored to be part of a plot against the king, was imprisoned. He was ultimately banished, but by then his health had been ruined.

He died in 1682. Pope John Paul the Second canonized Claude la Colombière in 1992.