ST. JOHN’S EVE-INTERNATIONAL WIDOWS DAY
Luke,
Chapter 23, Verse 40
The
other, however, rebuking him, said in reply, “Have you no fear of God, for you are subject to the same condemnation?
This verse refers to the story of the good thief.
Theophilus of Alexandria: 'Crucifixion and
the Good Thief'.[1]
The sun of righteousness appeared in the east and gave light to those who were in the darkness and in the shadow of death (Lk. 1:79) ...The powerful lion sprang up out of the wood; all the wild beasts hid in their dens…This, if you like, is the way of Our Lord Jesus Christ, when he saw the real enemy of the whole human race, who is the devil. For the devil invaded the whole earth, and afflicted everyone with many kinds of sins, which he spreads with these great scourges, namely, idolatry, robbery, vanity, fornication, theft, murder, slander, licentiousness, envy, hatred, contempt, anger, sorcery, pollution, fraud, arrogance, perjury, falsehood, corruption, prostitution, deceit and whatever is similar in them. These are the traps which the devil set for humanity, until he brought it to perdition and dispersed it. Well now. Let us consider in what way Christ the king made war against the devil until he released our souls from him and set them free. Let us begin, then, to penetrate the great treasure house full of the fruits of life.
The sun of righteousness appeared in the east and gave light to those who were in the darkness and in the shadow of death (Lk. 1:79) ...The powerful lion sprang up out of the wood; all the wild beasts hid in their dens…This, if you like, is the way of Our Lord Jesus Christ, when he saw the real enemy of the whole human race, who is the devil. For the devil invaded the whole earth, and afflicted everyone with many kinds of sins, which he spreads with these great scourges, namely, idolatry, robbery, vanity, fornication, theft, murder, slander, licentiousness, envy, hatred, contempt, anger, sorcery, pollution, fraud, arrogance, perjury, falsehood, corruption, prostitution, deceit and whatever is similar in them. These are the traps which the devil set for humanity, until he brought it to perdition and dispersed it. Well now. Let us consider in what way Christ the king made war against the devil until he released our souls from him and set them free. Let us begin, then, to penetrate the great treasure house full of the fruits of life.
·
This
is the great holy mystery of the wood of the cross, on which the True God, Jesus
Christ, mounted out of love. When he descended into this world, he came to the
people of Israel and preached to them saying: 'Repent for the kingdom of Heaven
is at hand.' (Mt. 4:17)
·
But
they paid no heed to his holy counsels. After this he performed all the signs
of his divinity in their presence, miracles without number. He made the blind
see, the lame walk and the deaf hear. He healed lepers. He brought the dead
back to life. He drove out demons. He made paralytics stand on their feet and
forgave their sins. He made tax gatherers repent. He straightened vainglorious
hands. He evangelized the poor. He remitted the sins of adulteresses and
purified them with his divinity, restoring them to a virginal state. It was
because an adulterous woman was made worthy of this great grace that her hands
anointed the feet of him who had created her. (Lk. 7 37-8) From the moment she
participated in the purity of his divinity, the voice of God came to her. 'Your
faith has saved you; go in peace.' (Lk. 7:50)
·
In
spite of all these things accomplished by him in their presence, they did not
give him credence, but seized him and delivered him to be crucified. Having
brought him into the court of the High Priest, they treated him with contempt
rather than honor. Then the word of scripture was fulfilled. They brought evils
upon me instead of blessings, and hatred instead of my love.' (Ps. 108:5)
·
What then are the
evils which the people he created, the people who killed him, did to him? They are terrible
to describe or to hear. My tongue trembles, my eye weeps, my spirit groans, my
soul is distressed to utter them. It is God that they have seized, the Lord
that they have bound. They have pierced with nails the hands of them who
created them. They slapped the face of their Lord. They beat his head with
their fists. They placed a crown of thorns on his head. They dressed him in a
purple cloak. They gave him vinegar and gall. On this day they did all these
things to him. They crucified him with two thieves. One of them, who was unworthy
of the division of his divinity, said to the Lord, deriding him: 'If you are
the Christ, save yourself and us.' (Lk 23:39).
·
The other replied
rebuking him with indignation: 'Do you not fear God? We are receiving
the reward of our sins which we have committed, but this man has done nothing
wrong.' And he said, 'Jesus. remember me when you come into your kingdom.' And
Jesus said to him with great joy: 'Truly, I say to you, today you will be with
me in Paradise.' The gate of Paradise has been closed since the time when Adam
transgressed, but I will open it today, and receive you in it. Because you have
recognized the nobility of my head on the cross, you who have shared with me in
the suffering of the cross will be my companion in the joy of my kingdom. You
have glorified me in the presence of carnal men, in the presence of sinners. I
will therefore glorify you in the presence of the angels. You were fixed with
me on the cross, and you united yourself with me of your own free will. I will
therefore love you, and my Father will love you, and the angels will serve you
with my holy food. If you used once to be a companion of murderers, behold, I
who am the life of all have now made you a companion with me. You used once to
walk in the night with the sons of darkness; behold I who am the light of the
whole world have now made you walk with me. You used once to take counsel with
murderers; behold, I who am the Creator have made you a companion with me. 'All
these things I will pardon you because you have confessed my divinity in the
presence of those who have denied me. For they saw all the signs which I
performed, but did not believe in me. You, then, a rapacious robber, a
murderer, a brigand, a swindler, a plunderer have confessed that I am God. That
is why I have pardoned your many sins, because you have loved much (Lk. 7:47).
I will make you a citizen of Paradise. I will wash your body so that it will
not see corruption before I resurrect it with me on the third day and take you
up with me. The other who has denied me will see you enveloped in glory, but he
will be enveloped in pain and same. He will see you surrounded by light, but he
will be surrounded by darkness. He will see you in a state of joy and
happiness, but he will be in a state of weeping and groaning. He will see you
enjoying ease and benediction, but he will be suffering oppression and
malediction. He will see you refreshed by the angels, but he will be troubled
by the powers of darkness. And in the midst of intense cold the worm that never
rests will consume him. Not only did he not confess me, but after having denied
me he reviled me. 'For this reason all will receive according to their works.
For as I have already said to them explicitly and in public: Everyone who
acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge before my Father who is in
heaven; but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who
is in heaven.' (Mt. 10:32-3).
So
now, brethren, what torment the man who denied the Lord brought upon himself?
We should therefore watch over ourselves that we should not be led astray, that
for the sake of things of this life, we should not be made strangers to him who
has created us. Perhaps there is someone today who is denying God for the sake
of riches because the love of money closes the eyes of those who are given to
it. Such a person takes the part of Judas, He has sold the Lord for thirty
pieces of silver. It is therefore good for us to direct our concerns towards
the Lord since it is he who takes care of us. Let us now turn to the goal
proposed to us by the cross. For the ladder which Jacob contemplated that was
fixed to the ground and reached up to heaven on which the angel of the Lord
ascended and descended (Gen. 28:12), is Our Lord Jesus Christ raised up on the
wood of the cross.
St. John’s bonfire is traditionally lit on the night before the Feast. The mood surrounding this solemn vigil is merry, since the day was regarded as a sort of summer Christmas. The Roman ritual even includes a special benedictio rogi, or blessing of the bonfire, for the birthday of the Baptist:
Lord God, Father almighty,
unfailing Light who is the Source of all light: sanctify this new fire, and
grant that after the darkness of this life we may be able to come with pure
minds to Thee who art Light unfailing. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Domine Deus, Pater omnipotens,
lumen indeficiens, qui es conditor omnium luminum: novum hunc ignem sanctifica,
et praesta: ut ad te, qui es lumen indeficiens, puris mentibus post hujus
saeculi caliginem pervenire valeamus. Per Christum Dominum nostrum. Amen.
The bonfire, incidentally, is an excellent symbol for
John, the untamed prophet who lived outside the city both literally and
figuratively. It also makes an interesting contrast with the Paschal candle. On
Easter vigil, a similarly "wild" fire representing Christ is made
outside and is used to light the Paschal candle, which is then carried into the
church. Significantly, in the Exultet the deacon praises this candle as
the product of a beehive, symbol of a virtuous and harmonious city. The idea
seems to be that Christ is also an outsider, though he succeeds through his
death and resurrection in bringing the light of truth into the very citadel of
darkness. On the other hand, John, who never lived to see Christ's triumph, can
only bear witness to the light from the outside.
Things to Do[3]
·
St.
John's Birth marks the summer solstice. On the eve of this feast many countries
have celebrated with bonfires. This is especially true in Ireland, Estonia,
Latvia, and Lithuania. See the list of suggested activities to read more about
this tradition.
·
Read
about St. John's Eve particularly in Ireland (note the link is a secular website).
·
From
the Germanic countries, here is some information on the Summer Solstice.
International Widows' Day serves to recognize widows and their unique situations worldwide. Widows are women whose husbands have died. After their husbands have passed, many widows are forced to fight for their human rights and overcome many obstacles to ensure their social and economic development. It is estimated that there are over 245 million widows worldwide, nearly half of which live in extreme poverty and are subject to cruel violence.
International Widows' Day was declared by the United Nations and first celebrated on June 23, 2011 in an effort empower widows and help them to regain their rights, which have long been ignored and violated.
Today do something to help a widow or single parent. Check out www.flyingscarfs.com
Daily Devotions
·
Please
pray for me and this ministry
·
Please
Pray for Senator
McCain and our country; asking Our Lady of Beauraing to
intercede.
Comments
Post a Comment