FEAST OF THE PRESENTATION of Mary
Romans,
Chapter 8, Verse 19-21
19
For
creation awaits with eager expectation the revelation of the children of God; 20 for creation was made subject to futility, not of its
own accord but because of the one who subjected it, in hope 21 that creation
itself would be set free from slavery to corruption and share in the glorious
freedom of the children of God.
God desires your freedom from
corruption therefore look to Christ and his mother Mary.
When Mary was three years old — so we are told by
tradition — her parents presented her in the temple, where she remained for the
next few years, together with other young children from the first families (she
was a princess of the royal house of David). These girls, while serving God,
learned to spin, weave, and embroider the vestments and curtains around the
temple. Helping to take care of the many priests on duty, they also learned to
prepare food. They had to read long passages from Holy Scriptures, like the
Book of Psalms; and they had to learn by heart parts of the Prophets and
Proverbs. Thus, long before the angel talked to Mary, she knew of the tragic
life and the cruel death predicted for the Messiah. Every year on the
twenty-first of November, when we celebrate the feast of the Presentation, the
Church draws our thoughts to that part of Mary's life.[1]
THE Blessed Virgin was presented in the temple at Jerusalem
by her pious parents, Joachim and Ann, there to be educated in the service and
the law of the Lord in order that she might be guarded against the defilements
of the world. From this we learn:
1. Joachim and Ann offered to the Lord their only and
most beloved child and gave her up entirely to His service. Great as the
sacrifice was, they yet made it. The preservation of the innocence of their
daughter was to them above all else. Parents, God requires of you that you
should not merely offer your children to Him in the temple, but that you should
take care to keep them pure and holy, as living temples which have been
consecrated in Baptism.
Mary gives and dedicates herself to God as soon as she
is capable of serving Him, and that without any reservation, for all time, and
irrevocably.
·
When,
then, shall we give ourselves in earnest to God? True, we have been given to
Him in holy Baptism, we have been consecrated as His temples, we have renounced
the devil and the world, we have vowed to live only for God, and this vow we
have, perhaps, often renewed; but have we kept it?
·
What
we gave with one hand have we not taken it away with the other? Have we not
denied the temple of our hearts by shameful lusts, lived for the world and
vanity more than for God? Ah, when shall we give ourselves up to God sincerely
and forever? Perhaps when we are old! But will God accept our offering then?
·
Will
He be pleased that we begin to serve Him only when we can no longer serve the
world? That we first begin to live for Him when our life is soon to cease? No;
God is a jealous Lord and is not pleased with a heart divided between Him and
creatures. He requires us to love Him with all our heart and all our soul, and
to serve Him with all our powers. Let us, then, do this, and do it from our
youth; let us keep ourselves in body and soul undefiled for the Lord; such
love, and such love only, will He reward as perfect.
Things
to Do[3]
·
Meditate
on the mystery of Mary's temporary dwelling in the sanctuary of the Old
Covenant as a preparation for the approaching season of Advent.
·
Locate
the order of contemplative nuns closest to you and visit their monastery (you
may want to request their prayers and you might consider supporting them
financially), they are the privileged souls who, by the grace of their
vocation, are even here below dwellers in the house of the Lord.
·
Spend
30 minutes reading the Bible.
·
Learn
more about Mary
in the Byzantine Liturgy and say one of the beautiful prayers of the
Eastern liturgy in honor of Mary.
World Television Day celebrates the daily value of
television as a symbol of communication and globalization. Television is one of
the single greatest technological advances of the 20th century, serving to
educate, inform, entertain and influence our decisions and opinions. It
is estimated that approximately 90% of homes around the world have televisions;
however, with the introduction of internet broadcasting, the number is
declining in favor of computers. World Television Day was proclaimed by the United Nations
in 1996. It is celebrated annually on November 21.
World
Television Day Facts & Quotes
·
TV
stimulates the economy by providing countless avenues for jobs. Over 1.2
million people in the European Union alone are employed in the media sector
·
In
France, 63% of children
between the age of 0 and 15 live in a household with 4 screens (TV, computer,
tablet etc.).
·
Television
creates authority. When something is shown on TV it has a particular authority
about it because you know that you and millions of other people are seeing it
and that professionals have produced it.
·
In
Canada, nearly 95% of people aged 18-34 watch TV each month, which results in
12 and a half hours of weekly TV watching.
·
Television
is a medium because anything well done is rare. - Fred Allen, American comedian
and radio show host
Donate
to catholic Television today if you can!
"Read
these counsels slowly. Pause to meditate on these thoughts. They are things
that I whisper in your ear-confiding them-as a friend, as a brother, as a
father. And they are being heard by God. I won't tell you anything new. I will
only stir your memory, so that some thought will arise and strike you; and so
you will better your life and set out along ways of prayer and of Love. And in
the end you will be a more worthy soul."
You give me the impression that you are carrying your heart in
your hands, as if you were offering goods for sale. Who wants it? If it takes
no creature's fancy, you will come and give it to God. Do you think that is how
the saints acted?
Daily Devotions
Is this the discovery of the science of the Eucharist?
[1]https://www.catholicculture.org/culture/liturgicalyear/activities/view.cfm?id=983
[2]Goffine’s
Devout Instructions, 1896.
[3]http://www.catholicculture.org/culture/liturgicalyear/calendar/day.cfm?date=2017-11-21
[5]http://www.escrivaworks.org/book/the_way-point-1.htm
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