Friday, January 11, 2019

Friday after Epiphany

Leviticus, Chapter 19, verse 32

Stand up in the presence of the aged, show respect for the old, and fear your God. I am the LORD.

A people or Nation is known by how it treats its most vulnerable persons. Are the most vulnerable; the young, including the unborn and aged treated with dignity and honor. Are these people whom are created of and by God treated by us as an object; as a vehicle to obtain something, or as a wall that blocks us from what we want or are they seen as useless and unimportant? We must avoid identifying with the culture of death.

An encouragement to live life to the full[1]

I encourage each of you to live with serenity the years that the Lord has granted you, I feel a spontaneous desire to share fully with you my own feelings at this point of my life, after more than twenty years of ministry on the throne of Peter and as we await the arrival, now imminent, of the Third Millennium. Despite the limitations brought on by age, I continue to enjoy life. For this I thank the Lord. It is wonderful to be able to give oneself to the very end for the sake of the Kingdom of God! At the same time, I find great peace in thinking of the time when the Lord will call me: from life to life! And so I often find myself saying, with no trace of melancholy, a prayer recited by priests after the celebration of the Eucharist: In hora mortis meae voca me, et iube me venire ad te – at the hour of my death, call me and bid me come to you. This is the prayer of Christian hope, which in no way detracts from the joy of the present, while entrusting the future to God's gracious and loving care. “Iube me venire ad te!” this is the deepest yearning of the human heart, even in those who are not conscious of it. Grant, O Lord of life, that we may be ever vividly aware of this and that we may savor every season of our lives as a gift filled with promise for the future. Grant that we may lovingly accept your will and place ourselves each day in your merciful hands. And when the moment of our definitive “passage” comes, grant that we may face it with serenity, without regret for what we shall leave behind. For in meeting you, after having sought you for so long, we shall find once more every authentic good which we have known here on earth, in the company of all who have gone before us marked with the sign of faith and hope. Mary, Mother of pilgrim humanity, pray for us “now and at the hour of our death”. Keep us ever close to Jesus, your beloved Son and our brother, the Lord of life and glory.

Human Trafficking Awareness[2]

Human Trafficking Awareness Day is dedicated to raising awareness of sexual slavery and human trafficking worldwide. Today, there are between 21-30 million people enslaved in the world, more than at any time in human history. Every day, modern slavery can be recognized: children become soldiers; young women are forced into prostitution and migrant workers exploited in the workforce. Human Trafficking Awareness Day seeks to end this slavery, return rights to individuals and make the world a safer place for all inhabitants. Human Trafficking Awareness Day started in 2007, when the U.S. Senate designated January 11th as National Human Trafficking Awareness Day in the hopes of raising awareness to combat human trafficking. It began as a U.S. initiative, and the United Nations has started to highlight this topic and work towards global awareness with days such as International Day for the Abolition of Slavery.

Human Trafficking Awareness Facts & Quotes

· The most common form of human trafficking is sexual exploitation, accounting for 79% of human trafficking victims. These victims of sexual exploitation are predominantly women and girls.

· According to UNICEF, 2 million children are estimated to be trafficking victims of sex trade each year. 20% of traffic victims are children.

· The average age of a girl being forced into the US domestic sex slavery market is 13.

· The average cost of a slave around the world is $90.

· It is slavery in the modern age. Every year thousands of people, mainly women and children, are exploited by criminals who use them for forced labor or the sex trade. No country is immune. Almost all play a part, either as a source of trafficked people, transit point or destination. - United Nations Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon.

Human Trafficking Awareness Top Events and Things to Do

§ Talk to children about strangers and make sure they memorize important addresses and phone numbers.

§ Save 888-373-7888 to your phone. This is number to the National Human Trafficking Resources Hotline.

§ Make a donation to an organization fighting human trafficking.

§ Learn the signs and indicators of human trafficking so that you can learn to recognize it and report it. US Homeland Security offers a training online free of charge.

· Watch a movie about human trafficking. Our picks: Taken (2008), Trade (2007), Human Trafficking (2005), The Pink Room (2011), Nefarious (2011) and Lilya 4-ever (2002).

Know the Signs[3]

Recognizing indicators of human trafficking is key to identifying victims and helping them find assistance.

Look for someone who:

1. Is not free to leave or come and go as he/she wishes

2. Is unpaid, paid very little, or paid only through tips

3. Works excessively long and/or unusual hours

4. Is not allowed breaks or suffers under unusual restrictions at work

5. Owes a large debt and is unable to pay it off

6. Was recruited through false promises concerning the nature and conditions of his/her work

7. High security measures exist in work and/or living locations (e.g. opaque windows, boarded-up windows, bars on windows, barbed wire, security cameras, etc.)

8. Is fearful, anxious, depressed, submissive, tense or nervous/paranoid

9. Exhibits unusually fearful or anxious behavior after mention of law enforcement

10. Avoids eye contact

11. Lacks health care

12. Appears malnourished

13. Shows signs of physical and/or sexual abuse, physical restraint, confinement or torture

14. Has few or no personal possessions

15. Is not in control of his/her own money, has no financial records or bank account

16. Is not in control of his/her own identification documents (ID or passport)

17. Is not allowed or able to speak for themselves (a third party may insist on being present and/or translating)

18. Claims of just visiting and inability to clarify where he/she is staying/address

19. Lack of knowledge of whereabouts and/or do not know what city he/she is in

20. Loss of sense of time

21. Has numerous inconsistencies in his/her story

Complete My Joy[1]

Your Marriage, Centered on Jesus Christ

51. But marriage is hard! Those who glimpse the plan that God has for marriage may well agree with the words of G.K. Chesterton when he said, “it is not that Christianity has been tried and found lacking; it is that it has been found difficult and left untried.” No matter our vocation, these words ring true! It is often thought that faithful, chaste, committed, life-long married love is just too difficult. As your shepherd, I want you to remember the angel’s message to Mary, whose unique mission in history likely sounded impossible when she heard it, “nothing will be impossible for God.” (Lk. 1:37)

52. As disciples of Jesus, you can always rely on Him to instruct and guide you. A marriage that is truly Christ-centered will stay with Him who says, "learn from Me"(Matthew 11:29) and to the Father who says, "Listen to Him." (Mk 9:7) Even as God tells His disciples these things, He knows that this love will continually need to be learned and relearned. As you spouses, year by year, come to Him in personal prayer, Mass and the other Sacraments, say to Jesus, “Teach me and guide me in the way You want me to love my spouse and my family.” I don’t mean this in a general way. The Holy Spirit will guide you specifically to love the unique members of your family “until the hour when we stand before [God]… Saints among the Saints in the halls of heaven.”

[1]https://family.dphx.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/2018-Complete-My-Joy-Apostolic-Exhortation-English.pdf

49 Godly Character Traits[4]

During this New Year let us take up the nature of God by reflecting on these traits that make us a model for our children and our sisters and brothers in Christ. Today reflect on:

Thriftiness vs. Extravagance

Not letting myself or others spend that which is not necessary (Luke 16:11)

1835 Prudence disposes the practical reason to discern, in every circumstance, our true good and to choose the right means for achieving it.

The Way[5] Mortification

"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."

Tender, soft, flabby...: that's not the way I want you. It's about time you got rid of that peculiar pity you feel for yourself

Daily Devotions

· Drops of Christ’s Blood

· Offering to the sacred heart of Jesus

· Universal Man Plan

· Day Eighteen activity (Los Posadas)

· Day Eighteen recipe (La Rosca de Reyes)