Friday after Ash Wednesday
International
Women's Day
Psalm 112, Verse 1
Hallelujah!
Blessed the man who fears the LORD, who greatly delights in his
commands.
This psalm is
detailing the blessings received by those who remain close to God by obedience
to the commandments. Among their blessings are children, wealth that enables
them to be magnanimous, and virtue by which they encourage others. The just
person is an affront to the wicked, whose hopes remain unfulfilled.[1]
Hallelujah is a conjunction of two Hebrew words which
mean “Praise the Lord”. Yes, praise God for men who have Holy fear and follow
his commands for such person’s help to create a Kingdom of Heaven on earth.
Hallelujah! If you know such people, follow and emulate them.
Friday after Ash
Wednesday-Fast Day
EPISTLE. Isaias
Iviii. 1-9.
THUS,
saith the Lord God: Cry, cease not, lift up thy voice - like a trumpet, and
show My people their wicked doings, and the house of Jacob their sins. For they
seek Me from day to day, and desire to know My ways, as a nation that hath done
justice, and hath not forsaken the judgment of their God: they ask of Me the
judgments of justice: they are willing to approach to God. Why have we fasted,
and Thou hast not regarded: why have we humbled our souls, and Thou hast not
taken notice? Behold in the day of your fast your own will is found, and you
exact of all your debtors. Behold you fast for debates and strife, and strike
with the fist wickedly. Do not fast as you have done until this day, to make
your cry to be heard on high. Is this such a fast as I have chosen: for a man
to afflict his soul for a day? is this it, to wind his head about like a
circle, and to spread sack-cloth and ashes? wilt thou call this a fast, and a
day accept able to the Lord? Is not this rather the fast that I have chosen?
Loose
the bands of wickedness, undo the bundles that oppress, let them that are
broken go free, and break asunder every burden. Deal thy bread to the hungry
and bring the needy and the harborless into thy house: when thou shalt see one
naked, cover him, and despise not thy own flesh. Then shall thy light break
forth as the morning, and thy health shall speedily arise, and thy justice shall
go before thy face, and the glory of the Lord shall gather thee up. Then shalt
thou call, and the Lord shall hear thou shalt cry, and He shall say, Here I am.
Because I thy Lord God am merciful.
GOSPEL. Matt. v. 43,
vi. 1-4.
At that time Jesus said to His disciples: You have
heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbor, and hate thy enemy:
but I say to you, Love your enemies: do good to them that hate you: and pray
for them that persecute and calumniate you: that you may be the children of
your Father Who is in heaven, Who maketh His sun to rise upon the good and bad,
and raineth upon the just and the unjust. For if you love them that love you,
what reward shall you have? do not even the publicans this? And if you salute
your brethren only, what do you more? do not also the heathens this? Be you
therefore perfect, as also your heavenly Father is perfect. Take heed, that you
do not your justice before men, to be seen by them: otherwise you shall not
have a reward of your Father Who is in heaven. Therefore, when thou dost an
alms deed, sound not a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the
synagogues and in the streets, that they may be honored by men. Amen I say to
you, they have received their reward. But when thou dost alms, let not thy left
hand know what thy right hand doth. That thy alms may be in secret, and thy Father
Who seeth in secret, will repay thee.
Reflect:
“Lent is thus an opportunity to ‘become’ Christian ‘anew,’ through a constant
process of inner change and progress in the knowledge and love of Christ.
Conversion is never once and for all but is a process, an interior journey
through the whole of life.” (Pope Benedict XVI, General Audience, February 21,
2007)
Pray:
St. John of God was extremely dedicated to the sick and dying. Once, when he
heard that a hospital was going up in flames, he ran in and rescued the
patients and much of the bedding, just before the roof fell in. Moments later,
he walked out of the building, miraculously spared. St. John of God is the
patron saint of firefighters. Pray to him today to intercede and keep the
firefighters in your community safe.
Act:
Today is the first Friday in Lent, where most Catholics will observe an
abstinence from meat. Check out some meatless
recipes. . .
, and plan to try new ones each Friday of this Lenten season.
Posture
and Prayer[3]
We are composed of body and soul, “every part of the body
is an expressive instrument of the soul. The soul does not inhabit the body as
a man inhabits a house, It lives and works in each member, each fiber, and
reveals itself in the body’s every line, contour and movement.” Our bodies
communicate respect or contempt. By our gestures and the way, we comport ourselves
we confirm his presence. We are “ensouled” bodies as much as we are embodied
souls. We should always move as the Church directs us: sit, stand, bow, kneel,
strike the breast, make the Sign of the Cross, all in due time. The scriptures
speak of several postures of prayer: 1) Standing 2) Kneeling 3) bowing 4)
prostrating.
Standing gives the expression to the
prayers of our heart. Standing is a sign of vigilance and action acknowledging
that we are the warriors of God; as a soldier on duty. A Knight always stood in
the presence of the King or Judge. Standing was a sign of deference and trust.
We acknowledge that none of our weapons or self-defenses can repel Him for He
alone is all powerful and all knowing. We are vulnerable in His presence.
Military officers know that comportment has serious consequences. Soldiers tend
to live up, or down to the way they carry themselves. That’s why there are
strict rules about how a soldier should stand when at attention. Bad posture is
bad for the spine and communicates disrespect for us and others. Standing
expresses the filial liberty given us by the risen Christ, who has freed us
from the slavery to sin.
Bowing or
genuflecting is an
act of showing recognition of our God. It is adoration. In bowing or
genuflecting we show our faith in the real presence of Jesus Christ in the
sacrament of the altar. To me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear.
Kneeling is the prayer posture of mothers,
rulers, lepers, and Jesus himself. Kneeling is the side of worship that is at
rest and is quiet; “I bow my knees before the Father”. (Eph. 3:14) Kneeling
expresses the recognition of our humility before the Almighty Lord (Phil 2:10).
Kneeling is associated with reverence, submission and obeisance. Kneeling
renders a person defenseless and unable to flee and shows a trust in a power
beyond the merely human.
Sitting-We spend a lot of time in church
sitting; by this position we show our receptiveness and our willingness to
listen and take the Word of God.
In prostration a person lies face down upon the
ground. We are connected to the earth from which we came. Prostrations are
reserved for most solemn moments, such as the ordination of a bishop or priest.
Remember our Lord prostrated Himself in the garden of Gethsemane. The posture
indicates the candidate’s inadequacy for the task to which he has been called.
Recall our Lord asking the Father to take to cup…but not my will but thine. Our
body expresses self-emptying.
Worship Him and give Him all your heart, mind, soul
and will!
Grace
at Meals[4]
Part
and parcel of the breakdown of a family begins when the family no longer shares
a communal meal. The strongest families are those who meet daily for the
breaking of the bread and have an established time of the day when everyone is
expected to eat together whether that meal is a breakfast, lunch or supper.
When we “say grace” before (or after) our meals, we transform our family or
lone meals into “sacraments” of God’s banquet. A meal shared in this manner is
shared with God himself. In this way every meal, then, is a celebration of
God’s creation and his providence.
Traditional
Grace before meals
“Bless
us, O Lord, and these, thy gifts, which we are about to receive from thy
bounty. Through Christ, our Lord, Amen
International
Women’s Day celebrates women’s achievements throughout the world. Its
purpose is to promote women’s equality, encourage support for repressed women
and promote appreciation toward women everywhere. Many organizations,
including the United
Nations, use this day to also celebrate extraordinary achievements
of ordinary women. International Women's Day was initially promoted by the Socialist
Party of America. In 1909, it designated this day in remembrance of a
major strike by the International Ladies’ Garment Workers Union. The
holiday is now recognized internationally and is an Official National Holiday for
many countries, including: China, Russia and Ukraine. It is observed
annually on March 8th.
International
Women's Day Facts & Quotes
·
On
the eve of World War I, women across Europe and Russia celebrated the holiday
by protesting the war and campaigning for peace.
·
On
this day, the US Dept. of State and the First Lady award the International
Women of Courage Awards. Ten women are given the award - who have
exemplified exceptional courage and leadership in advocating for human rights, women’s
equality, and social progress, often at great personal risk
·
There
is one universal truth, applicable to all countries, cultures and communities:
violence against women is never acceptable, never excusable, never tolerable. -
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon
International
Women's Day Top Events and Things to Do
·
Organize
a sporting
event for women. Numerous studies have shown many benefits for women that
play sports. A recent study by the EY Women Athletes Business Network
even found that women that play sports were more likely to excel in business.
·
If
you're a woman, try learning a task that is typically done by men. Such a
chore may be: changing the oil on your car, computer programming, mowing the
lawn, painting, and any home improvement project.
·
If
you’re a man, show appreciation by performing a chore for your special lady
that is typically done by her. This may include cooking, cleaning, child
care or anything that the special woman in your life does.
·
Watch
a movie that portrays strong empowered women. Our favorites: Bend It Like Beckham (2002), Elizabeth (1998), Erin
Brockovich
(2000), The Help (2011), A League of Their Own (1992), Mulan (1998), My
Fair Lady
(1964), Norma Rae (1979), Volver (2006).
The
Church gives thanks for all the manifestations of the feminine
"genius" which have appeared in the course of history, in the midst
of all peoples and nations; she gives thanks for all the charisms which the
Holy Spirit distributes to women in the history of the People of God, for all
the victories which she owes to their faith, hope and charity: she gives thanks
for all the fruits of feminine holiness.-John Paul II, Apostolic Letter
When God’s
people fast, the power of their prayers is increased, especially when they are engaged
in spiritual warfare.
In response to
Daniel’s fasting and prayer, God had sent the Archangel Michael to battle a
demonic power (called “the prince of the kingdom of Persia”)
If prayer is a
spiritual weapon, fasting is the spiritual whetstone on which it is sharpened.
"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."
On
days of recollection your examination of conscience should be more searching
than the usual nightly moment. Otherwise you miss a great chance to put things
right.
Daily Devotions
·
comment on your
“Coffee with Christ”
·
Hike and Meditate on the Divine
Mercy Novena Day 6 and pray for the souls of the meek and humble and of
children especially those who are to be born.
[3] Hahn, Scott, Signs of Life; 40 Catholic
Customs and their biblical roots. Chap. 10. Posture.
[4] Hahn, Scott, Signs of Life; 40 Catholic
Customs and their biblical roots. Chap. 14. Grace at Meals.
[6]Thigpen,
Paul. Manual for Spiritual Warfare. TAN Books.
[7]http://www.escrivaworks.org/book/the_way-point-1.htm
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