Thursday
in the Octave of the Sacred Heart of
Jesus
INDEPENDENCE DAY
Matthew, Chapter 9, verse 2
And
there people brought to him a paralytic lying on a stretcher. When Jesus saw
their faith*, he said to the paralytic, “Courage, child, your sins
are forgiven.”
Meditate
on if the healing of the paralytic or the forgiveness of his sins is a greater
gift.
- Some people
bring a paralytic to Jesus so that he can be cured. But instead of healing
him, Jesus forgives his sins. Blasphemy! At least that's what the scribes
think to themselves. But Jesus is on top of things because (1) he does
have the authority to forgive sins, and (2) he also has the power to heal
the paralytic. Which is exactly what he does.
- Then Jesus
stumbles upon a tax collector named Matthew (yep, that's our Matthew!),
and requests that he become a follower. The Pharisees have a field day
with this one. Tax collectors weren't the most popular people around town
(some things never change), and the Pharisees call Jesus out for hanging
out with Matthew and other sinners.
- Jesus will
have none of that. He lets them know that he didn't come for the goody
two-shoes. No, he came for the sinners. Now some of John's disciples ask
Jesus why his disciples don't fast. Jesus tells them that no one mourns
while the bridegroom is with them and that they will fast in mourning when
the bridegroom is taken away. Confused? Don't worry, he explains with the
parables of unshrunken cloth and old wineskins. Still confused? Yeah, so
is almost everyone.
- Jesus wastes
no time in getting back to healing people. While he's on his way to bring
a girl back to life, a woman suffering from a twelve-year-long hemorrhage
touches Jesus's cloak to be made well again. Despite having a slew of
people around him, Jesus feels her and says her faith has cured her. Oh
yeah, and then he brings the little girl back to life.
- News spreads
fast. Next up to join the I've Been Healed by Jesus club are the two blind
men who call out to "the Son of David." Okay, that gets Jesus's
attention. He asks if they believe and says it's by their faith that
they're healed. But then he tells them not to tell anyone. This
again?
- Guess what?
They tell people. You would think that since Jesus wants everyone to keep
their mouths shut, he wouldn't drive the demon out of a mute demoniac. But
Jesus is a good guy, and what do good guys do? They drive demons out of
mute demoniacs.
- Once again,
the crowds are amazed. But the Pharisees accuse Jesus of driving out
demons by the power of the prince of demons (a.k.a. Satan). That's not
good. Jesus continues touring around, preaching at synagogues, talking
about the kingdom of heaven, curing people…you know, the norm. He
feels compassion toward those who follow him and says that the harvest is
plenty, but the laborers are few. Time to get more laborers.
It is evident that
Christ wishes the freedom of souls from the oppression of sin and disease.
Today reflect on our Declaration of Independence from the English Crown.
We hold these truths to be self-evident:
That all men are
created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable
rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness; that,
to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just
powers from the consent of the governed; that whenever any form of government
becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or to
abolish it, and to institute new government, laying its foundation on such
principles, and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most
likely to effect their safety and happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate
that governments long established should not be changed for light and transient
causes; and accordingly all experience hath shown that mankind are more
disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by
abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of
abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same object, evinces a design
to reduce them under absolute despotism, it is their right, it is their duty,
to throw off such government, and to provide new guards for their future
security.
Almighty God, Father of all nations, for
freedom you have set us free in Christ Jesus (Gal 5:1). We praise and bless you
for the gift of religious liberty, the foundation of human rights, justice, and
the common good. Grant to our leaders the wisdom to protect and promote our
liberties; by your grace may we have the courage to defend them, for ourselves
and for all those who live in this blessed land. We ask this through the
intercession of Mary Immaculate, our patroness, and in the name of your Son,
our Lord Jesus Christ, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, with whom you live and
reign, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
This country cannot
afford to be materially rich and spiritually poor. John F. Kennedy
Have we become a soulless Nation? Have we in the
pursuit of happiness; ignored the Gospel of Life. Realizing that if we put
success or liberty as greater values than life that we are serving Caesar and
not God. To understand this, we need to review the US Bishops “The Gospel of
Life”.
Brothers and sisters in the Lord:
At the conclusion of the 1998 ad limina visits of the bishops of the United States, our Holy Father Pope John Paul II spoke these words:
At the conclusion of the 1998 ad limina visits of the bishops of the United States, our Holy Father Pope John Paul II spoke these words:
Today
I believe the Lord is saying to us all: do not hesitate, do not be afraid to
engage the good fight of the faith (cf. I Tim 6:12). When we preach the
liberating message of Jesus Christ we are offering the words of life to the
world. Our prophetic witness is an urgent and essential service not just
to the Catholic community but to the whole human family.
In this statement we attempt to fulfill our role as
teachers and pastors in proclaiming the Gospel of Life. We are confident
that the proclamation of the truth in love is an indispensable way for us to
exercise our pastoral responsibility.
"Your
country stands upon the world scene as a model of a democratic society at an
advanced stage of development. Your power of example carries with it
heavy responsibilities. Use it well, America!"
--Pope John Paul II, Newark, 1995
When Henry Luce published his appeal for an
"American century" in 1941, he could not have known how the coming
reality would dwarf his dream. Luce hoped that the "engineers, scientists,
doctors . . . builders of roads [and] teachers" of the United States would
spread across the globe to promote economic success and American ideals:
"a love of freedom, a feeling for the quality of opportunity, a tradition
of self-reliance and independence and also cooperation." Exactly
this, and much more, has happened in the decades since. U.S. economic
success has reshaped the world. But the nobility of the American
experiment flows from its founding principles, not from its commercial
power. In this century alone, hundreds of thousands of Americans have
died defending those principles. Hundreds of thousands more have lived
lives of service to those principles -- both at home and on other continents --
teaching, advising and providing humanitarian assistance to people in
need. As Pope John Paul has observed, "At the center of the moral
vision of [the American] founding documents is the recognition of the rights of
the human person . . ." The greatness of the United States lies
"especially [in its] respect for the dignity and sanctity of human life in
all conditions and at all stages of development."
Now
the word of the Lord came to me saying: Before I formed you in the womb I knew
you, before you were born, I consecrated you; a prophet to the nations I
appointed you.
--Jeremiah 1:5
--Jeremiah 1:5
Independence
Day commemorates the signing of the Declaration of Independence on July 4,
1776. Independence Day is the most important secular holiday held in the
United States. Americans take this day to celebrate all that is American,
remembering the great sacrifices of our forefathers as they fought and won our
independence from Great Britain. The holiday is also referred to as 4th of
July, named after the date on which it is celebrated each year.
Independence
Day Facts & Quotes
·
In
July 1776, there were approximately 2.5 million people living in the new
nation.
·
The
first public reading of the Declaration of Independence didn't occur until July
8, 1776. It was sent to the printers on July 4th.
·
The
original Declaration of Independence can be viewed by visiting the National
Archives, Washington D.C. The original copy is severely faded and sits
under special glass in the Rotunda for the Chambers of Freedom.
·
The
Statue of Liberty is a great symbol of American Freedom. It was given to the US
by France in 1886. It was delivered in 214 crates and assembled on what
is known as Liberty Island, in New York Harbor.
·
Let
every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, we shall pay any price,
bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe, to
assure the survival and success of liberty. - John F. Kennedy
Independence
Day Top Events and Things to Do
·
Attend
or host a Barbeque.
·
Watch
Fireworks. Large cities such as New York, Miami, Chicago and Los Angeles all
have large firework displays.
·
Read
or recite the Preamble to the Declaration of Independence.
·
Watch
or attend Nathan's famous Hot Dog eating contest in Coney Island.
·
Watch
a Parade. Most local cities host parades to celebrate Independence Day.
·
Contribute to the independence of a
veteran
Catholic
Culture Library Related Articles[6]
The
Patriotic Rosary[7] is prayed
everywhere from within cloistered convents, to inside the Pentagon; from
dangerous military fields around the globe to the quietness of the Bedroom of
Apparitons and the Field of Apparitions at Caritas, which is the home of the
Patriotic Rosary. The Patriotic Rosary quickly captured the hearts and
attention of millions when first heard and prayed. Inspired by Our Lady of
Medjugorje, the Patriotic Rosary is a powerful prayer for divine protection and
mercy for our Nation and its rebirth. The history of the writing of the
Patriotic Rosary origins back to 1995 at Independence Hall in Philadelphia,
where the first promptings of Our Lady was felt and the impulse to form the
Patriotic Rosary was given. The Patriotic Rosary, the Prayer to Heal Our
Land,
and the “Seven Novenas for
the Reconciling of Ourselves, our Families and our Nation Back to God,” all for the
rebirth of America, have the grounds at Caritas of Birmingham as their home. It
is Caritas of Birmingham, whose founder, known as A Friend of Medjugorje, wrote
the Patriotic Rosary, and that also operates the Official Medjugorje Site. It was a
surprise in 1988, after many prayers near the Pine Tree for the healing of our
Nation that Our Lady began to write a beautiful story, through Her Medjugorje
apparitions
at Caritas, telling us that a Nation and its healing, represented by the Pine
in the Field, would come only through the individual, represented by the family
bed. In those first apparitions, Our Lady appeared in the Bedroom over the
family bed, then on Thanksgiving Day, November 24, 1988, She appeared near
the Pine,
then back to the Bedroom for the remaining two months of daily apparitions.
This spoke clearly that our Nation would be healed through strong marriages
forming strong holy families raising strong individuals which will heal and
make a strong nation. Our Nation’s future depends on the healing of the family.
Daily Devotions
·
Go
to MASS
* A person with fear of
the Lord is filled with peace, faith, hope and love.
[3]
Render unto Caesar, Charles J. Chaput
[4]http://www.usccb.org/issues-and-action/human-life-and-dignity/abortion/living-the-gospel-of-life.cfm
[6]https://www.catholicculture.org/culture/liturgicalyear/calendar/day.cfm?date=2019-07-04
No comments:
Post a Comment