DAY 34 - MARY, HEALTH OF THE SICK, PRAY FOR US
THIS DAY WE FIGHT
PRAY A ROSARY
- Rosary of the Day: Luminous Mysteries
- Traditional 54 Day Rotation: Joyful Mysteries
Introduction to 2 Corinthians
Here you have two
letters written by Paul of Tarsus. He's one of the superstars of the early
church and the guy people think is responsible for almost a third of the
writing in the New Testament. If Jesus is taking home the statute for Best
Biblical Hero, then Paul definitely has a lock in the Best Supporting category.
The guy is A-list all the way. These two letters are just a couple of little
theological blockbusters he wrote to the Christian church he founded in
Corinth. 1 Corinthians is kind of like A New Hope or The
Fellowship of the Ring. It's the first amazing installment in a
can't-wait-to-see-how-it-ends series. This first letters got everything a hit
movie does: sex, love, marriage, divorce, conflict, betrayal, anger, and even
an occasional discussion of penises. Don't worry, the rating is still G. So, if
that was Paul's first box office hit, then 2 Corinthians is like the sequel
that's even bigger and better than the original. Corinth: now with higher
stakes, more expensive special effects, and bigger explosions (of apostolic
anger)! This book also has a little bonus footage in it, because most scholars
think that 2 Corinthians is actually two letters combined into one. It's what
would happen if someone took Breaking
Dawn: Part 1
and Part 2 and edited them into one movie.
Corinthians would have fewer longing vampire glances, though. The best part
about both of these is that you don't have to wait years between letters to see
how it ends. Want to know what happened after that cliffhanger at the end of 1
Corinthians? Just flip the page and find out (spoiler alert: things do not go
well). It's kind of like how we'd feel if Peter Jackson had made The Hobbit into
one movie instead of three. (Which let's be honest, he should have: the book isn't that long, dude.) So, break out the popcorn, put on your
3-D glasses, and crack open your Bibles to the letters to the Corinthians. On second
thought, maybe ditch the 3-D glasses. That might just make you dizzy.
Why Should I Care?
"Don't make me angry. You wouldn't like me when I'm angry." Quoting the Hulk (Bruce Banner), but we're also paraphrasing St. Paul the Apostle. What? Didn't think saints ever got mad? Well then, just take a peek at 1 and 2 Corinthians to have your world rocked. He may be a follower of Jesus, but Paul has feelings, too, you know. In these letters, they're mainly anger, jealousy, and frustration. All that good stuff. See, even though he founded the church in Corinth, Paul can't quite keep things under control there. Not only are the Corinthians rebelling left and right, but people keep coming into town telling everyone that Paul is actually a giant green monster that can't be trusted in civilized society. Paul calls these guys the false apostles and, for him, they're worse than a radioactive lab experiment gone wrong. But if the Hulk's superpower is unstoppable strength, Paul's is sarcasm-laced letters and near-death experiences. While the false apostles spend most of their time bragging about how amazingly holy and spiritually gifted, they are, Paul puts pen to paper to record all his failures. He writes in his letters about being beaten, chained, tortured, imprisoned, starved, and almost beheaded. See, Paul thinks strength is actually found in weakness. We'd say Christianity has found its anti-hero. So, if you're looking for a guy from the Bible you can relate to—someone who occasionally gets mad and lashes out in letter form (as opposed to stomping buildings)—then, Paul is your biblical superhero. But remember, if make him angry with your unbelieving ways—PAUL SMASH!
SEPTEMBER 17 Thursday
ST. HILDEGARDE-CONSTITUTION DAY
Therefore,
since we know the FEAR of the Lord, we try to persuade others; but we
are clearly apparent to God, and I hope we are also apparent to your
consciousness.
Paul here is talking about
the judgment seat of Christ. All will be judged on what they accomplished or
failed to accomplish while sojourned here in flesh on earth. Imagine if at your
judgment you discovered that you were using inches and feet as a measuring tool
when all the time God was using the metric system. (The metric system has been
legal in the US since 1866. However, we still don’t understand it.) According
to John Maxwell we may be received into the kingdom, but our rewards could be
different.
Rewards
versus Inheritance[1]
1. We are indeed saved by the merits
of Christ; but our reward will be based on our service.
2. We are given freely God’s grace;
but our reward will be given in proportion to our work.
3. We receive the Kingdom because the
Holy Eucharist forms us to the image of Christ; but our reward is based on our
life as a servant of Christ.
4. Christ’s blood poured out for us
and our baptism gives us a birthright, but our reward is based on our obedience
to the eternal spirit.
5.
Our
faith makes us secure, but our reward is in being faithful to Him, which is
still pending.
St. Hildegarde[2]
Called the "Sibyl of the Rhine," Hildegard of Bingen became the most famous
mystic and prophet of her time. Her writings and music are still found in all
major bookstores, and no woman saint is more popular in her native Germany.
When she was eight, she was placed in a convent, where she later became abbess.
She was a biblical exegete, visionary, preacher, composer, and herbalist, who
corresponded with the major royalty and church leaders of her day, including
four popes. Her greatest vision came when she was forty-two, which is recorded
in her famous Scrivias, or Know the Ways of the Lord, a treatise whose
magnificence rivals William Blake's visionary work. Hildegard's spiritual
writings found approval during her lifetime, and her lectures on the spiritual
life drew crowds from all over Europe. She wrote prolifically, on topics as
varied as history and drama, politics and liturgical poetry. Her monastery
joyfully sang the praises she wrote. During the last year of her life, when she
was eighty-one, she entered into a conflict with ecclesiastical authorities
because she allowed a young man who had been excommunicated to be buried in her
abbey cemetery, and her convent was placed under interdict. It is probably
that, for this reason, Hildegard was never formally canonized, although she is
found in all major saints' books and her cult was approved locally because of
so many miracles reported at her tomb.— Excerpted from Women
Saints, Madonna Sophia Compton
Things to Do:
·
Learn
more about St. Hildegarde.
·
Visit
Hildegard's Medieval Garden
·
St.
Hildegard was a composer, visit this page to read more.
·
Read
St. Hildegard of Bingen: A Visionary for All Time
Constitution Day[3]
Constitution
Day commemorates the adoption of the United States Constitution and celebrates
the citizens of the United States. The Constitution was written because the
existing charter of government, known as the Articles of Confederation, had
resulted in creating a weak and ineffective central government. The
Constitution defines the supreme law of the United States, with each article of
the constitution pertaining to aspects such as the congress, president,
judicial system, interrelationship between the state and federal government and
process of amendments to the Constitution. James Madison, Oliver Ellsworth,
Nathaniel Gorham, Alexander Hamilton, William Johnson, Rufus King, Gouverneur
Morris, Benjamin Franklin and George Washington wrote the Constitution.
Constitution Day originally began in 1939 with the suggestion of a
holiday to celebrate American Citizenship. President Harry Truman then declared
that the third Sunday of May become I am American Day. A decade later, 1953,
President Dwight Eisenhower changed the date to coincide with the signing of
the Constitution and renamed it Citizenship Day. Constitution or Citizenship
Day is observed annually on September 17th, the same day as the US Constitution
was signed in 1787.
Constitution Day Top Events and Things to Do
·
To learn more about judicial system, read the
Constitution of the United States. The Constitution
is only a few pages in length and well-organized.
·
Visit the National Museum of American History to
view displays about the heritage of the United States. Displays include those
related to the political, social, cultural, scientific and military history of
the United States, including the Constitution. The museum is located in
Washington D.C.
·
The United States Declaration of Independence
and the United States Constitution were debated and accepted at the floors of
Independence Hall, located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Visit Independence
National Historical Park in Philadelphia, which is also a UNESCO World Heritage
Site.
·
Visit the National Constitution Center in
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It offers a range of activities for kids and
adults, videos and educational
material about the U.S. Constitution.
·
Watch documentaries relating to the United
States Constitution including Constitution USA with Peter Sagal
(2013), The Constitution Project (The Documentary Group, 2014),
and The United States Constitution (2007).
35 Promises of God[4] cont.
“The Lord will fight for
you, and you have only to keep still.” Ex 14:14
Daily Devotions
·
do
a personal eucharistic stations of the cross.
·
Offering to
the sacred heart of Jesus
·
Rosary
Comments
Post a Comment