Introduction to Amos
Amos
was a sheep breeder of Tekoa in Judah, who delivered his oracles in the
Northern Kingdom during the prosperous reign of Jeroboam II (786–746 B.C.). He
prophesied in Israel at the great cult center of Bethel, from which he was
finally expelled by the priest in charge of this royal sanctuary. The poetry of
Amos, who denounces the hollow prosperity of the Northern Kingdom, is filled
with imagery and language taken from his own pastoral background. The book is
an anthology of his oracles and was compiled either by the prophet or by some
of his disciples. The prophecy begins with a sweeping indictment of Damascus,
Philistia, Tyre, and Edom; but the forthright herdsman saves his climactic denunciation
for Israel, whose injustice and idolatry are sins against the light granted to
her. Israel could indeed expect the day of the Lord, but it would be a day of
darkness and not light. When Amos prophesied the overthrow of the sanctuary,
the fall of the royal house, and the captivity of the people, it was more than
Israelite officialdom could bear. The priest of Bethel drove Amos from the
shrine—but not before hearing a terrible sentence pronounced upon himself. Amos
is a prophet of divine judgment, and the sovereignty of the Lord in nature and
history dominates his thought. But he was no innovator; his conservatism was in
keeping with the whole prophetic tradition calling the people back to the high
moral and religious demands of the Lord’s revelation. Amos’s message stands as
one of the most powerful voices ever to challenge hypocrisy and injustice. He
boldly indicts kings, priests, and leaders. He stresses the importance and the
divine origin of the prophetic word; one must either heed that word in its
entirety or suffer its disappearance. Religion without justice is an affront to
the God of Israel and, far from appeasing God, can only provoke divine wrath.
The Lord is not some petty national god but the sovereign creator of the
cosmos. Amos alludes to historical forces at work through which God would
exercise judgment on Israel. Several times he mentions deportation as the fate
that awaits the people and their corrupt leaders, a standard tactic of Assyrian
foreign policy during this period. Through the prophetic word and various
natural disasters, the Lord has tried to bring Israel to repentance, but to no
avail. Israel’s rebelliousness has exhausted the divine patience and the
destruction of Israel as a nation and as God’s people is inevitable. As it is
presented in this book, Amos’s message is one of almost unrelieved gloom. A
later appendix, however, ends the book on a hopeful note, looking beyond the
judgment that had already taken place in fulfillment of Amos’s word.
JUNE 9 Thursday
Amos,
Chapter 3, Verse 8
8 The lion has roared, who would not FEAR?
The Lord GOD has spoken, who would not prophesy?
Have you ever visited a zoo and heard the
lion roar? Your heart quickens and your body is ready for action. Have your
hearts become complacent? If so, let us hear the roar of the lion of Judah, our
Lord Jesus Christ, and be ever ready to do the work of the Holy Spirit.
The LORD is my shepherd; there is nothing I lack. In
green pastures he makes me lie down; to still waters he leads me; he restores
my soul. He guides me along right paths for the sake of his name. Even though I
walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you
are with me; your rod and your staff comfort me. You set a table before me in
front of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Indeed,
goodness and mercy*
will pursue me all the days of my life; I will dwell in the house of the LORD
for endless days.
Apostolic
Exhortation[1]
Veneremur
Cernui – Down in Adoration Falling
of The Most
Reverend Thomas J. Olmsted, Bishop of Phoenix,
to Priests, Deacons, Religious and the Lay Faithful of the Diocese of Phoenix
on the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist
My
beloved Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
Part
III
Loving
and Adoring the Eucharistic Lord
69. Thus far we have stirred up
our amazement at the Eucharistic mystery and have considered the nature of our
total self-gift in response. Now we turn to how we might practically live out
this mystery with greater faith and love for – as we pray at each Mass – “our
good and the good of all His holy Church”? In other words, how concretely might
we “follow the Ark” of the Eucharist into the future God has planned for us?
I. Make every Sunday the “Day of
the Lord.”
73. Brothers and sisters in
Christ, examine your experience of Sunday. Have you allowed Sunday to be like
the other days of the week? Is the whole day set aside for your rejuvenation in
God, or have you reduced the holiness of the day to an hour or two? Some
persons are indeed required to work on Sunday, which of course is permitted.
But for so many of us, Sunday could be more effectively “kept holy” with even
minimal preparation and foresight.
74. The Saints always love
Sunday and keep it holy. As a young girl, Saint Maria Goretti walked fifteen
miles back and forth to Sunday Mass. Saint Lawrence of Brindisi once walked
forty miles for Mass. In parts of Africa today, for example, some of our
Catholic brothers and sisters walk for long hours to attend Mass. Families,
individuals, and small communities who attempt to be good stewards of the
Lord’s Day quickly discover a treasure which changes their whole experience of
the week. Sunday is no longer just another day. It becomes the day of the
Eucharist. It is the day of encountering the joy of the Risen Lord, who
strengthens, nourishes, and sends them, together, on mission the rest of the
week.
75. Think of the Sunday
Eucharist as the sun which emits rays of warmth and light. If no rays shined
forth, what good would the sun be for life on the earth? Similarly, if no good
effects from Mass are perceptible on Sunday, our eyes become blind to the
goodness and power of the Eucharist. I invite you: be bold in allowing rays of
freedom, joy, and life to burst forth from Mass into the rest of your Sunday!
How might the Lord desire that you allow these rays to shine forth precisely on
Sunday? Here are some simple ideas for you to consider:
·
Choose a set time when you will go to Mass on
Sunday and stick to it.
·
Find ways to make the experience of Sunday Mass
truly joyful and festive, e.g., wear your best clothes, have a wonderful meal
with loved ones afterward, have great music playing at home throughout day,
telephone loved ones, enjoy a clean and renewed home – which means finishing
domestic duties and chores on Saturday, spend time enjoying the Bible, savor
something truly beautiful in nature or art, and perform simple works of
charity.
·
Try to live the Lord’s Day from sunset on
Saturday through Sunday evening.
·
Turn off your phone for extended periods of
Sunday, if not the whole day.
·
If outside obligations threaten your Sunday,
consider talking with your boss, family, or friends to find ways to move those
commitments elsewhere.
To be continued…
Which are the fruits of the Holy Ghost? They are the twelve following:
1. Charity.
2.
Joy.
3. Peace.
4. Patience.
5. Benignity.
6. Goodness.
7. Longsuffering.
8. Mildness.
9. Faith.
10. Modesty.
11.
Continency.
12.
Chastity.
These fruits
should be visible in the Christian, for thereby men shall know that the Holy
Ghost dwells in him, as the tree is known by its fruit.
Notice I have
placed the Fruits of the Holy Spirit in stairstep fashion so we may
reflect on them seeing that by concentrating on each step of our growth in the
spirit we may progress closer and closer to our heavenly Father. Today we will
be focusing on the fourth step which is faith.
Catechism
of the Catholic Church
PART
ONE: THE PROFESSION OF FAITH
SECTION
TWO I. THE CREEDS
CHAPTER
THREE-I BELIEVE IN THE HOLY SPIRIT
Article
10 "I BELIEVE IN THE FORGIVENESS OF SINS"
II. The Power of the Keys
981 After his Resurrection,
Christ sent his apostles "so that repentance and forgiveness of sins
should be preached in his name to all nations." The apostles and
their successors carry out this "ministry of reconciliation," not
only by announcing to men God's forgiveness merited for us by Christ, and
calling them to conversion and faith; but also by communicating to them the
forgiveness of sins in Baptism, and reconciling them with God and with the
Church through the power of the keys, received from Christ:
[The Church] has received the keys of the Kingdom of heaven so
that, in her, sins may be forgiven through Christ's blood and the Holy Spirit's
action. In this Church, the soul dead through sin comes back to life in order
to live with Christ, whose grace has saved us.
982 There is no offense,
however serious, that the Church cannot forgive. "There is no one, however
wicked and guilty, who may not confidently hope for forgiveness, provided his
repentance is honest. Christ who died for all men desires that in his
Church the gates of forgiveness should always be open to anyone who turns away
from sin.
983 Catechesis strives to awaken
and nourish in the faithful faith in the incomparable greatness of the risen
Christ's gift to his Church: the mission and the power to forgive sins through
the ministry of the apostles and their successors:
The Lord wills that his
disciples possess a tremendous power: that his lowly servants accomplish in his
name all that he did when he was on earth.
Priests have received from God a power that he has given neither to angels nor
to archangels .... God above confirms what priests do here below.
Were there no forgiveness of sins in the Church, there would be no hope of life
to come or eternal liberation. Let us thank God who has given his Church such a
gift.
984 The Creed links "the
forgiveness of sins" with its profession of faith in the Holy Spirit, for
the risen Christ entrusted to the apostles the power to forgive sins when he
gave them the Holy Spirit.
985 Baptism is the first and
chief sacrament of the forgiveness of sins: it unites us to Christ, who died
and rose, and gives us the Holy Spirit.
986 By Christ's will, the Church
possesses the power to forgive the sins of the baptized and exercises it
through bishops and priests normally in the sacrament of Penance.
987 "In the forgiveness
of sins, both priests and sacraments are instruments which our Lord Jesus
Christ, the only author and liberal giver of salvation, wills to use in order
to efface our sins and give us the grace of justification" (Roman
Catechism, I, 11, 6).
Events
·
Chicago Blues
Festival-June
9-12-Chicago is
the place to visit in June, especially if you’re a fan of the blues. The Chicago Blues Festival is the largest free blues music
festival in the world. Over three days, more than 500,000 people converge on
Grant Park to hear well-renown performers perform on the festival’s five
stages.
The
Week Ahead
·
June 10th Ember
Friday
· June
11th Ember
Saturday
·
June 12th Trinity
Sunday
Daily
Devotions
·
Unite in the work of the Porters of St. Joseph by joining them
in fasting: Purity
·
Litany of the Most Precious
Blood of Jesus
·
Offering to
the sacred heart of Jesus
·
Rosary
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