Seventh Sunday after Pentecost
NATIONAL TEQUILA DAY
5 On entering the tomb they saw a
young man sitting on the right side, clothed in a white robe, and they were
utterly amazed. 6 He said to them, “Do not be
amazed! You seek Jesus of Nazareth, the crucified. He has been raised; he is
not here. Behold, the place where they laid him. 7 But go and tell his disciples and
Peter, ‘He is going before you to Galilee; there you will see him, as he told
you.’” 8 Then they went out and fled from the tomb,
seized with trembling and bewilderment. They said nothing to
anyone, for they were AFRAID.
When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary, the mother
of James, and Salome bought spices so that they might go and anoint him. They
were doing an act of mercy to clean Christ’s corpse and properly bury him. When
they experienced the power of God raising from the dead, they we shocked to
silence.
The Law
of Victory: Jesus’ Resurrection[1]
The disciples had lost the teacher and Lord. The Jewish leaders had silenced their opposition. The people had lost their hope of a revolution against Rome. Even the devil thought he had finally stopped this divine leader and brought about the abandonment of the Gospel. What a surprise awaited that first Resurrection Sunday morning! When Jesus rose from the dead, He gave His followers a potent hope to end every doubt about His kingdom.
The
Wisdom of the Cross
The
world can never recognize the wisdom of the cross. The other day while sitting
in my church for mass it was revealed to me the wisdom of the cross.
·
As
the Eucharistic celebration was being conducted, I was admiring our church and
as I gazed on the altar, I notice we had the cross which represented Christ
dead for our sins.
·
Behind
the cross lit up with the sun waning was the stained glass of Christ ascending
to the Father. I asked interiorly where the representation of Christ
resurrected is? Then almost immediately an interior voice stated,
· “You are the representation of Christ resurrected.” At first, I withdrew from the idea, sinner that I am.
Then
I knew that this was the divine wisdom that we by the frequent reception of the
Blessed Sacrament the Holy Body of Christ physically and spiritually become the
resurrected Christ to our families, neighbors, our friends and even dare I say
our enemies. May God’s will and wisdom be done!
ON KEEPING THE LORDS DAY HOLY[2]
CHAPTER V
DIES DIERUM
Sunday: The
Primordial Feast, Revealing the Meaning of Time
81.
The spiritual and pastoral riches of Sunday, as it has been handed on to us by
tradition, are truly great. When its significance and implications are
understood in their entirety, Sunday in a way becomes a synthesis of the
Christian life and a condition for living it well. It is clear therefore why
the observance of the Lord's Day is so close to the Church's heart, and why in
the Church's discipline it remains a real obligation. Yet more than as a
precept, the observance should be seen as a need rising from the depths of
Christian life. It is crucially important that all the faithful should be
convinced that they cannot live their faith or share fully in the life of the
Christian community unless they take part regularly in the Sunday Eucharistic
assembly. The Eucharist is the full realization of the worship which humanity
owes to God, and it cannot be compared to any other religious experience. A
particularly efficacious expression of this is the Sunday gathering of the
entire community, obedient to the voice of the Risen Lord who calls the
faithful together to give them the light of his word and the nourishment of his
Body as the perennial sacramental wellspring of redemption. The grace flowing
from this wellspring renews mankind, life and history.
Seventh Sunday after Pentecost[3]
"Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord’, . .
.but he who does the will of my Father. . .shall enter the kingdom of
heaven". Not so much what one "says" about the Lord, but how he
"does" His "Will," is what brings forth "good
fruit". Deeds, not mere words, are acceptable to God, acceptable to
neighbor also. Example is the best precept.
The final fruit of sin is "death;" the
fruit of "justice" is "life everlasting".
The Holy Eucharist is the "health-giving"
Fruit of Calvary, our antidote against the poison-laden Dead-Sea fruit of the
world, the flesh and the devil.
"Faith cannot
save without virtue" (St. John Chrysostom).
IN[4] the Introit of the Mass
the Church invites us to the praise of God in the following words: “Oh, clap
your hands, all ye nations, shout unto God with the voice of joy, for the Lord
is most high, He is terrible: He is a great king over all the earth”; (Ps.xlvi.
2, 3).
Prayer. O God, whose providence never faileth in what
it doth order, we humbly beseech Thee to put away from us all things hurtful,
and to give us all things profitable to us.
EPISTLE. Rom. vi. 19-23.
Brethren: I speak a human thing, because of the
infirmity of your flesh: for as you have yielded your members to serve
uncleanness and iniquity unto iniquity, so now yield your members to serve
justice unto sanctification. For when you were the servants of sin you were
free men to justice. What fruit therefore had you then in those things of which
you are now ashamed? For the end of them is death. But now being made free from
sin, and become servants of God, you have your fruit unto sanctification, and
the end life everlasting. For the wages of sin is death, but the grace of God,
life everlasting in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Explanation. In these words, St. Paul
admonishes the Romans that they ought henceforward to devote themselves as
zealously to the service of God as they had hitherto done to that of iniquity,
because the service of sin is death, but the service of God is life
everlasting. The words “servants, to serve”, denote the full and unconditional
subjection of the Christian to God, without walking any longer according to his
own will, just as, in regard to the state of sin, they indicate the dominion of
the passions over the sinner. There is no requirement more reasonable than that
a man should labor as much for God and his own salvation as he has labored for
sin and hell. We should, therefore, often think on the wages of sin eternal
death; and when we are tempted, ask ourselves, “What shall I gain by my lust,
my in justice, my vengeance? Ah, nothing but eternal death! And shall I, created
to inherit eternal life, shall I make myself the heir of eternal death?”
GOSPEL. Matt. vii. 15-21.
At that time Jesus said
to His disciples: Beware of false prophets, who come to you in the clothing of
sheep, but inwardly they are ravening wolves: by their fruits you shall know
them. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?
Even so every good tree
bringeth forth good fruit, and the evil tree bringeth forth evil fruit. A good
tree cannot bring forth evil fruit: neither can an evil tree bring forth good
fruit: every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit shall be cut down and
shall be cast into the fire. Wherefore by their fruits you shall know them. Not
everyone that saith to Me: Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven:
but he that doth the will of My Father Who is in heaven, he shall enter into
the kingdom of heaven.
Who are
meant by false prophets?
1. The world, which promises us honors and riches,
but in the end rewards our toil and labor with disgrace and scorn.
2. The flesh, which promises pleasures and joys,
but at last leaves nothing but the bitter reproaches of an unquiet conscience.
3. The devil, who promises us a long life, and time
for repentance, while the obdurate sinner is cut off suddenly in the midst of
his days.
4. All such evil-minded persons as conceal their
wicked purpose under the mask of virtue and honesty, until they have entrapped
unwary souls, and drawn them into all kinds of shameful misdeeds. It is these
false prophets of Satan, and wolves of hell, that make the greatest havoc in
the flock of Christ.
Why does
Christ say, “every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit shall be cut down
and cast into the fire”? He thereby warns us that faith alone, without good
works, or, in other. words, the mere desire for heaven without the practice of
virtue, will not save us. Christ says plainly, “Not everyone that saith to Me,
Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven, but he that doth the will
of My Father Who is in heaven.” Jesus also saith, “Whosoever shall do the will
of My Father Who is in heaven, he is My brother, and sister, and mother; (Matt.
xii. 50). Endeavor, therefore, O Christian, to fulfil in all things the will of
God.
INSTRUCTION ON GOOD WORKS
What are good works? All actions of men which are done according to the
will of God, from love of Him, and by the help of grace.
Which are the principal good works? Prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. Prayer including
all acts belonging to the service of God: fasting, all mortifications of the
body; almsgiving, all works of mercy.
How many are the works of mercy? Two: corporal and spiritual.
Which are the spiritual works of mercy? Those which have for their object the salvation of
our neighbor; as,
1, to admonish the sinner.
2, to instruct the ignorant.
3, to counsel the doubtful.
4, to comfort the afflicted.
5, to bear wrongs patiently.
6, to forgive injuries and
offences.
7, to pray for the living and the dead.
Which
are the corporal works of mercy?
1, To feed the hungry.
2, to give drink to the thirsty.
3, to clothe the naked.
4, to visit the prisoners.
5, to shelter the houseless.
6, to visit the sick.
7, to bury the dead.
What
is necessary to render works meritorious?
1, They must
be good in themselves.
2, they must
be done by the grace of God.
3, in the state of grace.
4, by free will.
5, with the good intention of pleasing God.
Can we be saved without good works? No; for Christ says expressly, “Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit shall be cut down and shall be cast into the fire.” And that servant in the Gospel (Matt. xxv. 25) who neither wasted his talent nor yet traded with it, but digged into the earth and hid his lord’s money, was therefore cast into the outer darkness.
National Tequila Day[5]
Another Hedonistic
progressive holiday--Note: Humility and its source is where all goodness comes
from; the Spirit of God, and not this spirit.
National Tequila Day is
dedicated to recognizing Tequila, a distilled alcoholic beverage made from the
blue agave plant and the main alcohol in a margarita. Blue agave plants
produce sugars such as fructose, which are ideal for preparing tequila.
The plant only grows in the rich and sandy soil of Jalisco, Mexico at
altitudes of 1,500 meters.
To make tequila, the heart or piña of the plant is removed when the plant is
approximately 12 years old and weighs around 40-90kg. The heart is then
heated to extract sap which is fermented and distilled into tequila.
According to history, the Aztecs created fermented beverages from the
agave plant prior to arrival of Spaniards in 1521. The origins of
National Tequila Day are not well understood; however, it appears that National
Tequila Day began to emerge around the late 1990s. This holiday is celebrated
every year on July 24.
National
Tequila Day Facts & Quotes
·
During prohibition, tequila became more popular
because smuggling liquor into the country was easiest from Mexico.
·
Hollywood celebrities have ventured into the
tequila industry. Here are some celebrities who have created their own
tequila brands:
Justin Timberlake: 901 Silver Tequila
Carlos Santana: Casa Noble Tequila (Sold ownership in 2014)
Vince Neil: Tres Rios Tequila
Sammy Hagar: Cabo Wabo Tequila
George Clooney: Casamigos Tequila
·
According to Guinness World Records, the most
expensive bottle of tequila was worth $225,000 in 2006. The Platinum
& White Gold Tequila bottle was sold by Tequila Ley .925 to a private
collector. The tequila was harvested from 100% blue agave plants that had
been aged 6 years.
·
As per the Official Mexican Standard for Tequila
(NOM-006-SCFI-2005), the alcohol content of tequila ranges from 35-55%.
·
As per the Consejo Regulador del Tequila
(Tequila Regulatory Council), Mexico produced 118.9 million liters of 100% pure
agave tequila, of which 77.9 million liters were exported.
·
I wanted to do my part to help preserve that
golden age of travel… I step aboard the Patron Tequila Express railcar, and I
go back in time to the days when a long journey was something fun and very
special. - Billionaire John Paul DeJoria, Owner of the Patron Spirits Company
National
Tequila Day Top Events and Things to Do
·
Try the World's Best Tequila. Winner of
the World's Best Tequila Award 2015, 1800 Anejo is produced by La Rojena.
·
Attend a tequila festival. Here are some
popular ones to consider:
1) Day of the Dead Tequila Festival
2) South Florida Tequila Festival
3) Northwest Tequila Fest
4) Texas Tequila and Margarita Festival
·
Tour tequila distilleries along the tequila
trail in Jalisco, Mexico. The distilleries offer insight into the production
process and offer ample opportunity to sample a variety of tequilas.
·
Try different categories of tequila. These
include:
1) Blanco (white) tequila which is unaged or has been aged for less than two
months.
2) Joven (gold) tequila which is unaged silver tequila that is flavored with either
caramel coloring or sugar-derived syrups, etc.
3) Resposado tequila which has been aged for a minimum of two months but less
than 1 year in oak barrels.
4) Anejo tequila which has been aged for at least 1 year, but less than 3 years
in oak barrels.
5) Extra Anejo tequila which has been aged for at least 3 years.
·
Try a tequila twist in your favorite recipes.
Many recipes can be infused with tequila, for example:
1) Citrus and tequila infused cupcakes. Add some citrus zest and
sprinkles of tequila to the cupcake frosting.
2) Tequila glazed chicken. Just add a few spoons of tequila to your
favorite chicken glaze recipe.
3) Barbecued tequila and lime pork spareribs. Add lime and tequila to an
overnight sparerib marinade.
Today is my millennial daughter
Nicole Patience’s (Victorious Patience) birthday; hopefully she is eating cake
and not slamming shots! I ask your prayers.
"Vaya con Dios, mi amor"
Novena of St. Ann[6]
Daily Prayer to Saint Ann
O
glorious St. Ann, you are filled with compassion for those who invoke you and
with love for those who suffer! Heavily burdened with the weight of my
troubles, I cast myself at your feet and humbly beg of you to take the present
intention which I recommend to you in your special care.
Please recommend it to your daughter, the Blessed Virgin Mary, and place it
before the throne of Jesus, so that He may bring it to a happy issue. Continue
to intercede for me until my request is granted. But, above all, obtain for me
the grace one day to see my God face to face, and with you and Mary and all the
saints to praise and bless Him for all eternity. Amen.
Our Father, . . . Hail Mary . . .
O Jesus, Holy Mary, St. Ann, help me now and at
the hour of my death. Good St. Ann, intercede for me.
EIGHTH
DAY
Hail, St. Ann! I rejoice at your exalted glory.
You gave birth to Mary, whose divine Son brought salvation to our lost world by
conquering death and restoring life and hope to sinners. Pray to Him who, for
love of us, clothed Himself with human flesh in the chaste womb of your
daughter.
Glorious St. Ann, with your blessed daughter,
deliver me from everything that is displeasing in the sight of God. Pray to
your gentle and powerful Grandson that He may cleanse my soul in His precious
blood, that He may send His Holy Spirit to enlighten and direct me in all that
I do, always obedient to His holy inspirations.
Good mother keep a watchful eye on me. Help me
bear all my crosses. Give me the fullness of your bounty and sustain me with
courage.
Catechism
of the Catholic Church
PART TWO: THE CELEBRATION OF THE CHRISTIAN MYSTERY
SECTION TWO-THE SEVEN SACRAMENTS OF THE CHURCH
CHAPTER
ONE-THE SACRAMENTS OF CHRISTIAN INITIATION
Article 1 THE SACRAMENT OF BAPTISM
VI. The
Necessity of Baptism
1257 The Lord himself affirms that Baptism is necessary for
salvation. He also commands his disciples to proclaim the Gospel to all
nations and to baptize them. Baptism is necessary for salvation for those
to whom the Gospel has been proclaimed and who have had the possibility of
asking for this sacrament. The Church does not know of any means other
than Baptism that assures entry into eternal beatitude; this is why she takes
care not to neglect the mission she has received from the Lord to see that all who
can be baptized are "reborn of water and the Spirit." God has bound
salvation to the sacrament of Baptism, but he himself is not bound by his
sacraments.
1258 The Church has always held the firm conviction that those
who suffer death for the sake of the faith without having received Baptism are
baptized by their death for and with Christ. This Baptism of blood, like the
desire for Baptism, brings about the fruits of Baptism without being a
sacrament.
1259 For catechumens who die before their Baptism, their explicit
desire to receive it, together with repentance for their sins, and charity,
assures them the salvation that they were not able to receive through the
sacrament.
1260 "Since Christ died for all, and since all men are in
fact called to one and the same destiny, which is divine, we must hold that the
Holy Spirit offers to all the possibility of being made partakers, in a way
known to God, of the Paschal mystery." Every man who is ignorant of
the Gospel of Christ and of his Church, but seeks the truth and does the will
of God in accordance with his understanding of it, can be saved. It may be
supposed that such persons would have desired Baptism explicitly if they had
known its necessity.
1261 As regards children who have died without Baptism, the
Church can only entrust them to the mercy of God, as she does in her funeral
rites for them. Indeed, the great mercy of God who desires that all men should
be saved, and Jesus' tenderness toward children which caused him to say:
"Let the children come to me, do not hinder them," allow us to
hope that there is a way of salvation for children who have died without
Baptism. All the more urgent is the Church's call not to prevent little
children coming to Christ through the gift of holy Baptism.
The
Week Ahead
National NFP Awareness Week – JULY
24-30
Life is God’s Gift[7]
Love,
naturally! Is love something natural and part of being human? Of course, it is.
Many of us may not be able to find the precise words to define love, but we
know what it feels like when love is missing in our lives. We also know how
satisfied we feel when we have love. And even better— we know the deep fulfillment we
feel when we offer our love to others, and they accept it. The natural ability
to know, give, and receive love is a gift from God.
As
Scripture teaches, it is rooted in our nature, being made in God’s image and likeness (Gen 1:27).
How often have we heard this building block of our faith but have not thought
about it? This basic truth of our humanity has profound implications for all
human relationships, especially for those of us who are called to the vocation
of marriage. All are called to love God has written the capacity to give and to
receive love into the hearts of every man and woman. As St. Paul says, love is
the greatest gift (1 Corinthians 13:13). Love is the foundation for other
important characteristics such as gratitude, thankfulness, forgiveness, mercy,
and selflessness, all of which foster good relationships. One beautiful
expression of God’s
plan of love is that He created us with sexuality— male and female.
Being
made male or female is the means through which we express love and form
relationships. This can take many forms as we relate to neighbors, workmates,
friends, and family members. It is precisely through human sexuality that
husband and wife can form their family. These small “communions of persons” mirror the inner love of God as a
Trinity of three loving persons. Human sexuality—being created a man or a woman—is woven into our very bodies.
This
is true despite the many wounds to their sexuality that some people may
experience. Human sexuality holds the powers of both love and life. The gift of
fertility is a particular awe-inspiring attribute since it enables
participation in God’s
creation of new life. It is vital to be good stewards of these sacred gifts.
Chastity
helps us to love well in a world wounded by sin, the virtue of chastity
strengthens us to express love in ways that are holy and genuine—whether we are married, single,
celibate, or vowed in religious life. As the Catechism of the Catholic Church
teaches, chastity enables us to maintain “the
integrity of the powers of life and love”
therefore helping us to respect ourselves and the personal boundaries of other
people (2338).
Marriage
and parenthood of the various profound forms of human relationships, marriage—or more properly, Holy Matrimony—was willed by God as a blessing. If
you have forgotten that, look up the second chapter of Genesis (Genesis
2:18-25) of which Jesus Himself quotes in the Gospels when defending marriage
to some Pharisees (see Mt 19:1-6). God did not want the man to be alone. God
made a suitable partner for him. That partner is woman. She is equal to man in
being made in God’s
image, and she is also very different. She complements him. Together, they make
the one flesh union of marriage which has the potential to give life and create
a family. God intended marital love to be total, faithful, permanent, and
fruitful—accepting
and nurturing the powers of love and life.
The
nature of marriage calls husband and wife to sacred responsibilities. Within
this vocation, a husband and wife are able to celebrate human sexuality in all
its fullness. Their conjugal love is “meant
to express the full meaning of love,”
as willed by God, “its
power to bind a couple …
and its openness to new life”
(USCCB, Married Love and the Gift of Life, 4). Being “open” to life does not mean that married
couples have to intend to get pregnant every time they have sexual relations.
It means that children are not a mere footnote to marriage—they are a gift from God.
It
is the responsibility of the married couple to respect God’s design and to be generously open
to His call to receive and nurture new life. This is true despite the fact that
some couples may not be able to have their own children.
How
can husband and wife properly exercise their mutual stewardship over God’s gifts of love and life? Some may
wonder if married couples are expected to leave their family size entirely to
chance. The Church teaches that “a
couple may generously decide to have a large family, or for serious reasons” (e.g., financial, physical,
psychological, etc.), choose to postpone attempting a pregnancy temporarily or
indefinitely (see Humanae vitae 10). That is where the methods of Natural
Family Planning (NFP) enter. NFP—cooperating
with God’s design
for married love in marriage, when serious reasons arise, a husband and wife
may need to limit the size of their family. The ever-present temptation is to
use a form of contraception to limit or avoid having children. But
contraception is not the answer since it harms God’s creation and rejects His good
gifts. It does this by blocking human fertility.
What
are the moral methods of authentic family planning that couples can use?
Authentic family planning honors God’s
design by supporting the love-giving and lifegiving nature of sexual
intercourse. It promotes openness to new life and the value of the child. And,
it helps to enrich the marital bond between husband and wife. Authentic family
planning builds healthy and holy families. Only NFP methods can boast of all
these characteristics! NFP methods make use of fertility education. NFP
education teaches husband and wife about their fertile time (the time of the
wife’s
ovulation, when an egg is released from the ovary). NFP methods can be used to
either attempt a pregnancy or to avoid one. When avoiding, couples simply
abstain from conjugal relations during the wife’s fertile time. No drugs, devices
or surgical procedures are used. Any woman, no matter the variety in her
menstrual cycle, can use an NFP method. That’s because NFP methods help the wife
to recognize her unique signs of fertility which she can observe on a daily
basis. Love, naturally Take the time to learn, reflect, and pray about God’s marvelous plan for men, women,
and Holy Matrimony. Answer the call to cooperate with God’s design for married love! Let
these divine gifts “inform
and transform”
your marriage so that you and your family may flourish!
Celebrate and reverence God's vision of human
sexuality[8]
Natural Family Planning
Awareness Week is a national educational campaign. The Natural Family Planning
Program of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops develops a poster
each year with basic supportive materials. It is the individual dioceses,
however, that offer a variety of educational formats in the local church to
focus attention on Natural Family Planning methods and Church teachings that
support their use in marriage.
The
dates of Natural Family Planning Awareness Week highlight the anniversary of
the papal encyclical Humanae Vitae (July 25) which articulates Catholic beliefs
about human sexuality, conjugal love, and responsible parenthood. The dates
also mark the feast of Saints Joachim and Anne (July 26), the parents of the
Blessed Mother. Pope Francis has designated that feast as World Grandparents
Day, a fitting commemoration during National NFP Awareness Week!
·
Monday, July 25th St.
James, Apostle
·
Tuesday, July 26th St.
Anne
·
July 31st Seventh
Sunday after Pentecost
Daily
Devotions
·
It is traditional in Spain to make a yearly
pilgrimage to St. James of Compostela on July 24. Read
more about this custom. From Catholic Culture's Library: Pilgrimage
To The Stars and Cycling
through time on the Camino de Santiago.
·
Unite in the work of the Porters of St. Joseph by joining them
in fasting: Protection
of Life from Conception until natural death.
·
Litany of the Most Precious
Blood of Jesus
·
Religion
in the Home for Preschool: July
·
Offering to
the sacred heart of Jesus
·
Let
Freedom Ring Day 18
·
Rosary
[1] John Maxwell, The Maxwell
Leadership Bible.
[3]My Sunday Missal,
Confraternity of the Precious Blood
[4]Goffine’s
Devout Instructions, 1896
[6]Blessed Sacrament Fathers, ST. ANN’S SHRINE, Cleveland, Ohio
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