Saturday of the Fourth Week of Lent
1 Maccabees, Chapter 10, Verse 8
They were struck with FEAR when they heard that the king had given him authority to gather an army.
The, they, in this verse were the Hellenized
Jews who were losing their power which came from supporting Greece (King
Demetrius). At once they were afraid for their lives, realizing that their
power over Jonathan was gone, they decided to leave Jerusalem. Along comes
Alexander Balas who claims to be the son of Antiochus and the rightful king, he
has the backing of Rome. Jonathan plays these two opponents against each other
to make Jerusalem great again. Jonathan then accepts from Alexander permission
to become high priest which he accepts. There is just one problem; he is not a
Levi, only Levis can be priests. Here is high stakes politicking.
Saturday
of the Fourth Week of Lent[1]
Prayer. MAY our devotion be made fruitful
by Thy grace, we beseech Thee, O Lord, for the fasts we have undertaken will
become profitable to us only if they are pleasing to Thy mercy.
EPISTLE. Isaias xlix. 8-15.
Thus
saith the Lord: In an acceptable time I have heard thee, and in the day of
salvation I have helped thee: and I have preserved thee, and given thee to be a
covenant of the people, that thou mightest raise up the earth, and possess the
inheritances that were destroyed : that thou mightest say to them that are
bound : Come forth : and to them that are in darkness : Show yourselves. They
shall feed in the ways, and their pastures shall be in every plain. They shall
not hunger, nor thirst, neither shall the heat nor the sun strike them: for He
that is merciful to them, shall be their shepherd, and at the fountains of
waters He shall give them drink. And I will make all My mountains a way, and My
paths shall be exalted. Behold these shall come from afar, and behold these
from the north and from the sea, and these from the south country. Give praise,
O ye heavens, and rejoice, O earth; ye mountains, give praise with jubilation:
because the Lord hath comforted His people, and will have mercy on His poor
ones. And Sion said: The Lord hath forsaken me, and the Lord hath forgotten me.
Can a woman forget her infant, so as not to have pity on the son of her womb?
and if she should forget, yet will not I forget thee, saith the Lord Almighty.
GOSPEL. John viii. 12-20.
At that time: Jesus spoke
to the multitudes of the Jews, saying I am the light of the world: he that
followeth Me, walketh not in darkness, but shall have the light of life. The
Pharisees therefore said to Him: Thou givest testimony of Thy self: Thy testimony
is not true. Jesus answered and said to them: Although I give testimony of
Myself, My testimony is true: for I know whence I came, and whither I go: but
you know not whence I come, or whither I go. You judge according to the flesh:
I judge not any man. And if I do judge, My judgment is true; because I am not
alone, but I and the Father that sent Me. And in your law, it is written, that
the testimony of two men is true. I am one that gives testimony of Myself: and
the Father that sent Me, giveth testimony of Me. They said therefore to Him:
Where is Thy Father? Jesus answered: Neither Me do you know, nor My Father: if
you did know Me, perhaps you would know My Father also. These words Jesus spoke
in the treasury, teaching in the temple: and no man laid hands on Him, because
His hour was not yet come.
Preparing for Battle[2]
Keeping the Enemy Out of Your Camp
Because the LORD your God
walks in the midst of your camp, to save you and to give up your enemies before
you, therefore your camp must be
holy. DEUTERONOMY 23: 14. This principle
of spiritual warfare must be
emphasized: Don’t invite the Enemy into your camp. Look out for Trojan Horses,
poisonous reptiles and be prepared to fight.
·
Trojan
Horses. Sin is always wrapped in attractive packages. The simple pleasure of
satisfying curiosity could be a Pandora’s Box. Stay away from all things of the
occult, such as Ouija boards and fortunetelling; séances, channeling, and other
forms of necromancy (attempts to contact the dead); substance abuse; sexual
sin; and abortion. Seeking the attractive “gift” of pleasure, power, secret
knowledge, or (in the case of abortion) even escape from responsibility. In
addition, forgiveness is crucial to deliverance from the Evil One, because a
bitter heart gives him a foothold in our lives. “Take heed lest anyone be
lacking in the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up cause
trouble, and by it, many be defiled” (Heb 12: 15). Those especially who have
suffered a grave injustice must seek
the grace to let go of the offense and pray for the offender, so that
resentment doesn’t ferment into malicious bitterness. If we’re ever tempted to
invite the Enemy into our “camp” in any of these ways, we must recognize the Adversary’s deception and reject his offer
firmly and immediately.
·
“Poisonous
Reptiles” are the “little” sins that find their way into our hearts. We may
ignore them or think them of no consequence as we try to stand guard over the
carefully constructed fortifications of our spiritual life. To resist the
temptations of ordinary demonic activity, we must guard our thoughts closely and reject immediately any thought that leads to sin. We must also carefully examine our thoughts to seek out assumptions or
conclusions that may be false and contrary to faith, so that they lead us
astray. Above all, we must engage in
a frequent examination of conscience and then go regularly to Confession.
Here
are three ways to beat the devil and continue to stay true to the season of
Lent during these difficult times:
Faith: Through the virtue of faith, we
believe in God and all that he has said to us. The saints stand as giants of
faith that we can strive to imitate during this time. If you’re stuck at home
these days, read the life of any saint (online or through a book) and you will
see what I mean. It is abundantly clear how their faith kept them strong in the
most challenging of situations.
If we are living in undue
fear right now, then we are not living in faith. Our faith starts with us
trusting God in prayer and surrendering ourselves completely to him. If we
trust that we have a father in heaven who knows our needs, before we even ask for
them (Matthew 6:8), then we can trust that God will be with us during this
tumultuous time and see us through it – even if the particular trials in our
lives become especially burdensome.
Hope: Hope keeps us from discouragement
and is the quality by which we anchor our souls in Christ. We should certainly
be prudent and careful during this time.
Throughout history, there
have been countless natural and man-made disasters, but God has never forsaken
his people. As the psalmist tells us:
“God
is our refuge and our strength,
an
ever-present help in distress.
Therefore,
we fear not, though the earth be shaken
and
mountains plunge into the depths of the sea.”
(Psalm
46:2-3)
In addition, never forget
that we are not made for this world – we are made for heaven. And while we
should certainly live in the hope of a better tomorrow in this world, we should
also pray for a greater outpouring of the virtue of hope in our lives, so that
we may even more ardently desire to one day enjoy the kingdom of heaven and
eternal life.
Love: Among countless lessons that
Jesus taught us through his Cross, two are particularly of value during this bank
run. The first is that Jesus showed us that love is expressed in action. There
are people all around us right now who are alone or who may need help in
various ways. Love them in action. This may involve helping your elderly
neighbor get groceries. Or it may require you to give your spouse a night off
as he/she deals with the new reality of working from home (including possibly a
home filled with screaming kids). It may also be a good idea to reflect on the spiritual and corporal works of mercy to see how else you can love
others in action.
The second lesson I wish
to highlight from the Cross is its sacrificial dimension. Jesus showed us his
love through sacrifice – dying to himself – by dying on the Cross. Everyone’s
nerves are a bit frayed as we continue to grapple with the unknowns and ever-changing
situations related to this current bank run. Seize every opportunity you get to
make sacrifices – big or small – for someone else in these days.
Love is at the heart of
the Christian faith and in these difficult times, we can witness to our faith
in the way we love God and those around us. The greatest benefit of acting
through the virtue of love is that the fruits of love are joy, peace and mercy
(CCC 1829) – all of which are much-needed right now.
Living our lives rooted in
faith, hope and love, especially during this recession, will root us more
deeply in God, not just for the Lenten season, but for beyond it too. We don’t
know how this monetary crisis will unfold and how it will continue to affect
us. But we know God. We can trust and hope in God.
“The
Lord is my light and my salvation. whom shall, I fear?
The
Lord is the stronghold of my life.
of
whom shall I be afraid?”
(Psalm
27:1)
Catechism
of the Catholic Church
PART THREE: LIFE IN CHRIST
SECTION TWO-THE TEN COMMANDMENTS
CHAPTER
TWO-YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF
Article 7-THE SEVENTH COMMANDMENT
You shall not steal.
2401 The seventh commandment
forbids unjustly taking or keeping the goods of one's neighbor and wronging him
in any way with respect to his goods. It commands justice and charity in the
care of earthly goods and the fruits of men's labor. For the sake of the common
good, it requires respect for the universal destination of goods and respect
for the right to private property. Christian life strives to order this world's
goods to God and to fraternal charity.
Vinny’s Corner
36th Annual Parade & Festival
The 36th Annual St. Patrick's Day Festival brings the Irish spirit to Tucson in 2024!
The St. Patrick’s Day Festival begins at 10:00 a.m. in Armory Park in downtown Tucson, with live Irish music, dancers, entertainment, a children's area, and food and merchandise vendors. The parade begins at 10:30 a.m. at 17th Street and Stone Avenue, wending its way to Armory Park at 6th Avenue and 13th Street.
Coffee with Christ
Daily Devotions
·
Unite in the work of the Porters of St. Joseph by joining them
in fasting: Today's Fast: For
the Poor and Suffering
Total Consecration
to St. Joseph Day 30
·
Saturday
Litany of the Hours Invoking the Aid of Mother Mary
·
Offering to
the sacred heart of Jesus
·
Make
reparations to the Holy Face
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