"THE SOULS OF THE SAINTS ARE REJOICING IN HEAVEN, THE SAINTS WHO FOLLOWED THE FOOTSTEPS OF CHRIST..." (ENTRANCE ANTIPHON).

"Jesus journeyed from one town and village to another, preaching and proclaiming the good news of the Kingdom of God.

"Accompanying him were the Twelve and some women who had been cured of evil spirits and infirmities, Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out, Joanna, the wife of Herod’s steward Chuza, Susanna, and many others who provided for them out of their resources." (Luke 8: 1 - 3).

Friday 16th September 2022 of the 24th Week of Ordinary Time is the feast of St Cornelius. Pope. Martyred under Emperor Gallus in 253. We also honor today St Cyprian. Bishop and Martyr. Cyprian from Carthage (modern Tunisia) was martyred in 258 under Emperor Valerian.

The two saints we honor today were acquainted with one another. They lived under one of the most severe persecutions of the Church. Tens of thousands were martyred. Rome was determined to stamp out once and for all Christianity in the empire. Many Christians did not have the courage to face martyrdom. So they denied Jesus in order to preserve their lives. When the violent persecution abated, those Christians who denied Jesus wanted to be received back into the Church.  Some Bishops said Yes. Other Bishops refused them a second chance. The controversy nearly split the Church asunder.

Pope Cornelius wanted the Christians who apostasized to confess their sins and do appropriate penance and be allowed to rejoin the Church. Many Bishops opposed him.

St Cyprian from the powerful African Church in Carthage came to his support. Their side won and schism was prevented.

In the Prayer over the Gifts, the Church affirmed that the Eucharist gave Saints Cornelius and Cyprian the courage to offer their lives for Christ. The same Eucharist can keep us faithful in all our trials, the Church prays. If you can receive the Eucharist more than once a week and do not do so, how can you justify your abstinence from such a Gift?

In the Gospel of today, we see that
women who benefited from the ministry of Jesus provided for His needs and those of His disciples. They provided for them "out of their means." The widow of Zarephath provided for Elijah out of her meagre resources. God blessed this source and it never dried up.

This incidence is typical of God's arrangement for providing the future disciples of Christ. In the Old Testament, we see many instances of God providing for His servants through people. This principle was established with the levitical priesthood. Elisha, the prophet was likewise provided for by a couple in the course of his work. In the New Testament, we find abundant examples from the works of the Twelve and St Paul.

What are the lessons for us? God makes adequate provisions for the needs of those who preach the gospel. God prefers a situation of weakness and dependence for His servants so that His wisdom and power can triumph through their work. God infact wants His collaborators in the work of salvation to imitate the simplicity of Jesus Christ. He appoints people to supply the needs of His workers.

How do the disciples of Christ today appropriate God's blessings and provisions for them? First, they must be aware of these provisions in the Bible. They must understand what God's word or promise is saying to their particular situation. Disciples of Jesus must believe his word and act on this word.  Prayer, trust and obedience activate the power of the word.

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"THE CROSS IS THE WAY TO PARADISE, BUT ONLY WHEN IT IS BORNE WILLINGLY." (ST PAUL OF THE CROSS).

"Jesus said to Nicodemus: “No one has gone up to heaven except the one who has come down from heaven, the Son of Man. And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.”

"For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him. (John 3: 13 - 17).

Wednesday 14th September 2022 of 24th Week of Ordinary Time is the great feast of the Triumph of the Cross.

Why celebrate the feast of Triumph of the Cross?

#1 There is a divine necessity for the Son of Man to be lifted up on the Cross in order to save mankind.

#2 The crucifixion, death and resurrection of Jesus transformed the Cross into a true sign of salvation. The Cross transformed our trials into possibilities of triumphs and testimonies.

#3  "Christ crucified is thus "the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men." It is in Christ's Resurrection and exaltation that the Father has shown forth "the immeasurable greatness of his power in us who believe" (CCC 272)

The Cross has become a synonym for the trials of life. Jesus says: If you want to follow Me, pick up your own cross and follow Me. Hence we find plastic cross, gold cross, silver cross, wooden cross, etc. We find crosses in homes, cars, schools, hospitals, churches, cemeteries. We find crosses in every country in the world. The ubiquitous presence of the Cross everywhere is significant and providential. It signifies that grace and mercy are everywhere we accept trials and situations we can not avoid.

We are baptized with the sign of the Cross: In the Name of the Father and of the Son and the Holy Spirit. This reminds us of the Trinitarian character of our faith.

As the catechumens are reminded in the RCIA Rite of Acceptance,  embracing our cross is embracing the will of God. It is the most assured route to sanctity and the good life. The will of God is our shalom, our peace. Peace is the first and greatest gift of salvation.
"Father, in Your will is our peace."

Man has always rejected the Cross as we see in the first Reading:

"With their patience worn out by the journey, the people complained against God and Moses, “Why have you brought us up from Egypt to die in this desert, where there is no food or water? We are disgusted with this wretched food!” (Numbers 21: 4 - 5).
In the first Reading from Numbers, we see futile insurrection against the will of God.

Jesus came to undo the disobedience of Adam and Eve by embracing the prescribed means of salvation by the Father.
"When I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw everyone to myself, says the Lord." (John 12: 32)

If like Jesus, we humble ourselves under the mighty hands of God and accept our crosses, in the fullness of time, God will lift us up. (Cf 1 Peter 5: 6).

We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you, because by your Cross you have redeemed the world.

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"WHILE OTHER MARTYRS SUFFERED IN SACRIFICING THEIR OWN LIVES, THE BLESSED VIRGIN SUFFERED BY SACRIFICING HER SON'S LIFE, A LIFE SHE LOVED MORE THAN HER OWN......." (ST ANSLEM, BISHOP AND DOCTOR OF THE CHURCH).

"Standing by the cross of Jesus were his mother and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple there whom he loved he said to his mother, “Woman, behold, your son.” Then he said to the ­disciple, “Behold, your mother.” And from that hour the disciple took her into his home."  (John 19 : 25 - 27).

Thursday 15th September 2022 of 24th Week of Ordinary Time is the Memorial of Our Lady of Sorrows.

"At the cross her station keeping,
Stood the mournful Mother weeping, Close to Jesus to the last." (Stabat Mater). Thus was the prophecy of Simeon at the Presentation of the Child Jesus fulfilled. "Your own soul a sword will pierce."

By the Cross of Jesus, the Mother of Sorrows received her everlasting vocation:
“Behold, your mother.”  Mary may have murmured silently: "Be it done to me according to Your word." And she became our Mother too from that instance.

What do you make of the Seven Sorrows of Mary? Was it necessary? Superfluous? An overkill? Our Church teaches: "Our Mother Mary teaches us to live, together with her, beside the cross of her Son. In her suffering, she reminds us of the malice of sin and shows us the way of true repentance." (Roman Missal).

The Memorial of Our Lady of Sorrows follows the Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross. Back to back we celebrate the mystery of suffering in the economy of salvation.  In the first Reading of today, St Paul writes to Timothy :
"Undeniably great is the mystery of devotion, Who was manifested in the flesh."

How do we summarize the dynamics of Cross and Crown, Test and Testimony, Trial and Triumph? The Apostle Peter says it best in the Communion Antiphon:

"Rejoice when you share in the sufferings of Christ, that you may also rejoice exultantly when his glory is revealed." (1 Peter 4: 13).

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"THE PLEASANT AND SORROWFUL THINGS OF THIS PRESENT LIFE ARE ALTOGETHER PASSING AWAY." (ST JOHN CHRYSOSTOM, BISHOP & DOCTOR OF THE CHURCH).

"Jesus journeyed to a city called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd accompanied him. As he drew near to the gate of the city, a man who had died was being carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a ­widow.

"A large crowd from the city was with her. When the Lord saw her, he was moved with pity for her and said to her, “Do not weep.” He stepped forward and touched the coffin; at this the bearers halted, and he said, “Young man, I tell you, arise!”

"The dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother. Fear seized them all, and they glorified God, exclaiming, “A great prophet has arisen in our midst,” and “God has visited his people.” This report about him spread through the whole of Judea and in all the surrounding region." (Luke 7: 11 - 17).

Tuesday 13th September 2022 of the 24th Week of Ordinary Time is the feast of a Giant of our faith: St John Chrysostom, Archbishop of Constantinople and Doctor of the Church. (349 - 407).  Syrian. As the Archbishop of Constantinople, John Chrysostom could have chosen a quiet, comfortable and non controversial life. Not Chrysostom, a great admirer of St Paul the Apostle. He worked very hard for the cause of the poor and the marginalized people in his See.

"When fully trained, every disciple will be like his teacher." (Luke 6: 40).  John Chrysostom was fully trained and became a great preacher and teacher in addition to his other ministries.

Bishop Chrysostom is known for his patience in great suffering in the course of his life. He left us an example of invincible courage and patience. He died on his way to his last exile. We continue to enjoy today the vast writings he left behind.

We see the great compassion of Jesus in our Gospel of today. His heart went out to the widow whose only son and hope for support died. “Do not weep.” Jesus stepped forward and touched the coffin; at this the bearers halted, and he said, “Young man, I tell you, arise!”
"The dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother."

Jesus said to Martha, the sister of Lazarus whom Jesus raised from the dead:  If you believe, you will see great signs. The greatest of the Signs is the Holy Eucharist.

Below is what St John Chrysostom wrote on the Eucharist:

"O miracle! O goodness of God! He that sits above with the Father…gives himself to all who desire to embrace and receive him. At that moment all do this with the eyes of faith."

St John Chrysostom is the patron saint of preachers.
St John Chrysostom pray for us.

"Many priests do not have a real and practical faith in My Eucharistic presence. Do they not know that the Eucharist encloses within itself all the merits of My Passion? Let them recover the faith of their childhood. Let them come to find Me there where I am waiting for them and I, for My part, shall work miracles of grace and holiness in them." (IN SINU JESU Monday, October 29, 2007).

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