THE MESSAGE OF THE PROPHET  WILL BE CONTENTIOUS IN OUR TIMES.

"In those days, the princes said to the king:
“Jeremiah ought to be put to death: he is demoralizing the soldiers who are left in this city, and all the people, by speaking such things to them; he is not interested in the welfare of our people, but in their ruin.” (Jeremiah 38: 4).

Sunday of the 20th week in Ordinary Time has a message of strife, contention and extreme courage in following Jesus.

The people got King Zedekiah to condemn Jeremiah to death for doing his work as a prophet. In the Gospel, Jesus proclaims how He came to set the earth on fire. "From now on a household of five will be divided, three against two and two against three.” (Luke 12: 52 - 53).

The 2nd Reading from Hebrews 12: 1- 4 confirms the message of Christ on the nature of the Enterprise He has given his life for. A great crowd of witnesses has already paid the price with their life: John the Baptist, Peter and Paul and all the Apostles, Stephen, Lawrence, Cecilia, Agatha, Thomas More, Oscar Romero, Martin Luther King Jr, etc. These are the heroes of our faith. All these witnesses belong to the Communion of the Saints, the holy ones who day and night are interceding for us before the Throne of grace and mercy and urging us to persevere in running the race that lies before us.

Brethren, this saying is trustworthy:
“Eye has not seen, and ear has not heard, and has not entered the human heart, what God has prepared for those who love him,” (1 Corinthians 2: 9).

The reward for faithfulness and perseverance will be extraordinary.

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"LEARN, UNHAPPY MAN, HOW GREAT IS THE POWER OF MY GOD; FOR YOUR BURNING COALS GIVE ME REFRESHMENT. BUT THEY WILL BE YOUR ETERNAL PUNISHMENT." (ST LAWRENCE THE DEACON).

"Jesus said to his disciples: “Amen, amen, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat; but if it dies, it produces much fruit. Whoever loves his life loses it, and who­ever hates his life in this world will preserve it for eternal life. Whoever serves me must follow me, and where I am, there also will my servant be. The Father will honor whoever serves me.”  (John 12: 24 - 26).

Wednesday 10th August 2022 of the 19th Week of Ordinary Time is the feast of St Lawrence, Deacon and Martyr. (+258). St Lawrence, Roman citizen born in Spain. Archdeacon in the Church of Rome during the pontificate of Pope St Sixtus II. St Lawrence spent his life in the service of the poor of Rome. He perished in a gruesome torture under the persecution of Emperor Valerian. St Lawrence is the Doyen of all the Deacons of the Church. Happy feast day all you holy deacons out there.

Lavishly Lawrence gave to the poor; his generosity shall endure forever; his horn shall be exalted in glory. (Cf Responsorial Psalm 112).

"Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully." (2 Corinthians 9: 6).
St Lawrence sowed bountifully and the Lord rewarded him and made him the Doyen of Deacons and patron Saint of many charities.

During the trial of St Lawrence, the  judge asked: “Where are the riches of the Church?” But Lawrence extended his hand toward the poor and said: “These are the riches of the Church.”

Lawrence cared for the poor, the ill, and the abandoned of Rome and became their patron. St Lawrence is the patron saint of deacons, librarians, cooks, seminarians and students, butchers, etc.

St Lawrence answered the call to the clerical state when that calling was a certain death sentence. Jesus empowered Lawrence with His grace and the Holy Spirit enabled Lawrence to produce large harvest.

"The attack on My priesthood that appears to be spreading and growing is, in fact, in its final stages. It is a satanic and diabolical onslaught against My Bride the Church, an attempt to destroy her by attacking the most wounded of her ministers in their carnal weaknesses; but I will undo the destruction they have wrought and I will cause My priests and My Spouse the Church to recover a glorious holiness that will confound My enemies and be the beginning of a new era of saints, of martyrs, and of prophets." (IN SINU JESU page 149).

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"GIVE ONLY GOOD EXAMPLE, TO THE CHILDREN; NEVER CORRECT THEM, WHEN OUT OF HUMOR OR IMPATIENT. WE MUST WIN THEM BY AN APPEAL TO THEIR PIETY AND TO THEIR HEARTS. SOFTEN YOUR REPRIMANDS WITH KIND WORDS; ENCOURAGE AND REWARD THEM. THAT IS, IN SHORT, OUR WAY OF TEACHING." (ST MADELINE SOPHIE BARAT).

“Let the children come to me, and do not prevent them; for the Kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” After he placed his hands on them, he went away." (Matthew 19: 13 - 15).

Friday 13th August 2021, 19th Week in Ordinary Time is the feast of a Pope and an anti Pope: Saints Pontian, Pope and Hippolytus, anti Pope (priest). St Pontian was elected Pope in 230 and St Hippolytus challenged him and set up himself as a rival. By a mysterious design of Divine Providence, both waring clerics found themselves in the the same prison at the same time. They reconciled and were martyred together under the Emperor Maximinus Thrax. (+ 235).

In the Gospel for today the disciples rebuked children and their mothers who prayed that Jesus might lay His hands on them. But Jesus said,
“Let the children come to me, and do not prevent them; for the Kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.”

Have you ever been annoyed by unrestrained and noisy children during Mass?  I discovered something curious and very beautiful about this recently. Little children love the house of God in a natural way. At first, I thought that little children might mistake the Sanctuary for a super market like Walmart. A little reflection convinced me that this is not the case.  There is something about the solemnity of the assembly gathered for Mass that gets even to little children. They see something in the House of God that we distracted adults don't see. After one Sunday Mass, I saw a young child suddenly detach himself from the gripping hold of the mother and ran to the side Altar, the Shrine of the Blessed Virgin Mary. She was gazing at the beautiful statue of the Blessed Virgin. I have learned to leave the little ones alone.

"Blessed are you, Father,
Lord of heaven and earth, for revealing the mysteries of the kingdom to mere children." (Matthew 11: 25).

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"THE HOLY SPIRIT LEADS US LIKE A MOTHER. HE LEADS HIS CHILD BY THE HAND.... AS A SIGHTED PERSON LEADS A BLIND PERSON." (ST JOHN VIANNEY).

"Jesus said to his disciples:
“Gird your loins and light your lamps and be like servants who await their master’s return from a wedding, ready to open immediately when he comes and knocks. Blessed are those servants whom the master finds vigilant on his arrival. Amen, I say to you, he will gird himself, have them recline at table, and proceed to wait on them. And should he come in the second or third watch and find them prepared in this way, blessed are those servants.

"Be sure of this: if the master of the house had known the hour when the thief was coming, he would not have let his house be broken into. You also must be prepared, for at an hour you do not expect, the Son of Man will come.” (Luke 12: 32....48).

Sunday August 7th of the 19th week of Ordinary Time.

Today's message could be personal. Are you waiting for something to happen? An answer to prayer for example. How do you know when God will deliver the answer? The Church answers the question thus:

"In prayer the disciple keeps watch, attentive to Him Who Is and Him Who Comes...... In communion with their Master, the disciples' prayer is a battle; only by keeping watch in prayer can one avoid falling into temptation." (CCC 2612).

When you keep watch in prayer, you will know the appointed time, the fullness of time. When you do not keep watch in prayer, you will fall into a dreadful sleep and temptation and see your bus speed by while you are not paying attention. In the 1st Reading, we are told:

"The night of the Passover was known before hand to our forefathers." (Wisdom 18: 6). How did our ancestors in the faith know that "THIS IS THE HOUR. THIS IS THE NIGHT?" Because they were told by the word of God through the ministry of Moses and Aaron. If you keep watch in prayer, God will be pleased to give you the privilege of knowing that the appointed time has come.

Live in hope. Rejoice in hope. God Never Fails!

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