Sunday, November 23, 2014: (SOLEMNITY OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST, KING OF THE UNIVERSE) Readings for today: Ezekiel 34:11-12, 15-17 / 1 Corinthians 15:20-26, 28 / Matthew 25:31-46:
Readings from: http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/112314.cfm (Pics from elsewhere on the internet)
Reading 1 - A reading from the book of the Prophet Ezekiel (Ezekiel 34:11-12, 15-17):
Thus says the Lord GOD:
I myself will look after and tend my sheep.
As a shepherd tends his flock
when he finds himself among his scattered sheep,
so will I tend my sheep.
I will rescue them from every place where they were scattered
when it was cloudy and dark.
I myself will pasture my sheep;
I myself will give them rest, says the Lord GOD.
The lost I will seek out,
the strayed I will bring back,
the injured I will bind up,
the sick I will heal,
but the sleek and the strong I will destroy,
shepherding them rightly.
As for you, my sheep, says the Lord GOD,
I will judge between one sheep and another,
between rams and goats.
Responsorial Psalm - (Psalm 23 "The Lord is My Shepherd"):
Video From: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S3KO8ynBMeg
R/ (1) The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.
In verdant pastures he gives me repose.
R/ The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
Beside restful waters he leads me;
he refreshes my soul.
He guides me in right paths
for his name's sake.
R/ The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
You spread the table before me
in the sight of my foes;
you anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
R/ The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
Only goodness and kindness follow me
all the days of my life;
and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD
for years to come.
R/ The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
Reading 2 - A reading from the first letter of St. Paul to the Corinthians (1 Corinthians 15:20-26, 28):
Brothers and sisters:
Christ has been raised from the dead,
the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.
For since death came through man,
the resurrection of the dead came also through man.
For just as in Adam all die,
so too in Christ shall all be brought to life,
but each one in proper order:
Christ the firstfruits;
then, at his coming, those who belong to Christ;
then comes the end,
when he hands over the kingdom to his God and Father,
when he has destroyed every sovereignty
and every authority and power.
For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet.
The last enemy to be destroyed is death.
When everything is subjected to him,
then the Son himself will also be subjected
to the one who subjected everything to him,
so that God may be all in all.
Gospel - A reading from the holy Gospel according to St. Matthew (Matthew 25:31-46):
Jesus said to his disciples:
"When the Son of Man comes in his glory,
and all the angels with him,
he will sit upon his glorious throne,
and all the nations will be assembled before him.
And he will separate them one from another,
as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.
He will place the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
Then the king will say to those on his right,
'Come, you who are blessed by my Father.
Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.
For I was hungry and you gave me food,
I was thirsty and you gave me drink,
a stranger and you welcomed me,
naked and you clothed me,
ill and you cared for me,
in prison and you visited me.’
Then the righteous will answer him and say,
'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you,
or thirsty and give you drink?
When did we see you a stranger and welcome you,
or naked and clothe you?
When did we see you ill or in prison, and visit you?’
And the king will say to them in reply,
'Amen, I say to you, whatever you did
for one of the least brothers of mine, you did for me.’
Then he will say to those on his left,
'Depart from me, you accursed,
into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.
For I was hungry and you gave me no food,
I was thirsty and you gave me no drink,
a stranger and you gave me no welcome,
naked and you gave me no clothing,
ill and in prison, and you did not care for me.’
Then they will answer and say,
'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty
or a stranger or naked or ill or in prison,
and not minister to your needs?’
He will answer them, 'Amen, I say to you,
what you did not do for one of these least ones,
you did not do for me.’
And these will go off to eternal punishment,
but the righteous to eternal life."
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11/23/2014 - JoanandTherese.com - A Catholic Blog: A friend of mine shared a post from this website, and later I find she is one of the featured bloggers on the site, and what she had posted was actually something she wrote. I always fancy myself a writer and almost never write...the most original writing I do is when I write in my dream diary. So, since I admire people who can write original stuff, especially as it relates to Catholicism, I am happy to share here on my site. I hope you will check out the website, which seems to be named after St. Joan or Arc and St. Therese, and I hope it helps you on your faith journey! JoanandTherese.com is a website devoted to Traditional French Catholicism and the Renaissance of Catholic France.
From: http://joanandtherese.com/
My friend is a featured blogger on that site, and you can check out her posts (she has about 7 so far) by looking in the menu (on the website, it's the maroon portion just below the picture seen above) and clicking on her old pen-name, Soldier for Christ 33, and her current pen-name, 24 Rose Petals.
Here is an entry of hers (as Soldier for Christ 33) on St. Therese and Suffering:
St. Therese and Suffering
Anyone who knows the story of Saint Therese knows she had a childlike trust in God. Through her entire life she had a great confidence in Him.
Everything about the way she lived reflected that trust. She was a sensitive girl,who cried over the slightest thing.
There are so many examples of this, but I’ll name only a few. For instance, she wanted to save souls with all her heart.
After her change one Christmas, she began to grow up and not cry about everything, including the fact that her father forgot to fill the shoes with gifts. God had worked a miracle for her.
She had heard of a public sinner about to go to the death penalty, and without remorse. He was a hardened criminal, and it seemed his soul would be lost. Of course, Therese turned to God in prayer with great confidence. She told God that even if the criminal didn’t go to confession, she would believe he was saved if only there was a little sign.
So great was her confidence in God’s mercy, that soon after, she read the newspaper and it said that the man kissed a crucifix three times.
How happy Therese must have been to hear of this. There was the sign she’d asked God for. A true sign of repentance, and right before he was to be put to death by guillotine. She also would have many trials as well.
After her sister Pauline left for a vocation to the Carmelite monastery,Therese was plunged into a most horrible suffering. Her separation from Pauline was more than she could bear. She came down with a terrible illness, and for days was in a delirium.
Again, Therese prayed to “Our Lady” for help, and soon her health returned. There is the period of waiting after she traveled to Rome and appealed to the Pope when she announced her desire to be a religious in the monastery. She left disappointed, but never gave up hope that her prayer would be answered.
Once more her great trust in God paid off. She would receive a letter telling her she could be accepted into the convent at the age of 15. Still she’d have to wait a little longer. She never doubted ,so great was her childlike trust in God in every suffering.
Towards the end of her life, she had an advanced case of tuberculosis and to top it off she was constantly persecuted by a certain sister in her convent. Therese had grown so much in the spiritual life by that time, that she understood how to use her sufferings to advance in holiness.
When she lay dying, her cross was so heavy, that most people would ask God to take away the suffering, or to cure them. But not Therese. She understood the infinite merit there would be for souls, if she offered up everything. At one point Therese said “Everything You will, but have pity on me.” She didn’t ask God to remove her cross.
She died in great peace. How many times do we have trials and ask God to heal our bodily sufferings? What about our mental anguish, loneliness, loss of material things, death in the family? It seems we could all learn a lesson from Saint Therese.
We should pray to her often, and ask her to gain for us the same great confidence in God she had. We all need to be like a little child, and trust in God Our Father, just as a child trusts in his or her parents without question.
So if you lack that trust and confidence, when suffering comes to your door, St. Therese is the saint you need to pray to. Ask her and you won’t be disappointed. Suffering will be made so much easier.
St. Therese(Little Flower) Pray for us!
