I'll be out of town this week. If I have internet access, I will try to post the readings from each weekday Mass. Have a great week!
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Reading 1
Phil 2:1-4
Brothers and sisters:
If there is any encouragement in Christ,
any solace in love,
any participation in the Spirit,
any compassion and mercy,
complete my joy by being of the same mind, with the same love,
united in heart, thinking one thing.
Do nothing out of selfishness or out of vainglory;
rather, humbly regard others as more important than yourselves,
each looking out not for his own interests,
but also everyone for those of others.
Responsorial Psalm (Ps. 131): In you, O Lord, I have found my peace.
Gospel
Lk 14:12-14
On a sabbath Jesus went to dine
at the home of one of the leading Pharisees.
He said to the host who invited him,
“When you hold a lunch or a dinner,
do not invite your friends or your brothers or sisters
or your relatives or your wealthy neighbors,
in case they may invite you back and you have repayment.
Rather, when you hold a banquet,
invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind;
blessed indeed will you be because of their inability to repay you.
For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”
posted by Fr Greg @ 8:44 AM
12 comments
12 Comments:
Fr.
What is the history behind canon law? I know it didn't just spring out of nowhere, so how was it first developed ?
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Hi Kat,
Wow! That's an awesome explaination! You have your faith and understanding under your belt!
Since yesterday I have been feeling really sad. Do you go to Mass? I have been going for 8 weeks now and feel "what's the point?" Does god really care? I don't feel like I spiritually belong anywhere or to anything. I have been looking for a long time to belong to some religious group but can't seem to find anything. Its just so frustrating when you crave something so badly and keep ending up empty handed.
I know I am probably looked upon as an oddity and that even further my hesitation to go to Mass.
Thanks for listening.
Last anon: I too feel like a person without a religion. I keep going to Mass and have been reading about spirituality and faith. I don't feel like I know how to pray and when I try I have absolutely no sense that I am talking to God. People around me vehemently encourage me to keep at it and say that the day will come. That's what I'm doing. If nothing else, don't you find Mass calming? I also feel a little inspired by the other people there who seem to connect with it. These are reasons to go. Stay with it.
FG: On your request that we stop talking on this blog anonymously, I have to tell you that I could never say personal stuff like this on the internet with my name on it. Please understand.
Last Anonymous,
Thank you for sharing personal stuff because its good to know that others feel the same the same way as you do. I am not going to stop attending Mass because the feeling is a good one. It took a while before I felt that way but it will for you too. I have been to Protestant churches way back in the past but their church services seem so empty. We are lucky to have the Eucharist.
I agree with you about remaining anonymous because you don't want the whole world to know who you are. I feel the same way.
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There are days I wish Mass lasted longer because I become so absorbed in it, and days when I feel like I may have missed the whole point (and sometime wonder if I should go again and see if it sinks in the second time). There are days I sit before our Lord Exposed and feel his presence and other days I wonder what to do with the time and why I even bothered to be there. Jesus who is God cried out for the cup to pass him by. In his crucifixion, He also asked "why have you abandoned me?"
Through faith we know God is with us in the good and bad times. I have hunted for retreats (but never gone); considered finding a spiritual advisor (but don't know where to start); sleeping in (mortal sin - really bad idea). I can only speak for me, but I have come up with a few things that help in the dry times.
(1) Remember there is always a purpose to everything, even if we never figure out what it is in this life. (I'm making my own 'can you tell me why' list for Heaven). This may be a time when we are to learn or strengthen the virtue of patience, of humility, of submission.....
(2) More time in the presence of our Lord - in the tabernacle or exposed; even if it's just to sit there and try to quiet my mind.
(3) Anticipating a particular part of the Mass and focusing on its significance and purpose(such as the elevation during consecration; placing a piece of the Eucharist in the Precious Blood; the words of the Our Father)
(4) Remembering I'm not the one in charge. The graces will come when the Lord sends them - not before. Many times, it's not until the dryness is over that I realize I am stronger for it.
(5) Reading about the saints and reflecting on their lives. Many of the saints also had dry times when they continued to pray but had no feeling of the Lord being with them. Some describe a feeling of being so alone, but above all trusting in the Lord. We are all called to be saints, but the path isn't easy.
Just some things that work for me as I continue on my journey to holiness. As for names - how many people know your confirmation name???
Joan
Joan,
What you wrote was beautiful and insightful. I am going to write it down so I will remember it.
I have been going for 8 weeks now and feel "what's the point?"
The thing about Mass is that it sort of takes for granted that everyone belongs there (which is true). After 8 weeks, you'd be lucky to know when to sit, much less what the point of it all is.
The good news is that it sounds like you haven't been going to Mass because of the awesome wonderfulness of the other people there. That's good news, because it means you've been going to Mass because God is drawing you to Him, even if it doesn't feel like it.
Also, it's really the job of everyone who does feel they belong to help you feel you belong. Pope Benedict put it this way: "Seeing with the eyes of Christ, I can give to others much more than their outward necessities; I can give them the look of love which they crave."
My guess is that most people simply assume you know you belong there. You may have to ask them (us) to help you with that.
Anonymous 7:01 a.m. wrote, "I know I am probably looked upon as an oddity and that even further my hesitation to go to Mass."
Jesus is our king, and He bids us to come to His banquet, Holy Mass, as often as possible.
When the lovely U.S. movie star Grace Kelly married Prince Rainier of Monaco in 1952, there were dazzling celebrations; all the glitterati, both U.S. and European were present for the ocassion. But after the honeymoon was over, and Grace and Rainier settled in to married life and began attending the Monagesque state functions, the aristocratic ladies of Princess Grace’s adopted homeland snubbed her and were totally cold to her: she was not, like they, of aristocratic heritage! How dare the daughter of a vulgar tradesman, and herself a mere actress, assume she was fit to mingle in their noble circles? And they were mean to her as they could be.
But Prince Rainier loved Grace very much, was terribly proud of her, and wanted her by his side at all these functions. And that was enough for the girl from Philly.
Which could lead one to the question: given that the Prince was the Head of State and the host of these events, which of these women - Grace Kelly or the stuck-up ladies - truly belonged at these state functions?
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Kat and Marion,
Thanks for caring.
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