SAINTS OF THE DAY: FEAST DAY ~ JANUARY 6, 2024
Greetings beloved family and Happy 1st Saturday of the month, Christmas season!
Watch “Catholic Daily Mass and Rosary on EWTN | January 6, 2024 on YouTube |
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Today’s Bible Readings: Saturday, January 6, 2024
Reading 1 ~ 1 Jn 5:5-13
Responsorial Psalm ~ PS147:12-13, 14-15, 19-20
Gospel~ Mark 1:7-11 or Lk 3:23-38 or 3:23, 31-34, 36, 38
DEVOTION OF THE MONTH OF JANUARY – MONTH OF THE HOLY NAME OF JESUS: The month of January is traditionally dedicated to the Holy Name of Jesus. After the Blessed Virgin Mary conceived by the Holy Spirit, the Angel Gabriel appeared to St. Joseph and told him that the Child’s name should be called Jesus, meaning “God Saves.” According to Jewish law, on the 8th day after his birth a male child was to be circumcised, receive his name, and become a full member of God’s covenant people. According to the old Roman liturgical calendar, the Feast of the Circumcision of Jesus was celebrated on January 1st, eight days after Christmas, the same day that He was given His sacred name. Currently we celebrate the Solemnity of the Mother of God on January 1st and honor the Holy Name of Jesus on January 3rd. For Catholics, Jesus’ sacred name is the object of a special devotion symbolized by the monogram “IHS,” (sometimes called a Christogram), which is the first three letters of the Greek spelling of His name.
On this feast day, we continue to remember our beloved late Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI on the first memorial anniversary of his death. We pray for the repose of his gentle soul and the souls of all the faithful departed, may the Lord receive them into the light of Eternal Kingdom. Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord. And let perpetual light shine upon them. May the gentle soul of Pope Benedict XVI and souls of all the faithful departed through the mercy of God rest in perfect peace with our Lord Jesus Christ… Amen 🙏 ✝️🕯✝️🕯✝️🕯
Please let us continue to pray for peace all over the world, particularly in the Middle East, for an end to the current war in Israel-Palestine, and the Ukraine-Russia conflicts and for peace in our families and throughout our divided and conflicted World. Amen 🙏
PRAYER FOR THE DEAD: In your hands, O Lord, we humbly entrust our brothers and sisters. In this life, you embraced them with your tender love; deliver them now from every evil, and bid them eternal rest. The old order has passed away: welcome them into paradise, where there will be no sorrow, no weeping or pain, but fullness of peace and joy with your Son and the Holy Spirit forever and ever. Amen🙏
A PRAYER FOR PEACE: Lord Jesus Christ, You are the true King of peace. In You alone is found freedom. Please free our world from conflict. Bring unity to troubled nations. Let Your glorious peace reign in every heart. Dispel all darkness and evil. Protect the dignity of every human life. Replace hatred with Your love. Give wisdom to world leaders. Free them from selfish ambition. Eliminate all violence and war. Glorious Virgin Mary, Saint Michael the Archangel, Every Angel and Saint: Please pray for peace. Pray for unity amongst nations. Pray for unity amongst all people. Pray for the most vulnerable. Pray for those suffering. Pray for the fearful. Pray for those most in need. Pray for us all. Jesus, Son of the Living God, have mercy on us. Jesus, hear our prayers. Jesus, I trust in You! Amen 🙏
Prayers for Peace | https://mycatholic.life/catholic-prayers/prayers-for-peace/
Today, we celebrate the Memorial of Saint André Bessette (celebrated January 7th in Canada).
SAINT ANDRÉ BESSETTE, RELIGIOUS: St. André Bessette (1845–1937), a French Canadian is known as the “Miracle Man of Montreal”. Brother André was born Alfred Bessette to a poor Quebec family, a French Canadian couple near Montreal in 1845. He was the eighth of twelve children. He was weak and sickly from his birth. His father died in a work (Lumber) accident when he was nine and his mother died three years later. His large family was split up after the death of both parents and he was adopted at twelve, he became a farmhand. The future Bro. André, barely literate and physically weak from birth, moved from job to job for years. Various trades followed: shoemaker, baker, blacksmith-all failures. He was a factory worker in the United States during the boom times of the Civil War. Returning to Canada, in 1870 he presented himself as a candidate for the novitiate of the Congregation of Holy Cross in Montreal as a Brother. He came to the Brothers of the Holy Cross with a note from his pastor saying “I am sending you a saint”. The Brothers are a teaching order and Andre at age 25, still could not read or write because of poor health as a child, St. André had been unable to attend school regularly and could not read or write and had stomach problems (that he had for his whole life). They did not wish to accept him due to his sickness, but at the request of the Bishop of Montreal, he was ordained a consecrated religious Brother, and assigned a very humble job. He was assigned a position as doorkeeper/porter at Notre-Dame College in Montreal (A position he had for 40 years, perfect for praying with the people). Here daily he performed the tasks of infirmarian, janitor – washing floors and windows, cleaning lamps, carrying firewood, lamplighter, gardener, barber, and working as a messenger. His piety and willingness to help others charmed the students and their parents. He remained in that capacity for over forty years. Bro. André use to say, “When I joined this community, the superiors showed me the door, and I remained forty years.” “It is with the smallest brushes that the artists paint the most beautiful pictures.”
Bro. André also developed a great devotion and expressed a saint’s faith by a lifelong devotion to Saint Joseph and the poor and afflicted. He welcomed and prayed for the sick and heartbroken, inviting them to pray to St. Joseph. People flocked to his cell to ask his opinion and his prayers for some favor or some cure, and he complied, while entrusting all to St. Joseph, the Spouse of the Virgin Mother of God and foster-father of the Divine Infant. When an epidemic of sickness broke out, St. Andre demonstrated the gift of healing. He gave all the credit to St. Joseph, whom he had a great devotion. Over the years, when word of his sanctity spread, tens of thousands of people came to St. André Bessette for prayer and healing. He worked all day to receive them in person or answer their letters. His reputation grew as people reported that their prayers had been answered. He received visitors regularly for twenty-five years. In time, out of devotion to St. Joseph, he was able to build a chapel with help from friends and money he earned from giving haircuts to students. In 1904, he started building the St. Joseph Oratory in Montreal with nickels and dimes he had collected. It was completed in 1955 as a basilica. When his Order wanted to purchase land on Mt. Royal, St. André Bessette buried St. Joseph medals on the property. The owners yielded, the land was sold to the Order, and St. André worked to have a chapel dedicated to St. Joseph built on the property. It is still in use to this day. Larger versions of the chapel were constructed as more and more pilgrims came. Bro. André died on January 6, 1937 at the age of ninety one and he is buried at the Oratory. Over a million people attended his wake and burial. After his death, the shrine grew into the great basilica known as St. Joseph’s Oratory in Montreal, which is visited by pilgrims from all over the world. Bishop Pierre Morissette of Saint-Jérôme, on Feb. 19, 2010, said “Brother André lived his life with great humility.” “Guided by a deep faith and devotion to St. Joseph, he dedicated his life to praying, serving the poor, welcoming strangers, healing the sick and comforting the suffering,” the bishop commented. St. André was beatified in 1982 by Pope John II and canonized on October 17, 2010, by Pope Benedict XVI in Saint Peter’s Square. Millions of people were and still are, cured through his prayers and the intercession of St. Joseph. Today Saint André Bessette is known as the “Miracle Man of Montreal”. St. André Bessette’s feast day is January 6th.
PRAYER: O God, friend of the humble, You inspired Brother Andre with great devotion to St. Joseph and singular dedication to the poor and afflicted. Grant us, through his intercession, to follow his example of prayer and charity, so that with him we may attain the splendor of Your glory. Amen🙏
Through the intercession of our Blessed Mother Mary and the Saints, on this feast day, we humbly pray and thank God for blessing us all with the gift of His precious son, our Lord Christ! We pray for the safety and well-being of everyone and for all those traveling during this season of Christmas and new year. We pray for peace, love and unity in our marriages, our families and our world today, as we face these incredibly challenging times. We pray for God’s deliverance from impossible causes or situations. We pray for the sick and dying, especially sick children, those who are mentally and physically ill, strokes, heart diseases, and those suffering from cancers and other terminal diseases. We pray for an end to wars, political and religious unrest. We pray for torture victims, the poor, the needy and the most vulnerable in our communities and around the world. We pray for the souls in Purgatory and the repose of the souls of the faithful departed and for all widows and widowers. And we continue to pray for our Holy Father, Pope Francis, the Bishops, the Clergy and all those who preach the Gospel. We pray for vocations to the priesthood and religious life, for the Church, for persecuted christians, for all the innocent who suffer violence due to political or religious unrest, for the conversion of sinners, and Christians all over the world… Amen🙏
SCRIPTURE REFLECTIONS:
Bible Readings for today | Christmas Weekday | USCCB
| https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/010624.cfm
Gospel Reading ~ Mark 1 : 7-11
“I have baptized you with water; He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”
“This is what John the Baptist proclaimed: “One mightier than I is coming after me. I am not worthy to stoop and loosen the thongs of His sandals. I have baptized you with water; He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.” It happened in those days that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized in the Jordan by John. On coming up out of the water he saw the heavens being torn open and the Spirit, like a dove, descending upon him. And a voice came from the heavens, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.”
In today’s Gospel reading, John the Baptist proclaimed: “One mightier than I is coming after me. I am not worthy to stoop and loosen the thongs of His sandals. I have baptized you with water; He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.” The beginning of the time of the Lord’s ministry after He was baptised, is a reference of the testimonies of faith mentioned by St. John the Apostle in our first reading. All of those evidences, truth and revelations showed us all that truly, the One Whom we celebrate about this Christmas, all of our rejoicing and festivities, all are about this same Jesus Christ, the Saviour of all and Son of God, Whom the Father has sent into this world, into our midst, by the power of the Holy Spirit, that the Church, all the Apostles and all the servants of God had witnessed and believed in, and then passed on to all of us, God’s beloved people, all of us who believe in the same Jesus Christ, Our Lord and Saviour. As we are all approaching the end of the season of Christmas, we are all reminded today that the celebration of Christmas and Christ’s coming into this world does not end, and it does not mean that then we continue on with our lives as per usual, forgetting Christ and everything that we have focused on throughout this Christmas season. Instead, we are all reminded that Christmas is just the beginning of the story of God’s saving works, which came to our midst through the Child Jesus, and then which is fulfilled perfectly when the Lord went on His Passion, suffered and died for our sins, on His Cross at Calvary, on Good Friday, and ultimately with His glorious Resurrection at Easter.
In our first reading today, from the Epistle of St. John, the Apostle spoke of the truth which has been revealed to all of us through Jesus Christ, the One Who has come to save all of us mankind from damnation and destruction due to our sins. This truth according to St. John has been affirmed and acknowledged through the three testimonies of Water, Blood and Spirit. Each one of these testimonies confirmed that truly Jesus Christ is the Son of God and the One Whom all the prophets had been proclaiming and prophesying about, the One Who has brought God’s love and compassion into our midst, unveiling to us the fullness of God’s ever generous mercy and kindness, His love and care for all of us, His beloved ones.
Firstly, the testimony of Water is also referred to in our Gospel today, at the moment when the Lord Jesus was baptised at the River Jordan by St. John the Baptist. At that moment, according to the testimony of St. John the Baptist, when the Lord had been baptised and emerged from the waters of the River Jordan, Heaven itself opened and the Holy Spirit descended on the Lord like the Dove, and the voice of the Father came upon all, speaking His will and revealing Who Jesus truly was, as the Incarnate Son of God in the flesh, with the words ‘You are My Son, the Beloved, the One I have chosen.’, which highlighted everything that He had done for us, in sending us His own beloved Son, so that through Him, all of us may be saved, and gathered through the same water of baptism, into eternal life.
Then, the testimony of Blood refers to the Blood which the same Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, had shed for all of us mankind, from the Altar of His Cross. He was offered, willingly enduring for us the worst of punishments and sufferings, trials and tribulations so that by all of His wounds and hurts, all of us may be healed. His Most Precious Body and Most Precious Blood had been broken and poured down upon all of us mankind, freely offered and freely given to us, so that through this sharing of Himself, all of us may partake of the same Paschal Lamb, the Bread of Life, and hence enter into the eternal life which He has promised to all of us who partake upon His heavenly banquet, the Most Holy Eucharist that He has instituted and given to all of us, as yet another testimony of the truth about Him.
Lastly, the testimony of the Spirit mentioned by St. John can mean both the Holy Spirit descending on the Lord Jesus at the moment of His Baptism, but also the gift of the Holy Spirit descending upon the Apostles and the disciples of the Lord, and hence upon the Church, on the Pentecost. The Lord has promised the Advocate, the Helper, that is none other than the Holy Spirit, Who would come to strengthen all the faithful and holy people of God, and the Holy Spirit did indeed come, ten days after the Lord ascended gloriously to Heaven and fifty days after His glorious Resurrection from the dead. All these testimonies were proofs and evidences enough for all those who have witnessed them, and which they had taught and passed on to us through the Church.
As we reflect on the words of the Lord in the Sacred Scriptures today, during this time and season of Christmas, in which we are all constantly being reminded of the fact and truth that each and every one of us as Christians, are all entrusted with the knowledge of truth, that Christ our Lord and Saviour, Who has been born for us at Bethlehem, the city of David through His mother Mary, is truly the Son of God, the Divine Word Incarnate, and we have seen, witnessed and known this truth because He Himself has revealed all those things to us, through His disciples, the Apostles and innumerable Saints, who have passed down the faith and the truth to us through the Church of God. Let us all therefore, as Christians continue to proclaim the Good News and salvation in Jesus Christ, our Risen Lord, the same Holy Child born for us at Bethlehem two millennia ago, Who revealed to us through the three testimonies of Water, Blood and Spirit, of the light of hope and truth, love and compassion of God, continue to bless us all. May God in His infinite grace and mercy, grant us the grace to be as open to the Lord’s path and may He guide us in our journey always, now and forevermore. Amen🙏
Let us pray:
Jesus, my Savior, I do thank You for the unfathomable gift You have given me. You took on our fallen human nature and transformed it by this unity of Your divinity and humanity. You died for my sins and the sins of all who turn to You, and You opened the doors to Heaven. May I always grow more deeply in gratitude for all You have done for us. Jesus, I trust in You ~ Amen 🙏
Save Us, Savior of the World. Our Blessed Mother Mary and Saint André Bessette ~ Pray for us 🙏
Thanking God for the gift of this new year and praying for justice, peace, love and unity in our families and our world and for God’s Divine Mercy and Grace upon us all. Journey mercies for all those traveling during this Christmas season and new year. Wishing all of us a most blessed, safe, healthy, prosperous and grace-filled New Year! Amen🙏
Blessings and love always, Philomena💖
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