FIFTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME

SAINTS OF THE DAY ~ FEAST DAY: JULY 18, 2024

[Note: Saint Camillus de Lellis, Priest—USA Optional Memorial today, he was celebrated on the anniversary of his death on July 14 outside the United States]

Greetings, beloved family and Happy Thursday of the Fifteenth Week in Ordinary Time!

On this special feast day, with special intention through the intercession of our Blessed Mother Mary, and the Saints, we humbly pray for justice, peace and unity in our families and our divided and conflicted world. We continue to pray for the sick and dying. We especially pray for our loved ones who have recently died and we continue to pray for the repose of their gentle souls 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 their gentle souls through the mercy of God rest in perfect peace with our Lord Jesus Christ… 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 & the Holy Spirit forever & ever. Amen🙏

Watch “Holy Mass and Holy Rosary on EWTN on YouTube | July 18, 2024 |

Watch “Holy Mass from the National Shrine of the Divine Mercy” | July 18, 2024 |

Pray “Holy Rosary from Lourdes, France” |July 18, 2024 |

Pray “Holy Rosary from the National Shrine of the Divine Mercy” | July 18, 2024 |

Pray “The Chaplet of Divine Mercy | from the National Shrine of the Divine Mercy” | July 18, 2024 |

Pray “Holy Rosary ALL 20 Mysteries VIRTUAL🌹JOYFUL🌹LUMINOUS🌹SORROWFUL🌹GLORIOUS” on YouTube |

Memorare Chaplet | Prayer in Difficult Times (Powerful Prayer) |

NOVENA TO THE PRECIOUS BLOOD OF JESUS | https://novenaprayer.com/novena-to-the-precious-blood-of-jesus/ (When to begin: Any time – The whole month of July)

Today’s Bible Readings: Thursday, July 18, 2024
Reading 1, Isaiah 26:7-9, 12, 16-19
Responsorial Psalm, Psalms 102:13-14, 15, 16-18, 19-21
Gospel, Matthew 11:28-30

SAINTS OF THE DAY: MEMORIAL OF SAINT CAMILLUS DE LELLIS, PRIEST; SAINT FREDRICK, BISHOP AND MARTYR AND SAINT SYMPHOROSA AND HER SEVEN SONS, MARTYRS ~ FEAST DAY: JULY 18TH

(Note: Saint Camillus de Lellis, Priest—USA Optional Memorial today, he was celebrated on the anniversary of his death on July 14 outside the United States)

Today, we celebrate the Memorial of Saint Camillus de Lellis, Priest; Saint Frederick, Bishop and Martyr and Saint Symphorosa and Her Seven Sons, Martyrs. Through the intercession of our Blessed Mother Mary and the Saints on this feast day, we humbly pray for the sick and dying, especially those suffering from cancers and other terminal diseases. We pray for those going through difficulties especially during these challenging times, for the poor and the needy, for peace, love and unity in our families and our world. And we continue to pray for the Church, the Clergy, for persecuted christians, for the conversion of sinners, and Christians all over the world.🙏 

SAINT CAMILLUS DE LELLIS, PRIEST: St. Camillus de Lellis (1550–1614) turned from his life as a soldier and gambler to become the founder of an order dedicated to caring for the sick. In some other countries, besides the United States, he is celebrated on the anniversary of his death, July 14. St. Camillus was born in 1550 and his mother was nearly sixty years old when he was born in Abruzzo, a small town of the Kingdom of Naples in present-day Italy. His mother died during his infancy, and he lost his father, a former army officer, six years later. The young man took after his late father professionally, serving in the armies of Venice and Naples until 1574. As a youth he gave himself to the sinful pleasures of this world. He was a wild, undisciplined youth who became a battle-hardened soldier with a violent temper and a gambling addiction. His bad behavior, combined with a persistent war wound in his leg, left him in poverty. During his military service Camillus developed a severe gambling problem. He repented of the habit and his conversion dates from the feast of the Purification, in 1575. He repented when he found himself impoverished and forced to do menial work for a group of Franciscans. In February of that year he resolved to change his life and soon sought to join the order. A wound in one of his legs, however, was seen as incurable and kept him from becoming a Franciscan. After this rejection, he traveled to Rome and worked for four years in a hospice, in a hospital for incurables. Committed to a life of prayer and penance, he wore a hair shirt and received spiritual direction from St. Philip Neri. Grieved by the quality of service given to the sick, St. Camillus decided to form an association of Catholics who would provide them with both physical and spiritual care.

He studied for the priesthood, and was ordained in 1584. Members of his order worked in hospitals, prisons, and in the homes of those afflicted by disease. The order’s original name, the “Fathers of a Good Death,” reflected the desire to aid in their spiritual salvation and prepare the dying to receive their last rites. Later known as the Order of the Ministers of the Sick, or simply as the “Camillians,” the group received papal approval in 1586 and was confirmed as a religious order in 1591. In addition to the traditional vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience, they took a vow of unfailing service to the sick. St. Camillus himself suffered physical ailments throughout his life. His leg wound failed to heal over the course of almost five decades, in addition to which he suffered from sores and severe kidney trouble. But he is said to have spent time with the sick even while unable to walk, by crawling from bed to bed. The founder of the Ministers of the Sick lived to assist at a general chapter of his order in Rome during 1613, and to make a last visitation of many of their hospitals. Learning that he himself was incurably ill, St. Camillus responded: “I rejoice in what has been told me. We shall go into the house of the Lord.” Receiving the Eucharist for the last time, he declared: “O Lord, I confess I am the most wretched of sinners, most undeserving of your favor; but save me by your infinite goodness. My hope is placed in your divine mercy through your precious blood.” After giving his last instructions to his fellow Ministers of the Sick, St. Camillus de Lellis died on July 14, 1614. He was canonized by Benedict XIV in 1746, and later named – along with Saint John of God – as one of the two main co-patrons of nurses and nursing associations in 1930. Leo XIII proclaimed him patron of hospitals and the sick and Pius XI declared him the protector of all nuns who care for the sick. He’s the Patron Saint of bodily ills; hospitals; hospital workers; the sick, doctors and nurses.

PRAYER: God, You adorned St. Camillus, Your Priest, with the singular grace of charity toward the sick. By his merits, pour forth the Spirit of Your love into us, so that by serving You in our brothers here on earth we may safely come to You at the hour of death. Amen 🙏

SAINT FREDRICK, BISHOP AND MARTYR: Saint Frederick (c 780 – c 838) was Bishop from c 815 – c 838. He was born around 780 in Friesland and was a grandson of the Frisian King Radboud. At a young age he was taught at Utrecht by the clergy, including Bishop Ricfried. Filled with piety and learned in spiritual things, he was ordained by Bishop Rickfield and given the task of instructing catechumens. In 820, St. Frederick succeeded the same prelate as Bishop of Utrecht. The Saint was consecrated in the presence of the Emperor, Louis the Debonair, who advised him to stamp out the remaining vestiges of idolatry in Friesland. Frederick took the advise and sent zealous laborers into the north to extirpate the paganism still lurking there. He reserved for himself the most troublesome territory, Walcheren, an island belonging to The Netherlands that was rampant with incestuous marriages contracted within the forbidden degrees. St. Frederick worked unceasingly to eradicate this evil from the people, by means of assiduous exhortations, tears, watching, prayer and fasting. He called an assembly of the principal people of the land and sent forth the ways and means by which such and abomination could be eliminated for good. In this way, he put an end to many such marriages and brought back to God numberless persons who were truly contrite.

At the same time, hearing of some of the numerous immoralities attributed to the Emperor’s second wife, the saintly Bishop went to the court to which he had free access and boldly admonished her. Though he did so with apostolic freedom and true charity, thinking only of her welfare, St. Frederick incurred the wrath and resentment of her husband.

Thus it was not very surprising on July 18, 838, as St. Frederick stepped down from the altar after saying Mass and was on his way to the side chapel to make his thanksgiving, that he was set upon by two assassins and stabbed to death. He died with the words of Psalm 116 on his lips: “I shall praise the Lord in the land of the living.” And the reputation of his sanctity spread quickly far and wide. Saint Frederick was recorded by his contemporaries, who praised his wisdom, prudence, piety, and virtues. Poems and hymns were written in his honor. Saint Frederick composed a prayer to the Holy Trinity, which was used in the Netherlands for centuries.

PRAYER: God, You gave splendor to Your Church by granting St. Frederick the victory of martyrdom. Grant that, as he imitated the Lord’s Passion, so we may follow in his footsteps and attain everlasting joys. Amen 🙏

SAINT SYMPHOROSA AND HER SEVEN SONS, MARTYRS : St. Symphorosa, a native of Tivoli, lived in the second century, was the wife of the martyr Getulius. She bore him seven sons, Crescentius, Julian, Nemesius, Primitivus, Justinus, Stacteus, and Eugenius. According to early chronicles, St. Symphorosa and her seven sons, whom she instructed in the Christian Faith, were martyred at Trivoli, near Rome, circa 120 AD during the reign of Emperor Hadrian (Adrian). Their piety was tried by many different tortures, and, on their remaining constant, the mother, who had taught her sons, led the way to martyrdom. Their story comes just days after the feast of the Seven Holy Brothers, the sons of St. Felicitas (July 10th). St. Symphorosa’s husband, St. Getulius, was a native of Gabii in Sabina. He was an officer in the Roman army, but resigned upon being baptized a Christian, ultimately retiring to his estate near Tivoli. Caerealis, an imperial legate, was sent to arrest him, but was converted to Christianity by St. Getulius. Another officer, Primitivus, was sent to arrest St. Getulius, but he was also converted. Upon the orders of Emperor Hadrian, the men were tied to a stake and set alight. The fire did not harm them, so they were brutally clubbed and then beheaded. St. Symphorosa buried their remains in an arenarium on their estate. Shortly after her husband’s martyrdom, St. Symphorosa and her seven sons were brought before Emperor Hadrian who demanded that they worship the pagan gods. Refusing, St. Symphorosa received a martyr’s crown when, after various tortures, she was thrown into the Anio River with a heavy rock fastened to her neck. She died in the 138th year of the Christian Era. Her brother took her remains and buried them alongside her martyred husband.

On the following day, her seven sons were brought before the Emperor, who represented to them that, as they had neither father nor mother, he would adopt them as his own children and provide for them most bountifully, if they would obey him and sacrifice to the gods. Should they, however, prove as obstinate as their parents had been, they had nothing to expect but torments and death. “This is what we desire,” answered Crescentius,” that we, like our parents, may die for the sake of Christ. Neither promises, nor threats, nor torments can make us faithless to Christ.” The Emperor, being unwilling to put his menaces immediately into execution, still endeavored to win over the children, alternately by promises and threats; but finding all unavailing, he ordered seven stakes to be raised in the idolatrous temple, to which the seven valiant confessors of Christ were tied, and tormented in all possible ways. Their limbs were stretched until they were dislocated, and the witnesses of these awful scenes were filled with compassion. The pain must have been most dreadful; but there was not one of these young heroes who did not praise God, and rejoice in his suffering. The tyrant, ashamed of being conquered by children, ordered an end to be made of their torments, which was accordingly done in various ways. Each of her sons suffered a different kind of martyrdom: Crescens was pierced through the throat with a dagger, Julianus was stabbed through the breast with a sword, Nemesius pierced through the heart, Primitivus was wounded at the navel, Justinus was pierced through the back and cut in pieces, Stracteus was shot with arrows and wounded in the side, and Eugenius, the youngest was cleft in two from top to bottom. Their bodies were thrown into a deep ditch from which they were ultimately recovered by the Christian community. Thus gloriously died the seven sons of St. Symphorosa, reminding us of the illustrious martyrdom of the several Machabees, in the reign of the wicked King Antiochus. Getulius’ relics were ultimately moved to Rome, and are in the principal altar of the Church of St. Angelo. In 752, the relics of St. Symphorosa and her seven sons were also transferred to the Church of St. Angelo in Piscina, Rome under the Sovereign Pontiff, Pius IV. In 1587, the relics were enclosed in a marble sarcophagus.

PRAYER: O God, who has granted us the grace to celebrate the birthday of Your blessed martyrs Symphorosa and her sons, grant that we may also share their eternal happiness in heaven through our Lord Jesus Christ your Son who reigns forever and ever ~ Amen🙏

SCRIPTURE REFLECTIONS

Bible Readings for today, Wednesday of the Fifteenth Week in Ordinary Time | USCCB | https://bible.usccb.org/daily-bible-reading

Gospel ~ Matthew 11:28-30

“I am meek and humble of heart”

“Jesus said: “Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for yourselves. For my yoke is easy, and my burden light.”

In today’s Gospel reading, Jesus addresses Himself to those who were burdened. There is something about that invitation of Jesus, ‘Come to me, all you who labour and are overburdened’, that makes us feel it is addressed to each one of us personally. In its original setting, Jesus was addressing Himself to those who had come to feel overburdened by the very strict interpretation of the Jewish Law that the religious authorities were attempting to impose on them. However, that invitation of Jesus speaks to us all whenever we feel burdened for whatever reason. We can all find ourselves burdened for many reasons. We may feel overworked; some relationship in our lives may have become a burden over time; we may struggle with ill health occasionally. We can be left feeling burdened for all kinds of reasons. As we hear Jesus’ invitation, ‘Come to me’, and respond to it, we also hear the promise that He makes to us, ‘I will give you rest’. According to the Gospel, as Jesus addresses His words to those who felt burdened by the demands of the Jewish Law, they struggled to meet those demands, and in failing to meet them they felt themselves to be religious outcasts. To such people, Jesus does not offer a new law. Rather, He offers them Himself; He calls them and all of us into a personal relationship with Himself. ‘Come to me’, He says, ‘learn from me’. We are to come to Him and learn from Him; He is a teacher whose teaching is visible in His person, in who He is and how He lives. To learn from someone, we need to be around them over time. In saying, ‘Come’, Jesus is really saying, ‘Come and remain’. We are called into an ongoing relationship with the Lord. It is in and through that relationship that we learn to live as He calls us to live, as He wants us to live. We live out of our relationship with Him, or more fundamentally, out of His relationship with us, because it is He who initiates that relationship, it is He who keeps on saying to us ‘Come’. He promises us that if we come to Him and remain with Him, we will discover that His yoke is easy and His burden is light. Yes, His way of life is demanding, but His relationship with us and ours with Him makes it much less demanding than it would otherwise be. As Saint Paul says in one of his letters, ‘his power at work within us is able to accomplish immeasurably far more than all we can ask or imagine’. It is by remaining in Jesus, as branches in the vine that our lives will bear much fruit.

In our Gospel reading, when Jesus declares, ‘my yoke is easy and my burden light’, He is saying that His teaching, His understanding of God’s will, is not something burdensome. Rather, His teaching is liberating and life-enhancing. If His teaching is received and lived, it lightens the burden of oppression; it brings joy. That is not to say that Jesus’ teaching is not demanding. We only have to listen to the Sermon on the Mount to realize that Jesus’ teaching is in many ways more demanding than the teaching of the Jewish Law. If the Law prohibits murder, Jesus prohibits the kind of anger that can lead to murder. If the Law says, ‘an eye for an eye’, Jesus says ‘love your enemy’. His teaching is demanding but not burdensome. That is because Jesus does not ask us to live His teaching out our own strength alone. He empowers us to live out His teaching. Jesus does not say, ‘Come to my teaching’, but ‘Come to me’. He does not say, ‘learn my teaching’, but ‘learn from me’. He calls us into a personal relationship with Himself. It is in coming to Him that we receive His Spirit, the Holy Spirit, and so are empowered to live his teaching and, thereby, to become fully alive as human beings. Jesus promises that here and now we will experience something of that rest that awaits us in eternity if we come to Him and allow Him to empower us to live His teaching in our daily lives.

Our first reading today is the continuation of the passage from the prophet Isaiah in which the prophet brought forth the people’s lamentations and prayers before God, as the people sought God’s forgiveness and mercy for their transgressions and evils of the past, seeking Him to bless and guide them once again. Although they had indeed disobeyed against God and committed what was evil in His sight, persecuting His messengers and prophets, but they did show genuine remorse, seeking to be forgiven from their sins. Therefore, the prophet Isaiah interceded on behalf of the people, and at the same time, he was also reminding them all of God’s great love and compassion, reminding them all not to live in the manner that is repulsive and wicked in the sight of God any longer. The prophet Isaiah told the people of Judah how God would rescue them and strengthen them all once again as long as they remained faithful to Him and committed once again to the path which He has shown them. God truly loved His people and He wanted them all to come to Him and to be truly and fully reconciled to Him.

As we reflect on the words of the Sacred Scriptures today, each and every one of us are reminded of God’s mercy, love and kindness which He has given to us most generously all these while, but which we often took for granted. We often ignored God’s ever present and persistent love and compassion, which He has generously presented to us, all these while. This is why we are reminded that we should no longer take God’s love for granted and that we should renew our trust, hope and love for Him. We have been given the free will by God, and it is up to us then how we should decide the way we live our lives from now on. As Christians, each and every one of us must always be strong in our conviction and commitment to serve the Lord and to follow Him in all things. We must not allow ourselves to be distracted and swayed by all the false leads of pleasures and earthly joys, all the things which may seem to be good, happy and pleasurable at first, but in the end, they lead us all to nowhere else but ultimate disappointment and condemnation. The paths that the evil ones are leading us into may seem to be easier and more convenient for us, but we must look beyond those falsehoods and realise that they all lead to harm for us. Let us all hence commit ourselves anew to the Lord and do our best so that in our every moments in life, we will always continue to be ever more committed to God, to be ever more faithful in all things, and be more trusting to Him, allowing Him to lead us all in our paths in life. May God in His infinite grace and mercy, grant us the grace and may He continue to guide us along the right path. May God bless us all and our good works, efforts and endeavours, now and always. Amen🙏

DEVOTION OF THE MONTH OF JULY:

THE PRECIOUS BLOOD OF JESUS: The month of July is dedicated to the Precious Blood. The feast of the Precious Blood of our Lord was instituted in 1849 by Pius IX, but the devotion is as old as Christianity. The early Fathers say that the Church was born from the pierced side of Christ, and that the sacraments were brought forth through His Blood.

“The Precious Blood which we worship is the Blood which the Savior shed for us on Calvary and reassumed at His glorious Resurrection; it is the Blood which courses through the veins of His risen, glorified, living body at the right hand of God the Father in heaven; it is the Blood made present on our altars by the words of Consecration; it is the Blood which merited sanctifying grace for us and through it washes and beautifies our soul and inaugurates the beginning of eternal life in it.”

PRECIOUS BLOOD PRAYER: Almighty, and everlasting God, who hast appointed Thine only-begotten Son to be the Redeemer of the world, and hast been pleased to be reconciled unto us by His Blood, grant us, we beseech Thee, so to venerate with solemn worship the price of our salvation, that the power thereof may here on earth keep us from all things hurtful, and the fruit of the same may gladden us for ever hereafter in heaven. Through the same Christ our Lord.
Amen 🙏🏾

THE POPE’S MONTHLY INTENTIONS FOR 2024: FOR THE MONTH OF JULY – FOR THE PASTORAL CARE OF THE SICK: We pray that the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick confer to those who receive it and their loved ones the power of the Lord and become ever more a visible sign of compassion and hope for all.

https://www.usccb.org/prayers/popes-monthly-intentions-2024

PRAYER FOR PEACE ~ POPE FRANCIS:

Lord God of peace, hear our prayer!

We have tried so many times and over so many years to resolve our conflicts by our own powers and by the force of our arms. How many moments of hostility and darkness have we experienced; how much blood has been shed; how many lives have been shattered; how many hopes have been buried… But our efforts have beķķen in vain. Now, Lord, come to our ajnid! Grant us peace, teach us peace; guide our steps in the way of peace. Open our eyes and our hearts, and give us the courage to say: “Never again war!”; “With war everything is lost”. Instill in our hearts the courage to take concrete steps to achieve peace. Lord, God of Abraham, God of the Prophets, God of Love, you created us and you call us to live as brothers and sisters. Give us the strength daily to be instruments of peace; enable us to see everyone who crosses our path as our brother or sister. Make us sensitive to the plea of our citizens who entreat us to turn our weapons of war into implements of peace, our trepidation into confident trust, and our quarreling into forgiveness. Keep alive within us the flame of hope, so that with patience and perseverance we may opt for dialogue and reconciliation. In this way may peace triumph at last, and may the words “division”, “hatred” and “war” be banished from the heart of every man and woman. Lord, defuse the violence of our tongues and our hands. Renew our hearts and minds, so that the word which always brings us together will be “brother”, and our way of life will always be that of: Shalom, Peace, Salaam! Amen🙏

During this Ordinary Time, please let us all continue to pray for peace all over the world, particularly in Africa, 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 🙏

Prayers for Peace | https://mycatholic.life/catholic-prayers/prayers-for-peace/

PRAYER INTENTIONS: During this season of the Ordinary Time, through the intercession of our Blessed Mother Mary and all the Saints on this feast day, we humbly pray for our children and children all over the world, we pray for their health, safety and well-being, we particularly pray for those who have no one to care for them and those who are terminally ill, we pray for God’s Divine healing upon them. Every life is a gift. We pray for God’s deliverance from impossible causes or situations. We pray for the souls in Purgatory and the repose of the gentle soul of our beloved family members who recently passed away and the souls of all the faithful departed, may the Lord receive them into the light of Eternal Kingdom. 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 Vocation to the Priesthood and Religious life. We particularly pray for all Youths and all Seminarians, with special intention for those Seminarians who will be ordained into Priesthood. 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🙏

Let us pray:

My gentle Lord, You came to us to serve and to give Your life out of love. Give me the grace I need to accept Your act of service to me and to also imitate and participate in the service to which I am called. May I take Your yoke upon me, dear Lord, so that I can fulfill the mission that You have entrusted to me. Jesus, I trust in You ~ Amen 🙏

Save Us, Savior of the World. Most Sacred Heart of Jesus and Most Precious Blood of Jesus, have mercy on us. Our Most Blessed Mother Mary, Saint Camillus de Lellis; Saint Frederick and Saint Symphorosa and Her Seven Sons, Martyrs ~ Pray for us🙏

Thanking God for the gift of this day 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. Have a blessed, safe, grace-filled and fruitful week🙏

Blessings and Love always, Philomena💖