SEVENTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME
SAINTS OF THE DAY ~ FEAST DAY: JULY 31, 2024
Greetings beloved family and Happy Wednesday of the Seventeenth Week in Ordinary Time!
We thank God for the gift of life and for bringing us safely and successfully to the end of the month of July. May God’s grace and mercy be with us all now and always. Amen 🙏
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 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 31, 2024 |
Watch “Holy Mass from the National Shrine of the Divine Mercy” | July 31, 2024 |
Pray “Holy Rosary from Lourdes, France” |July 31, 2024 |
Pray “Holy Rosary from the National Shrine of the Divine Mercy” | July 31, 2024 |
Pray “The Chaplet of Divine Mercy | from the National Shrine of the Divine Mercy” | July 31, 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: Wednesday, July 31, 2024
Reading 1, Jeremiah 15:10, 16-21
Responsorial Psalm, Psalms 59:2-3, 4, 10-11, 17, 18
Gospel, Matthew 13:44-46
SAINTS OF THE DAY: MEMORIAL OF SAINT IGNATIUS OF LOYOLA, PRIEST AND SAINT GERMANUS, BISHOP OF AUXERRE ~ FEAST DAY: JULY 31ST: Today, we celebrate the Memorial of Saint Ignatius of Loyola, Priest and Saint Germanus, Bishop of Auxerre. Through the intercession of our Blessed Mother Mary and the Saints on this feast day, we humbly pray for the safety and well-being of all those in the military, we pray for peace, love and unity in our families and our world. We 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. 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 IGNATIUS OF LOYOLA, PRIEST: St. Ignatius of Loyola (1491-1556) was a Spanish Basque Catholic priest and theologian. He was born of a noble family at the castle of Loyola in Giupuscoa, Basque country, Spain on October 23, 1491, the youngest of thirteen children. Reared in the Court of Ferdinand V of Aragon, the husband of Isabella of Castile, he entered the army and distinguished himself by his valor. In keeping with the young aristocrats of his day, Ignatius sought after military prowess, vainglory, and fame, and became a knight at the age of seventeen. He was known as a fancy dresser, an expert dancer, a womanizer, sensitive to insult, and involved in criminal behavior. He was wounded at the siege of Pamplona, in a war between Charles V and Francis I, King of France. During a period of convalescence after being wounded at the battle he read the “Lives of the Saints,” a collection of saint biographies and a Life of Christ. These books profoundly affected him, and he experienced a conversion of heart from worldliness to piety. Henceforth, his life belonged entirely to God. He desired to pattern his life after the great saints, and ceremoniously hung up his military garments before an image of the Virgin Mary. After experiencing a vision of the Blessed Mother with the Infant Jesus, he had a general confession in the monastery of Monserrat. The Saint spent ten months in the solitude of Manresa, he lived for a time as an ascetic in a cave. It was during this time that he formulated his famous Spiritual Exercises, the spiritual centerpiece of the religious order he would later establish. He then went on pilgrimage to the Holy Land, and studied theology for many years, where he worked to convert Muslims. St. Ignatius returned to complete his studies in Spain and then France, where he received his theology degree.
During his studies he gathered a group of six like-minded men, including Sts. Peter Faber and Francis Xavier and founded the Society of Jesus, today known as the Jesuits and became its first Superior General at Paris in 1541. The Jesuit order is dedicated to teaching and missionary work. They went as missionaries all over the world to spread the Gospel, especially focusing on education. At Montmarte they vowed to go to Palestine, or to offer themselves to the Pope to be employed in the service of God in some other manner. Receiving ordination at Venice together with his companions, St. Ignatius went to Rome where he was graciously received by Pope Paul III. The Society was approved by Pope Paul III in 1540, and it grew rapidly, spreading to India in the East and to Brazil in the West. St. Ignatius remained in Rome, where he employed in consolidating and governing his Society. There he became the friend of St. Philip Neri. He was General of the Society more than fifteen years. Saint Ignatius was noted as an inspired spiritual director. He recorded his method in a celebrated treatise called the Spiritual Exercises, a simple set of meditations, prayers, and other mental exercises, first published in 1548. It is known as “Ignatian spirituality”, often used today for retreats and individual discernment. St. Ignatius died peacefully on July 31, 1556. He was beatified in 1609, and canonized by Pope Gregory XV on March 12, 1622. He is the patron saint of the Basque provinces of Gipuzkoa and Biscay as well as of the Society of Jesus (Jesuits). He was declared patron saint of all spiritual retreats by Pope Pius XI in 1922. Ignatius is also the foremost patron saint of soldiers. St. Ignatius of Loyola’s feast day is July 31st.
The Jesuits remain numerous today, have over 30,000 members and 500 universities and colleges worldwide. On April 22, 2006, Pope Benedict XVI presided over a Eucharistic concelebration for the Society of Jesus. He addressed the fathers and brothers of the Society present at the Vatican Basilica, calling to mind the dedication and fidelity of their founder. “St. Ignatius of Loyola was first and foremost a man of God who in his life put God, his greatest glory and his greatest service, first,” the Pope said. “He was a profoundly prayerful man for whom the daily celebration of the Eucharist was the heart and crowning point of his day.” “Precisely because he was a man of God, St Ignatius was a faithful servant of the Church,” Benedict continued, recalling the saint’s “special vow of obedience to the Pope, which he himself describes as ‘our first and principal foundation.’” Highlighting the need for “an intense spiritual and cultural training,” Pope Benedict called upon the Society of Jesus to follow in the footsteps of St. Ignatius and continue his work of service to the Church and obedience to the Pope, so that it’s members “may faithfully meet the urgent needs of the Church today.”
PRAYER: God, You raised up St. Ignatius in Your Church for the greater glory of Your Name. Grant that we may labor on earth with his help and after his example and merit to be crowned with him in heaven. Amen 🙏
SAINT GERMANUS, BISHOP OF AUXERRE: St. Germanus (c 378 – c 448), was a western Roman clergyman who was bishop of Auxerre in Late Antique Gaul. A Lawyer, Missionary, Reformer, Exorcist, Miracle-Worker – was born into a noble Gallo-Roman family in Autissiodorum, now Auxerre, France, in 378. He was the son of Rusticus and Germanilla, and his family was one of the noblest in Gaul in the latter portion of the fourth century. He received an excellent education in the best Gallic schools of Arles and Lyon, and then studied law in Rome, where he eventually became a lawyer. He practiced there before the tribunal of the prefect for some years with great success. His high birth and brilliant talents brought him into contact with the court, and he married Eustachia, a lady highly esteemed in imperial circles, a devout Roman woman. He was appointed Duke of the Gaul border regions. However, he was not destined to hold a civil office – God gave St. Germanus a higher calling. The elderly local bishop St. Amator called the governor to the church, locked the doors behind him, and against Germanus’s will, tonsured him into clergy. St. Germanus accepted this unexpected turn of fate as God’s sign and was elected to the See of Auxerre in 418 by a unanimous decision of the people. The former Dux changed his life drastically: he worked hard to pray, fast and do ascetic deeds, serving the poor with his possessions. According to his hagiography he followed the example of the Lord by washing his guests’ feet and personally serving everyone at meals. The saint founded a coenobitic monastery in honor of Saints Cosmas and Damian on the banks of the local river, thus creating a unique Gallican monasticism, a century ahead of the Benedictine monasticism.
St. Germanus abandoned his career as a high-ranking government official to devote his formidable energy towards the promotion of the church and the protection of his “flock” in dangerous times, personally confronting, for instance, the barbarian king “Goar”. In Britain he is best remembered for his journey to combat Pelagianism in or around 429 AD, and the records of this visit provide valuable information on the state of post-Roman British society. He also played an important part in the establishment and promotion of the Cult of Saint Alban. The saint was said to have revealed the story of his martyrdom to St. Germanus in a dream or holy vision, and St. Germanus ordered this to be written down for public display. St. Germanus died on July 31, 448 at Ravenna, Italy of natural causes. He’s Patron Saint of Auxerre, France. St. Germanus is venerated as a saint in both the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches, which commemorate him on 31 July.
St. Germanus, Bishop of Auxerre ~ Pray for us 🙏
SCRIPTURE REFLECTIONS:
Bible Readings for today, Memorial of Saint Ignatius of Loyola, Priest | USCCB | https://bible.usccb.org/daily-bible-reading
Gospel Reading ~ Matthew 13:44-46
“He sells all he has and buys that field”
“Jesus said to his disciples: “The Kingdom of heaven is like a treasure buried in a field, which a person finds and hides again, and out of joy goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. Again, the Kingdom of heaven is like a merchant searching for fine pearls. When he finds a pearl of great price, he goes and sells all that he has and buys it.”
In today’s Gospel reading, the two short parables, portrayed two people who find something valuable, a box of treasure in the first parable and a pearl of great price in the second. Yet, the way that the two people come upon these two valuable objects is quite different. The person in the first parable comes across the treasure by accident. He wasn’t looking for it; he was a day labourer digging in someone else’s field. The last thing he expected to find was a box of treasures buried in the field. In the second parable the merchant was actively searching for fine pearls and, eventually, as a result of his persistent searching, he came across one pearl of great value which stood out from all the rest. Both parables are images of the kingdom of God. Both suggest that our relationship with God through Jesus is a treasure greater than any earthly treasure. The first parable suggests that this treasured relationship comes to us as a grace. We can be surprised by God’s gracious initiative towards us; God is with us, hidden beneath the surface of our lives, and can break through to us when we are least expecting it. The second parable highlights the importance of the human search in coming to know God. It is those who seek who will find; it is those who knock who will have the door opened. We can be, and will be, surprised by Lord’s initiative towards us, and, yet, we are also called to seek the Lord with all our hearts and minds and souls.
According to the Gospel of St. Matthew. the Lord spoke to His disciples and followers using those two parables to highlight what the Kingdom of Heaven or the Kingdom of God is like. He used the parable of the treasure in the field and as well as the parable of a pearl of great price to show that the Kingdom of Heaven, God’s glorious Kingdom, His triumph and victory is something that we should value over all else, and is what we should put as the focus and emphasis of our whole lives. Each and every one of us as Christians should put our focus on the Kingdom of God and value it above everything else in our lives, above all the temptations and distractions all around us, the false treasures that will not lead us to the ultimate triumph and victory with God. There are times when the Lord suddenly blesses us at a moment in life when we are least expecting it. The Lord is always taking some gracious initiative towards us if we use our eyes to see and ears to hear; He seeks us out. When it comes to the Lord, there is also a seeking involved on our part. Jesus calls on us to keep on seeking, to keep on asking, to keep on knocking, like the rich merchant in the second parable. When we are graced by the Lord, because of His initiative towards us and our searching for Him, then, like the two men in the parables, we must be ready to give up whatever is necessary to hold on to that gift of the Lord, the gift of the kingdom.
Our first reading today from the Book of the prophet Jeremiah talks about the frustrations of the prophet Jeremiah who at that time had been sent by God to minister to the people of the kingdom of Judah, the southern half of what was once the united kingdom of Israel. Jeremiah was sent to proclaim God’s words and judgment to the people and kingdom of Judah, telling them all of the wickedness that they had done as well as the consequences of those wickedness and sins. The Lord wanted His people to know that He still loved them and was concerned for them, and therefore told them through His prophet that they should repent from their many sins, and warning them of the doom and destruction which they would face if they continued to disobey Him. But for all these works and things that he had done in God’s employ, Jeremiah faced a lot of stubborn resistance and rejection from those who refused to listen to God’s words. He was persecuted and had a difficult journey and life as God’s prophet, just like many others before him. And just like any one of us, even Jeremiah could break under pressure and duress, after he had to face such stubbornness and all the difficulties that he had to endure amidst all those challenges. But at the same time, the Lord also spoke to Jeremiah, reassuring him of His protection and guidance, and how despite all the hardships, challenges and dangers that he had to endure, God would always be with him and guard him, and indeed, according to the life and story of the prophet Jeremiah, God had saved and protected him on many occasions, and gave him the strength to persevere through those difficulties.
As we reflect on the words of the Sacred Scriptures today, we are all reminded that we should continue to put our focus, attention and emphasis on the Lord at all times and opportunities, and we should not allow the many temptations and allures of worldly glory, pleasures, ambitions and other things from leading us astray down the path towards our downfall and destruction. We should always keep in mind that as Christians, each and every one of us are the ones whom God had called and chosen from this world, and whom He embraced as His own beloved sons and daughters, as those whom He is pleased with, and seek to be reunited with. Therefore, as we ponder and reflect on the lives of the Saints and Holy men and women,particularly the life and experiences of St. Ignatius of Loyola, the great Saint whose memory we remember and venerate today, let us all as Christians renew our commitment to be ever more faithful, zealous and committed disciples and followers of God, giving our best in whatever areas and missions that He had entrusted to us, so that by our various contributions and efforts, we may truly glorify Him and bear rich fruits of our efforts in the advance of the proclamation of the truth of God and His salvation to all. May the Lord, our most loving God continue to guide and strengthen us in our journey and faith, at each and every moments so that we may continue to be good and worthy examples for everyone around us in our lives and actions. May He bless our many good works and endeavours, our efforts and contributions to the missions of His Church, and may He strengthen us in the commitment and conviction to continue proclaiming Him at all times, in our every niches in life and in all of our various communities. May God in His infinite grace and mercy, grant us the grace to live in accordance with God’s expectations which is ultimately the way to true and lasting life. 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 been in vain. Now, Lord, come to our aid! 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. We pray for all mothers, wives, those going through challenges in their marriages, Victims of verbal and spousal abuse, we pray for peace, love and unity in our families and our world. 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 Lord of all riches, You bestow upon me and upon all Your children countless graces every day. The treasures of Your mercy are of infinite value. Please open my eyes so that I can see and my ears so that I can hear so as to discover all that You wish to bestow. May You and the riches of Your Kingdom become the one and only, all-consuming focus of my life. 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 Ignatius of Loyola, Priest and Saint Germanus, Bishop ~ 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💖