NINETEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME
SAINTS OF THE DAY ~ FEAST DAY: AUGUST 16, 2024
Greetings beloved family and Happy Friday of the Nineteenth Week in Ordinary Time.
On this feast day, as our children and children all over the world begin the new school year, with special intention through the intercession of our Blessed Mother Mary, and the Saints, we pray for their safety and well-being, especially those beginning the new school year. May God grant them the courage to face new challenges and wisdom to make good choices. We pray for wisdom, knowledge, and understanding and for God’s guidance and protection upon them during this school year and always. We pray for safe travels, to and from school. We also pray for all teachers, staff and parents, and guardians. May the good Lord provide for those in need. And we continue to pray for peace, love, and unity in our families and our world. May God keep us all safe andh well. Amen 🙏
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight.” ~ Proverbs 3:5-6
“If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.” ~ James 1:5
We continue to pray for the sick and dying. We especially pray for our loved ones who have recently died and we 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 | August 16, 2024 |
Watch “Holy Mass from the National Shrine of the Divine Mercy” | August 16, 2024 |
Pray “Holy Rosary from Lourdes, France” |August 16, 2024 |
Pray “Holy Rosary from the National Shrine of the Divine Mercy” | August 16, 2024 |
Pray “The Chaplet of Divine Mercy | from the National Shrine of the Divine Mercy” | August 16, 2024 |
Pray “Holy Rosary ALL 20 Mysteries VIRTUAL🌹JOYFUL🌹LUMINOUS🌹SORROWFUL🌹GLORIOUS” on YouTube |
Memorare Chaplet | Prayer in Difficult Times (Powerful Prayer) | https://youtu.be/vVc782kcDds
Today’s Bible Readings: Friday, August 16, 2024
Reading 1, Ezekiel 16:59-63
Responsorial Psalm, Isaiah 12:2-3, 4, 5-6
Gospel, Matthew 19:3-12
SAINTS OF THE DAY: MEMORIAL OF SAINT STEPHEN OF HUNGARY, KING AND SAINT ROCH (ROCCO), CONFESSOR ~ FEAST DAY ~ AUGUST 16TH: Today, we celebrate the Memorial of Saint Stephen of Hungary, King and Saint Roch (Rocco), Confessor. Through the intercession of our Blessed Mother Mary and the Saints on this feast day, we humbly pray for all those who are single and seeking for life partners, may God bless them with loving and God-fearing life partners. We pray for the sick and dying, especially those who are sick with heart and lung diseases, knee problems, skin diseases and those suffering from cancers and other terminal diseases. We pray for peace, love, justice and unity in our families and our world. We pray for all workers and those seeking for employment, for the poor and needy in our world. And we continue to pray for our Holy Father, Pope Francis, the Bishops, the Clergy, for vocations to the priesthood and religious life, for the Church, for persecuted christians, for the conversion of sinners, and Christians all over the world. Amen🙏
SAINT STEPHEN OF HUNGARY, KING: St. Stephen, King of Hungary, (975-1038) was the monarch chosen by God to bring his people to embrace the Christian faith during the 11th century. St. Stephen, born Vajk, in 975 at Gran, then the capital of Hungary. The son of Geza, the fourth Duke of Hungarians, and of Sarboth, his wife, who had both been recently to converted to Christianity. Before St. Stephen’s birth, his mother, the duchess Sarboth, is said to have received a vision in which the original Saint Stephen – the Church’s first martyr – appeared telling her she would bear a son who would evangelize their land. Together with her husband, the Hungarian duke Geza, Sarboth is believed to have been converted and baptized by the bishop Saint Adalbert of Prague. The same saint baptized their son, Vajk in 985, giving him the name of Stephen. After a Christian education under the care of St. Adalbert, Bishop of Prague, and of Theodatus, a virtuous Italian Count, he succeeded his father upon the latter’s death in 997. Geza, St. Stephen’s father had desired to convert the Hungarians to the Catholic faith, a passion shared by St. Stephen once he reached adulthood and succeeded him in power. After conclusively defeating an alliance of rival pagan nobility, he used their acquired wealth to build a monastery, and invited clergy to convert the people.
St. Stephen established laws favoring Christianity over paganism, and sent an emissary to Rome with a request for the Pope to proclaim him as king. Pope Sylvester II accepted the request, sending him a crown and a gold processional cross, while also giving St. Stephen certain religious privileges. He was offered the privilege of being crowned king and the ceremony took place on December 25, 1000. His great zeal for the spread of the Catholic faith earned him the title of apostolic king and apostle of Hungary. He showed great diligence as king, while devoting the rest of his time to his religious duties – including charity toward the poor and sick, as well as the worship of God – and to his household. Gisela, St. Stephen’s wife, was the sister of the ruler later canonized as the Holy Roman Emperor Saint Henry II. Greatly devoted to the Virgin Mary, St. Stephen had several churches built in her honor both in Hungary and outside the kingdom. Her intercession is credited with preventing a war between Hungary and the Holy Roman Empire under Conrad II, and stopping an assassination plot against St. Stephen himself. The Hungarian king also established a monastery in Jerusalem, and set up institutions to aid pilgrims in other major cities. St. Stephen counted saints among his friends and correspondents, and fulfilled the Pope’s charge to use his royal authority for the good of the Church.
Suffering came to the king, St. Stephen however, when only one of his children survived to adulthood. St. Stephen’s only living son Emeric received a strong Catholic upbringing, and was expected to succeed his father. But Emeric died before Stephen, after a hunting accident in 1031. Emeric was later canonized as a saint in his own right, and Stephen eventually came to rejoice that his son had been permitted to enter God’s presence before him. The king’s final years, however, were marked by illness as well as a succession dispute among his relatives. In 1038, on the feast of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary, St. Stephen delivered his final words to leaders of the Church and state, telling them to protect and spread the Catholic faith. To the Virgin Mary, the king directed one of his final prayers: “To thee, O Queen of heaven, and to thy guardianship, I commend the holy Church, all the bishops and the clergy, the whole kingdom, its rulers and inhabitants; but before all, I commend my soul to thy care.” St. Stephen died on August 15, 1038, the feast of the Assumption of our Lady, to whom he had consecrated his kingdom. He was buried alongside his son St. Emeric, and the two were canonized together in 1083 and his cult was approved in 1083 by Pope Gregory VII. He is the Patron Saint of Bricklayers; death of children; Hungary; kings; masons; stone masons; stonecutters.
PRAYER: Almighty God, Your Church flourished through the efforts of St. Stephen when he reigned on earth. Grant that she may now be defended by him dwelling gloriously in heaven. Amen 🙏
QUOTE OF SAINT STEPHEN OF HUNGARY: “Be humble in this life, that God may raise you up in the next. Be truly moderate and do not punish or condemn anyone immoderately. Be gentle so that you may never oppose justice. Be honorable so that you may never voluntarily bring disgrace upon anyone. Be chaste so that you may avoid all the foulness of lust like the pangs of death.”
SAINT ROCH (ROCCO), CONFESSOR: St. Roch, also known as St. Rocco (1295-1327), was a French noble, born in Montpellier, France, the pious son of the city’s governor. He was born with a red cross on his chest, a sign that the Virgin Mary answered his mother’s prayer to heal her barrenness. His parents died when he was twenty, he became orphaned, after which he gave his wealth to the poor and handed the government of the city over to his uncle. He rejected the luxe life, and as a young adult, donated his sizeable inheritance to the poor and sought a life as a pilgrim. Free from earthly cares, he set off as a pilgrim for Italy. When he came upon a town badly struck by the plague, he sojourned there to help the sick. He cured many people by making the Sign of the Cross over them. These miracles occurred at every plague-infested area that he passed through on his way to Rome. When he reached Piacenza he himself contracted the disease in his leg, which rendered him sick, feeble, and an outcast from society. St. Roch found a safe place to live in a deserted cave and awaited death in the remote forest hut. Providentially, a count’s hunting dog found and befriended him, brought him food, and licked his wounds. This local dog brought him bread on a daily basis, and this was how St. Roch survived until he recovered. A spring arose nearby, providing fresh water. The count, who followed his dog one day, discovered the saint and aided him in his recovery.
Slowly St. Roch’s health was restored, after which he returned to his native Montpellier, France. He refused to disclose his identity to the townspeople so that he could remain poor and unknown. This secrecy aroused suspicion that he might be a spy, and he was cast into prison by his own uncle, who did not recognize him. St. Roch died in prison five years later. His identity was then discovered by the red cross birthmark on his chest. At his funeral, many miracles attested to his sanctity, and a church was erected for his veneration. His body was afterward transferred to Venice, deposited with great honors in the church dedicated under his invocation. An archconfraternity of St. Roch still is active today. He is the Patron Saint of dogs, bachelors; invalids; surgeons; cholera; diseased cattle; epidemics; falsely accused people; invalids; knee problems; plague; relief from pestilence; skin diseases; skin rashes; surgeons; tile makers; Barano, Italy; Castropignano, Italy; Constantinople; Istanbul; Orsogna, Italy; Patricia, Italy. His feast day is August 16th.
PRAYER TO SAINT ROCH: O Blessed Saint Roch, Patron of the sick, have pity on those who lie upon a bed of suffering. Your power was so great when you were in this world, that by the sign of the Cross, many were healed of their diseases. Now that you are in heaven, your power is not less. Offer, then, to God our sighs and tears and obtain for us that health we seek through Christ our Lord…Amen. Saint Roch, pray for us, that we may be preserved from all diseases of body and soul🙏
SCRIPTURE REFLECTIONS:
Bible Readings for today, Friday of the Nineteenth Week in Ordinary Time | USCCB | https://bible.usccb.org/daily-bible-reading
Gospel Reading ~ Matthew 19:3-12
“Because of the hardness of your hearts Moses allowed you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so”
“Some Pharisees approached Jesus, and tested him, saying, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any cause whatever?” He said in reply, “Have you not read that from the beginning the Creator made them male and female and said, For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh? So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore, what God has joined together, man must not separate.” They said to him, “Then why did Moses command that the man give the woman a bill of divorce and dismiss her?” He said to them, “Because of the hardness of your hearts Moses allowed you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so. I say to you, whoever divorces his wife (unless the marriage is unlawful) and marries another commits adultery.” His disciples said to him, “If that is the case of a man with his wife, it is better not to marry.” He answered, “Not all can accept this word, but only those to whom that is granted. Some are incapable of marriage because they were born so; some, because they were made so by others; some, because they have renounced marriage for the sake of the Kingdom of heaven. Whoever can accept this ought to accept it.”
Today’s Gospel reading from St. Matthew gives us Jesus’ teaching on marriage and celibacy. Our Lord Jesus spoke to His disciples and some of the Pharisees who were there, who asked Him about the matter of divorce, and how the Law of God as revealed through Moses, or the Mosaic laws did allow for divorce to happen under certain conditions and arrangements. Even though within the Jewish tradition the Book of Deuteronomy allowed for divorce, Jesus refers back to the original intention of the Creator as expressed in the Book of Genesis, according to which the union between man and woman in marriage was to be enduring. The Lord pointed out that this was not actually what God intended for His people to do, but merely what He allowed them to do through Moses because of their stubbornness and constant disobedience. It is at least a lesser evil compared to letting them to persist in their sinfulness and in refusing to follow other tenets and precepts of the Law of God. God wanted them all to know that His Law and commandments, the rules and regulations that He had put in place was meant to keep them away from immoral living and from all sorts of sins which could further jeopardise them and their souls. If the church is to be faithful to the teaching of Jesus it must keep promoting God’s vision for marriage as the giving of a man and a woman to each other for life. Jesus also acknowledges the value of celibacy, for those to whom it has been granted, for those who have the graced capacity for celibacy from God. Jesus declares that it is a value given with a view to a greater value, God’s kingdom. It is to be lived for the sake of that kingdom, to further the coming of God’s kingdom and the doing of God’s will. Whether married or single we are all called to work together in the service of God’s purpose for our world and our lives, as revealed to us by Jesus.
The teaching of Jesus on marriage in today’s Gospel reading can seem very challenging and uncompromising today, especially in the context of the high proportion of marriages that do not last. We are all only too well aware that marriages break down. Many of us will know that from our own families. His vision of marriage can seem far removed from the reality of married life for many couples. Yet, perhaps it is precisely because so many marriages do not last today that the teaching of Jesus on marriage is all the more important. Jesus calls for a love between husband and wife that is faithful and enduring, a love that lasts in good times as well as bad, a love that is generous and ready to forgive. His vision of how a man and woman are to relate to each other in marriage is shaped by His insight into how God relates to all of us. God loves us with a faithful and enduring love. God’s love for us never changes; it lasts through good times and bad times in our lives; it is a love that is generous and ready to forgive. This is the quality of God’s love that is reflected in today’s first reading from the prophet Jeremiah. In the reading, the Lord accused His people of breaking the covenant He made with them. Yet, in spite of that infidelity, the Lord promises them, ‘I will remember the covenant that I made with you… I am going to renew my covenant with you… you will be reduced to silence when I have pardoned you for all that you have done’. Jesus calls on married couples to relate to one another in the way God relates to us. That call is addressed to all of us, whether we are married or single. We are to love one another in a way that reflects how God loves us.
In our first reading today from the Book of the prophet Ezekiel we are reminded of the time when the Lord showed His people through Ezekiel how He still loved them all despite all the wicked things that they had done, despite all the evils and the betrayals which they all had done to Him, all of which had caused them to be sundered and separated from His grace and love, and brought them to their downfall. God listed down all the wickedness they had done, how they had tainted themselves with wickedness and corruptions of the world, and how they had spurned and rejected His love, His kindness and patient care. Yet, He still wished to heal them from their troubles, to bless and endow them with all the good things and blessings which He had given to them earlier on, to show just how precious and beloved they all are to Him. Joshua reminds the people of Israel of the many ways they have been blessed and graced since God first called Abraham. The land they had recently entered with its towns, vineyards and olive groves was not the result of their own efforts but was much more by way of a gift from God. We all need to be reminded of how much we have received, the extent to which we have been graced by God. The more aware we are of the giftedness of life, the more thankful we will be. Saint Paul often called upon the first Christians to be thankful. In his first letter to the Thessalonians, which is the earliest Christian document that has come to us, he says, ‘give thanks in all circumstances’. We are to live out of a sense of gratitude to God for what we have received from God. We express our gratitude to God in prayer but also in life, by our willingness to give to others out of what we have received from God, by seeking to love others in the way we have been loved by God.
As we reflect on the words of the Sacred Scriptures today, we are all reminded of God’s great love and mercy towards us, as He constantly sought us out, reaching out to us with His great and ever enduring love although we have often disappointed Him, turning away from His Law and commandments, disobeying Him and not listening to Him and His words. God has sent His many messengers, the prophets and many other servants to remind and help them in their journey, calling upon them to embrace His love and grace once again, and while His people constantly rebelled against Him and even persecuted His prophets and messengers, He still loved them all nonetheless, and while chastising and punishing them for their sins, He still opened the path to forgiveness and reconciliation for His beloved but wayward children and people. We are called to emulate the great examples and lives of the Saints and Holy men and women, particularly St. Stephen of Hungary and all the Saints we celebrate today. Each and every one of us are reminded to be good and worthy in our own lives and actions as Christians as well. We must always strive to do our best, to be ever more faithful, committed and loving towards God in all things, to embrace God’s ever loving kindness, mercy and forgiveness so that we may walk ever more steadfastly in the path that God has shown to us, and that we may no longer be lost to Him into the darkness and corruptions of sin. n all the days of our lives. Amen. May God in His infinite grace and mercy, grant us the grace to keep praying for the freedom of the Spirit, the freedom to respond to the Lord’s continuing call to us. May God empower all of us so that we may always be ever faithful and committed in all things and may He help us to resist the temptations and pressures of pride and ego, so that we may always grow ever more faithful to Him, and be ever closer to Him, now and always, evermore. Let us ask St. Stephen of Hungary and all the Saints to intercede for all of us, and may the Lord continue to help and strengthen us all. Amen 🙏
DEVOTION OF THE MONTH OF AUGUST:
MONTH OF THE IMMACULATE HEART OF MARY: August is the Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary! The Church dedicates the month of August to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. It is a dogma of the Catholic faith that Mary is the Immaculate Conception; that is, in preparation for the Incarnation of the Second Person of the Holy Trinity in her womb, she was conceived without the corruption of sin through the foreseen and infinite merits of her Son, Jesus Christ. Over the centuries, as saints and theologians reflected on how Mary pondered and treasured the sacred events from the life of Christ in her holy heart, as attested in Scripture, her pure heart was recognized as something to be imitated. Devotion to Our Lady’s purity of heart began to flower—so much so that in the 17th century, St. John Eudes promoted it alongside the Sacred Heart of Jesus. The devotion rose to a new level after the apparitions of Our Lady of Fatima, when Mary revealed an image of her Immaculate Heart to Lucia, Jacinta, and Francisco.
THE POPE’S MONTHLY INTENTIONS FOR 2024: FOR THE MONTH OF AUGUST – FOR POLITICAL LEADERS: We pray that political leaders be at the service of their own people, working for integral human development and for the common good, especially caring for the poor and those who have lost their jobs.
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, Nigeria, 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 loving Lord, Your love is beyond all comprehension. It is a love that can only be understood by the gift of Your grace. Please do grant me the grace I need to not only understand and to receive Your love in my life but to also offer Your love to all. May my life become an ongoing instrument of the perfection of love that You lived. 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 and Saint Stephen of Hungary and Saint Roch (Rocco) ~ 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 relaxing weekend🙏
Blessings and Love always, Philomena💖