TWENTY- FIRST WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME
SAINTS OF THE DAY ~ FEAST DAY: AUGUST 26, 2024
Greetings and blessings beloved family and Happy Monday of the Twenty-First Week in Ordinary Time!
On this special feast day, we humbly pray for the sick and dying, especially those who are suffering from cancers and other terminal diseases. We continue to pray for our children and children all over the world. 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
On this day, 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 26, 2024 |
Watch “Holy Mass from the National Shrine of the Divine Mercy” | August 26, 2024 |
Pray “Holy Rosary from Lourdes, France” |August 26, 2024 |
Pray “The Chaplet of Divine Mercy in song”| August 26, 2024 |
Pray “Holy Rosary ALL 20 Mysteries VIRTUAL🌹JOYFUL🌹LUMINOUS🌹SORROWFUL🌹GLORIOUS” on YouTube |
Memorare Chaplet | Prayer in Difficult Times (Powerful Prayer) |
Today’s Bible Readings: Monday August 26, 2024
Reading 1, Second Thessalonians 1:1-5, 11-12
Responsorial Psalm, Psalms 96:1-2, 2-3, 4-5
Gospel, Matthew 23:13-22
NOVENA TO SAINT MONICA: Traditionally prayed every day from August 18–26 (Or any time of the year). Novena to Saint Monica is eqspecially prayed for wayward children. [Novena link – https://mycatholic.life/catholic-prayers/novena-to-saint-monica/]
We thank God for granting us the grace to successfully complete our Novena to Saint Monica today. May St. Monica intercede for us as we celebrate her feast day tomorrow, August 27th. St. Monica ~ Pray for us 🙏
Memorial of Saint Monica is August 27
Memorial of Saint Augustine is August 28
Saint Monica was the mother of Saint Augustine. She is credited for being a holy and faith-filled mother whose prayers brought about the conversion of her son, Augustine. This novena can be prayed for any intention, especially for wayward children.
Dear Saint Monica, you were once the mournful mother of a prodigal son. Your faithfulness to prayer brought you and your son so close to God that you are now with him in eternity. By your intercession and God’s grace, your son St. Augustine became a great and venerable Saint of the Church. Please take my request to God with the same fervor and persistence with which you prayed for your own son. (Mention your intentions here)
With your needs, worries and anxieties, you threw yourself on the mercy and providence of God. Through sorrow and pain, you constantly devoted yourself to God. Pray for me that I might join you in such a deep faith in God’s goodness and mercy. Above all, dear Saint Monica, pray for me that I may, like your son, turn from my sin and become a great Saint for the glory of God.
Our Father… Hail Mary… Glory be… Amen 🙏
FEAST OF OUR LADY OF CZESTOCHOWA, THE BLACK MADONNA; SAINT JEANNE ELIZABETH BICHIER DES AGES, VIRGIN; SAINT ZEPHYRINUS, POPE AND MARTYR AND SAINT ORONTIUS OF LECCE, BISHOP AND MARTYR ~ FEAST DAY – AUGUST 26TH: Today, we celebrate the Feast of Our Lady of Czestochowa (Black Madonna of Częstochowa); Saint Jeanne Elizabeth Bichier des Ages, Virgin; Saint Zephyrinus Pope Martyr and Saint Orontius of Lecce, Bishop and Martyr. Through the intercession of our Blessed Mother Mary, Our Lady of Czestochowa and the Saints on this feast day, we humbly pray for the repose of the souls of the faithful departed and we pray for those who mourn. We pray for the safety and well-being of all students and youths, for the poor and needy and for peace, love, and unity in our marriages, our families and our world. We pray for the sick and dying, especially those who are suffering from cancers and other terminal diseases. 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.🙏
OUR LADY OF CZESTOCHOWA, THE BLACK MADONNA: Our Lady of Czestochowa, also known as the Black Madonna of Częstochowa is a venerated icon of the Blessed Virgin Mary housed at the Jasna Góra Monastery in Częstochowa, Poland. Several Pontiffs have recognised the venerated icon, beginning with Pope Clement XI, who issued a Canonical Coronation to the image on 8 September 1717 via the Vatican Chapter. The revered icon of the Virgin Mary and the Child Jesus said to be one of those painted by St. Luke the Evangelist (who was an artist, as well as a writer and physician) as Our Lady relayed to him the stories of Jesus’ life contained in his Gospel account. Also known as the “Black Madonna”, the icon is painted on a cypress wood panel from a table used by the Holy Family in Nazareth, according to tradition the very wood of the Holy Family’s tabletop built by Jesus himself, and the icon was discovered and brought from Jerusalem by St. Helen, mother of Emperor Constantine and collector of Christian relics in the Holy Land. The icon was then enshrined in the imperial city of Constantinople, according to the legend, where it remained for the next 500 years. It was given to a Greek princess married to a Ruthenian nobleman and it was housed in the royal palace at Belz in the Ukraine for the next 600 years. Art historians believe it is a Byzantine icon of the Hodigitria type dating from the 6th – 9th Century.
This icon of Our Lady has held a special place of honor at the heart of the Catholic faith in Poland for at least the last 600 years. The two sword slashes on Our Lady’s face, and a scar from an arrow to the throat, sustained in the 15th century from separate attacks by enemy invaders, has given hope to the Polish people of the Blessed Mother’s special protection, and comfort in their many sorrows, throughout centuries of devastating invasions to their country.Numerous miracles have been attributed to the icon, which is kept and venerated at Jasna Gora Monastery in Czestochowa, Poland. In 1656 King Casimir declared Our Lady of Czestochowa “Queen of Poland” and made the city the spiritual capital of the nation, now the third-largest Catholic pilgrimage site in the world. She is the Patron Saint of Poland. August 26th is the feast of Our Lady of Czestochowa. Our Lady of Czestochowa, pray for us!
PRAYER TO OUR LADY OF CZESTOCHOWA: Holy Mother of Czestochowa, Thou art full of grace, goodness and mercy. I consecrate to Thee all my thoughts, words and actions—my soul and body. I beseech Thy blessings and especially prayers for my salvation. Today, I consecrate myself to Thee, Good Mother, totally —with body and soul amid joy and sufferingsbto obtain for myself and others Thy blessings on this earth and eternal life in Heaven. Amen 🙏
Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee; blessed art thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. … Behold the handmaid of the Lord: Be it done unto me according to Thy word.🙏
SAINT JEANNE ELIZABETH BICHIER DES AGES, VIRGIN: St. Jeanne Elizabeth Bichier des Ages (1773-1838) was born at La Blanc, France, on July 5, 1773. She was a French religious sister, commonly referred to as Elizabeth Bichier. She was Christianed Joan Elizabeth but commonly called by her second name, Elizabeth. Born to nobility and educated in a convent school, St. Jeanne Elizabeth witnessed closely and was personally affected by the events of the French Revolution which shook France when she was just 16 years old. St. Joan was of noble birth, but she committed herself to the service of others. Educated in a Poitiers convent, she waged a successful fight to save family property from the National Assembly after the death of her father. Upon the death of her father, she moved to La Guimetiere with her mother, and in 1796, realizing that she needed to do something to defend the Church and keep the faith alive amidst the attacks of the revolutionaries, she decided to begin a ministry of teaching and serving the poor. She gathered groups of faithful in the town – which was at this point without a priest or community of religious – and organized meetings of prayer, studying of the Scriptures, and singing hymns.
She entered a Carmelite convent upon her mother’s death in 1804, and later the Society of Providence, with the advice of Saint Andrew Fournet, an underground priest who was forced to remain clandestine because he refused to make a pledge of allegiance to the government of the new republic. St. Andrew Fournet encouraged Elizabeth to devote her life to education and the care of the sick. She’s Foundress of the Congregation of the Daughters of the Cross, a disciple of St. Andrew Fournet. She lived for a whole with the Carmelites and the Society of Providence in order to prepare herself for the religious life.Under Fournet’s direction, Elizabeth was put in charge of group of women dedicated to Catholic education and care for the sick and aged. St. Andrew Fournet realized that she was the one God had called to lead a community of women he had gathered, and she cofounded the Congregation of the Daughters of the Cross with him in 1807 to care for the sick and poor, and to teach the faith. At her suggestion, she also helped to inspire the founding of a community of Priests dedicated to missionary service, the Congregation of the Sacred Heart of Jesus of Betharram. Her congregation was designed for teaching and hospital service. By 1830 had established sixty houses in France. She died at Le Pay, Poitiers, France. St. Jeanne Elizabeth died on August 26, 1838. She was beatified on May 13, 1934 by Pope Pius XI and Canonizedon on July 6, 1947 by Pope Pius XII.
PRAYER: Lord, our God, grant that Your faithful spouse, St. Elizabeth, may enkindle in us the flame of Divine love that she enkindled in other virgins for the everlasting glory of Your Church. Amen 🙏
SAINT ZEPHYRINUS, POPE AND MARTYR: Pope St. Zephyrinus was a Bishop of Rome and Pope in the 3rd Century. He was the bishop of Rome from 199 to his death on December 20, 217. He was born in Rome, and succeeded Victor I. Upon his death on 20 December 217, he was succeeded by his principal advisor, Callixtus I. He is known for combating heresies and defending the divinity of Christ. He faced one of the earliest upheavals in Papal history. The schism began because of Hippolytus, who, because he was well-schooled, thought he “knew it all.” There was a big debate over the Logos, the second person of the Trinity. Hippolytus was a Modalist and Patripassian, who believed it was God, the Heavenly Father, who had been Crucified, not Jesus Christ. Since Zephyrinus was a simple and less educated person, Hippolytus thought he could bully the Pope. But Zephyrinus preferred a practical approach and just wanted everyone to get along. He believed that one God, the Son, had been Crucified, not the Heavenly Father. And he also had a job to do, so he did not get all swept up in the debate at hand. It was a difficult time for Zephyrinus. He accepted that people will sometimes disagree, yet knew that should not end the Papacy, and he served ably until the year 217. This Pope abolished the use of wooden chalices, decreeing that these be replaced with glass ones if metal was too expensive. He also required all the faithful to receive Holy Communion at Easter. St. Zephyrinus won the crown of martyrdom on August 26, 217. His relics are enshrined in San Silvestro at Rome, the church for English Catholics in the Eternal City.
Saint Zephyrinus, Pope and Martyr ~ Pray for us 🙏
SAINT ORONTIUS OF LECCE, BISHOP AND MARTYR: St. Orontius of Lecce (1st c.) was the son of the Roman imperial treasurer in Lecce, Italy. Upon his father’s death he inherited the position. St. Orontius was converted to the Christian faith along with his nephew, Fortunatus, by Justus, a disciple of St. Paul the Apostle. St. Orontius was later denounced to the authorities as a Christian and was ordered to sacrifice to the pagan gods. He refused and was arrested, removed from his office, tortured, and exiled to Corinth together with Fortunatus. In Corinth the pair met St. Paul the Apostle, who consecrated St. Orontius as the first bishop of Lecce. When St. Orontius and Fortunatus returned to Lecce they were persecuted and imprisoned again, but were released and ordered to stop preaching. They continued to preach in the surrounding cities, and were arrested a third time and executed. St. Orontius’ feast day is August 26th.
Saint Orontius of Lecce, Bishop and Martyr ~ Pray for us 🙏
SCRIPTURE REFLECTIONS
Bible Readings for today, Monday of the Twenty-First Week in Ordinary Time | USCCB | https://bible.usccb.org/daily-bible-reading
Gospel Reading ~ Matthew 23:13-22
“Woe to you, blind guides”
“Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples: “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites. You lock the Kingdom of heaven before men. You do not enter yourselves, nor do you allow entrance to those trying to enter. “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites. You traverse sea and land to make one convert, and when that happens you make him a child of Gehenna twice as much as yourselves. “Woe to you, blind guides, who say, ‘If one swears by the temple, it means nothing, but if one swears by the gold of the temple, one is obligated.’ Blind fools, which is greater, the gold, or the temple that made the gold sacred? And you say, ‘If one swears by the altar, it means nothing, but if one swears by the gift on the altar, one is obligated.’ You blind ones, which is greater, the gift, or the altar that makes the gift sacred? One who swears by the altar swears by it and all that is upon it; one who swears by the temple swears by it and by him who dwells in it; one who swears by heaven swears by the throne of God and by him who is seated on it.”
In today’s Gospel reading, Jesus is very critical of those who shut up the kingdom of God in people’s faces, refusing to go in themselves and preventing others from doing so. Jesus came to proclaim the presence of the kingdom of God and to invite people to savour the goodness of God’s kingdom, the loving power of God’s presence, here in this present life and, to a fuller extent, in eternity. Yet, some of Jesus’ contemporaries, the experts in the Jewish Law, were trying to close off this wonderful gift to others. Not only have they been rejecting Jesus’ message for themselves but they have been making it difficult for others to accept it. Jesus was often critical of people who were an obstacle to other people coming to faith in Him. He was critical of His own disciples for trying to prevent children drawing near to Him, in spite of the wishes of the children’s parents for Jesus to bless their children. John the Baptist had done the opposite. He had worked to open up people to the presence of God’s kingdom in the person of Jesus. There will always be those who try to block others from coming to know the Lord and all that He offers and, thankfully, there will always be others who do the opposite, who try to open up others to faith in the Lord and all that flows from it. One of the great services of love we can render others, according to Jesus, is to support them as they try to respond to God’s call through Jesus. Because there will always be those who shut up the kingdom of God in people’s faces, the Lord needs us to keep doing the opposite. Rather than shutting up the kingdom of heaven in people’s faces, Jesus wants us to open up the kingdom of heaven to each other. We are to bring each other to the Lord, to reveal the Lord to each other, and, in so doing, to support one another on our journey towards the kingdom of heaven. There are many people in the Gospels who brought others to Jesus and who can be an inspiration to us. We only have to think of John the Baptist, whose life mission was to lead people to Jesus, to open up the kingdom of heaven to others. We need the support of each other’s faith, each other’s witness, as we journey on our pilgrim way through life. Jesus calls us to be a John the Baptist in our day, to live in ways that open people up to the presence of the Lord and the fullness of life that He brings. It is a task that the Lord needs each of us to be engaged in, and there is not more important task in life. The Lord wants to work through each one of us to bring one another to a deeper faith.
In our first reading today from the Epistle of St. Paul to the Thessalonians, St. Paul greeted the faithful people of God in Thessalonica, in what is today part of Greece, praying for them and encouraging them amidst the many challenges and trials that they had to endure in their path and commitments as Christians, as those who have faith in the Lord and believed in Him. St. Paul reminded the faithful that the Lord would always be with them and they should not give up in enduring the many persecutions and challenges because rich would be their rewards in the Kingdom of God, the assurance that the Lord Himself has given to them, that they would be well taken care of, and no one who had made commitment and sacrifices for the Lord would be abandoned by Him. This letter from St. Paul to the Thessalonians highlighted the reality of being a Christian, a follower and believer of Christ at that time, during the early years of the existence of the Church. At that time, the Christian faith was still a relatively new faith and faced many opposition and challenges from those who disagreed with the Lord’s teachings and from the pagans and also the Jewish authorities in Jerusalem. Being persecuted and enduring trials and tribulations were part and parcel of being Christians then, and many among the faithful had to face these difficulties on a daily basis. And yet, this did not discouraged many of them from continuing to follow the Lord faithfully as the persecutions in fact strengthened their desire to continue to serve and follow the Lord faithfully.
As we reflect on the words of the Sacred Scriptures today, we are all reminded to be truly faithful to God and not to be merely paying lip service to Him, or to be like hypocrites and all those who did not truly have genuine faith and trust in the Lord. Each and every one of us as Christians must always be sincere and genuine in our faith and belief in the Lord, and we should not merely be living our lives without commitment and the desire to live them in accordance to the faith and belief which we have in God. In each and every moments of our lives, we should always strive to do our best, to be exemplary and role model for one another in all things, to be true Christians not just in name, but also in our every efforts, endeavours, our words, actions and deeds. As Christians, we should always lead by example in all of our actions, words and deeds, in each and every moments of our lives. We should always be centred on the Lord in all things, doing our best at all opportunities given to us to proclaim Him through our examples, even in the smallest things that we do. We should never underestimate the impact of what we are doing, as often we may not realise that our every actions have wider consequences and implications that we may not be aware of. Through our actions and deeds, even the smallest and seemingly least significant ones among them, we may either show many others the truth and love of God, calling many more towards Him and His salvation, or we may end up scandalising His Holy Name instead, turning many away from God and His grace.The decision on which path we are to embark on is ours alone, brothers and sisters in Christ. God has given us all the free will to decide and choose our path, and we should consider carefully how we are to proceed from now on so that we do not end up falling into the wrong path. Let us all henceforth renew our commitments from now and beyond, to continue to glorify the Lord by our lives and to do our best so that in everything that we say and do, we will continue to be the faithful and committed disciples and followers of the Lord in all things. May God in His infinite grace and mercy, grant us the grace and empower each one of us to walk in His path and to embark on this journey of faith, now and always, to the end of our days and everlasting life with Him. 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 saving Lord, You desired deeply that the religious leaders of the time be powerful instruments of Your saving Gospel by presenting all truth in pure love. Please free me from every error so that Your Holy Word will be alive in me and will be sent forth to others through the manifestation of the many virtues You wish to bestow. 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, Our Lady of Czestochowa; Saint Jeanne Elizabeth Bichier des Ages and Saint Zephyrinus ~ 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💖