TWENTY-THIRD WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME
SAINTS OF THE DAY ~ FEAST DAY: SEPTEMBER 13, 2024
NOVENA TO OUR LADY OF SORROWS: Traditionally prayed September 7–15th. The Memorial of Our Lady of Sorrows is September 15th | Novena link below
Greetings and blessings, beloved family and Happy Friday of the Twenty-Third Week in Ordinary Time!
Today, on this feast day, through the intercession of our Blessed Mother Mary and the Saints, we humbly pray for the gentle repose of the souls of our loved ones who recently passed away, we particularly pray for the repose of the souls of all those who will die today, asking God to have mercy on their souls and to lead them into Eternal Life. We pray for the souls in Purgatory and we continue to pray for the repose of 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 and souls of all the faithful departed 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 and the Holy Spirit forever and ever. Amen🙏
On this feast day, 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 the Clergy, persecuted Christians, for peace, love, justice and unity in our families and our world. May God keep us all safe and 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
Watch “Holy Mass and Holy Rosary on EWTN on YouTube” | September 13, 2024 |
Watch “Holy Mass from the National Shrine of the Divine Mercy” | September 13, 2024 |
Pray “Holy Rosary from Lourdes France” | September 13, 2024 |
Pray “The Chaplet of Divine Mercy in song”| September 13, 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: Friday of the Twenty-Third Week in Ordinary Time | September 13, 2024
Reading 1, First Corinthians 9:16-19, 22-27
Responsorial Psalm, Psalms 84:3, 4, 5-6, 8, 12
Gospel, Luke 6:39-42
NOVENA TO OUR LADY OF SORROWS: Traditionally prayed September 7–15th. The Memorial of Our Lady of Sorrows is September 15th | https://www.ewtn.com/catholicism/devotions/nine-day-prayer-for-life-novena-to-our-lady-of-sorrows-283
SAINTS OF THE DAY: MEMORIAL OF SAINT JOHN CHRYSOSTOM, BISHOP, AND DOCTOR AND SAINT MAURILIUS, BISHOP OF ANGERS ~ FEAST DAY: SEPTEMBER 13TH: Today, we celebrate the Memorial of Saint John Chrysostom, Bishop and Doctor and Saint Maurilius, Bishop of Angers. 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 who are mentally and physically ill and those suffering from cancers and other terminal diseases. We pray for the souls in Purgatory and the repose of the souls of the faithful departed. We pray for the poor and needy and for peace, love, and unity in our marriages, our families, and 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 JOHN CHRYSOSTOM, BISHOP, AND DOCTOR: St. John Chrysostom (347-407 A.D.) refered to as Golden-mouthed, was a great genius and perhaps the greatest preacher in the history of the Church, thus the name given him, and the most prominent Greek father of the Church. His powerful eloquence earned him the surname of Chrysostom, or ‘Golden mouthed’ or ‘Golden tongued’. With St. Athanasius, St. Gregory Nazianzen and St. Basil, he forms the group of the four great doctors of the Eastern Church. St. John Chrysostom was born to noble parents in Antioch about 347 A.D., an important center of Christianity in his day. He was the son of a Latin father and a Greek mother; his mother, Anthusa, was widowed at the age of twenty, soon after his birth. Putting aside all thought of remarriage, Anthusa gave all of her attention to her son. She gave him the best classical Greek education of the day and enrolled him as a catechumen when he was eighteen. He studied Rhetoric under Libanius, a pagan, the most famous orator of the age. He came under the influence of the Holy Bishop Meletius, patriarch of Antioch, he decided to devote his time to the study of religious works and the Sacred Scriptures and Meletius sent him to the monastic school of Diodore, then Baptized him after three years of study and ordained him lector. As a result of his philosophical studies he was convinced of the truth of Christianity and became a renowned scholar and orator. He was then set out for the desert to live the ascetic life of a hermit. In 374, St. John then adopted a life of extreme asceticism as a hermit and began to lead the life of an anchorite in the mountains near Antioch and committed the whole of Sacred Scripture to memory. His extreme mortifications left him in fragile health, but in 386 the poor state of his health forced him to return to Antioch, after two years of recovery, and devoted himself to studying for the priesthood. He was ordained in 386 and served in the Cathedral of Antioch for 12 years, winning widespread fame for his sublime preaching. The brilliance of his mind combined with the holiness of his soul made him famous; he was ordained a bishop in Antioch and was later was forcefully appointed to the Archbishopric of Constantinople in 398, and became one of the greatest lights of the Church. His sermons, which extended for up to two hours, were public marvels. His straightforward style of preaching the Scriptures and his practical homilies made him very popular. As Archbishop of Constantinople, he also denounced the abuses of the ruling authority and preached against the immorality of the day, his courageous stance against the vices of even the wealthy made him enemies in high places and some were ecclesiastics, not the least being Theophilus, Patriarch of Alexandria, who had him condemned on false charges in 403 but repented of this before he died. His most powerful enemy, however, was the Empress Eudoxia, who was offended by the apostolic freedom of his discourses. Several accusations were brought against him in a pseudo-council, and he was sent into exile numerous times.
In the midst of his sufferings, like the Apostle St. Paul whom he so greatly admired, St. John Chrysostom found the greatest peace and happiness. He had the consolation of knowing that the Pope remained his friend, and did for him what lay in his power. The papal envoys were imprisoned, and St. John was defended by the pope and ordered restored to his see but he was sent further into exile, six hundred miles from Constantinople, across the Black Sea. He was exiled to Armenia where he continued to be a great presence in the Church of the East through his many letters. He was exiled from Armenia to an isolated place along the Black Sea. His enemies were not satisfied with the sufferings he had already endured, and they banished him still further, to Pythius, at the very extremity of the Empire. As a result he was worn out, sick and unable to endure its rigors and died on his way there on September 14, 407, still in exile of his hardships at Comana in Pontus. His last words were, “Glory to God for all things.” In 438 the Emperor Theodosius II of Constantinople had St. John Chrysostom’s body returned to Constantinople, and did penance for the sins of his mother Eudoxia. In 1204 his body was brought to St. Peter’s in Rome but was returned to the Orthodox on November 27, 2004 by Pope Saint John Paul II. His silver and jewel-encrusted skull is now kept in the Vatopedi Monastery on Mount Athos in northern Greece, and is credited by Christians with miraculous healings. His right hand is also preserved on Mount Athos, and numerous smaller relics are scattered throughout the world. St. John Chrysostom’s many writings, especially homilies and commentaries on the Gospels, are still extant and have exerted great influence over the centuries. He was proclaimed a Doctor of the Church in 451.St. John Chrysostom is the Patron Saint of Constantinople; epilepsy; Sacred orators; preachers. St. John Chrysostom’s feast day is September 13th.
PRAYER: God, You are the strength of those who hope in You. You gave Your Church St. John Chrysostom, Your Bishop, who was endowed with great eloquence and was able to with stand great sufferings. Let us learn from his teaching and be inspired by the example of his patience. Amen 🙏
QUOTES OF SAINT JOHN CHRYSOSTOM:
☆ “When you are before the altar where Christ reposes, you ought no longer to think that you are amongst men; but believe that there are troops of angels and archangels standing by you, and trembling with respect before the sovereign Master of Heaven and earth. Therefore, when you are in church, be there in silence, fear, and veneration.”
☆ “If the Lord should give you power to raise the dead, He would give much less than He does when he bestows suffering. By miracles you would make yourself debtor to Him, while by suffering He may become debtor to you. And even if sufferings had no other reward than being able to bear something for that God who loves you, is not this a great reward and a sufficient remuneration? Whoever loves, understands what I say.”
SAINT MAURILIUS, BISHOP OF ANGERS: St. Maurilius (c. 336 – 426), wss a priest originally from Milan and became the bishop of Angers between 423 and 453. He played an early role in the Christianization of Gaul. As a young man, Maurilius was drawn to his faith. He studied closely under St. Martin of Tours who, at the time, had a monastery in Milan. After the Arians drove St. Martin away from Milan, Maurilius felt he had lost his teacher. Maurilius soon found himself as cantor for St. Ambrose, the bishop of Milan. However, after St. Maurilius’ father passed away, he left Milan to rejoin St. Martin in Tours. While there, Maurilius was ordained a priest by the Apostle of Gaul. Maurilius was dedicated fervently to the salvation of souls. During his mission, he was led to a pagan temple near Angers. Maurilius, with his prayers, brought fire down from heaven to destroy the site. Afterwards, he had a church and a monastery built in that location. Many souls traveled to pray with St. Maurilius in the new monastery. During this time, Maurilius converted many pagans by preaching to them and performing miracles on the sick, the blind and the possessed.
Following the bishop of Angers’ death, St. Martin of Tours chose Maurilius to succeed him. It is said that on the day of Maurilius’ consecration, a white dove flew into the church and rested upon his head. During his 90th year of life, God prepared Maurilius for his departure on earth. Before his hour of death, Maurilius spoke, “Ponder well, that your souls are bought at a great price: the precious blood of Jesus Christ.” Following a short illness, Maurilius passed away in 426. During his funeral, numerous miracles took place, including two people who were born blind having their sight restored and a paralyzed man regaining use of his limbs after kissing the coffin. His remains now live at the Cathedral of Angers. He is the patron saint of Angers, invoked by fishermen and gardeners.
St. Maurilius, Bishop of Angers ~ Pray for us 🙏
SCRIPTURE REFLECTIONS:
Bible Readings for Today – Memorial of Saint John Chrysostom, Bishop and Doctor of the Church | Friday of the Twenty-Third Week in Ordinary Time | USCCB | https://bible.usccb.org/daily-bible-reading
Gospel Reading ~ Luke 6:39-42
“Can a blind person guide a blind person?”
“Jesus told His disciples a parable: “Can a blind person guide a blind person? Will not both fall into a pit? No disciple is superior to the teacher; but when fully trained, every disciple will be like his teacher. Why do you notice the splinter in your brother’s eye, but do not perceive the wooden beam in your own? How can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, let me remove that splinter in your eye,’ when you do not even notice the wooden beam in your own eye? You hypocrite! Remove the wooden beam from your eye first; then you will see clearly to remove the splinter in your brother’s eye.”
In today’s Gospel reading, Jesus calls on us to be more attentive to the plank in our own eye than to the splinter in our neighbour’s eye. In a humorous image in today’s parable, Jesus is reminding us that we all have our blind spots; we all have something that blocks our vision. We do not see clearly. The conclusion He draws from that is that we should be slow to criticize or to judge others. The words of Jesus in today’s Gospel reading invite us to ask ourselves, ‘How well do we see others?’ Jesus suggests that our way of seeing others can be very limited, as He uses the humorous image of someone with a plank in their eye trying to take a splinter out of someone else’s eye. The one who is blind, but is unaware of his or her blindness, is trying to help someone who is less blind to see. In calling on us to take the plank out of our own eye first, he calls on us to work on our own areas of blindness before attempting to help others to see clearly. In his first letter to the Corinthians, from which we are reading these days, Saint Paul says, ‘now we see as in a mirror, dimly’. He was referring to how we see the Lord, with the eyes of faith. It is a dim seeing compared to our seeing him face to face beyond this earthly life. We also see other people dimly in this earthly life. Only the Lord can look into the heart of someone, whereas we can only look at appearances. It is because of our innate blindness when it comes to others, our seeing dimly, that the Lord calls on us not to judge others, but to leave judgement to God who alone sees clearly, with the eyes of love. Every day we can come before the Lord in prayer, asking Him to heal our blindness, so that we can grow towards seeing others as He sees them, with His eyes.
In our first reading today from the Epistle of St. Paul to the Church and faithful people of God in Corinth, the Apostle spoke of the matter about his ministry and how he did not boast about his accomplishments and achievements before everyone. Instead, he highlighted that being Christians, that is as the disciples and followers of Our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, one must be more humble and focused on the Lord in all things, rather than to be proud and full of oneself. He reminded all Christians to be always vigilant against the various temptations of worldly glory and ambitions, all of which can lead one astray and away from the Lord and His salvation unless we are careful and vigilant in how we live our lives. According to the first reading St. Paul looks back on his life, on the time he was a persecutor of the church. He says, ‘I use to be a blasphemer and did all I could to injure and discredit the faith’. In retrospect he can see clearly the plank that was in his eye back then, even though at the time he couldn’t see it. He was judging the followers of Jesus, trying to take the splinter out of their eye, while all the time blind to the plank in his own eye. It took that moment of grace on the road to Damascus to open his eyes to his own level of blindness. ‘Mercy was shown me’, he says. It was ultimately the Lord who took the plank out of his eye and healed his blindness. It is the Lord who heals our blindness too. He wants to show us mercy, as he showed mercy to St. Paul. For that to happen, we need to come before Him acknowledging our blindness or, at least, asking for the grace to see our blindness. It is only in opening ourselves in this way to the Lord’s healing and merciful presence that we can begin to see others clearly. This is where a healthy awareness of our own faults and limitations can be important. It keeps us grounded and helps us to look on others in a more understanding and more generous way. This was the way the Lord looked on people. Part of our baptismal calling is to see as the Lord sees, so that when we look upon others they sense something of the Lord’s look.
As we reflect on the words of the Sacred Scriptures today, we are reminded not to be proud, arrogant or egoistic in how we carry on living our lives. Instead, the greater we are, and the more knowledgeable we are, the wiser and the better we are, the more we should be humble and willing to listen to others, especially the Lord Himself in how we should be living our lives. We must not allow our ego and pride to become our downfall and be the serious obstacles and challenges in our path, preventing us from truly being able to approach the Lord and be filled with His grace and love. If we allow ourselves to be swayed by those evils and ambitions, and if we harden and close our hearts and minds against Him and against others, then more often than not we may find ourselves falling into the wrong path in life. As we reflect on the lives of the Saints and holy men and women, let us all be inspired by their great and faithful examples, especially the experiences faced by St. John Chrysostom, who we celebrate today, the challenges and trials that he faced in his works and ministry should remind us all that we are also likely to face such struggles, trials and hardships amidst our faith journey throughout our respective lives. St. John Chrysostom dedicated himself wholly and thoroughly to God, and he spoke up courageously against those who abused their power and against all those who acted with pride, ego and arrogance. He humbly dedicated himself to God and His people despite his status and the prestige that he enjoyed. He did not allow himself to be swayed by the temptations of sin, of pride and ego, of ambition and greed. Each and every one of us should be inspired to follow in his footsteps and continue to do our best so that we may grow ever stronger in our faith and commitment to God, and we may distance ourselves from all the things that may lead to our downfall and destruction, and keeping us away from God. We are reminded that each and every one of us should keep ourselves away from worldly temptations and evils, and all the things that usually keep us away from the path of righteousness and virtue in God. Each and every one of us as Christians have been called to do God’s will, to obey His Law and commandments, and to free ourselves from the many temptations and the shackles of evil and sin that have often kept us chained to our desires and all the attachments we have to worldly glory and pleasures, so that we do not remain bound to those wicked and evil thoughts and ways, but receive from God the assurance of eternal life and true joy through our faith and commitment to Him. All of us should do our best so that our every words, actions and deeds are exemplary and full of true and genuine faith in God. Let us all not be discouraged and be disheartened by all those things, trials and temptations, but instead, let us be strengthened by the examples and inspirations that our many holy predecessors have shown in their lives, all these while. May the Lord continue to bless our efforts and works, and help guide us in our journey towards Him. May God in His infinite grace and mercy, grant us His grace to love one another and may God be with us always, now and forevermore. Amen🙏
DEVOTION OF THE MONTH OF SEPTEMBER:
MONTH OF OUR LADY OF SORROWS:
September is the Month of Our Lady of Sorrows, also known as our Mother of Sorrows (Mater Dolorosa)! Since the 16th century, Catholic piety has assigned entire months to special devotions. The Church dedicates the month of September to Our Lady of Sorrows, whose memorial the Church celebrates on September 15th. Devotion to the sorrows of the Virgin Mary dates from the twelfth century, when it made its appearance in monastic circles under the influence of St. Anselm and St. Bernard.
This devotion recalls the Blessed Virgin Mary’s spiritual martyrdom in virtue of her perfect union with the Passion of Christ. This was her role in salvation history and what merited her place as the spiritual Mother of all Christians. This is symbolized by a single sword, or seven swords, piercing Mary’s suffering heart, as foretold in Simeon’s prophecy. Traditionally the Church meditates on the “Seven Sorrows” of our Blessed Mother: the prophecy of Simeon; the Holy Family’s flight into Egypt; the loss of the Child Jesus for three days; the meeting of Mary and Jesus as He carried His cross; Jesus’ crucifixion and death; Jesus’ sacred body taken down from the cross; and Jesus’ burial. All the sorrows of Mary (the prophecy of Simeon, the three days’ loss, etc.) are merged in the supreme suffering at the Passion. In the Passion, Mary suffered a martyrdom of the heart because of Our Lord’s torments and the greatness of her love for Him. “She it was,” says Pope Pius XII, “who immune from all sin, personal or inherited, and ever more closely united with her Son, offered Him on Golgotha to the Eternal Father together with the holocaust of her maternal rights and motherly love. As a new Eve, she made this offering for all the children of Adam contaminated through his unhappy fall. Thus, she, who was the mother of our Head according to the flesh, became by a new title of sorrow and glory the spiritual mother of all His members.” The feast of Our Lady of Sorrows (Mater Dolorosa) is September 15th.
INVOCATIONS: Mary most sorrowful, Mother of Christians, pray for us. Virgin most sorrowful, pray for us 🙏🏾
https://www.catholicculture.org/culture/liturgicalyear/prayers/view.cfm?id=762
THE POPE’S MONTHLY INTENTIONS FOR 2024: FOR THE MONTH OF SEPTEMBER – FOR THE CRY OF THE EARTH: We pray that each one of us will hear and take to heart the cry of the Earth and of victims of natural disasters and climactic change, and that all will undertake to personally care for the world in which we live.
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, and 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 merciful Jesus, may I build a humble and true habit of gazing upon You in Your splendor and beauty. As I see You, day in and day out, please also help me to see myself through Your eyes of mercy so that I will also grow in humility. Please remove all judgment from my heart so that I will be free to know and love all people as You know and love them. 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 Blessed Mother Mary; Saint John Chrysostom, Bishop and Doctor and Saint Maurilius, Bishop of Angers ~ 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 month of September and relaxing weekend!🙏
Blessings and Love always, Philomena💖