Author: Resa

  • MEMORIAL OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO, PRIEST

    MEMORIAL OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO, PRIEST

    Greetings, and blessings beloved family and Happy Friday of the Third Week in Ordinary Time!

    We thank God for the gift of life and for bringing us all successfully to the end of the month of January. May His name be praised forever and ever. Amen. We pray for God’s grace and mercy upon us through this Ordinary Time, and may the Lord grant us the grace to serve Him in spirit and in truth🙏

    THIRD WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME

    SAINT(S) OF THE DAY: FEAST DAY ~ JANUARY 31, 2025

    Watch “Holy Mass and Holy Rosary on EWTN | “Holy Mass from the National Shrine of the Divine Mercy” | Pray “Holy Rosary Novena From Lourdes” | January 31, 2025 | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2025/01/31/catholic-daily-mass-daily-tv-mass-2/

    Pray “Holy Rosary for Peace with Pope Francis” | “The Chaplet of Divine Mercy in song”| “Holy Rosary ALL 20 Mysteries | Memorare Chaplet | Prayer in Difficult Times (Powerful Prayer) | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2025/01/30/holy-rosary-for-peace-with-pope-francis/

    Please find below links to the websites for Daily Reflections, Foundation and interesting topics and articles about our Catholic faith and doctrines | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2025/01/30/daily-reflections-and-prayer-links/

    DAILY REFLECTIONS | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/

    Today, we continue to pray for the victims of the recent plane and helicopter crash on Wednesday evening near Washington, DC. Our thoughts and prayers are with all the victims, their families and loved ones during this incredibly difficult time.

    For the repose of their gentle souls and 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 🙏 âœïžđŸ•ŻâœïžđŸ•ŻâœïžđŸ•Ż

    “Blessed are those who have died in the Lord; let them rest from their abors for their good deeds go with them.” ~ Rev 14:13

    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, through the intercession of our Blessed Mother Mary, and all the Saints, particularly the Saint we celebrate today, Patron Saint of young people, boys, schoolchilren, Christian apprentices, Catholic publishers and editors, magicians, juvenile delinquents, Piura, Peru, we humbly pray and thank God for blessing us all with the gift of His precious son, our Savior Jesus Christ! For the safety and well-being of all our children and children all over the world. We pray for God’s guidance and protection upon them. We continue to pray for peace all around the world, particularly in the Middle East, Ukraine-Russia and other parts of the world. We pray for an end to the wars and conflicts, and for peace in our families and throughout our divided and conflicted World. We continue to pray for all those who are sick and dying, especially sick children, those who are mentally and physically ill, strokes, heart diseases, and those suffering from cancers and other terminal diseases. And we continue to pray for the Clergy, our Holy Father, Pope Francis, Cardinals, Bishops, Priests, Deacons, Religious and all those who preach the Gospel. We pray for vocations to the Priesthood and Religious life, 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🙏

    PRAYER FOR THE VICTIMS OF WILDFIRES AND DISASTERS: We continue to pray for the victims of the current wildfires in the United States (Los Angeles, California and other parts of the country) and victims of natural disasters across the world. We especially pray for those that have lost their lives and their families and loved ones.

    “Most Merciful God, Be “our refuge and our strength, an ever-present help in distress” (Psalm 46:1). You created us and sustain us by Your almighty power. Your mercy knows no bounds. At this time of great suffering, we entrust all victims of the wildfires to You. Comfort them, fill them with Your grace, and provide for their needs. We entrust all who have died to Your merciful Heart. Cleanse them of their sins and welcome them into Your heavenly Kingdom. Give wisdom and prudence to those managing this disaster. Give courage and resolve to those on the front lines. Keep them safe and successful in their efforts. Command the winds and the flames to obey You, Lord, as You once calmed the stormy seas. Pour the water of Your grace upon these destructive fires. Stay them with Your powerful hand. Angels of God, come to the aid of those most in need of God’s mercy. Protect them, guide them, and reveal to them God’s holy will. St. Florian, patron of firefighters, pray for those bravely battling the flames. St. Michael the Archangel, defend them in their peril. Saints in Heaven, we beseech your prayer. Intercede for those most in need. From this tragedy and chaos, bring hope and peace. Turn sorrow into compassion. Turn confusion into faith. Turn despair into divine hope. We place all our trust in You, Most Merciful God, knowing that You will bring forth new life and healing from the ashes of this trial. May Your name be glorified now and forever. Amen” đŸ™đŸœ

    A PRAYER FOR PEACE: Lord Jesus Christ, You are the true King of peace. In You alone is found freedom. Please free our world from conflict. Bring unity to troubled nations. Let Your glorious peace reign in every heart. Dispel all darkness and evil. Protect the dignity of every human life. Replace hatred with Your love. Give wisdom to world leaders. Free them from selfish ambition. Eliminate all violence and war. Glorious Virgin Mary, Saint Michael the Archangel, Every Angel and Saint: Please pray for peace. Pray for unity amongst nations. Pray for unity amongst all people. Pray for the most vulnerable. Pray for those suffering. Pray for the fearful. Pray for those most in need. Pray for us all. Jesus, Son of the Living God, have mercy on us. Jesus, hear our prayers. Jesus, I trust in You! Amen 🙏

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

    SAINT OF THE DAY: MEMORIAL OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO, PRIEST – FEAST DAY ~ JANUARY 31ST Today, we celebrate the Memorial of Saint John Bosco, Priest. Pope John Paul II named him “teacher and father to the young.” He’s the Patron Saint of young people, boys, schoolchilren, Christian apprentices, Catholic publishers and editors, magicians, juvenile delinquents, Piura, Peru. Through the intercession of our Blessed Mother Mary and Saint John Bosco and all the Saints, may they intercede for our children and us all. Amen. St. John Bosco, Priest ~ Pray for us đŸ™đŸœ |

    SAINT JOHN BOSCO, PRIEST: St. John Bosco (1815–1888) also known as Don Bosco was the founder of the Salesian Society, named in honor of St. Francis de Sales, and of the Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians. A 19th century Italian priest who reached out to young people to remedy their lack of education, opportunities, and faith. His lifework was the welfare of young boys and girls, hence his title, “Apostle of Youth.” St. John Bosco was born on August 16,1815 into a family of peasant farmers in Castelnuovo d’Asti – a place which would one day be renamed in the saint’s honor as “Castelnuovo Don Bosco.” St. John’s father died when he was two years old, but he drew strength from his pious mother, Mama Margherita’s deep faith in God. Mama Margherita also taught her son the importance of charity, using portions of her own modest means to support those in even greater need. St. John desired to pass on to his own young friends the example of Christian discipleship that he learned from his mother. At age nine, he had a prophetic dream in which a number of unruly young boys were uttering words of blasphemy. Jesus Christ and the Virgin Mary appeared to St. John in the dream, saying he would bring such youths to God through the virtues of humility and charity. Later on, this dream would help St. John to discern his calling as a priest. But he also sought to follow the advice of Jesus and Mary while still a boy: he would entertain his peers with juggling, acrobatics, and magic tricks, before explaining a sermon he had heard, or leading them in praying the Rosary.

    St. John’s older brother Anthony opposed his plan to be a priest, and antagonized him so much that he left home to become a farm worker at age 12. After moving back home three years later, John worked in various trades and finished school in order to attend seminary. Despite the financial difficulties at the age of twenty in 1835, St. John entered the major seminary at Chieri, next to the Church of the Immacolata Concezione, thanks to the financial help received from Louis Guala, founder and rector of the ecclesiastical residence St. Francis of Assisi in Turin. In 1841, after six years of study, at the age of 26 he was ordained a priest on the eve of Trinity Sunday by Archbishop Franzoni of Turin. In the city of Turin, he began ministering to boys and young men who lived on the streets, many of whom were without work or education and he became a kindly spiritual father to boys in need.

    The industrial revolution had drawn large numbers of people into the city to look for work that was frequently grueling and sometimes scarce. Don Bosco was shocked to see how many boys ended up in prison before the age of 18, left to starve spiritually and sometimes physically. The priest was determined to save as many young people as he could from a life of degradation. In spite of the criticism and violent attacks of the anti-clericals, he conducted workshops for the tradesmen and manual laborers, schools of arts and sciences for young workers, and schools of the liberal arts for those preparing for the priesthood. In 1868 there were 800 students involved in this educational system. To ensure the continuation of his work, St. John Bosco founded the Oratory of St. Francis de Sales (Salesians), with the help of John Borel, which was approved in 1869. Also, with the help of Sister Mary Dominic Mazzarello, he founded the Institute of the Daughters of Mary Auxiliatrix, Help of Christians. St. John’s boyhood dream came to pass: he became a spiritual guide and provider along with his fellow Salesian priests and brothers, giving boys religious instruction, lodging, education, and work opportunities. He had no formal system or theory of education. His methods centered on persuasion, authentic religiosity, and love for young people. He was an enlightened educator and innovator. His aging mother, Mama Margherita helped support the project in its early years.

    In 1875 a wave of emigration to Latin America began, and this prompted the inauguration of the Salesian missionary apostolate. Don Bosco became a traveller throughout Europe, seeking funds for the missions. Some of the reports referred to him as “the new St. Vincent de Paul.” He also found time to write popular catechetical pamphlets, which were distributed throughout Italy, as was his Salesian Bulletin. This success did not come easily, as the priest struggled to find reliable accommodations and support for his ambitious apostolate. Italy’s nationalist movement made life difficult for religious orders, and its anti-clerical attitudes even led to assassination attempts against Don Bosco. But such hostility did not stop the Salesians from expanding in Europe and beyond. They were helping 130,000 children in 250 houses by the end of Don Bosco’s life. “I have done nothing by myself,” he stated, saying it was “Our Lady who has done everything” through her intercession with God. Today, the motto on the Salesian coat of arms: “Give me only souls and keep all the rest”—bears witness to the fidelity of Don Bosco to the words of a truly Christian mother. St. John Bosco died in the early hours of January 31, 1888, at the age of 72, after conveying a message: “Tell the boys that I shall be waiting for them all in Paradise.” He was Beatified on June 2, 1929, Rome by Pope Pius XI and Canonized on Easter Sunday, April 1, 1934, Rome by Pope Pius XI. Pope John Paul II named him “teacher and father to the young.” He’s the Patron Saint of young people, boys, schoolchilren, Christian apprentices, Catholic publishers and editors, magicians, juvenile delinquents, Piura, Peru.

    QUOTES OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO

    ☆”There are two things the devil is deadly afraid of: fervent Communions and frequent visits to the Blessed Sacrament. “

    ☆”We do not go to Holy Communion because we are good; we go to become good.”           

    ☆“If we want to have a good society, we must concentrate all our forces on the Christian education of the young. Experience has taught me that if we wish to sustain civil society then we should take good care of the young.”

    ☆”Enjoy yourself as much as you like – if only you keep from sin.”

    ☆”Entrust everything to Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament and to Mary, Help of Christians and you will see what miracles are.”

    PRAYER: O God, who raised up the Priest Saint John Bosco as a father and teacher of the young, grant we pray, that, aflame with the same fire of love, we may seek out souls and serve you alone. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever~ Amen🙏

    SCRIPTURE REFLECTIONS:

    Bible Readings for today’s Holy Mass, Memorial of Saint John Bosco, Priest | Friday of the Third Week in Ordinary Time | USCCB | https://bible.usccb.org/daily-bible-reading

    Today’s Bible Readings: Friday of the Third Week in Ordinary Time | January 31, 2025
    Reading 1, Hebrews 10:32-39
    Responsorial Psalm, Psalms 37:3-4, 5-6, 23-24, 39-40
    Gospel, Mark 4:26-34

    Gospel Reading ~ Mark 4:26-34

    “A man scatters seed on the land and would sleep and the seed would sprout and grow, he knows not how”

    “Jesus said to the crowds: “This is how it is with the Kingdom of God; it is as if a man were to scatter seed on the land and would sleep and rise night and day and the seed would sprout and grow, he knows not how. Of its own accord the land yields fruit, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear. And when the grain is ripe, he wields the sickle at once, for the harvest has come.” He said, “To what shall we compare the Kingdom of God, or what parable can we use for it? It is like a mustard seed that, when it is sown in the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on the earth. But once it is sown, it springs up and becomes the largest of plants and puts forth large branches, so that the birds of the sky can dwell in its shade.” With many such parables He spoke the word to them as they were able to understand it. Without parables He did not speak to them, but to His own disciples He explained everything in private.”

    In today’s Gospel reading, the first of the two parables that Jesus speaks is often called ‘the parable of the seed growing secretly’. Jesus seems to suggest that once the farmer has sown the seed he has to step back and allow nature to take over as it were. As he sleeps at night and goes about his business during the day the seed is quietly growing until the day comes when the crop is ready to be harvested. Jesus says that the kingdom of God is like that. He is saying that there is some correspondence between the coming of the kingdom of God and the way the farmer, having thrown seed on the land, then has nothing much to do, until the crop is ready for harvest.Jesus seems to be saying that we have a part to play in the coming about of God’s kingdom among us; the seed has to be sown and only we can do it. Yet, the coming to pass of God’s kingdom in our midst is more God’s work than ours. Like the farmer, we cannot force the growth of God’s kingdom. We have to step back and allow God to do the work that only God can do. Saint Paul understood this truth very clearly and he expressed it very simply in his first letter to the Corinthians when referring to the coming to pass of the church of God in Corinth he said, ‘I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth’. The conclusion Paul draws from this reality is that people should not make too much of Paul or Apollos or any other labourer in the harvest, because it is always God who is the prime mover when any good is being done. Our contribution is very important, but it is God’s contribution that really brings the kingdom to earth. That is why we need to do all we can to further God’s work while at the same time leaving a great deal of space for God to work, and if something good comes out of it all, let the Lord be glorified and not ourselves. In today’s Gospel reading, Jesus appears to be saying that God can be powerfully at work in our lives even in those times when we ourselves appear to be doing very little. Sometimes we equate God’s work with our own exercise of energy. Yet, there are times in our lives when we can do very little, whether for reasons of health or for some other reason. Jesus suggests in that parable that even in those quiet times when we appear to have very little to show for ourselves, God can be working away in our lives for the good, working in us and through us. According to St. Paul in 2 Corinthians 12:9, he said that God’s power is made perfect in weakness. That’s God’s strength is most evident when we are at our weakest, allowing His grace to shine through and provide the necessary power in our vulnerabilities; essentially, when we rely on God in our weakness, His power is fully displayed and revealed in our lives. We are all encouraged as believers to embrace our weaknesses and rely on God’s strength to overcome challenges in our lives. Everything is possible because of God and His Presence in our lives.

    In the Gospel, the second parable that the Lord used was the parable of the mustard seed, which is a very small seed, and yet, when it grows, it becomes a very large tree relative to the size of its seed, and the Lord mentioned how this mustard tree can become shelter for many birds that came to seek roost and shelter upon the tree’s many branches. This is a reminder for us that each and every one of our works, efforts and contributions do matter a lot, and the Lord Himself used the same mustard seed example in another occasion to highlight how even small faith the size of a mustard seed, used as a figurative comparison, can move mountains, showing that a genuine and true faith, filled with devotion and true commitment to God can do amazing things, beyond our imagination and beliefs. This is why we have been reminded through this reading today from the parables that the Lord had taught to His disciples, that we should always be active in living up to our Christian calling and mission, making good use of whatever gifts, blessings and opportunities that the Lord has provided us with, and we should not be afraid or fearful, or be doubtful of the Lord and His guidance and providence. The Lord Who is ever faithful and committed to the Covenant that He has made with us, will always be by our side, even through the most difficult and challenging moments. Yes, we may have to suffer and face hardships, but so has the Lord our Saviour Himself suffered for our sake, and He has triumphed over His enemies, over sin and death, and through His victory, all of us will also share in His triumph as well.

    In our first reading today from the Epistle to the Hebrews, the author of this Epistle continued to remind the faithful people of God, especially those who belonged to the Jewish community in the early Church of the guidance and providence that their Lord and God would grant them as He would always be by their side, journeying with them and remaining with them throughout their respective journeys in life. The author spoke of the sufferings, challenges and difficulties that the faithful people of God had to suffer amidst their lives as Christians, in opposing the falsehoods and the evils of the world, and also in facing the disapproval from all those who disagreed with them and did not believe in what they believed in. And he also spoke of the good deeds and actions which the faithful had continued to do despite those difficulties and challenges that they had to face. The author of the Epistle to the Hebrews also spoke about the need for the people of God to remain strong and faithful amidst the many challenges, struggles and problems that they might have to face in their journey as followers of the Lord, and encouraged and reassured them that they would be vindicated and would earn their rest in the Lord in the end, if they continued to remain faithful and firm in their conviction to follow the Lord and in continuing to adhere to His Law, commandments and teachings. It is an important reminder for all of us that we must always centre our lives and focus our attention on the Lord, and put our complete trust and faith in Him, and we should not allow fear, worry or doubt to overcome us, or to distract us from our faith in the Lord, from this path towards Him and His salvation and eternal life.

    As we reflect on the words of the Sacred Scriptures today, we are all reminded of the need for all of us as Christians to embody our faith in everything that we say and do, to be truly faithful to God in all things and to be sincere in how we live our lives with faith and not to be merely paying lip service or be superficial in how we live our Christian living and commitments. Each and every one of us are parts of the Kingdom of God, the Church, which the Lord has established in this world and made manifest through each and every one of us living our lives in the manner that He Himself has revealed and taught to us. If we do not truly live in our lives in the manner that we have been expected to, then we cannot truly call or consider ourselves as true and genuine Christians. Today, we are all called to follow the examples of the Saints and Holy men and women, particularly, the life and examples of St. John Bosco that we celebrate today. We should indeed be inspired by the good examples of our holy predecessors, who have dedicated and committed their lives in service to the Lord. Let us all hence do our best to live our lives worthily in the Lord’s Presence, and do what we can so that by all of our actions and every moments in life, we will always glorify the Lord by all of those worthy and good actions. As members and parts of the Church of God, the Kingdom of God which the Lord Himself has established in His world, let us all realise our duties and responsibilities in fulfilling the missions which have been entrusted to us as those whom God had called and chosen to be His own. Let us all and our lives, each and every one of our words, actions and deeds continue to be inspired by our faith and obedience to God, our love for Him and our willingness to commit ourselves thoroughly to His cause. Let our efforts and good works be truly manifesting in the many successes of the works of the Church, in the salvation of ever more souls, leading more and more towards God and His salvation. May God in His infinite grace and mercy, grant us the grace to remain faithful to Him in times of our greatest need as the Lord reach out to us and lead us to the ultimate victory through Him. May the good Lord be with us always, and bless our every good endeavours and may He empower us all to walk in His grace and love, now and always. Amen 🙏

    DEVOTION OF THE MONTH OF JANUARY | MONTH OF THE HOLY NAME OF JESUS: The month of January is traditionally dedicated to the Holy Name of Jesus. After the Blessed Virgin Mary conceived by the Holy Spirit, the Angel Gabriel appeared to St. Joseph and told him that the Child’s name should be called Jesus, meaning “God Saves.” According to Jewish law, on the 8th day after his birth a male child was to be circumcised, receive his name, and become a full member of God’s covenant people. According to the old Roman liturgical calendar, the Feast of the Circumcision of Jesus was celebrated on January 1st, eight days after Christmas, the same day that He was given His sacred name. Currently we celebrate the Solemnity of the Mother of God on January 1st and honor the Holy Name of Jesus on January 3rd. For Catholics, Jesus’ sacred name is the object of a special devotion symbolized by the monogram “IHS,” (sometimes called a Christogram), which is the first three letters of the Greek spelling of His name.

    https://www.catholicculture.org/culture/library/view.cfm?recnum=12538

    THE POPE’S MONTHLY INTENTIONS FOR 2025: FOR THE MONTH OF JANUARY – FOR THE RIGHT TO EDUCATION: Let us pray for migrants, refugees, and those affected by war, that their right to an education, which is necessary to build a better world, might always be respected.

    https://www.usccb.org/prayers/popes-monthly-intentions-2025

    PRAYER FOR PEACE ~ POPE FRANCIS:

    Lord God of peace, hear our prayer!

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

    PRAYER INTENTIONS: Through the intercession of our Blessed Mother Mary and the Saints, on this feast day, we humbly pray and thank God for blessing us all with the gift of His precious son, may we be saved by the name of our Savior Jesus Christ! And as we begin the Ordinary Time, may the Lord grant us the grace to serve Him in spirit and in truth. We pray for peace, love and unity in our marriages, our families and our world today, as we face these incredibly challenging times. We pray for God’s deliverance from impossible causes or situations. We pray for the sick and dying, especially sick children, those who are sick with heart diseases, strokes, mental illness, and those suffering from cancers and other terminal diseases. We pray for torture victims, the poor, the needy and the most vulnerable in our communities and around the world. We pray for the souls in Purgatory and the repose of the souls of the faithful departed and for all widows and widowers. And we continue to pray for the Clergy, our Holy Father, Pope Francis, Cardinals, Bishops, Priests, Deacons, Religious and all those who preach the Gospel. We pray for vocations to the Priesthood and Religious life, 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 transforming Lord, I thank You for the way that You have sown the seed of Your holy Word into my own life. I thank You for the way in which You have changed me, freed me from sin and set me on the path to holiness. Use me, dear Lord, to sow that seed in the lives of others and fill me with wonder and awe as I witness Your merciful hand at work. Jesus, I trust in You ~ Amen 🙏

    Save Us, Savior of the World. Our Blessed Mother Mary and Saint John Bosco ~ Pray for us🙏

    Thanking God for the gift of this new year 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 as we begin this Ordinary Time. Wishing all of us a most blessed, safe, healthy, prosperous, and grace-filled New Year and relaxing weekend week.🙏

    Blessings and Love always, Philomena 💖

  • SAINT PIO PIETRELCINA (PADRE PIO), PRIEST

    SAINT PIO PIETRELCINA (PADRE PIO), PRIEST

    St. Padre Pio of Pietrelcina (1887–1968), was an Italian Franciscan priest better known as “Padre Pio”. He was an Italian Capuchin saint known for his suffering, humility, and miracles. Throughout his entire lifetime, he was given extraordinary gifts from God — the stigmata, the gift of prophecy, the gift of the priesthood, and the gift of faith. Yet despite such notoriety, he would often say, “I only want to be a poor friar who prays.”

    Padre Pio was born Francesco Forgione to his parents Grazio and Maria in 1887 in a small village of Pietrelcina in the south of Italy. His parents, peasant farmers, had seven children, two of whom died in infancy. They taught the five surviving children to live their faith through daily Mass, family prayer of the rosary, and regular acts of penance. Padre Pio (Francesco) had already decided at a young age, about 5 years old he practiced a life of penance and made the decision to dedicate his entire life to God. At age 10, he felt inspired by the example of a young Capuchin Franciscan and told his parents: “I want to be a friar – with a beard.” Francesco’s father spent time in America, working to finance his son’s education so he could enter the religious life. Francesco grew up working in the fields. On January 22, 1903, Francesco (Padre Pio) joined the Capuchin Friars at the age of sixteen and donned the Franciscan habit for the first time. He took the new name Pio, a modernized Italian form of “Pius,” in honor of Pope St. Pius V. He made his solemn vows four years later and received priestly ordination seven years later on August 10, 1910, at the age of 23. Along with the mystical but real wounds, Padre Pio also suffered health problems that forced him to live apart from his Franciscan community for the first six years of his priesthood. By 1916, he managed to re-enter community life at the Friary of San Giovanni Rotondo, his superiors sent him to the friary in San Giovanni, Rotondo in his village. He lived there until he died. For fifty years, Padre Pio, as he came to be known, was a much sought-after spiritual advisor, confessor, and intercessor whose life was devoted to the Eucharist and prayer. People came from all over the world to see him celebrate Mass and ask for his help. He handled many duties as a spiritual director and teacher, covering for brothers drafted into World War I. During 1917 and 1918, Padre Pio himself briefly served in a medical unit of the Italian army. He later offered himself as a spiritual “victim” for an end to the war, accepting suffering as a form of prayer for peace. On August 5, 1918, Padre Pio first received the Stigmata, the wounds of Christ, present in his own body. He was to carry these wounds for the next fifty years. He received intermittently the invisible stigmata. Christ’s sacred wounds were invisibly imprinted on his hands, feet and side. The wounds could not be seen, but the pain and swelling of them were there.  On September 20, 1918, at 31 years of age, a piercing cry escaped his lips during his thanksgiving after Mass. He was pierced and bleeding from five wounds in his hands, feet, and side. The stigmata had become visible and was to remain with him for 50 years until shortly before he died. He was the first priest to be so honored! There have been about 300 stigmatisms in the history of the Catholic Church.

    Padre Pio’s Franciscan spirituality was characterized by a life of poverty, love of nature, and charity to those in need, especially to those who were his “spiritual children.” St. Padre Pio had many spiritual gifts and was a great miracle-worker. These were well-documented from multiple reliable sources and included bilocation, levitation, reading souls, and physical healing by touch. Against his own wishes, the friar’s reputation for holiness and attending miracles began to attract huge crowds. Word of his holiness spread, and people both pious and curious flocked to see him, especially to have him hear their confession. He is the first priest known to have received the stigmata, for which he suffered suspicion and investigation. Many Church officials and doctors examined his wounds. Some of them thought that he might be faking his wounds. However, after examining him, almost all were convinced that his Stigmata was truly from God. Padre Pio would especially suffer while he was celebrating Holy Mass each day. It was as if he were experiencing just what Jesus did on the Cross. Like Jesus, he would lose blood from his wounds. He would always offer up these suffering for the salvation of the world. Padre Pio ate very little and slept even less. All his time was devoted to prayer and meditation and serving God’s people, especially hearing their confessions and offering spiritual advice.

    Because of the unusual supernatural phenomena surrounding his life, he is considered one of the great visionaries and mystics of the Church. Some Church officials, however, denounced the priest and had him banned from public ministry in 1931. Pope Pius XI ended the ban two years later, and his successor Pius XII encouraged pilgrimages to Padre Pio’s friary. During his ling life, Padre Pio accomplished many deeds that were far beyond the scope of ordinary mortals. Known for patient suffering, fervent prayer, and compassionate spiritual guidance, Padre Pio later in his life also lent his efforts to the establishment of a major hospital, the “Home to Relieve Suffering” that would take care of not only the people’s physical needs but also their spiritual needs in 1956. The hospital served 60,000 a year. Today, there are over 400,000 members worldwide in prayer groups begun by Padre Pio in the 1920s. After an entire life lived for God, doing good works and even miracles, Padre Pio died on September 23, 1968 at the age of 81 at 2:30 AM with the words “Jesus and Mary” on his lips and his Rosary in his hands. So many people believed that Padre Pio was a Saint that by the next year, the Capuchin friars asked the Church to consider canonizing him. Over the next several years, all of the friar’s writings and actions were examined, and by 1983, the official process was in work. Padre Pio was beatified in May 1999 by Pope John Paul II and canonized and declared a Saint of the Catholic Church in Rome, “Padre” Pio of Pietrelcina, OFM Cap. by the same Pontiff, Pope St. John Paul II on June 16, 2002, with over 500,000 people in attendance. Three years after his death, Pope Paul VI marveled at his simple and holy life in an address to the Capuchin Order. “A worldwide following gathered around him 
 because he said Mass humbly, heard confessions from dawn to dusk, and was – it is not easy to say it – one who bore the wounds of our Lord,” Pope Paul explained. “He was a man of prayer and suffering.” Because of the many miracles he performed during his life, he is commonly invoked as a healing saint for various ailments. Padre Pio’s feast day is September 23rd.

    QUOTE OF PADREPIO PIETRELCINA: “Prayer is the best weapon we possess, the key that opens the heart of God.”

    PRAYER FOR THE INTERCESSION OF SAINT PIO PIETRELCINA (PADRE PIO), PRIEST: “Dear God, You generously blessed Your servant, St. Pio of Pietrelcina, with the firts of the Spirit. You marked his body with the five wounds of Christ Crucified as a powerful witness to the saving Passion and Death of Your Son. Endowed with the gift of discernment, St. Pio labored endlessly in the confessional for the salvation of souls. With reverence and intense devotion in the celebration of Mass, he invited countless men and women to a greater union with Jesus Christ in the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist. Through the intercession of St. Pio of Pietrelcina, I confidently beseech You to grant me the grace of (state your petition)
 Amen.”🙏

    PRAYER: God, through a singular grace You enabled Your Priest St. Pio to participate in the Cross of Your Son and through his ministry You renewed the wonders of Your mercy. Grant that by his intercession we may be continually united with Christ’s Passion and reach the glory of his Resurrection. Amen 🙏

    Saint of the Day | September 23rd | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/

  • Catholic Daily Mass – Daily TV Mass

    Catholic Daily Mass – Daily TV Mass

    Watch “Holy Mass and Holy Rosary on EWTN | January 31, 2025” |

    Watch “Holy Mass from the National Shrine of the Divine Mercy” | January 31, 2025 |

    Pray “Holy Rosary Novena From Lourdes” | January 31, 2025 |

  • Daily Reflections and Prayer Links

    Daily Reflections and Prayer Links

    DAILY REFLECTIONS | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/

    GENERAL PRAYERS AND INTENTIONS | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/general-prayers-and-intentions/

    SIR G.L.I OPIEPE’S HEALTH AND EDUCATION FOUNDATION | https://gliopiepehe.org

    THE LITURGICAL YEAR IN THE CATHOLIC CHURCH | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2024/12/03/the-liturgical-year-in-the-catholic-church/

    THE HOLY ROSARY: WHAT IS THE HOLY ROSARY AND WHY DO WE PRAY THE HOLY ROSARY? | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2024/11/21/the-holy-rosary-what-is-the-holy-rosary-and-why-do-we-pray-the-holy-rosary/

    THE SAINTS: WHO ARE THEY AND HOW ARE THEY CANONISED? | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2024/11/01/the-saints-who-are-they-and-how-are-they-canonised/

    PURGATORY: WHAT IS PURGATORY? | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2024/11/15/purgatory-and-limbo/

    OPENING OF THE HOLY DOORS SCHEDULES | JUBILEE OF HOPE 2025

    Pope Francis opens the Holy Door Ushering in the Jubilee of Hope | ‘Hope is Alive’ | Vatican News | December 24, 2024 | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2024/12/25/pope-francis-opens-the-holy-door-ushering-in-the-jubilee-of-hope-hope-is-alive-vatican-news-december-24-2024/

    THE JUBILEE PRAYER
    Link to the prayer of the Jubilee of Hope 2025 | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2025/01/08/the-jubilee-prayer/

    Reflections and Prayer Links for 2025 Week of Prayer for Christian Unity:

    Reflections and Prayers for the Eight Days: A Journey through the Nicene Creed | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2025/01/18/2025-week-of-prayer-for-christian-unity/

    Resources for the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, and throughout the year | 2025 EN WPCU.pdf| https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2025/01/18/week-of-prayer-for-christian-unity-2025-january-18-25-2025/

    9 DAYS FOR LIFE: PRAY TO PROTECT HUMAN LIFE | January 16-24, 2025 | USCCB* [Link below] https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2025/01/17/9-days-for-life-novena-usccb/

    Solemnity of the Conversion of Saint Paul the Apostle | Celebration of Second Vespers on the 58th WPCU | Homily of Pope Francis | LIVE from the Vatican, Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls | Saturday, 25 January 2025 | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2025/01/26/solemnity-of-the-conversion-of-saint-paul-the-apostle-celebration-of-second-vespers-on-the-58th-week-of-prayer-for-christian-unity-homily-of-the-holy-father-pope-francis/

    RELIC OF SAINT PIO OF PIETRELCINA (PADRE PIO), PRIEST DISPLAYED FOR VENERATION AT ST. JOSEPH PARISH, ARLINGTON TEXAS ON FEBRUARY 1, 2025 | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2025/02/02/relic-of-saint-pio-of-pietrelcina-padre-pio-priest-displayed-for-veneration-at-st-joseph-parish-arlington-texas-on-february-1-2025/

    SAINT PIO OF PIETRELCINA (PADRE PIO), PRIEST | Feast Day – September 23rd | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2025/02/01/saint-pio-pietrelcina-padre-pio-priest/

  • Catholic Daily Mass – Daily TV Mass

    Catholic Daily Mass – Daily TV Mass

    Watch “Holy Mass and Holy Rosary on EWTN | January 30, 2025” |

    Watch “Holy Mass from the National Shrine of the Divine Mercy” | January 30, 2025 |

    Pray “Holy Rosary Novena From Lourdes” | January 30, 2025 |

  • MEMORIAL OF SAINT GILDAS THE WISE, ABBOT AND SAINT AQUILINUS OF MILAN, PRIEST AND MARTYR

    MEMORIAL OF SAINT GILDAS THE WISE, ABBOT AND SAINT AQUILINUS OF MILAN, PRIEST AND MARTYR

    THIRD WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME

    SAINTS OF THE DAY: FEAST DAY ~ JANUARY 29, 2025

    Greetings, and blessings beloved family and Happy Wednesday of the Third Week in Ordinary Time!

    On this day, please let us keep our beloved Bishop, Most Rev. Michael Olson, Bishop of Fort Worth Diocese, Texas, USA in our thoughts and prayers as we commemorate the 11th anniversary of his ordination to the episcopacy. We thank him for his dedicated, loving, and faithful leadership and service to the people of God. May God continue to bless him with many more years, good health of body and mind as he serves in the Lord’s Vineyard. Amen 🙏

    And we continue to pray for the Clergy, our Holy Father, Pope Francis, Cardinals, Bishops, Priests, Deacons, Religious and all those who preach the Gospel. We pray for vocations to the Priesthood and Religious life, 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🙏

    Through the intercession of our Blessed Mother Mary, and the Saints we celebrate today, Saint Gildas the Wise, Abbot (Patron Saint of Welsh historians and bell founders) and Saint Aquilinus of Milan, Priest and Martyr (Patron Saint of hotel porters (facchini) in Milan), we humbly pray for the safety and well-being of our children, and family and we continue to pray for all those who are sick and dying, especially sick children, those who are mentally and physically ill, strokes, heart diseases, and those suffering from cancers and other terminal diseases. We pray for God’s grace and mercy upon us through this Ordinary Time, and may the Lord grant us the grace to serve Him in spirit and in truth🙏

    Watch “Holy Mass and Holy Rosary on EWTN | January 29, 2025” |

    Watch “Holy Mass from the National Shrine of the Divine Mercy” | January 29, 2025 |

    Pray “Holy Rosary Novena From Lourdes” | January 29, 2025 |

    Pray “Holy Rosary for Peace with Pope Francis” | LIVE Basilica of St. Mary Major | October 6, 2024 |

    Pray “The Chaplet of Divine Mercy in song”| January 29, 2025 |

    Pray “Holy Rosary ALL 20 Mysteries VIRTUALđŸŒčJOYFULđŸŒčLUMINOUSđŸŒčSORROWFULđŸŒčGLORIOUS” oĂčn YouTube |

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

    Today’s Bible Readings: Wednesday, January 29, 2025
    Reading 1, Hebrews 10:11-18
    Responsorial Psalm, Psalms 110:1, 2, 3, 4
    Gospel, Mark 4:1-20

    On this Feast day, through the intercession of our Blessed Mother Mary, and all the Saints, we humbly pray and thank God for blessing us all with the gift of His precious son, our Savior Jesus Christ! For the safety and well-being of all our children and children all over the world. We pray for God’s guidance and protection upon them. We continue to pray for peace all around the world, particularly in the Middle East, Ukraine-Russia and other parts of the world. We pray for an end to the wars and conflicts, and for peace in our families and throughout our divided and conflicted World. For the gentle 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 🙏 âœïžđŸ•ŻâœïžđŸ•ŻâœïžđŸ•Ż

    “Blessed are those who have died in the Lord; let them rest from their abors for their good deeds go with them.” ~ Rev 14:13

    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🙏

    PRAYER FOR THE VICTIMS OF WILDFIRES AND DISASTERS: We continue to pray for the victims of the current wildfires in the United States (Los Angeles, California) and victims of natural disasters across the world. We especially pray for those that have lost their lives and their families.

    “Most Merciful God, Be “our refuge and our strength, an ever-present help in distress” (Psalm 46:1). You created us and sustain us by Your almighty power. Your mercy knows no bounds. At this time of great suffering, we entrust all victims of the wildfires to You. Comfort them, fill them with Your grace, and provide for their needs. We entrust all who have died to Your merciful Heart. Cleanse them of their sins and welcome them into Your heavenly Kingdom. Give wisdom and prudence to those managing this disaster. Give courage and resolve to those on the front lines. Keep them safe and successful in their efforts. Command the winds and the flames to obey You, Lord, as You once calmed the stormy seas. Pour the water of Your grace upon these destructive fires. Stay them with Your powerful hand. Angels of God, come to the aid of those most in need of God’s mercy. Protect them, guide them, and reveal to them God’s holy will. St. Florian, patron of firefighters, pray for those bravely battling the flames. St. Michael the Archangel, defend them in their peril. Saints in Heaven, we beseech your prayer. Intercede for those most in need. From this tragedy and chaos, bring hope and peace. Turn sorrow into compassion. Turn confusion into faith. Turn despair into divine hope. We place all our trust in You, Most Merciful God, knowing that You will bring forth new life and healing from the ashes of this trial. May Your name be glorified now and forever. Amen” đŸ™đŸœ

    A PRAYER FOR PEACE: Lord Jesus Christ, You are the true King of peace. In You alone is found freedom. Please free our world from conflict. Bring unity to troubled nations. Let Your glorious peace reign in every heart. Dispel all darkness and evil. Protect the dignity of every human life. Replace hatred with Your love. Give wisdom to world leaders. Free them from selfish ambition. Eliminate all violence and war. Glorious Virgin Mary, Saint Michael the Archangel, Every Angel and Saint: Please pray for peace. Pray for unity amongst nations. Pray for unity amongst all people. Pray for the most vulnerable. Pray for those suffering. Pray for the fearful. Pray for those most in need. Pray for us all. Jesus, Son of the Living God, have mercy on us. Jesus, hear our prayers. Jesus, I trust in You! Amen 🙏

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

    SAINTS OF THE DAY: MEMORIAL OF SAINT GILDAS THE WISE, ABBOT AND SAINT AQUILINUS OF MILAN, PRIEST AND MARTYR – FEAST DAY ~ JANUARY 29TH: Today, we celebrate the Memorial of Saint Gildas the Wise, Abbot (Patron Saint of Welsh historians and bell founders) and Saint Aquilinus of Milan, Priest and Martyr (Patron Saint of hotel porters (facchini) in Milan).

    SAINT GILDAS THE WISE, ABBOT: St. Gildas (517-570) also known as Gildas Sapiens or Badonicus was a 6th-century British monk and author. St. Gildas was born in Scotland on the banks of the River Clyde. His father’s name was Cau (or Nau) and he came from a noble lineage. He lived in a time when the glory of Rome was faded from Britain. The permanent legions had been withdrawn by Maximus, who used them to sack Rome itself and make himself Emperor. St. Gildas was a celebrated teacher and the first British historian. He’s noted for his piety and was well educated. He was not afraid of publicly rebuking contemporary monarchs, at a time when libel was answered by a sword, rather than a Court order. According to legend, he was forced to flee to Wales, where he was married in his young but was later widowed. After his wife’s death, St. Gildas became a close disciple of St. Illtyd in South Wales in his famous Llanilltud Fawr Monastery in the Vale of Glamorgan, and it was there that St. Gildas was tonsured a monk. Such great saints as Sts. Samson and Paul Aurelian may have studied in Llanilltud together with him. After spending some time in Ireland, he made a pilgrimage to Rome about 520 and founded a religious house at Ruys in Brittany on his way back, reaching Wales in 527. He lived for many years as an ascetic hermit on Flatholm Island in the Bristol Channel. Here he established his reputation for that peculiar Celtic sort of holiness that consists of extreme self-denial and isolation. At around this time, according to the Welsh, he also preached to Nemata, the mother of St David, while she was pregnant with the Saint.

    St. Gildas is noted not only as a prominent ascetic, preacher, founder of monasteries and teacher of monks, but also as a spiritual author. He was an outstanding historian and chronicler of the Britons, and his main work, which he was famous for writing is De Excidio et Conquestu Britanniae (“On the Ruin and Conquest of Britain”), was written in c.540. This is a Latin work describing moral decline in Britain. In this he writes a brief tale of the island from pre-Roman times and criticizes the rulers of for their lax morals and blames their sins (and those that follow them) for the destruction of civilization in Britain. The book was avowedly written as a moral tale. He also wrote a longer work, the Epistle. This is a series of sermons on the moral laxity of rulers and of the clergy. In these St. Gildas shows that he has a wide reading of the Bible and of some other classical works. Gildas was an influential preacher, visiting Ireland and doing missionary work. He was responsible for the conversion of much of the island and may be the one who introduced anchorite customs to the monks of that land. He retired from Llancarfan to Rhuys, in Brittany, where he founded a monastery. Of his work on the running of a monastery (one of the earliest known in the Christian Church), only the so-called Penitential, a guide for Abbots in setting punishment, survives. Later he visited Ruys and Ireland again and died at Ruys on January 29, 570, surrounded by his disciples at the monastery that he had founded. The monastery became the center of his cult. St. Gildas is regarded as being one of the most influential figures of the early English Church. The influence of his writing was felt until well into the Middle Ages, particularly in the Celtic Church. He’s Patron Saint of Welsh historians and bell founders.

    PRAYER: Lord, amid the things of this world, let us be wholeheartedly committed to heavenly things in imitation of the example of evangelical perfection that You have given us in St. Gildas. Amen🙏
     
    SAINT AQUILINUS OF MILAN, PRIEST AND MARTYR: St. Aquilinus (d. 1015 A.D.), also known as St. Aquilinus of Cologne, was born to a noble family in Bavaria, Germany. He received his education in Cologne, Germany and was ordained to the priesthood. He was offered the bishopric of Cologne, but turned it down in order to be a missionary priest and itinerant preacher. He traveled through various European cities fighting against the dangerous and spreading heresies of the Cathars, Manichaeans, and Arians. He was also known to work miracles by healing people from disease, especially during a cholera epidemic. He traveled to Paris, where he miraculously cured some people of the cholera. As a result, he was offered the bishopric of Paris, but this he also refused. He traveled to Pavia, where he preached against Cathars, Manichaeans, and Arians there.

    Early in the eleventh century, he eventually settled in Milan, Italy, and was so effective in his preaching against the Arian heretics that they stabbed him to death and threw his body in the city sewer. He was martyred along with his companion Constantius (Costanzo). His body was recovered by a group of porters who took him to the nearby oratory of the basilica of San Lorenzo and buried in the Chapel of the Queens in Milan. The chapel was later re-named to bear his name. The Cappella di Sant’Aquilino is dedicated to him and is decorated with 24 scenes from his life and his relics enshrined in an urn. He seems to have enjoyed a continuous cult, and he is honored by the churches of Cologne, WĂŒrzburg, and Milan and by the canons of the Lateran. Ancient Breviary lessons, the martyrologies, and the Bollandist critique of the sources all indicate that he was martyred in conflict with arianism and lived probably during the sixth century. He’s Patron Saint of hotel porters (facchini) in Milan.

    PRAYER: Loving Father, Saint Aquilinus of Milan became a traveling preacher instead of accepting a high church office.  Serving God’s people was more important to him than status and power.  I accept the position in life to which You have called me.  Help me to be content with doing Your work in my home, my current job, my volunteer work at church and in the community, and take from me every restless desire for wanting recognition and control.  Help me to go only where You direct me.  If it is Your will that I work in a high position, teach me to grow in humility, each and every day.  Saint Aquilinus of Milan intercede for us before the Holy Spirit as we pray for protection against terminal diseases and other diseases plaguing the world. Amen🙏

    SCRIPTURE REFLECTIONS

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

    Gospel Reading ~ Mark 4:1-20

    “A sower went out to sow”

    “On another occasion, Jesus began to teach by the sea. A very large crowd gathered around him so that he got into a boat on the sea and sat down. And the whole crowd was beside the sea on land. And he taught them at length in parables, and in the course of his instruction he said to them, “Hear this! A sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seed fell on the path, and the birds came and ate it up. Other seed fell on rocky ground where it had little soil. It sprang up at once because the soil was not deep. And when the sun rose, it was scorched and it withered for lack of roots. Some seed fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked it and it produced no grain. And some seed fell on rich soil and produced fruit. It came up and grew and yielded thirty, sixty, and a hundredfold.” He added, “Whoever has ears to hear ought to hear.” And when he was alone, those present along with the Twelve questioned him about the parables. He answered them, “The mystery of the Kingdom of God has been granted to you. But to those outside everything comes in parables, so that they may look and see but not perceive, and hear and listen but not understand, in order that they may not be converted and be forgiven.” Jesus said to them, “Do you not understand this parable? Then how will you understand any of the parables? The sower sows the word. These are the ones on the path where the word is sown. As soon as they hear, Satan comes at once and takes away the word sown in them. And these are the ones sown on rocky ground who, when they hear the word, receive it at once with joy. But they have no roots; they last only for a time. Then when tribulation or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. Those sown among thorns are another sort. They are the people who hear the word, but worldly anxiety, the lure of riches, and the craving for other things intrude and choke the word, and it bears no fruit. But those sown on rich soil are the ones who hear the word and accept it and bear fruit thirty and sixty and a hundredfold.”

    Today’s Gospel reading from the Gospel according to St. Mark the Evangelist spoke of the teachings of the Lord Jesus using a well-known parable, the parable of the sower, which He shared and explained to the people gathered to listen to Him, and He also then explained the parable in greater detail to His disciples and followers. This parable of the sower highlights how the Lord, as the Sower, has sowed the seeds of faith, truth, hope and love in all of us, and He has generously given all of these to us, with the intention that all of us may cultivate these gifts and faith in us so that they may truly benefit everyone around us. If we do not make good use of these gifts, talents, abilities and opportunities that the Lord has provided, then we will not bear fruit in our faith, and we will not be found worthy at the time of judgment and reckoning. According to the Gospel, in the parable of the sower and in the explanation that the Lord presented to His disciples, the seeds fell on different places which represent the different conditions which the people of God have received those seeds of faith. And the Lord explained it clearly how the seeds that fell on the roadside, or by the rocky grounds and those that were surrounded by brambles and thistles, all of them allowed the evil one and the temptations, pressures and coercions of this world to dissuade them from truly committing themselves to the Lord and the path of His salvation and grace. And that was why many of them could not appreciate the Word of God, His Good News, truth and love, and everything which God has given them most generously through His Son and through the Holy Spirit that He has sent into our midst. Meanwhile, those who have placed their seeds in good and fertile soil as mentioned are those who have allowed the Lord, His truth and love to grow in them, to be cultivated well and to allow them to come ever closer to the Lord. This is an important lesson which all of us are reminded of, a reminder that each and every one of us share the responsibility as part of the Covenant which the Lord has established with us, the New and Eternal Covenant that He has made and affirmed with us through His Son, Our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. Without this conscious effort to cultivate a good, strong and enduring relationship with God, through prayer and quality time spent with God, and through living our lives worthily in God’s Presence, and amongst the communities of the world we are living in today.

    The parable of the sower was probably spoken by Jesus as an encouraging word to His disciples. As the Gospel of St. Mark has been telling the story of Jesus’ public ministry prior to Jesus speaking this parable, Jesus and His disciples have been encountering many difficulties and obstacles. The religious leaders have accused Jesus and His disciples of breaking the Sabbath; they have claimed that Jesus heals by the power of Satan. Jesus’ own relatives have tried to take Him in hand because of the general impression that He had lost the run of Himself. In that context Jesus draws the attention of the disciples to the farmer sowing seed in Galilee. The farmer has to deal with all kinds of obstacles, with the result that much of the seed that he sows never takes root, or if it does it never reaches maturity. Yet, in spite of all obstacles and setbacks, the harvest is great. Jesus is saying, look beyond the obstacles, the set-backs, the opposition and hostility, the disappointments; God is at work in my ministry and that work will lead to something wonderful, the harvest will be great in the end. We can all become absorbed by what is not going well, by the failures, the losses all around us. The seed of the Gospel is good and powerful. Whatever the odds against us, we must keep sowing, because as the prophet Isaiah has said, God’s word does not return to Him empty. We must remain hopeful in the midst of loss and failure that our good efforts seem to yield, because the Lord is always at work in a life-giving way even when failure and loss seem to dominate the landscape. The parable is a word of encouragement to those who might be tempted to lose faith in Him. It is also a word of encouragement to all of us as we try to share in the Lord’s work and mission. It is as if Jesus is saying to us, ‘if the seed is good, the crop will be good, in spite of setbacks and failure’. We do have good seed, the good seed of the Gospel. We can be confident that in scattering that seed, in witnessing to that Gospel, the Lord will work powerfully through us.

    Our first reading today from the Epistle to the Hebrews is the continuation of the discourse by the author of the Epistle to the Jewish community of the time, about the role that Christ, the Saviour of the world has done in saving the people, and in revealing the manifested love of God in the flesh, acting as our One True and Eternal High Priest, offering Himself as the perfect and worthy offering to redeem all of us from our many sins and wickedness, establishing and affirming the New and Eternal Covenant between us and God, restoring to us the unity and grace that have been denied to us ever since we have fallen into sin, allowing the corruptions of sin to lead us astray from the Lord and His loving Presence. And the Lord has done it all at once through His ultimate loving sacrifice on the Cross. This elaboration and exhortation by the author of the Epistle to the Hebrews must be understood in the context of the need for the sacrifices to be made regularly by the people through the priests at the Temple of God for them to atone for the sins they committed. And they, including the priests themselves had to repeatedly offer the sacrifices and offerings because of their sins, as none of those sacrifices could bring about lasting reprieve and liberation from the domination and power of sin, darkness and evil. It was only the sacrifice and offering which the Lord Jesus, the Saviour of all offered on our behalf, the offering of the Most Precious Body and the Most Precious Blood of the Lamb and Son of God Incarnate that could redeem all of us from our sins. The Lord has triumphed against sin and death, destroying forever their hold on us, and He has established with all of us the New and Eternal Covenant that God has intended to form with us. This New Covenant has been established, made firm and sealed through the sacrifice of the Blood of the Lamb of God, slain on the Altar of the Cross at Calvary. Through Christ, Our Lord and Saviour, we have received this great grace from God, the promise of everlasting life that we have shared and partaken through the Holy Eucharist, which is the same sacrifice and offering that Our Lord Himself has made at Calvary for us. That is why as Christians, all of us are reminded of this very important truth as we continue to progress through life so that we will always appreciate what the Lord has generously given us all.

    As we reflect on the words of the Sacred Scriptures today, we are reminded again of what the Lord our God has done for us through His beloved Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour, Who has freely and willingly offered Himself out of obedience to His heavenly Father, so that He might become the perfect and worthy sacrifice and offering for the salvation of all mankind. This truth is something that all of us as Christians have believed and uphold to be the core tenet of our faith. Each and every one of us must remember and keep in mind this faith and belief that we have, and it is important that we have to nurture this faith in us, by continuing to deepen our relationship with the Lord, or else, we may find ourselves easily swayed and tempted by the various pressures, temptations and other obstacles present all around us. We are called to emulate the lives and examples of the Holy men and women, and Saints, particularly those we celebrate today Saint Gildas the Wise, Abbot and Saint Aquilinus of Milan, Priest and Martyr. And it is through this commitment of our time, effort and by providing a conducive environment for our faith to grow and develop that we can truly be fruitful and grow wonderfully in our Christian faith, and in becoming worthy disciples and followers of the Lord. How can we do this, brothers and sisters in Christ?  We can do this through constant reception of the Holy Eucharist in the Holy Mass, active participation in the efforts and works of the Church, and constant and regular participation in the Sacrament of Reconciliation, to allow ourselves to grow ever stronger in our dedication towards the Lord and to attune ourselves ever better towards the ways and the teachings, the ideals of our Christian belief and faith. We are all called to be good role models and inspirations towards one another, and through our great examples, this is how we may truly bless so many others with the grace of God, becoming that fruitful and faithful servant of God, bearing forth so many good and wonderful deeds, always anchored ever strongly and firmly in our faith and love towards the Lord. May God in His infinite grace and mercy, grant us His grace and bless our lives, and help us to be His better disciples and followers, now and always and may the Lord our most loving God, Father and Creator, our Lord and Master continue to help us all and guide us in our journey of faith through life in this world, now and always. Amen 🙏

    DEVOTION OF THE MONTH OF JANUARY | MONTH OF THE HOLY NAME OF JESUS: The month of January is traditionally dedicated to the Holy Name of Jesus. After the Blessed Virgin Mary conceived by the Holy Spirit, the Angel Gabriel appeared to St. Joseph and told him that the Child’s name should be called Jesus, meaning “God Saves.” According to Jewish law, on the 8th day after his birth a male child was to be circumcised, receive his name, and become a full member of God’s covenant people. According to the old Roman liturgical calendar, the Feast of the Circumcision of Jesus was celebrated on January 1st, eight days after Christmas, the same day that He was given His sacred name. Currently we celebrate the Solemnity of the Mother of God on January 1st and honor the Holy Name of Jesus on January 3rd. For Catholics, Jesus’ sacred name is the object of a special devotion symbolized by the monogram “IHS,” (sometimes called a Christogram), which is the first three letters of the Greek spelling of His name.

    https://www.catholicculture.org/culture/library/view.cfm?recnum=12538

    THE POPE’S MONTHLY INTENTIONS FOR 2025: FOR THE MONTH OF JANUARY – FOR THE RIGHT TO EDUCATION: Let us pray for migrants, refugees, and those affected by war, that their right to an education, which is necessary to build a better world, might always be respected.

    https://www.usccb.org/prayers/popes-monthly-intentions-2025

    PRAYER FOR PEACE ~ POPE FRANCIS:

    Lord God of peace, hear our prayer!

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

    PRAYER INTENTIONS: Through the intercession of our Blessed Mother Mary and the Saints, on this feast day, we humbly pray and thank God for blessing us all with the gift of His precious son, may we be saved by the name of our Savior Jesus Christ! And as we begin the Ordinary Time, may the Lord grant us the grace to serve Him in spirit and in truth. We pray for peace, love and unity in our marriages, our families and our world today, as we face these incredibly challenging times. We pray for God’s deliverance from impossible causes or situations. We pray for the sick and dying, especially sick children, those who are sick with heart diseases, strokes, mental illness, and those suffering from cancers and other terminal diseases. We pray for torture victims, the poor, the needy and the most vulnerable in our communities and around the world. We pray for the souls in Purgatory and the repose of the souls of the faithful departed and 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 vocations to the priesthood and religious life, 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 Lord, help me to be open fully to Your holy Word so that the seed of Your Word will be planted deeply in my heart. May I always reject the many lies and deceptions of the world so that I can be freed of the anxieties and fleeting pleasures of life. May I seek only the deep and sustaining delights that come from a life fully given over to You so that I will live in the peace and grace of Your holy will. Jesus, I trust in You ~ Amen 🙏

    Save Us, Savior of the World. Our Mother Mary, Saint Gildas the Wise and Saint Aquilinus of Milan ~ Pray for us🙏

    *Please find below links to the websites for Daily Reflections, Foundation and interesting topics and articles about our Catholic faith and doctrines:

    DAILY REFLECTIONS | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/

    SIR G.L.I OPIEPE’S HEALTH AND EDUCATION FOUNDATION | https://gliopiepehe.org

    THE LITURGICAL YEAR IN THE CATHOLIC CHURCH | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2024/12/03/the-liturgical-year-in-the-catholic-church/

    OPENING OF THE HOLY DOORS SCHEDULES | JUBILEE OF HOPE 2025

    Pope Francis opens the Holy Door Ushering in the Jubilee of Hope | ‘Hope is Alive’ | Vatican News | December 24, 2024 | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2024/12/25/pope-francis-opens-the-holy-door-ushering-in-the-jubilee-of-hope-hope-is-alive-vatican-news-december-24-2024/

    THE JUBILEE PRAYER
    Link to the prayer of the Jubilee of Hope 2025 |
    https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2025/01/08/the-jubilee-prayer/

    Reflections and Prayer Links for 2025 Week of Prayer for Christian Unity:

    Reflections and Prayers for the Eight Days: A Journey through the Nicene Creed | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2025/01/18/2025-week-of-prayer-for-christian-unity/

    Resources for the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, and throughout the year | 2025 EN WPCU.pdf| https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2025/01/18/week-of-prayer-for-christian-unity-2025-january-18-25-2025/

    9 DAYS FOR LIFE: PRAY TO PROTECT HUMAN LIFE | January 16-24, 2025 | USCCB* [Link below] https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2025/01/17/9-days-for-life-novena-usccb/

    Solemnity of the Conversion of Saint Paul the Apostle | Celebration of Second Vespers on the 58th WPCU | Homily of Pope Francis | LIVE from the Vatican, Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls | Saturday, 25 January 2025 | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2025/01/26/solemnity-of-the-conversion-of-saint-paul-the-apostle-celebration-of-second-vespers-on-the-58th-week-of-prayer-for-christian-unity-homily-of-the-holy-father-pope-francis/

    Thanking God for the gift of this new year 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 as we begin this Ordinary Time. Wishing all of us a most blessed, safe, healthy, prosperous, and grace-filled New Year and week. Amen🙏

    Blessings and Love always, Philomena 💖

  • Holy Rosary for Peace with Pope Francis

    Holy Rosary for Peace with Pope Francis

    Pray “Holy Rosary for Peace with Pope Francis” | LIVE Basilica of St. Mary Major | October 6, 2024 |

    Pray “The Chaplet of Divine Mercy in song”| January 29, 2025 |

    Pray “Holy Rosary ALL 20 Mysteries VIRTUALđŸŒčJOYFULđŸŒčLUMINOUSđŸŒčSORROWFULđŸŒčGLORIOUS” oĂčn YouTube |

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

  • MEMORIAL OF SAINT THOMAS AQUINAS, PRIEST AND DOCTOR OF THE CHURCH AND SAINT PETER NOLASCO, CONFESSOR

    MEMORIAL OF SAINT THOMAS AQUINAS, PRIEST AND DOCTOR OF THE CHURCH AND SAINT PETER NOLASCO, CONFESSOR

    THIRD WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME

    SAINT(S) OF THE DAY: FEAST DAY ~ JANUARY 28, 2025

    Greetings and blessings, beloved family and Happy Tuesday of the Third Week in Ordinary Time!

    Through the intercession of our Blessed Mother Mary, St. Thomas Aquinas and all the Saints on this Feast day, we humbly pray for the safety and well-being of our children, all students, for philosophers, theologians, apologists, scholars, teachers, for Catholic institutions, and all universities and institutions. We continue to pray for all those who are sick and dying, especially sick children, those who are mentally and physically ill, strokes, heart diseases, and those suffering from cancers and other terminal diseases. We pray for God’s grace and mercy upon us through this Ordinary Time, and may the Lord grant us the grace to serve Him in spirit and in truth🙏

    Watch “Holy Mass and Holy Rosary on EWTN | January 28, 2025” |

    Watch “Holy Mass from the National Shrine of the Divine Mercy” | January 28, 2025 |

    Pray “Holy Rosary Novena From Lourdes” | January 28, 2025 |

    Pray “Holy Rosary for Peace with Pope Francis” | LIVE Basilica of St. Mary Major | October 6, 2024 |

    Pray “The Chaplet of Divine Mercy in song”| January 28, 2025 |

    Pray “Holy Rosary ALL 20 Mysteries VIRTUALđŸŒčJOYFULđŸŒčLUMINOUSđŸŒčSORROWFULđŸŒčGLORIOUS” oĂčn YouTube |

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

    Today’s Bible Readings: Tuesday January 28, 2025
    Reading 1, Hebrews 10:1-10
    Responsorial Psalm, Psalms 106:19-20, 21-22, 23
    Gospel, Mark 3:31-35

    On this Feast day, through the intercession of our Blessed Mother Mary, and all the Saints, we humbly pray and thank God for blessing us all with the gift of His precious son, our Savior Jesus Christ! For the safety and well-being of all our children and children all over the world. We pray for God’s guidance and protection upon them. We continue to pray for peace all around the world, particularly in the Middle East, Ukraine-Russia and other parts of the world. We pray for an end to the wars and conflicts, and for peace in our families and throughout our divided and conflicted World. For the gentle 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 🙏 âœïžđŸ•ŻâœïžđŸ•ŻâœïžđŸ•Ż

    “Blessed are those who have died in the Lord; let them rest from their abors for their good deeds go with them.” ~ Rev 14:13

    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🙏

    PRAYER FOR THE VICTIMS OF WILDFIRES AND DISASTERS: We continue to pray for the victims of the current wildfires in the United States (Los Angeles, California) and victims of natural disasters across the world. We especially pray for those that have lost their lives and their families.

    “Most Merciful God, Be “our refuge and our strength, an ever-present help in distress” (Psalm 46:1). You created us and sustain us by Your almighty power. Your mercy knows no bounds. At this time of great suffering, we entrust all victims of the wildfires to You. Comfort them, fill them with Your grace, and provide for their needs. We entrust all who have died to Your merciful Heart. Cleanse them of their sins and welcome them into Your heavenly Kingdom. Give wisdom and prudence to those managing this disaster. Give courage and resolve to those on the front lines. Keep them safe and successful in their efforts. Command the winds and the flames to obey You, Lord, as You once calmed the stormy seas. Pour the water of Your grace upon these destructive fires. Stay them with Your powerful hand. Angels of God, come to the aid of those most in need of God’s mercy. Protect them, guide them, and reveal to them God’s holy will. St. Florian, patron of firefighters, pray for those bravely battling the flames. St. Michael the Archangel, defend them in their peril. Saints in Heaven, we beseech your prayer. Intercede for those most in need. From this tragedy and chaos, bring hope and peace. Turn sorrow into compassion. Turn confusion into faith. Turn despair into divine hope. We place all our trust in You, Most Merciful God, knowing that You will bring forth new life and healing from the ashes of this trial. May Your name be glorified now and forever. Amen” đŸ™đŸœ

    A PRAYER FOR PEACE: Lord Jesus Christ, You are the true King of peace. In You alone is found freedom. Please free our world from conflict. Bring unity to troubled nations. Let Your glorious peace reign in every heart. Dispel all darkness and evil. Protect the dignity of every human life. Replace hatred with Your love. Give wisdom to world leaders. Free them from selfish ambition. Eliminate all violence and war. Glorious Virgin Mary, Saint Michael the Archangel, Every Angel and Saint: Please pray for peace. Pray for unity amongst nations. Pray for unity amongst all people. Pray for the most vulnerable. Pray for those suffering. Pray for the fearful. Pray for those most in need. Pray for us all. Jesus, Son of the Living God, have mercy on us. Jesus, hear our prayers. Jesus, I trust in You! Amen 🙏

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

    SAINTS OF THE DAY: MEMORIAL OF SAINT THOMAS AQUINAS, PRIEST AND DOCTOR OF THE CHURCH AND SAINT PETER NOLASCO, CONFESSOR: – FEAST DAY ~ JANUARY 28TH: Today, we celebrate the Memorial of Saint Thomas Aquinas, Priest and Doctor of the Church and Saint Peter Nolasco, Confessor. St. Thomas Aquinas is the Patron Saint of schools and of sacred theology; philosophers; theologians; apologists; students; universities; academics; against storms; against lightning; apologists; book sellers; Catholic academies; Catholic schools; Catholic universities; chastity; colleges; learning; lightning; pencil makers; publishers; scholars; schools; storms; University of Vigo. Through the intercession of our Blessed Mother Mary, St. Thomas Aquinas and all the Saints on this feast day, we humbly pray for the safety and well-being of all students, for all universities, Catholic institutions, for philosophers, theologians, apologists, scholars and teachers. We continue to pray for all those who are sick and dying, especially sick children, those who are mentally and physically ill, strokes, heart diseases, and those suffering from cancers and other terminal diseases.

    SAINT THOMAS AQUINAS, PRIEST AND DOCTOR OF THE CHURCH: St. Thomas  Aquinas (1225-1274 ) is the Dominican order’s greatest glory and ranks among the greatest writers and theologians of all time. He was the 13th century theologian who showed that the Catholic faith is in harmony with philosophy and all other branches of knowledge. He taught philosophy and theology with such genius that he is considered one of the leading Christian thinkers. A deeply speculative mind, he joined a remarkable life of prayer, a precious memento of which has been left to us in the Office of Corpus Christi. He’s a perfect model of childlike simplicity and goodness, his innocence, on a par with his genius, earned for him the title of “Angelic Doctor.” St. Thomas was born in 1226 into a wealthy and noble family in Aquino, Italy, having relatives among the rulers of the Holy Roman Empire. His father Landulph was the Count of Aquino, and his mother Theodora, the Countess of Teano. At age five, Thomas was sent to study at Monte Cassino, the abbey founded by St. Benedict and placed him under the care of the Benedictines of Monte Cassino. His teachers were surprised at the progress the boy made, for he surpassed all his fellow pupils in learning as well as in the practice of virtue. The boy’s intellectual gifts and serious disposition impressed the monks, who urged his father to place him in a university by the time he was 10. At the University of Naples, he learned philosophy and rhetoric while taking care to preserve his morals against corruption by other students. When he became of age to choose his state of life, St. Thomas renounced the things of this world and resolved to enter the Order of St. Dominic in spite of the opposition of his family. Some members of his family resorted to all manner of means over a two-year period to break his constancy. When Thomas set off to enter the newly founded Dominican order to be a poor mendicant friar, his mother held him prisoner in the family castle in order to dissuade him. His brothers went as far as trying to destroy his purity, and thus his vocation, by tempting him with a prostitute. However Thomas resisted and turned to God for help; as a result, angels were sent to guard and preserve his chastity. St. Thomas persevered in his vocation. This long ordeal only strengthened his vocation, and eventually he escaped and joined the Dominicans of Naples in 1243, at the age of seventeen. As a reward for the Saint’s fidelity, his purity of mind and body, and remarkable intelligence, God conferred upon him the gift of perfect chastity, which has merited for him the title of the Angelic Doctor.

    After making his profession at Naples, St. Thomas studied at Cologne under the celebrated St. Albert the Great. Here he was nicknamed the “Dumb Ox” because of his silent ways and huge size, but he was really a brilliant student. At the age of twenty-two, he was appointed to teach in the same city. At the same time he also began to publish his first works. After four years he was sent to Paris. The Saint was then a priest. At the age of thirty-one he received his Doctorate. At Paris, he was honored with the friendship of the King, St. Louis, with whom he frequently dined. In 1261, Urban IV called him to Rome, where he was appointed to teach, but he positively declined to accept and ecclesiastical dignity. St. Thomas not only wrote (his writings fill twenty hefty tomes characterized by brilliance of thought and lucidity of language), but he preached often and with the great fruit. Clement IV offered him the Archbishopric of Naples, which he also refused. He was mild in word and kind in deed. He believed everyone was as innocent as he himself was. When someone sinned through weakness, Thomas bemoaned the sin as if it were his own. The goodness of his heart shone in his face, no one could look upon him and remain disconsolate. How he suffered with the poor and the needy was most inspiring. Whatever clothing or other items he could give away, he gladly did. He kept nothing superfluous in his efforts to alleviate the needs of others.

    St. Thomas’ best-known achievements are his works of theology. These include the Summa Contra Gentiles, the Compendium Theologiae, and the great Summa Theologica – an explanation and summary of the entire body of Catholic teaching, has been standard for centuries, even to our own day. At the 16th century Council of Trent it was consulted after the Bible, placed on the Altar along with the Bible for easy reference during discussion. In December 1273, however, the scholar proclaimed that he could write no more, following a mystical experience in which he said he had “seen things that make my writings look like straw.” But he complied with a request ordered there by Gregory X, to attend the Council of Lyon to help reunite the Latin and Greek churches. On his way there, however, Thomas became ill and stopped at a Cistercian abbey. The monks treated him with reverence, and it was to them that he dictated a final work of theology: a commentary on the Old Testament’s Song of Songs. The saint did not live to finish this commentary, however. He fell sick and nearing death, he made a final confession and asked for the Eucharist to be brought to him. In its presence, he declared: “I adore you, my God and my Redeemer 
 for whose honor I have studied, labored, preached, and taught.” He died at the Cistercian monastery of Fossa Nuova on March 7, 1274, at about the age of fifty. After he died his lifelong companion and confessor testified, “I have always known him to be as innocent as a five-year-old child. Never did a carnal temptation soil his soul, never did he consent to a mortal sin.” He cherished a most tender devotion to St. Agnes, constantly carrying relics of this virgin martyr on his person. He was canonized in 1323 by Pope John XXII and made a Doctor of the Church in 1567. In 1965, the Second Vatican Council taught that seminarians should learn “under the guidance of St. Thomas,” in order to “illumine the mysteries of salvation as completely as possible.” St. Thomas Aquinas is the Patron Saint of schools and of sacred theology; philosophers; theologians; apologists; students; universities; academics; against storms; against lightning; apologists; book sellers; Catholic academies; Catholic schools; Catholic universities; chastity; colleges; learning; lightning; pencil makers; ; publishers; scholars; schools; storms; University of Vigo.

    PRAYER: Father of wisdom, You inspired St. Thomas Aquinas with an ardent desire of holiness and study of sacred doctrine. Help us, we pray, to understand what he taught and to imitate what he lived. Amen🙏

    SAINT PETER NOLASCO, CONFESSOR: St. Peter Nolasco (1182-1256) is a French Saint and founder of the Mercedarian or Nolascan Order (The Order of Our Lady of Mercy or Ransom) founded in Spain in 1218, for the purpose of attending to the sick and ransoming Christian captives from the Moors. It was originally a military order. St. Peter Nolasco was born in c.1182 at Recaud, near Carcassonne, in Southern France, of noble and wealthy parents. His distinguishing virtue was the love of his neighbour, which seemed to be presaged by this incident that when he was a baby in his cradle, a swarm of bees one day lighted upon him, and formed a honey-comb on his right hand and he was not harmed. From his youth, he was noted for his piety, almsgiving and charity. He lost his parents early in life. The Albigensian heresy was, at that time, making way in France. Christians were persecuted throughout a large part of the Iberian peninsula. Peter, out of the hatred he had for that sect, withdrew into Spain, after having sold his estates. This gave him an opportunity of fulfilling a vow at our Lady’s of Mount Serrat, which he had made some time previous. After this, he went to Barcelona; and having there spent all his money in ransommg the Christian captives from the slavery of their enemies, he was often heard saying, that he would willingly sell himself to redeem others, or become a slave in the stead of any captive.

    God showed him, by the following event, how meritorious in his sight was this desire. He was one night praying for the Christian captives, and deliberating with himself how he might obtain their deliverance, when the Blessed Virgin appeared to him (1228) and told him, that he would render himself most dear to her Son and herself, if he would institute, in her honour, an Order of Religious men, who should devote themselves to the ransoming Captives from the infidels. In compliance with her wish, St. Peter delayed not to follow the heavenly suggestion, and instituted the Order of Our Lady of Mercy for the redemption of Captives, in which he was aided by St. Raymond of Penafort and James the First, King of Aragon, both of whom had, on that⁔ same night, received the intimation from the Mother of God. Besides the usual vows, all Religious of this Order are required to take a fourth vow, namely, to offer themselves as slaves to the Moors, if they can in no other way obtain the ransom of the Christians. The new Merecedarian Order, Our Lady of Ransom, was approved by Pope Gregory IX in 1230. In the beginning St. Peter Nolasco and his associates were lawmen, but Pope Clement V decreed that the Master General of the Order should always be a Priest. On one occasion St. Peter Nolasco ransomed 400 at Valencia and Granada; twice he traveled to Africa as “the Ransomer,” not without peril to his own life; and records show that through his personal efforts a total of 890 Christians regained their liberty.

    Having taken a vow of virginity, he spent his whole life in the most perfect purity. He excelled in every virtue, especially in patience, humility, and abstinence. He foretold future events by the gift of prophecy, wherewith God had favoured him. Thus, when king James was laying siege to Valentia, then in the possession of the Moors, he received assurance from the Saint that he would be blessed with victory. He was frequently consoled with the sight of his Angel Guardian and the Virgin Mother of God. At length, worn out with old age, he received an intimation of his approaching death. When he was seized with his last sickness, he received the holy Sacraments, and exhorted his Religious Brethren to love the Captives. After which, he began most devoutly to recite the Psalm, I will praise thee, O Lord, with my whole heart; and at these words from Psalm 110: The Lord has sent Redemption to His people, he breathed forth his soul into the hands of his Creator, at Christmas midnight, on December 25, 1256 at Barcelona, Spain. He was canonized in 1628. St. Peter Nolasco is the Patron Saint of fishermen.

    PRAYER FOR THE INTERCESSION OF ST. PETER NOLASCO: O God, you clothed our Father, Saint Peter Nolasco, with the love of Christ; and through the Blessed Virgin Mary you made him a messenger of love and liberty for Christians held in captivity. Help us to imitate him by working for the redemption of all the oppressed and for the building up of your Church. Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen🙏

    SCRIPTURE REFLECTIONS:

    Bible Readings for today’s Holy Mass | Memorial of Saint Thomas Aquinas, Priest and Doctor of the Church | Tuesday of the Third Week in Ordinary Time | USCCB | https://bible.usccb.org/daily-bible-reading

    Gospel Reading ~ Mark 3:31-35

    “Whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother”

    “The mother of Jesus and his brothers arrived at the house. Standing outside, they sent word to Jesus and called him. A crowd seated around him told him, “Your mother and your brothers and your sisters are outside asking for you.” But he said to them in reply, “Who are my mother and my brothers?” And looking around at those seated in the circle he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers. For whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother.”

    In today’s Gospel reading, Jesus seems to distance Himself from His family of origin, His blood family in spite of their very good intentions and acting out of genuine concern for Jesus. Jesus’ Mother, the Blessed Virgin Mary went with other members of Jesus’ family to ‘restrain’ Jesus, to seize Him, because people were saying about Jesus that He had gone out of His mind. According to the Gospel, while Jesus is teaching in a house, one of the crowd informs Him that His mother and brothers and sisters are outside the house wanting to speak to Him. Jesus declares that He now has a new family, the family of those seated around Him, the family of His disciples, the family of those who do the will of God as proclaimed and lived by Jesus. If we only read this remark from the face value and interpret it literally, then we may think that the Lord had been very rude towards His mother and relatives. However, what the Lord Jesus truly intended by mentioning those words was that everyone are welcome to come to Him and all are equally beloved to Him. There is no favouritism by the Lord, and it does not mean that one has privilege simply by being related to Him. This is contrasted to the common attitude and actions of many people at the time, and even up to this day, where we tend to give special favors and treatment, over others who are not related to us. Meanwhile, the Lord gives this opportunity of reconciliation between us and Himself generously and equally regardless of our background and origin, and no one is to be excluded from the generous love of God, no matter what. Jesus’ action must have been difficult for His Mother to come to terms with this new reality. Jesus no longer belonged to her or the rest of her family. Jesus now belonged to a much larger family that was not defined by blood but by its relationship to Him and to the God whom He proclaimed. This family soon came to be called the church and we are all members of that family today. Through baptism we have been initiated into that family, becoming sons and daughters of God, brothers and sisters of Jesus and, as one family, people who look to the Blessed Virgin Mary as our mother. We are, in many ways, shaped by our family of origin, but, more fundamentally, we are shaped by this ecclesial family to which we belong. It is there that we encounter Jesus, the Lord, in word, in sacrament and in each other; it is there that we imbibe His values and receive His Spirit. According to Jesus in today’s Gospel reading what really defines us as members of this family is our willingness to do the will of God, as Jesus proclaimed and lived it. That is why the distinguishing prayer that Jesus gave to this family of disciples, our family prayer, begins, ‘Father
 thy will be done, on earth as in heaven’. As members of Jesus’ spiritual family, we are called to do the will of God as Jesus has revealed it to us, through His teaching, His life, His death and resurrection. We spend our lives trying to discern what the Lord’s will for our lives is, and then trying to grow in the freedom to do that will. For Jesus’ Mother and His family, doing God’s will entailed renouncing control over Jesus, letting go of their own will for Him, which did not come easy to them. Doing the will of God does not come easy to us either. Yet, with the help of the Holy Spirit, our will can be gradually conformed to God’s will for our lives. This is the journey we are asked to be faithful to until the end of our earthly lives. We are all invited to belong to the Lord’s family and at the Eucharist we both celebrate and consolidate our belonging to this family.

    Our first reading today is a continuation of the discourse from the past few weeks from the Epistle to the Hebrews, the author of the Epistle explains to the intended audience, the Jewish community and people, likely both the believers among them and also those who have not yet believed in Christ, about the nature of the works of the Messiah, Who has offered Himself as a worthy sacrifice and offering to redeem all of us sinners. The context was that the requirement by the Law of God revealed to Moses obliged the people to offer sacrifices to the Lord regularly for the cleansing from their sins and debts, which they had to offer through the Priests at the Temple and House of God. And by the nature of those sacrificial offerings, they had to be offered regularly and periodically, as the offerings were animals and other earthly offerings that cannot be enough to be offered to atone for the multitudes of our innumerable sins. There is one and only one sacrifice and offering that is worthy and good enough for that purpose, and that is exactly what the Lord Jesus had offered for our sake. He has given freely the offering of His own Most Precious Body and Blood, the Immaculate, Perfect and Infinitely wonderful Body and Blood of the Paschal Lamb, the Divine Word Incarnate. There can be no greater offering than the offering of God made Man, God Who loves us all so much that He has willingly embraced us all with His most generous love and mercy, giving us all the assurance of hope and eternal life. And because of this most wonderful and generous love of God, Christ has offered for us the one only necessary sacrifice and offering for the atonement of all of our multitudes of sins. There is no longer any need for us to bear the burden of sin, as long as we put ourselves, our lives and our faith in the Lord, and commit ourselves wholeheartedly to Him, as we all should be doing. That is why the author of the Epistle to the Hebrews mentioned that the sacrifice and offerings which the Lord Jesus, the Saviour of the world has offered on the Altar of His Cross has nullified the need for the regular sacrifices and offerings at the Temple of God as prescribed by the old Law of God, and instead, everyone has been called to embrace God’s love and put their faith in Him. In that same occasion, the author also mentioned that the Lord Jesus has obeyed His Father’s will perfectly, to do what He has been sent to do in this world, to show that if by our disobedience and disregard of God’s Law and will we have fallen into sin and destruction, the path to damnation and downfall, then by listening to God and obeying His will, all of us can be restored to grace and be reconciled with God, our most loving Father and Creator. We have been given the free will and the freedom to choose the path that we want to walk in our lives. If we choose to follow the Lord and obey Him, walking in the path that He has shown us, then He will guide us to the sure path towards everlasting life and eternity of happiness and joy with Him. But, if we choose to walk our own path, and allow the temptations of sin to mislead us into the wrong path, we may end up falling into eternal damnation and regret our choice later on.

    As we reflect on the words of the Sacred Scriptures today, we are all reminded that we are partakers of the same Covenant which our Lord Jesus Christ, our Saviour has formed and mediated for us, and which He has established and sealed through the breaking of His own Most Precious Body and the outpouring of His own Most Precious Blood, the Body and Blood of the Holy Lamb of God, the One Who takes away the sins of the whole world, of all mankind, past, present and future. And therefore, as we have been given this great gift from God, the outpouring and sharing of the most generous love of God, we should hence appreciate what the Lord has granted us and learn to obey Him wholeheartedly at all times, doing our best to walk in His Holy Presence and living our lives to the best of our abilities as faithful disciples and followers of God. We are all called to emulate the lives and examples of the Holy men and women and all the Saints, particularly the life, ministry and work of Saint Thomas Aquinas, Priest and Doctor of the Church and Saint Peter Nolasco, Confessor, who we celebrate today. Let us all therefore do our best in our own respective lives to live a most faithful, committed life to God, putting God at the centre of our lives, and focusing our attention on glorifying Him through our lives. Each and every one of us have been entrusted with the responsibility, mission and calling to carry out all that the Lord has entrusted to us, through the various opportunities He has provided to us. We should not squander these opportunities, and instead strive our best to commit ourselves with faith, and to remember always the great and most generous love that God has given us, and thus, commit ourselves to love Him with the same vigour and purpose. May the Lord be with us all and may He empower each one of us to be the faithful bearers of His love, His truth and hope amongst our brethren in this world today. May each and every one of us continue to be strong and courageous in standing up for our faith, doing our best each day and at every moments to be good examples and inspirations to everyone around us, much as St. Thomas Aquinas and many other Saints had inspired us all through their exemplary lives and faith. May God in His infinite grace and mercy, grant us His grace and bless our every good efforts and endeavours, all for His greater glory, and may He continue to guide us in our journey in life towards Him, now and always. Amen đŸ™đŸœ

    DEVOTION OF THE MONTH OF JANUARY | MONTH OF THE HOLY NAME OF JESUS: The month of January is traditionally dedicated to the Holy Name of Jesus. After the Blessed Virgin Mary conceived by the Holy Spirit, the Angel Gabriel appeared to St. Joseph and told him that the Child’s name should be called Jesus, meaning “God Saves.” According to Jewish law, on the 8th day after his birth a male child was to be circumcised, receive his name, and become a full member of God’s covenant people. According to the old Roman liturgical calendar, the Feast of the Circumcision of Jesus was celebrated on January 1st, eight days after Christmas, the same day that He was given His sacred name. Currently we celebrate the Solemnity of the Mother of God on January 1st and honor the Holy Name of Jesus on January 3rd. For Catholics, Jesus’ sacred name is the object of a special devotion symbolized by the monogram “IHS,” (sometimes called a Christogram), which is the first three letters of the Greek spelling of His name.

    https://www.catholicculture.org/culture/library/view.cfm?recnum=12538

    THE POPE’S MONTHLY INTENTIONS FOR 2025: FOR THE MONTH OF JANUARY – FOR THE RIGHT TO EDUCATION: Let us pray for migrants, refugees, and those affected by war, that their right to an education, which is necessary to build a better world, might always be respected.

    https://www.usccb.org/prayers/popes-monthly-intentions-2025

    PRAYER FOR PEACE ~ POPE FRANCIS:

    Lord God of peace, hear our prayer!

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

    PRAYER INTENTIONS: Through the intercession of our Blessed Mother Mary and the Saints, on this feast day, we humbly pray and thank God for blessing us all with the gift of His precious son, may we be saved by the name of our Savior Jesus Christ! And as we begin the Ordinary Time, may the Lord grant us the grace to serve Him in spirit and in truth. We pray for peace, love and unity in our marriages, our families and our world today, as we face these incredibly challenging times. We pray for God’s deliverance from impossible causes or situations. We pray for the sick and dying, especially sick children, those who are sick with heart diseases, strokes, mental illness, and those suffering from cancers and other terminal diseases. We pray for torture victims, the poor, the needy and the most vulnerable in our communities and around the world. We pray for the souls in Purgatory and the repose of the souls of the faithful departed and 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 vocations to the priesthood and religious life, 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🙏

  • MEMORIAL OF SAINT ANGELA MERICI, VIRGIN

    MEMORIAL OF SAINT ANGELA MERICI, VIRGIN

    THIRD WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME

    SAINT(S) OF THE DAY: FEAST DAY ~ JANUARY 27, 2025

    Greetings and blessings, beloved family and Happy Monday of the Third Week in Ordinary Time!

    We pray for God’s grace and mercy upon us through this Ordinary Time, and may the Lord grant us the grace to serve Him in spirit and in truth🙏

    Watch “Holy Mass and Holy Rosary on EWTN | January 27, 2025” |

    Watch “Holy Mass from the National Shrine of the Divine Mercy” | January 27, 2025 |

    Pray “Holy Rosary Novena From Lourdes” | January 27, 2025 |

    Pray “Holy Rosary for Peace with Pope Francis” | LIVE Basilica of St. Mary Major | October 6, 2024 |

    Pray “The Chaplet of Divine Mercy in song”| January 27, 2025 |

    Pray “Holy Rosary ALL 20 Mysteries VIRTUALđŸŒčJOYFULđŸŒčLUMINOUSđŸŒčSORROWFULđŸŒčGLORIOUS” oĂčn YouTube |

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

    Today’s Bible Readings: Monday January 27, 2025
    Reading 1, Hebrews 9:15, 24-28
    Responsorial Psalm, Psalms 98:1, 2-3, 3-4, 5-6
    Gospel, Mark 3:22-30

    On this Feast day, through the intercession of our Blessed Mother Mary, and all the Saints, we humbly pray and thank God for blessing us all with the gift of His precious son, our Savior Jesus Christ! For the safety and well-being of all our children and children all over the world. We pray for God’s guidance and protection upon them. We continue to pray for peace all around the world, particularly in the Middle East, Ukraine-Russia and other parts of the world. We pray for an end to the wars and conflicts, and for peace in our families and throughout our divided and conflicted World. For the gentle 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 🙏 âœïžđŸ•ŻâœïžđŸ•ŻâœïžđŸ•Ż

    “Blessed are those who have died in the Lord; let them rest from their abors for their good deeds go with them.” ~ Rev 14:13

    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🙏

    PRAYER FOR THE VICTIMS OF WILDFIRES AND DISASTERS: We continue to pray for the victims of the current wildfires in the United States (Los Angeles, California) and victims of natural disasters across the world. We especially pray for those that have lost their lives and their families.

    “Most Merciful God, Be “our refuge and our strength, an ever-present help in distress” (Psalm 46:1). You created us and sustain us by Your almighty power. Your mercy knows no bounds. At this time of great suffering, we entrust all victims of the wildfires to You. Comfort them, fill them with Your grace, and provide for their needs. We entrust all who have died to Your merciful Heart. Cleanse them of their sins and welcome them into Your heavenly Kingdom. Give wisdom and prudence to those managing this disaster. Give courage and resolve to those on the front lines. Keep them safe and successful in their efforts. Command the winds and the flames to obey You, Lord, as You once calmed the stormy seas. Pour the water of Your grace upon these destructive fires. Stay them with Your powerful hand. Angels of God, come to the aid of those most in need of God’s mercy. Protect them, guide them, and reveal to them God’s holy will. St. Florian, patron of firefighters, pray for those bravely battling the flames. St. Michael the Archangel, defend them in their peril. Saints in Heaven, we beseech your prayer. Intercede for those most in need. From this tragedy and chaos, bring hope and peace. Turn sorrow into compassion. Turn confusion into faith. Turn despair into divine hope. We place all our trust in You, Most Merciful God, knowing that You will bring forth new life and healing from the ashes of this trial. May Your name be glorified now and forever. Amen” đŸ™đŸœ

    A PRAYER FOR PEACE: Lord Jesus Christ, You are the true King of peace. In You alone is found freedom. Please free our world from conflict. Bring unity to troubled nations. Let Your glorious peace reign in every heart. Dispel all darkness and evil. Protect the dignity of every human life. Replace hatred with Your love. Give wisdom to world leaders. Free them from selfish ambition. Eliminate all violence and war. Glorious Virgin Mary, Saint Michael the Archangel, Every Angel and Saint: Please pray for peace. Pray for unity amongst nations. Pray for unity amongst all people. Pray for the most vulnerable. Pray for those suffering. Pray for the fearful. Pray for those most in need. Pray for us all. Jesus, Son of the Living God, have mercy on us. Jesus, hear our prayers. Jesus, I trust in You! Amen 🙏

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

    SAINTS OF THE DAY: MEMORIAL OF SAINT ANGELA MERICI, VIRGIN – FEAST DAY ~ JANUARY 27TH: Today, we celebrate the Memorial of Saint Angela Merici, Virgin. Her dedication, great efforts and works had shown throughout her life inspiring many other women in their desire to follow the Lord and to show the path to many others towards God and His salvation. St. Angela is the Patron Saint of: Bodily ills; disabled people; handicapped people; illness; loss of parents; physically challenged people; sick people; sickness, courage, strength and determination.

    SAINT ANGELA MERICI, VIRGIN: St Angela (1474 – 1540) was an Italian religious educator, born on March 21, 1474 at Desenzano on the shore of Lake Garda, Italy, Province of Brescia. Early in life she dedicated herself to Christ as His bride. Her parents died when she was ten, and soon afterwards she lost her sister with whom she was very close. St. Angela went to live with her uncle, and, despite lacking a formal education, she grew in wisdom and virtue. St. Angela was worried because her sister had died without receiving the last sacraments. She was consoled by a vision in which she saw her sister radiantly happy in the company of the Blessed Virgin and the other saints. In gratitude, Angela consecrated herself more completely to God. She committed herself to prayer, penance, and serving the poor, eventually joining the Third Order of St. Francis at the age of fifteen. When her uncle died she returned to her home, and, seeing a great need for the education of young girls in the Christian faith, began a school for girls in her house. She daily gathered all the little girls of her village and taught them the faith. St. Angela became known for her holiness, and soon she was invited to establish another school in a neighboring town.

    St. Angela visited many shrines in Italy, but the great ambition of her life was to visit the Holy Land. St. Angela Merici was happy in 1524 when she was able to join a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. The travelers stopped at Canea on the island of Crete. Here Angela suddenly became blind. She insisted on continuing the pilgrimage and visited the holy places with great devotion, “seeing” through the eyes of the others. She was happy to bear her cross along the way made holy by the cross of her Redeemer. On the return voyage the pilgrims again visited Crete. Angela suddenly recovered her sight at the very place where she had lost it. The year 1525 was a Holy Year, and Angela went to Rome to gain the special indulgences. She had an interview with Pope Clement VII who wished her to stay in Rome and do her work there. But Angela preferred to return to Brescia where she had established herself in two small rooms attached to the church of St. Afra, and the pope respected her wishes.

    One day while in prayer she received a vision, in the vision God revealed to her that she would establish a “company” to promote the welfare of souls. That vision was realized when at Desenzano she established a school for the instruction of young girls and a second school at Brescia. She gathered around her twelve religious companions and founded the Order of Ursulines in 1535 at Brescia, under the protection and patronage of St. Ursula, the first teaching order for women approved by the Church. From this organisation later sprang the monastic Order of Ursulines, whose nuns established places of prayer and learning throughout Europe and, later, worldwide, most notably in North America. St. Angela was of a reflective bent and possibly the first to grasp the changed role of women in the society transformed by the Renaissance. She envisaged that those who joined her would remain in the world but devote themselves to every type of corporal and spiritual work of mercy, with special emphasis on education. However, St. Angela’s idea of education was very different from that of a convent school. She preferred to send her followers to teach girls in their own families. Through this she hoped to effect an improvement in social conditions. For it was her belief that “disorder in society is the result of disorder of the family.” Her idea of a religious order of women without distinctive habit and without solemn vows and enclosure was also in advance of her times—although her Order was obliged to adopt the canonical safeguards then required of all nuns. On November 25, 1535, the solemn canonical institution of the company of St. Ursula took place in the Oratory of the Piazza del Duomo. As a patron, St. Angela chose St. Ursula because ever since her martyrdom St. Ursula was regarded as the ideal type of Christian virginity.

    St. Angela died on January 27, 1540 at the age of 65 at Brescia, Republic of Venice; her body remained incorrupt for thirty days. Remarkable phenomena occurred at her burial in the Church of St. Afra. In the year of Angela’s death in1540, it was estimated that at least half the town of Brescia was Lutheran of Calvinist. However, the schools of the Ursulines did their share in strengthening and extending Catholicism and in safeguarding Italy from what is now termed “modern unbelief.” She was Beatified on April 30, 1768, Rome, Papal States by Pope Clement XIII and Canonized on May 24, 1807, Rome, Papal States by Pope Pius VII. St. Angela is the Patron Saint of: Bodily ills; disabled people; handicapped people; illness; loss of parents; physically challenged people; sick people; sickness, courage, strength and determination. Her feast day is January 27.

    “Disorder in society is the result of disorder in the family.” ~ St. Angela Merici

    PRAYER: Lord, let St. Angela never cease commending us to Your kindness. By always imitating her charity and prudence may we succeed in keeping Your teaching and preserving good morals. Amen🙏
     

    SCRIPTURE REFLECTIONS:

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

    Gospel Reading ~ Mark 3:22-30

    “It is the end of Satan”

    “The scribes who had come from Jerusalem said of Jesus, “He is possessed by Beelzebul,” and “By the prince of demons he drives out demons.” Summoning them, he began to speak to them in parables, “How can Satan drive out Satan? If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand. And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand; that is the end of him. But no one can enter a strong man’s house to plunder his property unless he first ties up the strong man. Then he can plunder his house. Amen, I say to you, all sins and all blasphemies that people utter will be forgiven them. But whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never have forgiveness, but is guilty of an everlasting sin.” For they had said, “He has an unclean spirit.”

    In today’s Gospel reading, Jesus was misinterpreted in the greatest way imaginable. Jesus was doing the work of God, healing the sick, seeking the lost, feeding the hungry, proclaiming God’s mercy to sinners and releasing people from their demons. The Holy Spirit who came down upon Him at His baptism was powerfully at work in all He said and did. However, some of the religious experts of the time held the view that the spirit at work in Jesus was an evil spirit, not the Holy Spirit. ‘It is through the price of devils that He casts devils out’. It was the power of God that was at work through Jesus, not the power of Satan. The scribes who came down from Jerusalem and who accused Jesus of acting in the power of Satan were blind; they saw white and called it black. It is hard to imagine a more serious misjudgement of others than to confuse the work of the Holy Spirit in their lives with the work of an evil spirit. It is what Jesus calls in the Gospel reading, blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. These religious experts were completely blind to the presence of the Holy Spirit in the life of Jesus. We might be tempted to think that we could not be so blind. Yet, we too can fail to recognize the presence and working of the Holy Spirit in the lives of others. We can be so focused on what we perceive to be their failings that we fail to see the presence of the Holy Spirit in them. The Gospel reading calls on us to be alert to the signs of the Holy Spirit in each other, even when those signs are not always glaringly obvious.

    In our first reading today from the Epistle to the Hebrews, the author of this Epistle, widely considered to be St. Luke the Evangelist, spoke about the sacrifice that the Lord Jesus Christ, Our Saviour has offered at the moment of His Passion, His suffering and death on the Cross, the one and only singular offering and sacrifice needed for the salvation of the whole entire world, for the past, present and the future. And this is something that all of us as Christians believe in, that the Lord has suffered and died, offering His own Most Precious Body and Most Precious Blood as the Lamb of God to atone for our many, innumerable sins and faults, and this perfect sacrifice is the only one that can redeem all of us, once and for all. The author of the Epistle to the Hebrews directed these words to the Jewish people, both those who have believed in Christ and likely also those who have not believed in Him and were still unconvinced that Jesus was truly the Messiah sent by God. That was why the author spent a lot of time and effort explaining the actions that the Lord Jesus had done, in why He had to suffer and face persecutions, which were actually the fulfilment of everything that the prophets like Isaiah and many others had spoken about Him. At that time, many among the people of God held the popular belief that the Messiah would come to liberate all of them from the hands and dominion by their enemies, like the Romans and others such as the Herodian rulers. Thus, some Jewish people rejected the Lord because of how He has died and was crucified by the Romans. According to today’s first reading, ‘Christ offers Himself only once to take the faults of many on Himself’. God sent His Son into the world not to condemn the world but to pour out the Spirit of God’s loving forgiveness on all, so that we may be reconciled to God. However, God needs an opening in our hearts, no matter how tiny, if God’s loving purpose for our lives is to come to pass. All we need do is to pray the prayer of the tax collector in the Temple, ‘Lord, be merciful to me a sinner’.

    As we reflect on the words of the Sacred Scriptures today, we are all reminded of an important core tenet of our Christian faith, that is we all believe in the salvation that has been given and reassured to us through Christ, the Son of God, Who has manifested the perfect love and compassion of God in the flesh, having been made incarnate in the flesh, through the means of His Mother, the Blessed, ever Virgin, Mary, the Mother of God and the Mother of the Saviour of the whole world. And we are reminded through those passages from the Sacred Scriptures of the nature of the Sacrifice and Offering which Christ our Lord, our High Priest had offered on our behalf from the Altar of His Cross, as He willingly laid down His life in exchange for our own lives, so that by His suffering and death, He might bring us all into the assurance of eternal life. We are all called to emulate the Holy men and women and all Saints, particularly those we celebrate today, Saint Angela Merici, Virgin, whose dedication, great efforts and works had shown throughout her life inspiring many other women in their desire to follow the Lord and to show the path to many others towards God and His salvation. Therefore, each and every one of us as Christians should also follow in the great examples of this great woman and Saint, doing our best at each and every moments in our lives to reject the false glory and pleasures of the world, and instead seek the true joy and glory that can be found in Christ our Lord alone. Let us all therefore do our best in each and every moments of our lives so that by our commitment and efforts, in each and every moments of our lives, we may come ever closer to the Lord and to His salvation and grace. Let us all remind ourselves to place our focus ever more on Him, and resist the many temptations present all around us. Let us all not be easily swayed by the worldly pressures, coercions and temptations, and stay faithful to God at all times. May the Lord our most loving God and Father continue to guide us all towards His Presence, and may He continue to strengthen and empower each and every one of us in our everyday living and journey that we may truly be the worthy disciples and followers of God, proclaiming His light and salvation to all the peoples of the whole world, now and forevermore. May God in His infinite grace and mercy, grant us the grace and bless our every good works and efforts, and may He grant us His grace in all things, in all that we do and act at every moment, now and forevermore. Amen🙏

    DEVOTION OF THE MONTH OF JANUARY | MONTH OF THE HOLY NAME OF JESUS: The month of January is traditionally dedicated to the Holy Name of Jesus. After the Blessed Virgin Mary conceived by the Holy Spirit, the Angel Gabriel appeared to St. Joseph and told him that the Child’s name should be called Jesus, meaning “God Saves.” According to Jewish law, on the 8th day after his birth a male child was to be circumcised, receive his name, and become a full member of God’s covenant people. According to the old Roman liturgical calendar, the Feast of the Circumcision of Jesus was celebrated on January 1st, eight days after Christmas, the same day that He was given His sacred name. Currently we celebrate the Solemnity of the Mother of God on January 1st and honor the Holy Name of Jesus on January 3rd. For Catholics, Jesus’ sacred name is the object of a special devotion symbolized by the monogram “IHS,” (sometimes called a Christogram), which is the first three letters of the Greek spelling of His name.

    https://www.catholicculture.org/culture/library/view.cfm?recnum=12538

    THE POPE’S MONTHLY INTENTIONS FOR 2025: FOR THE MONTH OF JANUARY – FOR THE RIGHT TO EDUCATION: Let us pray for migrants, refugees, and those affected by war, that their right to an education, which is necessary to build a better world, might always be respected.

    https://www.usccb.org/prayers/popes-monthly-intentions-2025

    PRAYER FOR PEACE ~ POPE FRANCIS:

    Lord God of peace, hear our prayer!

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

    PRAYER INTENTIONS: Through the intercession of our Blessed Mother Mary and the Saints, on this feast day, we humbly pray and thank God for blessing us all with the gift of His precious son, may we be saved by the name of our Savior Jesus Christ! And as we begin the Ordinary Time, may the Lord grant us the grace to serve Him in spirit and in truth. We pray for peace, love and unity in our marriages, our families and our world today, as we face these incredibly challenging times. We pray for God’s deliverance from impossible causes or situations. We pray for the sick and dying, especially sick children, those who are sick with heart diseases, strokes, mental illness, and those suffering from cancers and other terminal diseases. We pray for torture victims, the poor, the needy and the most vulnerable in our communities and around the world. We pray for the souls in Purgatory and the repose of the souls of the faithful departed and 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 vocations to the priesthood and religious life, 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, I sin every day and will continue to fail to follow You with perfection. For this reason, I thank You for Your abundant mercy. Please help me to always be open to that mercy by regularly re-examining my decisions in life. Give me humility, dear Lord, to always repent and to turn back to You when I stray. Jesus, I trust in You ~ Amen đŸ™đŸœ

    Save Us, Savior of the World. Our Blessed Mother Mary, Saint Angela Merici ~ Pray for us🙏

    *Please find below links to the websites for Daily Reflections, Foundation and interesting topics and articles about our Catholic faith and doctrines:

    DAILY REFLECTIONS | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/

    SIR G.L.I OPIEPE’S HEALTH AND EDUCATION FOUNDATION | https://gliopiepehe.org

    THE LITURGICAL YEAR IN THE CATHOLIC CHURCH | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2024/12/03/the-liturgical-year-in-the-catholic-church/

    OPENING OF THE HOLY DOORS SCHEDULES | JUBILEE OF HOPE 2025

    Pope Francis opens the Holy Door Ushering in the Jubilee of Hope | ‘Hope is Alive’ | Vatican News | December 24, 2024 | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2024/12/25/pope-francis-opens-the-holy-door-ushering-in-the-jubilee-of-hope-hope-is-alive-vatican-news-december-24-2024/

    THE JUBILEE PRAYER
    Link to the prayer of the Jubilee of Hope 2025 |
    https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2025/01/08/the-jubilee-prayer/

    Reflections and Prayer Links for 2025 Week of Prayer for Christian Unity:

    Reflections and Prayers for the Eight Days: A Journey through the Nicene Creed | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2025/01/18/2025-week-of-prayer-for-christian-unity/

    Resources for the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, and throughout the year | 2025 EN WPCU.pdf| https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2025/01/18/week-of-prayer-for-christian-unity-2025-january-18-25-2025/

    9 DAYS FOR LIFE: PRAY TO PROTECT HUMAN LIFE | January 16-24, 2025 | USCCB* [Link below] https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2025/01/17/9-days-for-life-novena-usccb/

    Solemnity of the Conversion of Saint Paul the Apostle | Celebration of Second Vespers on the 58th WPCU | Homily of Pope Francis | LIVE from the Vatican, Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls | Saturday, 25 January 2025 | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2025/01/26/solemnity-of-the-conversion-of-saint-paul-the-apostle-celebration-of-second-vespers-on-the-58th-week-of-prayer-for-christian-unity-homily-of-the-holy-father-pope-francis/

    Thanking God for the gift of this new year 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 as we begin this Ordinary Time. Wishing all of us a most blessed, safe, healthy, prosperous, and grace-filled New Year and week. Amen🙏

    Blessings and Love always, Philomena 💖

  • THIRD SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME (YEAR C )

    THIRD SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME (YEAR C )

    SUNDAY OF THE WORD OF GOD: Observed on the Third Sunday in Ordinary Time (Sunday between January 21-27)

    Greetings and blessings, beloved family. Happy Third Sunday in Ordinary Time and Sunday of the Word of God!

    “Pope Francis on September 30, 2019 directed that the 3rd Sunday of Ordinary Time should be observed as the Sunday of the Word of God. In a motu proprio entitled Aperuit Illis, the Holy Father said that the annual date should be “devoted to the celebration, study, and dissemination of the Word of God.” “He opened their minds to understand the Scriptures” (Lk 24:45).

    The theme for this year’s Sunday of the Word of God is, “I Hope in Your Word,” drawn from Psalm 119.

    We pray for God’s grace and mercy upon us through this Ordinary Time, and may the Lord grant us the grace to serve Him in spirit and in truth🙏

    *SAINTS OF THE DAY: FEAST DAY ~ JANUARY 26, 2025: MEMORIAL OF SAINTS TIMOTHY AND TITUS, BISHOPS AND SAINT JOSÉ  GABRIEL BROCHERO, PRIEST
    [Feast of Saints Timothy and Titus, Bishops
    Not celebrated as a liturgical memorial this year since it falls on Sunday]

    Watch “HOLY MASS ON SUNDAY OF THE WORD OF GOD WITH POPE FRANCIS | THIRD SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME (YEAR C) | Live from the Vatican, Saint Peter’s Basilica | January 26, 2025 | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2025/01/26/watch-holy-mass-on-sunday-of-the-word-of-god-with-pope-francis-third-sunday-in-ordinary-time-year-c-live-from-the-vatican-saint-peters-basilica-january-26-2025/

    Watch “Holy Mass and Holy Rosary on Third Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C), January 26, 2025 on EWTN” |

    Watch “Holy Mass from the National Shrine of the Divine Mercy” | January 26, 2025 |

    Pray “Holy Rosary Novena From Lourdes” | January 26, 2025 |

    Pray “Holy Rosary for Peace with Pope Francis” | LIVE Basilica of St. Mary Major | October 6, 2024 |

    Pray “The Chaplet of Divine Mercy in song”| January 25, 2025 |

    Pray “Holy Rosary ALL 20 Mysteries VIRTUALđŸŒčJOYFULđŸŒčLUMINOUSđŸŒčSORROWFULđŸŒčGLORIOUS” oĂčn YouTube |

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

    Today’s Bible Readings: Third Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C) | January 26, 2025
    Reading 1, Nehemiah 8:2-4, 5-6, 8-10
    Responsorial Psalm, Psalms 19:8, 9, 10, 15
    Reading 2, First Corinthians 12:12-30
    Gospel, Luke 1:1-4,4:14-21

    SUNDAY OF THE WORD OF GOD: The Third Sunday of Ordinary Time we mark the occasion of the Sunday of the Word of God which was instituted a few years ago, on September 30, 2019 by Pope Francis, our Supreme Pontiff with the purpose of rediscovering our love and zeal for the Lord through the deepening of our knowledge and understanding of the Sacred Scriptures. This observance aims to strengthen Catholics’ connection with Sacred Scripture and emphasize the living nature of God’s word in the Church’s life. The timing of the document is significant: September 30th is the Feast of Saint Jerome, the man who translated most of the Bible into Latin, and who famously said: “Ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of Christ”. St. Jerome died in his Bethlehem monastery in 420 and the year of the institution of the Sunday of the Word of God marked almost 1600 years since his death. It is important that we have to spend some time and effort to get to know more about the Word of God contained within the Scriptures and hence, that is why this Sunday in particular, let us all delve into what we have just heard from the Scripture readings and focus our attention on the truth that the Lord Himself has brought into our midst. “He opened their minds to understand the Scriptures” (Lk 24:45).

    In a motu proprio entitled Aperuit Illis, the Holy Father, Pope Francis said that the annual date should be “devoted to the celebration, study, and dissemination of the Word of God.” This is instituted because of the need for all of us as Christians to deepen our knowledge and understanding, appreciation and immersion in the Word of God found in the Scriptures. It was often said that Catholics do not have a good grasp, knowledge or understanding of the Scriptures, and hence, it is easy for us to be led astray by those who claimed to know the meaning of the Scriptures, and those who twisted and changed the meaning of the Word of God to satisfy their own aim and ambitions, their wicked and unholy purposes, drawing us away from the righteous and holy path of God. This is why we all need to deepen our knowledge and understanding of God’s Words in the Scriptures. How do we then know the Lord better through His Word? There are many things that we can do, but first of all, we must have with us, the Sacred Scriptures, all the Word of God and His revelations as compiled and written by those whom He had inspired, and which the Church and the Church fathers had authoritatively determined to be genuine and true, beneficial and truly the Word of God, as contained in the Holy Bible. Then, we should spend quality time to examine and explore the Word of God with proper guidance through the Church, and find good references that are now easily and readily available, from reliable and good sources that can help us understand and appreciate the meaning of the Scriptures and the Word of God much better. Nonetheless, unless we spend good amount of quality time to focus on the Lord and His Word, then it is unlikely that His Word will have good and firm roots in us.

    Today, January 26th marks the 6th Sunday of the Word of God and the Vatican hosts the Jubilee for the World of Communication. The Holy Mass celebration concluded the three-day Jubilee of the World of Communications, which is the first part of the many individual events animating the Jubilee of Hope in 2025. The Holy Mass highlighted the theme for this year’s Sunday of the Word of God, “I Hope in Your Word,” drawn from Psalm 119. In his homily, the Pope reflected on the Gospel passage from Luke, in which Jesus reads the Scriptures at the synagogue in his hometown of Nazareth. The celebration was particularly significant as it marked the convergence of the Word of God Sunday with the Jubilee for the World of Communication, emphasizing the Church’s commitment to both preserving and proclaiming the Gospel message in contemporary society. “Let us respond with ardor to the joyful announcement of Christ!” Pope Francis said, encouraging the faithful to bring “good news to the poor, proclaiming release to captives and recovery of sight to the blind, letting the oppressed go free and announcing the year of the Lord’s favor.”

    According to Pope Francis, the Word of God brings us joy and light. During his homily, Pope Francis emphasized five key aspects of Christ’s mission that characterize the Gospel message. “The Gospel is a word of joy, summoning us to mutual acceptance and fellowship, as we make our pilgrim journey towards the Kingdom of God,” the pontiff declared. “The Word of God is alive: through the centuries it walks with us and, by the power of the Holy Spirit, it is at work in history,” Pope Francis said during his homily. “The Lord is always faithful to His promise, which He maintains out of love for humanity.” The Pope noted that while Christ’s salvation is not yet fully realized, as evidenced by ongoing global conflicts, “wars, injustice, pain and death will not have the final word over the peoples of the earth and our history: for the Gospel is a living and certain word that never disappoints.” The Pope closed by reminding the congregation that when Scripture is read, studied, and prayed with, “we do not simply receive information about God; rather, we welcome the Spirit who reminds us of all that Jesus said and did.” During the Holy Mass, the Pope conferred the ministry of Lector on 40 lay people. The newly installed lectors included representatives from Albania (4), Argentina (3), Austria (5), Bolivia (1), Brazil (4), Philippines (5), Iceland (1), Italy (6), Mexico (5), Poland (1), and Slovenia (5).

    Sunday of the Word of God is observed on the Third Sunday in Ordinary Time (Sunday between January 21-27). Link – https://www.usccb.org/committees/divine-worship/sunday-word-god

    Daily Reflections | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/

    SCRIPTURE REFLECTIONS:

    *Bible Readings for today’s Holy Mass, Third Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C) | Saints Timothy and Titus, Bishops (Feast not celebrated as a liturgical memorial this year since it falls on Sunday) | https://bible.usccb.org/daily-bible-reading

    Gospel Reading ~ Luke 1:1–4; 4:14–21

    “Today this Scripture passage is fulfilled”

    “Since many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the events that have been fulfilled among us, just as those who were eyewitnesses from the beginning and ministers of the word have handed them down to us, I too have decided, after investigating everything accurately anew, to write it down in an orderly sequence for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may realize the certainty of the teachings you have received. Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and news of him spread throughout the whole region. He taught in their synagogues and was praised by all. He came to Nazareth, where he had grown up, and went according to his custom into the synagogue on the sabbath day. He stood up to read and was handed a scroll of the prophet Isaiah. He unrolled the scroll and found the passage where it was written: The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring glad tidings to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord.
    Rolling up the scroll, he handed it back to the attendant and sat down, and the eyes of all in the synagogue looked intently at him. He said to them, “Today this Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing.”

    In today’s Gospel reading, when Jesus returned to His home town Nazareth for the first time after beginning His public ministry, He went to the local synagogue on the Sabbath, just as we go to Mass on Sunday. When He was invited to read the second reading from the prophets, He chose a reading for Himself, rather than a set reading that was already prepared. When the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to Him, He very deliberately unrolled the scroll until He found the passage He wanted. This particular passage must have meant a great deal to Him; it summed up how He understood His mission. Like Isaiah, Jesus knew that the Spirit of God, the Holy Spirit, had come upon him. According to the Gospel of St. Luke, after His baptism, while He was praying, the Holy Spirit descended on Him. The Spirit was empowering Him for His mission that lay ahead. Jesus realized that the Holy Spirit was pushing Him towards certain kind of people, in particular what the passage from Isaiah refers to as the poor, the captives, the blind and the downtrodden. Jesus recognized that it was above all this diverse group that needed to hear the good news that they were loved by God, that God’s favour rested upon them and that God was working to transform their lives, bringing them healing, wholeness and liberation.
    In the time and place of Jesus, only a small elite were very wealthy; the vast bulk of the population would have been considered ‘poor’; they could easily and suddenly find themselves dependent on other people’s generosity for survival. The person of Lazarus in one of Jesus’ parables is an extreme example of the poorest. Many were ‘captive’, in that they were slaves of wealthy masters, or were imprisoned, or enslaved to debt. Those who were ‘blind’ or deaf or crippled or who suffered from some other disability were poor because they could not work. The Gospel story of blind Bartimaeus who begged by the roadside is one of such people. Many people in Jesus’ day were downtrodden or oppressed, the victims of injustice, such as the widow in Jesus’ parable of widow and the unjust judge.  The word translated ‘liberty’ in the Gospel reading also has the meaning ‘forgiveness’ elsewhere in Luke’s gospel. Proclaiming liberty to captives can also be understood as bringing God’s forgiveness to those considered ‘sinners’ and who felt trapped by this realization. In that sense, we can also understand the ‘poor’ as the spiritually poor. In the Gospel of St. Luke, Jesus refers to this group as the ‘lost’. According to the Gospels, Zacchaeus was one of the lost; he was very wealthy but he was spiritually poor. The prodigal son in that wonderful parable was rich; his father had lots of land and loads of servants. Yet, he was spiritually poor; he was lost. Jesus was saying in this mission statement, ‘I have come to bring God’s favour to all who need it most, all who feel on the edge for whatever reason, and I am going to do this “today”, in the here and now of my ministry’. There is a wonderful wide embrace in this mission statement of Jesus; we are all included in this embrace. There are times in all our lives when we feel poor, captive, blind, lost and downtrodden in some way. It is then that Jesus, the risen Lord, is especially close to us. We can turn to Him in our weakness, in our vulnerability, and experience His favour, His strengthening presence. The mission that Jesus announces in Nazareth is also the mission of the church. The church exists to make present in the ‘today’ of our age this mission of Jesus to proclaim God’s favour, God’s liberating love, to all who need it most. In fixing our eyes on the Lord, we are not only graced and blessed by His gift of God’s favour, but we are empowered to become channels of God’s favour to others. Pope Francis once declared, ‘The thing the church needs most today is the ability to heal wounds and to warm the hearts of the faithful; it needs nearness, proximity. I see the church as a field hospital after battle’. This is the kind of church that Pope Francis is asking us to become.

    In today’s second reading, St. Paul speaks about the community of the Lord’s followers, the church, as the body of Christ, in which each member is concerned for all the others, so that if one member suffers, all suffer with it. All of us together are now Christ’s body in the world. The Spirit of the Lord that empowered and directed Jesus’ mission has been given to us, the members of Christ’s body. Jesus’ subsequent mission shows that our loving concern must extend beyond the members of the church to embrace all who suffer, regardless of race or creed, just as the Samaritan in one of Jesus’ parables embraced the half dead Jew, his traditional enemy. Jesus’ mission statement is also a mission statement for us all as members of the church. As St. Paul says at the beginning of that second reading, ‘In the one Spirit we were all baptized, Jews as well as Greeks, slaves as well as free, and one Spirit was given to us all to drink’. The Spirit of the Lord will bring what is best in our human spirit to full expression, and whenever that happens the poor experience good news and those who are captive discover a new freedom.

    St. Paul the Apostle reminds us all is that we have to strive to seek for unity amongst all of us Christians, and to do our best to work with one another, to support each other and the efforts of the Church in its many missions and works for the salvation of souls and for the benefit of everyone around us. We cannot and should not remain idle in our lives, and we have to do our best to work for the greater good of everyone, doing our part so that we may contribute our part to the mission and efforts of the Church. All of us share this mission which the Lord has entrusted to us His Church, and the responsibility is ours to do our part in reaching out to the world and living our lives worthily as Christians, at all times. We must realise that the works of the Church are not limited just to those who are ordained, or members of the clergy and the religious orders. In fact, many of those who are laypeople have to contribute and be active part in the mission of the Church, as the Lord has given various, diverse gifts and talents, abilities and opportunities to each one of us, and we are entrusted with these different responsibilities, and we have to adapt as best as we can, to do our best in living our lives and carrying out our duties and responsibilities faithfully, be it as a member of the ordained, or those who have given themselves to consecrated and religious life, or those laypeople living in the world in their various capacities. The Lord needs us to continue the mission he announced in the synagogue of Nazareth. As Saint Paul reminds us in today’s second reading, ‘Now together you are Christ’s body; but each of you is a different part of it’. We are the Lord’s hands and feet, ears and eyes, mind and heart, today. The Lord comes to us in our own poverty and brokenness so that we can be living and life-giving members of His body today, each in our own unique way. St. Paul says that there is great diversity in the body of Christ. We each have different gifts of nature which the Spirit of God can bring fully to life. We each have a unique contribution to make to the Lord’s mission in today’s world. The gifts of each one of us are needed and each one of us needs the gifts of everyone else. The Lord looks to each of us to place our gifts and our energies at His disposal, at the disposal of the Holy Spirit, so that He can continue to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour in our world today.

    Our first reading this Sunday from the Book of the prophet Nehemiah gives the account of the moment when the assembly of the Israelites gathered together in the ruins of Jerusalem, led by the prophet and priest Ezra, who was the contemporary of Nehemiah, at the time when the Israelites were allowed to return back to their homeland after many decades in exile in distant lands. The context of the event was that the disobedience of the Israelites, the sins of the predecessors and ancestors of those who were mentioned in today’s first reading, had led to the destruction of the kingdoms of Israel and Judah, the kingdoms of the people of God by the Assyrians and the Babylonians. The people of Israel were scattered in distant lands away from their lands, while foreigners were settled in those lands that God had given to them and their ancestors. But God has never abandoned or forgotten about His people, as He still loved them all and wanted to restore all of them to grace, despite their many sins, wickedness and disobedience. He did this through the Great King of Persia, Cyrus, who conquered Babylonia and issued an edict of emancipation and liberation to all the Israelites, freeing them from their bondage and allowing them to return once again back to their homeland. Not only that, but he also even authorised the rebuilding of the destroyed cities and towns and especially the Temple of God in Jerusalem, in a great show of compassion and tolerance to the people under his rule. Thus, the Israelites came back to Jerusalem and their homeland, led by the priest Ezra and the king’s scribe, Nehemiah. It was therefore at that occasion Ezra proclaimed the Law of God and the words of the Scriptures to the assembly of the people of God who had finally returned to their homeland. The people were sorrowful and sad because of the many sins which they and their ancestors had committed against the Lord, which had caused their predicament in the first place, but Ezra told them not to be sorrowful or mourn on that day, but instead to rejoice greatly because it was truly a joyful day and moment that the Lord had made, in continuing to provide for His people despite their sins and faults, their disobedience and wickedness, showing them His constant love and compassion, kindness and grace, restoring them to their lands and allowing them to rebuild their lives and cities.

    As we reflect on the words of the Sacred Scriptures this Sunday of the Word of God, we are all reminded that God Himself, His Divine Word, has become incarnate in the flesh and dwelled among us all, in the person of Jesus Christ, the Saviour of the world. It is a reminder for all of us that God did not just make empty words or promises, but manifested His love, His kindness and compassion towards all of us through His incarnation, the sending of His Son into this world, to be born of His Mother, the Blessed Mary ever Virgin, to show us all the perfect love that He has always had for each and every one of us, and which we should appreciate and realise as we all carry on living our lives as Christians in our world today. We are all called as Christians to be the faithful and worthy bearers of our faith in the Lord, to be truly missionary, evangelising and active in how we proclaim the truth and Good News of God to everyone around us. We cannot and should not be ignorant of this calling which we have received from the Lord, and we should always be ready and prepared to go forth, revealing the Word of God that we have received and shared to the whole world. It is what we are called to do on this Sunday of the Word of God, to proclaim the salvation of God to all the nations, and to be the shining beacons of His light and truth, helping many of our fellow brothers and sisters in their journey towards the Lord. Let us all commit ourselves anew from now on, with a new commitment and spirit, to follow the Lord ever more wholeheartedly in all things. Let us show the ever enduring love and mercy, compassion and kindness which God has for us all, His beloved ones, even to the greatest of sinners among us. No one is truly excluded or barred from the love and mercy of God, and we should be the ones to bear witness to His love and kindness. We are called to emulate the Holy men and women and all the Saints, particularly the Saints we celebrate today, Saints Timothy and Titus, Bishops and Saint JosĂ© Gabriel Brochero, Priest. All of us are called and reminded to be more like St. Timothy and St. Titus in serving the Lord, in loving Him and our fellow brothers and sisters more and more. Let us ask ourselves if we have been faithful and true to our faith in God, or whether we have allowed ourselves to be swayed by the many temptations of worldly desires and pleasures that we end up falling deeper and deeper into the path of sin and evil. We are called to be better examples and role models of our Christian faith. May God in His infinite grace and mercy, grant us His grace as we continue to strive to live faithful and worthily of the Lord. May He be with us always, and bless us in our every good efforts and endeavours, now and forevermore and may St. Timothy and St. Titus, Holy servants of God, intercede for us all sinners. Amen đŸ™đŸœ

    SAINTS OF THE DAY: MEMORIAL OF SAINTS TIMOTHY AND TITUS, BISHOPS AND SAINT JOSÉ  GABRIEL BROCHERO, PRIEST – FEAST DAY ~ JANUARY 26TH: Today, we celebrate the Memorial of Saints Timothy and Titus, Bishops. The two followers and friends of St. Paul the Apostle who were among the first bishops of the Church, as the successors of the Apostles. It was fitting that we celebrate them today as yesterday we celebrated the Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul, as a reminder for us just how significant the contributions that St. Paul, formerly Saul, a great enemy of the Christian faithful turned a most ardent defender of the faith, had in the early history of the Church. We also celebrate the Memorial of Saint JosĂ© Gabriel Brochero, Priest.

    [Feast of Saints Timothy and Titus, Bishops
    Not celebrated as a liturgical memorial this year since it falls on Sunday]

    SAINTS TIMOTHY AND TITUS, BISHOPS: Saints Timothy and Titus were close companions of the Apostle Paul and bishops of the Catholic Church in its earliest days. St.Paul called St. Timothy a “dearly beloved son, brother, companion in labor & man of God” and called St. Titus “my true child in common faith.” Both men received letters from St. Paul, which are included in the New Testament. Pope Benedict XVI discussed these early bishops during a general audience on Dec. 13, 2006, noting “their readiness to take on various offices” in “far from easy” circumstances. Both saints, the Pope said, “teach us to serve the Gospel with generosity, realizing that this also entails a service to the Church herself.”

    SAINT TIMOTHY: St.Timothy (17-97 AD) was St. Paul’s dearest disciple, his most steadfast associate. He was the son of a Jewish mother and a Greek father, born in AD 17.  St. Timothy came from Lystra in present-day Turkey. His mother, Eunice, and his grandmother, Lois, are known to have joined the Church, and Timothy himself is described as a student of Sacred Scripture from his youth. After St. Paul’s visit to Timothy’s home region of Lycaonia, around the year 51, the young man joined the apostle and accompanied him in his travels. After religious strife forced Paul to leave the city of Berea, Timothy remained to help the local church. St. Paul later sent him to Thessalonica to help the Church during a period of persecution. The two met up again in Corinth, and St. Timothy eventually journeyed to Macedonia on St. Paul’s behalf. Problems in the Corinthian Church brought St. Timothy back for a time, after which he joined St. Paul and accompanied the apostle in subsequent travels. Like St. Paul, Timothy endured a period of imprisonment in the course of his missionary work. His release is mentioned in the New Testament Epistle to the Hebrews.

    Around the year 64, Timothy became the first bishop of the Church of Ephesus. During that same year, he received the first of two surviving letters from St. Paul. The second, written the next year, urges Timothy to visit St. Paul in Rome, where he was imprisoned before his martyrdom. Ancient sources state that St. Timothy followed his mentor in dying as a martyr for the faith. In the year 93, during his leadership of the Church in Ephesus, he took a stand against the worship of idols and was consequently killed by a mob. According to tradition St. Timothy spent the rest of his life at Ephesus as its Bishop. He was martyred during the winter of the year AD 97 at about the age of 80. The pagan festival he was protesting was held Jan. 22, and this date was preserved as St. Timothy’s memorial in the Christian East. St. Timothy is the Patron Saint: Intestinal disorders; stomach diseases. Feast day: January 26, January 24 (Trad)

    SAINT TITUS: St. Titus was Bishop and Confessor, 1st century AD. He was a friend and became one of St. Paul’s most illustrious disciples. In contrast with Timothy’s partial Jewish descent and early Biblical studies, St. Titus was born into a pagan family. He is said to have studied Greek philosophy and poetry in his early years. But he pursued a life of virtue, and purportedly had a prophetic dream that caused him to begin reading the Hebrew Scriptures. According to tradition, St. Titus journeyed to Jerusalem and witnessed the preaching of Christ during the Lord’s ministry on earth. Only later, however – after the conversion of St. Paul and the beginning of his ministry – did St. Titus receive baptism from the apostle, who called the pagan convert his “true child in our common faith.” St. Paul was not only Titus’ spiritual father, but also depended on his convert as an assistant and interpreter. St. Titus accompanied Paul to the Apostolic Council of Jerusalem during the year 51, and was later sent to the Corinthian Church on two occasions. After the end of Paul’s first imprisonment in Rome, the apostle ordained St. Titus as the Bishop of Crete.

    St. Paul sent his only surviving letter to Titus around the year 64, giving instructions in pastoral ministry to his disciple as he prepared to meet up with him in the Greek city of Nicopolis. St. Titus evangelized the region of Dalmatia in modern Croatia before returning to Crete. St. Titus is credited with leading the Church of Crete well into his 90s, overturning paganism and promoting the faith through his prayers and preaching. Unlike St. Timothy, St. Titus was not martyred, but died peacefully of natural cause in old age at the age of 94, having lived in the state of virginity during his whole life. St. Paul left a worthy monument to St. Titus, his faithful disciple, in the beautiful pastoral letter which forms part of the New Testament. St. Titus was Patron Saint of Crete, United States Chaplain Corp. Feastday: January 26 (New) February 6 (Trad).

    PRAYER: Lord God, You filled Sts. Timothy and Titus with apostolic virtues, through their intercession may we live good and religious lives her on earth and thus be worthy of our heavenly home. Saints Timothy and Titus, companions of St. Paul ~ Pray for us. Amen🙏

    SAINT JOSÉ  GABRIEL BROCHERO, PRIEST: St. JosĂ© Gabriel is known in Argentina as the “cowboy priest.” This gaucho, as local cattle-herders are known, served a large parish spread over miles of mountainous terrain. St. JosĂ© showed bravery in his first years as a priest by ministering to victims of a cholera epidemic in the city of Cordoba, Argentina. At 29 he was assigned to St. Albert, a remote parish numbering about ten thousand souls with neither schools nor roads. Padre JosĂ© went on the back of a mule along the mountains to care for his flock, carrying a Mass kit and an image of the Blessed Mother. His flock was, in a sense, “lost,” so remote were they from the larger society. Father JosĂ© said of his people that “they were abandoned by everyone, but not by God.” Early in his tenure, he desired spiritual renewal for his parish and so he led a group across mountains in a snowstorm to a retreat being held at Cordoba on the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius. This beginning in prayer produced much fruit in the parish.

    His priestly ministry drew him to the people, to “go out,” as Jesus and his apostles went out to where the people were to be found. This “going out” involved risk: the danger of terrain, long days far from home, and the unexpected. Pope Francis has especially encouraged priests and generally all Christians to get out on the roads and into the public squares as a necessary first step in evangelization, in sharing Christ. St. JosĂ© Gabriel was not unknown to the public for his incarnational way of ministering. He worked alongside his people. A Cordoba newspaper wrote about this priest’s way of serving in an 1887 article: “He practices the gospel. Are you missing a carpenter? He’s a carpenter. Are you missing a laborer? He’s a laborer. He rolls up his cassock wherever he is, takes the shovel or hoe and opens a public road in 15 days aided by his parishioners.” In these tasks St. JosĂ© found a space of communion in labor with his parishioners and a solid imitation of his patron, St. Joseph. He worked to build roads, schools, and to get mail and telegraph couriers for the good of the people. In his letter to those gathered for the beatification ceremony, Pope Francis said: “This shepherd who smelled of sheep became poor among the poor.”

    St. JosĂ© Gabriel was born in 1840, the same year of birth as St. Damien of Molokai. Like Damien, JosĂ© Gabriel served those who were considered untouchable, the lepers, and like Damien he died a leper. He continued to pray and offer Mass although ill and blind. His “going out” was a complete emptying of self. Pope Francis wrote: “Brochero did not stay in the parish offices: he would exhaust himself riding his mule and he ended up being sick with leprosy.” St. JosĂ© Gabriel died January 26, 1914. The beatification ceremony at Cordoba was attended by close to 150,000 people, including three thousand gauchos wearing the traditional ponchos of the Argentine cowboy. This priest was a lone ranger when he had to be and, like his Divine Master, was brave, courageous, and bold.

    PRAYER: We humbly ask you, almighty God, that at the intercession of blessed JosĂ© Gabriel, you may multiply your gifts among us and order our days in peace. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen🙏

    DEVOTION OF THE MONTH OF JANUARY | MONTH OF THE HOLY NAME OF JESUS: The month of January is traditionally dedicated to the Holy Name of Jesus. After the Blessed Virgin Mary conceived by the Holy Spirit, the Angel Gabriel appeared to St. Joseph and told him that the Child’s name should be called Jesus, meaning “God Saves.” According to Jewish law, on the 8th day after his birth a male child was to be circumcised, receive his name, and become a full member of God’s covenant people. According to the old Roman liturgical calendar, the Feast of the Circumcision of Jesus was celebrated on January 1st, eight days after Christmas, the same day that He was given His sacred name. Currently we celebrate the Solemnity of the Mother of God on January 1st and honor the Holy Name of Jesus on January 3rd. For Catholics, Jesus’ sacred name is the object of a special devotion symbolized by the monogram “IHS,” (sometimes called a Christogram), which is the first three letters of the Greek spelling of His name.

    https://www.catholicculture.org/culture/library/view.cfm?recnum=12538

    THE POPE’S MONTHLY INTENTIONS FOR 2025: FOR THE MONTH OF JANUARY – FOR THE RIGHT TO EDUCATION: Let us pray for migrants, refugees, and those affected by war, that their right to an education, which is necessary to build a better world, might always be respected.

    https://www.usccb.org/prayers/popes-monthly-intentions-2025

    PRAYER FOR PEACE ~ POPE FRANCIS:

    Lord God of peace, hear our prayer!

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

    PRAYER FOR THE VICTIMS OF WILDFIRES AND DISASTERS: We continue to pray for the victims of the current wildfires in the United States (Los Angeles, California and other parts of the country) and victims of natural disasters across the world. We especially pray for those that have lost their lives and their families.

    PRAYER INTENTIONS: Through the intercession of our Blessed Mother Mary and the Saints, on this feast day, we humbly pray and thank God for blessing us all with the gift of His precious son, may we be saved by the name of our Savior Jesus Christ! And as we begin the Ordinary Time, may the Lord grant us the grace to serve Him in spirit and in truth. We pray for peace, love and unity in our marriages, our families and our world today, as we face these incredibly challenging times. We pray for God’s deliverance from impossible causes or situations. We pray for the sick and dying, especially sick children, those who are sick with heart diseases, strokes, mental illness, and those suffering from cancers and other terminal diseases. We pray for torture victims, the poor, the needy and the most vulnerable in our communities and around the world. We pray for the souls in Purgatory and the repose of the souls of the faithful departed and 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 vocations to the priesthood and religious life, 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:

    Glorious Word of God, You have come to set us free by revealing to us Your love and mercy and by bestowing that grace upon us. Please open my mind and heart to Your holy Word so that I will be driven by a holy love to serve and follow You all the days of my life. Jesus, I trust in You ~ Amen 🙏

    Saints Timothy and Titus, you were called by God to share in the apostolic ministry of Saint Paul, to go forth to preach, and to draw many souls to Heaven. Your faith, zeal, and countless virtues assisted you in this mission. Please pray for me, that I may also share in the apostolic work of the Church and help bring many souls to Christ. Saints Timothy and Titus, pray for me. đŸ™đŸœ

    Save Us, Savior of the World. Our Mother Mary, Saints Timothy and Titus and Saint JosĂ© Gabriel Brochero ~ Pray for us🙏

    *Please find below links to the websites for Daily Reflections, Foundation and interesting topics and articles about our Catholic faith and doctrines:

    DAILY REFLECTIONS | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/

    SIR G.L.I OPIEPE’S HEALTH AND EDUCATION FOUNDATION | https://gliopiepehe.org

    THE LITURGICAL YEAR IN THE CATHOLIC CHURCH | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2024/12/03/the-liturgical-year-in-the-catholic-church/

    OPENING OF THE HOLY DOORS SCHEDULES | JUBILEE OF HOPE 2025

    Pope Francis opens the Holy Door Ushering in the Jubilee of Hope | ‘Hope is Alive’ | Vatican News | December 24, 2024 | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2024/12/25/pope-francis-opens-the-holy-door-ushering-in-the-jubilee-of-hope-hope-is-alive-vatican-news-december-24-2024/

    THE JUBILEE PRAYER
    Link to the prayer of the Jubilee of Hope 2025 | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2025/01/08/the-jubilee-prayer/

    Reflections and Prayer Links for 2025 Week of Prayer for Christian Unity:

    Reflections and Prayers for the Eight Days: A Journey through the Nicene Creed | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2025/01/18/2025-week-of-prayer-for-christian-unity/

    Resources for the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, and throughout the year | 2025 EN WPCU.pdf| https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2025/01/18/week-of-prayer-for-christian-unity-2025-january-18-25-2025/

    9 DAYS FOR LIFE: PRAY TO PROTECT HUMAN LIFE | January 16-24, 2025 | USCCB* [Link below] https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2025/01/17/9-days-for-life-novena-usccb/

    SOLEMNITY OF THE CONVERSION OF SAINT PAUL THE APOSTLE | CELEBRATION OF SECOND VESPERS ON THE 58TH WEEK OF PRAYER FOR CHRISTIAN UNITY | HOMILY OF THE HOLY FATHER, POPE FRANCIS | LIVE from the Vatican, Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls | Saturday, 25 January 2025 | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2025/01/26/solemnity-of-the-conversion-of-saint-paul-the-apostle-celebration-of-second-vespers-on-the-58th-week-of-prayer-for-christian-unity-homily-of-the-holy-father-pope-francis/

    Thanking God for the gift of this new year 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 as we begin this Ordinary Time. Wishing all of us a most blessed, safe, healthy, prosperous and grace-filled New Year and Sunday of the Word of God and week. Amen🙏

    Blessings and Love always, Philomena 💖