Monday, March 18, 2013
Mon 5th wk in Lent - Homily: Holding onto Innocence
Saturday, March 16, 2013
LIFE HURTS, GOD HEALS
We wouldn’t know God’s faithfulness
if we never had a need;
We wouldn’t know His answers
if we did not intercede.
We wouldn’t know God’s promises
if we chose not to believe;
We wouldn’t know His fullness
if our hearts did not receive.
We wouldn’t know God’s comforting
if we never shed a tear;
We wouldn’t know His preciousness
if we didn’t have Him near.
We wouldn’t know God’s victory
if we never faced a test;
We wouldn’t know His peacefulness
if He didn’t give us rest.
We wouldn’t know God’s mighty strength
if we were never weak;
We wouldn’t know His counsel
if we failed to hear Him speak.
We wouldn’t know God’s fruitfulness
if we had never grown;
We wouldn’t know His wondrous ways
if we laboured on our own.
if we never had a need;
We wouldn’t know His answers
if we did not intercede.
We wouldn’t know God’s promises
if we chose not to believe;
We wouldn’t know His fullness
if our hearts did not receive.
We wouldn’t know God’s comforting
if we never shed a tear;
We wouldn’t know His preciousness
if we didn’t have Him near.
We wouldn’t know God’s victory
if we never faced a test;
We wouldn’t know His peacefulness
if He didn’t give us rest.
We wouldn’t know God’s mighty strength
if we were never weak;
We wouldn’t know His counsel
if we failed to hear Him speak.
We wouldn’t know God’s fruitfulness
if we had never grown;
We wouldn’t know His wondrous ways
if we laboured on our own.
Monday, March 11, 2013
JANUARY 1st - THE OCTAVE DAY OF CHRISTMAS --- Solemnity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of God
Preghiera alla Madre del Divino Amore - dal Papa, Santo Giovanni Paolo II
2016.12.31 Celebration of the Vespers and the Te Deum
2017.01.01 Holy Mass for the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God
JANUARY 1st - THE OCTAVE DAY OF CHRISTMAS --- Solemnity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of God
First reading Numbers 6:22-27 |
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May the Lord bless you and keep you.
May the Lord let his face shine on you and be gracious to you.
May the Lord uncover his face to you and bring you peace.”
This is how they are to call down my name on the sons of Israel, and I will bless them.’
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 66(67):2-3,5,6,8 |
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O God, be gracious and bless us.
O God, be gracious and bless us
and let your face shed its light upon us.
So will your ways be known upon earth
and all nations learn your saving help.
O God, be gracious and bless us.
Let the nations be glad and exult
for you rule the world with justice.
With fairness you rule the peoples,
you guide the nations on earth.
O God, be gracious and bless us.
Let the peoples praise you, O God;
let all the peoples praise you.
May God still give us his blessing
till the ends of the earth revere him.
O God, be gracious and bless us.
| Second reading | Galatians 4:4-7 |
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When the appointed time came, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born a subject of the Law, to redeem the subjects of the Law and to enable us to be adopted as sons. The proof that you are sons is that God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts: the Spirit that cries, ‘Abba, Father’, and it is this that makes you a son, you are not a slave any more; and if God has made you son, then he has made you heir.
| Gospel Acclamation | Heb1:1-2 |
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Alleluia, alleluia!
At various times in the past
and in various different ways,
God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets;
but in our own time, the last days,
he has spoken to us through his Son.
Alleluia!
| Gospel | Luke 2:16-21 |
|---|
The shepherds hurried away to Bethlehem and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in the manger. When they saw the child they repeated what they had been told about him, and everyone who heard it was astonished at what the shepherds had to say. As for Mary, she treasured all these things and pondered them in her heart. And the shepherds went back glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen; it was exactly as they had been told.
When the eighth day came and the child was to be circumcised, they gave him the name Jesus, the name the angel had given him before his conception
Evanġelju
Sabu lil Marija u lil Ġużeppi, bit-tarbija mimduda f’maxtura.
Lq 2, 16-21
Sabu lil Marija u lil Ġużeppi, bit-tarbija mimduda f’maxtura.
Lq 2, 16-21
Qari mill-Evanġelju skont San Luqa
F’dak iż-żmien, ir-ragħajja marru jgħaġġlu, u sabu lil Marija u lil Ġużeppi, bit-tarbija mimduda f’maxtura. Kif raw dan, bdew jgħarrfu b’kulma kien intqal lilhom dwar dik it-tarbija, u kull min semagħhom baqa’ mistagħġeb b’dak li qalulhom ir-ragħajja. Marija, min-naħa tagħha, baqgħet tgħożż f’qalbha dawn il-ħwejjeġ kollha u taħseb fuqhom bejnha u bejn ruħha.
Ir-ragħajja mbagħad reġgħu lura, isebbħu u jfaħħru lil Alla għal kulma kienu raw u semgħu, kif l-anġlu kien qalilhom. Meta wasal it-tmien jum biex lit-tifel jagħmlulu ċ-ċirkonċiżjoni, semmewh Ġesù, bl-isem li kien tah l-anġlu qabel ma tnissel fil-ġuf.
Il-Kelma tal-Mulej
R/. Tifħir lilek Kristu
R/. Tifħir lilek Kristu
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To Treasure Revelation
Cycle AChristmasWeek Mary, Mother of God
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Starting 2017, Pope highlights role of Mary - Published on Jan 1, 2017
Pope Francis said that Mary is a reminder that Catholics belong to a family
Four Reasons God Became Man
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Pope Francis: Mary's faith unties the knot of sin
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MARIAN FEASTS IN THE GENERAL ROMAN CALENDAR
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Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary: Mary, a Stumbling Block or a Door to Unity? - Prof. Judith Povilus
- in Malta on December 6, 2018
MARY IN SCRIPTURE
http://www.ewtn.com/library/MARY/MARYINSC.htm
MEDITATING ON THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY, MOTHER OF GOD AND GOD'S LOVE
THE ETERNAL HOLY TRINITY, ONE GOD...the Creator...who creates...
· ...It was their teaching that led her to
respond to God's request with faith, "Let it be done to me as you
will." It was their example of parenting that Mary must have
followed, as she brought up her own Son, Jesus. It was their faith that laid
the foundation of courage and strength that allowed her to stand by the cross
as her Son was crucified....and still believe.
The attitude of Mary of Nazareth shows us that being comes before doing, and to leave the doing to God in order to be truly as he wants us. It is He who works so many marvels in us. Mary is receptive, but not passive. Because, on the physical level, she receives the power of the Holy Spirit and then gives flesh and blood to the Son of God who forms within her. Thus, on the spiritual level, she accepts the grace and corresponds to it with faith. That is why St Augustine affirms that the Virgin “conceived in her heart before her womb” (Discourses, 215, 4).
The obedient young virgin - who was pledged to be married to righteous and faithful Joseph, a descendant of David.
The virgin youth (Lk 1:34) ...visited by Angel Gabriel,
pronouncing her the chosen one by God, to conceive immaculately through the power of the Holy Spirit and
become the Mother of Jesus, the long-awaited Messiah
=============
[2 Sam 6:11] U l-arka tal-Mulej baqgħet f'dar Għobed-edom, il-Gitti, tliet xhur sħaħ. U l-Mulej bierek lil Għobed-edom u 'l daru kollha.
[Eż 40:34] Mbagħad is-sħaba ksiet it-tinda tal-laqgħa; u l-glorja tal-Mulej imliet it-tabernaklu. [Eż 40:35] Mosè ma setax jidħol fit-tinda tal-laqgħa, għax fuqha kien hemm tistrieħ is-sħaba, u l-glorja tal-Mulej kienet timla t-tabernaklu. [Eż 40:36] Kull meta s-sħaba kienet tintrefa' minn fuq it-tabernaklu, ulied Iżrael kienu jitilqu minn fejn ikunu. [Eż 40:37] U jekk is-sħaba ma kinetx tintrefa', anqas huma ma kienu jitilqu, qabel ma tintrefa' hi.
[Eż 40:38] Binhar kien ikun hemm is-sħaba tal-Mulej tistrieħ fuq it-tabernaklu, imma bil-lejl kien ikun hemm in-nar, li kienu jarawh ulied Iżrael fil-mixi kollu tagħhom.
[Apk 11:19] U nfetaħ it-tempju ta' Alla, li hemm fis-sema, u dehret l-Arka tal-Patt tiegħu fit-tempju tiegħu. Mbagħad beda jberraq u kien hemm ħafna ħsejjes u ragħad u theżhiż u silġ oħxon.
12. Id-dehra tal-mara u d-dragun
[Apk 12:1] U deher sinjal kbir fis-sema: Mara, liebsa x-xemx, bil-qamar taħt riġlejha, u b'kuruna ta' tnax-il kewkba fuq rasha.
The perpetual Virgin Mother who surrendered all her dreams...to God and who totally trusted in His will, to become the first fruit of evangelization !
The pregnant virgin, the first Tabernacle...in an intense and pure relationship
with the Holy Trinity, wholeheartedly hurried off as the first missionary, in the first Eucharistic procession - the living, travelling Monstrance, from Nazareth to Judea, to SERVE
generously her relative Elizabeth, for three months, thus going beyond to the Angel Gabriel's deliverance of the
incredibly startling news.
The pregnant
mother in the desert, who travelled together with her spouse and
protector, Joseph, the foster father of Jesus, Son of God - from Nazareth to
Bethlehem (app 70 – 80 miles = long enough to reach their destination close to
giving birth ) -- to obey to the Census by the Roman Empire. Thus the prophecy
in Micah 5 is fulfilled.
http://www.messiahrevealed.org/birth-and-childhood.html
Again and again the Holy Family bow down to God's will, leave Egypt and go in a safer place to ultimately settle in Nazareth, as is prophesized in Holy Scriptures
Gospel Mt 2:13-15, 19-23
When the magi had departed, behold,
the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said,
“Rise, take the child and his mother, flee to Egypt,
and stay there until I tell you.
Herod is going to search for the child to destroy him.”
Joseph rose and took the child and his mother by night
and departed for Egypt.
He stayed there until the death of Herod,
that what the Lord had said through the prophet might be fulfilled,
Out of Egypt I called my son.
When Herod had died, behold,
the angel of the Lord appeared in a dream
to Joseph in Egypt and said,
“Rise, take the child and his mother and go to the land of Israel,
for those who sought the child’s life are dead.”
He rose, took the child and his mother,
and went to the land of Israel.
But when he heard that Archelaus was ruling over Judea
in place of his father Herod,
he was afraid to go back there.
And because he had been warned in a dream,
he departed for the region of Galilee.
He went and dwelt in a town called Nazareth,
so that what had been spoken through the prophets
might be fulfilled,
He shall be called a Nazorean.
the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said,
“Rise, take the child and his mother, flee to Egypt,
and stay there until I tell you.
Herod is going to search for the child to destroy him.”
Joseph rose and took the child and his mother by night
and departed for Egypt.
He stayed there until the death of Herod,
that what the Lord had said through the prophet might be fulfilled,
Out of Egypt I called my son.
When Herod had died, behold,
the angel of the Lord appeared in a dream
to Joseph in Egypt and said,
“Rise, take the child and his mother and go to the land of Israel,
for those who sought the child’s life are dead.”
He rose, took the child and his mother,
and went to the land of Israel.
But when he heard that Archelaus was ruling over Judea
in place of his father Herod,
he was afraid to go back there.
And because he had been warned in a dream,
he departed for the region of Galilee.
He went and dwelt in a town called Nazareth,
so that what had been spoken through the prophets
might be fulfilled,
He shall be called a Nazorean.
The Blessed Virgin Mother encouraging Jesus (God) in His first steps !
The faithful wife who esteemed the love from her husband Joseph; cared for him; looked after him when he was sick; mourned his death.
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Standing ...
She was standing by the cross supported by the virtue of faith, knowing that He would soon rise: There stood by the cross of Jesus His Mother. O wondrous stance! Nay, rather: O divine miracle! She was standing in body, but more in spirit, with the virtue of her faith undiminished; she was standing in astonishment admiring the divine love with which God so loved the world, admiring not only the divine mercy but also the divine justice in punishing sin for the sake of the sinner’s salvation; admiring the divine obedience of her Son to the Father, his divine strength against the demons, his boundless patience in suffering extreme torments.
Thus she stood in admiration, astounded by the divine mystery of human redemption; she stood also as an example for the whole Church of the future and as a model of invincible patience in enduring adversities. For truly it can be said about her, that: In all things she sinned not with her lips, no indeed, nor in her heart; nor spoke she nor did she even think any foolish thing against God; but kept saying in her mind: If we have received good things at the hand of the Lord, why should we not endure evil? The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away, as it hath pleased the Lord so is it done. Thus, with extraordinarily great courage she drained to the dregs this most bitter chalice given to her by God to drink, saying with her Son: “The chalice which my Father hath given me, shall I not drink it” “If it be possible, let this chalice pass from me; nevertheless not as I will, but as Thou wilt. Not my will, but Thine be done.” Thus through it all she was like her suffering Son in courage and strength.
And if Christ suffered leaving for us an example, that we might follow in His footsteps, so clearly His Mother Mary also suffered; she gave us an example with her Son, that just as she has done, so also we might do; and let us always have before our eyes this saintly exemplar shown to us on the mountain; let us contemplate it, that we might imitate both Christ and His Most Holy Mother with the utmost zeal. Let us reflect upon her who endured such opposition from sinners, so that we may not become weary and discouraged or falter on the path of virtue, which is the way of salvation. May Mary always be for us an example of undaunted and invincible patience, of unconquerable strength, of invincible courage, in order that no tribulation, indeed, no creature whatsoever, may separate us from the love of Christ.
St. Lawrence of Brindisi
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The untiring Mother, who waited during the hours Jesus, laid in the tomb...for the fulfillment of Her Son's mission - His Resurrection in Glory
The supportive Mother, who was nurtured herself by the Risen Christ in the consecrated bread and wine during the Celebration of the Eucharist by the chosen Apostles - by then, empowered by the Holy Spirit, breathed upon them by Jesus Himself !
Mary’s places: The Dormition and The Tomb
The Mother, the first tabernacle, the first missionary, the first disciple, the first apostle, was taken up to Heaven with body and soul and proclaimed Queen of Heaven and Earth by the Holy Trinity
AUGUST 15 - Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God
Impressive painting that reveals the ever-faithful humility of Our Lady: The face that shows the many difficult experiences you suffered; those hands that knew hard manual work; the hair that reveals the many years open to harsh elements and sorrows ... now glorified in Heaven united with the Holy Trinity, interceding for us, teaching us how to be grateful to Your Son JESUS, through your incessant revelations and apparitions !
>>> http://medjugorjemalta.blogspot.com/2013/05/vade-retro-la-donna-che-schiaccia-il.html
Mary: Model of Spiritual Motherhood
http://www.foundationforpriests.org/spiritual-motherhood
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Sunday, March 10, 2013
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