Author: diocesan-joliet

Tuesday of the Third Week of Advent

Posted on by diocesan-joliet

Reading I Gn 49:2, 8-10

Jacob called his sons and said to them:
    “Assemble and listen, sons of Jacob,
        listen to Israel, your father.

    “You, Judah, shall your brothers praise
        –your hand on the neck of your enemies;
        the sons of your father shall bow down to you.
    Judah, like a lion’s whelp,
        you have grown up on prey, my son.
    He crouches like a lion recumbent,
        the king of beasts–who would dare rouse him?
    The scepter shall never depart from Judah,
        or the mace from between his legs,
    While tribute is brought to him,
        and he receives the people’s homage.”

Responsorial Psalm 72:1-2, 3-4ab, 7-8, 17

R.    (see 7)  Justice shall flourish in his time, and fullness of peace for ever.
O God, with your judgment endow the king,
    and with your justice, the king’s son;
He shall govern your people with justice
    and your afflicted ones with judgment. 
R.    Justice shall flourish in his time, and fullness of peace for ever.
The mountains shall yield peace for the people,
    and the hills justice.
He shall defend the afflicted among the people,
    save the children of the poor.
R.    Justice shall flourish in his time, and fullness of peace for ever.
Justice shall flower in his days,
    and profound peace, till the moon be no more.
May he rule from sea to sea,
    and from the River to the ends of the earth.
R.    Justice shall flourish in his time, and fullness of peace for ever.
May his name be blessed forever;
    as long as the sun his name shall remain.
In him shall all the tribes of the earth be blessed;
    all the nations shall proclaim his happiness. 
R.    Justice shall flourish in his time, and fullness of peace for ever.

Alleluia

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
O Wisdom of our God Most High,
guiding creation with power and love:
come to teach us the path of knowledge!
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel Mt 1:1-17

The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ,
the son of David, the son of Abraham.

Abraham became the father of Isaac,
Isaac the father of Jacob,
Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers. 
Judah became the father of Perez and Zerah,
whose mother was Tamar. 
Perez became the father of Hezron,
Hezron the father of Ram,
Ram the father of Amminadab. 
Amminadab became the father of Nahshon,
Nahshon the father of Salmon,
Salmon the father of Boaz,
whose mother was Rahab. 
Boaz became the father of Obed,
whose mother was Ruth. 
Obed became the father of Jesse,
Jesse the father of David the king.

David became the father of Solomon,
whose mother had been the wife of Uriah. 
Solomon became the father of Rehoboam,
Rehoboam the father of Abijah,
Abijah the father of Asaph. 
Asaph became the father of Jehoshaphat,
Jehoshaphat the father of Joram,
Joram the father of Uzziah. 
Uzziah became the father of Jotham,
Jotham the father of Ahaz,
Ahaz the father of Hezekiah. 
Hezekiah became the father of Manasseh,
Manasseh the father of Amos,
Amos the father of Josiah.
Josiah became the father of Jechoniah and his brothers
at the time of the Babylonian exile.

After the Babylonian exile,
Jechoniah became the father of Shealtiel,
Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel,
Zerubbabel the father of Abiud. 
Abiud became the father of Eliakim,
Eliakim the father of Azor,
Azor the father of Zadok. 
Zadok became the father of Achim,
Achim the father of Eliud,
Eliud the father of Eleazar. 
Eleazar became the father of Matthan,
Matthan the father of Jacob,
Jacob the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary. 
Of her was born Jesus who is called the Christ.

Thus the total number of generations
from Abraham to David
is fourteen generations;
from David to the Babylonian exile, fourteen generations;
from the Babylonian exile to the Christ,
fourteen generations.

– – –

Lectionary for Mass for Use in the Dioceses of the United States, second typical edition, Copyright © 2001, 1998, 1997, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine; Psalm refrain © 1968, 1981, 1997, International Committee on English in the Liturgy, Inc. All rights reserved. Neither this work nor any part of it may be reproduced, distributed, performed or displayed in any medium, including electronic or digital, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

Daily Prayer for December 17

Posted on by diocesan-joliet

For it was life which appeared before us: we saw it, we are eyewitnesses of it, and are now writing to you about it. It was the very life of all ages, the life that has always existed with the Father, which actually became visible in person to us mortal men. 1 John 1:2, Phillips

Lord our God, we thank you that you have given us the light of life, that we can now learn how to live, and that through your great grace we may understand life in direct relationship with the Lord Jesus, who was crucified and who rose from the dead. Grant that the power of Christ may be made visible in us. Grant that his life may become our life, that we may leave behind all doubts and anxiety, even though we are often surrounded by darkness and night. Keep us in your Word. Let your will hold sway over all the world, for your will must be done in heaven, on earth, and down to the lowest depths. Let your will be done on earth as in all the heavens. Amen.

 

Recent articles on Plough

How Math Makes You a Better Person

Frederick K. S. Leung

Across cultures, I found that math can be more than mere problem-solving. Read now


Your Guardian Angel Is Always Present

Bernard of Clairvaux

With angelic protection, you will walk on the asp and the basilisk; you will trample the lion and the dragon underfoot. Read now


Trumpet Man

Robert Lee Williams

A mystery man sporting a salt-and-pepper afro blew a golden trumpet in the prison yard. His tune took me back to the streets. Read now


Tell an Old Story for Modern Times

Lisabeth Button

A Bruderhof teacher applies lessons from her mentors and Homer in her classroom and beyond. Read now


A Failsafe Cure for Loneliness

Johann Christoph Arnold

If we look at what we can give to others, our loneliness will evaporate. Read now

The Crèche and the Cross / El Nacimiento y la Cruz

Posted on by diocesan-joliet

Click here for daily readings

Just when we were getting settled into our new house a few years back and things were starting to settle down, another crisis hit. After so much work, so many hours, so much invested, and it all came crashing down. Our new renters were bringing in underaged squatters and a wanted convict into our house and refusing to pay rent. What were we to do? Where were we to turn? Why was this all happening to us?

Sometimes I hear hard news about crosses that others have to bear. I begin reflecting on my own life and realize that I have very few “chronic” crosses so to speak. My family is mostly healthy, we have food on the table and two cars that usually run well. Although one can always dream about additional wants, the truth is, I suffer very little.

So perhaps that tough weekend, which seemed like one of the hardest moments of my life, was meant to be a lesson to me that life is never without its crosses. Whether they be temporary or endured for years on end, crosses are an inevitable part of our earthly journey. We may find ourselves acting like Jonah and trying to run away from our crosses but sooner or later the truth hits us right between the eyes: “The cross leads to resurrection, agony to ecstasy, darkness to light, abandonment to possession, denial to self to union with God. If you want to save your life, you must lose it.” (Franciscanmedia.org on St. John of the Cross) And just as in today’s Gospel he didn’t tell the chief priests by what authority he taught, God doesn’t owe us any explanation for it.  

Why else would we celebrate saints like St. Lucy, St. John of the Cross, St. Stephen, and the Holy Innocents throughout Advent and Christmas? Those who had their eyes gouged out, were stoned, were slaughtered… during this holy and joyful time that we celebrate Jesus coming as an adorable little baby?  Perhaps it is precisely because they are a reminder to us that every human, even the newborn God-man, will experience crosses, and Jesus’ is heavier than any of ours will ever be. Even during this joyful season, we cannot forget the fact that he was born to die for us.

So as we continue to hand our crosses over to God and try to bear them as best as we humanly can, let us pray together with the Psalmist: “Your ways, O Lord, make known to me; teach me your paths, guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my savior. Remember that your compassion, O Lord, and your kindness are from of old. In your kindness remember me, because of your goodness, O Lord. Good and upright is the Lord; thus he shows sinners the way. He guides the humble to justice, he teaches the humble his way.”

Teach me your ways, O Lord, even if they lead me to the cross.

Contact the Author

Justo cuando nos acabamos de mudar a la nueva casa hace unos años y las cosas empezaban a calmarse, caímos en otra crisis. Después de tanto trabajo, tantas horas, tanto que habíamos invertido, todo se vino abajo. Los nuevos inquilinos traían a okupas menores de edad y a un convicto buscado a nuestra casa y se negaban a pagar el alquiler. ¿Qué íbamos a hacer? ¿A dónde íbamos a recurrir? ¿Por qué nos estaba pasando todo esto?

A veces escucho noticias sobre las cruces pesadas que tienen que soportar otras personas. Empiezo a reflexionar sobre mi propia vida y me doy cuenta de que tengo muy pocas cruces “crónicas”, por así decirlo. Mi familia está sana la mayoría del tiempo, tenemos comida en la mesa y dos coches que casi siempre funcionan bien. Aunque uno siempre puede soñar con deseos adicionales, la verdad es que sufro muy poco.

Así que tal vez ese duro fin de semana, que parecía uno de los momentos más duros de mi vida, estaba destinado a ser una lección para mí de que la vida nunca está libre de cruces. Ya sean temporales o soportadas durante años, las cruces son una parte inevitable de la viaje terrenal. A veces podemos portarnos como Jonás, tratando de huir de la cruz, pero tarde o temprano la verdad nos golpea directamente en la cara: “La cruz lleva a la resurrección, la agonía al éxtasis, la oscuridad a la luz, el abandono a la posesión, la negación de uno mismo a la unión con Dios. Si quieres salvar tu vida, tienes que perderla” (Franciscanmedia.org sobre San Juan de la Cruz). Y así como en el Evangelio de hoy no les dijo a los sumos sacerdotes con qué autoridad enseñaba, Dios no nos debe ninguna explicación.

Si no, ¿por qué, celebraríamos a santos como Santa Lucía, San Juan de la Cruz, San Esteban y los Santos Inocentes durante el Adviento y la Navidad? ¿Aquellos a quienes les sacaron los ojos, los apedrearon, los masacraron… durante este tiempo santo y alegre en el que celebramos la venida de Jesús como un adorable bebé? Quizás es precisamente porque nos recuerdan que todo ser humano, incluso el Dios-hombre recién nacido, experimentará cruces, y la de Jesús es más pesada que la de cualquiera de nosotros. Incluso durante este tiempo de alegría, no podemos olvidar el hecho de que él nació para morir por nosotros.

Así que, mientras seguimos entregando nuestras cruces a Dios y tratamos de llevarlas lo mejor que humanamente podemos, oremos junto con el salmista: “Descúbrenos, Señor, tus caminos,

guíanos con la verdad de tu doctrina. Tú eres nuestro Dios y salvador y tenemos en ti nuestra esperanza. Acuérdate, Señor, que son eternos tu amor y tu ternura. Según ese amor y esa ternura, acuérdate de nosotros. Porque el Señor es recto y bondadoso, indica a los pecadores el sendero, guía por la senda recta a los humildes y descubre a los pobres sus caminos.”

Descúbreme tus caminos, Señor, aunque me lleven a la cruz.

Comunicarse con la autora

Tami Urcia grew up in Western Michigan, a middle child in a large Catholic family. She spent early young adulthood as a missionary in Mexico, studying theology and philosophy, then worked and traveled extensively before finishing her Bachelor’s Degree in Western Kentucky. She loves tackling projects, finding fun ways to keep her little ones occupied, quiet conversation with the hubby and finding unique ways to love. She works full time at Diocesan, is a guest blogger on CatholicMom.com and BlessedIsShe.net, and has been doing Spanish translations on the side for over 20 years.

Feature Image Credit: Gertrude Käsebier, art.diocesan.com/stock-photo/the-manger-ideal-motherhood-5746/

The post The Crèche and the Cross / El Nacimiento y la Cruz appeared first on Diocesan.

St. Adelaide

Posted on by diocesan-joliet

St. Adelaide

Feast date: Dec 16

Born in 931 in Burgundy, France as the daughter of King Rudolph II of Burgundy, Adelaide was promised in marriage when she was only two years old, to a man named Lothaire, the son and heir of his enemy, Hugh of Provence.

Lothaire was killed when still young, and Adelaide was to have a tumultuous life that paralleled the struggle for political power of the times, something she had come to symbolize. She appealed to Otho the Great of Germany for help.

Having been sought after by various kings and nobles after Lothaire’s death, she was finally married by Otho the Great of Germany, who had invaded Italy.

After Otto’s death on May 7, 973, Adelaide exercised influence over her son Otto II until their estrangement in 978, when she left the court and lived in Burgundy with her brother King Conrad. At Conrad’s urging, she became reconciled with her son, and, before his death in 983, Otto appointed her his regent in Italy. With her daughter-in-law, Empress Theophano, she upheld the right of her three-year-old grandson, Otto III, to the German throne. She lived in Lombardy from 985 to 991, when she returned to Germany to serve as sole regent after Theophano’s death (991). In 991, Adelaide was invested as the Regent of the Empire, and she used her power as the effective empress to increase evangelization efforts, especially in northern Europe, and built many monasteries and churches, and also gave much aid the poor. She governed until Otto III came of age in 994, and, when he became Holy Roman emperor in 996, she retired from court life, devoting herself to founding churches, monasteries, and convents.

She died in 999 at the monastery of Seltz, Alsace, and was canonized in 1097 by Pope Urban II.

Monday of the Third Week of Advent

Posted on by diocesan-joliet

Reading I Nm 24:2-7, 15-17a

When Balaam raised his eyes and saw Israel encamped, tribe by tribe,
    the spirit of God came upon him,
    and he gave voice to his oracle:

    The utterance of Balaam, son of Beor,
        the utterance of a man whose eye is true,
    The utterance of one who hears what God says,
        and knows what the Most High knows,
    Of one who sees what the Almighty sees,
        enraptured, and with eyes unveiled:
    How goodly are your tents, O Jacob;
        your encampments, O Israel!
    They are like gardens beside a stream,
        like the cedars planted by the LORD.
    His wells shall yield free-flowing waters,
        he shall have the sea within reach;
    His king shall rise higher,
        and his royalty shall be exalted.

Then Balaam gave voice to his oracle:

    The utterance of Balaam, son of Beor,
        the utterance of the man whose eye is true,
    The utterance of one who hears what God says,
        and knows what the Most High knows,
    Of one who sees what the Almighty sees,
        enraptured, and with eyes unveiled.
    I see him, though not now;
        I behold him, though not near:
    A star shall advance from Jacob,
        and a staff shall rise from Israel.

Responsorial Psalm 25:4-5ab, 6 and 7bc, 8-9

R.    (4) Teach me your ways, O Lord.
Your ways, O LORD, make known to me;
    teach me your paths,
Guide me in your truth and teach me,
    for you are God my savior.
R.    Teach me your ways, O Lord.
Remember that your compassion, O LORD,
    and your kindness are from of old.
In your kindness remember me,
    because of your goodness, O LORD.
R.    Teach me your ways, O Lord.
Good and upright is the LORD;
    thus he shows sinners the way.
He guides the humble to justice,
    he teaches the humble his way.
R.    Teach me your ways, O Lord.

Alleluia Ps 85:8

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Show us, LORD, your love,
and grant us your salvation.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel Mt 21:23-27

When Jesus had come into the temple area,
the chief priests and the elders of the people approached him
as he was teaching and said,
“By what authority are you doing these things? 
And who gave you this authority?” 
Jesus said to them in reply,
“I shall ask you one question, and if you answer it for me,
then I shall tell you by what authority I do these things. 
Where was John’s baptism from?
Was it of heavenly or of human origin?” 
They discussed this among themselves and said,
“If we say ‘Of heavenly origin,’ he will say to us,
‘Then why did you not believe him?’ 
But if we say, ‘Of human origin,’ we fear the crowd,
for they all regard John as a prophet.” 
So they said to Jesus in reply, “We do not know.” 
He himself said to them,
“Neither shall I tell you by what authority I do these things.”

– – –

Lectionary for Mass for Use in the Dioceses of the United States, second typical edition, Copyright © 2001, 1998, 1997, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine; Psalm refrain © 1968, 1981, 1997, International Committee on English in the Liturgy, Inc. All rights reserved. Neither this work nor any part of it may be reproduced, distributed, performed or displayed in any medium, including electronic or digital, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

Daily Prayer for December 16

Posted on by diocesan-joliet

The Sovereign Lord has given me a well-instructed tongue, to know the word that sustains the weary. He wakens me morning by morning, wakens my ear to listen like one being instructed. Isaiah 50:4, NIV

Lord our God, we thank you for giving us the task of serving you in the name of your servant, Jesus Christ, for letting each of us have a part in carrying out your will. Keep us true to this service. We want to be faithful, always listening to you, for you open our ears and help us know your will and respond to it. Be with us in these days. Strengthen your love and compassion in all hearts. May the life of Jesus Christ gain greater and greater power in all people on earth. Amen.

 

Recent articles on Plough

How Math Makes You a Better Person

Frederick K. S. Leung

Across cultures, I found that math can be more than mere problem-solving. Read now


Your Guardian Angel Is Always Present

Bernard of Clairvaux

With angelic protection, you will walk on the asp and the basilisk; you will trample the lion and the dragon underfoot. Read now


Trumpet Man

Robert Lee Williams

A mystery man sporting a salt-and-pepper afro blew a golden trumpet in the prison yard. His tune took me back to the streets. Read now


The Reluctant Goddess and the Roasted Hogs

Lisabeth Button

A Bruderhof teacher applies lessons from her mentors and Homer in her classroom and beyond. Read now


A Failsafe Cure for Loneliness

Johann Christoph Arnold

If we look at what we can give to others, our loneliness will evaporate. Read now

To Be A Community / Ser una Comunidad

Posted on by diocesan-joliet

Click here for daily readings

The people ask John the Baptist in earnest what they should do in response to his message. In the verses before today’s Gospel, John is preaching a message of repentance and if I’m honest, a bit of fear thrown in. He is challenging the status quo with strong language, calling the Pharisees “vipers” and asserting that God is ready and waiting to cut down whoever isn’t producing good fruit in their lives. 

“What should we do?” The crowds, tax collectors, and even soldiers ask John. To each group, John gives a different answer. However, every answer is rooted in the same basic principle – be a community.

John tells the crowds to share their food and clothing with whomever among them is lacking. A community takes care of each person’s basic needs. It requires that everyone consider the needs of others before their own wants and needs. 

John tells the tax collectors to stop overcharging people. He is insisting on selflessness, rather than selfishness. Notice that John doesn’t tell them to stop in their profession, but to practice it with integrity and honesty. There is no need to be greedy, especially if the community is practicing John’s first assertion to take care of the basic needs of every individual.

Finally, John tells the soldiers to be content in their station and position. Do not flaunt your authority or use it to abuse others. Again, John doesn’t tell them to desert their positions, but to fulfill their tasks well and with proper purpose. In a community, each person has something to contribute and the capacity to do it well. Some will be in authority over others, but this does not give them the right to abuse the privilege of leadership.

Today, John the Baptist gives us three foundational elements of a community built upon God’s principles. We must be generous, considering the needs of others. We must be honest, contributing our part and not seeking to grasp what is not ours. We must be content, recognizing that what we have is from God and that we are stewards of His goodness and love.

Contact the author

La gente le pregunta a Juan el Bautista con seriedad qué deben hacer en respuesta a su mensaje. En los versículos anteriores al Evangelio de hoy, Juan está predicando un mensaje de arrepentimiento y, si soy sincera, metiéndole un poco de miedo también. Está desafiando el status quo con un lenguaje fuerte, llamando a los fariseos “víboras” y afirmando que Dios está listo y esperando para acabar con quien no esté produciendo buenos frutos en sus vidas.

“¿Qué debemos hacer?”, le preguntan a Juan las multitudes, los recaudadores de impuestos e incluso los soldados. A cada grupo, Juan da una respuesta diferente. Sin embargo, cada respuesta se basa en el mismo principio básico: ser una comunidad.

Juan les dice a las multitudes que compartan su comida y ropa con quienes tengan necesidad. Una comunidad se ocupa de las necesidades básicas de cada persona. Requiere que todos consideren las necesidades de los demás antes que sus propios deseos y necesidades.

Juan les dice a los recaudadores de impuestos que dejen de cobrar de más a la gente. Insiste en el altruismo, en lugar del egoísmo. Observemos que Juan no les dice que dejen de ejercer su profesión, sino que la practiquen con integridad y honestidad. No hay necesidad de ser codicioso, especialmente si la comunidad está practicando la primera afirmación de Juan de cuidar de las necesidades básicas de cada individuo.

Finalmente, Juan les dice a los soldados que estén contentos con su puesto y posición. No hagan alarde de su autoridad ni la utilicen para abusar de los demás. Nuevamente, Juan no les dice que abandonen sus puestos, sino que cumplan bien sus tareas y con el propósito adecuado. En una comunidad, cada persona tiene algo que aportar y la capacidad de hacerlo bien. Algunos tendrán autoridad sobre otros, pero esto no les da derecho a abusar del privilegio del liderazgo.

Hoy, Juan el Bautista nos da tres elementos fundamentales de una comunidad construida sobre los principios de Dios. Debemos ser generosos, considerando las necesidades de los demás. Debemos ser honestos, aportando nuestra parte y no buscando apropiarnos de lo que no es nuestro. Debemos estar contentos, reconociendo que lo que tenemos viene de Dios y que somos administradores de Su bondad y de Su amor.

Comunicarse con la autora

Kate Taliaferro is an Air Force wife and mother. She is blessed to be able to homeschool, bake bread and fold endless piles of laundry. When not planning a school day, writing a blog post or cooking pasta, Kate can be found curled up with a book or working with some kind of fiber craft. Kate blogs at DailyGraces.net.

Feature Image Credit: Athena Sandrini, https://www.pexels.com/photo/group-of-people-taking-photo-1963622/

The post To Be A Community / Ser una Comunidad appeared first on Diocesan.

Third Sunday of Advent

Posted on by diocesan-joliet

Reading I Zep 3:14-18a

    Shout for joy, O daughter Zion!
        Sing joyfully, O Israel!
    Be glad and exult with all your heart,
        O daughter Jerusalem!
    The LORD has removed the judgment against you
        he has turned away your enemies;
    the King of Israel, the LORD, is in your midst,
        you have no further misfortune to fear.
    On that day, it shall be said to Jerusalem:
        Fear not, O Zion, be not discouraged!
    The LORD, your God, is in your midst,
        a mighty savior;
    he will rejoice over you with gladness,
        and renew you in his love,
    he will sing joyfully because of you,
        as one sings at festivals.

Responsorial Psalm Is 12:2-3, 4, 5-6.

R. (6)  Cry out with joy and gladness: for among you is the great and Holy One of Israel.
God indeed is my savior;
    I am confident and unafraid.
My strength and my courage is the LORD,
    and he has been my savior.
With joy you will draw water
    at the fountain of salvation.
R. Cry out with joy and gladness: for among you is the great and Holy One of Israel.
Give thanks to the LORD, acclaim his name;
    among the nations make known his deeds,
proclaim how exalted is his name.
R. Cry out with joy and gladness: for among you is the great and Holy One of Israel.
Sing praise to the LORD for his glorious achievement;
    let this be known throughout all the earth.
Shout with exultation, O city of Zion,
    for great in your midst
    is the Holy One of Israel!
R. Cry out with joy and gladness: for among you is the great and Holy One of Israel.

Reading II Phil 4:4-7

Brothers and sisters:
Rejoice in the Lord always.
I shall say it again:  rejoice!
Your kindness should be known to all.
The Lord is near.
Have no anxiety at all, but in everything, 
by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, 
make your requests known to God.
Then the peace of God that surpasses all understanding 
will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

Alleluia Is 61:1 (cited in Lk 4:18)

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to bring glad tidings to the poor.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel Lk 3:10-18

The crowds asked John the Baptist,
“What should we do?”
He said to them in reply,
“Whoever has two cloaks
should share with the person who has none. 
And whoever has food should do likewise.”
Even tax collectors came to be baptized and they said to him,
“Teacher, what should we do?”
He answered them, 
“Stop collecting more than what is prescribed.”
Soldiers also asked him,
“And what is it that we should do?”
He told them,
“Do not practice extortion, 
do not falsely accuse anyone, 
and be satisfied with your wages.”

Now the people were filled with expectation, 
and all were asking in their hearts 
whether John might be the Christ.
John answered them all, saying, 
“I am baptizing you with water,
but one mightier than I is coming.
I am not worthy to loosen the thongs of his sandals.
He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.
His winnowing fan is in his hand to clear his threshing floor
and to gather the wheat into his barn, 
but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”
Exhorting them in many other ways, 
he preached good news to the people.

– – –

Lectionary for Mass for Use in the Dioceses of the United States, second typical edition, Copyright © 2001, 1998, 1997, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine; Psalm refrain © 1968, 1981, 1997, International Committee on English in the Liturgy, Inc. All rights reserved. Neither this work nor any part of it may be reproduced, distributed, performed or displayed in any medium, including electronic or digital, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

St. Virginia Centurione Bracelli

Posted on by diocesan-joliet

St. Virginia Centurione Bracelli

Feast date: Dec 15

Born in Genoa Italy on April 2, 1587, Virginia was raised in an aristocratic family which was nonetheless pious, and from a young age she longed to consecrate herself to God in the religious life. However, she was pressured into an arranged marriage at the age of 15 on account of her social status, and had two daughters.

Her husband, a drinker and gambler, died after only five years of marriage, and Virginia dedicated her time to raising her children, prayer and works of charity, which she devoted herself to entirely once her children had grown up, caring for the sick, elderly and abandoned.

She founded a refuge center in Genoa in 1625, which soon became overrun with the needy, and she rented an empty convent in 1631 where she cared for the sick with the help of other women, and she instructed the women in the faith in addition to their work.

She constructed a church dedicated to Our Lady of Refuge, and soon the women who worked with her in the hospital were formed into two congregations: the Sisters of Our Lady of Refuge in Mount Calvary, and the Daughters of Our Lady on Mount Calvary.

Victoria retired from the administration of the orders, and performed manual labour and begged for alms, but was called back to administrative duties soon after.

She began to receive visions and locutions in the later years of her life. She died in Genoa on December 15, 1651 and was canonized by Pope John Paul II on May 18, 2003.

Daily Prayer for December 15

Posted on by diocesan-joliet

A voice cries: “In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain.” Isaiah 40:3–4, RSV

Lord our God, open our ears and our hearts so that we hear you speaking and can follow the voice that cries out to us. May we be a people who prepare the way for you. Grant each of us strength to give up everything at the right moment and to realize, “The way to my heart should be leveled too. It should be straight and level all around me and in the whole world.” The light is now shining for us in Jesus Christ, and through him we want to find strength and help, to the glory of your name. Through hearing his voice we will find help. Help will be very near to us, and the mighty hand of the Lord Jesus will be over us in every need. For this he came. We can believe in his help, and we long for it. Hear the inmost longing of each one of us, and make us part of your people so that we may keep hope in our hearts and serve you on earth. Praise to your name, O Father in heaven, that you have put us on earth and that we can draw strength from the One who fights and is victorious, Jesus Christ. Amen.

 

Recent articles on Plough

Your Guardian Angel Is Always Present

Bernard of Clairvaux

With angelic protection, you will walk on the asp and the basilisk; you will trample the lion and the dragon underfoot. Read now


Trumpet Man

Robert Lee Williams

A mystery man sporting a salt-and-pepper afro blew a golden trumpet in the prison yard. His tune took me back to the streets. Read now


The Reluctant Goddess and the Roasted Hogs

Lisabeth Button

A Bruderhof teacher applies lessons from her mentors and Homer in her classroom and beyond. Read now


A Failsafe Cure for Loneliness

Johann Christoph Arnold

If we look at what we can give to others, our loneliness will evaporate. Read now


For Such a King

Kelsi Folsom

Don’t be surprised to find politically subversive messages in Gian Carlo Menotti’s classic children’s opera Amahl and the Night Visitors. Read now
Translate