In the "New Covenant" made by our Creator God with humanity, as reported in Jeremiah 31:31-34, every human being can know God from within - because the Holy Spirit is revealing our Creator to all who are willing to know the Lord and trust in Him. We can still help each other along the way; so please feel free to share with others these homilies and your own personal faith in God through Jesus Christ. G.S.
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12th Sunday in Ordinary Time
VOCATION: Jesus calls us - He calls you to follow Him, to be filled with the Holy Spirit, and become a missionary disciple....
Word of God - Readings & Gospel - PDF version
Noon Mass - Homily MP3 version - PDF version
8:00 p.m. Mass - Homily MP3 version - PDF version
What are the offerings that we bring to God? What is the meaning of "HOSANNAH!" We acclaim God for his greatness and praise Him, while at the same time calling upon Him to rescue us in our distress.... "HOSANNAH!" MP3 version
“Sing to the Lord; praise the Lord! He has delivered the needy from the hands of evildoers!”
Here is Jesus always near to us to encourage us to put aside all fear in the face of evil men and their terrible actions in the world. What is the condition of our spirits in the face of all the threats multiplying all over the world today? Whether it be the Russian aggression in Ukraine, or acts of war or violence in the Middle East, in Africa or Asia, or else the virulent persecution of Christians in general and of Catholics in particular all over the world; what is our attitude, what is our prayer, and what is our response?
“Sing to the Lord; praise the Lord! He has delivered the needy from the hands of evildoers!”
Just as dramatic are the constantly changing conditions of our world economies, of the Covid pandemic and other health threats, as well as the great climatic challenges. What will our living conditions be in the future? Even more pertinently or essentially, what is our attitude towards God in the face of all these disasters in our world? Are we ashamed of our God, or are we able to recognize his Presence and action in our world and in our lives? When others are defiant towards us and our faith, do we feel pressured to deny the Lord Jesus “before humans”, or are we ready to declare ourselves for Jesus and to acknowledge Him “before humans”?
“Sing to the Lord; praise the Lord! He has delivered the needy from the hands of evildoers!”
In the face the daily challenges of life and the unending and unavoidable changes which life brings us every day, are we inclined to let ourselves be crushed and discouraged? And yet, we are neither alone nor abandoned. We have only to open the Bible to the Book of Psalms to find a complaint perfectly suited to express the anguish of our heart, the confusion of our mind, and the distress of our soul. As we pray the complaint, God hears and permeates us with his grace.
“Lord, in your steadfast love, answer me. It is for your sake that I have borne reproach, that shame has covered my face. I have become a stranger to my kindred, an alien to my mother’s children. It is zeal for your house that has consumed me; the insults of those who insult you have fallen on me.”
“Lord, in your steadfast love, answer me!”
Jesus declares it clearly: God our Father sees us and watches closely over us. He sees all that happens to us, and He permits all that happens in the world, far away, as well as close by. We are not ready for Heaven; that is why God permits that all these trials purify the intentions of our heart; in order to make room in us for all the love of God and of our neighbour.
As well, we are weak, and
we need these trials which provoke us to resist the evil and the temptations,
and to fight against all that is evil. God knows very well that it is only by
our resistance and our struggle against all that is evil, that we can be
strengthened to endure.
“The Lord hears the needy, and does not despise his own that are in bonds!”
Finally, at the end of each day, as we prepare for sleep, and when we review our day, we can ask God our Father to forgive us for our faults, and give Him thanks for his Presence, his help, and his love. It is as we pray that we can become conscious of the Presence of the Most Holy Trinity within us, and that we can realize that all is grace; all is gift. He shows us that we have control over nothing; so, why keep trying to carry the weight of the whole world on our shoulders, when Jesus is already taking care of that? Since all that we are, and all that comes to us, and all that we have is gift from God; we can relax, we can rest, and we can breathe.
“The Lord hears the needy, and does not despise his own that are in bonds!”
Our life on this Earth is brief. We can choose to live as if God doesn’t exist or as if He is doing nothing, and we can deny Him before humans, or we can choose to believe in Him, to trust Him, to open our eyes, our minds, and our hearts, and to welcome into our lives his Presence and his saving action. Ask to meet with a priest and allow the Lord to strengthen you in your faith. Jesus declares that it is the truth which will set us free. In the presence of the priest one can obtain God’s forgiveness but also some spiritual direction.
“The Spirit of truth will testify on my behalf, says the Lord, and you also are to testify!”
That is why it is so important for us to participate well in the Sunday Liturgy, at Holy Mass. We can prepare the day before and Sunday morning by remembering all that we have lived since our last presence at the Sacred Liturgy. We can dispose ourselves to place on the altar the offering of ourselves: our efforts during the week to live as daughters, sons of God; all that we accept to endure out of love; our trials, our sorrows, our losses, our worries, our prayers, our temptations, our disappointments, and even our sins; putting all our trust in God.
“The Spirit of truth will testify on my behalf, says the Lord, and you also are to testify!”
“Mary Mother of God, St. Joseph, walk with us in the steps of Jesus. O my Jesus, I trust in You! Thank You; You who are God, the Father, + the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.”
In silence now, the Holy
Spirit helps us to lay down our offering together with that of Jesus….
https://frgilleshomilies.blogspot.com https://homeliesabbegilles.blogspot.com
In the "New Covenant" made by our Creator God with humanity, as reported in Jeremiah 31:31-34, every human being can know God from within - because the Holy Spirit is revealing our Creator to all who are willing to know the Lord and trust in Him. We can still help each other along the way; so please feel free to share with others these homilies and your own personal faith in God through Jesus Christ. G.S.
© 2006-2023 All rights reserved Fr. Gilles Surprenant, Associate Priest of Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montreal QC
© 2006-2023 Tous droits réservés Abbé Gilles Surprenant, Prêtre Associé de Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montréal QC
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