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| The Meaning of Life |
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We exist because God is infinitely beautiful, infinitely good, and overflowing with a love that seeks to share itself. When he made us and placed us in this glittering created world, it was an act of pure generosity.
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St. Catherine of Alexandria
(c. 310)
According to the Legend of St. Catherine, this young woman converted to Christianity after receiving a vision. At the age of 18, she debated 50 pagan philosophers. Amazed at her wisdom and debating skills, they became Christians—as did about 200 soldiers and members of the emperor's family. All of them were martyred.
Sentenced to be executed on a spiked wheel, Catherine touched the wheel and it shattered. She was beheaded. Centuries later, angels are said to have carried the body of St. Catherine to a monastery at the foot of Mt. Sinai.
Devotion to her spread as a result of the Crusades. She was invoked as the patroness of students, teachers, librarians and lawyers. Catherine is one of the 14 Holy Helpers, venerated especially in Germany and Hungary.
"Therefore I [King Solomon] prayed, and prudence was given me; I pleaded, and the spirit of Wisdom came to me. I preferred her to scepter and throne, and deemed riches nothing in comparison with her, nor did I liken any priceless gem to her; Because all gold, in view of her, is a little sand, and before her, silver is to be accounted mire. Beyond health and comeliness I loved her, and I chose to have her rather than the light, because the splendor of her never yields to sleep. Yet all good things together came to me in her company, and countless riches at her hands; and I rejoiced in them all, because Wisdom is
their leader, though I had not known that she is the mother of these" (Wisdom 7:7-12).
Philosophers
Students
Daily Prayer - 2015-11-25
Presence
At any time of the day or night we can call on Jesus.
He is always waiting, listening for our call.
What a wonderful blessing.
No phone needed, no e-mails, just a whisper.
Freedom
Saint Ignatius thought that a thick and shapeless tree-trunk
would never believe that it could become a statue,
admired as a miracle of sculpture,
and would never submit itself to the chisel of the sculptor,
who sees by her genius what she can make of it.
I ask for the grace to let myself be shaped by my loving Creator.
Consciousness
In the presence of my loving Creator, I look honestly at my feelings over the last day, the highs, the lows and the level ground. Can I see where the Lord has been present?
The Word of God
King Belshazzar gave a great banquet for a thousand of his lords,
with whom he drank.
Under the influence of the wine,
he ordered the gold and silver vessels
which Nebuchadnezzar, his father,
had taken from the temple in Jerusalem,
to be brought in so that the king, his lords,
his wives and his entertainers might drink from them.
When the gold and silver vessels
taken from the house of God in Jerusalem had been brought in,
and while the king, his lords, his wives and his entertainers
were drinking wine from them,
they praised their gods of gold and silver,
bronze and iron, wood and stone.
Suddenly, opposite the lampstand,
the fingers of a human hand appeared,
writing on the plaster of the wall in the king's palace.
When the king saw the wrist and hand that wrote, his face blanched;
his thoughts terrified
him, his hip joints shook,
and his knees knocked.
Then Daniel was brought into the presence of the king.
The king asked him, "Are you the Daniel, the Jewish exile,
whom my father, the king, brought from Judah?
I have heard that the Spirit of God is in you,
that you possess brilliant knowledge and extraordinary wisdom.
I have heard that you can interpret dreams and solve difficulties;
if you are able to read the writing and tell me what it means,
you shall be clothed in purple,
wear a gold collar about your neck,
and be third in the government of the kingdom."
Daniel answered the king:
"You may keep your gifts, or give your presents to someone else;
but the writing I will read for you, O king,
and tell you what it means.
You have rebelled against the Lord of heaven.
You had the vessels of his temple brought
before you,
so that you and your nobles, your wives and your entertainers,
might drink wine from them;
and you praised the gods of silver and gold,
bronze and iron, wood and stone,
that neither see nor hear nor have intelligence.
But the God in whose hand is your life breath
and the whole course of your life, you did not glorify.
By him were the wrist and hand sent, and the writing set down.
"This is the writing that was inscribed:
MENE, TEKEL, and PERES.
These words mean:
MENE, God has numbered your kingdom and put an end to it;
TEKEL, you have been weighed on the scales and found wanting;
PERES, your kingdom has been divided and given to the Medes and Persians."
R. (59b) Give glory and eternal praise to him.
"Sun and moon, bless the Lord;
praise and exalt him above all forever."
R. Give glory and eternal praise to him.
"Stars of heaven, bless the Lord;
praise and exalt him above all forever."
R. Give glory and eternal praise to him.
"Every shower and dew, bless the Lord;
praise and exalt him above all forever."
R. Give glory and eternal praise to him.
"All you winds, bless the Lord;
praise and exalt him above all forever."
R. Give glory and eternal praise to him.
"Fire and heat, bless the Lord;
praise and exalt him above all forever."
R. Give glory and eternal praise to him.
"Cold and chill, bless the Lord;
praise and exalt him above all forever."
R. Give
glory and eternal praise to him.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Remain faithful until death,
and I will give you the crown of life.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Jesus said to the crowd:
"They will seize and persecute you,
they will hand you over to the synagogues and to prisons,
and they will have you led before kings and governors
because of my name.
It will lead to your giving testimony.
Remember, you are not to prepare your defense beforehand,
for I myself shall give you a wisdom in speaking
that all your adversaries will be powerless to resist or refute.
You will even be handed over by parents,
brothers, relatives, and friends,
and they will put some of you to death.
You will be hated by all because of my name,
but not a hair on your head will be destroyed.
By your perseverance you will secure your lives."
- - -
Some thoughts on today's scripture
- Sporadic persecution of Christians had already begun when Luke was writing his gospel. This contemporary situation may well be reflected in this passage. Similar persecution is also happening in many parts of the world today. Are those of us living in more tolerant countries sensitive to the sufferings of our fellow-Christians who find themselves "hated by all because of my name"? Are we in effective solidarity with them? Do we pray for them? Engage in advocacy on their behalf?
- Jesus not only describes what his followers will have to endure, but offers assurance that he will support them and make them strong. To adapt Julian of Norwich: "All will be well, and all will be well, and all manner of things will be well".
Conversation
Begin to talk to Jesus about the piece of scripture you have just read.
What part of it strikes a chord in you?
Perhaps the words of a friend - or some story you have heard recently -
will slowly rise to the surface of your consciousness.
If so, does the story throw light on what the scripture passage may be trying to say to you?
Conclusion
I thank God for these few moments we have spent alone together and for any insights I may have been given concerning the text.
Meditation: Daniel 5:1-6, 13-14, 16-17, 23-28
View NAB Reading at USCCB.org
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Saint Catherine of Alexandria, Virgin and Martyr (Optional Memorial)
The Spirit of God is in you. (Daniel 5:14)
The legacy of two of the four Elliot siblings is quite astounding. First, there's Jim, who died a martyr's death while preaching the gospel in Ecuador. Books have been written and movies produced about him. Then there's his older brother, Bert, who, in his twenties, moved to Peru as a missionary and stayed there for decades. Less has been written about Bert. One writer, reflecting on the brothers, has called Jim a "meteor" because many know about his missionary endeavors and Bert a "faint star" because his contributions have made fewer headlines.
The prophet Daniel's story is more like Jim's than Bert's—it's meteoric. Daniel's adventures are told in Scripture with vivid detail: wondrous signs, a lion's den, and heroic stands against the Babylonian kings. In today's first reading, knowing that Daniel can interpret prophecy and that the "Spirit" is "in" him, the Babylonian king consults him after he has seen a mysterious hand writing on a wall (Daniel 5:14). And as he has done numerous times before, Daniel interprets the sign and shows inspiring courage.
Daniel might seem like a "meteor," but if you called him that to his face, you might be met with a quizzical look. The same could be true for Jim Elliot—and even for Bert if you compared him to a star. None of these men said yes to God so that they could be meteors, stars, or anything in between. All they did was say yes to the only One who really matters, and they tried their best to stay faithful to him.
The Spirit that was with Daniel and with Jim and Bert Elliot is in each of us. What will happen if we say yes to his promptings? We probably won't end up in a jungle or standing before a powerful king, but we will end up doing great and beautiful things for God. Right where we are, as we are, we will light up the world. Whether as blazing meteors or steady stars, we will shine with the love and grace of the Lord.
"Father, thank you for calling me to serve you. Help me to say yes to your Spirit's promptings today."
(Psalm) Daniel 3:62-67
Luke 21:12-19
my2cents:
Suddenly "...the fingers of a human hand appeared". And it was God sending His message. Was it a threat? Or was it a warning? Or was it, think about it, a plea for mercy? And how did it come to be that only a person of God could interpret the message, and not just any person, but a person chosen from His people, and I say this because it is still the case today, those chosen are still of the flock of light, the Holy Catholic Church, the people of God from the time of the cross of our Lord, and this brings an affliction, to the ones not in the flock, and a beutiful affliction to the faithful, because what is offered can be then received as
good news to the faithful, or bad news to the unfaithful if you remain obstinate, that is to be stubborn and unmoved by the daily bombardment of messages from Heaven.
The Psalms pray today "Give Glory and Eternal praise to Him" and ""Sun and moon, bless the Lord; praise and exalt him above all forever." Exalt Him above what? Exalt Him Above ALL. Above all what? Above all created things, seen and unseen, above all angels and principalities, above all what is manifested and yet to be manifested in your life. Above all joys and fears. Above all doubts and faith. Above all our knowledge, He reigns.
Our Lord speaks, and what a glorious day to Hear Him speak to us today! "By your perseverance you will secure your lives." And this is what this 2cents is all about, an aid, so long as you are persistent, persistently seeking Him daily,
persistently praying, persistant in your determination, you will find your reward. But if you remain persistent in your doubts, if you remain persistent in worshipping all things of past, all the past hurts, all the past loves, all the past gods, those that take over your life, then, that's when God will come in to divide and conquer in an attempt to conquer your heart, your faith. Because it happened to the King that was using and abusing God's temple's holy vessels. This can happen to any believer or nonbeliever. We use God, and then when He wants something you deny Him. This is a deviance, and this is the symbolism in the Scriptures today, which symoblizes our faith. The times that Our Lord in Heaven intervenes is when we need a spanking, or a warning, or a time-out, and His timing for a time out can last for centuries, just ask the people of Israel in
Egypt in slavery! Why the time out? Because they had doubted, because they took on other gods, the fashions, the fads, the trends, and were still trying to use God as they pleased. Sound familiar? Hope not. I hope the case for you and your family and your church is one of extreme faithfulness. I hope that in your workplace all the talk is about faith and not about one another. I hope that when you gather for thanksgiving, if you do, that you gather to give thanks to God, to be thankful to God, to pray together to God our Father in Heaven, because He wants to be invited to your place, He wants to go with you, He wants to BE THANKSGIVING, and that is the ultimate meaning of the Holy Eucharist served in the Holy Vessels in a Holy Mass...the body of Christ, the blood of Christ, the soul and divinity of our Lord. This isn't served in any church,
it is only served in the HOlY CATHOLIC CHURCH. And so how will you be found when our Lord appears? Will you be found wanting? Lacking? What is this lacking He speaks of ? Perhaps lacking a giving of thanks, a being grateful, a striving for holiness like no other. Or, perhaps not, as in the case of the faithful that are called out to interpret what God wants and what He wants is all of your heart, all of your soul, all of your body, blood and the divinity He shines through us. I don't know about you, but when I hear about a person that is being unfaithful as in the case of many divorces, it hurts because the children hurt and who cares? If it hurts me, imagine the pain of the child? This is what God sees. When His people are unfaithful and they are teaching children what faithfulness is, He comes in to bridge the gap. Our
only recourse then, is to Him.
Rejoice then when you are no longer yourself because of Jesus.
Rejoice when people seek to ruin you, because of Jesus.
Rejoice because it is a sign of a light discovered.
Rejoice because it means He is with you.
Rejoice because it means more is at hand.
Rejoice because He has found what was wanting.
And the world wants/lacks Jesus, Peace, Jesus Love, Jesus, Mercy!
ANd here comes the fingers of God reaching out, through you and me........
 adrian
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