by Faith Central & Steve Welsh
Catholic TV Mass for the Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Aug. 12, 2018, from the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C. [can take a moment to load] [Click here for Mass Readings]
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“… ‘Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever believes has Eternal Life. I AM the Bread of Life. Your ancestors ate the manna in the desert, but they died; this is the Bread that comes down from Heaven so that one may eat It and not die. I AM the Living Bread that came down from Heaven; whoever eats this Bread will live forever; and the Bread that I will give is My Flesh for the Life of the world.'”
“… the Disciples approached Jesus in private and said, ‘Why could we not drive it out?’ He said to them, ‘Because of your little faith. Amen, I say to you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain,”Move from here to there,” and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.'”
Catholic TV Mass for the Feast of Saint Lawrence, Deacon and Martyr, Friday, Aug. 10, 2018, from Loretto Abbey in the Archdiocese of Toronto. [Click here for Mass Readings]
[featured image adapted from image at Creative Commons Wikimedia Commons Pjposullivan,
commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Loretto_Abbey_chapel_interior,_Toronto.JPG, with additional conditions stated at that link and in the alt-tag here]
“… ‘Amen, amen, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat; but if it dies, it produces much fruit. Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will preserve it for Eternal Life. Whoever serves me must follow Me, and where I AM, there also will My servant be. The Father will honor whoever serves Me.'”
“… [A] Saint … who made a fundamental contribution to the renewal of the Church of his time: St Dominic, the Founder of the Order of Preachers, also known as Dominican Friars. … [born in Spain, ca. 1170], distinguished himself … for his interest in the study of Sacred Scripture and … love of the poor …. * * * [T]he Pope … asked Dominic to devote himself to preaching to the Albigensians, a heretical group which upheld a dualistic conception of reality …. Dominic … devoted the rest of his life to [the] mission of preaching the Good News. … This great Saint reminds us that in the heart of the Church a missionary fire must always burn. … a constant incentive to make the first proclamation of the Gospel and, wherever necessary, a new evangelization. Christ, in fact, is the most precious good that the men and women of every time and every place have the right to know and love! … [With] the Order of Preachers …. Dominic … used the ancient Rule of St Augustine, adapting it to the needs of apostolic life that led him and his companions to preach as they traveled from one place to another but then returning to their own convents and places of study, to prayer and community life. Dominic wanted to give special importance to two values he deemed indispensable for the success of the evangelizing mission: community life in poverty and study. First of all Dominic and the Friars Preachers presented themselves as mendicants … without vast estates …. Secondly … Dominic wanted his followers to acquire a sound theological training [including academic study] …. Dominic, who wished to found a religious Order of theologian-preachers, reminds us that theology has a spiritual and pastoral dimension that enriches the soul and life. … find[ing] profound ‘inner joy’ in contemplating the beauty of the truth that comes from God, a truth … ever timely and ever alive. … a pastoral yearning in the contemplative study of this truth because of the need to communicate to others the fruit of one’s own contemplation. * * * Marian devotion … he fostered tenderly …. his spiritual sons … in the history of the Church, have had the great merit of disseminating the prayer of the Holy Rosary … rich in Gospel values: a true school of faith and piety. … Dominic … believed unquestioningly in the value of prayers of intercession for the success of the apostolic work. …. Dear brothers and sisters, may the life of Dominic de Guzmán spur us all to be fervent in prayer, courageous in living out our faith and deeply in love with Jesus Christ. Through his intercession, let us ask God always to enrich the Church with authentic preachers of the Gospel. …”
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Catholic TV Mass for the Memorial of Saint Dominic, Wednesday, Aug. 8, 2018, from Catholic TV in the Archdiocese of Boston. [Click here for Mass Readings]
Catholic TV Mass for the Memorial of Saint Dominic, Wednesday, Aug. 8, 2018, from Loretto Abbey in the Archdiocese of Toronto. [Click here for Mass Readings]
[featured image adapted from image at Creative Commons Wikimedia Commons Pjposullivan,
commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Loretto_Abbey_chapel_interior,_Toronto.JPG, with additional conditions stated at that link and in the alt-tag here]
“… Jesus said to her in reply, ‘O woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you wish.’ And her daughter was healed from that hour.”
“Today, the Eucharist which we are preparing to celebrate takes us in spirit to Mount Tabor together with the Apostles Peter, James and John, to admire in rapture the splendour of the transfigured Lord. In the event of the Transfiguration we contemplate the mysterious encounter between history, which is being built every day, and the blessed inheritance that awaits us in heaven in full union with Christ, the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End.
We, pilgrims on earth, are granted to rejoice in the company of the transfigured Lord when we immerse ourselves in the things of above through prayer and the celebration of the divine mysteries. But, like the disciples, we too must descend from Tabor into daily life where human events challenge our faith. On the mountain we saw; on the paths of life we are asked tirelessly to proclaim the #Gospel which illuminates the steps of believers. …”
[featured images are file photos]