by Faith Central & Steve Welsh
“Jesus said to His Disciples: ‘You are the salt of the earth. … You are the light of the world. A city set on a mountain cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and then put it under a bushel basket; it is set on a lampstand, where it gives light to all in the house. …'”
“Barnabas is spoken of simply as one who dedicated his life to the Lord. He was a man ‘filled with the Holy Spirit and Faith. Thereby, large numbers were added to the Lord.’ Even when he and Paul were expelled from Antioch in Pisidia — modern-day Turkey — they were ‘filled with joy and the Holy Spirit.'”
“… ‘Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are they who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the land.
Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be satisfied.
Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
Blessed are the clean of heart,
for they will see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called children of God.
Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness,
for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you
and utter every kind of evil against you falsely because of me.
Rejoice and be glad,
for your reward will be great in heaven.
Thus they persecuted the prophets who were before you.’…”
“… they returned to Jerusalem to look for Him. After three days they found Him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the teachers …. He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was obedient to them; and His Mother kept all these things in her heart.”
“When we say ‘Heart of Jesus Christ,’ we address ourselves in faith to the whole Christological mystery: the mystery of the God-Man. …”
“… the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first and then of the other one who was crucified with Jesus. … when they came to Jesus and saw that He was already dead, they did not break His Legs, but one soldier thrust his lance into His Side, and immediately blood and water flowed out. …”
“… One of the scribes came to Jesus and asked … ‘Which is the first of all the Commandments?’ Jesus replied, ‘The first is this: Hear, O Israel! The Lord our God is Lord alone! You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. The second is this: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. There is no other Commandment greater than these.’ …”
“… Jesus said … ‘When they rise from the dead, they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but they are like the Angels in Heaven. As for the dead being raised, have you not read in the Book of Moses, in the passage about the bush, how God told him, I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob? He is not God of the dead but of the living. …'”
“… St. Boniface, who grew up in the monastic culture that was highly developed in his Homeland, remained throughout his life either a teacher or a disciple of it. He recognized as an important presupposition for preaching and receiving the Gospel the spiritual and moral development of the person through concern for and transmission of the ancient patrimony of Christian formation. St Boniface, therefore, is a model for families, schools and institutes of formation also in an age when this patrimony is at risk. … he is also a model of fidelity to the papacy as the centre of ecclesial unity. Only the branch that abides in the vine can bear fruit (cf. Jn 15: 4). Historically St Boniface and his testimony are credited with having brought about and safeguarded unity between the Church in his mission land and the Church united round the Successor of Peter. Yet, it is not only the great missionary’s work that speaks to us today but also his whole personality. He left his own safe Country to proclaim the Gospel among the Germanic peoples and Franks as a ‘foreigner by God’s will.’ Unafraid and undaunted, not only did he fight against the pagan cults of his time, but he did not even fear hostility when it was a matter of reforming the Christian life that already existed. St. Boniface was discouraged neither by the difficulties caused by the obstacles he encountered nor by failure and defeats. He bequeathed to others for their guidance his own experience of life: “Let us stand firm in the fight on the day of the Lord, for days of affliction and misery are here…. We are not dogs that cannot speak, nor silent observers, nor mercenaries fleeing from wolves! Instead, we are hard-working Pastors who watch over Christ’s flock, who proclaim God’s will to people whether important or ordinary, rich or poor… in season and out of season” (Boniface to Cuthbert, Archbishop of Canterbury, in the year 747). …”
“… Today, we shall reflect on a great eighth-century missionary who spread Christianity in Central Europe … St. Boniface … embarked on the preaching of the Gospel … fighting against pagan worship and reinforcing the foundations of human and Christian morality. …”