Monday Mass Reading & Meditation for November 4, 2013 + Saint of the Day Memorial of Saint Charles Borromeo, Bishop Lectionary: 485 Reading 1ROM 11:29-36 Brothers and sisters: The gifts and the call of God are irrevocable. Just as you once disobeyed God but have now received mercy because of their disobedience, so they have now disobeyed in order that, by virtue of the mercy shown to you, they too may now receive mercy. For God delivered all to disobedience, that he might have mercy upon all. Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How inscrutable are his judgments and how unsearchable his ways! For who has known the mind of the Lord or who has been his counselor? Or who has given him anything that he may be repaid? For from him and through him and for him are all things. To God be glory forever. Amen. Responsorial PsalmPS 69:30-31, 33-34, 36 R. (14c) Lord, in your great love, answer me. But I am afflicted and in pain; let your saving help, O God, protect me. I will praise the name of God in song, and I will glorify him with thanksgiving. R. Lord, in your great love, answer me. “See, you lowly ones, and be glad; you who seek God, may your hearts revive! For the LORD hears the poor, and his own who are in bonds he spurns not.” R. Lord, in your great love, answer me. For God will save Zion and rebuild the cities of Judah. They shall dwell in the land and own it, and the descendants of his servants shall inherit it, and those who love his name shall inhabit it. R. Lord, in your great love, answer me. GospelLK 14:12-14 On a sabbath Jesus went to dine at the home of one of the leading Pharisees. He said to the host who invited him, “When you hold a lunch or a dinner, do not invite your friends or your brothers or sisters or your relatives or your wealthy neighbors, in case they may invite you back and you have repayment. Rather, when you hold a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind; blessed indeed will you be because of their inability to repay you. For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.” Meditation: Romans 11:29-36 Saint Charles Borromeo, Bishop Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! (Romans 11:33) Irrevocable. Inscrutable. Unsearchable. The words in this passage can flow by mind-numbingly, like a vocabulary lesson from school days gone by. And yet to St. Paul, these words stirred, lifted, filled, and captivated his heart. God’s love, even his very life, is too deep to be measured or fully understood. His ways and actions are beyond our ability to search out entirely. Just as his saving will is irrevocable, so is he himself inscrutable and unsearchable. And yet he wants to share all of this with us, revealing himself to us more and more over time! In a couple of weeks, we will be leaping into the holiday season. It’s precisely now, before life gets too busy, that we should pause and ponder the greatness of the Lord. It’s the perfect time to consider what God has already done, the gifts he has given us that cannot be withdrawn. It’s the perfect time to reflect on what he is doing right now, inviting everyone into an intimate relationship with himself. And it’s the perfect time to look forward to what he will do in the future, when he comes to reign forever in love. So before you start getting ready for the holidays, stop! Set aside time to turn to the Lord every day. Ask him to show you more of who he is and what is on his mind. Allow him to give you a glimpse into his wisdom for the world, for your life, for your family, or for his Church. Ask him to teach you about his generosity and goodness. There is so much we can learn. There is so much he wants to teach us! But don’t stop at merely stopping. God wants to direct your thinking, but he also wants to direct your doing. Perhaps he will give you a different, possibly unexpected focus. Maybe he will put his finger on an area of your life that he wants to heal. Perhaps he will send you to a neighbor who is about to become a new friend, or someone you will be able to evangelize. Let his inscrutable wisdom inspire you today and lead you down new, exciting paths. “Lord, I want to know you more. Help me to know your ways. Teach me, Lord, and lead me.” Psalm 69:30-31, 33-34, 36; Luke 14:12-14 St. Charles Borromeo (1538-1584) The name of St. Charles Borromeo is associated with reform. He lived during the time of the Protestant Reformation, and had a hand in the reform of the whole Church during the final years of the Council of Trent (1545-63). Although he belonged to Milanese nobility and was related to the powerful Medici family, he desired to devote himself to the Church. When his uncle, Cardinal de Medici, was elected pope in 1559 as Pius IV, he made Charles cardinal-deacon and administrator of the Archdiocese of Milan while he was still a layman and a young student. Because of his intellectual qualities he was entrusted with several important offices connected with the Vatican and later appointed secretary of state with responsibility for the papal states. The untimely death of his elder brother brought Charles to a definite decision to be ordained a priest, despite relatives’ insistence that he marry. Soon after he was ordained a priest at the age of 25, he was consecrated bishop of Milan. Because of his work at the Council of Trent, he was not allowed to take up residence in Milan until the Council was over. Charles had encouraged the pope to renew the Council in 1562 after it had been suspended for 10 years. Working behind the scenes, St. Charles deserves the credit for keeping the Council in session when at several points it was on the verge of breaking up. He took upon himself the task of the entire correspondence during the final phase. Eventually Charles was allowed to devote his time to the Archdiocese of Milan, where the religious and moral picture was far from bright. The reform needed in every phase of Catholic life among both clergy and laity was initiated at a provincial council of all the bishops under him. Specific regulations were drawn up for bishops and other clergy: If the people were to be converted to a better life, he had to be the first to give a good example and renew their apostolic spirit. Charles took the initiative in giving good example. He allotted most of his income to charity, forbade himself all luxury and imposed severe penances upon himself. He sacrificed wealth, high honors, esteem and influence to become poor. During the plague and famine of 1576, he tried to feed 60,000 to 70,000 people daily. To do this he borrowed large sums of money that required years to repay. Whereas the civil authorities fled at the height of the plague, he stayed in the city, where he ministered to the sick and the dying, helping those in want. Work and the heavy burdens of his high office began to affect his health. He died at the age of 46. Comment: St. Charles made his own the words of Christ: ...I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, a stranger and you welcomed me, naked and you clothed me, ill and you cared for me, in prison and you visited me (Matthew 25:35-36). Charles saw Christ in his neighbor and knew that charity done for the least of his flock was charity done for Christ. Quote: Christ summons the Church, as she goes her pilgrim way, to that continual reformation of which she always has need, insofar as she is an institution of men here on earth. Consequently, if, in various times and circumstances, there have been deficiencies in moral conduct or in Church discipline, or even in the way that Church teaching has been formulated—to be carefully distinguished from the deposit of faith itself—these should be set right at the opportune moment and in the proper way (Vatican II, Decree on Ecumenism, 6, Austin Flannery translation). Patron Saint of: Catechists Catechumens Seminarians -- Have a Blessed Day
Posted on: Mon, 04 Nov 2013 15:35:55 +0000
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