DAILY- HOMILY

June 13, 2015 SATURDAY, 10TH Week in Ordinary Time

IMMACULATE HEART OF MARY          

Memorial, White  

2 Cor 5:14 - 21 / Lk 2:41 - 51

[In 1942 Pope Pius XII consecrated the world to the Immaculatre Heart of Mary.  In the 17h century St. John Eudes (1601-1680) preached devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary alongside devoton to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.]

Reading: 2 Cor 5:14 – 21

     Indeed the love of Christ holds us and we realize that if he died for all, all have died. He died for all so that those who live may live no longer for themselves, but for him who died and rose again for them. And so from now on, we do not regard anyone from a human point of view; and even if we once knew Christ personally, we should now regard him in another way.

     For that same reason, the one who is in Christ is a new creature. For him the old things have passed away; a new world has come. All this is the work of God who in Christ reconciled us to himself, and who entrusted to us the ministry of reconciliation. Because in Christ God reconciled the world with himself, no longer taking into account their trespasses and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.

     So we present ourselves as ambassadors in the name of Christ, as if God himself makes an appeal to you through us. Let God reconcile you; this we ask you in the name of Christ. He had no sin, but God made him bear our sin, so that in him we might share the holiness of God.

Gospel: Lk 2: 41 - 51

     Every year the parents of Jesus went to Jerusalem for the Feast of the Passover, as was customary. And when Jesus was twelve years old, he went up with them according to the custom for this feast. After the festival was over, they returned, but the boy Jesus remained in Jerusalem and his parents did not know it.

     They thought he was in the company and after walking the whole day they looked for him among their relatives and friends. As they did not find him, they went back to Jerusalem searching for him, and on the third day they found him in the Temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking questions. And all the people were amazed at his understanding and his answers.

     His parents were very surprised when they saw him and his mother said to him, "Son, why have you done this to us? Your father and I were very worried while searching for you." Then he said to them, "Why were you looking for me? Do you not know that I must be in my Father's house?" But they did not understand this answer.

     Jesus went down with them, returning to Nazareth, and he continued to be subject to them. As for his mother, she kept all these things in her heart.

Reflection:

     Today is the memorial of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. The gospel reading is an account of the finding of Jesus in the temple. Such a familiar theme in every parent's life! A child in his /her teen years goes off into the night and does not come home till morning without responding to the parents' frantic calls or texts. Every parent suffers a little, dies a little, until the child is safely home.  

     Mary's rebuke seemed natural, "Your father and I were very worried while searching for you."     

     Jesus reply was perplexing, though a foretaste of his future destiny, which echoes Simeon's words to Mary at Jesus' presentation in the temple: "while a sword will pierce your own soul." (Lk 2:35a) 

     Jesus' mission takes precedence over family ties. Jesus understood that the time was not yet ripe for their full understanding of his role as Messiah, and so he went home with them and was a dutiful son. These things, Mary kept in her heart. She might not have understood, but she trusted in Jesus' words and God's plan for her family.

     Let us turn to Mary in those moments when nothing seems to be going right, especially in rearing our children in the complex world that we live in. Let us implore her intercession and compassion for our loved ones, and trust in our heart that they are in good hands. Pray unceasingly; it is our best armor. With the Blessed Virgin beside us, we can feel her gentle presence enveloping us in her loving maternal embrace.  

WE PRAY FOR MTQ DAILY PRAYER DIARY INTENTIONS:

BIRTHDAY

     JACQUELINE LIM YU

Finally, we pray for one another, for those who have asked our prayers and for those who need our prayers the most. 

Have a good day!

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   |  The Daily Prayer, a service and an apostolate of the

   |  priests, laity and friends of Mary the Queen Parish

   |  distributed free and for personal use only.  

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June 12, 2015 FRIDAY - THE MOST SACRED HEART OF JESUS 

Solemnity, White   

Hos 11: 1, 3 - 4, 8c – 9 / Eph 3: 8 –12 / Jn 19: 31 - 37 

First Reading: Hos 11:1, 3 - 4, 8c – 9 

     I loved Israel when he was a child; out of Egypt I called my son. 

     Yet it was I who taught Ephraim to walk, taking them by the arms; yet little did they realize that it was I who cared for them. I led them with cords of human kindness, with leading strings of love, and I became for them as one who eases the yoke upon their neck and stoops down to feed them.

     My heart is troubled within me and I am moved with compassion. I will not give vent to my great anger; I will not return to destroy Ephraim for I am God and not human. I am the Holy One in your midst and I do not want to come to you in anger.

Second Reading: Eph 3: 8 –12

     This grace was given to me, the least among all the holy ones: to announce to the pagan nations the immeasurable riches of Christ and to make clear to all how the mystery, hidden from the beginning in God, the Creator of all things, is to be fulfilled.

     Even the heavenly forces and powers will now discover through the Church the wisdom of God in its manifold expression, as the plan is being fulfilled which God designed from the beginning in Christ Jesus, our Lord. In him we receive boldness and confidence to approach God.

Gospel: Jn 19: 31 - 37

     As it was Preparation Day, the Jews did not want the bodies to remain on the cross during the sabbath, for this sabbath was a very solemn day. They asked Pilate to have the legs of the condemned men broken, so they might take away the bodies.

     The soldiers came and broke the legs of the first man and of the other who had been crucified with Jesus. When they came to Jesus, they saw that he was already dead; so they did not break his legs. One of the soldiers, however, pierced his side with a lance and immediately there came out blood and water.

     The one who has seen here gives his witness so that you may believe:  his witness is true and he knows that he speaks the truth. All this happened to fulfill the words of Scripture, Not one of his bones shall be broken. Another text says: They shall look on him whom they pierced.                               

Reflection:

     Though the Jews and the Romans crucified Jesus, the story of his death started when he was sent by his Father to be a man like us, except that he was without sin: "And the Word was made flesh; he had his tent pitched among us, and we have seen his Glory, the Glory of the only Son coming from the Father, full of truth and loving kindness."

     The Son of God was sent to be one of us because God found it necessary to save mankind from humanity's sinfulness and forgetfulness and from themselves. Jesus preached the Good News and affirmed what the prophets had said. Jesus showed what God's goodness could do through him. 

     These reminders, instead of bringing back God into the lives of people, apparently fueled the envy and resentment of those whose life-styles and authority were threatened. The leaders of the Jews incited the people who did not seem to know any better. Upon the prodding of the leaders and before the hated Roman Procurator, Jesus, God's messenger, was sent to his death on the cross.

     We also "look on whom they have pierced." To the extent that we fail to weave Jesus' teaching and love in our lives, we also participate in the continued rejection of God by mankind. When we choose to be faithful to Jesus' life and teachings we show that his death for us and all mankind was not in vain; we will have saved ourselves from ourselves. Our hope is that our faith in the Jesus who saves us will color the way we live and love in our lives and the way we relate with people, especially with those who do not have much.

WE PRAY FOR MTQ DAILY PRAYER DIARY INTENTIONS:

BIRTHDAY

     WILFREDO ORTIZ

Finally, we pray for one another, for those who have asked our prayers and for those who need our prayers the most. 

Have a good day!

**************************************************

These reflections are distributed free and are for personal use only. Feel free to send the Daily Prayer reflections to your friends, colleagues and relatives; however, if you do, please include the following: 

  +================================================+

   |  The Daily Prayer, a service and an apostolate of the

   |  priests, laity and friends of Mary the Queen Parish

   |  distributed free and for personal use only.  

  +================================================+