DAILY- HOMILY

August 25, 2017 – FRIDAY, 20th Week in Ordinary Time 

St. Louis of France, King 

St. Joseph Calasanz, Priest and Religious Founder

Green

Ru 1: 1, 3- 6, 14b- 16, 22 / Mt 22: 34- 40

St. Louis (1214 - 1270), King of France and father of eleven children, built the

Sainte Chapelle in Paris and participated in the Crusades.

     St. Joseph Calasanz (1557- 1648), a Spaniard, founded the Piarists, an order dedicated to the education of poor children.

GOSPEL READING:           Mt 22: 34- 40

     When the Pharisees heard how Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, they came together. One of them, a teacher of the Law, tried to test him with this question, "Teacher, which is the most important commandment in the Law?"

     Jesus answered, "You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and the most important of the commandments. But after this there is another one very similar to it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. The whole Law and the Prophets are founded on these two commandments."

REFLECTION

     When we love someone, we try to give our very best.. We wish to make the loved one happy. We show love in various ways - in words of affirmation and love, in giving of gifts and service, in presence and touch.

     How have we shown our love of God? We declare our love in our prayers. We spend quality time with God in prayer, at Masses and religious services. We serve God through people and his Church. We show love and respect to God by showing love and respect to religious objects and places.

     How do we show our love of neighbor? Jesus' account of the Last Judgment is his model for love of neighbor: "Come, blessed of my Father! Take possession of the kingdom prepared for you from the beginning of the world. For I was hungry and you fed me, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me into your house, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to see me." (Mt 25: 34- 36)

     "Lord, when did we see you hungry ... thirsty ... a stranger ... naked... sick or in prison. . .?" "The King will answer, 'Truly, I say to you: whenever you did this to these little ones who are my brothers and sisters, you did it to me."' (Mt 25: 37- 40)

     And to those on his left, "Go, cursed people, out of my sight into the eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil and his angels! ... Whatever you did not do for one of these little ones, you did not do for me." (Mt 25: 41 - 45)

     Is there a better way to express or describe how to "love your neighbor as yourself?"

WE PRAY FOR MTQ DAILY PRAYER INTENTIONS:

BIRTHDAY

     JUANITA TEMEW

     KRISFORD L. MACALALAD

     LEO ABOT

IN MEMORIAM (†) 

     ROWENA OCAMPO YAO

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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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: 

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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.  

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

August 24, 2017 – THURSDAY, 20TH Week in Ordinary Time

ST. BARTHOLOMEW, Apostle

Feast, Red

Rev 21: 9b- 14 / Jn 1: 45 -51

     St. Bartholomew, Apostle, is identified with Nathanael from Cana in Galilee whom Jesus called as one of his first followers. Tradition says he was martyed in India.

1st Reading:       Rev 21: 9b- 14

     And the angel said, "Come, I am going to show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb." He took me up in a spiritual vision to a very high mountain and he showed me the holy city Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, like a precious jewel with the color of crystal-clear jasper.

     Its wall, large and high, has twelve gates; stationed at them are twelve angels. Over the gates are written the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel. Three gates face the east; three gates face the north; three gates face the south and three gates face the west. The city wall stands on twelve foundation stones on which are written the twelve apostles of the Lamb.

GOSPEL READING:           Jn 1: 45- 51

     Philip found Nathanael and said to him, "We have found the one that Moses wrote about in the Law, and the prophets as well: he is Jesus, son of Joseph, from Nazareth." Nathanael replied, "Can anything good come from Nazareth?" Philip said to him, "Come and see,"

     When Jesus saw Nathanael coming, he said of him, "Here comes an Israelite: a true one; there is nothing false in him." Nathanael asked him, "How do you know me?" And Jesus said to him, "Before Philip called you, you were under the

fig tree and I saw you."

     Nathanael answered, "Master, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!" But Jesus replied, "You believe because I said, 'I saw you under the fig tree.' But you will see greater things than that. Truly, I say to you, you will see the heavens opened and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man."

REFLECTION

     In the very simple exchange in the Gospel reading we see Nathanael's faith (or lack of it?) shift almost instantaneously from skepticism ("Can anything good come from Nazareth?") to sudden, almost blind belief in Jesus because Jesus said Nathanael was a "true Israelite" and that, "before Philip called you, you were under the fig tree and I saw you."

     We do know that the simple faith Nathanael (whose feast as St. Bartholomew, Apostle, we celebrate today) displayed when initially informed about and introduced to Jesus grew and strengthened in his years with Jesus in his public life. Tradition says this faith and love of Jesus were proven by his martyrdom in India.

     We pray that God may confirm and strengthen our faith in him.

WE PRAY FOR MTQ DAILY PRAYER INTENTIONS:

BIRTHDAY

     ANGELO CARLO A. GONZALES

     BRYCE KING CATHERINE EDEN

     THERESE M. CHUA

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.  

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